28 BULLETIN 1475, IT. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
Lard oil is made by chilling melted lard until the stearin has 
separated. The stearin, which is removed from the liquid portion 
or olein bj pressing, is often added to whole lard to make it firmer 
in summer and some is also employed in making lard compound. 
The olein constitutes the lard oil, which is used in signal lights 
and miners' lamps and also as a lubricant. 
BEEF TALLOW 
The handling and rendering of beef fat in the packing house are 
similar to those employed in making lard. A larger proportion of 
lard than of tallow is made in open kettles, however. Practically 
the entire output of tallow from the smaller packing houses is either 
sold as such or is mixed with cottonseed or other vegetable oil to 
make " compound," a product used for shortening. 
The larger meat packers separate the edible tallow into oleo oil 
and stearin by the graining process. This consists in placing the 
melted tallow in truck tanks, which are then wheeled into the grain- 
ing room, where they remain at the crystallizing temperature of 
the stearin for a day or longer. Then the semisolid mass is pressed 
in hydraulic or lever presses, kept at the same temperature as the 
tallow being grained. The solid cakes of stearin are removed from 
the presses, melted, and stored in barrels until used for making 
lard substitutes. The barreled oleo oil is either exported or made 
into oleomargarine. 
Tallow of the inedible grades is used in making candles, soap, 
leather dressings, and lubricating greases. 
MUTTON TALLOW 
Mutton tallow is obtained by rendering the fat of sheep and 
lambs. It closely resembles beef tallow, except that as a rule it is 
somewhat harder. When melted with beef tallow, it is sold as 
" mixed tallow." Because of its pronounced flavor and odor it is 
not employed in the manufacture of oleomargarine or even in high- 
class toilet soap. Also it has a greater tendency to become rancid 
than beef tallow. 
WHALE OIL 
Whale oil is obtained chiefly from the blubber of the whales of 
the genus Balsena, which includes the right or Greenland whale. 
Formerly the blubber was tried on board the whaling vessels by 
being heated in kettles placed over a fire. The oil thus produced 
was frequently of low quality, and much was lost because the fatty 
tissue residues were not pressed. Whenever possible, the whaling 
ships now bring the catch to trying stations on the coasts. 
In the most modern plants the blubber is stripped clean from the 
flesh as soon as the whale is delivered. The blubber is minced 
and rendered in the same manner as tallow and other animal fats, 
except that the process is frequently conducted in several stages, 
using a higher temperature at each successive step. The oil ob- 
tained at the lower temperatures is of the better grade. Finally 
the flesh and the bones are heated in pressure digesters to obtain 
the low-grade oil. The quality of the oil varies not only with the 
methods of extraction but also with the condition of the whale. 
