y6  Growth  and  Uses  of  Benzoin.  {Am'&?#w' 
tears  or  drops,  an  inch  or  two  long,  of  an  opaque,  milk-like  white  resin, 
loosely  agglomerated  into  a  mass.  More  frequently  the  mass  is  quite 
compact,  consisting  of  a  certain  proportion  of  white  tears  of  the  size  of 
an  almond  downwards,  imbedded  in  a  deep,  rich,  amber-brown  trans- 
lucent resin.  Occasionally  the  translucent  resin  preponderates,  and 
the  white  tears  are  almost  wanting.  In  some  packages  the  tears  of 
white  resin  are  very  small,  and  the  whole  mass  has  the  aspect  of  a 
reddish-brown  granite.  There  is  always  a  certain  admixture  of  bits  of 
wood,  bark  and  other  accidental  impurities.  The  white  tears,  when 
broken,  display  a  structure  with  layers  of  greater  or  less  translucency. 
By  keeping,  the  white,  milky  resin  becomes  brown  and  transparent  on 
the  surface.  It  is  very  brittle,  the  opaque  tears  showing  a  slightly 
waxy,  the  transparent  a  glassy  fracture.  It  easily  softens  in  the  mouth, 
and  may  be  kneaded  into  the  teeth  like  mastic.  It  has  a  delicate 
balsamic,  vanilla-like  fragrance,  but  little  taste.  When  heated,  it 
evolves  a  more  powerful  fragrance,  together  with  the  irritating  fumes 
of  benzoic  acid  ;  its  fusing  point  is  750  C.  The  presence  of  benzoic 
acid  may  be  shown  by  the  microscopical  examination  of  splinters  of 
the  resin  under  oil  of  turpentine.  Siam  benzoin  is  imported  in  cubic 
blocks,  which  take  their  form  frrm  the  wooden  cases  in  which  they  are 
packed  while  the  resin  is  still  soft.  The  Sumatra  kind  is  imported  in 
cubic  blocks,  exactly  like  the  Siam,  from  which  it  differs  in  its  gener- 
ally greyer  tint.  The  mass,  however,  when  the  drug  is  of  good  quality, 
contains  numerous  opaque  tears,  set  in  a  translucent,  greyish-brown 
resin,  mixed  with  bits  of  wood  and  bark.  When  less  good,  the  white  tears 
are  wanting,  and  the  proportion  of  impurities  is  greater.  In  odor,  it  is 
both  weaker  and  less  agreeable  than  the  Siam  drug,  and  generally  falls 
short  of  it  in  purity  and  handsome  appearance,  and  hence  commands 
a  much  lower  price. 
The  medicinal  properties  of  benzoin  are  very  slight,  but  it  is  em- 
ployed for  many  different  purposes.  The  Java  chiefs  are  fond  of 
smoking  it  with  tobacco,  and  the  worst  kind  is  more  esteemed  by  the 
Arabs  than  their  own  best  olibanum  or  frankincense.  In  perfumery, 
it  enters  into  a  large  number  of  preparations,  such  as  fumigatory  pas- 
tilles, Poudre  a  la  Marechale,  etc.  ;  the  alcoholic  tincture,  mixed  with 
20  parts  of  rose-water,  forms  the  cosmetic  virginal  milk.  In  certain 
varnishes  on  snuffboxes  and  walking  sticks,  when  heated  in  the  hand, 
the  agreeable  odor  of  benzoin  is  emitted,  and  it  is  added  to  the  spir- 
ituous solution  of  isinglass,  with  which  court-plaster  is  made.  The 
