Camphor  Leaf  OiL  261 
tween  the  fingers  until  they  can  be  inserted  into  the  open  end  of  the 
tube,  when  a  slight  application  of  heat  will  melt  the  substance  and 
cause  it  to  run  to  the  bottom. 
The  open  end  of  the  tube  is  then  fused  over  a  Bunsen  burner  until 
almost  entirely  closed,  only  a  capillary  orifice  being  allowed  to  re- 
main, to  permit  the  equalization  of  pressure.  A  subsequent  verifi- 
cation as  to  its  point  of  registration  is  accomplished  by  placing  the 
rod  in  a  beaker  of  cold  water,  accompanied  by  a  thermometer,  and 
gradually  raising  the  temperature.  The  number  of  degrees  indi- 
cated by  the  thermometer,  at  the  moment  when  the  compound  as- 
sumes a  liquid  state,  are  noted  as  the  point  of  registration. 
The  great  range  of  its  adaptability  gives  this  rod  a  permanent 
place  among  the  convenient  forms  of  apparatus  used  for  special  pur- 
poses, for,  by  using  the  various  kinds  of  paraffins  and  waxes,  a  range 
in  temperature  from  400  to  90°  C.  may  be  obtained. 
In  manufacturing  the  scaled  iron  salts,  solid  extracts  and  prepara- 
tions of  the  same  class,  which  require  to  be  kept  below  a  certain 
temperature  during  the  process  of  evaporation  it  will  be  found  of 
great  benefit  in  the  saving  of  time,  as  the  operator  can  turn  his 
attention  to  other  duties,  while,  at  the  same  time,  he  is  easily  en- 
abled to  note  when  the  temperature  reaches  the  point  indicated  by 
the  rod,  without  being  compelled  to  give  it  the  close  attention  which 
the  use  of  a  thermometer  requires  in  similar  cases. 
305  Cherry  Street,  Philadelphia. 
CAMPHOR  LEAF  OIL.1^ 
By  David  Hooper,  F.C.S. 
The  recent  high  price  of  camphor,  on  account  of  the  war  between 
China  and  Japan,  and  trade  monopolies,  has  caused  some  anxiety  in 
countries  where  it  is  largely  consumed  ;  and  China  and  Japan  being 
at  present  the  only  two  countries  where  camphor  is  produced  on  a 
large  scale,  it  has  been  thought  desirable  that  its  cultivation  should 
be  taken  up  in  other  lands.  In  Japan  the  camphor  trees  grow  at 
high  elevations  away  from  the  sea,  and  only  large  trees  of  about 
100  years  old  are  selected  for  use  in  making  the  camphor.  From 
the  export  returns  of  this  country,  it  seems  that  the  supply  is  gradu- 
ally becoming  exhausted.  In  the  island  of  Formosa  the  camphor  trees 
Am.  Jour. Pharm. 
May,  1896. 
1  Pharmaceutical  Journal,  January  11,  1896. 
