Continuation
of
the Slogan ' Page : Siibjiecl Rt ::lndiuistEry
t
1 4
THE LARGEST II 01STRICT -IN
THE STATE, IN UBISU SECTION
fter Much Experimenting, The Growers Around Brooks
Have Found the Best Methods Labor Figures Less in
"&e Mint Croo Than in Most of Other Crons Raised on the
Callable Land There 'V ;
i
i V'.Aitnr Rtn tTnnTi
I f The unusual high price paid for
f mint nfl wan teo. wall directly
D-'liWOMihle for stimulation of
T ruts industry which although be-
-st1 arouna ivw on lae ww iauus
this country, .had up to then
? been' but partly successful.
Complete crop failures in the
I large areas given over exclusive-
;;ly to mint raisin? and from
whence the bulk of the oilv con
sumed throughout the country Is
5 obtained, caused unheard of prices
f to bi offered for the essence; and
f thost who had held on year after
year, although often at a toss,
reaped the benefit.
j As is usual in such cases, other
frops were replaced with acres of
V, mint, and now . as the prices are
I about normal there is not theLprof
. f it obtained from the valuable land
f given over to Its culture that some
. other crops might give. A few
I were fortunate enough to have
'. contracts, however, and those still
hare a good thing.
Is Easy to Raise
Mint Is a comparatively easy
crop to raise: the 1 one requisite
being cool, mois ground. The
roots, dropped in shallow fur
rows, readily take hold and spread
rapidly. They may be cut the
first year, though the plants will
their best until the sec-
which tests much higher in this
district than the average. A great
deal of the mint oil goes Into the
manufacture of chewing gum, that
great American institution, while
confections and drugs come In for
their share. As a little bit of this
essence goes a long way. It is easy
to overload the market, while on
the other hand, as it is raised In
few localities, a little bad, luck
would again make prices soar.
CECIL VERE ASIIBAUGH.
Brooks, Ore.. Dec. 5, 1927.
I
I,
rJSt bo at
Qftd year.
Once a good stand is
cured, the crop may be harvest-
$Ji year after year. The lowlands
tirR9Ani nn A aerlnna diaa.dvanta.Ei
1 if t n mnv rrnn that mav ht rlTnn
them, namely, the rapid and lux
urious growth of weeds and grass
es that are also native to this
-:i oii.
Present Approved Methods
To combat this, it is found that
cultivation, which, seeming to des
troy much of the cultivated crop,
really in the long run. aids Its
growth and keeps down the vag
rant growths. Those who have
tried both methods, find that in a
few seasons the grasses and weeds
will eventually crowd out the mint
j- crop ana mate me nay, or cut
r it, of such poor Quality that
tre Is no money In handling it.
The better method, and the one
that is being adopted by those who
have made a study of mint, is to
keep the crop in well defined rows
'where small plpws are used for the
cultivation. . Another method, and
ore that has proved its worth, is
tr clip off the tops by mowing
or before the mint has
height. This has two
I f
V V
' 4-Ite early,
.f Cached its
- iSstfrtCiMUmes; it helps , kJUlutt-aftit'- " acres to become a green
i back the weiDud tends to make
a thicker growth to the mint
1 plants. The season Just past was
t a very poor one for the harvesting
of the cron. Earlv rains wet the
ground so thoroughly that it was
difficult to dry. the cut mint and
, much of It was put through the
stills practically green. Authori
al' ties claim that by so doing, some
L 90 Per cent of the oil was lost.
Two By-Products
Besides the oil there are two
$ other products or by-products that
J are obtained from the crop. One
r: is the hay or refuse after the oil is
I stilled. This makes a very good
1 forage, and animals seems to eat
PIONEER GROWER
CUIUS SECT!
G. J. Moisan Tells of Diffi
culties In Starting In
the Business
Editor Statesman
During the spring of 1913 I con
tracted . for mint roots from a
grower near Albany, Oregon.
These were the first; mint roots
that came near Gervais. S. D.
