40 Report of Schimmel § Co. April/ October 1917. 



End of March 1917, the price of menthol was 12 s. 6 d. per lb. in London. The 

 menthol exports from Japan were as follows: — 



1914 1915 1916 



kins . . . 269266 325464 386458 



yen . . . 1816096 1805114 2410628 



The countries of destination were: — 



1914 1915 1916 



British India 13906 26177 24 707 kins 



Great Britain 42720 59246 143148 „ 



France 22329 41774 69184 „ 



Germany ....... 82 600 — — 



United States . .... 89496 172590 137228 „ 



other countries . . . . 18215 25677 12191 „ 



total: 269266 325464 386458 kins. 



According to an English trade journal 1 ), the 1916/17 crop of menthol and peppermint 

 oil taken together is estimated at 1659998 lbs., against 1406655 lbs. in the preceding 

 year. Owing to the drought, one reckons in Hokkaido to be 30 or 40 per cent, short 

 of the output estimated at more than 1000000 lbs. The 1915/16 crops were, and the 

 estimations for 1916/17 are, the following for the various districts: — 



1915/16 1916/17 



old stocks in the producing districts . 200000 lbs. 106666 lbs. 



production in the Sambi district 133333 „ 273333 „ 



„ „ „ Yamagata „ . 6666 „ 6666 „ 



„ ,:, Hokkaido „ 866666 „ 1000000 „ 



old stocks in Kobe and Yokohama at the beginning of J uly 200000 „ 273333 „ 



total: 1406 665 lbs. 1659998 lbs. 



Peppermint Oil, Saxon. As mentioned already several years ago 2 ), our climate 

 is hardly suitable for growing peppermint, a plant so sensitive towards cold and pests, 

 so that our troublesome and expensive experiments in this line afforded us but very 

 little satisfaction. The last severe winter had such a destructive effect on the plants 

 that the few remaining peppermint fields were completely' done for. We have, in con- 

 sequence, definitely given up this branch of our Miltitz cultivation. We would refer 

 all those interested in this kind of peppermint oil to our quality "Miltitz 1914" 3 ), 

 introduced in 1914 and which can without hesitation be recommended as a perfect 

 substitute for the Saxon oil. 



Pine Needle Oils. The oil from pine, red fir, or "Norway spruce" needles also 

 belongs to the volatile oils occurring rather rarely. It is produced from the needles 

 and young twig ends of Picea excelsa, Lk. (P. vulgaris, Lk.). Hence a few samples may 

 be mentioned here which we received in the course of the year. A distillate from 

 the Black Forest gave the following results: di 5 o 0.8754; « D — 39° 50'; acid v. 0.6; ester 

 v. 20.5 == 7.2 per cent, bornylacetate, soluble in 5.5 vols, and more of 90 per cent, alcohol. 



Two Thuringian oils showed the following constants: di 5 o 0.8795 and 0.8807; 

 <t D — 30° 15' and — 26°45'; acid v. 1.9; ester v. 18.7 = 6.5 per cent, bornylacetate, and 

 16.8 = 5.9 per cent, bornylacetate; soluble in 5 — 6 vols, and more of 90 per cent, alcohol. 



J ) Chemist and Druggist 88 (1916), 1055. — 2 ) Report October 1913, 88. — 3 ) Report October 1915, 31. 



