o74 ODOROGRAPHIA. 
a 
ADDENDA. 
Adulteration of Santal-wood Oil.—Mesnard states * that by the 
application of ordinary pure sulphuric acid it is possible to 
recognize the presence of oil of cedar, cubebs, copaiba, or turpentine 
in oil of santal. If the oil be pure a viscid liquid is produced, 
which becomes pasty and is rapidly transformed into a solid mass 
adhering to the glass. This mass is characterized by its light grey- 
blue or greyish colour and the dusty appearance it gradually 
assumes. In adulterated samples the resmous mass does not 
solidify entirely, and remains of a deep tint and distinctly brilliant 
lustre. The test 1s said to be so delicate that it is possible to 
determine by the following method the approximate proportion of 
adulteration :—Two or three centigrams of the oil mixed with a 
drop of pure sulphuric acid are placed on to the surface of a piece 
of ground glass, and the flattened end of a small glass rod applied 
to the mixture. The upper end of the glass rod being attached to 
the lower surface of the scale-pan of a balance, the degree of 
adhesiveness of the oil to the glass (indicating the degree of purity) 
can be read off. 
Source of Ambergris.—Jourdain + considers that the micro- 
scopical and chemical examination of ambergris show it to be of a 
similar nature to intestinal calculi. He was struck by the presence 
of numerous remains of cephalopods in the mass, and thinks this 
fact may have some bearing upon the existence of this odorous 
substance. He assumes that it may even have been produced by 
* Comptes Rendus, exiv. p. 1546, 27th June, 1892. 
+ Ibid. p. 1557 ; and Pharm, Jcurn. [3] xxiii. p. 82. 
