KERNELS AND MISCELLANEOUS OIL-NUTS. 105 



The natives eat it, but they attach greater importance 

 to the kernel, from which they make the so-called 

 *' Dika " bread, which consists of the bruised kernels 

 warmed and pressed into a cake. It is used largely, 

 when scraped or grated, in stews, and forms a staple 

 article of food amongst the natives. 



Decorticated Seeds. Sun-dried kernels contain 54-3 per 

 cent, of solid fat, having a specific gravity of 0*914 at 

 40 C. 



The fat is considered suitable for soap and candle- 

 making, for which purposes its value is regarded as equal 

 to that of palm-kernel oil 27 5s. per ton and if it 

 could be obtained perfectly fresh and pure, it might 

 also equal some of the present substitutes for butter 

 and lard. The commercial valuation of the fat from 

 sun-dried kernels has been given at from 25 to 27 per 

 ton, and that of the kernels probably 10 to 12 per ton. 

 Messrs. Miller Bros/ machine for cracking palm nuts 

 has been tried with success at the Imperial Institute 

 with Dika nuts. It is not considered advisable to ship 

 the nuts whole. 



