The Natural History of Chocolate / Being a Distinct and Particular Account of the Cocoa-Tree, its Growth and Culture, and the Preparation, Excellent Properties, and Medicinal Vertues of its Fruit

The treatise presents a practical natural history of the cacao tree and a manual for its cultivation, describing nursery selection, planting, harvesting and bean processing for transport. It examines prevailing complaints and argues for chocolate’s temperate, nourishing, and restorative qualities, discussing digestion, stamina, and longevity. The final section surveys culinary uses and medicinal applications, explains regional methods of preparing chocolate and extracting cacao butter, and offers recipes, topical formulations, and empirical remedies derived from long on-site observation.