Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1906-02-14
wrrnH-HA SEASON.
How the Brush is Collected and Distillel
in Connecticut Valley.

in Connecticut Valley.
Middletown Cor Hartford Courant
Big carts. heavily loaded with brush,
may be seen slowly moving along the
country roads in most OF the towns in
lower Middlesex county at this time of the
year They are laden with brush cut
from a species of the elder family, which,
after being chopped. are put into a still,
and the resulting product is witch-hazel
extract.
The witch-hazel industry dates back
about 35 years In the carly seventies a
young man from Essex went to New York
with few barrels OF witch-hazel. He
knew that he had a good thing, and he
had the courage of his convictions. He
placed one barrel OF his product with every
wholesale druggist who would take one.
He then hired statesmen to go out on the
streets and avenues and sell the witch
hazel in small lots turning the sales over to
the iobbers who had taken his extract.
There are many kinds of witch-hazel,
for this product is rather remarkable in
that It has no standard except that given
by It's manufacturer. lt is not subject
to a chemical test and the purchaser
must depend for its worth upon the good
faith Of its distiller In making alcohol,
for instance, "A distiller obtains but four
gallons of proof spirit from bushel of
corn. though he keeps his still working
until the crack of doom.
In the distillation of witch-hazel, how
ever, "A distillor can take out 20 gallons,
40, or even 20 barrels from a ton of brush
at one operation. He can keep on running
the extract until he gets tired; it is all
witch-hazel, but as a matter of fact, the
first gallon is the strongest, the second
is a little weaker, and so on until the odor
in runnings is but temporary and there is
nothing left.
Others there are who instead Of using
the green twigs, distill from the dried
bark, because II is much cheaper and can
be made any time in the year. But the
product so obtained has not the fine,
pungent odor obtained from young twigs
Some also use larger proportion of
water than is called for by the amount OF
the material, and the resulting product is
an aqueous distillation with but slight
traces Of witch-hazel's characteristic odor.
The witch-hazel season does not open
until after all their crops have been har-
vested. There is at such time little for the
farmers to do, and II it were not for this
industry it might 60 hard with some OF
them. They simply hitch their horses tc
big team and armed with small hatchets
drive out into the woods. The witch.
hazel grows in hilly and rough places and
and it is usually difficult to get to the spot
with a heavy team.
On arriving at a good growth Of the
bush all hands set to work cutting the
brush off near the roots and piling it into
the teams. There is no mistaking it. fol
it has a characteristic look and pungeni
but pleasant odor. When load is OBJ
tanned it is driven to the nearest cuttinl
station, where it is cut, then macerateC
and put into the still. The price paid fo
the brush is about $3.50 to SIS ton.
The brush is very plentiful and easily
cut, but it is sometimes hard to reach, anC
the cutting stations are often distant S,
that the farmers cannot dispose Of larp,
quantities in a day. There is, therefore
not very much money in it for them, but
II has its advantages, for it keeps then
and their stock busy at a time of the yeai
when there is little else to be done.