Cuap. V.] VEGETABLE TALLOW. 77 
three feet high, four or five feet broad, and eight or 
ten feet long. The fire was placed at one end and 
fed with the husk of the rice, dry grass, and such 
like cheap materials which make a great flame, 
and the flue was of course carried directly under the 
whole of the iron vessels. 
‘‘ When the seeds have steamed ten minutes or a 
quarter of an hour, they are thrown into a large 
stone mortar, and are gently beaten by two men 
with stone mallets for the purpose of detaching 
the tallow from the other parts of the seed. They 
are then thrown upon a sieve, heated over the fire, 
and sifted, by which process the tallow is sepa- 
rated, or nearly so, although they generally under- 
go the process of steaming &c. a second time that 
nothing may be lost. The other part of the seed 
is ground and pressed for oil. 
“The tallow now resembles coarse linseed meal, but 
with more white spots in it, and derives its brown 
colour from the thin covering over the seed (be- 
tween it and the tallow) which is separated by the 
pounding and sifting. In this state it is put be- 
tween circles of twisted straw, five or six of which 
are laid upon each other, and thus forming a hollow 
cylinder for its reception. When this straw cy- 
linder (we may call it so) has been filled, it is 
carried away and placed in the press, which is a 
very rude and simple contrivance, but which, like 
every thing Chinese, answers the purpose remark- 
ably well. The press consists of longitudinal beams 
of considerable thickness, placed about a foot and 
