4 
A  Letter  from  the  Orient. 
f  Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
January,  19 17. 
That  the  tree  will  thrive  elsewhere  is  exemplified  by  the  fact  that  a 
photograph  taken  by  me  of  a  mastic  tree  in  the  garden  of  Mr.  Alfred 
A.  Keun,  near  Smyrna,  is  dripping  (May  6th)  with  the  transparent, 
brilliant  tears.  In  the  island  of  Chio,  one  district  is  called  Mastiko- 
horia,  which  means  "  Village  producing  gum  mastic,"  and  this  dis- 
trict supplies  the  world  with  its  mastic. 
Mastic,  like  other  Oriental  gums,  resins,  and  balsams,  has  been 
known  from  antiquity,  Theophrastus  (4th  century  before  Christ), 
Dioscorides  and  Pliny  recording  it  as  a  product  of  Chio.  It  was  for- 
merly of  great  importance,  as  is  indicated  by  the  following  record.3 
In  the  Middle  Ages  the  mastic  of  Scios  was  a  monopoly  of  the 
Greek  Emperors.  The  successor  of  Andronicus  II  (1304)  gave 
the  mastic  concession  to  a  rich  Genoese  named  Benedetto  Zaccarias, 
whose  family  proceeded  to  rebel  against  the  Emperor,  becoming 
sovereigns  of  Scio.  Subdued  by  Andronicus  III,  the  island  was  re- 
taken (1346)  by  the  Genoese,  a  company  called  the  Giustianiani 
being  formed  to  do  "  mastic  "  and  other  business.  It  was  very  rich, 
and  compared  with  the  famous  East  India  Company,  having  its  own 
mint,  constitution  and  government,  even  engaging  in  wars  with  the 
Turks.  Severe  was  their  law  concerning  mastic,  cruel  their  punish- 
ment of  intruders  or  offenders.  In  1566  the  Turks  captured  the 
island,  which  since  that  date  has  been  under  Moslem  rule.  The 
tribute  they  levied  on  the  inhabitants  was  that  the  ladies  of  the  Sul- 
tan's harem  should  be  supplied,  free  of  all  expense,  with  all  needed 
supplies  of  the  choicest  of  mastic.  This  little  island  of  Chios,  on 
account  of  its  mastic,  has  been  a  center  of  Oriental  interest  from 
the  earliest  days.  It  is  still  famed  for  its  resin,  but  has  lost  its 
former  prestige,  owing  to  the  waning  importance  of  mastic. 
Description. — The  mastic  tree  or  shrub  grows  to  the  size  of  a 
small,  scraggly,  crab  tree,  being  more  bush-like.  Much  does  it  re- 
semble the  Crataegus  tree  of  America.  Its  bark  and  small  limbs 
carry  numerous  ducts  that  are  prone  to  part  with  their  resinous 
secretion.  This,  as  it  exudes,  is  brilliant,  colorless,  water-white, 
about  the  consistence  of  glycerin  or  honey,  and  exudes  from  abra- 
sions, or  even  forces  itself  through  the  natural  bark,  dripping  there- 
from in  tears.  I  observed  limbs  without  any  visible  abrasions  and 
yet,  glistening  with  tears.  The  slightest  abrasion  is  followed  by  an 
abundant  flow  of  gum,  and  this  fact  leads  to  the  method  of  collection. 
About  June,  the  ground  below  the  trees  is  cleansed  of  trash,  and 
3  See  Pharmacographia  by  Fliickiger  and  Hanbury. 
