178 



condensed, and fall into a florentine receiver, the oil floating on the sur^ 

 face thereof and the water flowing through the bent tube from below, 

 A piece of wood or cork is placed in the receiver to break the force of 

 the stream flowing from the condenser. This gives time for the small 

 globules of oil to cohere and prevents them being carried away by the 

 downward current. 



The first portions of the water coming from the still are put into large 

 tinned-copper vats holding about 500 gallons, and there stored, to be 

 drawn off as occasion may require into glass carboys or tinned-copper 

 bottles. 



Oil From Peel. 



The oils from the peel or " zeste" of the citrine fruits are manufactured 

 in large quantities in the north of Italy and in the south of France, the 

 fruit being taken when in a barely ripe state — the oil of the Bitter 

 Orange being by far more valuable than that of the Sweet. They are 

 extracted by processes called the Eponge and the Ecuelle-a-piquer , and 

 are termed Essence de Bigarade au Zeste and Essence de Portugal au 

 Zeste, the Bigarade referring to the Bitter, and the Portugal to the 

 Sweet orange. The oils obtained by distillation are very inferior, and 

 are termed Essence distillee of Bigarade or of Portugal respectively. 

 The same terms apply to Bergamotte, Citron, Lemon, and to all the 

 Citrine fruits. 



The process called the Eponge, as applied to the lemon in Sicily and 

 Calabria, is briefly as follows : — In the months of November and 

 December the small irregular- shaped fruits, which have but little value 

 for export, are selected, preferably whilst still green, as they are then 

 more rich in oil than when perfectly ripe. 



The workman first cuts off the peel in three thick longitudinal slices, 

 leaving the central pulp of a three-cornered shape with a little peel at 

 either end. This central pulp he cuts transversely in the middle, 

 throwing it on one side and the pieces of peel on the other. The latter 

 are allowed to remain till the next day and are then treated thus : — 

 the workman seated holds in the palm of his left hand a flattish piece 

 of sponge, wrapping it round his fore-finger. With the other he places 

 on the sponge one of the pieces of peel, the outer surface downwards, 

 and then presses the zest-side (which is uppermost) so as to give it for 

 the moment a convex instead of a concave form. The vesicles are thus 

 ruptured, and the oil which issues from them is received in the sponge 

 with which they are in contact. Four or five squeezes are all the work- 

 man gives to each slice of peel, which done he throws it aside. 

 Though each bit of peel has attached to it a small portion of pulp, the 

 workman contrives to avoid pressing the latter. As the sponge gets 

 saturated the workman wrings it forcibly, receiving its contents in a 

 coarse earthen bowl provided with a spout ; in this rude vessel, which 

 is capable of holding at least three pints, the oil separates from the 

 watery liquid which accompanies it, and is then decanted. 



The yield is stated to be very variable, 400 fruits affording 9 to 14 

 ounces of essence. The prism of pulp and the exhausted pieces of peel 

 are submitted to pressure in order to extract from them lemon juice,, 

 and are said to be also subjected to distillation. The foregoing is termed 



