ABSTRACT
Brine is transferred from the well into the pans by means of a bucket which works by a kind of lever arrangement. ere is a semi-circular trunk of wood, dug out and connected by means of a bamboo pipe to a long hollowed out treetrunk, about 25 . long, by 15 ins. wide in which the brine remains up to a depth of 9 to 8 inches In the centre of this wooden cistern there are two / holes, by means of which brine pours into the iron pans. In the pans, all the brine is evaporated away in approximately three hours. A spoonful of cocoanut oil, or a little kerosine oil, or a little rice water is added to prevent the coarse crystallisation of salt and to re ne it. e addition of oil retards evaporation and increases the temperature of brine and hence produces ner grain. On inquiry the writer was told by a salt boiler that 25 viss (one viss = 36 lbs.) of salt is obtained from one pan; while the quantity is double during the dry season. is fall in the yield is attributed to the dilute brine in the rainy reason, though it is remarkable that rain water in the tank remains at the top of the heavy brine below and there is no marked di usion between the two layers. e brine in these storage tanks remains very much as it is stored, i.e, in distinct layers varying in accordance with local conditions at the time of storage. For instance a slight shower of rain may reduce the density of an inch or two of brine and over this a fresh supply of denser brine may be stored later. Another cause of the fall in yield during the rainy weather is the greater humidity and saturated S. W. winds which tend to retard evaporation during salt boiling. Also at the end of the season when the concentrated brine is really nished surface brine which is diluted with rain water is naturally of lower density and contains less salt.
