[*S 367 
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 'Opy j 
 
 \jp the TREE 
 
 §J THE OLIVE 
 
 Sf/ THE OIL 
 
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 W 
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No. 1 The Olive Branch. 
 
 No. 2 The Flowers of the Olive in bloom. 
 
 No. 3 An enlarged flower consisting of calyx, 
 
 lobes, two stamina and one pistil. 
 No. 4 Showing half-section of the Olive. 
 No. 5 Showing stone of the Olive. 
 
 four 
 
THE TREE, THE OLIVE, THE OIL 
 
 IN THE 
 
 OLD AND NEW WORLD 
 
 BY 
 
 JOHN HURLEY, PH. G. 
 
 Trustee Albany College of Pharmacy 
 Trustee of Ray Brook Tubercular Sanitarium 
 Member State Board of Pharmacy 
 
 Copyrighted 1919 by 
 JOHN HURLEY, PH. G. 
 
NOV i2!9!9 
 
 ©CI.A535833 
 
THIS BOCK I 
 DEDICATE TO THE MEMORY 
 OF MY BELOVED MOTHER 
 
 ELLEN HURLEY 
 
Hail to Minerva's famous tree, 
 
 Bearing Olives filled with oil; 
 A wondrous aid to health and strength 
 
 Well repaying care and toil. 
 Great has been the Olive s blessing 
 
 To the old world and the new — 
 May its orchards thrive and prosper — 
 
 Yielding fruit the ages through. 
 
 HISTORY OF THE TREE. 
 
 Its original habitation is very uncertain, but it may 
 be assumed that it was brought from the central table 
 land of Southern Asia by the Indo Greek progenitors 
 of the Greeks and Romans, by them introduced into 
 Southern Europe, probably Greece. 
 
 At its transplanting into Asia it was in its wild state, 
 and there the cultivation of olives is supposed to have 
 begun. Also it is thought to be indigenous to Egypt. 
 
 The Phoenicians, the first far-wandering seamen, 
 probably took the olive to Carthage, from which city 
 the traders bore it to Spain, first as oils, for which gold 
 bars were obtained ; then later the seeds, sprouts and 
 roots for cultivation. 
 
 The Phcenecian colony where Marseilles stands im- 
 ported olives into France twenty-five hundred years 
 ago. The fragrant olive tree is found in China and 
 Japan, its leaves being used to perfume Chinese teas. _ 
 
 The question is not clearly stated when we ask if 
 such and such olive trees of a certain locality are really 
 wild (indigenous). They may have been sown by man 
 or birds at a very early epoch : for this tree is remark- 
 able for its longevity. The ancients limited its existence 
 to two hundred years. But modern authors assert that 
 in climates suited to its constitution, it survives its fifth 
 century. The Monks of Jerusalem affirm that the olives 
 of the Garden of Gethsemane are the same that wit- 
 nessed the agony of Christ. 
 
Later statements are made that the trees easily reach 
 the age of a thousand years. 
 
 The effect of the sowing is a naturalization, which 
 is equivalent to an extension of area. The point in 
 question, therefore, is to discover what was the home of 
 the species in very early prehistoric times, and how by 
 different means of transport this area has grown larger. 
 
 The wild olive, called in botanical books the variety 
 sylvestris, or oleaster, is distinguished from the culti- 
 vated olive tree by a smaller fruit. At what remote 
 period of human progress the wild olive passed under 
 the care of the husbandman and became the fruitful 
 prarden olive, it is impossible to conjecture. Therefore, 
 it is not by the study of living olive trees that this 
 question can be answered. It must be found in what 
 countries the cultivation began and how it was propa- 
 gated. The more ancient it is in any region the more 
 probable it becomes that the species had existed here 
 fro n. the time of those geological events, which occurred 
 before the coming of prehistoric man. 
 
 The frequent reference to the plant in the Bible ; the 
 importance attached to its produce; its implied abun- 
 dance in the land of Canaan ; the prominent place it has 
 I s held in the economy of the inhabitants of Syria . 
 lead us to consider that country the birthplace of the 
 c -1 ivated olive, whence it was introduced into Africa 
 and the south of Europe. 
 
 There is little doubt that long before the assertion 
 of Pliny that no olives existed in Italy in the reign of 
 Tarquinius Priscus, it was grown in Africa by the 
 Carthaginians and in the south of Gaul at the colony 
 of Massila. Although Fenestella tells us "That in the 
 year of Rome 173, being the reign of Tarquinius 
 Priscus, it did not exist in Italy. Spain or Africa." 
 
 Its prehistoric area probably extended from Syria 
 toward Greece, for the wild olive is very common along 
 the southern coast of Asia Minor, where it forms regu- 
 lar forests. 
 
 An improved variety, possessed at first by some 
 small tribes, was slowly distributed to adjacent tribes. 
 And yielding profusely with little labor that oily matter 
 
 Page two 
 
so essential to healthy life in the dry, hot climate of the 
 east, the gift of that fruitful tree in that primitive age, 
 became a symbol of peace and good will among the 
 warlike barbarians. 
 
 At a later period, with the development _ of maritime 
 enterprise, the oil was conveyed as an article of trade 
 to the neighboring Pelasgic and Ionian nations, and the 
 plant doubtless soon followed. 
 
 The earliest Hebrew books mention the olive sait, or 
 zeit, both wild and cultivated. It was one of the trees 
 prominent in the land of Canaan. As has been previ- 
 ously stated, the olive was first mentioned in Genesis 
 at the time of the flood. Taking into account this inci- 
 dent of Holy Writ, it may be added that discoveries of 
 modern learning show that the Mount Aarat of the 
 Bible must be the east of the mountain in Armenia 
 which bears that name, but which was anciently called 
 Masis. 
 
 A French writer has placed the mountain in question 
 in the Hindu Kush, even near the sources of the Indus. 
 This theory leads one to believe it near the land of the 
 Aryans, yet the olive has no Sanskrit name, not even 
 in that form from which the Indian languages are 
 derived. 
 
 If the olive had then as now existed in the Punjab, 
 the Eastern Aryans in their migrations to the south 
 would naturally have given it a name. Also if it had 
 been known in the Mazanderam to the south of the 
 Caspian Sea, as at the present day, the Western Aryans 
 would have known it. 
 
 To these negative indications it can only be objected, 
 that the wild olive attracts no considerable attention. 
 Also that the idea of extracting oil possibly arose late 
 in this part of Asia. 
 
 Babylonia grew no olive trees, its inhabitants making 
 use of oil of Sesame. It is certain that a country so 
 subject to inundation was not at all favorable to the 
 cultivation or even growing of the olive. 
 
 It is not known if there is a name Zend, but the 
 Semitic word "Sait'' dates from a remote antiquity, for 
 it is found in modern Persian "Seitum" and in Arabic 
 
 Page three 
 
"Zaitum." It even exists in modern Turkish among 
 the Tartars of the Crimea, "Seitum," which may sig- 
 nify that it is of Turanian origin, or from the remote 
 epoch when the Turanian and Semitic people inter- 
 mixed. 
 
 The ancient Egyptians cultivated the olive tree which 
 they called "Tat." Several botanists have ascertained 
 the presence of branches or leaves of the olive in the 
 Sarcophagi. Nothing is more certain. It would be 
 interesting to know to what dynasty belong the most 
 ancient mummy cases, in which olive branches have 
 been found. The oil found in Pleban tombs was prob- 
 ably imported from Syria. 
 
 The Egyptian name, quite different to the Semitic, 
 shows an existence more ancient than the earliest 
 dynasties. 
 
 In Cyrenaica the olive was much grown and the 
 harvest of oil was considerable ; but it is not said that 
 the olive was found in its wild state there. On the 
 contrary, the quantity of oil mentioned seems to point 
 to a cultivated variety. Kralik (a very accurate bot- 
 anist) on a journey to Tunis and into Egypt, did not 
 anywhere find the olive growing wild. Only the culti- 
 vated olive is found in Egypt. It is doubtless from the 
 southern coast of Asia Minor and in the Archipelago 
 that the Greeks early knew the tree. If they had not 
 known it on their own territory, but had received it 
 from the Semites, they would not have given it the 
 special name elaia, whence the Latin olea. 
 
 As stated previously, the Goddess Minerva carried 
 the olive from the north of Greece into Sicily and Sar- 
 dinia. It is more than possible that this may have been 
 done by the Phoenicians, but in support of the idea that 
 the species or a perfect variety was introduced by the 
 Greeks. It may be mentioned here that the Semitic name 
 sett has left no trace in the islands of the Mediterranean. 
 The Graeco-Latin name is found here as in Italy, while 
 upon the neighboring coast of Africa and in Spain the 
 names are Egyptian and Arabic, as will be explained 
 later. 
 
 Page four 
 
Whenever the olive may have been transplanted on the 
 Hellenic Peninsula, all traditions point to the limestone 
 hills of Attica as the seat of its first cultivation. 
 
 In the famous Iliad the presence of the olive tree 
 in the garden of Alcinous and other familiar allusions 
 show it to have been known when the Odyssy was 
 written. 
 
 By the time of Solon the olive had so spread that he 
 found it necessary to enact laws to regulate the culti- 
 vation of the tree in Attica, from which country it was 
 probably distributed gradually to all the Athenian allies 
 and tributary states. 
 
 To the Ionian Coast, where it abounded in the time 
 of Phales, it may have been in an earlier age brought 
 by Athenians. 
 
 Samos, if we may judge from the Greek epithet 
 Aeschylus uses, eleuophetog, must have had the fruitful 
 plant long before the Persian Wars. It is not unlikely 
 that the valuable tree was taken to Magna Graecia by 
 the first Achaean Colonists. 
 
 In Pliny's time it was already grown abundantly 
 in the two Gallis provinces and in Spain. Indeed, in the 
 earlier days of Strabo, the Pigurians supplied the bar- 
 barians with oil. 
 
 The Romans knew the olives later than the Greeks. 
 Pliny in speaking of the cultivated olive says, "The 
 olive was known first in Rome at the time of Tarquin 
 the Ancient, 627 B. C." The species then existed in 
 Great Greece as well as Greece and Sicily. 
 
 Africa was indebted for the olive mainly to Semitic 
 agencies. Along the southern shore of the great inland 
 sea, the tree was carried by the Phoenicians and at a 
 remote period to their numerous colonies in Africa. 
 
