Blome, in his brief account of Jamaica, published in 1672, speaks of
cacao as being one of the chief articles of export. He states that
there were sixty cacao-walks or plantations, and many more planting;
but, for many years, no cacao plantation has existed in Jamaica, all
the chocolate used being made from imported berries, or the chance
growth of a munificent climate and redundant soil! A few scattered
trees, Edwards says (and as I my self know), here and there, are all
that remain of those flourishing and beautiful groves, which were once
the pride and boast of the country. They have withered with the indigo
manufactory, under the heavy hand of ministerial exaction. _The excise
on cacao, when made into cakes, rose to no less than £12 12s. per
cwt., exclusive of 11s. 11½d. paid at the Custom-house, amounting
together to upwards of £840 per cent. on its marketable value!_

The mode of cultivating the cacao is given at some length by Edwards;
it is that of the Spaniards, a process strictly followed in Trinidad,
where, of all the West India islands, it constitutes a considerable
item of exports. It is thus described:--"A spot of level land being
chosen--preference is always given to a deep black mould, sheltered by
a hedge or thicket, so as to be screened by the wind, especially the
north, and cleared of all weeds and stumps of trees--a number of holes
are dug, at ten or twelve feet distance from each other, each hole
being about a foot in length, and six or eight inches deep. A very
important matter is the selection of the seeds for planting, and this
is done in the following manner: the finest and largest pods of the
cacao are selected when full ripe, and the grains taken out and placed
in a vessel of water. Those which swim are rejected; those chosen are
washed clean from the pulp, skinned, and then replaced in the water
till they begin to sprout; Banana (_Musa paradisiaca_), or some other
large leaves, those of the sea-side grape (_Coccoloba uvifera_), for