The Commercial Products of the Vegetable Kingdom Part 82

IMPORTS IN 1846.

Palm oil. Olive oil. Castor oil.

cwts. tuns. cwts.

Western Africa 475,364 1 -- United States 13,349 -- 290 Naples and Sicily 14 9,661 -- East Indies -- -- 6,315 Canary Islands 3,719 -- -- Malta -- 2,237 -- Turkish Empire -- 1,712 -- Tuscany -- 832 -- Spain -- 753 -- Brazil 525 -- -- Ionian Islands -- 506 -- Morocco -- 368 -- Madeira 353 -- -- Sardinia -- 333 11 Miscellaneous 7 471 65 ------- ------- ------- Total 493,331 16,864 9,681

IMPORTS IN 1850 Linseed. Rape seed.

quarters. quarters.

Russia 482,813 3,235 Sweden 870 -- Norway 268 -- Denmark 37 3,092 Russia 87,273 645 Hanse Towns 1,153 2,872 Holland 7,734 201 Naples 1,476 -- Austrian Territories 40 2,580 Greece -- 1,637 Wallachia and Moldavia 910 1,280 Egypt 17,517 -- East Indian Empire 26,142 13,126 Miscellaneous 262 922 -------- ------ Total 626,495 29,495

OIL-CAKE.--It has been observed by Evelyn that one bushel of walnuts will yield fifteen pounds of peeled kernels, and these will produce half that weight of oil, which the sooner it is drawn is the more in quant.i.ty, though the drier the nut the better its quality. The cake or marc of the pressing is excellent for fattening hogs and for manure.

Oats contain, as a maximum, about seven per cent. of oil, and Indian corn nine per cent. The cake of the gold of pleasure contains twelve per cent. Indeed the most valuable oil-cakes are those of the _Camelina sativa_, poppies and walnuts, which are nearly equal; next to these are the cakes of hemp, cotton, and beech-mast. In France the extraction and purification of oil from the cotton seed is a recent branch of labor, the refuse of which is likely to prove useful in agriculture; its value as a manure being nearly ten times greater than that of common dung. Oil is obtained from maize or Indian corn in the process of making whiskey. It rises in the mash tubs and is found in the sc.u.m at the surface, being separated either by the fermentation or the action of heat. It is then skimmed off, and put away in a cask to deposit its impurities; after which it is drawn off in a pure state, fit for immediate use. The oil is limpid, has a slight tinge of the yellow color of the corn, and is inoffensive to the taste and smell.

It is not a drying oil, and therefore cannot be used for paint, but burns freely in lamps and is useful for oiling machinery.

Among the various seeds used in the manufacture of oil-cake, flour of linseed is the most important. Rape seed is also employed, but is considered heating. In Lubeck, a marc, called dodder cake, is made from the _Camelina sativa_. Inferior oil-cake is made from the poppy in India. Cotton-seed cake has lately been recommended on account of its cheapness, being usually thrown away as refuse by the cotton manufacturers. It is extensively used as a cattle food, in an unprepared state, in various parts of the tropical world, and to a limited extent in this country.

The cost of seed, freight included, was 2d. per lb. from Charlestown to Port Glasgow. Cotton oil-cake is now ordered at the same price as linseed cake. The produce of oil-cake and oil from cotton seed, is two gallons of oil to one cwt. of seed, leaving about 96 lbs of cake; 8 lbs. is the daily allowance for cattle in England.

Cotton seed oil, very pure, is manufactured to a considerable extent at Ma.r.s.eilles, by De Gimezney, from Egyptian seed; and he received a prize medal at the Great Exhibition.

Account of the export of linseed and rapeseed cakes from Stettin, princ.i.p.ally to England, in--

cwts.

1834 33,518 1835 27,038 1836 56,581 1837 70,643 1838 119,540 1839 115,416 1840 162,457 1841 143,816 1842 119,814

The quant.i.ty of oil-seed cakes imported into the United Kingdom was in--

tons.

1849 59,462 1850 65,055 1851 55,076 1852 53,616

Cargoes of oil-cake, to the value of 22,207, were exported from the port of Shanghae, in China, in 1849.

2,467 tons of oil-cake were brought down to New Orleans from the interior in 1848, and 1,032 tons in 1849.

Seven samples of American oil-cake gave the following results:--

Oil 11.41 Water 7.60 Nitrogen 4.74 Ash 6.35

From the above figures, the scientific farmer will see that the manure formed by 100 lbs. of oil-cake is more than that derived from 300 lbs.

of Indian corn. 300 lbs. of corn contain about l lbs. phosphoric acid; 100 lbs. oil-cake contain about 2 lbs.

