Oil of Lily
likewise from the ornamental plant, are, strange to say, not manufactured in any place, to our knowledge. Experiments made by us in this direction prove that the odors of these plants can be obtained either by absorption or, more readily, by extraction. The perfumes thus far occurring under these names are always combinations of different scents which, though pleasant, have but little in common with the plants whose names they bear.
In this connection we may say that the perfumes sold under the names of various flowers often have no relation to them, but are mixtures of various odors. While it cannot be denied that perfumes may be made in this manner which resemble those of the respective plants, it is unquestionably an imperfection in the art of perfumery that these odors are not really made from the flowers mentioned. To give another characteristic instance, we may add that the delightful odor of the well-known lily of the valley (Convallaria majalis)—a plant which grows wild abundantly in many of our forests—has not yet been produced, and that even imitations of this odor, which in delicacy and fragrance stands next to those of the rose and violet, are seldom met with in commerce.