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A) is a drupe, with a unilocular stone ; the pericarp, 

 shell, and kernel each containing, hut in different pro- 

 portions, a fixed oil, the existence of which constitutes 

 the great commercial value of the tree. To the same 

 natural order belong the Lilac, the Ash, and the 

 Privet. The Olive is by some supposed to have been 

 originally a native of Greece, by others of Syria, &c. ; 

 but the species is found widely distributed in nearly all 

 the temperate parts of the globe. It will mature its 

 fruit neither in very cold nor very hot climates, although 

 the tree is to be found in both. But, though extremes 

 of temperature are adverse to fruitfulness, the greatest 

 enemy to the Olive-tree is frost ; but even this does not 

 inflict material injury unless following immediately 

 upon wet weather. The degree of injury from this 

 cause varies, being influenced to some extent by the 

 age of the tree. Sometimes all the tree above ground 

 is killed, sometimes only branches here and there ; but 

 the older the trees, the better able they appear to be to 

 resist the action of cold. The roots, however, are rarely 

 if ever injured by this cause; and the damage can 

 therefore be more quickly repaired, by training a new 

 stem from the old root, than if the tree had to be 

 entirely replaced. 



In hot climates the effect of heat may be mitigated, 

 and greater fruitfulness attained, by planting on slopes 

 facing the morning sun, so that the extreme heat of the 

 day may be either entirely shaded from the trees or it may 

 fall with softened severity. On the other side of the 

 world the Olive is successfully cultivated, in all parts of 

 Spain and Portugal, which are not too elevated. It 

 extends over Prance, south of the mountains of the 

 Cevennes ; over Italy, south of the Apennines ; and 

 Turkey, south of the Hsemus. It is grown on the 

 northern coast of Africa (in Morocco, Algeria, and 

 Egypt), in Hong Kong, and almost throughout the 

 Republic of Chili. The Olive is the great staple of 

 Corfu ; and its cultivation is rapidly increasing in the 

 Southern States' of America, where it is stated that a 



