NOTE ON CUCUMBER OINTMENT. 
17 
the whole thrown on a muslin cloth, allowed to pass with- 
out pressure, and suffered to repose till cool, that the moist- 
ure may separate. The ointment thus prepared is placed 
in a deep wide-mouthed earthen vessel, so arranged as to 
keep the ointment in a soft semi-fluid consistence, and one 
third of the juice added and beaten with the ointment until 
the fats of the latter have extracted all or nearly all the 
odour from the liquid, which requires several hours. It is 
then allowed to stand until the fluid separates that it may 
be decanted, and another third of the juice added. This is 
beaten in like manner until exhausted, then decanted, and 
finally the last third added and similarly treated. 
The ointment is now heated by means of a water bath 
for an hour in a close vessel, allowed to repose for 25 min- 
utes, that the coagulated albumen of the juice may rise to 
the surface and be removed with a skimmer. The clear 
melted ointment is then carefully ladled out, so as not to 
disturb the sediment, and strained into glass or close-text- 
ured stone jars of moderate capacity and closely stopped. 
This is the proper form to prepare it for long keeping, 
but before using it, a quantity to suit the demand of a 
month is placed on a warm mortar or other vessel, until 
softened, and then beaten with a wooden spatula until it 
assumes a perfectly white and creamy appearance. It is 
then again introduced into the jars without allowing any 
unfilled interstices, covered with rose water and stopped. 
With these precautions cucumber ointment readily keeps 
from season to season. There are several formulae for this 
preparation which vary in the proportion of juice, and the 
manner of incorporating its odorous principle, but the above 
embraces all the points essential to success. 
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