THE AMERICAN BOTANIST. 113 



Uses of Grapes. — The most important use of grapes, 

 from a commercial standpoint at least, is in making wine and 

 brandy. Vinegar was also originally made from grapes as its 

 name in the French, "vinaigre" meaning sour wine, indicates. 

 Of course all our raisins are made from grapes, but it is in the 

 by-products made from the waste in wine-making that the re- 

 markable uses are found. The pomace yields acetic acid, and 

 the seeds are fed to cattle and poultry and have even been used 

 as a substitute for coffee. From the seeds, also, a clear yellow 

 oil, similar to olive oil is obtained. The lees of wine, that is, 

 the sediment that settles in the casks of new wine, is rich in 

 cream of tartar and tartaric acid. The tartaric acid of com- 

 merce is obtained from this source. Some idea of the im- 

 portance of this single by-product may be gained from the fact 

 that we import annually from France and Germany two or 

 three million dollars worth. 



Fruit Sugar from Dahlias. — We hear frequently of 

 grape sugar, fruit sugar and cane sugar, but the latter is the 

 only one with which the average individual is much acquainted, 

 though he may remember grape sugar as the whitish particles 

 on the outside of dried prunes, raisins and the like. Fruit 

 sugar or levulose is still rarer, the price at the present time be- 

 ing nearly a dollar a pound. Chemically, levulose is similar to 

 the other sugars, containing the same elements, but is sweeter 

 than ordinary sugar. Its great value, however, is in the multi- 

 tude of uses to which it may be put. It is much more easily 

 digested than cane sugar, in fact is practically in a state to be 

 assimilated by the body, and is suggested as being an excellent 

 food for consumptives and diabetics. It may be used in place 

 of still another sugar — milk sugar — in the preparation of in- 

 fant foods and used in making jelly, etc., will not crystalize. 

 It is the principal ingredient in honey and a very fair honey 

 can be made from it without the aid of the bee. The great 



