4?8  Pennyroyal  and  Volatile  Oil.  {Am"oS£fiSarJB' 
next  year.1  And  a  field  that  produced  not  a  plant  one  year  may 
be  covered  with  pennyroyal  the  next. 
The  plant  grows  to  the  height  of  from  10  to  15  inches  and  has  a 
strong  odor  of  the  oil.  It  is  found  on  almost  all  kinds  of  soil,  from 
the  richest  to  the  most  barren  fields,  and  during  extremely  dry  sea- 
sons when  most  other  vegetation  is  dried  up,  it  apparently  thrives 
as  well  as  if  there  had  been  plenty  of  rain.  It  is  claimed  that,  if 
there  is  too  much  rain,  the  plant  does  not  yield  as  large  a  percent- 
age of  oil  as  in  moderately  dry  seasons,  nor  oil  of  as  good  quality. 
Pennyroyal  does  not  grow  in  shaded,  nor  very  damp  places,  but 
always  in  open  fields  and  in  newly-cleared  grounds. 
The  herb  is  gathered  principally  for  the  oil  it  contains,  although 
a  large  quantity  is  collected  each  summer  by  people  living  in  the 
neighborhood  where  it  grows,  for  the  purpose  of  using  it  during  the 
following  winter,  the  hot  infusion  being  employed  as  a  stimulant 
for  flatulent  colic  and  for  colds  by  promoting  perspiration,  and  for 
other  complaints.  It  blossoms  in  August  and  is  gathered  then,  as 
it  yields  the  largest  amount  and  best  quality  of  oil  when  in  bloom. 
Where  it  grows  thickly  it  is  mown  and  if  scattered  it  is  pulled  by 
hand. 
The  apparatus  used  for  distilling  the  oil  is  generally  of  the  sim- 
plest construction,  mostly  "  home  made,"  and  made  portable  so 
that  when  the  crop  of  one  locality  is  exhausted,  the  apparatus  can 
easily  be  moved  to  another  place.  A  steam-tight  tub  or  tank  is 
made  of  wood  2  inches  thick  and  large  enough  to  hold  about  500 
pounds  of  the  herb.  After  it  has  been  spread  upon  the  ground  to 
partly  dry,  the  herb  is  packed  in  the  tub  by  tramping,  until  this  is 
filled,  when  it  is  covered  by  a  closely-fitting  lid.  Into  the  bottom 
of  the  tub  steam  is  admitted  from  a  boiler,  through  a  2- inch  pipe, 
and  the  mixed  vapors  of  oil  and  water  are  allowed  to  escape 
through  another  pipe  leading  to  the  condenser.  This  usually  con- 
sists of  a  pipe  of  tin  or  copper,  which  passes  through  a  cistern  of 
1  The  last  two  sentences  are  almost  identical  with  statements  made  in  a 
paper  by  Mr.  J.  F.  Patton,  published  in  "Proceedings  Penna.  Phar.  Assoc.," 
1890,  p.  88.  The  information  was,  probably,  in  both  cases  obtained  from 
Guernsey  County,  which  adjoins  Belmont  County.  The  plant  being  an  annual 
must  obviously  be  reproduced  from  the  seeds  ;  but  it  is  possible  that  the  hard 
seed-like  akenes  may  sometimes  remain  in  the  ground  for  several  years  before 
germinating. — Editor. 
