ABSTRACT OF PROCEEDINGS. XXIX. 



EXHIBITS : 



Mr. Henry G. Smith, f.c.s., exhibited artificial (syn- 

 thetic) camphor which has recently been received by the 

 Technological Museum. The successful manufacture of 

 synthetic camphor lias now become possible, due chiefly to 

 the high price of the natural camphor, and to its use in 

 such large quantities in the celluloid industry. Much time 

 and money have recently been expended in perfecting the 

 manufacture of the synthetic product, which is identical 

 in composition with the natural camphor, only differing 

 from the natural product in being inactive to light. The 

 preparation is, however, only a partial synthesis, but it 

 differs entirely from the old "artificial camphor" which is 

 produced when dry hydrochloric acid gas is passed into dry 

 turpentine. The basis of the manufacture of synthetic 

 camphor is the production of the terpene camphene from 

 the terpene pinene which occurs so largely in ordinary 

 turpentine. Many methods are now known for the pre- 

 paration of camphene, which product is now a commercial 

 article. By suitable treatment camphene can be trans- 

 formed into isoborneol, and when this is oxidised camphor 

 is formed. Camphor is thus the ketone of the secondary 

 alcohol isoborneol. Borneol and isoborneol can be obtained 

 when camphor is suitably reduced. Other partial syntheses 

 of camphor are known chiefly those of the formation of 

 isobornyl esters of such acids as salicylic and oxalic. A 

 process in which the latter acid was used was worked 

 under the Thurlow patent, but its manufacture by this 

 process now seems to have been abandoned. 



Mr. J. H. Maiden exhibited, on behalf of Mr. C. J. 

 McMaster, President, Western Lands Board, a portion of 

 a boot-upper compactly pierced by the awns of a grass, 

 Bromus sterilis, L. The wearer of the boot was travelling 



