THE OLIVE IN SYRIA. 615 



Yield. If we suppose an acre of laud to contain fifty mature trees, well 

 cared for, they will yield about 1,800 pounds of olives, worth about $25 ; 

 the cost of cultivation should not exceed $2. 



If the olives are of ood quality, 1,800 pounds will yield from 500 to 

 550 pounds of oil. 



Wanting. In the old plantations no rule is observed, but in the new 

 ones a space of 30 or 40 feet is left between the trees. 



Picking. Olives are gathered green for pickling. Olives are gath- 

 ered for their oil when ripe, and the longer they remain on the tree the 

 greater the amount of oil. 



Olives arc prepared for the table in two ways: The first is to break 

 the fruit by a slight blow of a hammer, after which it is abundantly 

 sprinkled with salt, in which it remains two or three days, when it is 

 put iii pickle. This method gives a speedy result. The second method 

 is to take chosen green olives and put them in pickle. This pickle is 

 tested by the people as follows : an egg is put into it and the brine is 

 strengthened till the egg floats. Olives prepared in this way remain 

 sound and good for a long time. They even preserve their green color 

 for three or four years. 



Oil. As to the manner of extracting the oil the people employ one of 

 three methods: 



The presses or maassirs. In the middle of a large room is a circular 

 stone about 5 feet in diameter, with a large hollow in the top. Within 

 this hollow a millstone is made to revolve on its edge by means of a 

 shaft and an upright post. The millstone is driven round and round 

 either by men or horse-power, crushing the olives into a pulpy mass. 

 The press consists of the trunk of a tree, which has been hollowed out 

 by a mortise some .5 or 6 feet long. This log stands upright over a largo 

 jar or cistern. The olive pulp is put into small hay baskets, which are 

 piled in the hollow log, and over the top of them passes a long, heavy 

 bar, which presses down upon these baskets, the pressure being in- 

 creased by heavy weights suspended at the end of the bar. The oil 

 descends into the vessel below, which is partially filled with water, and 

 the workmen use their hands for dipping the oil from the surface of the 

 water. 



These mills are the same as those for grinding wheat. The only 

 respect in which they differ from the preceding process is the using of 

 revolving knives, which cut the pulp from the olive seed instead of 

 crushing the entire berry. 



In the northern districts of Lafita and Akkar the people employ a 

 ruder method for pressing the crushed olives. They put the pulp into 

 vessels of water and press it with their hands, and finally skim the oil 

 from the surface with their hands. 



Moil. The best soil for the olive tree is the alluvial. In limestone and 

 chalky soils the trees grow more rapidly, and become strong, but are less 

 fruitful. The, quantity of oil yielded by their berries is much less than 

 the average product of others. 

 156A 15 



