LICORICE

or Liquorice. The black licorice sticks familiar to the consumer consist, when pure, of the condensed juice of the erushed, boiled roots of the licorice plant, mixed with a little starch to prevent it from melting in warm weather. The word ‘‘licorice’’ is a corruption of the generic name Glycyrrhiza, derived from the Greek words for ‘‘sweet root.’’ The Jicorice-plant is a small shrub of light green foliage, attaining a height of about three feet and favoring localities near rivers. When dug, the root is full of water and the drying proce frequently takes from six months to a year. It is then sawed or cut into small pieces, six inches to a foot long, and carefully sorted, the good and sound béing pre ed into bales for shipment. The bulk of the heorice rolls and paste of domestic consumption is manufactured in this country from the imported dried root, the principal sources of which are Portugal, Spain, Italy, Transcaucasia, and Turkey. That from Spain and Italy is the sweetest; that from Turkey, the most bitter. The sale of heorice as a candy is merely incidental. It finds its principal use in medicine, in the manufacture of plug tobacco, ete. In France, Egypt, and elsewhere, it is diluted and served as a cooling drink. The plant is cultivated to a small extent in Louisiana and California. “LIGHTS,” a term applied to the lungs of animals, originating in the fact that they float in water because of the air contained. They are imperfectly a imilable and must be ranked as poor in food value. LIME (fruit). The true, or acid, lime isa fruit which is an agreeable change and substitute for the lemon, and is generally used in the same, or similar, ways. The varieties principally cultivated are nearly round, one to one and a half inches in diameter, and heavy with an aromatic and refreshingly sour, shghtly bitter, juice. Other types reach to the size of an average lemon. Dominica, Jamaica, and Mexico send us our main supplies of the fresh fruit. The increasing domestic crop is chiefly from southern Florida and the Keys. The tree is cultivated also in southern California, but it is not sufficiently hardy to warrant the risk of large plantings there. Fresh limes are very perishable and they should be kept in a cool, dry place. Tf to be held for a considerable length of time, and refrigerator facilities are limited, it is a good idea to cover them with dry sand. Lime Juice is pre ed from the ripe fruit. the best qualities of the preserved juice coming from Jominica and Montserrat. The color should be a very pale straw—if it tends toward red, it is of inferior grade. Fresh lime jnice is useful as an antiscorbutic but it is le efficient than lemon juice. The commercial bottled-product is generally valuele for the purpose.