Page:Collier's New Encyclopedia v. 07.djvu/39

LEFT OLIVE OIL 19 OLLIVANT above but horny beneath ; the small white flowers in axillary, erect recemes; the ellipsoidal fruits bluish-black, berry-like, and pendulous. It is rarely above 25 feet high but is of slow growth, and reaches a great age. Two varieties are known, the Oleaster, not to be confounded with any of the modern order Thymal- acese, and the cultivated variety. The former is spiny, and has worthless fruit; the many sub-varieties of the latter are unarmed and have large, oily fruits. The specific name europoea implies that Europe was its native continent, which is doubtful. Its original seat was prob- OLIVE ably Western Asia, and perhaps Europe as well. It was very abundant in Pales- tine, and even yet there are fine olive plantations near Jerusalem, Nabulus (formerly Schechem), etc. The Mount of Olives was named from it, and Geth- semane means an oil press. The tree has been introduced into and is culti- vated in the countries bordering on the Mediterranean, and in some mountain- ous parts of India and Australia. Enormous quantities of olives are pro- duced in Southern California. The un- ripe fruits are pickled, and the ripe olives used for the manufacture of olive oil. In chemistry, when ripe, olives weigh about 30 grains each, and contain 25 per cent, of water, and 69 per cent, of fat. OLIVE OIL, in chemistry, Florence oil, or salad oil, a non-drjdng oil, ex- tracted from the fruit of the olive by pressure. It has a pale yellow color with a tinge of green, a mild and agree- able taste. It is frequently adulterated with almond, nut, colza, cotton seed, and other^ oils. In pharmacy, it is used as a laxative; as an emollient ingredient in enemas; to envelop the poisonous par- ticles in the stomach in cases of poison- ing; to relieve pruritus in skin diseases; and to protect the surface from the air m scalds and bums. OLIVER, GEORGE TENER, United States Senator from Pennsylvania ; born in Ireland, 1848, of American parents meeting there; admitted to Pennsylvania bar in 1871, and practiced in Pittsburgh for ten years. Became interested in steel manufacturing and purchased "Pitts- burgh Gazette" and "Pittsburgh Chroni- cle-Telegraph." He was elected to the United States Senate in 1909 to fill an unexpired term. In 1911 he was re- elected for a term ending 1917. In 1904 and 1916 he was a delegate to the Na- tional Convention of the Republican party. He died in 1919. OLIVES, MOUNT OF. or MOUNT OLIVET, a ridge running N. and S. on the E. side of Jerusalem, its summit about half a mile from the city wall, and separated from it by the valley of the Kidron. It is composed of a chalky lime- stone, the rocks eveiywhere showing themselves. The olive trees that for- merly covered it, are now represented by a few trees. There are three prominent summits on the ridge ; of these the south- ernmost, which is lower than the other two, is now known as the "Mount of Of- fense," originally the "Mount of Corrup- tion," because Solomon defiled it by idol- atrous worship. Over this ridge passes the road to Bethany, the most frequented road to Jericho and the Jordan. The central summit rises 200 feet above Jerusalem, and presents a fine view of the city, and indeed of the whole region. Perhaps no spot on earth unites so fine a view, with so many memorials of the most solemn and important events. Over this hill Christ often climbed in his jour- neys to and from the holy city. Geth- semane lay at its foot on the W., and Bethany on its E. slope. OLLA PODRIDA, a dish much in fa- vor among all classes in Spain. It is composed of a mixture of all kinds of meat, cut up fine, and stewed with vari- ous kinds of vegetables; also an incon- gruous mixture; a miscellaneous collec- tion of any kind; a medley. OLLENDORF'S SYSTEM, a method of learning languages, invented by H. G. Ollendorf (1803-1865), and designed for those who teach themselves. OLLIVANT, ALFRED, an English novelist; born in 1874. The son of a colonel in the British army; he was, after graduating from Rugby, sent to the Royal Military Academy at Woolwich, from which he graduated as senior gun- ner. For two years, until 1895, he held a commission in the Royal Artillery, then resigned, to take up a literary career. Among his works are "Owd Bob"