Page:Willich, A. F. M. - The Domestic Encyclopædia (Vol. 2, 1802).djvu/44

26] COF commended for this purpose; and, after having previously extracted the saccharine particles, it ought to be carefully dried and roasted over a moderate fire. It seems, how- ever, doubtful whether the expence and labour necessarily attendant on such preparations, may be ade- quate to the advantage thus ob- tained : hence we are of opinion, that the most effectual method of rendering coffee cheaper, and preventing its importation, at least for home consumption, would be that of rearing this hardy shrub in our own climate. To encourage those who are desirous of making this patriotic experiment, we shall communicate the following parti- culars; on the authenticity of which the reader may fully depend : — A nobleman in Germany found, in a bag of raw coffee, twenty green berries, resembling oblong cher- ries, and each of which contained two beans. In March 1788, he planted them in a common garden- bed, two inches deep. In April it snowed, and was so cold, that the. windows were covered with ice, for two days. Notwithstanding this unfavourable prospect, five of the berries appeared above ground in the latter part of June, and all the. others previous to the middle of July. They grew rapidly, being in a shady situation, and a soil somewhat sandy, but well manured. In September of the same year, they had attained a height of about six inches, and dropped their small leaves about Michaelmas. During the winter, he covered them with a little hay, and afterwards with snow ; both of which were re- moved in the fine weather of April. In this simp'e manner, they were defended against the severity of German winters ; and in the fifth COF year, four of the little trees pro- duced together seventy-six berries. By the inattention of the gardener, two of die pi ants died in the very hard frosts of 1798 ; yet the re- maining eighteen were all in blos- som the ensuing spring, and yielded , in autumn, three pounds and a half of coffee-berries ; the flavour of which was not inferior to that im- ported from the island of Marti- nico. With respect to the medicinal properties of coffee, it is in general excitant and stimulating, though we doubt whether it relaxes animal fibres, as has by some au- thors been s .pposecl. Its more or. less wholesome effect greatly de- pends on the climate, as well as the age, constitution, and other pe- cul'arities of the individual. Hence it cannot be recommended to chil- dren, or persons of a hot, choleric, nervous, or pthisical habit ; nor will it be so safe and useful in warm, as in cold and temperate climates ; but to the phlegmatic and sedentary, a cup of coffee, one or two hours after a meal, or, which is still better, one hour before it, may be of ser- vice to promote digestion, and pre- vent or remove a propensity to sleep. In cases of spasmodic asth- ma, hypochondriasis, scrophula, diarrhoea, agui_s, and particularly against narcotic poisons, such as opium, hemlock, &c. coffee often produces the best effects : nor is there a domestic remedy, better adapted to relieve periodical head- achs which proceed from want of tone, or from debility of the sto- mach. COFFIN, a chest in which dead bodies are interred. • In ancient times, Ihe burying of deceased persons in coffins, was considered as a mark of the highest distinction.