 The tree was supposed to have been taken into Sar- 
 dinia and the Balaeric Islands by these same merchants. 
 And if it is true that old olive trees are found in the 
 Canaries, on their rediscovery by mediaeval navigators, 
 the venerable trees probably owed their origin to the 
 same enterprising pioneers of the Ancient World. 
 
 The writer De Candole says that "the means by 
 which the olive was distributed to the two opposite 
 
 Page five 
 
shores of the Mediterranean are indicated by the name 
 given the plant by their respective inhabitants, the Greek 
 name passing into the Latin olea and oliva. That in 
 turn becoming ulivo of the modern Italian, the olive 
 of the Spanish, and the olive, Oliver, of the French." 
 
 Page six 
 
HISTORY OF THE OLIVE. 
 
 The history of the olive and its production begins in 
 the days before written manuscripts. On prehistoric 
 monuments sculpturings are found which show oil 'being 
 used for anointing as well as other ceremonial services. 
 
 The precious oil used in Biblical days was always 
 olive oil, perfumed, purified and sanctified. The widow's 
 cruse which during the terrible famine remained inex- 
 haustible was that in which she kept olive oil. 
 
 For ages so precious and valuable was the olive that 
 in all remaining records of the people of the holy and 
 ancient times is found mention of the most service- 
 able and delectable fruits, olives, dates, figs, and grapes. 
 Unquestionably these were the most valuable products 
 of those days. In Biblican history the mention of the 
 olive frequently occurs. Noah, after the waters of the 
 ii( kkI abated, sent out from the Ark a dove "and the 
 dove come unto him in the evening,, and lo, in her 
 mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off." — Gen. viii, 2. Again 
 we read in Judges i.\, 8-9: "The trees went forth on 
 a time to anoint a king over them, and they said unto 
 the olive tree, Reign thou over us. But the olive tree 
 said unto them, Should I leave my fatness (French ver- 
 sion reads 'my sweetness and my oil') wherewith, by 
 me they honour God and man, and go to be promoted 
 over the trees?" 
 
 The mythological interpretation of the growth of the 
 olive tree readily invites attention. 
 
 The Athenians held it in such esteem that they 
 ascribed its production to their tutelary Deity. This 
 beneficent miracle, which is retraced in the monuments 
 of Athens, is differently represented by ancient mytho- 
 logical authors. It is thus related by Apollodorus 
 Athiensis : "In the reign of Cecrops leave was given 
 to the gods to assume the patronage of cities in which 
 they might appropriate to themselves peculiar honors. 
 Upon which Neptune came into Attica, standing in the 
 middle of the Citadel, he smote the earth with his tri- 
 dent, causing the sea to flow at his feet. 
 
 Page seven 
 
"After him appeared Minerva, who, calling Cecrcps 
 to be a witness of what she was about to perform, 
 caused an olive tree to spring from the ground. 
 
 ''Now it happened that this olive tree which grew in 
 the shrine of Erectus was burned with the rest of the 
 temple by the barbarians. On the second day after the 
 burning the Athenians, who by the King were ordered 
 to sacrifice, went up to the temple. To their amaze- 
 ment they found a shoot from the stump sprung up 
 to the height of a cubit." 
 
 Another legend reads in this manner : "Among tne 
 most celebrated cities of Greece the one that stands out 
 supreme in its glory is Athens, said to have been founded 
 by Cecrops. It is here that the olive is thought to have 
 first appeared." The story tells us that Neptune and 
 Minerva aided in the foundation of Cecrop's city and 
 that they quarreled as to which one should name the 
 citv. as the honor was to depend upon the value of the 
 gift these two Gods bestowed upon the land. 
 
 Neptune gave a swift horse, but Minerva's gift of 
 the olive tree quite eclipsed his in value, so the citj 
 was named after the giver of this precious tree. Athens 
 Cecrops put the question to vote, the men pronouncing 
 in favor of Neptune, but the women for Minerva, she 
 winning by one vote. Neptune's son, Hallirhotius, wish- 
 ing to avenge his father, attempted to destroy the olive 
 tree. He was wounded in the impious attempt and 
 died. Thus Minerva became patron Deity of the City 
 of Athens. 
 
 From her father Jupiter, one of whose names was 
 Mopios, the olive was called mopiai. 
 
 The olive tree that Minerva caused first to appear 
 grew on the rocks near the city that had been strucK 
 by Neptune's trident ; it was surrounded by a wall and 
 called the Acropolis, and was guarded by a band of 
 warriors who alone were allowed to dwell there. 
 
 Aristides said, "Attica is the center of Greece, Athens 
 of Attica, the Acropolis of Athens." He well might 
 have added, "the olive tree is the center of the Acro- 
 polis." 
 
 Page eight 
 
It is around this olive tree on the Acropolis and its 
 surrounding temples that the history of the great re- 
 public is centered. 
 
 It became the place of safety in the moment of 
 danger ; its citadel at the summit was strengthened by 
 the groves of wild olive trees, which grew on the slopes 
 of the rock. And about sixty years after the Pelas- 
 gians further fortified it by replacing some of these 
 with walls. 
 
 Phidias, Praxiteles and others celebrated the birth of 
 Minerva's tree, and Horace wrote, "The one thing which 
 is necessary is to keep safe the Citadel of Pallas, and 
 everywhere to put the select olive in a conspicuous 
 place." 
 
 Also it was considered an act of the highest piety 
 and honor to Minerva to consecrate to her statues made 
 of the wo.od of the olive tree. 
 
 There is a very quaint legend connected with the 
 Church Nossa Senhora Da Oliveira- (Our Lady of tiie 
 Olive Tree) at Gui M aniens (Portugal, near Oporto) : 
 "In the time of the Goths. Wamba was busy on his 
 farm ploughing when some messengers arrived from 
 the nobles and announced his accession to the throne. 
 
 "Surprised, Wamba replied that he would be king 
 when his goad blossomed with leaves, at the same time 
 thrusting it into the ground. By divine intervention it 
 took root, branches sprouted, bearing leaves and fruits 
 of the olive." 
 
 In the year B. C. 484 the Historian Herodotus writes 
 as follows : "The land of the Epidaurians yielding no 
 fruit, the Epidaurians sent to consult the oracle at 
 Delphi concerning the calamity. The Pythian bade 
 them erect statues of Dauria and Auresia, and when 
 they had fulfilled the command it would fare better 
 with them. They asked whether the statues should be 
 made of wood or stone, but the oracle decreed they 
 should be made of the wood of the cultivated olive. ' 
 
 The Epidaurians thereupon requested the Athenians 
 to permit them to cut down an olive tree, thinking this 
 tree to be the most sacred. It is said at that time that 
 there were no olive trees in any other place in the world. 
 
 Page nine 
 
The only condition under which the Athenians per- 
 mitted them to use the tree was that annually they 
 should bring victims to Minerva, Polias, and Erectheus. 
 
 The Epidaurians having agreed to these terms, their 
 request was granted. Having made and erected the 
 statues, their land became fruitful and each year they 
 fulfilled their promise of sacrifices. It is noted that in 
 the lands of the famous nations of ancient history the 
 olive appears as the most conspicuous product, bringing 
 the conviction that the growers of the olives or the 
 people raised on olive-growing soil were destined to be 
 great, wise, and wealthy. Thus the Persians, Syrians, 
 Romans. Grecians, Egyptians, Israelites, Philistines, 
 Arabians, Babylonians and many other races who left 
 names of great deeds were children of the olive land, 
 nourished on the fruit of the tree so famous in ancient 
 history. 
 
 At all times the poets and historians of ancient 
 nations praised olives and described them. There was 
 then a sweet olive which royalty served without prepa- 
 ration to eat as one would enjoy dates and figs. 
 
 In modern history, when the original growers of tlK, 
 olive had worn themselves out by wars, during which 
 those who met death were invariably the best men, 
 resulting in the degradation of the race stock, we hiid 
 that Spain in the hey-day of her power, and France 
 during the Napoleonic war were people of the olive. 
 
 The veneration of the olive by the Greeks was very 
 great. Florentinus, who lived about 218 A. D., wrote in 
 his commentaries on agriculture, ''the olive being pure 
 ought to have them that gather it chaste, for it will 
 thus produce a great abundance of fruit. Also it is 
 said that in Azarbe of Celicia, chaste boys cultivate 
 the olive, and for this reason there the olive is very 
 fruitful." 
 
 This Grecian industry languished beneath a des- 
 potism which the most ingenious calculations fail ro 
 elude. In ancient Athens a premium was given for the 
 multiplication of the olive, and severe penalties were 
 inflicted upon the proprietors who destroyed it on their 
 own estates. 
 
 Page ten 
 
Now, to avoid the exactions to which he is a prey, 
 the unhappy Athenian prefers cutting down his olives 
 and selling them at a price unequal to their annual 
 produce. 
 
 The majesty of the Roman sway has conferred high 
 honor upon the olive. With it they crowned the troops 
 of the Equestrian Order ( who are wont to defile upon 
 the ides of July). It is used by the victor in the minor 
 triumphs of the Ovation ; also in Athens they are in 
 the habit of crowning the conqueror with olive, and 
 at Olympia the Greeks employ the wild olive foL a 
 similar purpose. 
 
 In Africa and Southern Spain the olive retains ap 
 pellatives derived from the Semitic salt or sett; but the 
 complete subjugation of Barbary by the Saracens suf- 
 ficiently accounts for the prevalence of Semitic forms 
 in that region; and aceytuno (Aral) Zeitum). the Anda- 
 lnsian name given to the tree itself, is a vistage of the 
 Moorish conquest. 
 
 After the conquest of Africa by the Arabs, the 
 thriving orchards of olive trees, covering two million 
 five hundred thousand acres, that were located all 
 through Southern Tunis, disappeared, so that at the 
 beginning of the last century olive culture in that region 
 had practically died out. Although today Southern 
 Tunis is an arid, treeless waste, almost desert, in South- 
 eastern Tunis the dry land orchards are the wonder and 
 admiration of olive growers the world over. 
 
 A remarkable fact, and one which has not been noted 
 or at all spoken of by philologists, is that the Berber 
 name for the olive, both tree and fruit, has the root 
 tas or fas, similar to that of the ancient Egyptians. The 
 Kabyles of the district of Algiers, according to the 
 French-Berber dictionary, which is published by the 
 French government, calls the wild olive tazebboujt, 
 tessttha, on tamashinet. These are strong indications 
 of the antiquity of the olive in Africa. 
 
