FRUCTUS CARUI. 307 



prove no longer to possess the specific odour of the diug. By dist illin g 

 it over sodium it acquires a rather pleasant odour; its spec. gr. at 15° 

 C. is equal to 0*861. 



Carvol at 20° C. has a sp. gr. of 0-953 ; it boils at 224° C. ; the 

 same oil appears to occur in dill (see Fructus AnethiX and an oil of the 

 same percental constitution is yielded by the spearmint. The latter 

 however deviates the plane of polarization to the left. If 4 parts of 

 carvol, either from caraways, dill, or spearmint, are mixed with 1 part 

 of alcohol, sp. gr. 0830, and saturated with sulphuretted hydrogen, 

 crystals of (C^''H"C)-SH* are at once formed as soon as a little ammonia 

 is added.^ 



Oil of caraway of inferior quality is obtained from the refuse of the 

 fruit ; we find it less dextrogyrate than the oil from the fruits alone ; 

 this is due to the admixture of oil of turpentine before distilling. 



If the carvol is distilled there remains in the still a thickish residue, 

 from which a substance of the phenol class may be extracted by 

 caustic lye. 



Oil of caraway distilled in England from home-grown caraways is 

 preferred in this country. On the Continent, that extracted from the 

 caraways of Halle and Holland is considered to be of finer flavour than 

 the oil obtained from those of Southern Germany. 



The immature fruit of caraway is rich in tannic matter, striking blue 

 with a salt of iron. It occurs abundantly in the tissue around the oil- 

 ducts, where the presence of sugar may be also detected by alkaline 

 tartrate of copper. Sugar occurs likewise in the embiyo, but not in the 

 albumen, in which latter protein substances predominate. 



Production and Commerce — Caraways are exported from Fin- 

 mark, the most northerly province of Norway ; from Finland and 

 Russia. In Germany, the cultivation, recommended by Gleditsch in 

 1776, is now largely carried on in Moravia, and in Prussia, especially 

 in the neighbourhood of HaUe. The districts of Erfurt and Merseburg, 

 also in Prussia, are stated to yield annually about 30,000 cwt. Dutch 

 caraways are produced in the provinces of North Holland, Gelderland 

 and North Brabant, in the latter two from wild plants.^ Caraways are 

 frequently shipped from the ports of Morocco ; the quantity exported 

 thence in 1872 was 952 cwt. and 288 cwt. in 1875.^ 



The import of caraways into the United Kingdom in 1870 amounted 

 to 19,160 cwt., almost all being from Holland. 



The essential oil is manufactured on a large scale. According to a 

 statement of the Chamber of Commerce of Leipzig,* four establishments 

 of that district produced in 1872 no less a quantity than 30,955 kilo. 

 (68,277 lb.), valued at £24,000. 



Uses — Caraway in the form of essential oil or distilled water is used 

 in medicine as an aromatic stimulant, or as a flavouring ingredient. 

 But the consumption in Europe is far more important as a spice, in 

 bread, cakes, cheese, pastry, confectionary, sauces, etc., or in the form of 

 oil as an ingredient of alcoholic liquors. The oil is also used for the 

 scenting of soap. 



1 Pharm. Joum. vii. (1876) 75. » Consular Reports, 1873 and 1876. 



^ Oudemans, AanUelceningen, etc.. Rot- ■* Pharmaceviische Zeitung, 15th April 



terdam, 1854-1856. 351. 187-L 



