He Opened A Matchmaking Agency In 18Th Century London [EN]: Chapter 83

Coffee Farm’s Vigor

◈ Theo’s Coffee Farm

Clang, clang!

Thwack! Thwack, thwack!

The coffee farm was bustling with the sounds of hammering and digging from all directions.

Under Mr. Spencer’s direction, they were building a green bean processing facility right next to the farm.

Theo spotted Mr. Spencer in one corner, tirelessly shouting and giving instructions.

His energy was overflowing, making it hard to believe he was in his sixties.

“Mr. Spencer!”

At Theo’s call, Mr. Spencer, who had been in the middle of his instructions, turned his head.

“Oh, Lord Sanderson! Haha—when did you arrive?”

After exchanging greetings and pleasantries, Theo looked at the facility under construction and asked,

“By the way, Mr. Spencer, most coffee farms build their green bean processing facilities near the port and transport the beans there for processing. That way, they can export with less effort and ship quickly, which reduces costs.”

Mr. Spencer frowned.

“That kind of short-sighted thinking is why the freshness of the coffee beans deteriorates and poor-quality coffee is made.

To make good beans, the green bean processing facility must be right next to the coffee farm. You have to start processing the coffee beans as soon as they are harvested to maintain the best quality.”

As Mr. Spencer said, harvested coffee beans need to be processed immediately to maintain freshness and quality.

However, most Jamaican coffee farms had green bean processing facilities near the port. This was due to cost savings and ease of transportation.

But doing so inevitably increased the waiting time for processing, and the beans were bound to be damaged during transport to the port.

“I see your point.”

Mr. Spencer looked at the facilities he was building with satisfaction and continued,

“Building a green bean processing facility requires experienced carpenters and laborers, and I was worried about whether I could find them and whether they would even come up to these high mountains. Above all, I was very anxious because I needed to start coffee farming as soon as possible.

But Samson and the slaves here are quite skilled. They’re even better than regular carpenters. When I tell them what kind of facility I want, Samson steps up and builds it even better than I imagined, so it’s so easy. Haha.”

“That’s a relief.”

“Besides, a fellow named Peter examines the machines when they break down, figures out how they work, and fixes them quickly. I’ve employed many slaves so far, but these are the smartest I’ve ever had.”

Taking Noah’s advice and choosing Samson and Peter was a really good decision.

The farm owner who sold Samson at the time considered him useless because he was missing a foot, and Peter was sold cheaply because of his weak body.

In fact, Samson’s carpentry skills and Peter’s machine handling skills are of little use in growing sugar cane and squeezing sugar cane juice.

Thanks to this, Theo easily obtained the right people for the coffee farm.

“Anyway, the slaves here have bright personalities and are very quick-witted. A few days ago, I taught them how to pick coffee beans as a practice, and they picked really good beans. They are doing a great job.

In my experience, some black slaves just smile like fools and can’t do their jobs well, but these guys work well and get along well, so it makes me want to work with them. I don’t have to nag as much, haha.”

“Haha, that’s good.”

‘If this is what it’s like when he nags less, how much of a nag was he before?’ Theo wondered.

“Look at this! Lower it more there! That way the rainwater will drain properly! How frustrating!”

Mr. Spencer outwardly expressed his annoyance, but he seemed quite pleased with the farm’s slaves, who were working diligently according to his instructions.

Just then, Theo called out to Samson, who was limping by.

“Samson! Thanks for working so hard to build this so wonderfully. I’ve brought some food and construction tools to keep in your room, so use them when you need them!”

“Oh, Master. You don’t have to worry about me so much, thank you.”

Seeing Samson waving his calloused, rough hands in gratitude, Theo felt both reassured and somewhat sorry.

Samson, in his mid-thirties, was one of the older slaves here.

However, because of his missing foot, none of the black female slaves wanted to marry him.

‘It would be nice to find a suitable partner for him…’ Theo thought.

*

Coffee farm lunchtime.

The tables in the communal dining hall were laden with food made from ingredients Theo had brought.

The black slaves from Palmer Farm, who had carried Theo’s luggage, were wide-eyed.

They had expected food cooked with cassava [a starchy root vegetable] or plantains [a type of banana], but they were surprised by the rich and well-prepared dishes.

Once Mr. Spencer arrived, the meal began in earnest.

Although the food was made by the black slaves, they were able to taste quite decent dishes thanks to Mary and Becky, who had been in charge of the white farm owner’s kitchen.

The slaves on the coffee farm, who were hungry from working, hurriedly stuffed food into their mouths, and the black slaves from Palmer Farm were also busy eating.

After the meal was somewhat over, Theo looked at the black communal residence and said,

“It’s only been a few weeks, but this place has changed a lot.”

The existing buildings had already been renovated and were not bad, but with these additions, the entire residence felt very solid and stable.

Mr. Spencer, who was eating fruit, also nodded.

“The weather has been good lately, and Samson is so meticulous that things seem to be progressing smoothly. Even in very large farms, the slave residences are all terrible, but this place seems like a different world, haha.”

As Mr. Spencer said, slave residences in the colonies were terrible everywhere.

They were flimsy shacks or shanties, and the beds were just two or three planks laid across supports.

The spaces, no different from livestock barns, were the homes of black slaves in the colonies at this time.

In comparison, Theo’s coffee farm’s communal residence had decent living spaces and kitchen facilities, as well as other living spaces.

In addition, Theo had specially bought and provided soft blankets for each person to use, which the coffee farm slaves considered a luxury.

