146 Oranges and Lemons of India. 



trade, Orientals are intensely fond of scents. More- 

 over, when Africa is opened out it will be probably 

 found that the savages of Africa will appreciate scents, 

 and will largely patronize perfumers. Most natives of 

 India, however, prefer " ottos " pure and simple, rather 

 than " bouquet " scents. 



It may not be, perhaps, generally known that the so- 

 called " aerated lemonade," if well made, is flavoured 

 with "lemon oil" the otto of the lemon rind, imported 

 into India from Sicily. 



In my experience I found that the plains of India 

 are not very favourable for obtaining a large quantity 

 of " otto " from any plant. The hot, dry atmosphere 

 appears to dissipate a good deal of the essential oil of 

 flowers and seeds, such as coriander, &c. Therefore, 

 the orange flowers would have to be collected before 

 sunrise in the morning, otherwise a cooler climate 

 would be preferable for extracting ottos profitably- 

 such as the Himalayan hills, wherever the Citrus can 

 be grown without being destroyed by frost in winter. 

 Wherever tea could be grown probably the orange, 

 lemon, and lime tree could also be grown. It is said, 

 for instance, that in Kumaon many kinds of Citrus 

 grow to perfection ; also in Buxa, Assam, and the 

 Khasia hills. 



Besides the extraction of essential oils from the 

 Citrus rind, the latter can be made into " candied peel " 

 for purposes of confectionery. A combination of citric 

 acid, flavoured with lemon oil, I believe, enters into the 

 composition of lemon-drops. In Appendix, No. 45 and 

 No. 50, I have given a receipt for making candied citron 

 and lemon peels, taken from the " American Grocer,'' 

 and from an Italian cookery book. It is not an article 

 likely to be made for export, but it may be service- 

 able for domestic purposes, and the internal trade of 