 The Arabs having conquered this country and the 
 Berbers having been driven back into the mountains 
 and the desert, also having subjected Spain, excepting 
 the Basque country, the names derived from Semitic 
 
 Page eleven 
 
 J 
 
ze-it have prevailed even in Spanish. The Algerian 
 Arabs call the cultivated olive ziltoun; the wild zen- 
 boudji; the oil sit; while the Andalusians call the wild 
 olive azebuche, the cultivated aceytuno. 
 
 In other provinces we find the name of Latin origin, 
 olivio, side by side with the Arabic words. The oil is 
 in Spanish aceyte, which is almost the Hebrew name, 
 but the holy oils are called oleos santos because they 
 belong to Rome. The Basque use the Latin name for 
 the olive tree. 
 
 It is an established botanical fact that no leaf of the 
 olive has hitherto been found in the tufa of the south of 
 France, and Tuscany or Sicily, where the laurel, the 
 myrtle and other shrubs now existing have been dis- 
 covered. This is an indication, until the contrary is 
 proved, of a subsequent naturalization. 
 
 In modern tunes the olive has been spread widely 
 over the world ; and though the Mediterranean lands 
 that were its ancient home still yield the chief supply 
 of the oil, the tree now is successfully cultivated m 
 many regions unknown to its early distributors. Soon- 
 after the discovery of the American continent it was 
 conveyed thither by the Spanish settlers. In the 
 United States one of the homes of the olive is in 
 Southern California, where it is extensively cultivated. 
 
 Authorities differ as to the size of the olive tree. 
 The bulk of the patriarchal ones is said to be very 
 great. It is an authenticated fact that in France olive 
 trees have reached such size that two men can hardly 
 compass them with their arms. 
 
 Page twelve 
 
THE OLIVE AND ITS GROWTH 
 
 In ancient history there are but few varieties of the 
 olive mentioned. Virgil speaks of but three, the 
 "Orchites," probably the "Olea Maximo Fractu" of 
 Tournefort. It has its name from the Greek orxis, 
 the testis, a name by which it is still known in some 
 parts of Provence. "The Radius or Shuttle Olive*' 
 and the "Poisa," probably the "Clea Media Rotunda 
 Prascox" of Tournefort. 
 
 In Campania, Horace and Martial speak in praise 
 of the Venafran Olive. Hardouin suggests that Lici- 
 nius Cassus may have introduced the Licinian Olive. 
 Ancient Italian authors enumerated comparatively few, 
 form twelve to sixteen varieties, but a modern writer 
 in that country has summed up the variety to over three 
 hundred. The species of interest to us is the "Olea 
 Europea," as this is the only variety that has yet repaid 
 man's care by the increase in weight of its berry. The 
 olive (Olea Europea of Linneus) was so called by 
 Linneus to indicate that its home was there ; that there 
 it is cultivated by choice and has been held in honor 
 from the remotest antiquity. 
 
 Mr. Caruso, Professor of Agriculture at the National 
 University of Pisa, separates the olives under three 
 heads as : "The domesticated olive, the wild olive, the 
 seedling of the cultivated olive, although two only, that 
 of the domesticated olive and wild olive, would answer 
 all practical purposes." 
 
 The olive will live in almost any soil except a dry 
 and compact or a humid one, while we safely assume 
 that the olive prefers a soft, friable, moderately cool 
 soil, one rich in lime and potash, a permeable soil, 
 such as a limey clay of medium consistency, not inclined 
 to either dryness or humidity. The roots then encounter 
 no obstacle in extending themselves and the air and 
 moisture would circulate sufficiently. Lime abounding 
 phosphate, magnesia, with an abundance of silicates 
 of alum and mercury and a sufficiency of potash and 
 soda are the chemical and physical requisites which 
 
 Page thirteen 
 
this tree will find most advantageous to its develop- 
 ment, that will cause it to produce abundantly, and, 
 other circumstances being equal, to give the very best oil. 
 
 Hence it may be seen that the olive will flourish 
 wherever its roots will penetrate easily and there is no 
 deficiency of alkali, such as a loose soil of rocky clay 
 or sand of volcanic or granite formation. 
 
 But .while the olive will subsist on many different 
 soils or prosper in several, it is not to be concluded 
 that it may be condemned to bare impoverished ground. 
 
 It must be remembered that the latitude must largely 
 guide one in selecting the kind of soil for an olive 
 orchard. In Southern Spain the mean summer tem- 
 perature is as high as eighty-two degrees. There they 
 hold red soil in very low estimation, preferring the 
 light colored or white, considering the red soil attracts 
 too much heat and requires too much irrigation. In 
 Central Spain the light red soil with a porous tendency 
 to carry off the frequent rains is preferred, while the 
 white is entirely condemned. Still further north the 
 dark porous soils are exclusively used. 
 
 The calcareous soils through their action on the 
 natural and artificial fertilizers quickly put into circu- 
 lation the elements of nutrition of the olive and so 
 promote its growth ; but for this very reason it is 
 necessary that the tree should be frequently manured 
 in order to obtain an annual product. It is the want 
 of nourishment in the ground that causes the olive to 
 fruit only every other year or every third year. Exces- 
 sive moisture is deleterious, also in a dry hard soil the 
 tree contracts, splits and leaves the roots gorged with 
 sap. The most favorable soil is an open, loose and fairly 
 fertile one, and ought to be at least a yard in depth. 
 
 The olive is fond of a chalky soil ; that is, one made 
 up of lime carbonates. The carbonate of lime is in- 
 dispensable to vegetable life and it is noticed that the 
 oil from olives grown on a calcareous soil is better 
 than from a soil lacking in this element. 
 
 The fact is established that the best soil for the 
 olive is that in which lime predominates ; and where 
 silica exists, and there is no lack of clay. It will readily 
 
 Page fourteen 
 
be seen that such a soil would give passage to mois- 
 ture, while at the same time there would be consistency 
 enough to sustain the tree and preserve the elements 
 of nutrition. Liebig says that "at the time of flowering 
 of any vegetable if the soil abounds in phosphates the 
 fruit sets well and is started on the road with every 
 advantage ; on the contrary, if these are lacking the 
 Rowers fall off and the tree gives its strength to the 
 wood.'' 
 
 The quality of the fruit is essentially affected by 
 that of the soil ; it succeeds in good loams which are 
 capable of bearing corn, but on fat lands it yields oil 
 of an inferior flavor and becomes laden with a barren 
 exuberance of branches and leaves. 
 
 All varieties of lives dread the extremes of heat and 
 cold ; thus the temperature of the climate is quite if not 
 of more consideration than the soil. 
 
 Neither do they delight in very low nor in very 
 elevated situations, but rather in gentle declivities, 
 with an exposure adapted to the climate where the fresh 
 breezes, playing among the branches, may contribute to 
 the health of the trees and to the fineness of the fruit. 
 The ancients contend that L he olive would not grow 
 unless it had sea air, and established the rule that it 
 should not be planted more than ninety miles inland. 
 
 Theoprastus, the famous Greek writer (previously 
 quoted ) , has asserted that "the olive does not grow 
 at a distance of more than forty miles from the sea." 
 Also that ''the reason why the olive flourished to such 
 an extent in Attica was because it craves thin soil 
 with its outcroppings of calcareous rock, which, while 
 it suits the olive perfectly, is fit for little else agri- 
 cultural."' 
 
 The Arabic and Latin ■ authors hold to the same 
 facts, but it has been established that the olive can 
 be grown at any distance inland provided the soil and 
 climate are favorable to it. 
 
 In high altitudes it requires that it be placed on hill- 
 sides exposed to the south ; that it may be warmed by 
 the reflected heat. For successful cultivation the yearly 
 mean temperature should be not less than fifty-seven 
 
 Page fifteen 
 
degrees Fahrenheit. Pliny says "the olive of the low 
 ground is more liable to disease than that grown on 
 high ground/' 
 
 In general it may be said that the olive requires 
 the same kind of soil as the grape, in proof of which 
 we often see them growing together. The olive is not 
 so hardy as the grape vine, the latter requiring only 
 10.800 degrees Fahrenheit to ripen its fruits, whereas 
 the olive needs 12,700 degrees, although some varieties 
 will ripen with 10,800 degrees from blossoming time 
 to maturity. 
 
 The beauty of the olive is far from corresponding to 
 its intrinsic value. It varies in size according to the 
 climate in which it grows. The olive yards of France 
 contain trees generally from eighteen to twenty feet in 
 height and from six inches to two feet in diameter, 
 the temperature being scarcely warm enough for the 
 greater development of the trees. 
 
 In Spain Pliny writes of it as one of the largest 
 trees. On Mount Atlas, Desfontaines saw wild olives 
 from forty-five to sixty feet in height. Beaujour com- 
 pares the olive of the plains of Marathon to the finest 
 walnut, .for stature. 
 
 The main limbs of the olive are numerously divided 
 the branches are opposite, and the pairs are alternately 
 placed upon conjugate axes of the limb. The foliage 
 is evergreen, but a part of it turns yellow and falls in 
 the summer and in three years is completely renewed. 
 In the spring or early autumn, the seasons when vege- 
 tation is in its greatest activity, the young leaves come 
 out immediately about the circatrice of the former 
 petioles, and are distinguished by their suppleness and 
 by the freshness of their tint. 
 
 The color of the leaves varies in different varieties 
 of the olive, but they are generally smooth and of a 
 light green above, whitish and somewhat downy with 
 a prominent rib beneath. On most of the cultivated 
 varieties they are from fifteen to twenty-four lines long, 
 from six to twelve lines broad, lanceolate entire nearby 
 sensile, opposite and alternate in the branches. 
 
 Page sixteen 
 
The olive is slow in blooming, as well as in every 
 function of vegetable life. The buds begin to appear 
 about the middle of April, and the bloom is not full 
 before the end of May or the beginning of June. 
 
 The Mowers are small, white, slightly odoriferous, 
 and disposed in auxiliary racemed or clusters. A pe- 
 duncle about as long as the leaf issues from its base, 
 upon which the flowers are supported by secondaiy 
 pedicles like those of the common currant. Sometimes 
 the clusters are almost as numerous as the leaves and 
 garnish the tree with wanton luxuriance ; at others 
 they are thinly scattered over the branches, or seen only 
 at their extremity. It is essential to remark that they 
 are borne by the shoots of the preceding year. Each 
 flower is complete in itself, consisting of a calyx, a 
 monopetalous corolla divided into four lobes, and of the 
 organs of reproduction, namely two stamina and one 
 pistil. 
 
