Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1899-08-01
1913 & 200 Water St.,
CAMPH0R UNCERTAIN.
Rumor That the Future Supply is in Doubt
Its History.

rs there anything in your line that
| is suffering from a fiuctuating mar
ket?" asked the journal Of the drug
gist. the other afternoon.
Yes. the camphor market is just
now in very uncertain state" replied
the merchant 1T is all due to the un-
certainty Of the future supply of the
drug. The whole of the crude camphor
supply comes from the Japanese EN-
pire, and there is a rumor that at no
very distant day the japanese govern
ment intends to take the industry I'M
der its control.
LAS regards the island of Formosa
which contributes a considerable part
of the supply of crude camphor. a bill
to that effect has already been passed
in the japanese parliament. which
went into force on the first of July.
The causes which led to the adop-
ton of the measure are two: The
necessity of raising revenue, and the
dangerous conditions under which the
industry is now pursued. The camphor
forests of Formosa are situated, for
the most part, in the interior, which is
peopled by lawless tribes of savages.
whom the Japanese have as yet been
unable fully to subdue. The wood
cutters are utterly without protection,
and every now and then a band Of
these savages swooped down on them
and slaughter them.
THE government will carry on the
industry in security, for its employees
will work under the protection Of
troops and cannon. But it was the
i that r,rnhq hi Y
had most to do with the step. The
exports of camphor are immense, and
continually increasing, but as there is
no export duty the government derives
no revenue therefrom. The details of
the new arrangement have not yet
been given out. The government may
go into the manufacturing business it
self or it may sell the wood by auction
as other governments do with chin
chona bark. but it is certain that sup
plies will be artificially regulated, and
it is likely that prices will be ad-
vanced.
Another motive of the government
in assuming control of the industry
may be found in the apprehension that
supplies will be exhausted. The cam
phor forests are large, but they are
not inexhaustible, and they are gradu-
ally being decimated. In order to OBJ
tain camphor a tree must be cut down.
and the camphor tree reaches ma
turity only after 100 years. Within
recent years the danger of exhausting
supplies has been lessening by the
passage Of a law prescribing that for
each tree that is cut down a new one
must he planted, but still the removal
ton does not keep pace with the de-
struction. while owing to the primitive
methods at present pursued, the actual
yield of crude camphOr per tree Is not
as large as it should be.
THE government will probably pur-
sue the culture in scientific way and
bring water to producing districts.
Water is necessary for the extraction
of camphor from the wood. In some such
way the expense of extraction may be
demonstrated, under which circum-
stances. ~orices, though higher at first.
would likely decline.
LAS regards the camphor supply of
Japan proper it is not yet known what
measure the government has under
consideration but it is thought likely
that here, too the industry will be con-
verted into a government monopoly.