NATURALIST'S CABINET. 



Account of the drug called musk. 



egg, is contained the well known drug called 

 musk. This hangs from the middle of the belly, 

 and is peculiar to the male. A fall-grown ani- 

 mal will yield a drachm and a half, and an old 

 one two drachms. The bag is furnished with 

 two sniall orifices, the one naked and the other 

 covered with oblong hairs. Gmelin observes, 

 that on squeezing this bag, he forced the musk 

 through the apertures, in the form of a brown 

 unctuous matter. The hunters cut off the bag 

 and tie it up for sale, but often adulterate the 

 contents, by mixing them with other matter to 

 increase their weight. The musk is even some- 

 times taken entirely out, and a composition of 

 the animal's blood and liver is inserted in its 

 stead : but when the bags are opened the impo- 

 sition may be immediately detected. The deceit, 

 however, most commonly practised, is that of 

 putting into the bags little bits of lead in order 

 to augment the weight. 



it is said, that when the musk bag is first 

 opened, so powerful an odour comes from it, that 

 every person present is obliged to cover his 

 mouth and nose with several folds of linen, and 

 that, notwithstanding this precaution, the blood 

 will frequently gush from the nose. When the 

 musk is'fresh, a very small quantity in a confined 

 place is insupportable ; causing giddiness in the 

 head, and hemorrhages, which have sometimes 

 proved fatal. 