 A week after the expanding of the flower the corolla 
 fades and falls. If the calyx remains a favorable pres- 
 age is formed of the f ruitf ulness of the season ; unfor- 
 tunately the hopes of the husbandman are liable to be 
 blasted at this period by the slightest atmospherical 
 disturbance, which is apt to cause the germ to fall 
 with the flower. Warm weather accompanied by gentle 
 breezes will facilitate the f ruitf ulness and aid materially 
 in the development of the fruit. 
 
 The fruit of the olive is called by botanists a drupe ; 
 it is composed of pulpy matter enveloping a stone, ox 
 ligneous shell, containing a kernel. 
 
 The olive is ovate, pointed at the extremity, from 
 six to ten lines in diameter in one direction and from 
 ten to fifteen lines in the other; on the wild trees its 
 size hardly exceeds that of the red currant. 
 
 The skin is smooth, and when ripe of a violet color; 
 in certain varieties it is yellowish or red. The pulp is 
 greenish, the stone oblong, pointed, and divided into 
 two cells, one of which is void. 
 
 An olive usually takes on four colors, although all 
 varieties do not follow the same rule. Green is followed 
 
 Page seventeen 
 
by yellow, then a reddish purple, which is succeeded by 
 wine red and lastly by a black red or glossy black. 
 
 The young olive sets in June, increases in size and 
 remains green through the summer, beginning to change 
 color early in October, and is ripe at the end of Novem- 
 ber or early in December. On the wild olive five or six 
 drupes are ripened upon each peduncle ; but on the culti- 
 vated tree a greater part of the flowers are imperfect, 
 and as green fruit is cast at every stage of its growth, 
 scarcely more than one or two germs upon a cluster 
 arrive at maturity. 
 
 With the cultivation of untold ages the olives have 
 changed as all fruit changes. In the beginning, when 
 it was a tiny berry, it saved the lives of savage tribes. 
 These tribes learned to transplant them, learned to till 
 the soil, and the ways of fertilizing it.. Soon they dis- 
 covered the art of selection so that the fruit grew larger 
 and larger, the pulp more nourishing, and more oil with 
 a better taste and flavor was harvested. 
 
 In this way thousands of years of unrecorded culti- 
 vation passed, till the days when Cato declared that "the 
 bitterest olive made the best oil." While Pliny discussed 
 the medicinal qualities of black olives in the treatment 
 of burns. Also Horace writes. "I prefer the savory 
 olive to the best fruits in my garden." 
 
 Hesiod, an ancient writer who looked upon the 
 knowledge of agriculture as conducive in the very high- 
 est degree to the comforts of life, declared that "there 
 was no one who ever gathered fruit from the olive tree 
 sown by his own hands," in those times so slow was it 
 in reaching maturity. Now at the present day it is 
 sown in nurseries even, and if transplanted will bear 
 fruit the following year. 
 
 In all the olive-growing countries the berry and the 
 olive serve as the chief food, not only of the wealthv 
 and titled inhabitants, but also of the poorer class of 
 people. Among many nations it serves as milk and 
 butter. Aside from a staple article of food, olives are 
 used for pickling, drying and the production of oil. 
 which is always in great demand. The bark and wood 
 of the olive tree in many ways is remarkable enough 
 
 Page eighteen 
 
to demand attention. On the trunks and branches of the 
 young tree the bark is smooth and of an ashy hue, and 
 when it is removed the cellular skin appears of a light 
 green. On old trees the bark upon the trunk and prin- 
 cipal limbs is brown, rough and deeply furrowed. 
 
 During the spring and autumn when the sap is in 
 motion the bark is easily detached from the body of the 
 tree. 
 
 The wood is heavy, compact, fine grained and bril- 
 liant, while the almurnum is soft and white ; the perfect 
 wood is hard, brittle and of a reddish tint, with the pith 
 nearly effaced. It is employed by cabinetmakers to inlay 
 the finer species of wood which are contrasted with it 
 in color ; also it is used in ornamenting articles, for 
 instance dressing cases, jewel caskets, tobacco boxes, 
 etc. The wood of the root, which is more agreeably 
 marked, is preferred. 
 
 The olive wood was classed by ancients among the 
 hard and durable species; it was compared to ebony, 
 cedar, box, and the lotus. On account of its hardness 
 it -was used for the hinges of doors, and before metal 
 became known to art, it was selected by the Greeks 
 for the material used in the construction of the images 
 of their gods. 
 
 In the Citadel of Athens three statues of Minerva 
 were preserved which exemplified not only the value 
 of this wood, but the progress of Grecian art. 
 
 The first, made of olive wood and of rude work- 
 manship, was said to have fallen from heaven; the 
 second, of bronze, was consecrated after the victory of 
 Marathon; the third, of gold and ivory, was one of the 
 miracles of the age of Pericles. 
 
 From its resinous and oleaginous nature the oii\e 
 wood is extremelv combustible, burning as well before 
 as after it is dried. The value of the fruit renders this 
 propertv unimportant, but it is interesting to know that 
 after the severe winter of 1790, which proved fatal to 
 the olives throughout the Provinces of LanguedoXancl {< 
 Provence, the country was warmed some time with the 
 precious wood. 
 
 Page nineteen 
 
We are told as a fact that when the trunk of the 
 tree had perished by fire or frost, it sprouts anew, 
 also that a bit of the bark, with a thin layer of wood, 
 if buried in the earth, becomes a perfect plant. 
 
 Page twenty 
 
THE OLIVE IN THE NEW WORLD 
 
 As is generally understood, the olive is essentially 
 the product of civilization and cultivation; the wild 
 olive bears little fruit, that little is of scarcely any 
 value ; hence as civilization declined the tree becomes 
 neglected, and in consequence reverts to its former state, 
 and naturally soon becomes worthless, as in Palestine 
 and to some extent in Greece and Egypt. Civilization 
 dies; so does the olive if not recuperated by new life 
 in new lands. 
 
 "Civilization's march is westward and has been since 
 the days of Babel and Babylon ; so is that of the olive. 
 The civilized man and the civilized olive have both 
 left their primeval home and migrated from Palestine 
 to Egypt, and Greece, thence to Rome and Western 
 Europe, thence finally across the water to America — 
 always the best olives with the best men." 
 
 "The once mightiest of the earth, where are they? 
 With their olives — dead. Then, with the conquerors 
 went the olive west, to Greece and Rome. Where are 
 these ? With their olives — dead, dying or deteriorating 
 — while with the new civilization new olives spring up."' 
 
 Hence it is fitting that we turn from the old world's 
 history and civilization of the olive to its life and pro- 
 duction in the new world. 
 
 The true North American olive belt, that region 
 peculiarly adapted to the growth and extensive pro- 
 duction of this wonderful fruit, includes a portion of 
 Mexico proper, all of Lower California, much of the 
 State of California, exclusive of the mountain heights. 
 
 There is another section of the United States which, 
 although it is not especially adapted to the culture of 
 the olive, still the fruit with a fair measure of success 
 can be grown there. This region includes parts of 
 Arizona, Texas, Georgia, South Carolina, also limited 
 portions of Southwestern Utah and Nevada. 
 
 Probably nowhere in the world, neither in Asia or 
 Europe, is the olive more in its natural element than 
 in Southern California, so often called the Italy of 
 America. 
 
 Page twenty-one 
 
As to the life-giving and ever-fruitful soil of Cali- 
 fornia, that land which had never known a spade until 
 three hundred years after that of Italy, had become in 
 a measure irresponsive to cultivation without an abun- 
 dance of artificial stimulant. 
 
 When one claims for Southern California superiority 
 as the true and natural home of the far-famed olive, 
 it is no fiction of the imagination or idle boast, but 
 a stern fact amply capable of demonstration. 
 
 San Diego, in Southern California, is the spot where 
 all the requirements of soil and climate are found, 
 which formerly were available only in foreign environ- 
 ment. It was in this beautiful spot in 17% that the 
 Franciscan Missionaries first planted the tree of Pales- 
 tine in Alta, California, the reason for which is obvious. 
 In the interest of their church they expected the newly- 
 planted groves would yield fruit from which their holy 
 oil could be obtained in abundance. The grove is still 
 standing, where it will remain and flourish, bringing 
 forth fruit for centuries to come, while time passes 
 lightly over its swaying silent trees. 
 
 San Fernando also shares the honor of some of the 
 earliest olive orchards, while some of the oldest trees 
 are found in Capistrano. From an Agricultural Year 
 Book we learn that about the year 1800 at Fernando 
 hxe hundred trees were planted ; now about four hun- 
 dred and fifty of them are in a fairly flourishing condi- 
 tion. It is probable that none of the California trees 
 have reached a diameter of more than two feet, a fact 
 which emphasizes the great age of the monster olive 
 trees of the Mediterranean region. 
 
 It may be interesting to note a new method of 
 propagating the olive which latterly has been consider 
 ably developed in California : that of rooting small 
 cuttings in sand in a hothouse. This system, the year 
 book of agriculture tells us. was first tried at the Berke- 
 ley Experiment Station. The time to plant the little 
 cuttings in the hothouse is during the late autumn and 
 winter. From three to eight months are required to root 
 them, according to the prevailing conditions of tem- 
 perature and moisture, and the variety which is being 
 
 Page twenty-two 
 
rooted. A little bottom heat is required while rooting 
 most varieties, but some of the more easily rooted ones 
 may be started under glass wtihout heat or even in a 
 cool frame or lath house. Well mature twigs of about 
 the diameter of a match and about three inches long are 
 • selected for this purpose. These are stuck in the sand 
 about half their length and all leaves removed except 
 the upper two. 
 
 Extreme care is necessary in the care and manage- 
 ment of these cuttings. They may be planted in nur- 
 sery rows during the spring, summer or autumn. Weli- 
 rooted and vigorous trees result from this method, some 
 of which have yielded fruit four years from the time 
 the little twigs were rbmed i n the sand. 
 
 It is an established fact that millions of olive twigs 
 are now rooted annually by this process and it has so 
 largely superseded all other methods that probably three- 
 fourths of the olive trees in the United States are now 
 rooted by this system. 
 
