CASHEW (1tA-shnT?) NUT (Ger. AcajOu miss, Sp, canon. from 'Hind. kajfi, kiinja). The fruit. of a tree. .Inaca•dium ocridentalc. of the order Anaeardineerr. This is a spreading tree. 21) to 40 feet in height. and is a native of the tropical puts of both hemispheres. perhaps being primarily of American origin. It abounds in a milky juice. which turns black on exposure to the air, and is used for garnishing: but is so acrid as to produce painful inflammation when it values in contact with the skin of some persons, or when they are exposed to its fumes. It is sometimes used to protect honks and wood work against ants. The fruit of this tree is a kidney-shaped nut about an inch long, seated on the thicker end of a pear-shaped. lleshy stalk, which varies in size from that of a cherry to a medium-sized pear. The shell is double: tlet outer shell is ash-colored and very smooth, and between it and the inner shell is a very caustic black juice. The kernel is oily. and very pleasant. and wholesonn•, and is in common use as an article of food in tropical countries when roast ed. being made into puddings and in various
ways prepared for the table. in the West Indies it is put, into wine, particularly old :Nladeira wine, to which it is thought to communicate a.
peculiarly agreeable flavor, and for this use it is sometimes imported into Great Britain. It is also, for the same reason, sometimes an in gredient in chocolate. The fleshy stalk, some times called the cashew apple, varies in size. and is white, yellow, or red. It is perfectly free from acridity. is acid and eatable, very pleasant and refreshing., and much used by the inhabi tants of the countries in which the tree grows. A very pleasant vinous liquor is obtained from it by fermentation: and this, by distillation. yields a spirituous liquor which is highly esteemed for its flavor. A gum which exudes from the bark of the tree. quite distinct from the milky juice already mentioned. is bland, and very simi lar to gum arabic. For illustration. see Plate of CARNATIoN 5.