Manning. John Kuschnick and
Fred Manning took these roots
and planted them on a basis of 50
50 for oil and roots.; The roots
were badly damaged I on account
of being dug and sacked long be
fore they were planted, and fro'm
these roots and from the plantings
and acreage that have come from
them, the first three years of
growing mint here wae discourag
ing. Then the world war came
on and mint growing was neglect
ed, some plowing their fields up
to grow food stuff.
After the War
After the war "was over S. D.
Manning and Fred Manning picked
up roots from ditches, fence lines
and anywhere they could getj
sprouts and started ; new fields.
In 1919 they had a sufficient
amount of roots to , plant many
acres, which was divided among
many growers, from three to five
acres each. S. D. I Manning and
myself planted this year (1919),
40 acres on the Hayes estats,
three miles east, of Brooks. The
epring was late, and after plant
ing we waited for the rows to be
risible before cultivating. In
experienced, In the growine
cultivating! ' we allowed
MINT HARVEST SCENES
i
i
On a comparatively small acre
age, largely In marshy lands of
Micmgan and Indiana, is grown
the mine from which comes the
nation's peppermint supply, used
in dentriflces, drugs, candy and
gum. .Accompanying are a mlfft
field and a load of mint ready for
distilling a still for extracting the
oil.
A-
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If
we plowed late, about May 1, and
did not rake or roll for about 10
days after being plowed and con
sequently all roots died, owing to
the fact that the ground when
plowed was left, loose and air
pockets dried all roots before we
packed the ground.
With all this practical experi
ence, we are in a good way to
advise any new grower.
Now Growing Successfully
We are now growing mint suc
cessfully; have found out the
best tools to work with and the
best time to work the mint.
There is so reason why the grow
ing: of mint cannot, even on
small acreage, be as profitable
as any other commodity grown in
the valley, We bar speculators,
but if a man who grows mint will
sell when there is a profit, he
wm nave little trouble and ex-;
pense after his oil is distilled.
G. J. MOJSAN.
Gervais, -Or., Dec. 3, 1927.
(Mr. Moisan, pioneer, mint
grower In the largest mint grow
ing section of the valley, is one
of the successful men In the in
dustry. He was secretary of the
mint growers' association for, this
section, which has not been very
active in the past year, but ought
to h revived and made 100 per
cent strong, if possible.
VIEW POII OF INDIANA ASSOCIATED
MCI EI BUT I ST
HERE IS A TvVJJ LVIIO IS NOT GUESSING
JG OIL SHIT TOT
E1IETS
He Ships Peppermint Oil Only That Goes Above the Govern
ment Standards, and He Is Able to Certify to This Fact,
by Putting It Through Processes That Make It That Pure
'And All of It Goes to the Markets Under the Name of
Oregon Oil, Which Now Stands for High Quality Among
the Qualified Judges and Buyers
i
Editor Statesman:
All contracts for the sale or
purchase of peppermint oil have
the expression, "Prime natural
oil of peppermint." The question
arises, what is prime natural oil
of peppermint? The answer is
that it is the product taken by
steam distillation from the plant
known as mentha piperita and
said product conforming to certain
tests as eet forth in the following
paragraphs:
In color it ranges from a very
light golden yellow to a, rather
deep yellow with a greenish tint.
And it should be of a lustrous
sparkling color rather than a dead
one.
The specific gravity must fall
between 0.896 and 0.908. By that
we mean that oil Is lighter than
Lwater. If a volume of water
weighs exactly one pound the
same volume of oil will weigh
about a fourth to a third of a
pound less than the water at the
same temperature.
Oil is also tested In an instru
ment called the polarlscope. a
ray of light is passed through
Says Current Sales In East Hover Around $3 a Pound, and
That It Costs $2.50 a Pound to Produce It Says Observ
ers Predict an Increasing Demand for Peppermint Oil
inn
MOT WWW m
IIIIIST I
(The following Associated Press
item, under current date, origin
ates at 'south Bend, Indiana, and
comes In the special illustrated
news service of that news agency: )
"Peppermint oil; once so pre
cious that dealers kept It stored
in bank vaults, has built and shat
tered dreams of wealth in shorter
time almost than any other farm
crop. Two years ago a pound of it
brought almost ? 30, buyers fought
to contract all the growers had
and jnuck fields reached a pre
mium in Michigan and Indiana.
