The mountain Democrat., 1863-01-31
PERFUMES,

-
f'art, there are none, probably, more COM.
Plstely beyond the knowledgq Of people
| in general, than the methods by which
the numerous delicate and fragrant peA
fumes in daily use, are obhItsUd!o Not
oAe. ina thousand, spsOASblyC VhO ~Uses
these exquisite articles ofperSonsl luxury,
has a correct idea Of the manperin which
the flowers of the field Or the odoFiferous
trees Of the forest were robbed Of the
sweet smelling odors which contribute TO
their qualification. A late number of
| Household Words contained some curious
| Information on this subject derived from
J. z ,T--7csrOito'ooI Is>osb rvbicb djVp)gcS the
I manufacturing and trade secrets Of per-
fumes, the essence" of which We will
endeavor to compress into short article:
There are, it appears, four modes Of
obtaiuinS the neSCune of,plants aud t(aw, :.
erS fne frst is oy'expressI6n--d cncrtt
adopted only when the plant is very pro-
liic in its volatile oil f; that is, its odor.
The outer rind of the orange, lemon, cit,
ron, and others Of the same class. is chief
" subjected to this process. The part
to be expressed is put in bag, and
placed under screw press. When all
the oil is expressed it is allowed to stand
until it separates itself from the water
which came with it. 1t is then poured
off and strained. The second method is
by distilIation-a method used for lnven-
dar, cloves, seeds and herbs, but not for
the rarcr flowers, the odors of which are
lost by heat. Maceration is the third
process. Purified deer or beef suct is
placed with purified lard in a metal or
porcelain pan, and after being melted,
the flowers required to be used are
| thrown in and left to remain from.twelve
to forty-eight hours the liquid fat il
then strained, and fresh flowers. are added.
This is repeated as often as necessary,
| and the pomatum obtained therefrom is
known as six, twelve, eighteen or twenty
four, according to the strength of the
odor. For pcrfumed oil the satne process
is gone through with, fine olive oil being
substituted for lard and suet
The daintiest method of all, is alb sorp-
ton, process uniformaly used in France
for all the finest odors. Square frames
with glass bottoms, are spread with
layer of fat, about a quarter Cf an inch
thick, and then sprinkled abundantly with
flowers. They are allowed to remain for
| ty-eight hours, when fresh supply is
given. This process Is repeated until the
pomatum is sufficiently impregnated.
For perfuned oils, coarse cotton cloths
are saturated with pure oil, laid on
frames Of wire gauze, and then strcwrd
with flowers. When thoroughly per.
fumcd, the oil is pressed out of them.
The south of Europe is the perfumer's s
Dorado. Cannes and Nice arc the prin-
cipal flower growing places. But few
flowers are grown in England for perfu-
mer's use, except layendar and pepper
mint.
Odors are extracted from various parts
OF plants, flowers, ETC., as the roots, stems,
wood, leaves, seeds, bark, gums, etc.
The orange tree gives three distinct scents,
and most flowers two. Neroli, the odor
obtained from orange flowers, serves as
the base for various perfumes, as sweet
pea, magnolia, and scents of that class
Cassia, another valuable agent in the per-
tuners repertoire, is procured by macer-
alton, from the acacia farncSiana, and is
to be found in most Of the best handker.
chief boquetS but, unmixcd, it is sick
" sweet, and of an intense violet odor
The largest amount of the almond per.
fune of commerce comes from distilled
laurel leaves and the kernels of stone
fruit; also from the skin of bitter al
monds. The essential oil Of almonds is
got from the mt itsslf; first pressed into
cake, then moistened with salt and Wa.
ter, and allowed to fermeht. Fourteen
pounds Of cake yielded one ounce of oil,
which must be diluted with spirit to be-
come pleasant. 1t is much used in soap,
cold cream, etc., being esteemed good
| cosmetic.
| Bergamot, obtained by expression from
the rind Of citrus bergama, forms the
basis of most boqucts. 1t is best pre-
served in closely stopped bottles, kept
cool and dark; which remark applies to
all perfumes, except rose. The honey
soap is but fine yellow soap mixed with
citronclla-and citronella comes from the
leaves of plant growing wild in Ceylon.
Cloves perfume soap, as well as aid in
forming boquets. Nutmeg is one Of the
principle ingredients in all the frangipane
perfumes. Many of the common herbs,
as mint, sage, majoram, ETC., are used in
perfumery. Some of the sweetest flow
crs are not available. Byzantine and
sweet briar can only be initiated, the per
fume being destroyed under any process
possible. Lily of the Valley is another
uncxtractable, but is initiated. Lilies
are found to be too powerful, and are not
used. Wall-ilowcr is not used, but it is
initiated; and the most delicious fra
GRANGE Of the Glove pink, also, is only i'm
itated !; Of real sweet pea, there is none {;
myrtle is rarely genuine /; and magnolia
is too expensive to be genuine hello.
trope and honeysuckle come under the
same category. Jasmine, alOns, Of all
the tiowery kingdom, cannot be initiated.
Scents are not only initiated, but they
are adultcrated. Thus the leaves of a
sweet smelling variety of geranium are
used to adulterate the otto of roses sent
from France, and this geranium is in its
turn adulterated with ginger-grass oil.
| Pure violet essence is scarcely. to be had {;
when pure it commands an exhorbitant
price. A fine sample of six ounces Of
jasmine in the Tunislan department Of
the Crystal Palace, was worth five dol
lars the ounce. The odor is obtained by
absorption. Patchouli is the product Of
an Eastern herb, and is of great value TO
the perfumes. The test of the renl India
shawl used to be this peculiar odor, which
had not then found its way to the West
ern world. The shawl could be initiated,
but not the perfume; so that all knowing
purchasers of Cashmeres judged by the
sense of smell as well as by those Of
touch and sight Smelling salts are
made Of ammonia, ambergris, musk, civet,