Oils and Fats, 



120 



[August, 1908. 



bleaching proposed for general use, hy- 

 drogen peroxide seems to be most fa vour- 

 able in this regard as it is easy of appli- 

 cation, and at its present price is not 

 prohibitive. Sufficient dilute alkali 

 should be added to neutralize any 

 mineral acid it may contain, and a slight 

 excess favours the action of this reagent, 

 at the same time having no saponifying 

 action. Next in order of suitability is a 

 dilute solution of chloride of lime 

 slightly acidified with acetic acid. If the 

 addition of acid and the temperature of 

 the bleaching are carefully controlled, 

 the chance of injury to the oil by free 

 chlorine is a minimum, and the result is a 

 pure, water-white product. — Philippine 

 Journal of Science, Vol. III., No. 1. 



THE CANDLE-NUT TREE, 



One of the many ornamental trees 

 naturalised in many parts of India, writes 

 C apital, is theBelgaum or Indian walunt 

 or camdle-nut tree (Aleurites moluccana). 

 The home of this tree stretches from 

 the Pacific Islands through the Malayan 

 Archipelago to Further India, and it is 

 abundant in New Caledonia, Queensland, 

 and New Guinea, It appears to prefer a 

 protected situation, hence it is common 

 in the woods and especially plentiful in 

 narrow valleys and ravines up to an 

 altitude of 2,600 feet above sea level. 

 Its roundish fruits are about the siae of 

 a small apple and consists of a thick 

 fleshy rind, containing one or two heart- 

 shaped seeds, which are very hard- 

 shelled and of the size of a horse 

 chesnut. The oil, which is present to the 

 extent of over 60 per cent., is almost 

 colourless, rather thick and of agree- 

 able taste and smell when cool pressed. 

 If warm pressed it is brown and dis- 

 agreeable in taste. It is a good but 

 rather slow drying oil. It is highly 

 prized for burning. It also serves as a 

 lubricating oil and for soap-making. 



The natives of the Pacific Island take 

 the nuts out of the rind and roast them 

 over a fire until the shell can be broken 

 with the tap of a stone. The kernels are 

 then threaded on a splinter of bamboo 

 or on the midrib of a coconut leaf. 

 They then bind round a few strings of 

 seeds with barks or leaves and obtain a 

 bright burning but sooty and disagree- 

 ably smelling torch. This is the origin 

 of the word " candle-nut tree." The 

 torches, because they burn so brightly, 

 are used for fishing at night. The half 

 ripe fruits with salt have a delicate 

 flavour, but the ripe nuts are unwhole- 

 some and only eaten in time of scarcity. 



With regard to commerce, the French 

 in Tahiti have tried to place the nuts on 

 the European market, but with in- 



different results. The difficulty liesin the 

 want of an apparatus to shell the fruits 

 on the spot. The shelling of fruits 

 before shipment is essential, for the nut 

 consists of two-third shell and one-third 

 kernel, and the method of shelling 

 adopted by the islanders is too expensive 

 to allow nuts so treated to compete with 

 other oil seeds in the European market. 

 Occasionally, however, small consign- 

 ments of kernels are sent to the west coast 

 of America, where the oil is expressed 

 and used in soap-making. 



The oil of the candle-nut tree is ex- 

 pressed from the kernels by first powder- 

 ing them in an ordinary grain mortar, 

 and steaming the powder placed in a 

 basket, then pressing in a cloth or piece 

 of bullock hide. The oil is very drying ; 

 it is pale yellow with a slightly bitter 

 taste. In burning it emits a great deal 

 of black smoke, it is useful in painting 

 and in making varnishes. It is not fit 

 for edible purposes, because of its 

 purgative properties. The oil cake con- 

 tains a large quantity of nitrogenous 

 material and is consequently suitable for 

 manure. 



The Reporter on Economic Products, 

 whose avocation it is to inquire into 

 indigenous and introduced commodities, 

 has been making an inquiry into the 

 distribution of the candle-nut tree in 

 India and the utilisation of the oil. One 

 hundred years ago, in Dr. Roxburgh's 

 day, the tree was fairly common in 

 Calcutta, and was planted near temples 

 in Rungpur. At the present time it is 

 not so common in Calcutta, but in 

 Dr. Roxburgh's day the tree was fairly 

 common in Calcutta, and was planted 

 near temples in Rungpur. At the present 

 time it is not so common in Calcutta, 

 but in Rungpur it is still found planted 

 on roadsides. It seems to be a very 

 desirable tree for forming shady avenues. 



The tree has been planted in the 

 Wynaad, Cochin, and Travancore, where 

 it is said to thrive. In North Malabar 

 the tree has been established and fruits 

 freely, but no attempts have been made 

 to extract the oil from the seeds. 



The tree occurs scattered about in 

 Burma. In the Southern Shan States it 

 is planted by monks at monasteries, and 

 the oil of the seeds is extracted by 

 private medicinemen and others on a 

 small scale. The oil is used for rubbing 

 in with vermillion on the pillars of the 

 wats or monasteries, and for mixing with 

 lacquer in the manufacture of trays, 

 betel boxes, etc. At present the oil is 

 very rarely bought and sold, and those 

 who require it generally beg seeds or oil 

 from those who own trees. 



