The commerce in rosin is considerable. Our imports in 1880 were 1,051,825 ewt., value 323,3191., from the United States, and 31,577 cwt., 13,4681., fiem other countries; total, 1,083,402 cwt., 336,7871. Our exports in the same ye,ar were 31,491 cwt., 10,593/. The imports from America have not fluctuated much during late years, having been 966,109 cn t. in 1876, and 1,105,367 in 1879. The imports from France were 13,851 cwt. in 1876, 6389 in 1877, 37,810 in 1879, and 29,278 in 1880. Recent details of American shipments are as follows:—New York : 157,834 barrels (of 220 lb.) in 1879; 234,778 in 1878, being 51,753 to Great Britain, 5166 to France, 101,009 to N. Europe, 16,019 to other Europe, 60,831 to S. America, E. and W. Indies, &e. Mobile : in 1878, exports abroad, 49,247 bar., 17,448/. ; scut inland and coas.twise, 67,630 bar., 23,604/. in 1880, exports, 18,795 bar., 95821. ; inland and coastwise, 27,140 bar., 14,0191. Savannah : exports, 85,551 bar. (42,443 beiug to English ports) in 1879 ; in 1880, exports, 77,339 bar., 57,4781., and coastwise, 141,435 bar. Boston: in 1878, received 17,556 bar., exported 4032 ; in 1880, received 22,732 bar., exported 5038. New Orleans: exports, 1880, 821 bar. Philadelphia: exports, 1879, 3310 bar. Baltimore: exporte, 6735 bar. in 1877, 3120 in 1879, 13,031 in 1880. Wilinington (N. Carolina): in 1878, 516,279 bar. export, d, and 65,679 coastwise; total value, 162,5181. The Italian port of Venice despatched 557 tons, value 4462/., in 1878, and 560 tons, 44871., in 1879. Of Chinese ports, Hankow shipped 2055i picuis (of 133i lb.) in 1878 and Weuchow, 25 piculs in tbe same year.
The preparation of rosin fer soap-making purposes is described under Soap.
Rosueoir..—This product, to which frequent allusion is made in the article on Oils and Patty Substances, notably in the section relating to Di tection and Analysis (see pp. 1467-9, 1476), is manufactured in the following manner. The rosin, usually of the lower grades, is introduced into an iron still, and heated up to 158°-160° (316°-320° F.). Water, pyroligneous acid, and naphtha pass over at first, and until the rosin i8 exhausted of naphtha. T1R3 temperature is then raised to near tho red-heat of iron, when tho rosin boils, and crude rosin-oil distils over. It is a heavy, nearly opaque, whitish, viscid fluid, opalescent on the surface. It is rectified by redistillation, aud the resulting oil is transparent, dark-red by transmitted light, with a bluish east by reflected light, and sometimes highly opalescent.
Sagapenum.—The origin of sagapenum is wrapped in obscurity. It is supposed to be produced by a species of Ferula, and F. persica has been especially pointed to, but nothing certain is known on the subject. The locality affording it cannot even be iudicated, though there is reason to suppose that it comes from Persia and the countries t,o the east, the village of Miih, near Ispahan, being partioularly referred to. The drug is now extremely rare, and scarcely to be had in a pure state even in Bombay ; formerly it would seem to have been pleutiful. It is a gum-resin, forming a
tough softish mass of strongly agglutinated small tears, of brownish colour, manifesting no pink hue when broken, nor an alliaceons odour, hut acquiring a most intense and permanent blue colour when immersed in cold hydrochloric acid of 1-13 sp. gr. More rarely it occurs in translucent yellowish-brown tears, varying in size from a hazel-nut to a walnut. These characteristics serve to distinguish it from ammoniacum, galbanum, and cpoponax, which it otherwise resembles, and which are often substituted for it by the native druggists of India.
Sandarach (Fa., Sandaraque ; GER., Sandarac).—Sandarach when in pow& r la termed " pounce"; it has also been called " juniper-gum" or " -resin," from the erroneous supposition that it WR8 afforded by Juniperus spp.; and the closely allied Australian product has been introduced as " pine-gum." The tree affording sandaraoh is Callltris quadrivalvis [Thuja articulata, Frenela Fontanesia remarkable for its wood (see Timber—Alerce); it is indigenous to the mountains of N. Afiica, from the Atlantic to E. Algeria, its eastern limit being undeterrained. The resin exudes naturally from the bark of the stem, but the common practice is to make incisions in the stem, particularly near the base, by which the flow is much increased. The juice rapidly hardena on exposure, and is collected by the Moors, aud carried by them to Mogador for export to Europe. It oeeurs in commerce mostly in cylindrical tears, which are occasionally agglutinated. Its colour is pale yellow to pale red-brown, the best being very clear and transparent. The exterior often appears " powdery," from the occurrence of innumerable fissures by unequal contraction in drying. It has about the same harduess as kauri, softens at 100° (212° F.), and melts and swells at 150° (302° F.); its sp. gr. is 1.066-1-092, the fracture is clean and shiny, and the odour is weak and aromatic, increasing nith heat. It is not softened by boiling water, and is not soluble in caustic) soda or acetic acid; it is partially soluble in benzol, rectified petroleum, chloroform, end turpentine oil, slightly in carbon bisulphide aud boiling linseed-oil, but completely in alcohol and ether. Sandarach is said to be adulterated with guru arabie, but this seems doubtful ; more comruonly it is 5 P itself substituted for mastic, from which it may be distinguished by the softness of the latter, its complete solubility in turpentine-oil, and incomplete in cold alcohol. Formerly of wide renown in medicine, the resin is now valued, in Europe at least, principally as an ingredient of varnishes, to increase the hardness and glossiness ; powdered, under the name of " pounce," it is used for preparing the surface of parchment and paper to receive writing. Its approximate price in the London drug market is 60-115s. a cwt.