The Art of Perfumery, and Methods of Obtaining the Odors of Plants

BENZOIN POMADE AND OIL. Benzoic acid is perfectly soluble in hot grease. Half an ounce of benzoic acid being dissolved in half a pint of hot olive or almond oil, deposits on cooling beautiful acicular crystals, similar to the crystals that effloresce from vanilla beans; a portion of the acid, however, remains dissolved in the oil at the ordinary temperature, and imparts to it the peculiar aroma of benzoin; upon this idea is based the principle of perfuming grease with gum benzoin by the direct process, that is, by macerating powdered gum benzoin in melted suet or lard for a few hours, at a temperature of about 80° C. to 90° C. Nearly all the gum-resins give up their odoriferous principle to fatty bodies, when treated in the same way; this fact becoming generally known, will probably give rise to the preparation of some new remedial ointments, such as Unguentum myrrhæ, Unguentum assafoetida, and the like. TONQUIN POMADE, and TONQUIN OIL, are prepared by macerating the ground Tonquin beans in either melted fat or warm oil, from twelve to twenty-eight hours, in the proportion of Tonquin beans, 1/2 lb. Fat or oil, 4 lbs. Strain through fine muslin; when cold, the grease will have a fine odor of the beans.