Drugs and 



32 



of an acre one had a thousand plants, whether from seed, from cuttings, or from 

 sprouts the result would be from four to six thousand pounds of dry sarsaparilla, of 

 the quality most esteemed in commerce. When the roots are ripe they are dug 

 and exposed to the sun until they are quite dry ; in some cases the roots are washed 

 before drying. They are then tied up in bundles, weighing from 12 to 20 lb. each 

 for export. The bundles of South America are packed in bales weighing from 

 80 to 100 lb. or more, and imperfectly covered with skins. In the interior of the 

 bundles are often found roots of inferior quality, rhizomes with adherent stems, 

 stones, chunks of wood, &c. The roots are furnished with a few rootlets. The 

 general colour of the roots is dirty grayish or reddish brown. The cortex is very 

 mealy, and the meditullium or central cord is thinner than in the Jamaica sort. 



THE CRUDE CAMPHOR INDUSTRY. 

 The action of the government in instructing the American Consuls in Japan 

 and Formosa to investigate the crude camphor industry has been the means of 

 bringing the production and marketing of the gum to a more comprehensive appre- 

 ciation by the many consumers in this country than could probably have been 

 afforded through any other channel of inquiry. The monopoly of crude camphor 

 supplies by the Japanese government and the control of marketing them vested in 

 a London house have combined to thwart the efforts that have been made by many 

 of those interested to a better understanding of the situation. The thoroughness 

 with which the American Consul at Tamsui, Formosa, advises his government opens 

 the field in a manner that serves to leave no point untouched and no detail un- 

 covered There is one phase of the subject to which reference may be made in 



this connection, namely, the suggestion that consumers of camphor in this country 

 interest themselves in the possible cultivation of the camphor tree either in this 

 country or in the island possessions where the conditions of climate and soil may be 

 found favorable. We have been advised that attempts have been made to this end 

 in Caliornia and Florida, where the trees seemed to flourish with a prodigality that 

 exceeded that of the Formosa growth, but whether the interest in the experiments 

 was lost during the period of ten to fifteen years required to bring the trees to a 

 profitable development, or whether the trees were permitted to stand for shade or 

 ornamental purposes cannot be stated. At any rate, the result of the experiments, 

 so far as the practical cultivation for the gum is concerned, is not known to have 

 been demonstrated. Since the government's interest has already been enlisted in 

 the subject, the opportunity will be sought to urge that the Bureau of Forestry at 

 Washington be instructed to act on the suggestion of the consul that tests be made 

 of the possiblility of making the camphor tree indigenous to this country or on some 

 of its island possessions. With the variety of soil and climatic conditions within 

 the authority of the government, the practicability of such a venture seems reason- 

 able. Supplementing the information in the consul's report we have the govern- 

 ment's statistics of imports of crude camphor to this country during the first ten 

 months of this year (1905), as well as those for the corresponding period of the two 

 previous years, as follows : — 



Quantities. xt 1 



Year. Pounds. Values. 



1905 ... ... ... 1,401,087 ... $489,274 



1904 ... ... ... 2,247,250 ... 728,319 



1903 ... ... ... 2,566,778 ... 794,588 



The decrease in imports so far this year amounts to 846,163 pounds, while the 

 decrease of last year as compared with 1903 was 319,528 pounds. In the consular 

 report published last week it was estimated that the approximate shortage for this 

 year would be 2,400,000 pounds, and for 1906 between 1,000,000 and 1,500,000 pounds. 



