Cacao is cultivated in the highlands as well as on the coasts of the north-eastern peninsula of the large and rich island of Celebes, which has within the last year or two been thrown open to foreign trade.  The plantations of it are even now considerable, and this branch of industry only requires not to be impeded by any obstacles in order to be still further extended.  It forms a large ingredient in the local trade, and furnishes many petty traders with their daily bread, not to speak of the landowners, for whom the cultivation of the cacao affords the only subsistence.  The preparation of the product differs from that adopted in the West Indies, but we have not been able to ascertain the practice.  We may reckon that 1,200 to 2,000 piculs of 133 lbs. are yearly produced; the prices vary much, being from 50 to 75 florins per picul.—­("Journal of the Indian Archipelago,” vol. ii., p. 829.)

Bourbon now produces 15,000 to 20,000 kilogrammes of cacao annually.  Cacao is grown to a small extent in some of the settlements of Western Africa, but as yet only a few puncheons have been exported, all the produce being required for local consumption.

The following figures give the imports and consumption of cacao into the United Kingdom in the last five years:—­

Imports.      Consumption.
lbs.           lbs.
1848      6,442,986
1849      7,769,234      3,233,135
1850      4,478,252      3,103,926
1851      6,773,960      3,024,338
1852      6,268,525      3,382,944

The home consumption is very steady at about 3,000,000 lbs., yielding to the revenue L15,000 to L16,000 for duty.  The produce of British colonies pays 1d. per lb. duty, that from foreign countries 2d; cocoa husks and shells half these amounts; when manufactured into chocolate or cocoa paste the duty is 2d. per lb. from British possessions, and 6d. from other parts.  The quantity imported in this form is to the extent of about 14,000 lbs. weight.

COFFEE.

The next staple I proceed to speak of is coffee—­second only in importance as a popular beverage to that universal commodity, tea.  I shall proceed, in the first instance, to take a retrospect of the progress of the coffee trade, and glance at the present condition and future prospects of produce and consumption.  It will be seen, by reference to the following figures, that the consumption of coffee in the United Kingdom shows a successive decrease, from 1847 to 1850, of 6,414,533 lbs., and a loss to the revenue of L179,614.

HOME CONSUMPTION AND REVENUE OF COFFEE FOR THE
  Years lbs.  L
   1824 8,262,943 420,988
   1825 11,082,970 315,809
   1828 17,127,633 440,245
   1835 23,295,046 652,124
   1839 26,789,945 779,115
   1840 28,723,735 921,551
   1844 31,394,225 681,610
   1845 34,318,095 717,871
   1846 36,793,061 756,838
   1847 37,441,373 746,436
   1848 37,106,292 710,270
   1849 34,431,074 643,210
   1850 31,226,840 566,822
   1851 32,564,164 445,739
   1852 35,044,376 438,084