— 39 — 



In April the report spread that a disease (maladie crypto gamique) 

 had broken out among the plants in the principal producing districts 

 but this has not been confirmed by the information since received. 

 Lately snow-storms are said to have greatly injured the plantations. 

 But we are too much used to such sensational reports (which generally 

 vanish away into nothing), as to believe in any serious results, the more 

 so, as the distillation is carried on without interruption throughout 

 the year, and as possible damage resulting from natural phenomena 

 is usually quickly remedied by the fertile tropic climate. 



Stimulated by the falling exchange in Reunion, the article has 

 lately recovered from the sluggishness which had prevailed for such 

 a long time, being now quoted at Marseilles about 25 fr. per kilo. 

 We fear, however, that the stocks in Reunion are still too heavy to 

 allow of a continued bettering of the market. 



The position of Algerian geranium oil is precisely the same, for 

 the production of this article is also out of proportion to the con- 

 sumption. Locally the price paid at present is 24 francs, and at this 

 quotation almost any quantity desired may be bought. The pro- 

 ducers suffer less from the cheap prices than a large number of 

 middlemen, who 1 or 2 years ago were tempted to make large con- 

 tracts for deliveries over 3 or 4 years, at the quotation of 30 francs 

 which at that time appeared to be low. We are informed that such 

 contracts in one or two cases still run into next year, and the pro- 

 ducers who are parties to them are therefore well able to dispose at 

 a cheap price of the surplus quantity of their distillate available beyond 

 the contracts. 



According to the Bulletin de l } Office du Gouvernement general de 

 VAlge'rie, the export of geranium oil in the last three years was 



Average price 

 per kilo 

 in 1903 to 31200 kilos value 1 123000 francs 36 francs 

 „ 1904 „ 63600 „ „ 2163000 „ 34 „ 



„ 1905 „ 52600 „ „ 1786000 „ 34 „ 



and in the months of January to the end of July of the present year, 

 34600 kilos, value 1038000 fr., average value per kilo 30 francs. 

 We are unable to say how the organ in question proceeds to 

 ascertain the average values; but as the highest price paid this year 

 was 27 francs, and as long ago as the end of January the oil was 

 sold at the present market prices, it may be assumed that this year 

 again, as already mentioned, large parcels have still been shipped at 

 the previous higher contract prices, and in this way the average price 

 could come to as much as 30 francs. 



An essential factor in the backward movement of the two geranium 

 oils lies also in the fact that palmarosa oil could, as before, be 



