32 



Report of Schimmel § Co. April/ October 1917. 



oil are consumed in the Nimar district and from 3000 to 4000 lbs. exported from Bombay 

 to north India. Finally, 3000 to 4000 lbs. are consumed in the other producing districts 

 or sent direct to Calcutta, Benares, and the other north Indian towns, so that the total 

 yearly production may come up to 150000 lbs. or so. 



Another estimation, originating from the firm of Bauer 8j Krause, takes the annual 

 production to be 90000 to 100000 lbs., of which 20000 lbs. are consumed in India, 

 20000 lbs. in Arabia and 60000 lbs. in Europe. This refers, according to Pearson, 

 without doubt to the average production of former years and is too low, therefore. 

 The Bombay Chamber of Commerce does not distinguish between "motia" and "sofia", 

 so that we have at our disposal only the total figures for both. 



Exports of rosha oil (palmarosa and gingergrass oils) from British India during the 

 years 1901 do 1913, according to the report of the Bombay Chamber of Commerce: — 



year 

 1901/1902 

 1902/1903 

 1903/1904 

 1904/1905 

 1905/1906 

 1906/1907 



year - 



exports 



1907/1908 . 



. 57750 lbs. 



1908/1909 . 



. 145256 „ 



1909/1910 . 



. 52148 „ 



1910/1911 . 



. 59638 „- 



1911/1912 . 



. 136263 „ 



1912/1913 . 



. 81660 „ 



83718 lbs. 





exports 



23460 lbs. 



39580 „ 

 161590 „ 

 162990 „ 



39 950 „ 



44331 „ 



average . . 



The leading importing countries are: Egypt, France, Germany, the United States, 

 England, the ports on the Red Sea, Turkey and China, whereas Bombay exports small 

 quantities to Calcutta. 



Imports of rosha oil (palmarosa and gingergrass oils for the year 1912/1913: — 



9 750 lbs., principally to London, 



, „ „ Marseilles, Havre and Dunkirk, 



, „ „ Hamburg, 



„ New York. 



Great Britain . . 



. 9 750 



France . . . . 



. 20665 



Germany . . . 



. 12800 



United States 



. 6250 



Port Said . . 



. 14100 



Suez .... 



. 6000 



Alexandria . . 



. . 10100 



Hongkong . . 



. . 1500 



Austria . . . 



. 495 



Formerly, the chief producing districts were West Kandesh, Pimpalner, Akrani, 

 Nandurbar, Shahada and Taloda Talukas, whence it was sent in "pakkals" or leather 

 bags to Surat or Bombay via Kondabara Ghat, Nawapur and Songat. 



On account of experiments made in Chikalda, Pearson arrived at the con- 

 clusion that the distillation of rosha oil is not carried out in a rational way. If 

 distilling with steam, grass that has previously been dried in sunshine, 20 per cent, 

 more oil would be obtained than by following the old method of direct heating (?) 1 ). 

 If dry fresh grass was distilled in a current of steam, the yield would be doubled, no 

 oil being lost by evaporation as when drying the grass. On an average, and suppos- 

 ing the grass was distilled in a half-withered state, steam distillation would yield 

 about 50 per cent, more oil than the method now in use. In addition, the consumption 



x ) Most likely, distillation with water is meant, for "motia" grass is put into the stills together with water, 

 the heating being done on an open fire. Comp. Gildemeister and Hoffmann, The Volatile Oils, 2 nd ed., 

 vol. II, p. 181. 



