Practical Applications

last few years the Japanese Government has planted out more than a million young camphor trees, and it now supplies the young trees free, and the land free of rent if it is Gov- ernment land, and even makes a present of it to the planter if the plantations thrive. Unfortunately, about 70 °/, of all the trees planted out are generally lost, as the Chinese are in the habit of burning off the dry grass, which easily gives rise to tremendous conflagrations. From a newspaper article which deals once more with the doings of the notorious head-hunters, we see what difficulties beset the Japanese civilisation in wild Formosa, and how the labourers in the camphor- districts carry on their difficult trade at the risk of their own lives, In the autumn of last year a sanguinary battle was fought between savages and a body of 200 camphor labourers working in 3 batches in the district of Foroku; of the 200 men only one returned to tell the tale of disaster. Recently the Japanese have sent a punitive expedition, which between December 30 and January 3 rased the ') Deutsches Handelsarchiv 1907, January number, part IL, p. 35- 4) Comp. Report October 1906, 20. — 9 — villages Randai, Gundai, and Tandai to the ground. The savages had fled into the forests, where, as usual, they could not be caught. It is said that the Japanese would best like to smoke out the savages, but this cannot be done, as in such case the valuable camphor forests would also be destroyed. A new camphor-producing district in the Japanese sphere of influ- ence has lately been mentioned in a Report of the Imperial German Consul at Seoul, i.e., the island Quelpart, situated in the South of the Korean peninsula, where in 1905 experiments with camphor plantat- ions have been made, which are said to have up to the present given very satisfactory results. From a communication in The Chemist and Druggist!) we learn that in the Far East, also outside the Japanese sphere of influence, attempts are made to cultivate camphor trees. A report of the first results worth mentioning originates from the experimental garden at Batu Tiga in Indo-China. The shoots, which were only planted in the year 1904, yielded already after one year 3000 lbs. leaves and branches, from which in the first crop 30 lbs. camphor, of a value of 40/-, were obtained, But as experience shows that two or even three crops can be gathered in every year, the favourable result has led to this, that larger areas for new plantations of camphor trees have been taken in contemplation. The British Consul at Foochow (China) reports as follows?) on the camphor market of his district. The camphor trade does not on the whole warrant any high expectations, although, as compared with previous years, it shows a steady increase. At the beginning of the year the situation was not unfavourable; on the European markets a strong demand prevailed, and as it was possible to obtain sufficient quantities at advantageous prices, a good profit was realised, the more so, as the prices kept at a high level. The monopoly which had existed for a number of years was abrogated, and the native traders who now took up the camphor production with energy, could be induced to supply goods at sensible prices. In this manner a large number of contracts had already been concluded, when the situation underwent a complete change. Certain districts were by proclamation excluded from the manufacture, and the production of camphor by private individuals was prohibited. All representations in this direction were without avail, and business could only be transacted under the greatest possible difficulties. The price of camphor which in Foochow had 4) Chemist and Druggist 69 (1906), 379; from the report of Resident-General Taylor for 1905. 2) Gil, Paint and Drug Reporter 70 (Uctober 1, 1906), 10. re — 2 — already risen in January 1905 to $ 118 per picul, and towards the end of the year to as much as $ 130 (in 1904 § 70 to 80), jumped up to $ 190 in the first three months of 1906. In spite of this, the trade in camphor has steadily advanced, as is shown by the, following export statistics: — 1902 264 cwts. &@ 1460 1903 1362» » 8287 1904 142I » 10084 1905 4482 » » 43039 At the end of May 1906 the transactions already amounted to 5200 cwts, value @ 52000. One of the principal factors in the enormous increase in the price of camphor is the celluloid industry, which has made considerable progress during the last decade. In Japan, great interest is now also taken in the celluloid manufacture, and the Board of the Camphor Monopoly has already made contracts for deliveries with two Syndicates. The one is British, with a capital of 5 million yen, and proposes establishing its works either in Kobe or in Osaka; the Franco-Austrian Syndicate intends putting down celluloid works at Misshima near Shidyuoka. In a paragraph in a Hamburg newspaper it was said that within a not very distant time the market would have to reckon with large offers of American camphor, namely, with the product of the State of Texas.’ It was stated that under the auspices of the Bureau for Botanical Industry of the Board of Agriculture, large experiments in the cultivation of camphor trees were in progress, which gave hopes of apparently good results. It is said that the experimental farms in question are situated in Wharton and Floresville, Tex., and the method followed there, is to sow camphor seed in the manner of wheat or oats, and when the shrubs had reached a height of about 3 ft. to cut them down with a mowing machine to a height of about 1 foot from the ground. From the portions cut off the camphor would then be extracted by means of a distillation process. This operation could be repeated once a year for several years, as new shoots soon sprout from the stumps. In this manner a larger percentage and a better quality of camphor should be obtained than in Japan or Formosa. At the present prices the Texas camphor cultivation is said to yield a profit of about $ 450 per acre (!). This sensational report appeared to us sufficiently inter- esting to make enquiries in authoritative quarters, and our New York branch received from the Department of Agriculture the information that the above statements do not agree with the facts. Some ex- periments had no doubt been made last year, also in Texas, with the — sf — cultivation of camphor trees, but the experiments had chiefly been confined to Florida. With regard to the latter, an official report will probably be published shortly. In any case, it appears that for the present no practical result can be expected. The statements made in our last Report!) have induced T. Ku- magai?) to enter into the question of the danger which might threaten Japan, if it were possible to make serious competition to the Monopoly, on the one hand by the production of natural camphor in other countries, and on the other hand by the manufacture of artificial and synthetic camphor. That such a danger is actually possible, Kumagai believes to be beyond a shadow of doubt. For this reason he con- siders it advisable that Japan should in good time take preventive measures; apart from suitable steps to be taken by the Treasury and the Management, he looks for such measures chiefly in the forestry policy and the chemical technology. With regard to the measures of forestry policy, the Japanese Government should, in Kumagai’s opinion, take care that new cult- ivations of camphor trees are laid out, which outside Formosa should also extend over Japan and eventually Korea. The experience gained in the science of forestry should be used to the greatest possible advantage; among this he reckons greater facilities in transportation. The parties interested should have placed at their disposal, for a small consideration, light portable apparatus for a rational distillation, but above all, free instruction in the cultivation, planting, distillation, etc. should be provided. Plants yielding borneol, such as Dryobalanops aromatica, Blumea balsamifera, etc. should also be cultivated in Japan and Formosa. From the point of view of chemical technology, the measures which come under consideration are, a rational cultivation of plants yielding oil of turpentine, for the production of artificial camphor, and also the search for a material possibly even more suitable than turpentine oil. Now, although artificial camphor manufactured in Japan does not exclude competition for the natural camphor, such competition could be met by a suitable extension of the Monopoly so as to include artificial camphor. In connection with this work, the Deutsche Japan Post publishes a report from the Chamber of Commerce at Yokohama, wich follows here in extenso. Some statistical figures for 1906 (estimated) can already be found in it. ‘The demand for camphor for industrial and other purposes is constantly increasing, and against this an insufficient supply makes itself felt. In the year 1867 purified camphor was sold at 16 yen per 100 kin (1 kin = 601 g.). 3) Report October 1906, 20. 9) Deutsche Japan-Post, Yokohama, 6 (1907), 8. — 22 — In 1899 the same quantity cost 50 yen, and in 1902 the price had in- creased to 88 yen. Since the introduction of the camphor monopoly, the Monopoly Department buys crude camphor at 60 to 65 yen per roo kin, and sells the purified camphor at 115 to 123 yen. On foreign markets, however, the article costs @ 25 to & 26 (250 to 260 yen). ‘The commercial statistics of the last five years show the quantity and the value of the exported camphor ‘and camphor oil as follows: — Camphor: igor. . . . 4165757 kin 3904923 yen 1902... . 3953211 3404832 1903. . - + 3985360, 3537844 » 1904. . . . 3140800, 3168197 ,, 1905. . . . 2284794, 2566232 ,, Camphor oil: 190r . . . . 1561970 kin 239933 yen 1902. . . . 630985 4 92488, 1903. . . . r400g2t,, 181919 1904. . . . 1189921, 189124, 1905, 1264 184 ,, 216122 ,, The total production of camphor and camphor oil for the last few years (1906 only estimated) is contained in the following official summary: Camphor: Camphor oil: 1904... . 4023519kin 3.434689 kin 1905... . 4102362 «3.417531 1906 . . - . 4185906 4, 3.484387 5, This shows that about 90"/, of the total production was exported. The quantities imported again into Japan in the form of celluloid during the last five years were: — 1gor. . . «383616 kin 1903. . . . 339499 kin 1902. . « . 275939 » 1904. « . «253643 1905. . . . 496865 kin The productive capacity of Japan amounts to: — Camphor: Camphor oil: Formosa . . . . 32000000kin 22360000 kin Old Japan . . . 33235000 ,, 34290000 ,, The Camphor Monopoly Department strongly recommends that great at- tention should be paid to the cultivation and care of camphor trees, in order to maintain the productive capacity in this staple article at the proper level. The Bulletin of the Imperial Institute contains a monograph on the camphor production). We would here only refer to this inter- esting treatise, as all the information worth knowing has already becn dealt with in the numerous notes on this subject in our Reports. In our last Report?) we discussed a camphor oil which had becn sent to us by the Imperial Biologico-Agricultural Institute at Amani in German East Africa, and, contrary to the Japanese oil, contained no safrol, but in spite of this proved to be a very valuable and 4) Bull. Imp. Inst. 4 (1906), 353- *) Report October 1906, 20. — 23 — useful product owing to its high content of camphor (75%). The differences in the composition are probably due to the fact that the Japanese oil is distilled from the wood of the roots and the trunk, whilst the African oil was obtained from the leaves and branches. An opinion in this sense expressed by us has now been published