— 45 — 



As stated at some length in our last two Reports 1 ), attempts are being 

 made by certain interested persons in England to supplement, or rather 

 to replace, the solubility test (Schimmel's test) of citronella oil, which is 

 now the customary commercial test and which was introduced by us, by 

 a "geraniol test", under the plea that our test does not afford sufficient 

 guarantee of a pure oil. The geraniol test consists in determining the 

 acetylatable constituents of oil (total-geraniol, geraniol + citronellal) and 

 it has been proposed in one quarter that the market price of Ceylon-citro- 

 nella oil should be based simply upon its total-geraniol content, and in 

 another that the oil should be required to show a minimum content of 

 60°/ or should be divided, according to its total-geraniol content, into 

 three classes, containing respectively from 56 to 60%, 60 to 64% and 

 64 to 68%, and valued accordingly. The question has lately been 

 debated 2 ) with renewed animation because we had taken the liberty of 

 writing a letter to an English Journal 3 ) pointing out the difficulties which 

 stand in the way of the practical introduction of such a test in Ceylon. 

 The fact that in London this attitude of ours has been made the occasion 

 of charging us with inconsistency shows that we have been completely 

 misunderstood, for we have never asserted that the geraniol test is not 

 the best method of valuing citronella oil. But the conviction that the 

 value of citronella oil depends in the first place upon its total-geraniol 

 content does not blind us to the difficulties which would probably accrue 

 from the general introduction of such a standard into the Ceylon citronella 

 oil trade, for the reason that so far as our information goes, the chemi- 

 cally-trained assistance required for the purpose is wanting in the Island. 

 If this difficulty could be overcome we should certainly not be the last 

 to rejoice, for it would be entirely in accord with our desire if this oil 

 also could be tested and sold on strict chemical principles. And we 

 should regard it as the best solution of the problem if the Government 

 of Ceylon were able to arrange for the official control of the distillation 

 and sale of citronella oil, and for the examination by government-chemists 

 of the quality and purity of the oil destined for export, because all the 

 existing malpractices would thus be put an end to at once. But these 

 are pious wishes which in all probability are hardly realisable, for, as al- 

 readly stated, there are not enough trained chemists in the Island to carry 

 out the tests, quite apart from the expense which the examinaton would 

 entail and the consequent increased price of the oil. This is also the 

 opinion generally held by the large exporters of citronella oil in Ceylon 4 ) 

 who surely are are best acquainted with the existing conditions, and most 

 able to form a correct judgment. In answer to this it is said that it has 



*) Report April 1910, 39; October 1910, 37. 



2 ) Chemist and Druggist 77 (1910), 895, 912; Perfum and Essent. Oil Record 2 (1911), 3. 



3 ) Chemist and Druggist 77 (1910), 875. 



4 ) Chemist and Druggist 77 (1910), 811. 



