The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1913-11-13
JAPAN's CANiPHOR MONOPOLY
How 1t Is OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
Under Nry.

n.ent as follows: The campho" mo
nopoly of the Department of finance
of Jaran has teen conducting expert
menls with tIo view Of producing
camphor of commercial value from
leaves and branches OF the camphor
tree. Experiments have been car
ried on for some time, but on too
small q scale to ascertain the COM
mercial possibilities of the process
The experimental station has been
established in Fukuoka Prefecture,
in a camphor forest on Mount Tenn
raj. The forest has an area of 35 1a
acres and contains $4,000 trees
planted in 1908.
The young leaves Of the camphor
tree Sre distilled and the distillate is
then analyzed to obtain the percent
age of camphor produced. The ex-
detrimental station has capacity of
1000 gallons of distillate a day.
Four hundred pounds of leaves are
required to produce 317 gallons OF
distillate; four Installations are made
every day and the distillate eXamin-
ed every three hours to obtain the
percentage of camphor. The residue
is then used for fuel.
Distillates have been prepared from
the leaves of young and old trees,
and from the branches of the tree as
we'll. The growth of the trees after
the cuttings have been made has: also
been noted, and means of tkanspor-
tation to the experimental station are
being established. 1t is expectedsas a
result of these experiments that
great impetus will be given t0 the
production of commercial camphor in
Japan.
The Nagasaki Nichi Nichi Shin
bun thus recently reviewed the cam
phor industry of Kyushu Island3
For some years it has been the
policy of the Kumamoto branch of
the Imperial Camphor Monopoly
Bureau to encourage the refining Of
camphor even at the expense Of the
permanent good of the industry in
Kyushu Island. This encouragement
took the form Of bounties paia for
the refinement of certain quanE tiles
of camphor Now, owing to fear
that 4 too great quantity of can lphor
on the market will cause fail iii the
price, these bounties have been with
drawn. 81,
"On the other hand, the Imperial
Forestry Bureau has recently been
encoura ging the growth of camphor
trees in order to bring the production
of raw material up to the demand for
it. Under the direction of the For
estry Bureau each prefectural gov
ernment in Kyushu has been culti-
waiting model camphor forests, and
private individuale have greatly jp-
creased the number of trees on their
state. The number of camphor
trees in Kyushu is over 100000,
while the area devoted to their cul-
tivation is more than $4,000 acres.
up to the present time all refined
camphor has been made at the sac
rifice of the tree, but recent expert
ments, using only the leaves and
twigs, have been remarkably success
full. AS a result, the trees will no long
er be felled, and as they grow larger
the value of camphor forests will in
crease year by year.
'.Hehetofore, owing to the cost OF
transporting the logs, the camphor
grower has had to maintain an ex-
pensive refining plant near his grove,
but now with the new method, re-
hneries can be established at trans
portation centers throughout Japan,
and one of the great expenses in the
production of camphor-duplication
of refining plants be elimina-
ted. Under the new system it will be
possible for the grower to ship his
leaves and twigs to the central re-
finer, who will either buy the raw
material for his own use or will refine
the raw material for a set price, re-
turning the finished product to the
grower, who will find his own mar
ket
1T is hoped that with the extern
sive forests that are growing up
throughout Kyushu and with this
method of refining perfected, the
camphor industry of Kyushu, and of
all Japan, will show great increase