Chicago eagle., 1895-08-31
WHAT 90 THEY 90 WITH ~
Mystery 81 tho Constant Chinese
Osma06 foe ojnsOn0.

Wyotoey " vUO O0Uvv0Uv SUsUOUO
Demand See oInssWS.
Passing through the Wholesale dis.
trict the other day reporter stopped
In % one OF the large houses to ask
abott prices. When ginseng was
reached In the list the dealer said:
what the Chinese use ginseng for
IL to the masses one Of the mysteries
OF the age, but that they gobble up
every ounce OF the herb that the
known world supplies Is nevertheless
o fact. Because the most thorough
inquiry has failed to bring about a
complete unfolding Of the secret Is
not regarded by the average Ameri.
can rs sufficient reason for refusing
from $8 to Is ger pound on the aver.
age. which the Celestial offers for the
root. Some Of the largest firms in
China make speciality Of handling
the American export OF ginseng and
coin money ut it. Some Of our
shrewdest traders have coaxed for the
secret, and have offered money for It,
but the gray matter at the other end
Of the Chinaman's queue doesn't
seem to see It that way.
''The American ginseng Is growing
scarcer yearly. The cultivated root
has not the wonderful power which
fixes the value OF the wild article; at
least IL does not manifest itself to
the same degree. This fact renders
the cultivation Of ginseng rather un.
profitable. 1t might DO planted and
allowed to grow we'll for years and
years and then be salable at good
figures, but not otherwise. The older
the plant the more pronounced the
wonderful properties Of the root. In
view Of the fact that IL Is growing
scarcer, unless the demand dimin.
ishes. the price Of ginseng must 90
materially higher within the next
few years.
Tho market here Is largely specu.
lative. The Chinese ginseng houses
each year send their buyers from
California to the East to buy up the
receipts OF ginseng. These buyers
have not yet put In an appearance on
the Eastern market, and consequent
ly this years price has not been
fixed. Dealers are paying $3.50 In
Nashville for the reason that they
believe they can secure the usual
prices for oil they take In. Some
advices, however, are to the effect
that the prices will be 20 or 30 cents
lower, owing to the fact that the de-
mand has been cut OF somewhat by
the war.
I'VE encounter some funny expert.
ences In buying the root. The dig.
gers are often the poorest people,
and far from enlightened. Well, the
root Is hard to get, and when 1t is
thoroughly dried the weight shrinks
like o nickel's worth Of soap after O
hard days washing, so the digger re.
sorts to oil sorts OF deceptions to
fudge an ounce or two In pound,
and reap more of the precious dimes
and dollars. For instance, We have
frequently gotten In root which was
we'll dried, but suspiciously heavy.
Upon investigation we found that
many Of the pieces were loaded with
lead, thus almost doubling the weight
Of the whole lot. This was done
with q great deal Of cunning and In.
genuity. When the root was green
Il was split, and lead melted anc
poured or driven In In slugs. Tht
root was then allowed to dry. and In
the process the seams entirely close
up, completely hiding tho lend,
which, In case like this. was almost
worth its weight In gold"