ON  AMERICAN  OIL  OF  PEPPERMINT. 
221 
tow  is  much  better  than  cotton  to  place  in  the  bottom  of  the  per- 
colator. As  a  general  rule,  in  displacement,  the  ingredients  should 
be  thoroughly  saturated  with  the  fluid  before  putting  them  in  the 
percolator,  otherwise  they  will  swell  up  and  press  so  tight  as  to 
prevent  the  proper  percolation.  Every  pharmaceutist  should  have 
a  Beaume's  hydrometer  for  preparing  syrups,  testing  acids,  &c.  ; 
also  Gay  Lussac's  or  Richter's  alcohometer  for  showing  the  strength 
of  his  alcohol,  which  should  be  at  least  85  per  cent. 
In  regard  to  the  fermenting  quality  of  sugar,  I  have  found  that 
if  a  syrup  is  boiled  long  it  has  a  greater  tendency  to  ferment  from 
some  change  taking  place  in  the  sugar.  For  this  reason  it  is  well 
to  avoid  excessive  boiling  in  syrup  making. 
Baltimore,  March,  1855. 
ON  AMERICAN  OIL  OF  PEPPERMINT. 
Br  the  Editor. 
Perhaps  there  is  no  volatile  oil,  the  produce  of  the  United 
States,  that  is  more  liable  to  be  found  adulterated,  or  impure 
from  careless  preparation,  than  that  of  the  Mentha  piperita. 
Afforded  in  but  small  proportion,  the  plant  itself  requiring  careful 
culture,  both  as  regards  the  adaptation  of  soil  and  frequent  at- 
tention, and  the  yield  of  oil  greatly  influenced  by  the  season,  its 
price  must  necessarily  be  high  to  remunerate  the  manufacturer ; 
yet  the  consumption  of  the  oil  is  so  extensive  by  the  confectioner 
and  druggist,  and  so  much  competition  in  price  has  arisen  among 
those  who  trade  in  it,  that  a  large  proportion  of  what  is  found 
in  the  market  is  devoid,  in  great  measure,  of  the  agreeable  and 
refreshing  aroma  belonging  to  the  pure  oil,  and  much  of  it  has 
a  terebinthinate  odor  and  taste,  due  to  oil  of  turpentine  fraudu- 
lently admixed. 
Some  years  ago  the  best  oil  of  peppermint  found  in  the  Phila- 
delphia market  was  prepared  in  New  Jersey,  and  known  as 
"Borton's  Oil  of  Peppermint."  Subsequently  Mr.  Borton 
removed  to  Ohio,  and  to  this  day  the  best  oil  from  that  State 
goes  by  his  name.  Of  later  years,  Western  New  York  has  pro- 
duced large  quantities  of  peppermint  oil,  and  the  reputation  of 
the  Messrs.  Hotchkiss,  who  grow  and  distil  large  quantities  of 
the  plant,  induced  us  to  address  them  a  few  queries,  which 
elicited  the  following  letter,  viz  : 
