290 SPICES 



CHAP. 



off, and the friction gives a fine polished appearance to 

 the pepper, which is much admired. 



f/ The finest grades of white pepper are made from 

 Singapore and Penang black pepper in Europe in this 

 way, or by soaking it previously and using decorticators. 

 The same process is used in America, but apparently as 

 late as 1899 there were only one or two white pepper 

 factories, most of the white pepper coming direct from 

 the East. An attempt was made by a merchant in 

 Penang some years ago to hull dry pepper with the aid 

 of chemicals and to bleach it afterwards, but the process 

 proved too expensive. 



In Penang the white pepper is made from Sumatran 

 dried black pepper. The fruits are soaked in milk of 

 lime for some weeks, till the outer coats soften and can 

 be rubbed off with the hand or by trampling with the 

 feet. After this it is slightly coated with lime. 



When freshly dried the pepper comes out white 

 after hulling, but after being kept some time before 

 hulling, it is apt to be greyish in colour. This grey seed 

 is sometimes polished and rubbed with lime to make it 

 look white (Planting Opinion, 1899, p. 263). Liming 

 pepper to whiten it is not at all uncommon, and limed 

 pepper is often found in commerce, as its whiter appear- 

 ance is popular and allows of its being passed as of a 

 higher grade. The fraud seems to be most generally 

 perpetrated in the country in which pepper is grown. 

 The seed is normal in appearance, but presents a rougher 

 surface than usual, and is generally of a more dead- 

 white colour. It is an objectionable treatment, and 

 limed pepper is disqualified from exhibitions of agri- 

 cultural produce in the East. The best white pepper 

 should be large, even, clean, and of good light colour, 

 with no stains or grey tint. 



The hulls rubbed off in decorticating are ground up 

 and sold as pepper dust, or as ground black pepper. 

 This substance is liable to heavy adulterations with dirt 

 of all kinds, and even ground olive stones. 



