103 — 



As shown in the above table, " Early lac " contains much water 

 especially that produced from small trees ; " Prime lac " has less water 

 content; "Final lac" has the same water content while "Short lac" and 

 " Tail lac " have much less water. The quantity of urushiol is an important 

 factor in determining the quality of lac, and " Prime lac " is naturally 

 richest in it. In the crude form, " Early lac " shows a somewhat smaller 

 content of urushiol than "Short lac" (Urame) and "Tail lac" (Tome) 

 owing to its large content of water. In the anhydrous form, however, 

 the quantity of urushiol is the largest in the " Prime lac " followed by 

 " Early lac," " Short lac " (Urame) and " Tail lac " (Tome) in the order 

 given. 



Gummy and nitrogenous substances increase the viscosity of lac and 

 also greatly impair the lustre and transparency of the lacquer coating 

 and they are least in " Prime lac." " Prime lac " is therefore the best 

 considered from every point of view. " Early lac," though rich in water 

 content, has less of gummy and nitrogenous substances and surpasses 

 " Short lac " and " Tail lac " so far as this is concerned. 



The quality of lac can never be judged by the results of analysis 



