o pass that instead of a sweet smell there
shall be a stink." (Exod. 35:22; Isaiah 3:20, 24.) The word tablets in
this passage means perfume boxes, curiously inlaid, made of metal, wood,
and ivory. Some of these boxes may have been made in the shape of
buildings, which would explain the word _palaces_, in Psalm 14:8:--"All
thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia, out of the ivory
palaces, whereby they have made thee glad." From what is said in Matt.
2:11, it would appear that perfumes were considered among the most
valuable gifts which man could bestow;--"And when they (the wise men)
had opened their treasures, they presented unto him (Christ) gifts;
gold, and frankincense, and myrrh." As far as we are able to learn, all
the perfumes used by the Egyptians and Persians during the early period
of the world were _dry_ perfumes, consisting of spikenard (_Nardostachys
jatamansi_), myrrh, olibanum, and other gum-resins, nearly all of which
are still in use by the manufacturers of odors. Among the curiosities
shown at Alnwick Castle is a vase that was taken from an Egyptian
catacomb. It is full of a mixture of gum-resin, &c., which evolve a
pleasant odor to the present day, although probably 3000 years old. We
have no doubt that the original use of this vase and its contents were
for perfuming apartments, in the same way that pot pourri is now used.

SACHET POWDERS.

The French and English perfumers concoct a great variety of these
substances, which being put into silk bags, or ornamental envelopes,
find a ready sale, being both good to smell and economical as a means of
imparting an agreeable odor to linen and clothes as they lie in drawers.
The following formula shows their composition. Every material is either
to be ground in a mill, or powdered in a mortar, and afterwards sifted.

SACHET AU CYPRE.

Ground rose-wood, 1 lb.
" cedar-wood, 1 lb.
" santal-wood, 1 lb.
Otto of rhodium, or otto of rose, 3 drachms.

Mix and sift; it is then fit for sale.

SACHET A LA FRANGIPANNE.

Orris-root powder, 3 lbs.
Vitivert powder, 1/4 lb.
Santal-wood powder, 1/4 lb.
Otto of neroli, }
" rose, } of each, 1 drachm.
" santal, }
Musk-pods, ground, 1 oz.

The name of this sachet has been handed down to us as being derived f