— H3 — 



that the price has gradually advanced up to 4 marks per kilo. Even 

 at this quotation there was a brisk demand, especially on the part of 

 the heliotropin manufacturers for whom this article has gradually become 

 the indispensable raw material. We are now without any competition 

 in safrol, but are naturally bound to put certain restrictions to the 

 offers made by us, as the limited supplies of camphor oil are not by 

 any means sufficient to satisfy the demand from every side. The 

 safrol manufacture in Japan, to which we have referred on various 

 occasions, has ceased completely. 



Thymol. The quotations for ajowan seed have declined under 

 the pressure of the new harvest, which is now in progress and is said 

 to have a normal result, to about 12 j- per cwt. The absurd price- 

 cutting which was practised formerly in thymol by some competing 

 firms, has again been started vigorously. Quite recently we heard of 

 a price of 13 marks per kilo, which we could only treat with ridicule, 

 in view of the fact that almost everywhere we are paid for our quality 

 the full price asked by us. 



Vanillin. E. O. v. Lippmann 1 ) reports on a peculiar occurrence 

 of vanillin. In an attempt to detect in dahlia tubers in various stages 

 of development, in addition to inulin, also fructose, large quantities of 

 alcoholic - ethereal extracts were obtained which left behind a syrupy, 

 vanilla -like smelling residue, which, however, could not be brought 

 to crystallise. Now, after more than 10 years' standing, the formation 

 of beautiful needles arranged in the form of stars was observed, 

 which after re -crystallisation from ligroin could be identified as vanillin 

 (m. p. 8i°). v. Lippmann points out at the same time, that Payen 2 ) 

 already in 1823 called attention to a vanilla-like aroma in the tubers 

 of dahlias. 



Notes on recent research work concerning 

 terpenes and terpene derivatives. 



General. 



In her Thesis 3 ) The relations between structure and smell in organic 

 compounds, Gertrud Woker attributes to the multiple bonds which 

 are present in the majority of the odoriferous compounds (taken in 

 the broadest sense), a special influence on the capacity of developing 



x ) Berl. Berichte 39 (1906), 4147. 



2 ) Annates de Chimie 24 (1823), 209. 



3 ) Thesis, Berne 1906; according to the English translation in the Journ. of 

 phys. Chem. 10 (1906), 455. 



8 