 The advantageous use of dry hillsides for olive 
 groves is rapidly growing in interest to a large number 
 of California growers. It would be of large moneyed 
 importance if ranges of these hills extending from 
 north to south could be used, as at present they are 
 barren of any kind of crops. Foreign conditions seem 
 to point that the scheme would be advisable, at least 
 that it would pay to give it a fair trial, as through 
 Southern Europe the fact is generally conceded that 
 the quality of oil produced from hillside groves is tar 
 superior to that produced from groves in valleys. Also 
 a writer of oil culture states the fact that many vari- 
 eties of olives bear larger fruits when planted in our 
 virgin soil than thev do when grown in the Old World 
 \ few varieties of olives are known that bear sweet 
 fruits which, when ripe, may be eaten from the tree 
 and when dried are very good, Piru Sweet One and 
 Piru Sweet Two. In these two imported varieties of 
 unknown origin Olifor-n h?s ?cquired two very val- 
 uable additions to the olive varieties now on the | coast. 
 
 In the New World growers of olives, unlike tn- 
 ancients, have usually but two things in view, oil and 
 
pickles, the former requiring the olive to be picked 
 when ripe, which in California for the most varieties 
 will be in January and December, the latter being 
 gathered while green. 
 
 A good deal of uncertainty is apparent in regard to 
 the California varieties which are the best for oil. Those 
 which are generally conceded to be the best are Mo- 
 rinello, Infrantofo (Grossafo), Leccino, Rozza, Ob- 
 longa, Uvaria of Mr. Loop, Rubra, Morafolo, Correg- 
 giolo, Frantojo, Piru No. 1, Nevadillo, Blanco and 
 Mission. 
 
 In the previous pages the manner of obtaining the 
 oil from and the pressing of the olives has been dis- 
 cussed at some length, but it may be well to give a few 
 moments' consideration to the clarification of the oil. 
 
 This process varies. "The clearest and most bril- 
 liant oil, however, is generally obtained by passing it 
 through some compact filter, such as is used for filtering 
 spirituous liquids or the gray filter paper usually sold 
 in circular sheets by druggists. More porous filters will 
 evolve a less brilliant oil. It is even probable that oil 
 bottled without filtration, if thoroughly cleared by 
 standing at a proper temperature for a sufficient length 
 of time, will be of a finer flavor than that passed through 
 filters of any description." 
 
 Probably the olive has reached its greatest perfec- 
 tion at the Helix Farms, ten miles southeasterly from 
 the city of San Diego. Here the setting out of the olive 
 was begun in 1 885 . The soil was found peculiarly 
 adapted, and the venture met with great success. 
 
 Wherever olives grow they will be eaten. Thus at 
 the present time California probably consumes more 
 olives than all the rest of the United States. As yet 
 the domestic production of olive oil has not been 
 sufficient to meet the demand of this country, so a 
 large portion of the consumption is supplied by the 
 imported article. The number of importers of olive 
 oil are each year increasing, hence the great need and 
 the unlimited possibilities that attend the culture and 
 cultivation of the olive in the United States can readily 
 be seen. 
 
 Page twenty-four 
 
THE OIL OF THE OLIVE 
 
 The term oil, oleum, from olea (because the oil of 
 olives was first distinguished by this name) is of veiy 
 ancient origin. 
 
 Oil is a product of great utility, the symbolic sig- 
 nification of which harmonizes with its natural uses: 
 Jt serves to strengthen, sweeten, and to render supple 
 Olive oil figured very prominently in the Mosaic law 
 and ordinances, hence in Exodus it is written, "And 
 thou shalt command the children of Israel, that they 
 bring the pure olive oil beaten for the light, to cause 
 the lamp to burn always" ; then again, "Thou shalt 
 anoint Aaron and his sons and consecrate them." In 
 the, Psalms of David it is spoken of "as oil to make 
 his face shine." In the New Testament it is mentioned 
 several times, as in Hebrews, "Therefore God, even 
 thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness 
 above thy fellows." 
 
 In the History of Chemistry, by Dr. Fred Hoefer 
 (1842), he says: "The idea of crushing fruits to obtain 
 from them either fecula (a starch) or juice, gave rise 
 to the discovery of oil.'' It is rational to admit that 
 oil, fecula and unfermented wine were discovered at 
 the same time: for the man who first thought of crush- 
 ing the fruit of the wine had no reason not to proceed 
 with his experiment. He should try to treat in the same 
 way all the dry fruits or fleshy parts of the plants 
 which he had at hand. 
 
 As has been previously noted, the olive tree was of all 
 trees the most valued, at the same time most useful. 
 For this reason the ancient races dedicated to it a sort 
 of worship. The oil which the olive tree furnishes, wiih 
 the aid of a simple mechanical operation, had a much 
 more widespread use in ancient times than it enjoys 
 today. 
 
 Omphacium oil, oil of unripe olives, was the most 
 valued. It was extracted from olives before they were 
 perfectly ripe. Also by some writers it is known as 
 "Virgin Oil." Now a question of great importance to 
 
 Page twenty-five 
 
 J 
 
be considered is the term "sweet,'' as applies to olive 
 oil ; as olive oil, according to the technical term, is 
 not sweet. It was found the oil made from the pure 
 fruit pulp as in the Hebrew treading process was bettc 
 than the oil made when the pulp seeds were crushed, 
 as under the great stones ; the oil from the pure pulp 
 being sweet, while that from the seed was bitter. 
 
 It was the practice of the Greeks and Romans to 
 distil oil from the olive at various stages of maturity. 
 The oil produced by the early berries being bitter, while 
 that which was made toward Christmas was fragrant 
 and mellow, the latter being called "sweet oil" in order 
 to distinguish it from the earlier product, which was 
 called ''summer,'' or ''bitter oil." 
 
 Doubtless it would be the former which would be 
 generally used for culinary or medical purposes, hence 
 the term "sweet oil" would be generally applied to all 
 ordinary olive oil. Then, too. when there was practically 
 only the one sort of oil and that oil meant almost as a 
 matter of course the juice pressed from the olive, there 
 was no need of any distinguishing prefix. 
 
 Later on when an empirical and barbaric system 
 of medicine began to employ all sorts of oils made from 
 dead animals (decomposed fish may be cited as an 
 instance), very naturally the qualifying epithet of 
 "sweet" attached itself to the oil of the olive. 
 
 Some idea of the gruesome substances used in the 
 apothecary shops of that age, the sixteenth century, can 
 be found in the witches' opening chorus, in act four, 
 of "Macbeth." 
 
 From the various processes of manufacturing the 
 oil, because of the great value of olive oil, also the 
 wonderful demand for it, soon adulterants came into 
 use. Oil was squeezed or extracted from nuts, plants, 
 and various other sources. This oil was used to in- 
 crease the Quantity of oil sold under the name of olive 
 oil. The adulterated and false oils were bitter to the 
 ta c te; soon the trade began to demand "sweet olive 
 nil" and "sweet oil" in preference to the adulterated 
 varieties. 
 
 Page twenty- six 
 
It must be carefully noted that the word "sweet" 
 was used in relation to olive oil because olive oil was 
 smooth, not in the same sense that applies to sugar. 
 Olive oil is not sweet as sugar is sweet, but it is pleas 
 ant and agreeable to the taste, as spring water is said 
 to be "sweet" while the waters of the sea are called 
 ''bitter waters." 
 
 In this connection it is worth explaining that long 
 before the Christian era olive oil was perfumed witii 
 flowers, various spices and balsams. The first per- 
 fume was made by dipping flowers into the oil, result- 
 ing in "precious ointment," of which such frequent 
 mention is made in both the Old and Xew Testaments. 
 
 Here also olive oil was associated with "sweet" in* 
 the sense of fragrant and smooth. 
 
 It was burned at the Jewish altar with the uniden- 
 tified frankincense; the perfumed and resined oil burn- 
 ing with a sweet odor. 
 
 The next point which we must consider is the ques- 
 tion as to who gave the name "sweet oil," in what age, 
 and the reason for so naming this product. 
 
 By the accident of language, it not infrequently hap- 
 pens that certain phrases, though common enough in 
 trade, or even on the lips of people, yet find but little 
 expression in literature. No doubt had there been_ a 
 popular press in the sixteenth century, we should dis- 
 cover the word there; but as there was none, and as 
 furthermore most of the popular literature of thai 
 time has perished beyond chance of recall, it becomes 
 very difficult to find instances of a vernacular phrase. 
 
 Not once in "Piers the Plowman" (Chaucer), or in 
 his contemporary, Grover ; not even in Shakespeare or 
 Milton does the phrase occur. 
 
 The following are practicady the only instances dis- 
 covered : In 1531 Sir Thomas Elyot in the "Boke ! 
 called the "Governour," speaks of "the sweet oyle of 
 remembrance," but one can feel by no means sure that 
 he referred to olive oil. In 1571 Richard Mulcaster, 
 head-master of Merchant Taylor's School, speaks of the 
 ancient athletes who were "oynted with sweet oyle so 
 
 Page twenty-seven 
 
neatly and with such cunning as it might sooke into 
 their bodies and search everie joynt." 
 
 The next instance to be quoted is when we find W. 
 Halifax, a scientist of the late Stuart period, who affirms 
 in one of his manuscripts, "perhaps he distributed 
 among them sweet oyle, to be used in or after bathing. ' 
 
 Sweet oil, so-called, is described in the Pharmaccepia 
 Bateana, published in 1720, the scientific name, "Oleum 
 Sacchari Simplex," or "oil or sugar simple," is thus 
 described : "This is no oil, but a syrup, and receives its 
 denomination only from its form, body and consistency. 
 It is made of sugar candy and spirits of wine, mixed 
 and dissolved with heat, the spirit being burned away." 
 
 William Salmon, author of this book, is very definite 
 in his description, for he classes the "sweet oil" under 
 distilled oils, but called it a syrup ; and under "Oyls " 
 describes various olive preparations, including "Oil of 
 Toads," which should be made of live toads boiled in 
 olive oil to obtain a cure for cancer. Also he says, 
 "Le mort makes an oil of sugar after this manner, 
 certain proportions of sugar, sand, or washed ashes 
 being given ; mix them, put them into a glass retort. 
 distil with a gentel fire in sand, at least increasing the 
 fire to a red-hot heat so you have oil and spirit which 
 you may separate." 
 