VOLATILE OR ESSENTIAL OILS occur in the stems, leaves, flowers and fruit of many odoriferous plants, and are procured by distillation along with water. They are called "essences," and contain the concentrated odor of the plant. They usually exist ready-formed, but occasionally they are obtained by a kind of fermentation, as oil of bitter almonds and oil of mustard. Some of them consist of carbon and hydrogen only, as oil of turpentine, from _Juniperus communis;_ oil of savin, from _Juniperus Sabina;_ oil of lemons and oranges, from the rind of the fruit; and oil of nerole, from orange flowers. A second set contain oxygen in addition, as oil of cinnamon, from _Cinnamonum verum;_ otto or attar of roses, from various species of rose, especially _Rosa centifolia;_ oil of cloves, from _Caryophyllus aromaticus_.

Those princ.i.p.ally obtained from tropical shrubs and plants are citronella, oil of oranges and lemons, from the rind of the fruit oil of cinnamon and cloves, croton oil, &c.

The oil of Sandal or Sanders wood _(Santalum alb.u.m_), grown on the Malabar coast, is much esteemed as a perfume. Keora oil, from _Panda.n.u.s odoratissimus_, in Bengal. Oil of spikenard, so highly prized, on account of its perfume, by the ancients, may be procured in Sagur, Nepaul, and the mountains of the Himalaya.

956 lbs. of essential oils were imported into Hull in 1850. There were exported from Ceylon in 1842, 902 cases; in 1843, 138; in 1844, 20; in 1845, 25 cases of essential oils, and in the last two years as follows:--

1852. 1851.

cases. cases.

Cinnamon oil 17 23 Citronella oil 110 87 Essential oil 72 35

Of chemical, essential, and perfumed oils imported from France, the quant.i.ty is about 35,000 lbs. annually, worth 10,000. The duty is 1s.

per lb. We also imported from France, in 1851, 9,596 cwt. of oil or spirit of turpentine, worth 14,197, on which a duty of 5s. 3d. per cwt. is levied.

From Western Australia some distilled oil of the Liptospermum was shown at the Exhibition, which it is stated may be obtained in any quant.i.ty, and a similar oil produced, by distillation, from the _Eucalyptus piperita_, a powerful solvent of caoutchouc, evidently very similar, if not altogether identical, with the oil of cajeput.

The characters of these two oils are much alike and without some care it is difficult to distinguish them from one another by the odor; the liptospermum oil has a slight tinge of yellow, its specific gravity is 0.9035; the eucalyptus oil is colorless, and has a density of 0.9145.

It is probable that these oils might be used with great advantage in the manufacture of varnish, they readily dissolve copal, and when its solution is spread over any surface the oil soon evaporates, and leaves a hard, brilliant and uniform coating of the resin. These oils, according to Prof. Solly, are specially worthy of attention.

Dr. Bennett, in his "Wanderings in New South Wales," states that a large quant.i.ty of camphorated oil, which closely resembles the cajeputi, is produced from the foliage of several species of _Eucalyptus_. Some of the leaves, which are of a bluish green, contain it in such abundance as to cover the hand with oil when one of the leaves is gently rubbed against it.

From the odorous leaves of the _Arbor alba_ is extracted a portion of the aromatic cajeput oil. This celebrated medicinal oil is princ.i.p.ally made in the island of Borneo, one of the Moluccas.

The leaf of the _Melaleuca minor_ yields, by distillation, the volatile oil of cajeputi, well known as a powerful sudorific, and a useful external application in chronic rheumatism. It is an evergreen shrub, with white flowers like a myrtle, native of the East Indies, princ.i.p.ally flouris.h.i.+ng on the sea coasts of the Moluccas and other Indian islands. Two sacks full of the leaves yield scarcely three drachms of the oil, which is limpid, pellucid, and of a green color.

Oil of cinnamon and oil of ca.s.sia, according to Mulder, have the same composition. When fresh they are pale yellow, but become brown on exposure to the air. On exposure they rapidly absorb cinnamic acid, two resins and water.

More than 22,000 lbs. of essence of bergamot was imported in 1848. It is obtained by distillation or pressure from the rind of the fragrant citron.

_Andropogon calamus aromaticus_, of Royle, _A. nardoides_, of Nees v.

Esenb., according to some yields the gra.s.s oil of Namur.

The fruits of _Carum carui_, a hardy biennial British plant, popularly known as caraway seeds, supply a volatile oil, which is carminitive and aromatic. Oils of a similar kind are obtained from _Coriandrum sativum_, from anise (_Pimpinella Anisum_), and c.u.min (_c.u.minum Cyminum_), a native of Egypt.

The production of cinnamon, clove, and ca.s.sia oils, have already been noticed in speaking of those spices.

In Malabar, a greenish sweet-smelling oil is obtained, by distillation, from the roots of _Unona Narum_, an evergreen climber, which is used medicinally as a Stimulant.

