BANCOUL, NUTS OF

This nut is the seed of a tree belonging to the Euphorbiaciæ , of which two or three species occur in Ceylon, Cochin-China, New Caledonia, Bourbon, . It is composed of a hard and woody endocarp, and of an oily kernel, containing:— | Water | 5·000 | | Oil | 62·175 | | Nitrogenous matter | 22·653 | | Non-nitrogenous matter | 6·827 | | Mineral matter | 3·345 | | ———— | | 100·000 | | Nitrogen | 3·625% | This cake, after expre ion of the oil, contains 9 per cent. of nitrogen, and 4 per cent. of phosphoric acid, and is consequently of high value as a manure. The expre ed oil is purgative, but as a lamp-oil it is superior to colza. Unfortunately the kernel forms only 33 per cent. of the entire weight of the nut. Hence, before it can become an article of commerce, it must be decorticated at the place of its birth. (Corenwinder.)