108 THE SAP. [LECT. in. 



the natives of India extract the sap, mixed un- 

 doubtedly with the proper juice, by making an 

 incision with a sharp knife overnight, and suspend- 

 ing under it a vessel to receive the fluid as it 

 exudes. This liquor, next morning before the 

 sun is hot, is a pleasant, mild, cooling beverage ; 

 but before evening, it ferments and becomes pow- 

 erfully intoxicating. In Ceylon, arrack is distilled 

 from this fluid, which is named toddy ; ' and it, 

 also, yields a coarse black sugar, called jaggery. 

 As, however, in this case the sap is combined with 

 the proper juice of the tree, the extraordinary effects 

 of the rapid fermentation must, in a great degree, 

 be ascribed to it. It is to the same cause also, 

 as I before noticed, that we must ascribe the dif- 

 ference in different saps, particularly the saccha- 

 rine and acid qualities, which they sometimes pre- 

 sent even when newly drawn. Thus we are told 

 that sugar is extracted in the proportion of ten 

 pounds from every two hundred of the sap of the 

 Acer saccharinum,, Sugar Maple. But the sap is so 

 mixed with the peculiar secreted juices of the plant, 

 when it is drawn from the tree for this purpose, 

 that it can scarcely be considered as yielding the 

 sugar. According to the observations of Mr. 

 Knight, sap always contains a considerable por- 

 tion of air. It, also, differs in its specific gravity 

 according to the distance from the root at which 

 it is taken, the gravity increasing in the direct 



