Chapter IX: Miscellaneous Department

FIRE-PROOF PAINT.--Take a sufficient quantity of Water for use; add as much Potash as can be dissolved therein. When the water will dissolve no more Potash, stir into the solution first, a quantity of flour paste of consistency of painter's size; second a sufficiency of pure clay to render it of the consistency of cream. Apply with a painter's brush.

N.B.--The above will admit of any coloring you please.

WATER-PROOF AND FIRE-PROOF CEMENT FOR ROOFS OF HOUSES.--Slack Stone Lime in a large tub or barrel with boiling water, covering the tub or barrel to keep in the steam. When thus slacked pass six quarts through a fine sieve. It will then be in a state of fine flour. To this add one quart Rock Salt and one gallon of Water. Boil the mixture and skim it clean. To every five gallons of this skimmed mixture add one pound of Alum and one-half pound Copperas; by slow degrees add three-fourths pound Potash and four quarts fine Sand or Wood Ashes sifted. Both of the above will admit of any coloring you please. It looks better than paint and is as durable as slate.

PAINT FOR ROUGH WOODWORK.--Six pounds melted Pitch, one pound Linseed Oil, and one pound Yellow Ochre.

SUPERIOR PAINT FOR BRICK HOUSES--To Lime Whitewash add, for a fastener, Sulphate of Zinc, and shade with any color you choose, as Yellow Ochre, Venetian Red, etc. It outlasts oil paint.

ART OF ETCHING ON COPPER.--Having obtained a piece of fine Copper, which will be well polished, make a mixture of Beeswax and a small quantity of Resin; melt these together, and when thoroughly incorporated by stirring, take a camel's hair brush and cover the plate, which must previously be warmed by the fire, with an even coating of the mixture.

When the mixture becomes hardened upon the plate, sketch the desired object upon the surface, then take an etching point, a large needle fixed in a handle will do, and cut through the wax to the surface of the copper, taking care to make the lines as distinct as possible.

This being done, raise a border of wax all around the plate, then pour strong Nitric Acid on the plate to the depth of an inch. The Acid will eat away the copper in those places which have been bared by the etching point. From time to time pour off the acid and wash the plate to see how the work is going on. Stop up with wax those places that appear to be etched deep enough, pour Acid upon the others, and let it remain until the process is completed. This done, melt off the wax clean the plate, and the etching is ready for the press. This is an employment from which a good remuneration may be derived.

MAHOGANY FURNITURE VARNISH.--Take of Proof Alcohol one quart, cut therein all the Gum Shellac it will take, add two ounces of Venice Turpentine, and coloring to suit. This makes a beautiful polish and will wear for years.

WATER-PROOF FOR LEATHER.--Take Linseed Oil one pint, Yellow Wax and White Turpentine each two ounces, Burgundy Pitch two ounces, melt and color with Lamp Black.

TO TAKE STAINS OUT OF MAHOGANY.--Mix Spirits of Salts six parts, Salt of Lemons one part, then drop a little on the stains, and rub them till they disappear.

CEMENTS.--Cements of various kinds should be kept for occasional use. Flour paste answers very well for slight purposes; if required stronger than usual, boil a little Glue or put some powdered Resin in it. White of Egg, or a solution of Glue and a strong Gum Water are good cements. A paste made of Linseed Meal dries very hard and adheres firmly. A soft cement is made of Yellow Wax, melted with its weight of Turpentine, and a little Venetian Red to give it color. This when cool is as hard as soap, and is very useful to stop up cracks, and is better to cover the corks of bottles than sealing wax or hard cement.

The best cement for broken china or glass is that sold under the name of Diamond cement; it is colorless and resists moisture. This is made by soaking Isinglass in water until it is soft, and then dissolving it in Proof Spirits; add to this a little Gum Ammoniac or Galbonam or Mastic, both dissolved in as little Alcohol as possible. When the cement is to be used, it must be gently liquified by placing the vial containing it in boiling water. The vial must be well closed with a good cork, not glass stopper, as they become forced. It is applied to the broken edges by a camel's hair pencil.

When objects are not to be exposed to the moisture, the White of an Egg alone is mixed with finely powdered Quicklime, will answer very well; Shellac dissolved in water is better.

A very strong cement for all earthenware is made by boiling slices of Skim-Milk Cheese and Water into a paste, then grinding the Quicklime in a marble mortar, or on a slab with a mallet.

