44 



The producer sells to the oil extracter all the remaining paste for a share 

 of the oil to be extracted from it, or for cash. The extracter has a large 

 establishment or oil factory, conveniently located in the center of an oil 

 district, well provided with a twenty or twenty-five-inch stream of the purest 

 water. By further triturating the paste with comb-shaped machines, by 

 forcing its passage into a large number of peculiarly formed tanks by small 

 troughs and falls regulated like a clockwork, the extracter succeeds in get- 

 ting a fourth, a fifth, a sixth, and a seventh grade oil, which makes him a 

 millionaire in a few years. 



Some of these establishments cover an area of acres, employ hundreds 

 of workmen, and have nearly a mile of troughs and falls. I will not 

 attempt a description of the process. It would require a longer paper than 

 this, and the olive culture in California is yet far off from the day when 

 the system may be needed. As it might be supposed, the olive extracted, 

 particularly the last three grades, is of a very repulsive smell and taste, but 

 the ingenuity of the extracter is equal to the emergency. Vinegar and 

 kaolin are his principal agents. By successive washes he succeeds in 

 making the largest portion of his oil as good and acceptable for food as 

 the third quality of the original producer. The rest is treated with sol- 

 vents, and go for lubricating and soap-making purposes. 



Oil of all grades is left to clarify in large vessels of terra cotta, well 

 glazed inside, with an air-tight cover. In three weeks, if the tempera- 

 ture is kept as indicated, the clarification is generally perfect. The oil 

 is then transferred into large tanks made of glass plates, immured in solid 

 masonry, for keeping, where it may remain three years without the least 

 deterioration, although age never improves it. 



The greatest cleanliness is necessarily observed. All dangers of rancid- 

 ity are thus removed. 



When the oil is wanted for immediate use, clarification is effected by 

 filters containing cotton and charcoal. 



As I have already stated, the quantity of oil in the olive varies according 

 to the quality and age of the tree, its location, treatment, season, etc: The 

 annual average, however, is considered, for the very best varieties, 12 to 15 

 per cent of virgin oil, 5 to 9 per cent of second, and 4 to 6 per cent of third 

 quality. To these figures must be added the amount taken by the extractor, 

 which usually runs from 11 to 18 per cent. 



It is thus really surprising the amount of oil incased in an olive of choice 

 variety. The oil is not located all in the pulp of the fruit. If microscop- 

 ically examined the pit reveals a part of it. The kernel is nearly all 

 reduced to oil; an average of 5 to 8 per cent of oil may be extracted from 

 them; they are the vital part of the olive, and as such their oil is the very 

 first to be affected by the contact of heat and air. 



PRESERVED AND PICKLED OLIVES. 



The ripe berries of first class trees are almost sweet, but for preserving 

 purposes they are deprived of all bitterness by maceration in pure water 

 at a temperature of 55 to 60 degrees, changing the water frequently. They 

 are then dried at the same temperature, and packed in boxes or cans for 

 market. Thus prepared they keep in a perfect condition for years, and are 

 fit for gods as for man. 



When picked green they are treated with weak lye at the same temper- 

 ature, rinsed in fresh water several times, and bottled or canned in brine. 