 In Materia Medica (1810), the term olive oil and 
 sweet oil is used synonomously : "The olive tree .... 
 is cultivated to a very considerable extent, on account 
 of its fruit, from which the sweet or salad oil is ex- 
 tracted As an article of food, olive oil is pref- 
 erable to animal fat, but it ought to be mild, fresh, and 
 of sweet nature." 
 
 Sweet fennel oil, anise oil, the oil of sesame, and 
 
 various other oils, literallv sweet, and even mere sugar 
 syrup, became "sweet oil." 
 
 After a chemical 'analysis of these oils, the fact be- 
 came apparent that while sweet fennel oil and anise 
 oil are sweet to the taste, the oil of sesameis not sweet, 
 but bears a pronounced likeness to olive oil. 
 
 Page twenty-eight 
 
In the Chemical Technology of oils by Dr. J. Lenk- 
 owitsch (1909), he says: "The taste of olive oil in its 
 purest state is bland and pleasant. It varies, however, 
 with the locality where the fruit has been grown. Thus 
 the oils obtained from Tuscan fruits possess a decidedly 
 more agreeable taste than those of Ligurian olives.' 
 
 "Also as to the oil called 'Olive Kennel Oil,' the 
 taste of the expressed oil is sweetish, somewhat re- 
 sembling that of almond oil, without, however, pos- 
 sessing the characteristic bland taste of olive oil." 
 
 Still, in a Technology of less recent date (1895), 
 W. T. Dent affirms: "The tree bears a stone fruit, the 
 fleshy integument of which contains the sweetest of all 
 vegetable oils." 
 
 It is to be noted that the earliest Greek literature, 
 the Homeric Poems, make no reference to olive oil as 
 a food. Its sole purpose at that time was to give supple- 
 ness to the limbs of the athlete. 
 
 However, in Hesiod's writings, whose date, though 
 uncertain, cannot be so much later than the Homeric 
 era we find olive oil used alike for both purposes < 
 
 The oil of the olive is furnished by the pulp, which 
 is a characteristic almost peculiar to this fruit; in other 
 oleaginous vegetables it is extracted from the seed 
 The oil of the pulp is rich, of a delicious flavor, that of 
 Ibe stone dark, cloudy: that of the seed contains essen- 
 tia 1 and resinous oil in small quantities. These oils 
 of stone seed and skin, instead of adding to the oil 
 obtained from the pulp, would be a great injury if they 
 did not exist in such small quantities. It can easily be 
 «een that in selecting a variety for olive culture the 
 varieties containing much pulp and small seeds should 
 be chosen. Different varieties of olives ripen at dilter- 
 ent periods and in order that the best oil should be 
 made the berry, should be gathered at the time of it 
 maturity and at no other. No time can oe set when 
 an olive crop should be harvested. It may vary by 
 weeks from one season to another, and it is better by 
 far to anticipate than to defer the harvest. ^ 
 
 Pascannus a Grecian writer, recommends the 
 proper season for the preparation of the common oil 
 
 Page twenty-mnc 
 
is when more than half of the fruit appears to be 
 getting black. But it is necessary to accelerate the 
 gathering before the frosts set in, for the trees will 
 afford a less laborious and a more abundant crop. But 
 it is necessary to gather the fruit when it is fine weather 
 
 and not rainy It is proper to wash the olives 
 
 with warm water, for besides the cleaning of them we 
 shall likewise find more oil." 
 
 Again from Apuleius the following method of har- 
 vesting is given : "When you then see the olives be- 
 ginning to exhibit signs of maturity, order the boys to 
 gather them with their hands, observing that none of' 
 them may fall on the ground. ... It is necessary that 
 the wheel (of the mill) may be turned around briskly 
 and lightly that the flesh and the skin of the olive may 
 be only pressed; after the grinding, carry what is ground 
 in small trays to the press and lay in frails made of 
 willow, for the willow contributes much to the beauty 
 of the oil ; then lay on a light weight, not a burdensome 
 one, for what flows from light pressure is very sweet 
 and very thin, which when you have drawn it into clean 
 vessels, orders to be kept by itself ; press again with a 
 heavier weight the olives that are left .... and keep 
 this, too, by itself, for it will be a little inferior, and 
 so on." 
 
 "Then, too, it is not with olive oil as it is with wine, 
 for by age it acquires a bad flavor and at the end of a 
 year it is already old." 
 
 Several writers of ancient days speak most highly of 
 the Licinian olive, which is grown in the territory of 
 Venaf rum ; it is said to produce the finest quality of oil, 
 also it is an established fact that the birds will never 
 destroy the berries of the Licinian olives. 
 
 Fabianus tells us "the first olive to be gathered after 
 the autumn is that known as the Posia, the berry of 
 which has the most flesh upon it ; next to this is the 
 Orchitis, which contains the greatest quantity of oil ; 
 then after that the Radius." 
 
 The varieties known as the Licinian, the Comenian, 
 the Conlian, and the Sergian do not turn black before 
 the west winds prevail, i. e., prior to the sixth day before 
 
 Page thirty 
 
the Ides of February. At this period it is generally 
 thought the most excellent oil is extracted from them. 
 
 The size of the olive does not govern the yield of 
 oil; often the largest olive contains the least oil* while 
 an abundant harvest of oil is gathered from small ones. 
 The Egyptian olive is very meaty but yields an inferior 
 quality of oil, while the olives of Decapolis. and Syria 
 are extremely small, yet yield in proportion more oil; 
 again, the olives that are preferred for table use aie 
 inferior for making oil. 
 
 The ancient people used salt to prevent the oil turn- 
 ing rancid, and often by making incisions in the baik of 
 the tree imparted an aromatic odor to the oil. 
 
 Here it may be stated that in the fine oil the odor 
 is penetrating, but even in the very best it is short 
 lived. 
 
 In the writings of Pliny he enumerated forty-live 
 varieties of artificial oils, speaking of them in this 
 manner : "We will first mention those which are pro- 
 duced from the trees, and among them more par- 
 ticularlv the wild olive." This olive is small, much 
 more bitter than the cultivated one, hence its oil is 
 used only in medicinal preparations. The oil from 
 Oleasters is thinner than ordinary oil and has a stronger 
 odor. 
 
 Old olive oil is thought to be of great use in tne 
 preservation of ivory. So much credence was given 
 <-o the idea that at one time the statue of Saturn in 
 Rome was kept filled with it. 
 
 Before we t"ra to the consideration of modern 
 methods of obtaining the oil from olives, it is interest- 
 ing to note Cato's rules regarding the Overseer's duties 
 in the manufacture of the oil. He says: "The Ovei- 
 seer must frequently drain ofT the oil and deliver each 
 time what he gets to the oil pressers in pint vessels, 
 as well as what is required for the lamp. The dregs 
 must be daily removed and the watery lees must con- 
 stants be taken out. till the bottom of the vat in the 
 pressing chamber is reached. The baskets must oe 
 wiped out with a sponge. Every day the oil must dp 
 removed from the vat till it has all been placed in jars." 
 
 Page thirty-one 
 
Previously it has been mentioned that the immediate 
 extraction of oil from the olive, as soon as possible 
 after the gathering, is conducive to the greatest yield 
 of oil ; a fact which is acknowledged by all writers 
 regarding olive culture as well as by those interested in 
 the manufacture of oil. 
 
 Conditions may arise that will render the immediate 
 use of the olive impossible. In fact some statistics affirm 
 that when the olive is partly dried the oil is much bettei. 
 
 In the drying of the olive the Italians spread them 
 on brick floors, being careful to have the bricks porous 
 in quality. The olives are so placed as to allow the air 
 free circulation. During the day they are carefully 
 turned by wooden rakes, the greatest caution being exer- 
 cised not to bruise them. The process is repeated three 
 or four times each day. This is considered a simple 
 and safe method of drying the fruit 
 
 It is easily seen in the drying process that the water 
 will evaporate to a considerable extent. Care must be 
 taken that the fruit is not allowed to soften, as that 
 will be the first symptom of decay, which will tend 
 to impair the flavor and odor of the oil. 
 
 Many different systems are employed in the prepara- 
 tion of olive oil — each in a way peculiar to the climate 
 in which it is used. 
 
 In Sicily, where large quantities of olive oil are 
 used and produced, the operation is performed in a 
 primitive fashion. 
 
 The olives are first placed on a circular flat form 
 of masonry, about seven feet in diameter, upon which 
 a heavy millstone is turned by a pole or a donkey. The 
 mass, which has been thoroughly pulped by this process, 
 is now placed in soft rush baskets and put under a 
 press, which is compressed by means of a wooden screw 
 worked by five or six men. By this means the cold oil 
 is expressed, heat being used to extract the remainder. 
 The oil is allowed to settle and clarify before it is ready 
 for use. 
 
 The objection found to this process is that the crush- 
 ing of the kernels with the pulp renders the oil extracted 
 
 Page thirty-two 
 
r 
 
 bitter or of a peculiar taste, thus injuring the flavor 
 and keeping quality of the oil obtained from the pulp. 
 
 Modern crushers, therefore, do not break the stones. 
 In California old-fashioned stone mills are used to 
 crush the fruit, although bronze crushers are being tried 
 with good results. The ground mass is then pressed 
 to extract the liquid portion, which contains water plant 
 juices in addition to the oil. 
 
 Various devices are used to separate the oil and 
 purify it. Since the separation of the oil from the 
 juice by gravity is hazardous on account of liability to 
 ferment, the impurities are quickly washed out by spe- 
 cial apparatus in which a current of cool water comes 
 in contact with a small quantity of the juice, mixes 
 with it, separates the larger particles of pulp, allowing 
 the oil to rise through a tall column of water, which 
 further washes the oil globules as they arise. 
 
 After being allowed to stand for a time in a cool 
 room this oil is racked off and sold as "new oil," or may 
 be again allowed to stand for further clarification. 
 
 However, the American market demands a clear oil, 
 hence much of the domestic oil is filtered through bone 
 charcoal, a process which, especially if often repeated, 
 impairs the flavor, making the oil seem greasy. 
 
 Whatever the process of obtaining the oil may be, 
 scrupulous cleanliness is necessary, as olive oil is pale 
 yellow, inodorous, and has a specific gravity of .918 
 at a temperature of fifteen (15) degrees Centigrade (C). 
 
 Page thirty-three 
 
 ^. 
 