TO MEND IRON.--Mix finely some sifted Lime with the White of an Egg till a thin sort of paste is formed, then add some Iron Filings. Apply this to the fracture and the vessel will be found nearly as sound as ever.

PATENT GLUE.--One pound fine Isinglass and one pint Rain Water, boil and prepare an ordinary glue, then add slowly, stirring continually, two ounces Nitric Acid, bottle and it is fit for use. It will permanently adhere to wood, leather, paper and everything else. It sells for twenty-five cents an ounce; by keeping it secret Spaulding has made a fortune out of it; read his advertisement. Truly it is a young fortune to a good peddler.

PATENT BLACKING.--One gallon Alcohol, one ounce Sulphuric Acid, one and one-half pounds Gum Shellac; let stand 48 hours, then add one-fourth pound of Ivory Black. Let stand 24 hours, then carefully pour off the top. This is ready for use and is water-proof. This recipe cost $50; is for the polish of all leather. It sells in four ounce bottles at $1 per bottle.

STENCIL CUTTING.--Take a thin copper or brass plate, lay flat on the side, then take a sharp edged steel, write thereon the same as common writing, but press sufficiently hard to cut through the plate. To mark, lay the plate thus cut upon the cloth, and apply ink by means of a brush to the back of the plate, and it will wet the cloth where the cut is made by the writing. A little practice will enable a person to cut beautifully. There is money to be made at this. Some make $10 a day.

GLUE FOR CEMENTING PAPER AND LEATHER.--Take Isinglass and Parchment each one ounce, Sugar Candy and Gum Tragacanth each two drachms, add to them one ounce Water, and boil the whole together till the mixture appears (when cold) of the consistency of Glue; then pour it into any form you please. If this glue be wet with the tongue, and rubbed on the edge of paper, silk or leather that are to be cemented, they will, on being laid together, pressed tightly and suffered to dry, be as firmly united as other parts of the substance. It is fine to seal letters.

NEW ENGLAND SOAP.--Take three pounds of hard, white soap, shave it up fine, dissolve it in ten quarts boiling water; add one ounce Salts of Tartar, three ounces Borax; then take the same from the fire and set it away to cool; as soon as it becomes cool enough to bear your hand in, add one ounce liquid Ammonia; stir each article as you put it in.

TO HARDEN WOOD.--One often desires to impart the hardness of Oak to shutters, doors, etc., made of soft wood. This is easily done by giving them a first coating of common gray paint, and then sifting some very fine sand over it. When dry a coat of paint is laid on, after which the surface becomes so hard that it will resist the action of sun and rain, for many years without undergoing the slightest alteration.

WASHING FLUID.--Two pounds crude Potash, one ounce Sal Ammoniac, one-half ounce Saltpetre, two gallons Rain Water, one pint for eight gallons of Water, and one pound Soap. Put the clothes to soak over night and rinse in the morning. This has been sold for $5 for some time.

LIQUID CEMENT.--Cut Gum Shellac in 70 per cent Alcohol, put it in vials, and it is ready for use. Apply it to the edge of the broken dish with a feather, and hold it in a spirit lamp as long as the cement will simmer, then join together evenly, and when cold the dish will break in another place first, and is as strong as new.

TO CLEAN WINE DECANTERS.--Use a little Pearl Ash or Soda, and some Cinders and Water. Rinse them out with water.

TO CLEAN CHINA.--Use a little of Fuller's Earth and Soda or Pearl Ash with Water.

BURNING FLUID.--Four quarts Alcohol, one pint Spirits of Turpentine; mix well. It is the best in use.

FLY POISON.--Sugar half ounce, half ounce thoroughly ground Black Pepper. Make it to thin paste and place it on paper where the flies do congregate.

FURNITURE POLISH.--Best Vinegar one pint, Turpentine half pint. Mix and apply with a brush.

PATENT SOAP.--Half pint Turpentine, three pints Sal Soda, three pounds grease, two pounds Resin Soap, forty gallons Water. Boil one hour and it is fit for use. This is a great soap. Keep it to yourself.

RAT, MOUSE AND ROACH EXTERMINATOR.--One pint Alcohol, one-fourth ounce Cayenne Pepper, one ounce powdered Anise Seed, one-fourth ounce Saltpetre, one-fourth ounce White Lead, four ounces Essence of Hops. Steam this slowly for an hour, then add thirty drops Quassia. Let stand 48 hours, and add one gallon of Water; bottle for use. To use, saturate bread, meat, etc., and lay it in their frequented places. In two nights not one will be seen. It sells for $1.00 per 4-ounce bottle; or drive them away yourself for $5 a farm or $2 a house.

