372 
Notes  on  Essential  Oils. 
Am.  Jour  Pharm. 
July,  1889. 
taining  the  oil  for  some  hours  in  a  cooling  mixture,  when  the  cocoa-nut  oil 
separates  as  a  white  substance. 
Hop  Oil. — The  oil  distilled  from  the  unsulphured  hops  is  said  to  be  in  good  de- 
mand, whilst  that  distilled  from  lupulin  appears  to  have  gone  quiteout  of  use. 
Iris  Oil. — In  the  distillation  of  iris  root  the  method  of  adding  sulphuric 
acid  in  order  to  convert  the  starch  into  dextrin  and  glucose  is  frequently  fol- 
lowed. In  this  way  the  yield  of  oil  is  increased,  but  the  delicacy  of  its  odor 
is  said  to  be  injured.  The  pure  oil,  free  from  myristic  acid,  which  is  largely 
present  in  commercial  specimens,  is  described  as  worth  its  weight  in  gold. 
Kesso-root  Oil. — The  Kesso  root  which  in  a  previous  report  (see  before,  p. 
327)  was  designated  "Japanese  valerian  root,"  and  attributed  to  Patrinia 
scabiosoefolia,  Link.,  has  been  the  subject  of  a  communication  from  Mr.  J. 
Murai,  of  Tokio.  He  says  that  the  Patrinia  scabiosasfolia,  called  by  the  Japan- 
ese "  Ominameshi,"  and  by  the  Chinese  "  Hai-sho  " — literally,  putrid  soy 
— grows  wild  throughout  Japan,  but  is  collected  for  medicine  only  to  a  slight 
extent.  The  root  is  whitish,  larger  and  harder  than  that  of  Valeriana  offici- 
nalis, and  does  not  smell  so  strongly  after  having  been  exposed  to  the  air. 
Some  Patrinia  root  collected  and  submitted  to  distillation  last  year  by  Mr. 
Murai  yielded  025  per  cent,  of  a  deep  green  oil,  having  an  odor  quite  differ- 
ent from  that  of  valerian  oil.  On  the  other  hand  the  Japanese  valerian 
("  Kesso  "  or  "  Kanokoso  ")  and  the  European  valerian,  both  cultivated  in 
the  Botanical  Gardens,  Tokio,  yielded  respectively  378  and  1*69  per  cent,  of 
oil.  He  believes  therefore  that  probably  the  "  kesso  root "  distilled  by 
Messrs.  Schimmel  was  from  Valeriana  officinalis,  L.,  var.  angustifolia,  and  not 
from  Patrinia  scabiosoefolia,  Link.  In  this  opinion  Messrs.  Schimmel  concur, 
since  the  "  kesso  root  "  worked  by  them  was  strikingly  similar  to  European 
valerian  root,  and  did  not  correspond  to  the  above  description  of  Patrinia 
root.  The  yield  of  oil  obtained,  however,  from  the  sharply-dried  root  was 
about  8  per  cent.,  though  it  is  thought  that  this  great  difference  in  the  yield 
may  be  due  to  Mr.  Murai  having  used  fresh  undried  root. 
Petitgrains  Oil. — The  over-production  of  this  article  in  Peru  has  greatly 
affected  its  value,  and  in  large  parcels  it  is  said  to  be  now  quite  unsaleable. 
In  view  of  the  possibility  of  stock  remaining  on  hand  a  long  time  a  hint  is 
given  as  to  the  superiority  of  recent  distilled  oil. 
Peppermint  Oil. — In  the  case  of  peppermint  oil  also  the  consumption  is 
considered  not  to  stand  in  any  sound  relation  to  its  enormously  increasing 
production.  The  following  is  an  estimate  of  the  production  of  this  oil  in 
different  parts  of  the  world  in  1888  :— 
Kilos. 
America— New  York  State   about  35,000 
"         Michigan  State   "  27,000 
England— Mitcham   "  5,000 
Cambridge  and  Lincolnshire   "  1,400 
Japan   "  64,000 
Italy  ~   "  1,200 
France   "  4,600 
Germany   "  400 
Russia   ? 
Total   138,600 
