TI'-1 15 M. AG AZ 1 N J- 
OP 
TBG $(ZB00L 
COLOMBO. 
A'klcd as a Supphnncnl ■ motilhhi In fhe ‘‘"TROPICAL AGRICULTURISTS 
The following pages iuchnle the contents of the Magazine of the School of 
Agriculture for May : — 
"OILY AMD FATTY iilATTEBS IX 
PLANTS.” 
N dealing with the oily and fatty 
matter, s found in plant.s, we 
Avonld he.st leave out for the 
present tho.«e oils known 
essential oils, a consideration of 
which will he taken up further on: the term oils 
will therefore for the present indicate true oils, 
or as they are variously named fatty, greasy, or 
fixed oils. Fats and oils fall under the large head 
of organic compounds known as carbo-hydrates, 
that is compounds consisting of carbon, hydrogen, 
and oxygen, in which the hydrogen ami oxygen 
exist in the proportion required to form water. 
They are all glycerides, or normal compound 
ethers of glycerine, and can be formed by the 
action of an oily or fatty acid on glycerine. The 
most important glycerides are stearine, palinitine, 
oleine and linoleine ; the two former are white 
.solids melting at 160° F. 142° F. re.spectively, the 
two latter are licpiids. The ordinary fats — such 
as suet, lard, tallow — are mixtures of stearine, 
palinitine and oleine, in various proportions. The 
more stearine there is present, the harder and less 
fusible the fat; the more oleine, the softer ami more 
fusible is it. Olive oil contains palinitine ami 
oleine; almond oil, oleine with a little palinitine; 
linoloinc occurs in linseed oil, hemp seed oil, 
poppy seed oil and other “ drying oils,” which 
when exposed to the atmos])beio absorb oxygen, 
and arc converted into a solid varnish. Castor oil 
con.sists alino.st entirely of ricinoleine. One of 
thciuain differences between fattyand oily matters 
is, it will be seen, in their consistency, which is regu- 
lated by the projmrtion of the coin|)ouuds com- 
posing such substances. Oily and fatty mattiu-s in 
jilants are numerous and widely distrilmted; nearly 
all ])laiits containing one or more. Kven cereal 
grain s — as oats and maize — contain oil in nppreci- 
halc qiiuutitics, Some plants contain tvaxy 
substances which give the bloom or shine to dif- 
ferent jiarts of them. Again, some oils contain 
phosphorus, and are called phosphorised oils ; 
such are the oils got from lupines, peas, and 
horse-beans. Fatty and oily niattei’s are found in 
different parts of plants, Init principally in the 
seed — ns cotton-seed, linseed, sunflower-seed, kc. 
They are extracted by pressure, and the quantity 
obtained varies from ten to seventy per cent of 
the weight of the seed. Oleine is one of the com- 
monest constituents of vegetable oils. Palmitine 
is found in palm oil, butter, and bees wax. 
The essential oils differ greatly from the true 
or fixed oils, both in properties and in chemical 
composition. Fnlike the latter they are volatile, 
non-lubricating, and possess iiowerfiil odours. 
They are obtained from many plants by distil- 
lation with water, the oil coming over with the 
water, and collecting in the receiver, partly 
dissolved in the water, partly floating on its sur- 
face, the wirtery solution liaving the odour of the 
oil. Ill this way oil (or attar) of roses andro.se 
water, oil of lavender and lavender water, oil of 
cinnamon and cinnamon water ,kc. are prepared. 
Many of these oils, so different in odour, have the 
same composition as oil of turpentine, e.cj. oil of 
lemons. Others contain various volatile sub- 
stances ; .such are oil of mustard, and oil of 
bitter almonds, the latter containing the poison- 
ous principle — hydrocyanic or prussic acid. 
Of the true oils produced in Ceylon, the most 
important is coconut oil which is expressed from 
the dry kernel (copra) of the coconut by means of 
the ordinary native mill or checkko, and in a few 
cases by machinery; the oil s])ecially intended 
for cooking purposes is however principally got 
by boiling the scraped kernel, while the clear 
hair oil made from the king-coconut is generally 
prepari'd from the scrnjied kernel by means of 
sun heat only. Tlio ordinary oil whicli is largely 
exported, i.s used abroad for the inanufactiire of 
candle and soap. SoapJ is also manufactured to a 
small extent in the Islaiul, and wo were rather 
suviu-iscd by the enquiry for this Ceylon 
I coconut oil soap," as it tvas called, by passenger^ 
