The olives while on the tree are intolerably bitter, without any of that peculiar taste which gains them admittance at the richest tables; to fit them for which they are pickled. Ripe olives are eaten in the Eastern countries, especially amongst the Greeks, as an article of food, particularly in Lent. The oil, which they yield in great quantities, is very highly esteemed; being that chiefly used for salads, &c., in medicine, and in various manufactures. _Lent_, a time of fasting; the time from Ash-Wednesday to Easter. How is the Oil drawn from the Olive? By presses or mills made for the purpose. The sweetest and best olive oil comes from the South of France, from Naples, Florence, and Lucca; quantities are also brought from Spain and the Ionian Islands. Where is Naples? In the South of Italy. Where are Florence and Lucca situated? In Italy. Florence is a very ancient, large, and celebrated city, the capital of Italy; Lucca, formerly a republic, belongs now to the kingdom of Italy. _Republic_, a state in which the supreme power of government is lodged in representatives chosen by the people, instead of being vested in an emperor or king. You said that the olive is an Evergreen: to what plant or shrub is the term particularly applied? To any shrub or tree whose leaves continue fresh and green all the year round, winter and summer, as the laurel, pine, cedar, holly, &c., which do not shed their leaves in autumn as other trees. Is oil a production confined to the Olive alone? By no means. Oil is a fatty, inflammable matter, drawn from many vegetable and animal bodies. The oils in common use are of three different kinds. The first are mere _oily_ or fatty bodies, extracted either by pressure, or by decoction: of the first kind are those of almonds, nuts, olives, &c.; and of the other, those of different berries, &c., which are procured by boiling the substance in water, which causes the oil to collect on the top. _Decoction_, act of boiling--a chemical term. What are the second and third kinds of Oils? The second are those drawn from vegetables by common distillation in the alembic, with the aid of water; these contain the _oily_ and volatile part of the plant, and are called _essential_ oils. The third sort are those produced by distillation, but of a different kind in an open vessel, and without the help of water. They are likewise divided into _vegetable_ oils, _animal_ oils, and _mineral_ oils; which last are those drawn from amber, and a few other substances partaking both of the vegetable and mineral natures, as Petroleum, commonly known as kerosene or coal oil. _Alembic_, a chemical vessel used in distilling. It consists of a vessel placed over a fire, containing the substance to be distilled; the upper part, which receives and condenses the steam, is called the head; the beak of this is fitted to a vessel called a receiver.