"As quickly as It rose the price
decreased. Current sales hover
around $3 for a pound, and pro
ducers say it cost S2.50 a pound
to grow it. This -year's crop is that time better sales- could
many years the price of oil did not
greatly exceed $2 a pound. While
Indiana is credited with more acre
age, Michigan has the! larger
farms. One firm alone has 2,000
acres, the largest mint farm in the
world. Some of the fields are a
mile and a half in length, covered
with mint two or three feet high.
Thirty pounds of oil to the acre is
a fair production although some
fields have produced nothing be
cause of weeds. Others, meticu
lously cultivated,- have reached
almost 100 pounds to the acre.
"There" is practically no coop
erative organization, among mint
producers, although 'efforts in that
direction were made in 1926. At.
be
I
field of pigweed, and of course
the mint would not come through
to show us the rows. We then
employed help', which consisted of
boys and girls from 12 to 16 years
and men and women at 60 cents
per Hour. The work was very te
dious as well as expensive. We
managed to get clean enough to
distinguish rows. We then began
to cultivate with single horse cul
tivators and ridged the ground so
that when we tried to cut with a
mower we could not do it, owing
to the deep ridges in rows. We
then secured the help of six to
eight men to cut with scythe. This
was very expensive, as mint had
it readily. The other is the root f rown a-uIck and beaTy and mn
crop, which, when the prices of
the oil were high, was a lucrative
part of the industry, as every one
wanted roots for starting a patch
, of mint. A field of mint could be
. stripped of its roots, and yet there
. would be abundance left in the
soil to make a crop of such thick
growth that the roots dug and
. sold would never be missed. In
.fact, many claim that the stirring
5"5 --- M 4 11.- . 1 -
ji iud giuuuu to get loo roots is
beneficial to the next crop.
"W There is estimated to be about
.ntm on auw iu rami in iuis
neighborhood, meaning tis Lablsh
section and tributary. The yield
runs from 25 to 100 ponuds of oil
i per acre, wnne me price ranges
from $2 to 12.75 the pound.
I Labor figures less in the mint
f crop than in most of the other
f .-crops raised on this valuable land.
r bringing the net profit a little
higher than would appear from
these figures. The quality of the
soil is exceedingly good. This Is
based on the cnenthol . content.
wlth scythes "had ,tq cut up one
side of the row and back on the
other. , J
More Trouble
Before we finished distilling! thoroughly and economically. M
rain and wet weather were so bad
that we were compelled to leave
helps nnin
And the Factory of Eastman
Bros., Silverton, Helps !
the Mint Industry
One thing brings another. - The
mint industry has brought the
necessity of mint stills. .The right
kind, for the succees of the indus
try.
So Eastman Bros., Silverton,
Oregon, with one of the largest
sheet metal plants in the west
have bten making mint stills. The
mint industry has helped them,
and they have helped the mint In-!
d us try, by making a superior still.
One that eells at a reasonable
price, and one that does the wojrk
about one-third of the mint al
ready cut on the field. We had
several hundred pounds of oil and
sold it for 11.25 : to fl.75 per
pound not very profitable that
year. " The .next year or spring.
time for plowing and cultivating
was so wet we could not get on
that "grornd, so we let it so as
meadow, not plowing at all; only
doing some hand weeding such ae
dock, em art weed and pigweed
We received this second year
about 40 pounds 'per acre, and
handled more than three tons of
herb per acre, oa account . of it
being very- thick jaslnu It grew
thick and late, and no leaves on
the bottoms of hte stems. .'
w " The Third Year "
: Extensive experiments w e jr e
made before the tnanufactnringlof
the first stills was begun. : The
world does not know a better dis
tilling plant than the one. made byT
the Eastmans. ,v ; -i..:...:i 'H
f They have published a bulletin
on "Peppermint "Culture and Dis
tillation," compiled by themselves.
