The daily morning journal and courier., 1896-09-11
Valuable as a Diamond Find.

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 TO the conservative whale-fisher of New Bedford or Provincetown the dis covery of amhergris Is as unexpected and as longed for as the sheeny splen dor of the pearl that gladdens the pearl fisher, of the sparkle of the diamond that sends its radiance straight to the heart of the coal miner. There is that delightful uncertainty, that same shake-and-thr doubt, that allures the speculator to take his chance, though that of the whalemen is much more legitimate business, for with the zeal that characterizes these mer- chants of the ocean there is coupled the absolute certainty of reduplication according to their efforts.
 Almost awestruck are the sailors when the cry of "Ambergris!' is ut tered. This is the happy event of a lifetime. The substance Is carefully taken from the bowels of the whale and is packed is casks, if it is in liquid form, or in sacks if it is dry enough.
 It is then brought, in it's nauseating odoriferous condition, direct to Boston, where it is appraised by the head of the largest drug firm in the city. This young man has no enviable task before him in ascertaining the value of the ar ticle He has to examine the fetid mass, which is sometimes in a rank li- quid state, sometimes of the consisten- cy of soft putty, and again chalk-like substance. That which is more like putty usually Is to be best relied on for making the best market ambergris, and gradually as it dries-the only cur- ing process 1t undergoes-the unwhoie- some dark shade turns to a soft squir- rel gray The substance lightens in weight, and the subtle, fascinating odor develops, an odor almost inde- i scribable, like the blending of new mown hay, the damp woody fragrance of a fern copse and the faintest possi- ble perfume of the violet.
 l And to what use is ambergris putt It is an indispensable article with fine perfumes, as it is used to give perma- nency and lasting qualities to very fleeting scents. It is a curious fact that the keynote or basis of nose. gays" or ''bouquets,'' as handkerchie1 odors are called, is not, as one might suppose, the altar of garden flowers nor the impenetrating balsams-thest are indispensable but are not tho groundwork. That basis is always ont of the four animal odors, that is, am bergris, musk, obtained from smal musk deer of Asia, civet, from the ci vet cat of India, and castor, secre ton of the castor beaver, and now al most obsolete in the perfume trade The pure and separate tincture of an, one of these odors is too intense ant powerful to be tolerated. Like all sub stances of these kinds, they must un dergo slow decomposition till the re mainder possesses very little volatility Even then they contain virtue whicl clings pertinaciously to woven fabrics and not being soluble in weak, alkalin Ives is still to be detected in the mate rial after passing through the severa lavatory ordeals. They are, therefore of great value to the perfumer, and ar the essential foundation in almost eve ry formula.
 The essence of ambergris is obtalnet | by mixing three ounces of it with on gallon of pure alcohol, and not till af ter month is 1t ready for use. This however, is not only kept for mixing and is far too strong. Only when i has entered in minute proportion int the bouquets does it produce thos agreeable and characteristic perfume the effect of which upon the nerves o the sensitive nose is much like the hap py sensation produced by harmoni ous musical chords on the delicate cal or the perfect blending of colors to tn educated eye.-Boston Transcript.