THE LICORICE PLANT. 11 



Exports of licorice from Malaga to United Stales in 1682, 1883, and 1884. 



There are several districts in Spain in which licorice root is obtained 

 and large exports are made from Spanish sea-ports to the United States. 



France also consumes large quantities of this root in the manufacture 

 of licorice paste, and probably takes nearly as much as the United 

 States. 



This root is used in the United States principally for sweetening in 

 the manufacture of plug tobacco; it is also used in the manufacture of 

 drugs and in the preparation of medicines. 



It grows wild in the lower lands, in marshy grounds, and on the banks 

 of rivers. Probably the best quality obtained in Spain is found in the 

 provinces of Aragon, Murcja, and v Toledo. The very best Spanish lic- 

 orice root is found near the margin of the Ebro, in Aragon. The next 

 in point of quality is obtained near Cordova. Where it once takes root 

 it is almost impossible to eradicate it. It grows in many countries, and 

 varies in quality according to soil. Spanish licorice differs quite mate- 

 rially in the several provinces, the principal variations being that in 

 some parts the bark is red, brown, and light color, the inside varying 

 from light yellow to brown ; the proportions of saccharine and starch 

 vary also. Many kinds are fibrous, while others are almost as hard as 

 wood. The ground is pulled at intervals of three, four, or five years, 

 according to circumstances, by digging trenches, pulling everything 

 visible as long as possible until it breaks. 



After a year or two it shows above the ground with a little stem; in 

 the spring over this stem there are little flowers. 



From the time this stem appears until the flowers have all fallen this 

 root is not in condition to extract, for the sap does not return to the root 

 till then. 



Each year, till the ground is culled, the quantity of roots and tops 

 increases, until the ground is unfit for cultivation of any kind. 



It is from September till March that the root is gathered, and goes 

 through a process of drying or curing before it is considered marketable, 

 the time required for the drying or curing process being from four to 

 five months and requires a dry climate. 



LICORICE IN THE SEVERAL COUNTRIES. 



Licorice root is also found and gathered in Asiatic Turkey, Greece, 

 Italy, in the Sicilies, &c. In the Sicilies and in Italy very little, if any, 

 is exported as root, it being used in the manufacture of roll or stick 

 licorice. There is a small section in England which produces a limited 

 quantity. The United States also have licorice root in several parts of 

 the country, but the quality is not such as to give it value. 



