— 35 — 



The latest report by the Dutch Board of Agriculture dated 20 th July 

 asserts that everywhere the expectations of the yield of the crop are 

 good. Only in South Holland and in the Western part of North 

 Brabant a "fairly good" result is expected. In Zeeland the cultivations 

 have suffered from heavy rains, and in North Brabant from night 

 frosts during the flowering period. 



The total yield is estimated at 30 to 35 bales per hectare, so that 

 in the present year the important total quantity of about 200000 to 

 220000 bales may be expected, as compared with 140000 bales in 

 the preceding year. The crop is late, and as the supplies are only 

 being brought to market by degrees, the prices of first-class quality, 

 such as is exclusively distilled by us, have been able to maintain 

 themselves at about fl. 16. — per 50 kilos. 



Thuringian und East Prussian seed, which is again offered this 

 year from various quarters, is kept too high in price to utilise it for 

 distilling purposes. With regard to Norwegian caraway nothing has 

 yet been heard. We were able to reduce our quotations for caraway 

 oil, carvol (carvone) and carvene as early as September last; but we 

 will not let the occasion pass without again calling special attention 

 to the excellence of our manufactures, as from various quarters we 

 have met with competing distillates which, although of normal physical 

 constants, possess by -odours rendering them entirely unsuitable for 

 use in liqueur manufacture. 



J. Henderson 1 ) reports on a case of adulteration of caraway oil 

 with castor oil. The sample under examination answered the require- 

 ments of the British Pharmacopoeia, the sp. gr. being correct, viz., 

 di5,5Q 0,9119, from which a carvone content of 54% might be in- 

 ferred. The optical rotatory power was -[- 69,7°. But, singularly 

 enough, it did not give a clear solution with 10 vols, of 80 per cent, 

 alcohol, as it should have done if the carvone content had been as 

 high as was inferred. A carvone determination by means of sodium 

 sulphite, in fact, showed that it only contained 2g°/ , and after fractional 

 distillation there remained a residue of i6°/ which was identified as 

 castor oil. Henderson arrives at the conclusion tnat the British 

 Pharmacopoeia test for caraway oil is insufficient, inasmuch as the case 

 under review shows that oils which, upon closer examination, prove 

 to be heavily adulterated, are able to conform with its requirements. 



Oil of Carline Thistle. The oil distilled from carline thistle 

 {Carlina acaulis L., N. O. Compositse) contains, according to the investiga- 

 tions of Semmler 2 ) to which we have previously referred, as its chief 



2 ) Pharmaceutical Journal 82 (1909), 610. 



*) Berl. Berichte 39 (1906), 726; Report April 1906, 15. 



