54 CITRUS LIMONUM 



marked odour or taste ; but its outer portion is pale yellow when 

 fresh, (although deeper yellow when dried), and more or less 

 rough on the surface in consequence of the abundance of recep- 

 tacles of volatile oil which are imbedded in the tissue beneath. 

 This outer portion, which was formerly called the flavedo, ha.s a 

 strong, peculiar, and fragrant odour ; and a warm, aromatic, bitter 

 taste. The fresh outer part of the rind is alone official in the 

 British Pharmacopoeia, and is very much to be preferred to dried 

 lemon peel. 



Lemon peel contains an abundance of essential oil, which will 

 be presently described (see Oleum Limonis)j and a bitter principle, 

 of which but little is known, termed hesperidin. Some chemists 

 have indicated the presence of a bitter principle and hesperidin, 

 which they have regarded as a neutral crystalline tasteless sub- 

 stance. 



Medical Properties and Uses. Lemon peel is an aromatic 

 stomachic, and is employed as an adjunct to stomachic infusions 

 and tinctures, partly to increase their efficiency, but more especially 

 as a flavouring agent. 



The substance known as candied lemon peel, which is employed 

 as a dessert and in confectionery, is also an agreeable stomachic. 

 It is prepared by boiling lemon peel in syrup, and then exposing 

 it to the air till the sugar crystallizes. 



2. OLEUM LIMONIS. Oil of Lemon. Production. Oil or essence 

 of lemon may be procured either by expression or distillation, that 

 obtained by the first process being by far the more fragrant and 

 valuable. Nearly all the oil of lemon which reaches this country 

 is imported from Palermo and Messina, and is prepared in Sicily 

 and Calabria. Some oil of lemon is also manufactured at Mentone 

 and Nice in France. As obtained by distillation at Mentone and 

 Nice the surface of fresh lemons is removed by rubbing on a 

 coarse grater of tinned iron, and the grated peel then subjected 

 to distillation with water ; it is known as Essence de Citron distitlee. 

 The best essence of lemon is, however, known as Essence de 

 Citron an zeste, and is prepared by scarifying the surface of 

 the peel by rubbing the lemons over a number of sharp pins 



