<rri-I fcC KUKAb NEW-YORKER 
571 
Uses of Thymol 
The following news note recently came 
from the Wisconsin Agricultural College: 
“Wisconsin is seeking to take advan¬ 
tage of every available resource, and now 
attention is directed to the medicinal val¬ 
ue to be found in a weed which has here¬ 
tofore been allowed to go to waste. The 
European war has directed attention to 
the possibilities of making use of the 
medicinal properties of this hitherto 
worthless weed. The rapid rise in its 
value ot eight and one-half times its 
worth a vear ago, has made its manu¬ 
facture as a profitable financial venture 
for American capital, quite possible.” 
Thymol is a camphor-like substance 
which is found in thyme (Thymus vul¬ 
garis), horsemint (Monarda punctata), 
ajowan (Ptyehotis coptica) and several 
other plants. It finds considerable use 
in the manufacture of cough lozenges, but 
its chief medicinal value has been in the 
treatment of the dreaded hookworm dis¬ 
ease (uncinariasis) for which it is prac¬ 
tically a specific. When taken internally 
thymol does not kill the parasite which 
causes this disease (Ankylostoma Ameri- 
canum) but because of the anaesthetic 
properties of the drug the worm is par¬ 
alyzed, thus causing it to release its hold 
upon the intestinal lining of the victim. 
The worms are then removed by adminis¬ 
tering a dose of Epsom salts. Com¬ 
mercially thymol is not produced from 
thyme but from ajowan seed. This is 
grown in India in large quantities and, 
previous to the opening of the present 
European war, was imported into Ger¬ 
many by the shipload, where the thymol 
was extracted. The pure thymol was 
then imported into the United States. 
The cheap agricultural labor in India and 
the cheap technical labor in Germany 
made the production of thymol in this 
country economically impossible. At the 
opening of the war the price of thymol 
in this country was about two dollars a 
pound, and stocks had been almost de¬ 
pleted, as the importers were awaiting 
the product from the new ajowan crop. 
As the substance was considered indis¬ 
pensable in the treatment of the hook¬ 
worm disease the price early in the war 
rose to seventeen dollars a pound, and 
even at that figure the drug was scarcely 
obtainable. Medical men began seeking 
for a substitute for thymol in the treat¬ 
ment of hookworm disease and among the 
many substances tried out it was found 
that oil of chenopodium (from Chenopo- 
diura anthelminticum) was about as effi¬ 
cient as thymol and nearly as safe. Oil 
of chenopodium is an American drug, be¬ 
ing produced extensively in the region of 
Baltimore. Its price is about three dol¬ 
lars a pound. Other substitutes for thy¬ 
mol in the treatment of hookworm dis¬ 
ease have been found, so that the price of 
the drug is now about nine dollars a 
pound. 
Acording to Professor Krenters, dean of 
the department of pharmacy in the Uni¬ 
versity of Wisconsin, the horsemint which 
grows extensively on the sandy areas 
along the lower course of the Wisconsin 
River, has been known for many years 
to he rich in thymol. Professor Kremers 
believes that enough of this weed has 
been going to waste in Wisconsin alone 
to have supplied the thymol requirements 
of the entire United States. At the time 
the scarcity of thymol began to be no¬ 
ticed last Fall the horsemint was too far 
matured to yield much thymol on dis¬ 
tillation. Had the war begun earlier the 
thymol crisis might have been averted 
by making use of this weed. It is said 
that, because of its high thymol content, 
the horsemint is not eaten by grazing an¬ 
imals, but after the thymol has been re¬ 
moved by distillation the exhausted plant 
is eaten readily by stock, and may then 
he converted into a useful agricultural 
product. It is to he hoped that American 
capital and energy may be enlisted to 
prevent the future waste of this valuable 
wee< 3- Xj. e. warren. 
Ferrets in in a Hay Mow. 
One of our readers has a rat trouble. 
He has a lot of unthrashed grain in his 
barn, and the rats have worked into it 
until they are holding, as he says, high 
carnival, and the cats and dogs cannot 
get at them. He wants to know if fer¬ 
rets would work successfully in such a 
pile of grain. The general opinion seems 
to be that a ferret will work to good 
advantage only in a hole or nest filled 
with rats. Would they be of any particu¬ 
lar service in such a place as is here de¬ 
scribed V 
I errets will pay well on the invest¬ 
ment in almost any place where rats are 
thick and destroying grain. Good year¬ 
ling ferrets would work into that man’s 
grain pile and would soon kill and drive 
away the whole tribe of rats. In a place 
as yon describe, ferrets would play havoc 
with rats, as they do not necessarily need 
to be confined in a small hole. In this 
case ferrets would enter all the burrows 
and nests of the rats, killing all the 
young rats, driving out the old ones and 
killing all they got hold of. Rats will 
not stay where ferrets are allowed free 
run of their dens. In this particular case 
the man must use plenty of ferrets, as 
one must not expect one or two ferrets 
to whip an army of rats. I would ad¬ 
vise the use of 12 at least, turned loose 
in all sides of the grain pile, then there 
would he war. The proper thing to do 
is to turn the ferrets loose and provide 
feed pans and some nest boxes near the 
grain pile. Place the bread and sweet 
milk in pans beside nest boxes (boxes 
should be about a foot square with lid on 
and three-inch hole cut in side and box 
filled with straw), let the ferrets run day 
and night. They will hunt till they get 
tired, eat some food and go into nest box 
to sleep awhile, then go at it again. Prob¬ 
abilities are. if he had a dozen there 
would hardly lie an hour day or night but 
what some of the ferrets would be hunt¬ 
ing. and I can tell you it would make 
life “miserable” for the rats. 