In other farms’ black slave residences, it was common to sleep under rough mats woven from manioc straw instead of proper blankets.

Some black female slaves even sold their bodies to white or mixed-race overseers to obtain a single cloth blanket.

To slaves who lived in such environments, Theo’s coffee farm was a human dwelling they had never experienced before.

“At first, I wondered why Lord Sanderson was so concerned about the lives of black slaves. I had never seen slaves treated so well in my life.

But when I looked closely, the slaves’ expressions were different and their actions were very motivated. They couldn’t have been more serious when inspecting and picking the beans.

That’s when I understood. Ah—Lord Sanderson thought of this. Perhaps treating them well and having them work is much more effective than hitting and cursing them. So I also reduced my nagging a lot, haha.”

“Yes, that’s right. I believe that the person who makes something must be happy for happy things to come from their hands. Although they are slaves, shouldn’t they work with joy in their hearts so that Mr. Spencer and I can produce the best coffee we so desire? Haha.”

Mr. Spencer nodded and smiled contentedly.

“The green bean processing facility is right next to the coffee farm, which is a good location, and the factory is spacious, which will be great for washing and processing the green beans.

I especially like the drying yard. It has a structure that allows for good sunlight and ventilation, so the temperature can be maintained appropriately.

Moreover, thanks to Lord Sanderson, the slaves are so energetic that they try to work on their own, which makes it easier for me to give them instructions.

Everything seems to be going better than I expected, so I’m very pleased, haha.”

“Yes, that’s a relief.”

Mr. Spencer, the best expert in coffee, and motivated workers. And a coffee-growing area blessed by nature.

Theo was already looking forward to what kind of aroma and taste the coffee from this place would have.

◈ Lord Gray’s Residence

Theo, after looking around the coffee farm, was only able to return to his lodgings late in the evening.

Clack. Clack.

Theo’s carriage stopped on one side of the garden.

But someone was pacing in the garden.

As Theo got out of the carriage, the man who had been pacing hurried over.

“Hello? Lord Sanderson!”

It was Jonathan Butler, Eliza’s older brother.

“Ah, Lord Butler? Hello?”

“You’re coming down from the farm?”

His expression was very dark as he greeted him.

“Ah, yes. I’ve been looking at the farm. But were you waiting for me, by any chance?”

“…Yes.”

“Something happened to Miss Butler?”

Jonathan opened his mouth in a heavy voice.

“Yes, that’s right.”

“What is it?”

“This afternoon, Leonard came to the house to visit Eliza, but suddenly Lord Evans’ butler burst in.”

“!”

“Lord Jacob Evans found out that Leonard was visiting our house and was furious. Then he forcibly dragged Leonard away. Because of this, Eliza is bedridden again.”

“Oh dear.”

The thing he had feared had finally happened.

If he had treated her a little longer, Eliza’s conversion disorder symptoms, which had come on suddenly, would have improved a lot, and then she would have had the strength to overcome it on her own.

Theo felt resentful towards Lord Jacob Evans, whom he had never even met.

He was worried about Eliza’s emotional state, having seen Leonard being dragged away.

“Go home first. I’ll follow you as soon as I get ready.”

“Yes, I understand. Thank you so much, even though you must be tired.”

After sending off the apologetic Jonathan Butler, Theo prepared to follow him soon.

**

Lord Butler’s living room.

Fortunately, Eliza’s condition was not as bad as he had thought. She hadn’t lost her sight like last time.

However, she was quite psychologically withdrawn, and her brightened emotions were turning back to gloomy ones.

Theo soothed Eliza’s emotions by sharing stories to calm her mind, and after seeing her fall asleep, he returned to the living room.

Theo said to the Butler family, who were full of worries,

“Having watched Eliza and Leonard by their sides for a while, I think they are a very well-matched couple.

Even if you searched all of London, it would never be easy to find someone as suitable as them.”

Lord Butler’s family also agreed with Theo’s words.

They had also known Leonard for a long time and knew that he was a better man than anyone else.

Moreover, as long as Lord Isaac Evans was alive, Eliza had received a lot of love from the lord, and all of Leonard’s family members liked her.

But everything went wrong when Jacob Evans became the head of the family and received the title of lord.

Lady Butler opened her mouth with difficulty.

“We know that the two like each other and get along well, but will Lord Jacob Evans really accept our daughter as his brother’s marriage partner? After all, it is true that our eldest son caused his disability.

And I don’t want to send our Eliza to a family with such a person as the head of the household.”

Theo understood the lady’s feelings.

“Yes, that’s right. But isn’t the most important thing right now to restore your daughter’s health? Although there are problems between the families and they have become distant from each other, I think we should first do whatever we can to restore your daughter’s health and then think about other things.”

The eldest son, Jonathan, shook his head.

“That’s true, but… there’s no way. Now that Jacob Evans has taken Leonard away, he will never send Leonard to our house. With his violent temper, he may even be keeping Leonard locked up.”

Theo, who had been contemplating something, opened his mouth as if he had made up his mind.

“I will visit the Evans’ residence as soon as possible.”

The Butler family all looked at Theo at once.

“I’ll go and try to persuade him. We can’t just let Eliza get sick like this again, can we?”

“…Lord Sanderson.”

The Butler family, who had been sighing because they had no other solution, felt great gratitude for Theo’s thoughtfulness.

But it was doubtful whether Jacob would change his mind even if Theo stepped in.

“How wonderful would it have been if Lord Isaac Evans were still alive at a time like this? How much the lord loved our Eliza…”

Lady Butler was in tears over the unfortunate situation.