_Volatile_, easily escaping, quickly flying off. Whence is the word Oil derived? From the Latin _oleum_, formed from _olea, olive-tree_, the fruit of which abounds in oil. What immense fish is it that furnishes us with a quantity of _animal_ oil? The Whale, the largest and noblest inhabitant of the waters. It is protected from the cold by a case or coating of blubber, that is, a thick oily fat from which the oil is made; numbers of them are caught for the sake of that. Ambergris, highly prized in perfumery, is a product of the sperm whale. In what seas are they found? Chiefly in the Northern Seas: extensive whale fisheries are carried on by the Americans, English, Dutch, &c., and numbers of vessels are sent out for the purpose of taking the fish: they usually sail in the latter end of March, and begin fishing about May. The whale fishery continues generally from that time till the latter end of June or July. There are also other fishes and animals which afford us oils of different kinds, which are used for various purposes in medicine and the arts. Is the oil called _castor_, which is so much used in medicine, the product of an animal or a plant? Castor oil is expressed from a West Indian shrub, called Palma Christi; and especially from the ripe seeds, which are full of this oil. It is prepared by collecting these ripe seeds, and freeing them from the husks; then bruising and beating them into a paste; they are next boiled in water, when the oil rising to the surface is skimmed off as it continues to appear. The Castor-oil plant is found growing abundantly in Sumatra, particularly near the sea-shore. Where is Sumatra situated? In the Oriental Archipelago, off the south eastern part of the continent of Asia. In what other countries is this plant found? In some parts of Africa, Syria, and Egypt. It was anciently cultivated in the two last-mentioned countries in large quantities, the seeds being used for the oil they yielded, which was burnt in lamps. [Illustration: BEAVERS BUILDING THEIR HUTS.] Is not the Palma Christi much affected by soil and situation? Greatly so. In some places it attains the stature of a tree, and is not a biennial plant, but endures for many years, as in the warm plains of Irak, Arabia, and some parts of Africa. _Biennial_, lasting for the space of two years only. What are Melons? A species of the Cucumis, a genus of plants to which the cucumber belongs. There are great varieties of this fruit cultivated in different parts of the world; that sort called the Cantaleup (so named from being cultivated at a place of that name in the neighborhood of Rome, whither it was brought from Armenia,) is a species of musk-melon; the mature fruit is juicy, and delicately flavored. Where is Armenia situated? Armenia is a large country situated in Asiatic Turkey, to the west of the Caspian Sea. What species of Melon is that which almost makes up for a scarcity of good water in hot countries?