PHILIPPINE TERPENES AND ESSENTIAL OILS, 

 YLANG-YLANG OIL. 



By Ratjiond F. Bacon. 

 (From the Chemical Division, Bureau of Science, Manila, P. I.) 



INTEODUCTION'. 



The ylang-ylang oil industry is the most imjDortant and in fact at 

 present practically the only perfume-oil industry in the Philippines. 

 Like Manila hemp, the ylang-ylang (flower of flowers) is peculiarly a 

 product of the Philippines, as the oil distilled in other tropical countries, 

 prepared from, the same tree, is not ranked in the same class, as regards 

 quality, with the product of this Archipelago, but is sold as "cananga" 

 oil. Ylang-ylang oil is obtained by steam distillation from the' flowers 

 of Canangium odoratum Baill. (Cananga odorata Hook. f. et Th.). 

 Some idea of the magnitude of the industry may be obtained from the 

 following extracts from the reports of the Philippine custom-house 

 showing the amounts of this oil exported during the fiscal years named : 



Table I. — Export of ylanii-ylang oil from 1900 to 1907, inclusive.^ 



Year, 



Kilos. 



Year. 



Kilos. 



19U0- - 



1901 



19,647 

 7,515 

 11,847 

 17,826 



1904 



1905 



10,917 

 13,395 

 27, 909 

 27,086 



1902 



1906 



1903 



1907 _ _ 





Figures available for the Spanish regime. 



Year. 



Kilos. 



Y'ear. 



Kilos. 



1885 



1886 



1,703 

 1,487 

 1,181 

 .899 

 1,080 



1890 



1,612 



11,095 



2,284 



1,621 



1892. 



1887 — 



1893 - - 



1888 



1894 



1889 . 





1 







^ These iigures represent gross weights of the packages and hence do not rep- 

 resent the actual amounts of oil exported, on which no fig-ures are available. To 

 obtain the actual weights of ylang-ylang oil exported the figures given should 

 probably be divided by ten. 



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