by the above-mentioned Institute in Der Pflanzer1), simultaneously with an opinion on the same oil given by another firm, which to our surprise differs very considerably from ours and reads much less favourable. The firm in question, namely, has found in this oil a content of only 10°/, camphor and little safrol, and has in con- sequence characterised the oil as not particularly valuable. We are at a loss to explain this striking difference from the result of our examin- ation, but we maintain our opinion on every point, for the camphor which we found in the oil has been isolated by us as such, and must therefore have been present in the oil. An extensive cultivation of camphor trees in the German Protec- torate justifies the most sanguine hopes, and for this reason we should not hesitate (as the Imperial Biologico- Agricultural Institute justly emphasises) “to follow the example of other countries, and make ourselves independent of the Japanese production which more and more degenerates into a farming of the Monopoly.” We mentioned already in our last Report?) that the production of camphor in Ceylon still stood at a very low level. It goes without saying that since then no distinct progress could be made. But the interest taken by some planters there in the cultivation of the camphor tree has induced the Director of the Rangala Co., E. J. Young, to read a paper to which the Chemist and Druggist®) refers, According to this there was up to the present really only one planter in Ceylon who produced quantities of camphor worth mentioning, but he only had 10 acres under cultivation. Young, however, considers it necessary to cultivate at least 50 to 100 acres if an adequate profit is to be secured. The chief object in view must be to improve the quality of the Ceylon camphor so that it becomes equal to that of the Formosa camphor, and to extract the oil from the leaves and branches separately from the oil of the trunks of the trees, as the former has a lower commercial value. The present market conditions are favourable for new cultivation of camphor trees, but it is doubtful whether these prices will continue when the situation in Formosa has again become settled. More than one generation will pass away before the planters 1) Der Pflanzer, Ratgeber ftir tropische Landwirtschaft, published by the Usambara-Post with the assistance of the Biologico-Agricultural Institute, Amani, 2 (1906), 333- 2) Report October 1906, 18. ) Chemist and Druggist 69 (1906), 536. — 4 — in Ceylon will be able to compete seriously with the Japanese monopoly. But at the same time, the Formosan sources of camphor are not inexhaustible; during the last 25 years the production has fallen off by 15%, and the tree has practically dissappeared from the safe districts. Although in Ceylon the camphor distillation has not yet led to any satisfactory results, the reason, according to the Government chemist there, Kelway Bamber?), is due to inexperience in the distillation. The distillation is carried out too quickly, and the cooling done badly, which naturally causes the loss of a great portion of the camphor. Various distillations made in the course of last year with shoots from districts situated at the various altitudes (below 2000 up to above 6000 feet) gave yields of 1,16 to 1,71°/, camphor. When the leaves and the branches were distilled separately, it was found that the former contained three times as much camphor as the latter. J. A. Battandier) reports on the camphor tree cultivation in Algeria, and on Algerian camphor. Contrary to the views previously held, the camphor tree grown in the Mediterranean countries contains as much camphor as in the country of its origin. But in view of the large fluctuations to which here as everywhere else the various in- dividual specimens are subject, it would be a matter of general interest to cultivate the camphor tree by selection, the more so as it grows very well from seed, and can be readily multiplied by oculation. The present position of the camphor manufacture (natural and artificial or synthetic camphor) is dealt with in a treatise by A. Hempel) to which we would only refer. As in Hempel’s communication A. Hesse’s work on the production of artificial camphor is also men- tioned, the latter feels called upon to make various corrections. With regard to Hesse’s reply‘) and Hempel’s rejoinder®) we content ourselves with a bare reference. M. Demiéville, pharmaceutical chemist in Zurich, kindly called our attention to a notice in the Gazette de Lausanne of October 24, 1906, according to which recently in the neighbourhood of Lausanne fragments had been found in sandstone of a petrified tree which is probably identical with the camphor tree. The find consisted of one large and several smaller pieces of a trunk, and also branches and leaves, In Rivaz, in the vicinity of Lausanne, not only camphor tree leaves, but also fossil leaves of the cinnamon shrub have been discovered, 1) Journal d’Agriculture Tropicale 9 (1907), 58. %) Journ, de Pharm, et Chim. VI. 26 (1907), 182. *) ‘Chem. Ztg. 81 (1907), 6. *) Tbidem, 101. 5) Ibidem, 191. — 234 -— Professor Lugeon, the Director of the Geological Museum at Lausanne, where a portion of the fossils is kept, has replied to an enquiry from M. Demiéville, that it is impossible to decide from the specimen whether it is actually the trunk of a camphor tree, but that such a view is certainly supported by the presence in large numbers of fossil camphor tree leaves. Borneo camphor. The question of the presence of camphor _ or borneol in the Borneo camphor trees (Dryobalanops aromatica Gaertn.) cultivated in the Botanical Gardens of Buitenzorg, has frequently been discussed there. !) A separation of camphor or borneol could not be detected in the wood of felled trees, but when a hole was bored in a living tree, a white substance separated off in