The times., 1897-06-20

MI w s. Hammond, dark-skinned
Anglo-G u8temalan, whose business is To
about his business at the Normandie last
night.
Most Of the Guatemalan crop is shipped
to San Francisco and London. though the
greatest coffee market In the world Is
Hamburg Mr. Hammond stated that
Americans as a rule are satisfied with
the lower grades of coffee, such as are
grown / n Brazil, though Philadelphia, as a
retail market, demands the best quality.
Much of the Guatemaian product is sold
as Mocha and ten bags of Mocha are
consumed to one that is grown.
To the uninitiated coffee plantation
might readily be taken for cherry orchard,
for the fruit OF the coffee tree is very
like the cherry in size, color and shape.
Despite the fact that the berries grow in
clusters, each must be picked separately,
and the pickings occur thrice yearly. After
the berries have been gathered they are
removed to the machine house, where the
.pulper' frees the berries from the sur
rounding pulp. Then the berries are fer
ruented for twenty-four hours, after which
they are washed, dried and returned to
the machine house, where device removes
the thin huh known as the programme
This result is sometimes accomplished by
the natives with flail or by treading with
the bare feet. After the husk has been
thoroughly beaten the rchaff and grain
are separated by being poured frorn one
basket into another, dra ft blowing away
the lighter particles OF matter.
In choosing coffee and the planter sheuld
select a mountainous district where there
is plenty moisture, an d where the tempera-
ture does not rise above SO nor sink
below % degrees. The land is to be
cleared, though il is question whether
a few trees for purpose OF shade ought
not to he left standing. There is a dif-
ference OF opinion among coffee growers
as Co the superiority of sun or shade
grown coffee tFSSs The consensus Of
opinion appears to be that a Plants ton
sparoely covered with shade trees VIII
produce the best results. IL is SAID that
coffee trees nurtured in the sun viii
overbear one year and VIII he unpfaluctive
the next. The GuatemSian pia f4fations
however, are destitute of shade trees.
When the ground has been cleared and
staked out, holes are dug three feet apart
to receive the young trees. These are
cultivated in seed be DIS till they are ten
or fifteen inches high. when they may be
set out After transpianta ton they re-
quire but little care other than being
kept free frcm weeds and choking grasses.
The coffee tree begins to Flower when
IL is about two years old. AZ the age of
four it should yield about quarter OF a
pound of coffee, and it should he n its
prime when six years old Then it viii
yield full pound of coffee. One pound to
the tree is q good average though some
freak trees will yield five pounds each.
and there is one famous old tree in
southern Guatemala which is said to have
produced twenty pounds OF coffee in one
season The flower OF the coffee tree is
very pretty. tits white and exhales asweet
perfume, which often noticeable by people
far out at sea.
The coffee, before marketed, is classified
into ''caracolillo,'' first and second class,
and packed in bags of $50 and 200 pounds,
the best grades being packed in the smaller
sacks. The coffee tree is not much exposed
to insects. 1t has certain enemies, hut 80
overcome these entails no great difficulty
The coffee planter is an epicure in the
matter of coffee, and Mr. Hammond recon-
nended the following as recipe for max
ing matches black coffee: Roast one
pound of coffee until theoutside OF the grain
is brown; then mix In small teaspoonful
of butter and the same amount of sugar;
sprinkle a little brandy over the whole,
and thea cover with a thick cloth Leave
it for an hour and then grind. Boil one
quart of water; when boiling put in the cof
fee and remove the mixture from the fire
at once. Let it stand for few hours and
then strain through flannel bag. Keep
the coffee in u stone jar for use, heating
whatever quantity is required