PREPARATION. —The preparation of the coffee necessitates the erection of extensive buildings and ma,chinery ; for these no specific plan can be given, because much depends upon the size and situa tion of the esta,te, and much upon the kind and degree of preparation contemplated. The 4site chosen for the works should be as near the centre of the plantation as is compatible with securing a patch of open airy ground, to which a good stream of water can be brought. The first requisite building is the " pulping house," comprising three floors—the cherry loft, the pulping platform, and the cisterns. Whenever possible, it should be built against a shallow cliff or embankment, so that the cherry-coffee may be delivered into the loft without being borne upstairs. The cherry loft is usually immediately over the pulping platform.
Pulping.—The operation known as "pulping " consists in liberating the coffee beans from the pulp in which they aro enveloped. With ripe cherries, this is most easily and effectively accom plished immediately after picldng, and efforts are usually made to complete the pulping of a day's picking during tho same evening ; if over ripe and shrivelled, but still comparatively moist inside, the cherries should first be soaked in water for a few hours. A number of machines ha,ve been invented for this purpose, the object in all cases being to pulp rapidly, thoroughly, and without injury to the bean ; if the inner skin of the bean he broken, the latter is wasted. The most simple form of pulping machine is the " disc pulper," in which the separation of the bean and the pulp ia effected by means of rotating discs, covered with a thin sheet of copper, whose surface has been " knobbed," or raised into rowa of oval knobs, by the application of a blind punch. Pulpera of this class, being portable and cheap, are often used in the opening of distant estates, and commonly in India and Java. The " single " form is very light ; driven by three coolies, it will pulp 20-25 bush. cherry an hour. The " double " form, shown in Fig. 500, has two discs, and is furnished with a feeding roller inside tho hopper. It requires four to six coolies to pulp 40 bush. an hour ; but driven
by power, it will do 70-80 bush. The discs are placed between " cushions " of smooth iron, set at such a distance that the cherries cannot pass without being bruised ; the cushions rest on a movable bed of iron, set so that no bean can pass downwards. When the disc revolves, the cherries are driven forward, and squeezed ; the corrugations then catch the skins, and drag them between the disc and bed. These small pulpers have an advantage over the larger ones, in that each can be eet to suit the size of A portion of the crop—which always varies ; and with a number of machines, there is less likelihood of complete stoppage in case of au accident. One disc pulper to every 30-40 acres—say three to 100 acres : two to be set alike, and one for smaller cherries--should be ample.
The " cylinder pulper" is an older invention than the preceding, and has been subjected to numerous modifications. The principle is illustrated in Fig. 501 ; a is a cylinder of various diameter, revolving in the direction of the arrow, The cherries and water are guided between the cylinder and a piece of iron, called a " chop," b, set at such a distance that the smallest cherry is bruised while the largest bean is not damaged. The teeth of the cylinder catch in the pulp and drag it within the second chop c, which is made sharp at the top and is set so that while admitting the pulp it rejects the beans, which fall into the trough d ; the pulp passes into the trough e. The cylinder is furnished with a toothed surface, by means of a sheet of copper pierced with a number of partial perforations, so ELS to resemble a magnified grater. Sometimes the punching is effected in such a manner as to produce three-cornered points, the apex of the triangle being at the top ; in other cases a " half-moon " punch ia used, and this is said to reduce the percentage of pricked beans. In any case, it is essential that the teeth shall be equally raised. Care must be taken to retain a bold working edge on the lower chop, as when it becomes worn aud rounded, small and dry beans are liable to be caught and broken.