THE RAINS 133 



According to popular belief the discovery was made 

 by the celebrated Noor Jehan, the favourite wife of the 

 Emperor Jehangire ; but the Emperor himself in his 

 memoirs attributes the discovery, not to Noor Jehan, 

 but to her mother. Although discovered and first made 

 in India, the best attar of roses is now brought from 

 Busrah, in the Persian Gulf. It is brought in small 

 silver flasks of much the shape of a pear and about 

 the size of a small walnut. The mouth of the neck 

 of the flask is securely soldered ; but so powerful is the 

 perfume that it escapes through the silver of the flask. 

 When in India I procured at different times three 

 of these flasks. Two of them I have still ; one was 

 lost in the Mutiny. When I procured the flasks they 

 were completely filled with the attar ; they are now, 

 and have been for years, quite empty. The soldering 

 at the necks of the flasks is as perfect as ever, but the 

 attar has exhaled through the silver of the flasks them- 

 selves. The flasks have been kept in a silver box lined 

 with sandalwood ; they were put among letters and 

 various small curiosities. Although the attar has 

 evaporated from the flasks, it remains as strong as 

 ever among the letters and curiosities and the sandal- 

 wood of the box itself. The sandalwood, however, has 

 imparted to the perfume of the attar a flavour rather 

 oppressive, to our English tastes at least ; for it is one 

 which the natives of India greatly admire, and which 

 they much prefer to that of the attar alone. The attar 

 of roses, with which on occasions of ceremony they 

 perfume themselves and their garments, is always 

 mingled with a scent obtained from sandalwood. 



