XIII 
GINGER 
419 
chewing it, and in the same way for relaxed uvula and 
tonsils. It produces a flow of saliva when chewed. 
Powdered ginger taken in boiling milk has had a great 
reputation for gout. Externally it is used as a 
rubefacient for headache or toothache in the form of a 
ginger plaster, made by spreading the powdered ginger 
with warm water on a piece of cloth. 
Oil of Ginger . — This is often extracted from the 
rhizomes to serve as a basis for tinctures or essences of 
ginger. The alcoholic extract known as “ G-ingerine ” 
does not contain all the aromatic principles, as most of 
the essential oil is carried over in the recovered alcohol. 
T. H. W. Idris {American Journal of Pharmacy, 
Jamaica Bulletin, 1898, p. 207) writes that acetone 
proved to be the most suitable solvent, boiling as it does 
at 56° C. and being miscible with water in all proportions. 
The apparatus used was a modification of a Soxhlet on a 
manufacturing scale. The acetone extracts the whole of 
the aromatic and pungent properties, and does not 
appear to lose any of its volatile oil in the process of 
recovery, as happens so markedly in the case of the 
use of alcohol. The acetone extract is a dark brown 
substance of a treacly consistence, intensely pungent and 
possessing a full ginger aroma, the quality of which 
depends on the variety of ginger used. It is readily 
soluble in alcohol, forming a deep brown liquid. The 
difference in the aromas of the various kinds of ginger, 
noticeable enough when examining the rhizomes, is more 
apparent when dealing with the oils themselves. The 
various tinctures and essences of ginger may be con- 
veniently and readily prepared from this extract without 
the usual loss of alcohol, and syrup may be flavoured 
with it without the use of any spirit. 
Kilmer describes some experiments in extracting the 
oil with ether and with alcohol [Land of Ginger), and 
records that the finer grades when carefully dried 
contained a higher percentage of volatile oil. Ginger 
dried without removing the peel gave somewhat higher 
results than the peeled ginger, and the loss of the oils 
