3 J 4 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [September i, 1881 
the West India Islands, Ceylon, Mauritius. From 
the last-named, wonderful specimens were sent to our 
intercolonial exhibition of 1862, for which the jurors 
awarded a gold medal. 
The vanilla will produce saleable pods the third or 
fourth year after propagation, and they may then be 
gathered annually in September in increasing quanti- 
ties for thirty or even forty jears. Two good speci- 
mens of the plant may be seen in the Orchid House 
at Kew. 
When the pods are gathered, which should be done 
before they are quite ripe, it is most important that 
they be properly cured, otherwise they rapidly be- 
come mouldy and lose their scent. Parcels in this 
condition may often be found in the Mincing Lane 
drug auctions. The curing of the pods is best effected 
by drying them in a moderate heat, pressing them 
with the thumb and finger from end to end, and 
then brushing them over with an oil that does not 
itself become rancid, such as that of cocoa or cashew 
nut. It is at the apex of the pod that the mouldy 
parasite first appears, the pods then quickly become 
soft and flabby, cr dry and chippy. On the other 
hand, when vanilla pods are in good condition, they 
become covered with an efflorescence of needle-like 
crystals of vanillic acid ; the interior of the bean is 
then soft, unctuous, and balsamic. These crystals 
may be sublimed by heat of a sand bath. Few objects 
are more beautiful than this when viewed by a mi- 
croscope with the aid of polarised light. 
I. F. H. Johns' on states that the fruit of this plant 
when ripe is said to yield from two to six drops of 
a liquid which has an exquisite odour, and bears the 
name of "balsam of vanilla," This balsam is, how- 
ever, never seen in Europe, consequently it has 
never appeared commercially in the market. The 
pods are dried in the sun and afterwards slightly 
fermented for the purpose of developing their odour ; 
when fresh, they are said to have no perfume. Physio- 
logically, the fragrance of the vanilla acts upon 
the system as an aromatic stimulant, exhilarating the 
mental functions, and increasing generally the energy 
of the animal system. About two centuries ago vanilla 
may be said to have been unknown in this country ; 
it is however stated, that Morgan, apothecary to 
Queen Elizabeth, showed Her Majesty a sample, but 
he knew nothing more about it than that "it was 
brought from abroad by some Spanish merchants." 
A few years back the avernge importation of this 
article was about five or six hundredweight, which 
arrived, from some unknown cause, very irregularly, 
and as a consequence caused great fluctuations in the 
price. At the present time the total annual average 
crop of all the varieties of vanilla from the several 
countries which produce it may be estimated at 80,000 
lb., representing a value of not less than £150,000. 
In order to obtain the perfume or essence, half a 
pound of the pods are slit from end to end, so as to 
lay open the interior ; then cut them up in lengths 
of about a quarter of an inch, and put into one gal- 
lon of pure alcohol of 600 over proof, and macerated 
with occasional agitation for about a month, at which 
time all that is worth extracting will be found in 
the spirit, which may then be strained off quite clear 
and bright. It is then suitable as a flavoring agent, 
or when blended with other scents it makes com- 
pound odours or boquets. Those sold under the titles 
of clematis, heliotrope, wall-flower, &c, mostly con- 
tain about one-half of vanilla extract. 
The following gives a good 
ESSENCE OF WALLFLOWER. 
Extract fleur d'orange ... ... 1 pint 
„ vanilla \ ,, 
Esprit de rose 1 „ 
Extract of orris .. \ ,, 
cassic $ ,, 
Essential oil of almonds 5 drops 
This should be prepared for two or three weeks 
prior to putting up for sale. 
The odour of heliotrope resembles a mixture of vanilla 
and almonds, and is well imitated thus : — 
EXTRACT OF HELIOTROPE. 
Spirituous extract of vanilla ... ... h pint 
,, French rose po- 
matum \ „ 
Spirituous extract of orange flower... 2 ounces 
,, ,, ambergris ... 1 ounce 
Essential oil of almonds 5 drops 
USEFUL WRINKLES AND RECIPES 
FOR PLANTERS. 
(From the Indian Tea Gazette, 6th August 1881.) 
(Continued from page 300.) 
Stables, To remove rank smell of. — Sawdust, wetted 
with sulphuric acid, diluted with 40 parts of water, 
and distributed about horse stables, will remove the 
disagreeable ammoniacal smell. 
Horses, to keep flies from. — Make an infusion of 
3 haudfuls of walnut leaves in 3 qts of cold water. 
Let this stand over night and boil for a quarter of 
an hour in the morning. When cold rub it over the 
ears, neck and other • irritable parts of the animal, 
with a moist sponge. 
Eggs, To preserve. — Mix together in a tub or vessel 
1 bushel of quicklime, 32 ozs. of salt, 8 ozs. cream 
of tartar, with as much water as will reduce com- 
position to a sufficient consistence to float an egg. 
It is said that this treatment will preserve the eggs 
perfectly sound for two years at least. 
Insect Bites. — A good remedy is borax, 1 oz. dissolved 
in 1 pint water previously boiled and allowed to cooL 
Mustard Poultice, To make a. — In making a mustard 
plaster use no water, but mix the mustard with 
white of eggs, and the result will be a plaster 
which will draw perfectly, but will not produce a 
blister, no matter how long it is allowed to remain. 
Sleeplessness, Cure for. — Mr. Frank Buckland says t 
"If I am much pressed with work, and feel I shall 
not sleep, I eat two or three small onions and the 
effect is magical. Onions are also excellent things to 
eat when much exposed to intense cold. In salmon 
fishing, common raw onions enable men to bear the 
ice and cold of the semi-frozen water much better 
than spirits, beer, etc. If a person cannot sleep, it 
is because the blood is in his brain, not in his 
stomach ; the remedy, therefore, is obvious : call the 
blood down from the brain to the stomach. This ia 
to be done by eating a biscuit, a hard-boiled egg, 
a bit of bread and cheese, or something. Follow this 
up with a glass of wine or milk, or even water, and 
you will fall asleep." 
Styptic paper, For stopping the bleeding of small 
wounds. — Mix gum benzoin (best quality), 1 lb ; rock 
alum, lib.; water, 4^ gals. Boil in a tin vessel for 
4 hours, replacing the water lost by evaporation. 
Saturate paper with the solution, dry carefully and 
brush over with a concentrated solution of perchloride 
of iron. Keep in a water-proof and air-tight case. 
Toothache.— Saturate a bit of cotton w ; ool in a 
strong solution of ammonia, and apply it immediately 
to the affected tooth. 
Mucilage, Pocket. — Boil 1 lb. best white glue and 
strain very clear ; boil also 4 oz?. isinglass, and mix 
the two together ; place them in a water-bath (glue 
kettle) with \ lb. white sugar and evaporate till the 
liquid is quite thick, when it is to be poured into 
moulds, dried, and cut into pieces of convenient size. 
This immediately dissolves in water, and fastens 
paper very firmly. 
Boots, Wet. — When the boots are taken off, fill 
them quite full with dry oats. This grain has a 
