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ARBORETUM AND FRUTICETUM.

FART III.

mentioned, with just as much ease as though he had a proper ladder leaningagainst the tree. The resiniers always climb with naked feet, and they are soexpert, that it takes them only two or three minutes to mount a tree, enlargethe wound, and descend ; the resinier then takes his pole on his shoulder andruns to the next tree, which he also mounts with such expedition, that a goodworkman will trim from 200 to 300 trees in a day. The season for cuttingthe pines is from May to September; and the resinous matter flows mostfreely in warm weather; it also flows much more freely from those treeswhich are exposed to the sun, than from those which grow in the shade.Besides the resin which flows from the wounds given to the tree, some dropsexude from cracks in the bark, which dry, and form grains, often employedto adulterate the incense used in Catholic churches, by the persons whosell that substance. These natural drops are only produced when the tree isbecome very old, and when nearly all the resin which it can be made to yield byartificial means has been extracted from it. The resinous matter which exudesfrom the pinaster is called by several names in France , even in its rawstate. That which incrusts on the sides of the wound is called barras. Itis nearly as white as wax, and is used to mix with that substance formaking tapers, to which it gives suppleness and elasticity. The barras iscollected only once in the year, at the end of the season; and it is scrapedoff - with a kind of iron rake. The principal substance which flows fromthe tree is called galipot, or resine molle. This substance, having beencollected in the hollow cut in the tree, or in the trough attached to it,is put into large pits or reservoirs, capable of containing 150 or 200 bar-rels each, which pits are dug in the earth, and lined with planks made ofthe pine tree, fitted so close together as to prevent the liquid oozingthrough. It is afterwards melted in large copper caldrons, set in brick-work, to free it from the impurities mixed with it. It is necessary thatthe caldrons used for this purpose should be set in brickwork, with aproper chimney to convey away the smoke; as, should the smoke be sufferedto come in contact with the resin, the whole would probably take fire. Itis also necessary to keep continually stirring the resin, to prevent it fromburning at the bottom of the caldron. When the resinous matter is to bemade into brown resin, some of the barras is mixed with it; and, when themixture is thought to be sufficiently boiled, a little of it is poured on a pieceof wood; and if, when it becomes cold, it will crumble between the fingers,the resin is ready. It is then poured through a filter made of straw laidhorizontally, and 4in. or 5 in. thick, and run into barrels, where it is left toharden. In this state it is brown and brittle, and is called by the French brai sec, which is the brown resin of the shops.

To make yellow resin, when the resinous matter is boiling, a quantity ofcold water is added, a few drops at a time: this makes the resin swell ;and a trough having been previously fixed to one side of the caldron,the resinous matter flows through it to a vessel placed to receive it. Fromthis the operator raises it by a ladleful at a time, and puts it back into thecaldron ; repeating the operation several times, till the resin becomes asyellow and as clear as wax. It is then filtered through straw into mouldshollowed in the sand, where it is formed into the cakes sold in the shops.To make these moulds, a circle is first traced in the sand, with a forkedstick, which acts like a pair of compasses; the sand is then hollowed outwith a knife, and the bottom and sides of the mould are well beaten withwooden mallets to make them perfectly hard and smooth. The cakes ofresin generally weigh from 1501b. to 2001b. each. The straw throughwhich the resinous matter was filtered, the pieces of wood through whichit ran, and, in short, all the apparently waste materials used in preparing theresin, are carefully preserved, and burnt in a close furnace, in order to makelampblack; or in a tar furnace, to extract from them a resinous matter, whichis sold cheap, and called in France poiv noir, or black pitch.

Mode of preparing Lampblack. When the wood of the pine tree is burned