( 4o ) 



the tables of the luxurious, are taken out 

 after a certain time , deprived of the stone , 

 in place of which is substituted a caper or a 

 bit of trufflle, and closed up in bottles of the 

 finest oil. In this manner they are kept pa- 

 latable for two or three years. The sweet 

 olive of the ancients, which was eaten with- 

 out preparation , is said to exist in the king- 

 dom of Naples. 



The proper season for gathering the olives 

 for the press, is the eve of their maturity, 

 which varies in different climates and in dif- 

 ferent varieties of the Olive, but which is 

 easily distinguished by the colour of the fruit. 

 Two powerful considerations should engage 

 the cultivator not to delay the olive-harvest. 

 We have already observed that the produce 

 of this tree is alternate : the phenomenon , it 

 is true, is more uniformly witnessed in some 

 varieties than in others ; but it might be as- 

 sumed as a constant character, if it was not 

 proved by experience to depend upon acci- 

 dental causes. It has been attributed to the 

 injury sustained by the trees in beating off 

 their fruit ; but it is not observed in some 

 places where this practice prevails, and is 



