torrefaction, have been considered; and as the beverage made from it
contains all the essential virtues of the berry, which united are most
proper for dietetic purposes, I have not entered into any discussion
of its component parts separately, nor of the distilled water, syrup,
oil, and other simple preparations which have been made from the berry;
for I do not believe, that these preparations possess any properties
deserving particular notice; but that we are indebted to the virtues we
derive from Coffee, to the total derangement of its natural state, by
the process it undergoes in roasting at the fire.--And therefore the
fabulous story of the first discovery of its effects, does not merit
the least attention.
THE mode of preparing this beverage for common use differs in different
countries, principally as to the additions made to it.--But though that
is generally understood, and that taste, constitution, the quality of
the Coffee, and the quantity intended to be drunk, must be consulted,
in regard to the proportion of Coffee to the water in making it--yet
there is one material point, the importance of which is not well
understood, and which admits of no deviation.
THE preservation of the virtues of Coffee, particularly when it is of
a fine quality, and exempt from rankness, as has been said, depends on
carefully confining it after it has been roasted; and not powdering it
until the time of using it, that the volatile and æthereal principles,
generated by the fire, may not escape. But all this will signify
nothing, and the best materials will be useless, unless the following
important admonition is strictly attended to; which is, that after the
liquor is made,--_it should be bright and clear, and entirely exempt
from the least cloudiness or foul appearance, from a suspension of any
of the particles of the substance of the Coffee_.
THERE is scarcely any vegetable infusion or decoction, whose effects
differ from its gross origin more than that of which we are speaking.
Coffee taken in substance causes oppression at the stomach, heat,
nausea, and indigestion: consequently a continued use of a preparation
of it, in which any quantity of its substance is contained, besides
being disgusting to the palate, must tend to produce the same
indispositions. The residuum of the roasted berry, after its virtues
are extracted from it, is little more than an earthy calx, and must
therefore be injurious.
THE want of attention to this circumstance, I make no doubt, has been
the cause of many of the complaints against Coffee, and of the aversion
which some people have to it; and it is from this consideration that
Coffee should not be prepared with milk instead of water, nor should
the milk be added to it on the fire, as is sometimes the case, for
oeconomical dietetic purposes, where only a small quantity of Coffee
is used, as the tenacity of the milk impedes the precipitation of
the grounds, which is necessary for the purity of the liquor, and
therefore neither the milk nor the sugar should be added, until after
it is made with water in the usual way, and the clarification of it is
completed[72].--The milk should be hot when added to the liquor of the
Coffee, which should also be hot, or both should be heated together, in
this mode of using Coffee as an article of sustenance.
[72] It is not to Coffee alone that this reflexion is confined;
every article we use as a diluter, demands the same attention.
Malt liquors, particular small beer, which in this respect is much
neglected, ought always to be carefully fined. The fæculent matter
entangled by the mucilage of the malt, is hurtful to digestion, and
detrimental to health.
THE Persians roast the membrane which envelopes the seed, and use
it together with the seed itself, in their manner of preparing the
infusion, and it is said to be a considerable improvement. The people
of fashion among the Turks and Persians make a delicate drink from the
capsules only, which is cooling and refreshing; particularly in summer
time. This was much extolled by the French travellers, who saw no other
Coffee used at the houses of the great. This is called by the French,
_Café à la Sultane_.
THE Turks, Arabians, Persians, and Egyptians, drink Coffee all day
long, in small cups, supping it up by a little at a time, as hot as
they can bear it; and what is prepared from three or four ounces among
them, is considered as a moderate quantity for one person in a day. In
the Dutch, French, and English Colonies, it is the daily breakfast and
evening repast.
IF a knowledge of the principles of Coffee, founded on examination and
various experiments, added to observations made on the extensive and
indiscriminate use of it, cannot authorize us to attribute to it any
particular quality unfriendly to the human frame;--if the unerring
test of experience has confirmed its utility, in many countries, not
exclusively productive of those inconveniencies, habits, and diseases,
for which its peculiar properties seem most applicable;--let those
properties be duly considered; and let us reflect on the state of our
atmosphere; the food and modes of life of the inhabitants,--and the
chronical infirmities which derive their origin from these sources, and
it will be evident what salutary effects might be expected from the
general dietetic use of Coffee in Great Britain.
BUT this important object cannot be accomplished while England frowns
on West Indian agriculture and commerce.
WITH legislative consideration and encouragement, good Coffee would
be produced in our West Indian Islands in such abundance, that,
as in France, it might be afforded here at a price to render it a
cheap substitute for those enervating teas and beverages, which the
inferior classes of people adopt from necessity, and which produce the
pernicious habit of dram-drinking.
THE increased consumption of the article, for reasons already urged,
would benefit the State;--and the poor would be supplied with an
wholesome ingredient for improving their diet; which, if we extend
our views remote from the Metropolis, will be found such as would
admit of much addition and melioration, without any suspicion of the
interposition of Providence in their favour, or endangering the SALUS
POPULI on the score of superfluity and luxury.
FINIS.
Spelling corrections:
accceptable → acceptable
suprized → surprized
pubic → public
metioned → mentioned
prejudical → prejudicial
disaagreeable → disagreeable