The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1907-09-21
A WOMAN COFFEE PLANTER.

DdlIQ VI vera OIuL, MCAlSO, WuCu
questioned by reporter. IT am my
own manager, supervisor and sales
woman"
Eighteen years ago was girl
in Massachusetts, and knowing that
the man I loved had consumption I
married him. 1t wasn't considered
as dangerous in those days as it is
now, but still had I known that 1
would catch the disease the next day
1 should have married him.
"Soon after the birth of our first
child persuaded him to give up his
place in the factory and go South.
We went to Texas, near Galveston.
eve were there for year, when
an old doctor told me that if l would
take my husband to Mexico and make
him work and exercise out of doors
he would live much longer even if he
didn't get entirely well. My hus-
band had got to the melancholy stage
and it was pretty hard to make him
believe there was anything to look
forward to.
1--WE had two children then, and
one was only three months old, but I
knew we couldn't afford to put off
our departure. We spent about 20
months going from one place to an
other. trying to find some place that
would suit my husband.
1--WE reached Vera Cruz finally.
There we found small farm few
miles from the city that suited us and
we started to raise coffee.
"a few of cur plants bore in their
third year. The next year we had
coffee to sell, but because there was
only few dozen pounds we had to
lose about half the profit by disposing
of it to a large coffee planter, who
shipped it to New York.
"Such an arrangement suited neith-
er my husband nor me. We deter
mined to 60 into the business suffi-
GENTLY to make il pay. Ten years
from the time we moved into our lit
tie farm we shipped our first coffee
direct to this market. My husband
died three years ago and since then I
have conducted the business.
"There are two varieties of coffee
raised in Mexico. That which thrives
best on the temperate tablelands is
called by the natives arabica, and is
much like mocha. 1t is easily affect
ed by the weather and is neither as
thrifty nor as prolific as the hot country
variety, which resembles Java coffee.
"As my farm is in Vera Cruz it is
this hot country coffee that I cu1ti-
vate and know most about. 1t is best
propagated by seed, which are plant
ed In beds under cultivated trees.
"The coffee plant seldom blossoms
before its third year. At that time its
foliage is a vivid green, the blooms
and subsequent berries growing along
the stems in clusters. The blooms
are more like jasmine blossoms than
any flower here and sweeter, more
fragrant than the flower of the orange.
"The coffee berryis at first a glossy,
green, then brown and finally dark
crimson. Picking, which must al
ways be done by hand, Is a slow and
tedious process, as each berry must
be picked separately and dropped into
the bag or basket which the picker
carries suspended around his neck.
As rule the coffee pickers liz Mexico
are peon women and children. The
pay is IS cents in Mexican money,
which amounts to about II cents in
United States currency for each basket
or bag of fifteen pounds.
"At present about the only prob
lem that the coffee planter of Mexico
has to face is that of labor. The
Mexican poems are very much like
the American negro, and while peo-
pie from the Southern States find
them easy enough to get on with,
those who have lived in the North,
especially in New England, are harder
to please.
s'While the peon will only work
when he feels like it he requires that
you treat him with the utmost con-
sideration and dignity. They are the
most independent people in the world
and are always suspicious of the grin.
Cos, as they call all white people.
The peon may be without place to
lay his head and half starving, but he
will not work for a gringo he dislikes.
"Some of the largest coffee plan
ters are solving this problem by i'm
porting Chinese coolies. The Celes-
tial by reason of his energy, industry
and eagerness to save money is about
as satisfactory servant as could be
asked. Perfectly content to work
year in and year out with never a day
off or holiday to celebrate, he is as
cheap as the peon and has no exalted
ideas of his own dignity.
"From all 1 have read and heard I
fancy that life on the large Mexican
coffee plantations today is very much
like the life on the old Southern cot
ton plantations before the civil war.
While we are isolated and at certain
seasons there is much of hard work,
for the greater part of the time there
Is plenty of leisure.
"The Mexicans are fond of dancing,
and when my three children are at
home from school there are generally
several dances each week on my dry
ing floor. In the daytime when the
place is not occupied by coffee beans
shere is always a game of tennis
going on.
"As the demand for Mexican cof-
fee in the United States is still far
ahead of the supply, I have never ex-
perienced any trouble in disposing Of