OLIVE OIL IN CHEMISTRY 
 AND MEDICINE 
 
 Olive oil also plays a prominent part in chemistry 
 and medicine. In the history of "The Oleates," by 
 John V. Showmaker, he says : "The use of fatty 
 vehicles in applying medicinal substances to the cutan- 
 eous covering of the body is probably as old as medicine 
 itself. There is scarcely a doubt that innunctions per- 
 formed a most important part in the early history of 
 medicine. The fatty bodies then used were oils ex- 
 pressed from the seeds and fruits of plants, as well 
 as fats from domestic and wild animals." 
 
 In a translation of "History of Chemistry From 
 the Earliest Times to the Present Day'' by Ernest V. 
 Meyer he gives us the following facts : "The use of 
 artificially prepared products in medicines also extend to 
 a period very far back, even though in referring to this 
 one can only speak of the first beginning of a pharma- 
 ceutical chemistry. But a connection between the chem- 
 ical arts and pharmacy very early established itself. 
 For example, the Egyptians, who were doubtless the 
 first to employ actual chemical preparations for medi- 
 cinal purposes." 
 
 As, for instance, the preparation of lead plaister 
 from litharge and oil was much practiced in the time 
 of Deosconides. 
 
 Other fatty compounds then known were fatty oils 
 (from the seeds of fruits), olive, castor, and almond 
 oils were largely used as medicinal remedies. 
 
 In the earlier London and Edinburgh Pharmacoepias 
 a strange and interesting fact regarding olive oil is 
 given : A preparation called Oil of Bricks, among its 
 synonyms were "oleum sanctum" and "oleum benedic- 
 tum," was highly thought of and extensively used. 
 
 By some of the earlv writers of the 1740's the nro- 
 cess for making oil of bricks is given as follows :_ Flea 
 the bricks red hot, then quench them in olive oil until 
 they have soaked up all of the olive oil possible, then 
 break very small pieces in a retort and by means of a 
 sand bath with gradually increased heat a distillate of 
 
 Page thirty- four 
 
oil and so-called spirit is obtained. It was deemed 
 especially valuable as an application for gouty and 
 rheumatic pains, and much thought of for deafness 
 
 \lso in the 1740's balsam of sulphur was one of the 
 uses into which olive oil entered. It was made by boiling 
 the flowers of sulphur with four times their weight m 
 .•live oil until the sulphur was dissolved and a thick 
 dark balsamic substance was obtained. This in a medi- 
 cinal point of view was valuable for coughs and asthma. 
 At the present day olive oil is used as a laxative, 
 as enemas, also as an antidote in cases of acid poison- 
 ing as a local neutral protection from the atmosphere, 
 as an inunction to increase the fat of the body or to 
 reduce the heat of the skin. In lead factories workmen 
 use it as a laxative to prevent the absorptions of lead. 
 Combined with camphor, morphine, etc., it is applied, to 
 wounds, burns and bruises. It also forms the basis 01 
 many liniments. . , ,, 
 
 It allavs the pain of insect bites, and warmed will 
 aid in expelling foreign substances from the ear. Often 
 it is applied to swollen parts of the body. It is used as 
 a lubricant for surgical instruments, etc. 
 
 Some physicians believe if given in large doses it will 
 hasten the discharge of gallstones, apparently softening 
 
 { ^ It' may be well to add that in the Pharmacopoeias of 
 \merica"the first volume of which was published in 
 1820 that with the exception of the first volume olive 
 oil is mentioned as follows in each subsequent edition . 
 1830— Olive oleum: Olea Europea. 1840— Olive 
 oleum: The fruit of the olea Europea. l»50-Olive 
 oil • The oil of the fruit of olea Europea 860-Oleunr 
 oil : The oil obtained from the fruit of olea Europea. 
 1870-Oleum olive: The fixed oil obtained from the 
 fruit Olea Europea. 1880-Oleum olive : The fixed ml 
 expressed from the ripe fruit of olea Europe^ 1890- 
 Oleum olive: A fixed oil expressed from the ripe fruit 
 of olea Europea. It should be kept in well-stoppered 
 bottles in a cool place. 1900-Oleum olive : Olive on . 
 A fixed oil expressed from the ripe fruit of olea Euro- 
 pea 1910-Oleum olive: A fixed oil obtained from 
 the ripe fruit of olea Europea. 
 
THE ECCLESIASTICAL USE OF 
 OLIVE OIL 
 
 From the earliest ages to the present time the olive 
 tree, its fruit with its uses, have been carefully con- 
 sidered ; now brief mention should be made of olive oil 
 as used in ecclesiastical ceremonies, both in primith e 
 and modern times. As is generally known, the lith- 
 urgical blessing of oil is very ancient. It is met will 
 in the fourth century in the "Prayer Book of Serapion" 
 and in the Apostolic Constitution, also in a Syrais docu- 
 ment of the fifth and sixth centuries entitled "Tcsla- 
 mentum Domini Nostri Jesn Christi.'' The aforesaid 
 book of Bishop Serapion (A. D. 362) contains the 
 formula for the blessing of the oil and chrism for those 
 who had just received baptism, which was in those days 
 followed by confirmation in such a manner that the 
 administration of both sacraments constituted a single 
 ceremony. In the same book is found a separate form 
 of blessing for the oil, of the sick, for water, and for 
 bread. It is an invocation to Christ to give His crea- 
 tures power to cure the sick, to purify the soul, to drive 
 away impure spirits, and to wipe out sin. In the Old 
 Testament oil was used for the consecration of priests 
 and kings, also in all great liturgical functions, e. g., 
 sacrifices, legal purifications, and the consecration of 
 altars. 
 
 In the primitive church the oils to be used in th p 
 initiation of catechumens were consecrated on Holy 
 Thursday in the Missa Chrismalis. Two different am- 
 pullae were used, one containing pure oil, the other 
 mixed with balsam. This mixture was made by the 
 Pope himself before the mass in the sacristy. During 
 the mass two clerics of lesser rank stood before the 
 altar holding the ampulla?. Toward the end of the 
 canon the faithful offered for benediction small ampullae 
 of oil: these contained oil of the sick which the faithful 
 were allowed to make use of themselves, but the same 
 oil also served for extreme unction. The vessels holding 
 it were placed on the railing surrounding the space 
 reserved for the clergy. The deacons brought sore 
 
 Page thirty-six 
 
these vessels to the altar to receive the blessing of the 
 Pope. The Pope continued the mass while the deacons 
 returned the ampullae to the place whence they had 
 brought them, and a certain number of bishops and 
 priests repeated over those which had not been brought 
 to the altar the formula pronounced by the Pope. The 
 consecration of the large ampulla? took place imme- 
 diately after the communion of the Pope, before the 
 communion of the clergy and the faithful. The deacons 
 covered the chalice and paten while the subdeacons 
 carried the ampullae to the archdeacon and one of his 
 assistants. The archdeacon presented to the Pope the 
 ampullae of perfumed oil, the Pope breathed on it three 
 times, made the sign of the cross, and recited a prayer 
 which bears a certain resemblance to the preface of the 
 mass. The ampullae of pure oil was next presented to 
 the Pope and was consecrated with less solemnity. The 
 consecration and benediction of the Holy oil now take 
 place on Holy Thursday at a very solemn ceremony 
 reserved for the bishop. He blesses the oil which is 
 to serve at the anointing of catechumens previous to 
 baptism, next the oil with which the sick are anointed 
 in the Sacrament of Extreme Unction, finally the 
 chrism, which is a mixture of oil and balsam, and which 
 is used in the administration of the Sacrament of Con- 
 firmation. 
 
 The use of oil in Christian antiquity was not, as ha? 
 been maintained, a medical prescription adopted by the 
 church. In apostolic times St. James directed the priests 
 or ancients of the community to pray for the sick man 
 and to anoint him with oil in the name of Jesus. And 
 shortly afterwards, probably in the second century, a 
 gold leaf found at Beyrout in Svria, contains an ex- 
 ordium "nronoimced in the dwelling of him whom I 
 anointed." This is after the text of St. James ; the 
 earliest evidence of the use of oil accompanied by a 
 aula in the administration of a sacrament. The oil 
 of the sick might lie blessed not onlv by priests but also 
 bv layment of lush repute for virtue, and even by 
 nen. In the sixth century St. Monegundus on iiis 
 death-bed blessed oil and salt, which were afterwards 
 
 Page thirty-seven 
 
used for the sick. A similar instance is met with in the 
 life of St. Redegund. In the West, however, the ten- 
 dency was early manifested to confine the blessing of 
 the oil of the sick to bishops only. About 730 St. 
 Boniface ordered all priests to have recourse to the 
 bishop. In 744 the tendency was not so pronounced in 
 France, but the Council of Chalons, 813, imposed on 
 priests the obligation of anointing the sick with oil 
 blessed by the bishop. In the East the priests retained 
 the right to consecrate the oil. The custom even be- 
 came established, and has lasted to the present time, of 
 having the oil blessed in the house of the sick person, 
 or in the church by a priest, or, if possible, by seven 
 priests. 
 
 During the time of the catechumenate those who 
 were about to become Christians received one or mor- 
 anointings with holy oil. The of 1 used on this occasion 
 was that which had received tne blessing mentioned 
 in the Apostolic Constitution. This anointing of the 
 catechumens is explained by the fact that they weie 
 regarded to a certain extent as being possessed by the 
 devil until Christ should enter into them through bap- 
 tism. The oil of catechumens is also used in the ordi- 
 nation of priests and the coronation of kings and 
 queens. 
 
 The oil of chrism is used in the West immediately 
 after baptism. Both in the East and West it was useu 
 very early for the Sacrament of Confirmation. 
 
 The "Ordo Roiiianus" shows that in Rome on Holy 
 Thursday the archdeacon went very early to St. John 
 Lateran, where he mixed wax and oil in a large vase, 
 this mixture being used to make the Agnus Dei. Tne 
 same document shows that in the suburban churches 
 wax was used while Pseudo-Alcium says that both 
 wax and oil were used. 
 
 In the Lithurgy of the Xestorians and the Syrian 
 Jacobites, the elements present at the Eucharistic Con- 
 secration have been prepared with oil. Among the 
 Nestorians a special rubric prescribes the use of flour, 
 salt, olive oil and water. 
 
