The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1896-01-06
A Boston Importer Makes Report
to Consul Gilman.
TEN POUND SAMPLE EXAMINED.
Lack of Improved Machinery in Gath
ering and Curing Crop Responsible
for Certain Bad Defects-Blend of
Hawaiian with other rCOffees-Notes.

J. w. r. Shapleigh, treasurer of
the Shapleigh Coffee Company, Bos-
ton, wrote to Hawaiian Consul Cor
man D. Gilman of the same place
the following letter about coffee
raised in the islands:
have been very much interested to
examine the ten pound sample OF Ha
waiian coffee to which you recently
called my attention. 1t is interesting
to me to see the product OF the island
and to have the opportunity of roast
ing and testing the same, which j
have carefully done.
/ have, during the past twenty
years, had my attention from time TO
time called TO Hawaiian cOtfees, and
when Kiug Kalakaua | visited Boston
| | met his Ministers with view Of the
possible importation of coffee from the
! island but learned from them that
there was no considerable surplus be-
yOnd the actual consumption of the
| island, and Negotiations were not
| prosecuted. | am, however, glad to
| know through you OF the large in
crease of acreage of coffee cultivation,
as believe that it can be made very
profitable crop from the personal
knowledge I have of coffee cultivation
in other parts OF the world.
The sample you have submitted to
me is, to the eye, very attractive III
the raw berry at first sight; closer eX-
animation, however, reveals. the lack
of improved machinery in the garb-
ling of the crOp-that is, the proper
separation of the bean from the pulp,
as the silver skin adheres to a large
| # RI ha fhnFn u
appears TO be an unusual proportion
of dead as well as sour berries, the
former of which are worthless and
the latter Objectionable on account of
bad flavor. The pr .sence OF broken
beans indicates also the crude ma
chinery used in st eparating the bean
from the dried cherry, the usually
accepted method of curing coffee being
today what is known as washing, by
which the pulp of the cherry is rotted
, and washed from the bean, which Is
left intact and uninjured.
, am interested to know If the sam
pie in question represents the average
: coffee of the island, and at some time i
: you are able to show me other sample:
1T will be desirable, if you can, to spec
fly whether they are from new farms
or farms which nave bad special cult
walton; also whether from low land OI
dry Situations and whether northern
or southern exposures, much depend
ing on the genera! conditions of soil
: situation and plan of cultivation-tha
l is, whether the trees are mulched an(
}. protected by the shade of banana trees
I planted alternately with the cOffet
trees or whether left without such pro
lection of shade. The roots of the cOf
fee plant, as perhaps you know, ar
0 largely uperfcial-that is, near th'
, surface-aDd require great deal o
moisture and at the same time pro
= lection from the SUMS direct rays.
S AS 10 the cup quality of the sampl
|. in question, [ discovered decides
o thinness, which is not desirable, an'
the requisite amount of coffee to pro
duce the body of a good Java [ fine
= nearly or quite double that of the Jaw;
of which [ sent you sample. Jh
flavor of the coffee, though peculiar, j
not undesirable, and [ can conceiv
that it is a flavor readily acquires
and, indeed, preferred by one accus
toned to it. This, L believe, Cal
/ be greatly improved by cultiva
ton, as indeed the size of tn
bean, which is quite below the desira
bic standard of Java, Mexican, Guate
= malaD, Costa Rican or Venezuelan
into competition with which it woul
most naturally be brought.
[ shall be glad at any time TO Sc
other samples from the islands, if the.
come to your hands, and We will 81
!. down together and enjoy cup of tn
= fragrant beverage, experimenting
. you desire with the blending of Ha
f waiian with other coffees which, il
= my opinion, will be the Daost natura
j and successful way to introduce it t
D the public favor.
The following official figures may b
interesting as showing the remarka