\ Pliiiies Naturall Hiftorie. 



A feth the Olive berrie to looke blacke. And chcrfore when this blackneflfe beginneth to appeafCjit 

 is afign that they have fomewhat(akhough very litile)of the lees : but before thatjthey had none 



^ at all. And herein are men foulcly deceived, taking this markc for the beginning of their ripe- 

 neffe ; which blacke hew indeed is a figne of their eorriiptionjand betokeneth that then they are 

 in the way to be ftarke naught.They erre alfo in thisjthat they Ibppofc an Olive the more growne 

 it is in carnofitie^to be the fuller of oile : whereas in very truth^all the good juice in dicm is con- 

 verted then into the grofle and corpulent fubftancc ihereof_,and thereby alfo the ftone and ker- 

 nillcomc to bee big and maffie : which is the caufe^ that they had need of watering at that time, 

 moftof all. Which being done by great paine and labour of nianjOrhappeningdirough rainc 

 and plcntie of ihewers ; unleflc there enfuc a drie feafon &faire weather to extenuate that grofle 

 fubftance into which the Olive had turned the forefaid juice and humorjall the oile is conlumed 

 and loft.For it is heat and nothing ds(2isTheophr^fli^ faith) which engcndreth oile: and therfore 

 both about the prelTe at firft, and alfo in the very garners where Olives be laid after, they ufe to 



- keepe good firesjby thatineanes to draw the more oileforth. A third defaukthere is in oile^ and 

 that commeth of twomuch (paring and iliggardile :for fome men there are, whobeing loth to 

 be at coft to plucke and gather Olives from the tree, wait ftill andlooke that they fiiould fall of 

 themfelves. And kichtolke as would feeme yet to keepe a meane herein, namely, to take fome 

 painesandbeata littlecoftjbeatand pell them downe with perches and poles: whereby they 

 doeoffer wrong to the pooretreesj yea, and hinder themfelves not a little the yeare following^ 

 when they fliall find how much it is out of their way,thus to breake their boughes and branches. 



Q Whereupon the law in old time provided well for thisinconveniencejby anexprefle inhibition 

 to all gatherers of OliveSjinthefewordsjNo man so hardie as to EaEAKE,sTRiKE,AND 

 BEAT THE Olive TREE. But they that gocmoflwarily and gently to wotkc, (land Under ths 

 tree^and with fome canes fhake the boughs and branches therewith, or lightly fmite them.: but 

 in nocafe let drive and lay at them cither with full down-right oi^ croffe-blowes. And yet,as hecd- 

 full as they be in fo doing, this good they get by firiking and knapping off rhe young flioots and 

 fprigs which fhould beare the next year,that they have the trees carie fruit but once in two years 

 for u.The like happeneth airo,if a man ftay till they fall of themfelves : for by fdckingon tiie tree 

 beyond their due time, they rob the Olives to come after,of all their nutriment wherewith they 

 fliould befcd,and deteine the place likewife where they fliould come forth and grow. Anevidenc 



D proofe hereof is rhis5That Olives unlelfe they be gathered before the ordinarie and yearely We- 

 iterne winds doe blow,they gather heart againe upon the tree,and will net fo eafily fall as before. 

 Men ufe therebre to gather the Paufian Olives firft after Aurumne, which arc fuliefl: of carncfi- 

 tie, not fb much by nature as by mifgovernment and difbrder, foone after, the round Orchitas, 

 which have plcntie of oilejand then the Olives Radij ; and ihefe,for as much as they be mofl ten- 

 der fboneff overcome with abundance of the Iees(which we called before Amurca)3re therby 

 forced to falLHowbeit,fuch Olives as be thick skinned and hard; tough alfo & admitting no wee 

 and raine(by which means they are the leafc of all others) vvill abide on the tree untill March: and 

 namelyjtheLicinian01ives3theCominian,Contian5&Sergi3n,whichtheSabinscallRoiall:all 

 which change not colour & look black before the forefaid Weflerne wind bloweth,that is^abouc 



E the fixt day before the Ides of Februarie; for by that time folke think they begin to npen.Now for 

 as much as the bcfl: & mo{\ approved oile is made ofthem,it leemeth that reafbn alio being con- 

 formable to thisdcfed oftheirs,ju{lificth &approveth the fame in theend. Andthis is common- 

 ly received and held among thenijthat cold winters breed fcarfitie and dearth : but full maturitie 

 brings plentie,namely when they have leifure to ripen upon the tree : howbeii this goodnes is not 

 occafioned by the time, but by the nature rather of thole kind of OIives,which bee long ere they 

 turn into the forefaid dregs Amurca.Men are likewife as much deceived in this,that when Olives 

 be gathered,they keep them upon bourded flooresin foUars and garners, & will notpreffe them 

 before they have fweat: whereasjin truth,the longer they lie,the ieffe oile they yeeld,& themore 

 dregs of lees.For by this meanes the ordinarie proportion they fay is,to prefle out of every Mo- 



■p diusof 01ives,not above fixe pound ofoile. But no man maketh any reckoning ofthe lees, how 

 much it incteafeth in meafure day by day5in one and the very fame kind of 01ives,the longer that 

 they be kept ere they be prefied Jn one word,it is acommon error fetled every where,that men do 

 think tlie abundance of oile is to be cfleemed according to the bignes ofthe Olives :confidering 

 that the plentie of oile confifleth not in the greatnefle of the fruit: as may a]ppear by thofc which 



