XI CASTOR SEEDS 233 



or five feet high ; but, if a clear space of twelve feet can be 

 left outside the drying layer of capsules, this fence may be 

 dispensed with. The spikes should be spread in a thin layer 

 of not more than six inches in depth, for the thinner the 

 layer the quicker will be the drying. 



Castor Oil. — The cold-drawn oil is made in Europe and 

 the United States by several rather complicated processes 

 requiring the aid of expensive machinery and skilled labour ; iMachinery 

 but there is always a ready sale in the great northern markets 

 for crude oil which is sometimes refined, and sometimes sold 

 without further preparation for lubricating purposes. In East Indian 

 India the crude oil, which is exported in large quantities, is °'' 

 made in the following manner : — The seeds are broken be- How to 

 tween rollers set so that the outer hard covering is cracked ^L ^ * ^ 

 off. The whitish kernels are then separate(^, placed in 

 hempen cloths, and submitted to heavy pressure in powerful 

 screw or hydraulic presses. The oil which runs out is then Straining 

 boiled with water to separate the mucilage and albumen. "^ ^ °' • 

 The clear oil is finally drawn off, strained through flannel 

 and put into tins, barrels, hogsheads or dubbers for exporta- 

 tion. A diibber is a globular leather vessel or bottle used by 

 the natives of India to hold oils and such like. 



A common oil is made in the West Indies on a small scale ^^^^ Indian 



oil. 



in a very simple way. The seeds are first scorched in an 

 earthenware pan over the fire and then pounded in a mor- 

 tar, the husks are sometimes removed and sometimes left, 

 but their separation produces a better oil. The broken The seeds 

 seeds are then tied in a linen bag and boiled with water in a ..viih water. 

 large pot, and the oil is skimmed off as it rises to the sur- 

 face. The oil is then strained, and it may be bleached by 

 exposing it to the sun in clear glass bottles. In this way the Returns. 

 seeds will yield at least a fourth of their weight of oil. 



