— 117 — 



Brooks 1 ) has obtained by distillation l,7°/o of an oil with an agreeable 

 aroma, possessing the following properties: d§^ 0,8700, « D30O 22,90° (+?), 

 n D3 oo 1,4644, ester v. 10, sol. in 70% alcohol. The oil contains 25°/o di- 

 pentene (m. p. of the tetrabromide 120°), 15°/o linalool (identified from 

 its b. p* and from oxidation into citral) and l°/o of an aldehyde reacting 

 with bisulphite and possessing an odour of citral. 



Spearmint Oil. The advancing tendency which has characterised 

 this article since our last Report, and which still marks it, is chiefly 

 traceable to the fact that the result of last autumn's distilling has brought 

 universal disappointment, the expected yield not having been reached by 

 a very long way. A few important producers have been compelled to 

 purchase the annulment of their contracts for delivery. The demand was 

 especially brisk in the United States, where, as is well known, spearmint 

 oil is principally used for flavouring chewing gum. Our New York friends 

 forecast unchanged high prices until the summer arrives, when a fall is 

 not impossible, inasmuch as the high prices have induced many Western 

 planters to extend their plantations considerably. 



A spearmint oil of which the sample proved to be highly adulterated 

 was recently offered to us from Russia. 



Very interesting is the chemical examination of an authentic sample 

 of American spearmint oil which has been carried out by E. K. Nelson 2 ). 

 The oil, which has been distilled in Michigan from selected raw material, 

 possessed the following characters: d§§ 0,9290, « D250 — 52,16°, n D25 o 1,4866, 

 ester v. 12,4, ester v. after acet. 36,4, sol. in its own vol. 80°/o alcohol. 

 It contained about 66% carvone. * After eliminating the carvone, Nelson 

 ascertained the presence in the oil of phellandrene (identified from the 

 nitrosite) as well as of Mimonene, which he identified by conversion into 

 the nitrosochloride and into carvoxime. 



Some time ago Elze 8 ) had discovered dihydrocuminic acetate to be 

 the carrier of the odorous principle of German spearmint oil. Singularly 

 enough this ester was not present in the authentic American oil, which, 

 however, contained the acetate of dihydrocarveol, an alcohol of which 

 we had detected the presence in caraway oil several years ago 4 ). Nelson 

 isolated dihydrocarveol from a fraction of the saponified oil which boiled 

 between 100 and 115° (10 mm.). The alcohol reacted imperfectly with 

 gphthalic anhydride; it was found easier to separate it by heating to 125° 

 with succinic anhydride. The dihydrocarveol was identified from its con- 

 stants as well as by oxidising it into dihydrocarvone (m. p. of the semi- 



J ) Philippine Journ. of Sc. 6, A. (1911), 349. 



2 ) U. S. Dep. of Agriculture, Bureau of Chem. Circular No. 92. 



3 ) Chem. Ztg. 34 (1910), 1175; comp. Report April 1911, 106. 

 *) Report April 1905, 20. 



