68 
THE FLOWERS AND ERUITS OF SCRIPTURE. 
kind of union. Hence the Elteagnus, being 
of a widely different natural constitution, could 
not be grafted into the olive. The evidence 
which iri adduced in apparent support of this 
latter practice, from the old authors, probably 
rests on a misunderstanding of the plants they 
intended, the identification of the plants of the 
ancients being one of the exercises of "the 
learned," and one which, from the obscurity 
which rests upon it, is very liable to error. 
It was the practice of the ancients to graft 
the wild upon the cultivated olive tree, with 
a view no doubt to increase their fertility, as 
it might assist to do ; and this practice may 
therefore be held to prove that St. Paul does 
really refer to the " wild" state of the " olive" 
tree, in the text referred to. 
It is to be presumed that this wild olive 
tree is that of which the dove sent forth from 
the ark by Noah, on the subsidence of the 
waters of the flood, brought back a leaf to the 
patriarch, and by which he " knew that the 
waters were abated from off the earth ;" 
although, as we know that the vine was culti- 
vated in the later days of Noah, it is possible 
that the olive also may have been by this 
time brought under that course of artificial 
management which would surely lead to its 
amelioration and improvement ; and perhaps 
this latter view is strengthened by the fami- 
liarity of the patriarch with the " pluckt-off" 
leaf brought to him by the dove. The next 
mention we find of the olive, indeed, in the 
time of Moses, expressly mentions the " olive- 
yard" in connexion with the "vineyard," so 
that by this time, at least, the olive must have 
been under cultivation. 
The laws given to the children of Israel 
seem to have expressly obligated the cultiva- 
tion of the excellent olives of Palestine, which 
country they were destined to occupy. Being 
debarred from the use of animal fat, (Levit. 
vii. 23,) the olive seemed to be their chief re- 
source, and pure olive oil was one of the 
offerings tliey were commanded to bring to 
the tabernacle, (Exod. xxvii. 20.) The ten- 
dency of such a restriction was directly to 
check their former nomade habits. 
The olive {Olea europcea) is of slow 
growth, and forms in congenial climates a 
small evergreen tree of from tv/enty to thirty 
feet high, densely branched, and bearing stiff 
lance-shaped opposite leaves, of a dull green 
on the upper side and hoaiy beneath. The 
form of the leaves differs in the several varie- 
ties ; the wild olive (O. eiifopcea communis, 
the O. Oleaster of some) has oblong leaves 
shorter than those of the more valuable varie- 
ties i^O etiropata longifoVa, the O. safiva of 
some ; and O. europcea latifoliaJ) The flowers 
grow fi'om the axils of the leaves in small 
panicles, and are small and of a whitish colour. 
These are followed by the fruit, of an oblong- 
spheroidal form, about the size of a sloe, and 
of a yellowish green colour, turning black 
when ripe, and consisting of a thick oleagi- 
nous flesh or pulp, enclosing a bony shell or 
drupe. The stems of old trees, which fre- 
quently rise two or three from the same root, 
appear like three or four pollard willows con- 
gregated together, and indeed the appearance 
of the olive tree, with its hoary leaves and 
greyish bark, much resembles that of the grey 
willoAV. This may appear contradictory to 
the expressions which are used in the autho- 
rized version of the Bible: "I am like a 
green olive tree," (Psalm lii. 8.) "A green 
olive tree, fair, and of goodly fruit," (Jer. xi. 
16,) but in truth the difficulty vanishes when 
it is known that the word translated "green" 
does not so much refer to colour, as to a fresh- 
ness and vigour of appearance, compared with 
the prosperity of a righteous man. The olive, 
moreover, is what is called an evergreen, so 
that there is much propriety in the expression. 
The %vood is imported into this country from 
Leghorn ; it is hard-grained and heavy, like 
box, but somewhat softer, of a yellowish 
colour, with dark grey coloured veins ; it has 
an agreeable odour, is not liable to the attacks 
of insects, and is susceptible of a fine polish. 
The delicate closeness of the grain renders it 
fit for painter's palettes, and its exceeding 
beauty, in the colour and veiuing of the wood, 
shows how appropriate was its application in 
constructing the cherubim, and the carved 
work of the doors and door posts in the temple 
of Solomon. The roots have a very pretty 
knotted and curly character ; they are said to 
be much esteemed on the continent for making 
embossed boxes, pressed into engraved me- 
tallic moulds. 
The Mount of Olives, so frequently resorted 
to by our Saviour, as we learn from the New 
Testament narrative, seems to have deinved 
its name from the olive ti'ees which grew 
there. The place is yet fruitful in olives, 
and travellers are shown some which are said 
to have existed since the commencement of 
the Christian era. • Some trees remarkable 
for their antiquity are certainly found on the 
mount, especially in the garden of Gethsemane. 
There seems to be historical evidence of the 
existence of some of these olives of Olivet 
since the time of the Eastern Empire. It is 
related that every olive tree found standing by 
the Mussulmans when they conquered Asia 
pays one medina to the treasury, whilst each 
of those planted subsequently is taxed half its 
produce. The ti'ees in question, it would 
appeal', are charged only one medina each. 
Lady Calcott mentions other olive trees which 
claim an equal date. On the mountain road, 
betw^een Tivoli and Palestrina, there was in 
