— 99 — 



At the conclusion of his paper Alexander pronounces oil of Parthenium 

 argentatum to possess a marked similarity to oil of German chamomile. 

 We are unable to judge in how far the odour of the two oils is similar, 

 but they certainly differ altogether in their chemical constitution. 



Patchouli Oil. This important article, too, gives rise to little comment 

 upon the present occasion. The serious advance in price of patchouli 

 leaves has so far been without material effect upon the price of patchouli 

 oil, although the supplies are beginning to be light. It would seem, 

 however, as if in all quarters ample supplies had been laid in of this article, 

 the value of which notoriously improves with keeping; at any rate the 

 demand moves within very moderate limits. It is also evident that the 

 consumers have at last adopted our view that the patchouli oil distilled 

 in Europe by careful and scientific methods is superior in aroma to that 

 imported from Java and the Straits Settlements, for the parcels of oil 

 which have been imported during the last few months have been very 

 difficult to place, notwithstanding the reductions in price conceded by the 

 owners. 



We have referred in previous Reports to de Jong's investigations 1 ) 

 into the oil-content of patchouly leaves in various stages of development, 

 and it will therefore be sufficient here to state the fact that de Jong has 

 recently published another paper on the subject 2 ). 



Pennyroyal Oil. There has been no change recently in the ne- 

 glected condition of the market for this oil; the demand is extremely small, 

 and in the producing countries but little interest is now shown in the 

 article, because the output of the last few crops has only been saleable 

 at a very moderate profit, if not at an actual loss. 



American pennyroyal oil, from Hedeoma pulegoides, Pers., as prescri- 

 bed by the U. S. Pharmacopoeia, has remained scarce throughout the 

 period under review, and the supplies will scarcely hold out until the 

 new crop comes in. Quite recently, according to a communication received 

 from our New York branch, an oil described as "false Pennyroyal Oil", 

 which reminds strongly of rosemary oil, has repeatedly been offered from 

 the Southern States. We hope to be in a position, later on, to give some 

 information concerning the botanical origin of this oil. 



| The Pharmaceutical Journal [87 (1911), 652, 700] contains an article on 

 the etymology of the term "Penny" in the word "Pennyroyal". It is thought 

 that this term may be a corruption of the word "pulliol", the Old English 

 designation of the pennyroyal mint being "Pulliol Royal". 



x ) Comp. Report November 1909, 95; October 1909, 92. 



2 ) Recueil trav. chim. des P.-B. 30 (1911), 211. From a reprint kindly sent to us. 



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