44 
OLIVE. 
them more agreeable to the taste, and less hurtful to 
the constitution. In some parts of Provence, after 
the olives have lain some time in the brine, they 
remove them, take out the kernel, and put a caper 
in its place. These olives they preserve in excel- 
lent oil ; and when thus prepared they strongly 
stimulate the appetite. Olives perfectly ripe are 
soft, and of a dark-red colour. They are then eaten 
without any preparation, except only a seasoning 
of pepper, salt, and oil ; for they are extremely tart, 
bitter, and corrosive. 
Opposed to this kind, may be mentioned a spe- 
cies growing in the town of Piedmont Alife, ten 
leagues from Naples towards the north-east, which 
is perfectly sweet, and eaten without any prepara- 
tion. M. Battiloso, who noticed this kind, tells us 
that the bishop of the place, and several gentlemen 
who reside there, cultivate it in their gardens under 
the name of the sweet olive. They assured him 
that the plant seldom failed to produce fruit once a 
year ; that they never attempted to extract the oil 
from them, as they constantly gathered them in the 
month of October to supply their tables ; and that 
the birds devoured them with extreme avidity. 
The quality of the oil extracted from the olive, 
depends on the nature of the soil where the trees 
grow ; on the kind of olive from which it is ex- 
pressed; on the care which is taken in the gathering 
and pressing of the fruit ; and likewise on the sepa- 
ration of the part to be extracted. The olives 
should be gathered for the purpose, when they are 