 Page thirty-eight 
 
From the second century the custom was established 
 of administering baptism with water specially blessed 
 for this purpose. Nevertheless, the sacrament was valid 
 if ordinary water was used. We are not well informed 
 as to the nature of the consecration of this baptismal 
 water, but it must be said that the most ancient indica- 
 tions and descriptions say nothing of the use of oil in 
 this consecration. The first witness, Pseudo-Dionysius, 
 does not go beyond the first half of the sixth century ; 
 he tells us that the bishop pours oil on the water of 
 the fonts in the form of a cross. There is no doubl 
 that this rite was introduced at a comparatively late 
 period. 
 
 The maintenance of more or less numerous lamps in 
 the churches was a source of expense which the faith- 
 ful in their generosity hastened to meet by establishing 
 a fund to purchase oil. The Council of Braga (572) 
 decided that a third of the offerings made to the church 
 should be used for purchasing oil for the light. The 
 quality of oil thus consumed was greater when a lamp 
 burned before a famous tomb or shrine, in which case 
 it was daily distributed to pilgrims, who venerated it 
 as a relic. 
 
 Chrism is a mixture of olives and balsam, blessed 
 by a bishop in a special manner, and used in the ad- 
 ministration of certain sacraments and in the perform- 
 ance of certain ecclesiastical functions. That chrism 
 may serve as valid matter for the Sacrament of Con- 
 firmation it must consist of pure oil of olives and it 
 must be blessed by a Bishop, or at least by a priest 
 delegated by the Holy See. These two conditions are 
 certainly necessary for validity; moreover, it is prob- 
 able that there should be an admixture of balsam and 
 that the blessing of the chrism should be special, in the 
 sense that it ought to be different from that which is 
 i'iven to the oil of the sick or the oil of catechumens. 
 If either of the last two conditions is wanting the sac- 
 rament will be doubtfully valid. To deal with the sud- 
 ject in a sufficiently exhaustive manner, it will be enough 
 
 Pane thirty-nifii 
 
to touch on (1) the origin and antiquity of chrism, 
 (2) its constituent nature, (3) its blessing, and (4) its 
 use and symbolic significance. 
 
 In its primitive meaning the word chrism, like the 
 Greek chriona, was used to designate any and every 
 substance that served the purpose of smearing or 
 anointing, such as the various kinds of oils, unguents 
 and pigments. This was its ordinary signification in 
 profane literature, and even in the early patristic writ- 
 ings. Gradually, however, in the writings of the fathers 
 at all events, the term came to be restricted to that 
 special kind of oil that was used in religious cere- 
 monies and functions, especially in the administration 
 of the Sacrament of Baptism and Confirmation. Thus 
 origin refers to the visible chrism in which we have all 
 been baptized. St. Ambrose venerates in the chrism 
 the oil of grace which makes kings and priests ; ana 
 St. Cyril of Jerusalem celebrates the praises of the 
 mystic chrism. The early councils of the church have 
 also references to chrism as something set apart for 
 sacred purposes and making for the sanctification of 
 men. Thus the Council of Constantinople held in 38i 
 and the Council of Toledo, 398. Regarding the institu- 
 tion of chrism, or its introduction into the sacramental 
 and ceremonial system of the church, some theologians, 
 among them St. Thomas and Susrex, hold that it was 
 instituted immediately by Christ, while others contend 
 that it is altogether of ecclesiastical origin. Eugene IV 
 in his famous "Instruction for the Armenians" asserts 
 that chrism is the matter of the Sacrament of Confir- 
 mation, and, indeed, this opinion is so certain that it 
 may not be denied without incurring some note of 
 theological censure. All that the Council of Trent has 
 defined in this connection is that they who attribute 
 a certain spiritual and salutary efficacy to holy chrism 
 do not in any way derogate from the respect and rev- 
 erence due to the Holy Ghost. 
 
 (2) Two elements enter into the constitution of 
 legitimate chrism, viz., olive oil and balsam. The for- 
 mer is indeed the predominating, as well as the prin- 
 cipal ingredient, b-t the latter must be added in greater 
 
 Page forty 
 
oi lesser quantity, if not for reasons of validity, at all 
 events in obedience to a grave ecclesiastical precept. 
 Frequent reference is made in the Old Testament to 
 the use of oil in religious ceremonies. It was employer 1 
 in the coronation of kings, in the consecration of the 
 high priests, and in the ordination of the Levites, aim, 
 indeed, it figured very prominently in the Mosaic ordi- 
 nances generally, as can he abundantly gathered Iron 
 Exodus, Leviticus and Deuteronomy. Such being the 
 prevailing usage of the Old Testament in adopting 
 olive oil for religious ceremonies, it is no cause for 
 wonder that it also came to receive under the New 
 Dispensation a certain religious recognition and ap- 
 proval. The second element that enters into the con- 
 stitution of genuine chrism is balsam. This is an aro- 
 matic, resinous substance that is extracted from the 
 wood of certain trees or plants, especially those be- 
 longing to the terebinthine group or family. In the 
 manufacture of this sweet-smelling unguent the early 
 Greek-Christians were wont to employ as many as forty 
 different perfumed species or essences. In the beginning 
 of the Christian era balsam was obtained from Judea 
 and from Arabia, but in modern times it is also pro- 
 duced, and in superior quality, in the West Indies. The 
 first mention of balsam as an ingredient in the con- 
 position of chrism seems to be found in the "Gregorian 
 Sacramentary,'' as work belonging to the sixth cen- 
 tury. Now, however, according to existing legislation, 
 the additional balsam is requisite for lawful chrism, but 
 whether it is necessary for the validity of the sacra- 
 ment, assuming that chrism is the matter of confirma- 
 tion, is a matter about which theologians do not agree. 
 The modern view appears to be that it is not so re- 
 quired. But owing to the uncertainty mere olive oil 
 alone would be doubtful matter and could not therefore 
 be employed apart from very grave necessity. 
 
 (3) For proper and legitimate chrism the blessing 
 bv a bishoo is necessary, and probably, too, such a 
 blessing as is peculiar to it alone. That the bishop is the 
 ordinary minister of this blessing is certain. So much 
 is amply recognized in all the writings of the early 
 
 Page forty-one 
 
centuries, by the early councils ; the Second Council oi 
 Carthage of 390, and the Third Council of Braga, 572 
 and by all modern theologians. But whether a priest 
 may be the extraordinary minister of this blessing, and 
 if so, in what circumstances — this is a question that is 
 more or less freely discussed. It seems agreed that the 
 Pope may delegate a priest for this purpose, but it is 
 not so clear that bishops can bestow the same delegated 
 authority exjure ordinario. They exercised, it seems, 
 this prerogative in former times in the East, but the 
 power of delegating priests to bless chrism is now 
 strictly reserved to the Holy See in the Western church 
 The rites employed in consecrating" the sacred chrism 
 go to show that it is a ceremony of the highest im 
 portance. Formerly it could be blessed on any day of 
 the year, according as necessity arose. Now, however, 
 it must be blessed during the solemn mass on Holy 
 Thursday. For the full solemn ceremonial the conse- 
 crating prelate should be assisted by twelve priests, 
 seven deacons, and seven subdeacons. The oil and 
 balsam, being prepared in the sacristy beforehand, ar : 
 carried in solemn procession to the sanctuary after the 
 communion, and placed on a table. Then the balsam, 
 held on a silver salver, is blessed, and similarly the 
 olive oil, which is reserved in a silver jar. After this 
 the balsam is mixed with the oil. Then the chrism, 
 being perfected with a final prayer, receives the homage 
 of all the sacred ministers present, each making a triple 
 genuflection toward it. and each time saying the words, 
 "Ave sanctum chrisma." After the ceremony it is taken 
 back to the sacristy and distributed among the priests, 
 who take it away in silver vessels commonly called 
 oil-stocks, that which remains being securely and rev- 
 erently guarded under lock and key. 
 
 (4) Chrism is used in the administration of the 
 Sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Or- 
 ders, in the consecration of churches, chalices, patens, 
 altars, and altar stones, and in the solemn blessing of 
 bells and baptismal water. The head of the newly 
 baptized is anointed with chrism, the forehead of the 
 person confirmed, the head and hands of a bishop at 
 
 Page forty-two 
 
his consecration, and the hands of a priest at his ordi- 
 nation. So are the walls of churches, which are sol- 
 emnly consecrated, anointed with the same holy oil, and 
 the parts of the sacred vessels used in the mass which 
 come in contact with the Sacred Species, as the paten 
 and chalice. If it he asked why chrism has been intro- 
 duced into the functions of the church liturgy, a reason 
 is found in its special fitness for this purpose by reason, 
 of its symbolic significance. For olive oil being of its 
 own nature rich, diffusive, and abiding, is fitted to repre- 
 sent the copious outpouring of sacramental grace, while 
 balsam, which gives forth most agreeable and fragrant 
 odors, typifies the innate sweetness of Christian virtue. 
 Oil also gives strength and suppleness to the limbs, 
 while balsam preserves from corruption. Thus, apoint- 
 mg with chrism aptty signifies that fulness of grace and 
 spiritual strength by which we are enabled to resist the 
 contagion of sin and produce the sweet flowers of 
 virtue. "For wc are the good odor of Christ unto 
 God." 
 
 In conclusion it readily can be seen that the olive 
 tree and its fruit have played a wonderful and con- 
 spicuous part in the history of the human race. 
 
 From the ancient crowning of rulers and athletes 
 with garlands made from its leaves, the placing of 
 tiie boughs about the beloved dead, the race of primi- 
 tive man that by its nourishing fruit and oil was kept 
 from starvation and death, to the opening up of avenues 
 of trade where otherwise there would have been no 
 commerce, until the present days, the olive is famous 
 a. id always will continue to be. 
 
 Few substances have had the same fame, the same 
 varied history, the same uplifting value that olive oil 
 has had. It contributes not only to the nourishment 01 
 health, but also to the suppleness and beauty of the 
 body; it has served as an anointing oil with which 
 priests were elevated to the privilege of performing the 
 sacred rights of the temple, using at their discretion 
 both then and now the blessed oil in the solemn rites 
 of the church. Kings and rulers were anointed with it, 
 tli at the blessing of God might rest upon them, giving 
 
 Page forty-thi et 
 
them grace to rule wisely the people under them. Great 
 indeed would be the calamity to us, these people of 
 modern times, if the olive orchards should become bar- 
 ren, the trees cease to yield their fruit, and the cruse 
 of oil become empty. , 
 
 Page forty-four 
 
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