This is a distinct contribution to
the important and growing mint
industry, of the Salem district. !
j fit will pay any one interested
in the inint Industry to get a copy
of this bulletin.,
A southern woman has named
her son 'Bobby"; after her hair.
and we suppose it man ever comes
back into his own, they may start
naming children f'Baldy" by the
same - token. -Ft, Wayne Ne
The third year on this 40 acres Sentinel.- 1
a subject of controversy. Buyers
declare supplies are plentiful but
growers insist production Is in
adequate. Whatever -even, tenor
there may be is due to long term
contr- wh ---Ijjfci
growers, accepting a sliding scale,
insured themselves of better prices
than the open market brings.
Observers predict Increasing!
demand for oil. In respective or
der of importance it is used in
dentifrices, confections and chew
ing gnm, and in the retail drug
trade. Makers of dental cream
declare the world is just begin
ning to brush its teeth, and candy
manufacturers report steadily in
creasing sales.
"Generally the mint supply Is
less than the demand. There are
natural restrictions on production.
Growers become discouraged when
weeds overrun their crop and con
taminate the oil so much that it
suffers discounts on the markets.
Distilling is a problem. Most grow
ers have their own equipment al
though custom stills are operated.
Private stills do not pay- on less
than 20 acres of good mint. How
ever, ; mint; production rrequenuy
is considered a subsidiary indus
try, and as one producer drops
out another fills his place. While
not always as profitable as track
crops adapted to similar land, mint
ia perhaps more certain, i ne enor-
unous price reduction has not cut
the acreage seriously. .
"Michigan and Indiana claim
85 per cent of. the total mint acre
age, with Oregon. Washington and
California ranging next in Impor
tance. NoTth Carolina raises mint
on her reclaimed swamp lands and
small; amounts are grbwn In
Wayne- and Seneca -counties. New
York, cradle of Ihe industry. This
year's acreage" was above." 50,000
acres and production approximat
ed 759,000 pounds. ' .
"New York farmers started
growing mint as early as 181$.
but- production did . not spread to
Michigan . and , become established
as an Industry until 1875. For
parts of the above alcohol must
completely absorb or take into
complete solution not less than
one part of oiL '
We also try oil with litmus
paper to determine the possible
presence of some undesirable ac
ids. Prime oil has no effect on
litmus paper.
The Physical Tests
The specific gravity, the polar
lscope, the refractometer, the solu
bility and litmus paper tests are
known as the physical tests of oil.
Prime oil passes all the above
tests. It it fails to pass one or
more it is safe to say that there
are weed oils or other foreign oils
present in the peppermint oils.
Hence it follows that we make the!
above, tests to determine the purity
of the oils offered for sale, and the
tests really serve that purpose.
It Is very hard to find anything
but good oil of peppermint that
will pass the requirements.
The Quality Tests
Then there remains the chem
ical assay of oil to determine the
total menthol content and the
tester content of the menthol.
i
most to do to advance their in
dustry is to place an oil very high
in the above tests on the eastern
markets under an Oregon name
and label. The world markets
don't know onr oil and never will
until we compel them to. There
la no question but we can and do
produce a rery superior oil.
. Grant W. Shaf fner Is the chem
ist In charge of testing for ns.
- L. O. HERROLD.
Salem, Ore., Dec 5, 1927.
. (Mr. Herrold himself grows 300
acres of mint; In several sections
of the Salem district. He markets
a lot more.' He has the first re
finery In Salem, already working
and being increased in capacity
and equipment, and due to become
v--.-.u r
expert skill and liberal money ex- '
pendlture can make it. Mr. Her
rold is too modest to make such
statements;-and there are a lot
more that the writer is sworn not
to divulge. BuC under another
heading, there are some facta
about his refining operations, and
some hints, at least,' about what
great benefits all this is going to
mean to the Salem district. JJd. )
... -I
-
some glass prisms and alsof Menthol is the chemical name of
through a tube of oil and the the drug that forms the largest
prisms ( must be turned to a cer
tain position to produce the test.
