THE ODOUR OF MUSK. 3 
be a difficult matter for a native to resist the temptation of adul- 
terating and falsifying these pods. They cut the young pods 
containing no musk at all, and fill them with the liver and blood 
of the animal mixed with the yellow fluid (which age would have 
matured into musk), add a small portion of genuine musk, then 
sew up the skin and dry; or those which yield half a drachm to 
a drachm they mix and dry in like manner.” 
Pereira says:—“ The great sophisticators of musk are the 
Chinese ; they actually export artificial pods from Canton. The 
hairy portion of the sacs is formed of a piece of the skin of the 
musk animal (readily distinguishable by its remarkable hairs) 
coarsely sewn at the edges to a piece of membrane, which repre- 
sents the smooth or hairless portion of the sacs. These pods are 
distinguished from the genuine ones by the following characters : 
the absence of any aperture in the middle of the hairy coat; the 
hair not being arranged in a circular manner; and the absence of 
the remains of the penis (found in every genuine musk-sac). The 
odour of the false sacs is ammoniacal.” 
The grains of musk contained in the pods should be unctuous 
to the feel and of a dark reddish-brown colour. An infusion of 
genuine grain musk gives zo precipitate with a solution of bichloride 
of mercury, but does with tincture of nut-galls and acetate of lead. 
By incineration genuine musk leaves behind a greyish-white ash, 
whereas blood yields a reddish one. An imitation musk is pre- 
pared by rubbing in a mortar dried bullocks’ blood with caustic 
ammonia, and mixing the half-dried product with genuine musk. 
The substances generally used for adulteration, or to fill the 
counterfeit pods are said to be :—blood, boiled cr baked on the fire, 
then beaten to powder, kneaded into a paste, and made into grains 
and coarse powder to resemble genuine musk ; a piece of the liver 
or spleen prepared in the same manner ; dried gall and a particular 
part of the bark of the apricot tree, pounded and kneaded as above. 
Lentils, peas, pieces of leather are also common adulterants ; it is 
sometimes found mixed with particles of dark-coloured earth and 
pieces of lead, to increase the weight. 
The microscope is very useful for detecting adulteration in musk. 
The colour of the individual grains should not be reddish or reddish 
brown, but, even under the microscope, should appear deep brown 
or blackish brown. If isolated particles are glassy, jelly-like, and 
transparent, they indicate adulteration with coagulated blood. 
B2 
