Am.  Tour.  Pharm. 
May,  1879. 
Fragrant  JVoods. 
263 
fragrant,  especially  near  the  root.  The  Mahomedans  obtain  a  precious  oil  from  the 
moist  yellow  part  of  the  wood,  which  they  value  as  a  peifume.  Large  shipments  of 
it  are  made  to  Bombay,  Bengal  and  the  Persian  Gulf.  The  tree  grows  in  the  islands 
of  Sandal,  Timor,  Rotti,  Savul,  Samar,  Bali  and  in  the  eastern  part  of  Java,  in  the 
arid  soil  of  the  lower  regions.  The  wood,  which  in  its  color  and  texture  resembles 
boxwood,  is  much  sought  for  as  an  article  of  commerce  by  the  Chinese,  who  use 
the  sawdust  for  making  rings  and  pastiles  for  burning,  and  also  for  marking  the  time 
passed  during  combustion,  when  it  exhales  an  agreeable  odor. 
Mixed  with  some  chemical  preparation  the  sawdust  is  often  used  in  scent-bags, 
which  hang  as  charms  to  the  women's  dresses.  The  imports  of  sandal-wood  into 
China  have,  however,  of  late  years,  almost  ceased.  Whilst  in  1862  and  1863  from 
7,500  to  8,000  piculs  (1^  cwt.)  of  sandal-wood,  valued  at  about  £14,000,  were 
imported  into  Canton,  within  the  last  four  or  five  years  it  has  dropped  to  20  or  30 
piculs. 
At  Chefoo  it  is  still  imported  to  the  extent  of  520  piculs,  and  the  general  imports 
into  the  treaty  ports  amounted  in  1872  to  64,237  piculs. 
In  Europe,  sandal-wood  is  chiefly  used  for  carving  and  turning.  In  the  Indian 
Museum,  South  Kensington,  specimens  of  the  ornamental  application  of  sandal- 
wood in  the  East  may  be  seen  in  boxes  inlaid  with  ivory,  a  handsome  carved  sandal- 
wood table  from  Bombay  and  other  articles. 
The  Australian  species  of  sandal-wood  are  believed  to  be  derived  from  6".  lariceo- 
latum^  oblongatum,  obtusifoliumy  ouatum  and  venosum.  The  tree  is  found  in  Queens- 
land and  Western  Australia.  At  the  London  International  Exhibition  of  1862  a 
fine  log  of  sandal-wood,  weighing  4!  cwt.,  was  shown  from  Blackwood  River, 
Western  Australia,  and  another,  3  ft.  6  in.  long  by  1 1  in.  diameter  from  York. 
Specimens  were  also  shown  at  Paris  in  1878.  The  Australian  sandal-wood  is  of  an 
inferior  quality  as  regards  odor. 
In  1 849,  1,204  tons  of  sandal- wood,  valued  at  £10,71 1,  were  shipped  frc  m  Western 
Australia.  The  merchants  bought  it  for  shipment  at  £6  to  £6  10s.  a  ton.  Now 
the  sandal  trees  of  any  size,  within  a  radius  of  a  hundred  and  fifty  miles  of  Perth, 
have  been  cut  down,  and  little  can  be  obtained  except  from  a  great  distance.  In 
1876,  7,000  tons  were  exported,  of  the  estimated  value  of  £70,000. 
How  long  the  colony  may  be  able  to  continue  to  supply  at  the  rate  the  trade  is 
being  carried  on  at  present  is  another  question,  and  a  very  serious  one.  Every  year 
the  expense  of  carriage  becomes  considerably  enhanced  by  reason  of  the  larger 
distance  to  be  traversed,  and  the  supply  in  some  localities  is  altogether  exhausted. 
It  is  probable  that  there  are  several  distinct  species  of  the  tree  in  the  South  Sea 
Islands  which  have  yet  to  be  botanically  determined.  The  tree  is  not  found  on  all 
the  islands  of  the  Pacific;  its  head-quarters  would  appear  to  be  among  those  of  the 
southwestern  po'tion,  including  New  Caledonia,  the  Loyalty  Islands,  New  Hebrides, 
Esperito  Santo  and  some  others.  In  the  Fiji  Islands,  which  have  produced  several 
thousand  tons  within  the  last  thirty  years,  the  tree  has  become  very  scarce.  It  is 
only  the  central  portion  of  the  tree  which  produces  the  scented  yellow  wood  con- 
stituting the  sandal-wood  of  commerce.  The  trunk  and  larger  branches  are  cut 
into  lengths  of  from  3  to  6  ft.,  and  the  whole  of  the  bark  and  outer  white  wood  are 