Ohio. C. M. SACKETT. 
Under these conditions I would con¬ 
sider that an ideal place to use the fer¬ 
ret. By putting a number of ferrets in 
this pile of grain they would drive out 
the old rats and destroy the nests and 
kill all of the young rats. Some people 
seem to think that n ferret will run a 
rat down and kill it. but that is all 
wrong; a ferret hunts slowly, and drives 
them out. then the man should be on 
hand with three or four boys and as 
many good rat dogs to do the killing. 
If the pile of grain is a large one he 
should put the ferrets in and let them 
hunt for two or three hours, and leave 
some one to watch that they do not stray 
away and get lost. Some people think 
that a ferret is like a dog, that he will 
come back to his master, but that is 
wrong; they will stray away and get 
lost. If the barn is enclosed so that the 
ferrets could not get out then just put 
them in and let them work; also put a 
dish of milk so as the ferrets could get 
some when they come out. If they eat 
lots of rats all the more reason why they 
should have some milk. I would advise 
using a number of ferrets, that is if the 
pile of grain is a large one. Those the 
ferrets and men do not catch and kill will 
think it is too hot for them, and will 
clear out for parts unknown. A rat will 
not stay where there are ferrets running 
at large. By petting and fondling the 
ferrets they become as tame as a cat. 
Ohio. JNO. F. MURRAY. 
Cattle and dairy products are not a 
great factor here. Apples now are $1.50 
to $2.50 per barrel; onions 25 to 40 per 
bushel; celery all out now, price was 80 
cents to $1.75 per crate. Cabbage $8 to 
$15 per ton. j. i,. t. 
Williamson, N. Y. 
March 24. Cheese factories are just 
opening. No new cheese on the market. 
Milk at station is worth $1.00 and $1.70 
this month. Not much sale for cattle at 
present on account of the quarantine. A 
few grades have been sold at from $50 to 
$00. A few purebred bull Holstein calves 
sold at $50; heifers at $125 to $150. Hay 
is $18 to $20. Eggs 30; potatoes 50. 
Salisbury, N. Y. j. a. k. 
March 20. Stock has wintered fairly 
well. Some farmers are short of hay, 
while others have it to sell at about $0 
or $10 per ton, thus making enough in 
each community to get stock out to pas¬ 
ture. Many farmers press and sell their 
hay, especially elderly farmers who do 
not keep stock enough to consume it. 
Many are getting registered herds, while 
others keep grade Ilolsteins. The foot- 
and-mouth disease is causing a scare, as 
it has appeared in surrounding counties. 
Madison County is a fine dairy country, 
as its pastures are generally fertile, with 
abundance of runnit * water. Not much 
sugar has been made yet, and a short sea¬ 
son is predicted, as it is late in the sea¬ 
son and cold yet. Many farms are con¬ 
tinually being sold to people from differ¬ 
ent States in the West, several being sold 
near Ericville and Georgetown lately. A 
Madison County Farm Bureau is being 
established. The agricultural school at 
Morrisville is being well attended. The 
people are being stirred up over the Tal- 
let bill on sending all schools to town, 
which might do in some places, but there 
are few mothers who would like to start 
small children at daybreak to ride five 
or six miles, not knowing how many 
times they would have to sit in the sleigh 
waiting for the driver to shovel the roads, 
as the school teams are usually the first 
over the roads each morning. Home of 
the rural schools tried that a few years 
ago, and got sick of it and reopened their 
schools, concluding the best way was to 
give the younger children a chance to go 
to school nearer home and when older go 
to a higher school. At some of the 
Grange meetings the bill has been strong¬ 
ly protested, not only on account of the 
children, but thinking it will decrease the 
value of farms, as no one likes to live 
several miles from school if they have 
children. j. \\\ 
Madison Co., N. Y. 
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ill 
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Ask Your Dealer 
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306 Cloverdale Road 
Buffalo, N ew York 
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343 So. Dearborn St., Dept 3348, Chicago, 111. 
“CYCLONE” 
TILE DITCHING MACHINE 
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“CROP INSURANCE ” 
Official Denial 
NO WAR TAX on HOMESTEAD LAND in CANADA 
The report that a war tax is to be placed on Home¬ 
stead lands in V\ estern Canada having been given 
considerable circulation in the States, this is to ad¬ 
vise all enquirers that no such tax has been placed, 
and there is no intention to place a war tax of any 
nature on such lands. 
(Signed I W. D. SCOTT, 
Ottav a Can., Mur, 15, 1915 Supt. of Immigration 
You insure your buildings, why not 
your crops? Send for free booklet. 
Jeschke Mfg. Co. 
BAKER-BARRON, Inc. 
Eastern and Export Sales Managers 
BARRON BUILDING 
221 West Broadway, New York City 
AufouX^iie Instruction 
Complete equipment for shop work and three 
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NEW-WAY AUTOMOBILE SCHOOL, 1016 Broadway, Brooklyn, N.Y. 
Learn by 
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