used to make perfumes, and were 

 always favourites. In England court 

 ladies as well as country dames had 

 their still-rooms, and in these the 

 violet was a necessary plant. My 

 lady and her maids gathered the 

 blossoms in baskets, brayed, distilled, 

 mixed, and compounded with other 

 ingredients and produced a fragrant 

 water for the toilet-table. 



Beside the liquid essences and per- 

 fumes, pomander-balls were used by 

 our great-grandmothers instead of 

 vinaigrettes. They were hollow balls 

 often made of gold or silver and as 

 large as an orange. Sometimes, in- 

 deed, oranges, a costly fruit in those 

 times, were used, the inside being 

 removed and a sponge with vinegar 

 and spices inserted in its place. Per- 

 fume balls made of rose or violet 

 leaves beaten to a pulp, mixed with 

 sweet spices and rolled, were popular 

 49 



