SECT. XVII. BALSAMS. 443 



the genus Mimosa. But however this may be, 

 myrrh is the juice of the plant concreted in the form 

 of tears. Its colour is yellow, its odour strong but 

 agreeable, and its taste bitter. It is employed in 

 medicine, and is esteemed an excellent stomachic. 

 Assafcetida. This substance, which is well known 

 for k its strong and fetid smell, is obtained from the 

 Ferula assqfcetida, a plant which grows in Persia. 

 At four years old the plant is dug up by the root. 

 The root is then cleaned, and the extremity cut off; 

 a milky juice exudes which is collected ; and when 

 it ceases to flow another portion is cut off, and more 

 juice extricated. The process is continued till the 

 root is exhausted. The juice which has been col- 

 lected soon concretes and constitutes assafcetida, 

 It is brought to Europe in small agglutinated grains 

 of different colours, white, red, yellow. It is hard, 

 but brittle. Its taste is bitter, and its smell insuf- 

 ferably fetid ; and yet the Indians use it as a sea- 

 soning for their food, and call it the food of the 

 gods. This forms a strange contrast to the name 

 which it has obtained in Europe, where it is vul- 

 garly known by the appellation of Devil's dung. 

 It is used in medicine as an antispasmodic. 



SECTION XVII. 

 Balsams. 



THE substances known by the name of balsams are 

 nearly related to the resins and gum-resins. Thisre- 



