1880 Facts about Port and Madeira by Henry Vizetelly

210

The Wines of Tenerife.

perishes under great heat or heavy rain. It can, however,take care ofitself to some extent,for it moves actively aboutand shifts to whichever side of the leaf affords it most shelter. After an interval of two or three days the insect inserts its proboscis into the leaf,and never moves again until it is gathered. These"mothers," which are the grey cochineal of commerce, are shell-like in form,of a grey colour,and light in weight, and being all colouring matter are sought after by manufacturers on account of their purity. The full-grown insect is gathered by scraping or brushing it off the leaf into some vessel, and is pre pared for market in various ways,among others by drying it in stoves built for the purpose,and in which the insect, spread lightly on trays, is placed. The result is the silver cochineal,more orless white and clear in colour,according to the amount of care that has been taken in gathering and killing it. Oflate years a method of preparing the cochineal has been introduced into the Canary Islands which leaves it black, shelly, and shiny. When this is accomplished with care the commodity fetches a high price. A small quantity of cochineal being placed in alonglinen bag is gentlyshaken,therebycausing the juice to exude. Careful management is necessary to avoid destroying the form of the insect, which, after being di-ied in the sun,is again shaken in a linen bag with some black metallic sand to give it brilliancy. The sand is afterwards sifted out, but as some of it always adheres the loss in weight is, perhaps,less than by killing the insect in the stove,and has doubtless led to the general adoption of the process. The cultivation of cochineal involves a considerable expendi- tm-e for guano or for chemical manure,otherwise the prickly pear plant would soon be exhausted bytheinsect; it moreover re quires to be carried onwhereirrigationis practicable.The quantity of cochineal produced in the Canary Islands ranges from 20,000 to 25,000 bags,of an average of 1751b. each, the value of it ordinarily being half-a-crown per lb. Any less price than two .shillings per lb. would not repay the cultivator. It was a holiday on the day of our visit to Laguna,and there