Cream butter and sugar till light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Add vanilla. Mix dates, candy, nuts and coconut with 1/4 cup flour. Sift remaining flour with baking soda and salt. Alternately fold into creamed mixture with buttermilk. Fold in the date mixture. Spoon into well greased and floured 10" tube pan. Bake in slow oven 300° 2 1/2 hours. (Don't rush a good thing!) Remove cake from oven and at once pour on the Lemon Syrup. Set pan on rack and let cool well. When the cake is thoroughly cooled, remove it from the pan. Wrap snugly in aluminum foil and refrigerate 1 day or longer before serving. The flavors blend during the refrigeration and the cake slices more easily.

Lemon Syrup: Mix together grated lemon peel, grated orange peel, lemon and orange juice and the powdered sugar till smooth. Tootie's Note: I love lemon, as most of you know. I used this recipe and used lemon slices instead of orange slices, it was wonderful. I want to change the ingredients a little and try lime slices, we shall see!