ALMOND OIL

if for edible purposes, should be prepared from sweet almonds only. The best quality (eommonly obtained by simple expre ion) is light vellow or white, nearly free from odor, and with a mild, nutty flavor. It is a pleasing substitute for olive oil. For other uses (as perfumery and soap-making) it is derived also, and with equal succe , from the kernels of bitter almonds, apricots, peaches, and prunes. In general commercial manufacture here, apricot and peach kernels (particularly the former) have, indeed, almost entirely displaced both types of almonds. The apricot pit is preferred to that of the peach as the shells are thinner and the kernels generally larger and plumper. Oil of Bitter Almonds is an entirely different product—a volatile oil extracted by maceration and distillation from the crushed kernels of bitter almonds, apricots, peaches, or prunes, after the expre ion of (sweet) almond oil. In concentrated form it is poisonous because of the considerable percentage of hydrocyanie, or pru ic, acid developed, but diluted, as in almond extract, it is a popular flavoring in confectionery and cooking.