^'^'jiZ'rZ^'"'' }       Oil  of  Calophyllum  Inophylium,  3'7 
an  the  form  of  a  frustrum  of  a  cone,  the  circumference  of  the  hole 
being  wider  at  the  bottom  than  at  the  top.  The  oil-seed  is  deposited 
in  the  hole,  which  has  a  long  axis,  and  the  motion  is  given  to  the  axis 
by  bullocks  yoked  in  a  horizontal  piece  of  wood  attached  to  the  same 
by  another  piece  of  wood  cut  into  a  curved  form.  A  given  quantity 
of  seeds  will  produce  one-third  of  its  weight  of  oils  ;  thus,  three  sers 
of  seeds  will  produce  one  ser  of  oil.  The  ordinary  price  of  the  oil 
now-a-days  is  8  Rs.  per  maund  (of  80  tolahs  weight).  The  oil  pro- 
duced here  is  of  the  dirtiest  kind,  and  no  method  of  refining  is  known 
to  the  manufacturer.  The  cake  is  used  for  fuel,  and  sometimes  in  lieu 
of  oil  for  burning.  It  is  not  used  as  food  for  animals  or  for  manuring." 
Dr.  Hill  states  that  the  bazaar  price  of  the  oil  when  he  wrote  was 
six  annas  the  ser  of  105  tolahs.  When  the  crop  is  first  gathered, 
which,  he  says,  is  three  times  a  year,  viz.:  in  June-July,  November- 
December  and  February- March,  the  price  falls  to  three  sers  per  rupee. 
At  these  rates  the  oil  could  not  compete  with  castor-oil,  the  best  qual- 
ity of  which  is  now  selling  in  the  Calcutta  market  at  10  Rs.,  the 
qiaund,  unless  it  could  be  laid  down  in  great  abundance,  and  of  very 
superior  quality.  The  refining  of  the  crude  oil  would  no  doubt  largely 
increase  the  prime  cost.  In  Burmah  it  would  seem  that  things  are 
different,  for  it  appears  that  at  Kyouk  Phyoo,  40  Rs.  (per  maund  it  is 
presumed)  have  already  been  offered  for  the  oil. 
The  best  method  of  extraction  of  the  oil  would  be  certainly  by  the 
hydraulic  press.  The  native  mill  obtains  the  oil  by  friction,  which 
produces  heat,  and  consequently  all  the  resinous  matter  of  the  oil  is 
passed  out  of  the  seed  along  with  it.  The  principle  of  the  hydraulic 
mill  is  simply  pressure  without  heat.  This  is  the  principle  applied  to 
the  production  of  what  is  called  "  cold  drawn  "  castor-oil.  The  mill 
is  of  very  simple  construction,  consisting  simply  of  a  couple  of  iron 
plates,  one  being  adjusted  over  the  other.  Motion  is  communicated  to 
one  of  the  plates  (either  the  upper  or  the  under)  by  animal,  water,  or 
steam  power.  This  motion  brings  the  surface  of  the  one  plate  into 
direct  contact  with  that  of  the  other,  crushing  everything  between. 
The  ordinary  copying  press  gives  a  fair  idea  of  the  kind  of  action 
required.  The  seed  should  first  be  shelled  (there  are  machines  for 
this  purpose  in  good  oil  mills,  but  in  Burmese  prisons  this  would  prob- 
ably be  done  by  hand)  and  then  placed  in  a  bag  on  the  fixed  plate.  Care 
should  be  taken  to  spread  out  the  contents  of  the  bag  as  flatly  as  pos- 