OIL OF PEPPERMINT.--Mr. De Witt C. Van Slyck, of Alloway, Wayne county, New York, furnished me with the following particulars on the cultivation of peppermint, in December, 1849, which may appropriately be introduced in this place:--

"As an agricultural production, the culture of peppermint in the United States is limited to few localities; this county and the adjoining ones, Seneca and Ontario, comprise the largest bed. In the year 1846 about 40,000 lbs. of oil were produced. In Lewis county, in this state, it is grown, though to a less extent; the amount of oil produced there in 1846 was estimated at 4,500 lbs. In Michigan about 10,000 lbs. are annually produced; Ohio furnishes about 3,000 lbs. and Indiana 700 lbs. per annum. The entire crop in the United States, in the year 1846, is estimated in round numbers at 58,000 lbs.

The above comprises all the localities of any importance in the United States, and the above estimates of the annual product of oil were made from correct data for the year 1846, since which time the cultivation of mint has rapidly decreased in consequence of a speculative movement by a New York company, who in the spring of 1847 purchased nearly all the mint then growing in this State, and stipulated with the growers not to raise it for two years thereafter, which condition was generally observed on the part of the growers. The present year (1849), on account of the drought, has not realised the expectations of those engaged in its culture, although the amount of oil produced is much larger than the product of the two preceding years. In this mint district, 8,000 lbs. have been raised; Lewis county furnishes 1,000 lbs.; Michigan, 8.000 lbs.; Ohio, 1,000 lbs., and Indiana 500 lbs. So that the entire crop of 1849 will not materially vary from 18,500 lbs.

I have consulted several of the princ.i.p.al dealers in mint oil, whose opportunities have been ample to form a tolerably correct estimate of the amount of oil annually consumed, and their opinion fixes the total consumption, for the various purposes for which it is used in the United States and in Europe, at from 20,000 to 30,000 lbs.

annually.

The price of mint oil is extremely fluctuating. Like other unstaple commodities, the value of which depends upon their scarcity or abundance, it never has a.s.sumed a constant and standing value, but its price has generally been deranged by speculation and monopoly.

It has happened that the amount of oil produced was for several years greater than the annual consumption, producing an acc.u.mulation in the market, and reducing the price to the very low rate of 75 cents per pound; on the other hand, when the article was scarce, it readily sold for 5 dollars 25 cents per pound. The average price for fifteen vears has been about 2 dollars 50 cents, per pound. This year (1849) it readily sells for 1 dollar 50 cents., (6s. 6d.).

Peppermint began to be cultivated in this vicinity as an agricultural product about the year 1816, but for several years the want of a proper knowledge of its culture, and the expense and difficulty of extracting the oil, prevented its extension beyond a few growers, who, however, realised fortunes out of the enterprise.

Almost any kind of soil that will successfully rear wheat and maize is adapted to the growth of mint. Rich alluvions, however, seem to be most natural, as would be inferred from the fact that the wild herb is almost uniformly found growing upon the tertiary formations on the margins of streams. The rich bottom lands along our rivers and the boundless prairies of the West are eminently adapted for its successful culture. It is believed by those best acquainted with the subject, that its cultivation must be ultimately confined to the western prairies, where it will grow spontaneously, and where the absence of noxious weeds and gra.s.ses, incident to all older settled lands, renders the expense of cultivation comparatively light, and where the low price of land will be an important item in the amount of capital employed, the expense of marketing being slight in comparison to that of the more bulky products of agricultural industry.

The method of cultivation is nearly uniform. The mode of propagation is by transplanting the roots, which may be done in autumn or spring, though generally the latter, and as the herb is perennial, it does not require replanting till the fourth year. To ensure a good crop and obviate the necessity of extra attendance the first season, the ground intended for planting should be fallowed the preceding summer, though this is not necessary if the land is ordinarily clean. The ground should be prepared as for maize, as soon as possible in the spring furrowed, and roots planted in drills twenty inches apart, and covered with loose earth, two inches deep, the planter walking upon the drill and treading it firmly. The proper time to procure roots is when the herb is a year old, when from six to eight square rods of ordinary mint will yield a sufficient quant.i.ty of roots to plant an acre, and the crop from which the roots are taken will not be deteriorated, but rather benefited by their extraction. As soon as the herb makes its appearance it requires a light dressing with a hoe, care being taken not to disturb the young shoots, many of which have scarcely made their appearance above the ground. In the course of a week or two the crop requires a more thorough dressing, and at this stage of growth the cultivator may be used with advantage, followed by the hoe, carefully eradicating weeds and gra.s.s from the drills, and giving the herb a light dressing of earth. Another dressing a week or two later is all the crop requires.

The two following years no labor is bestowed upon the crop, though it is sometimes benefited by ploughing over the whole surface, very shallow, in the autumn of the second year, and harrowing lightly the following spring, which frequently renews the vigor of the plant and increases the product.

The mint should be cut as soon as it is in full bloom, and the lower leaves become sere; the first crop will not be fit to cut as early as the two succeeding ones. It is then to be hayed and put in c.o.c.k, and is then ready for distillation.