Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
May,  1897. 
Camphor  in  China. 
259 
THE  PRODUCTION  OF  CAMPHOR  IN  CHINA.1 
By  Augustine  Henry. 
The  camphor  tree,  Cinnamomum  camphora,  Nees  et  eberm,  is 
indigenous  to  Japan,  Formosa  and  the  central  and  southern  provin- 
ces of  China.  It  has  been  known  to  the  Chinese  from  ancient  times, 
but  apparently  until  300  or  400  years  ago  only  as  a  valuable  timber 
tree. 
The  camphor  first  in  use  was  undoubtedly  the  Malay  camphor, 
and  as  Hanbury  says  (u  Pharmacographia,"  p.  51 1),  "  at  what  period 
and  at  whose  instigation  the  Chinese  began  to  manufacture  camphor 
from  the  camphor  laurel  is  not  known."  Hanbury  further  states 
that  "  The  camphor  of  European  commerce  is  produced  in  Formosa 
and  in  Japan,  and  we  have  no  evidence  that  any  is  now  manufactured 
in  China,  although  very  large  trees,  often  from  8  to  9  feet  in 
diameter,  are  common ;  for  instance,  in  Kiangsi,  a  camphor  wood  is 
an  important  timber  in  the  Hankow  market."  The  latest  references 
to  camphor  production  ("  Index  Florae  Sinensis  "  II.,  p.  371)  further 
would  confirm  this,  viz.,  "  Kwangtung,  common  around  Pakhoi,  but 
not  utilized  "  (Playfair).  Again,  "  Dr.  Henry  states  that  the  wood 
is  much  used  in  Central  China,  but  no  camphor  is  extracted." 
Until  a  few  years  ago,  then,  no  camphor  was  produced  on  the 
mainland  of  China,  but  it  is  interesting  to  note  that  the  camphor 
industry  has  been  started  in  China,  and  that  there  are  signs  that  it 
will  become  important.  This  is  all  the  more  noteworthy,  as  For- 
mosa has  become  Japanese  territory,  and  it  seemed  likely  that 
camphor  would  become  an  entirely  Japanese  article,  not  a  desirable 
contingency  in  view  of  the  fact  that  the  Japanese  Government  is 
striving  to  establish  a  monopoly  in  the  production  of  camphor  in 
Formosa,  and  has  no  doubt  in  contemplation  the  creation  of  a  large 
revenue  by  enhanced  prices  in  the  future. 
For  a  history  of  the  vicissitudes  of  the  camphor  trade  in  For- 
mosa itself  the  reader  is  referred  to  the  "  Chinese  I.  M.  Custom, 
Decennial  Reports''  for  1882-91,  pp.  439,  466.  En  passant,  this  is 
a  most  valuable  work  for  all  questions  connected  with  Chinese  com- 
merce, the  history  of  the  treaty  ports,  etc.  It  is  replete  with  infor- 
mation of  all  kinds,  and  is  illustrated  with  maps,  plans,  and  diagrams. 
Pharmaceutical  Journal,  March  6,  1897. 
