C 93 ] 



hol, and in possessirg a very slight degree of solubili- 

 ty in water. 



There is a great number of volatile oils, distin- 

 guished by their smell, their taste, their specific gra- 

 vity, and other sensible qualities. A strong and pecu- 

 liar odour may however be considered as the great 

 characteristic of each species ; the volatile oils inflame 

 with more facility than the fixed oils, and afford by 

 their combustion different proportions of the same 

 substances, water, carbonic acid, and carbon. 



The following specific gravities of different vola-; 

 tile oils were ascertained by Dr. Lewis. 



Oil of Sassafras 1094 Oil of Tansy 946 



Cinnamon 1035 ~ Caraway 94O 



Cloves 1O34 Origanum 940 



Fennel 997 Spike 936 



Dill 994 Rosemary 934 



Penny Royal 978 Juniper 9 1 1 



Cummin 975 -- Oranges 888 



Mint 975 Turpentine 792 



Nutmegs 948 



The peculiar odours of plants seem, in almost 

 all cases, to depend upon the peculiar volatile oils they 

 contain. All the perfumed distilled waters owe their 

 peculiar properties to the volatile oils they hold in so- 

 lution. By collecting the aromatic oils, the fragrance 

 of flowers, so fugitive in the common course of na- 

 ture, is as it were embodied and made permanent. 



It cannot be doubted that the volatile oils con- 

 sist of carbon, hydrogene, and oxygene ; but no ac- 

 curate experiments have as yet been made on the 

 proportions in which these elements are combined. 



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