Orteschi met a
young lady who, without any possibility of fraud, exhaled the
strong odor of vanilla from the commissures of her fingers.
Rayer speaks of a woman under his care at the Hopital de la
Charite affected with chronic peritonitis, who some time before
her death exhaled a very decided odor of musk. The smell had been
noticed several days, but was thought to be due to a bag of musk
put purposely into the bed to overpower other bad smells. The
woman, however, gave full assurance that she had no kind of
perfume about her and that her clothes had been frequently
changed. The odor of musk in this case was very perceptible on
the arms and other portions of the body, but did not become more
powerful by friction. After continuing for about eight days it
grew fainter and nearly vanished before the patient's death.
Speranza relates a similar case.
Complexion.--Pare states that persons of red hair and freckled
complexion have a noxious exhalation; the odor of prussic acid is
said to come from dark individuals, while blondes exhale a
secretion resembling musk. Fat persons frequently have an
oleaginous smell.
The disorders of the nervous system are said to be associated
with peculiar odors.
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