AMBERGRIS. 
tion of human faeces, acquired a very strong and perfect 
smell of ambergris, inasmuch that any one would have 
thought that a great quantity of essence of ambergris had 
been made in it, the perfume was so strong and offensive 
that the vessel had to be removed from the laboratory ! 
Brandes Manual of Chemistry , p. 594. 
Ambergris appears to be nothing but the hardened 
faeces of the spermaceti whale, which is pretty well proved 
from its being mixed so intimately with the refuse of its 
food (the squids’ beaks). Mr. Enderby has in his pos- 
session a fine specimen of this substance, about six or 
seven inches long, and which bears very evident marks 
of having been moulded by the lower portion of the 
rectum of the whale. 
On one occasion, while in the North Pacific, I had the 
curiosity to collect some of the semi-fluid faeces which 
floated from the carcass of a whale while our men were 
cutting it in, and which on being dried in the sun bore 
all the properties of ambergris. 
