160 



" Propagating" apparatus are given in it. The prices of the apparatus 

 are approximately as follows : — 



Apparatus Model Hansen and Kuhle, 1 sterilizing and one ferment- 

 ing cylinder »», ... 1,600 Krones. 



Air pump and air chamber for propagating apparatus with stop valve 

 safety valve and Manometer . . . 800 Krones. 



Apparatus Model Jorgensen and Berg. ... 1,350 Krones. 



The prices are given in Danish Currency, the value in English 

 pounds sterling will be found approximately by dividing the number of 

 Krones by 18. (18 Krones — 20 shillings). 



COLOCYNTH. 



The colocynth, or bitter apple, which provides in its dry pulp a 

 a well known purgative medicine, grows abundantly on the maritime 

 plain that lies between Palestine and the eastern shore of the Mediterra- 

 nean. It is found from below the city of Gaza on the south, to the 

 base of Mount Carmel on the north. Consul "Wallace, of Jerusalem, 

 says that the dwellers along this plain pay little attention to the plant, 

 and spend neither time nor labour in its cultivation. It grows without 

 cultivation, the soil and climatic conditions producing it without the help 

 of the husbandman. "With some attention the plant would undoubtedly 

 bear a larger and richer fruit — richer in that pulp which makes the 

 colocynth valuable. But there is no object in thus improving the plant 

 and its yield, as Nature alone now supplies far more than the natives 

 can find a market for. The soil of this maritime plain is a light brown 

 loam, very rich, and almost without a stone. In places where the loam 

 has been mixed with sand the colocynth plant seems to thrive best. 

 Very little rain falls on parts of this plain, but the plant does not suffer 

 from this lack of moisture. The climate is warm all the year round 

 and during the summer months the heat is intense, so that the conditions 

 necessary for the successful raising of the Colocynth seem to be a good 

 soil somewhat sandy, a warm climate, and little moisture. The plant 

 itself resembles a common cucumber, but its fruit is globular, about the 

 size of an orange, and of a light brown colour. Its rind is smooth, thin 

 and parchment-like. It is known as the Turkish colocynth, and is su- 

 perior to the Spanish and Morocco varieties in the amount of pulp its 

 fruit contains. The pulp constitutes 25 per cent, of the fruit, and the 

 rind and seeds are valueless. The fellaheen, or peasants, gather the 

 fruit in July and August, before it is ripe. It is sold to Jaffa dealers, 

 who peal it and dry the pulp in the sun : it is then moulded into irregu- 

 lar small balls, packed in boxes and shipped chiefly to England. The 

 average annual shipping in 1894 is 20,000 pounds, though the shipment 

 in 1894 amounted to only 6,000 pounds. This quantity could be 

 increased indefinitely if there were more demand for it and a price 

 were paid that would make it an inducement for the peasants to gather 

 and prepare it. The price now paid for the colocynth pulp, prepared, 

 packed for shipment, and delivered on board the steamer in the port o£ 

 Jaffa, is about fifteen pence a pound. {Journal of the Society of Arts). 



