CHAP. IX. 
FRUIT. 
357 
before ripening. It would even seem, from the fruits of 
Diospyros, the Sorb, and the Medlar, that the more austere 
a fruit is, the more it is capable of bletting regularly. 
“ It has been found that a Jargonelle Pear, in passing to 
this state, loses a great deal of water (83’88 reduced to 
62*73), pretty much sugar (11*52 reduced to 8*77), and a 
little lignine (2*19 reduced to 1*85) ; but acquires rather 
more malic acid, gum, and animal matter. Lignine, in par- 
ticular, seems, in this kind of alteration, to undergo a change 
analogous to that of wood in decay.” 
The foregoing experiments have led to the discovery, that 
fruits which do not require to remain on the tree may be 
preserved for some time, and thus the pleasure they afford us 
prolonged. A simple process is said to consist in placing, at 
the bottom of a bottle, a paste formed of lime, sulphate of 
iron, and water, and afterwards introducing the fruit, it 
having been pulled a few days before it would have been ripe. 
Such fruits are to be kept from the bottom of the bottle, and, 
as much as possible from each other j and the bottle is to be 
closed by a cork and cement. The fruits are thus placed in 
an atmosphere free from oxygen, and may be preserved for a 
longer or shorter time, according to their nature : Peaches, 
Prunes, and Apricots, from twenty days to a month; Pears 
and Apples for three months. If they are withdrawn after 
this time, and exposed to the air, they ripen well ; but, if the 
times mentioned are much exceeded, they undergo a particular 
alteration, and will not ripen at all. 
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