This is" known as the "optical ro
tations" of oil of peppermint and
part of oil of peppermint. Esters
of menthol is one form of the drug
called menthol. It requires a long
and very careful chemical anal-
must fall between a minus 23 and ysis to determine how much men-
a minus 33 -on the scale of the
polarlscope.
There la- another instrument
known as the refractometer. Oil
Is tested by this instrument and
mnst read on Its scale between
1.4600 and 1.4710.
Another test of oil is its solu
bility in 70 per cent alcohol. Four
era can produce mint at 1.50 a
nound. ' Some say $1. They can
grow more to the acre here; al
most twice as much on tne ave
rage, i And our mint is better;
itmnror-. irnns ' further. It has a
larger menthol content to the
pound, and a larger ester content.
Has a better flavor. These things
are as certain to transfer the
wni-M mint center to Salem as
that water will seek Its level.
imt.)
contracted lnaiviauaiiy. An or
ganization of limited function ex
ists in South Bend- and another
on operated in .Oregon,"
W Ubia will aim: Aa n maitar . T. 7.
ot course, wn w .
the mint industry will be traofa.
f erred to the -Willamette . valley.
The reason is contained in two
facts. One ot them is found In
the above Associated Press article,
in which it is stated that it costs
32.50 a pound to produce pepper
mint oil, in Indiana, Michigan,
and other eastern states. The oth
er is found in the fact that the
overhead ia lower here, and the
quality higher. That is, our grow-
EXGWsn NOISES tlJPAXto- ,
r BASlKGSTOKE, EnglandPub
lic attention has been fwussed on
the small pay of nurses in Great
Britain through the strike 'of
voung? nurses at . a local asylum.
They were receiving only about
2175 a year.
Read the Classified Ads
Headquarters for
that
Keep on Giving
i
i
VVMTT 111 I 1 1
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f ': i
tnoi ana esters tnere are in a I
sample of oil. It must be done
by an experienced and competent
chemist or mistakes will be made
and Injury done to either the buy
er or seller. There must not be
less than 5 0 per cent total of menthol-
and of that 50 per cent at
least 5 per cent must be in the
form of esters. Then there is thel
final test of odor and flavor. A
sanmle of oil might nassi all the'
above tests and yet not be PlneTRIPLEX GRILL
oil because tt does not nave tne
characteristic peppermint odor
and flavor. It is a drug and not
a food and is used largely to pro
duce a certain flavor and odor in
other products, hence must con
form to the tests and also produce
the effects desired. The flavor
and odor are determined only by
smelling and tasting the oil, and
rsxperience rnecessaryTO juas
Of its values thereby. -- t
Tests Are Required
The above tests are required by
Hi.
1 i
bit tot m. rik,.,vin tttli and otberi
rr toasts, broili bolls, fries,
poaches three operations at
'one time. Connects to any electric
socket.
Here Is a beautiful gift that will
be used every day a permanent
reminder of the giver. - i
The name Hotpoint guarantees
. Auiauoij
markets is judged and valued by;
these same tests. Hence prime oil
is an oil that passes the above out
lined tests; Oils which are defic
ient in one or more of the require
ments can often be brought up to
the standard by refining or redis
tilling.
What Oregon growers need LSUjNa
PORTLAND ELECTRIC
POWER CO. i t
- Salens Oregom
237 X. Liberty St.
V v '
III -- I.-' r . . . '.
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0
r
41
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A trial will prove its merit.
You must be satisfied - you
are the judge - under tK&pos
itive money back guarantee.
Thd Statesman Annual Edition
Will be released Sunday, January 1, 1928
i
Order your extra copies now to send to your
friends here and in the East
j
.copies of the 42nd Annual Year-End Edition of the Oregon
Oregon Statesman,
Salem, Oregon. ' -
. I i-. i:- .
Please mail for meL.. .
Statesman to the following listed addresses, for 'which I agree to remit on receipt of statement at
the rate of 25c per copy.
: :NAMBUC r V:.-' STREET V: . - - CITT ' STATE
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