also aroused suspicion of disloyalty in the gatherings, so that they were made the object of a royal proclamation by Charles II in 1675.

Coffee was introduced into England at about the same time as tea, and its use increased very rapidly, until it reached its maximum in 1854, when the import into Great Britain was 37,441,373 pounds. Since then the consumption has decreased, partly owing to a greater use of tea, and partly to the increase of coffee substitutes. The amount used in Great Britain in 1857 was one and a quarter pounds a head; in 1875-77 threequarters of a pound; in 1904 only three-fifths. In Holland and Germany in 1885 about fourteen pounds a head were consumed; in 1904 less than seven pounds. In the United States the amount was in 1885 about eight pounds; in 1904 it was twelve pounds, and the United States consumed about half the total supply of the world.

Brazil now supplies more than one-half of the coffee of the world, and nearly 75 per cent of that used in the United States.

The most valuable constituent of coffee is caffeine, an alkaloid identical with the theine of tea. There is present about I per cent of it. The peculiar flavor and aroma of coffee are due to one or more oils or fats, which become changed to peculiar aromatic compounds in the roasting. There is about 13 per cent of these, and they probably possess the stimulating properties noticed in the infusion. Caffeic acid, an astringent somewhat like the tannin of tea, is present, but only from 3 to 5 per cent. Hence the action.

of coffee is not as deleterious to the coatings of the stomach as is that of tea. Coffee also contains sugar to 5 or 7 per cent, which is all converted into caramel in roasting.

The exhausted berries also contain nutritious nitrogenous matter, and some Eastern nations drink grounds and all. In Sumatra the leaves are used, and seem to have a large proportion of the properties of the berry.

The effect of coffee on the human system is to counteract the tendency to sleep, and it is almost certain that it was this property which originally led to its use as a beverage. It also excites the nervous system, and when taken in excess produces contractions and tremors of the muscles, and a feeling of buoyancy and exhilaration somewhat similar to that produced by alcohol, but does not end with depression or collapse. Professor Johnstone thus describes the properties and effects of coffee: "It exhilarates, arouses, and keeps awake; it counteracts the stupor occasioned by fatigue, by disease, or opium; it allays hunger to a certain extent; it gives to the weary increased strength and vigor, and imparts a feeling of comfort and repose." Its physiological effects upon the system, so far as they have been investigated, appear to be that, while it makes the brain more active, it soothes the body generally, makes the change and waste of matter slower, and the demand for food in consequence less.

For soldiers and travelers exposed to great hardships, coffee is the best agent known for restoration of the exhausted energies. Its use can be abused, like

that of any other good thing, but, used understandingly, coffee is an important addition to one's diet.

There are few adulterants in whole coffee, though, as in the case of teas, inferior qualities are often substituted for the choicer varieties. It is very doubtful if the old story of coffee beans molded out of paper pulp deserves attention.

Glazing is the process of coating the coffee beans with white of egg or sugar, or with one of a variety of gums. This is ostensibly for the better preservation of the coffee, and for the purpose of saving the housewife the trouble of clarifying her own coffee. It may be questioned, however, whether the process is not for the purpose of deceiving the housewife with the substitution of an inferior bean for a better quality. If this is the case, then certainly glazing is a form of adulteration.

Ground coffee is variously adulterated. In Massachusetts the following adulterants have been found: roasted peas, beans, wheat, rye, oats, chicory, brown bread, pilot bread, charcoal, red slate, bark, and dried pellets made of ground peas, pea hulls, and cereals, held together with molasses.1

Of the ninety examples examined by the Massachusetts Board of Health in 1905 only four were found to be adulterated. Two were not labeled according to the law.

A small proportion of chicory in coffee is considered by many connoisseurs to impart a particularly agreeable flavor, and consequently its use is not condemned.

1 Leach, p. 292

The difficulty about sanctioning such a mixture is that if you give a man an inch he will take an ell, and in the end chicory may be the chief constituent. Here again enters in the problem of injury to morals and loss to pocketbooks, and of the need for protection against "swindling."

Villiers and Collin1 give the following analyses of two samples of chicory:

As yet there has been no seed found which, when roasted and ground, corresponds with coffee, either in its physiological properties or in the chemical composition.

The detection of the presence of chicory, caramel, and some of the sweet roots, as turnips, carrots, and parsnips, is quite easy. If a few grains of the suspected sample are placed on the surface of water in a

1 Falsifications et Alterations des Substances Alimentaires, p. 234; in Food Inspection and Analysis, p. 296.

glass vessel, beaker, or tumbler, each particle of chicory, etc, will become surrounded by a yellow-brown cloud, which rapidly diffuses through the water until the whole becomes colored. Pure coffee, under the same conditions, gives no sensible color to the water until after the lapse of about fifteen minutes. Caramel (burnt sugar) of course colors the water very deeply. Dandelion root gives a deeper color than coffee, but not as deep as chicory; this is true of bread raspings. The first two adulterations may be more readily detected by the taste, and the bread by its softening. Beans and peas give much less color to the water than pure coffee; they can be readily detected by the microscope, as can roasted figs and dates, or date stones. But the use of the microscope is not to be learned in one lesson, and the microscopical examination must be made by one who has skill. In months of practice one sees more and more each time the instrument is used, so that, while it is an invaluable aid to those accustomed to its use, it is as unreliable as the chemical tests in the hands of the unskilled.

The preparation of good coffee requires only an understanding of its properties, and is not as difficult or as dependent upon complicated apparatus as is often supposed. Raw coffee, when kept dry, improves with age. The best Java is said to be some seven or eight years old. To prepare the kernel for use, it must first be properly roasted by a quick heat, like that used for popping corn. The kernels should swell and pop in much the same way, though not to the same extent. When the flavor has thus been developed, and the berry