Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-09-24

How the Sweet Odor is Extracted md
Put to Use.
From the New York Tribune

How the Sweet Odor i. Extracted and
Put to Use.
From the New York Tribune
For over two centuries the inhabitants OF
the little valley of Var in the southeastern
part of France have been engaged In the
Industry of making perfumes from flowers
Every summer the whole valley is like one
great garden bed OF roses. orange trees
tuberoses, Volets, jonquils acacia and jas
mine, which are gathered in their blossom
ing season and their sweetness garnered and
preserved for future use and profit
All summer long these fields OF flowers
are daily visited by women and children
carrying great baskets on their backs. into
which are gathered the blossoms: they are
theh carried to the great storehouses. where
ample preparation has been made for get
ting the perfume from them. Among the
hrst secrets of the plant world which these
OLD perfume makers learned was that the
scent of the flower is not contained in any
gland or little sac but rather. that IL is eN-
hailed by the flower somewhat I'm the man
ner of breathing, and that il the blossom is
crushed the odor is destroyed, one other
thing they found out early in their work il
that fresh grease will most readily absorb
this breath Of the flowers, and IL IN turn
VIII yield up its treasure to alcohol. Using
these facts, the people of this valley have
quit up a great industry, SURVIVING "A good
part OF the worlds market with flower per
FUMES. and TO meet the demand made upon
them by commercial requirements have
grown IN single season over 100000
POUNDS OF orange blossoms, 100000 pounds
OF roses and nearly 100 900 pounds of Violets
and jasmine. The odor is obtained from
these flowers in two ways one called en-
heufage, and by far the most common
manner OF getting the perfume; the other.
naceration, which is used sometimes
where the former way is not sufficient to
get the whole of the perfume
=
NUMBER OF large pieces of glass each stout
~ framed in a wooden case which extends
an men or two above the glass all around
TO ADMIT OF the flowers being Diled on it
without being crushed by contact with the
glass placed over It, over the surface Of
tnese glass panes is spread a layer of clean
Iresh grease. and on IL are piled the flowers
each Kind being kept separate The per-
tune is readily absorbed in the fat ana
from day to day fresh blooms are placed
IN the frame until they grow withered
when they are removed. the grease being
prepared Tor new supply by being sep
arated by means of running a knife over its
surface thus turning UP new parts to re-
celVe the perfume. Flowers are placed on
IL again, and this process is continued the
whole season of blossoming after which
the grease is scraped off the glass and put
IN alcohol after it has been chopped fine so
mat every particle of it may be reached by
lost.
often this grease is not put in the alco-
mol Tor q long time, but, instead. is scraDed
from the plates of glass after It has become
Hlleu with the Hover perfume, chopped fine
melted and poured into canisters exported
IN large quantities in this shape and re-
duced to the extract of produce by the deal
tlS IN Whatever country il is sold
Inc other process, by which oil IS nor
TUNED IN much the same way as the grease,
Is called mdceration, and the flowers ara
put IN melted fat. or oil. the basin being
Kept in d warm bath so that it will not be-
come too hot, liquid state being sufficient
for the process to be carried out The flow
ers are infused in this warm oil many
hours, and are then strained AWAY and
fresh ones added, the process being kept un
as Iong as the blossoms can be procured
ne best perfume IS obtained from the las
mime anu tuberose by the enfeurage but
the rose, acacia and orange are found TO
give more satisfactory results by the meth
90 q maceratlon, and a joint process is
necessary to obtain the best odor from the
violet and Jonquil, enfleurage first and mac
Grafton atterward. To do this a wire net
Is pat in the frame, rather than the piece of
glass, the space being filled with q cotton
fabric. usually moleskin soaked in oil. and
the nowers are laid on il just as In the pro-
cess OF enfeurage on the solid grease In
course OF time and after the flowers have
been changed many times the OIL will be-
come fragrant, after which it is pressed out
OF the fabric. Oil OF tuberose and of many
other flowers is prepared in this manner
The only thing necessary to procure the ex-
tract OF perfume as used in toilet prepara-
scented
in strong alcohol.
Certain curious facts regarding the odor
OF flowers have also been learned by these
perfume makers. There seems to be in the
mower world a series of flowers which by
combining their perfumes will make about
every known odor in the world. This kno0l-
edge has been utilized by the flower grow
ers OF Var, and many experiments, cover .
ing a period of many centuries have proved
that the seven plants whose flowers con-
tain, or VIII produce by combination the
perfume OF all the others are the rose Vio-
let, orange, acacia, jonquil, tuberose and
jasmine so these are the ones they grow
ana depsnd upon mixing for the other odors
OF commerce. For instance, violet and tube
rose make the perfume of the lily of the
valley, the jasmine and tubeFose when
mixed have a perfume like the hyacinth.
the jasmine and the orange resemble the
sweet pea when combined About all the
various bouquets and odd odors of the
stores are made in this way, many of them
being very old indeed; frangipanni, one Of
the most popular perfumes on account of
its lasting SO long, being an invention Of
an old Roman alchemiSt during the second
century, and named for its discoverer.
Musk is an animal odor but on account Of
It's great lasting properties is mixed with
many delicate perfumes to increase their
sale. Patchouly is made from an herb and
game Its reputation as a perfume from
being used by the makers of Indian shawis
TO give their wares that peculiar odor which
the French labored so many years to dis
cover. Finally they found the plant, i'm
ported 1T into their country, and were at
last successful in their imitation of Indian
shawls. Patchouly is the most lasting of
all the plant perfumes, and like musk Is
combined with flower odors in the manu-
facture OF ali manner of perfumes for sale.