TO CLEAN BRITIANNIA WARE.--Britiannia ware should be washed with a woolen cloth and sweet oil, then washed in water and suds, and rubbed with soft leather and whiting. Thus treated it will retain its beauty to the last.

THE ART OF PAINTING GLASS.--The only difference between ordinary painting and painting on glass is, that in the latter all transparent colors are used instead of opaque ones and the color is ground up with Turpentine and Varnish instead of Oil. In painting upon glass it is necessary to place the picture between the artist and the light to enable him to see the effect, the light having the property of casting a yellowish tinge upon all colors so exposed. To persons having a knowledge of coloring, this art is easily learned, and affords a handsome remuneration.

OIL PASTE FOR BLACKING BOOTS AND SHOES.--Two ounces Oil of Vitriol, four ounces Tanner's Oil, mix and let stand forty-eight hours, then add five ounces Molasses and one pound Ivory Black; stir well and then put up for sale. This has been the fortune of Mason, of Philadelphia.

CRYSTAL CEMENT.--Dissolve one pound of White Glue in one and one-half pints of hot water, then cut one ounce Gum Shellac in one and one-half pints Alcohol, and mix with the glue, then stir in two ounces of dry White Lead, and add one ounce of Turpentine. This makes the best cement of anything that has been discovered. It will stand heat, and articles will break in another place sooner than where put together. This is a fortune to an enterprising man.

FOR CLEANING MARBLE.--Muriatic Acid two lbs., Acetic Acid one-half lb., Verdigris one-quarter ounce. Mix and apply with a brush. Wash the stone after with sponge and water. After the stone is clean rub it smooth with Pumice Stone, keeping it wet with water. After some little practice you can clean an old, dirty tombstone so that a marble cutter cannot detect it from being new work.

A NEW ART, OR THE LIGHTNING INTEREST RULES.--Reduce the whole time to months and set it down in figures; divide the number of days by three, and set the quotient down to the right of the months, and multiply that by the quotient of the money divided by two; the answer will be the interest at six per cent. To change to any other rate, multiply the interest by it and divide by six. $160--one year, seven months, twenty-one days, at six per cent. $160--2--$80 x 197--$15.76 at 6.

Parties in New York are teaching this rule at $5 a scholar.

BOTTLE WAX.--_Black._--Black Resin six and one-half pounds, Beeswax one-half pound, finely powdered Ivory Black one and one-half pounds. Melt together. _Red._--As the last, but substitute Venetian Red or Red Lead for the Ivory Black.

LIQUID MUCILAGE.--Fine clean Glue one pound, Gum Arabic ten ounces, Water one quart. Melt by heat in glue kettle or water bath; when entirely melted, add slowly ten ounces strong Nitric Acid, set off to cool. Then bottle, adding a couple of cloves to each bottle.

BLUING FOR CLOTHES.--Take one ounce of soft Prussian Blue, powder it and put in a bottle with a quart of clear Rainwater, and add one-fourth ounce of Oxalic Acid. A teaspoonful is sufficient for a large washing.

SWAIN'S VERMIFUGE.--Wormseed two ounces, Valerian, Rhubarb, Pink-Root, White Agaric, of each one and one-fourth ounces. Boil in sufficient water to yield three quarts of decoction and add to it 30 drops of Oil of Tansy and 45 drops of Oil of Cloves; dissolve in a quart of rectified spirits. Dose one tablespoonful at night.

TO MAKE PADS.--A piece of fine Woolen Cloth saturated with ink, makes an excellent pad, but it is customary to place sheet cotton underneath and muslin over the cloth, bringing the muslin down around the edges and fasten by tacking on a binding of Tin or Morocco Leather strips.

TO MAKE WAX FLOWERS.--The following articles will be required to commence wax work: two pounds White Wax, one-fourth pound Hair Wire, one bottle Carmine, one Ultramarine Blue, one bottle Chrome Yellow, two bottles Chrome Green, No. 1, two bottles Chrome Green No. 2, one bottle each of Rose Pink, Royal Purple, Scarlet Powder and Balsam Fir, two dozen sheets White Wax. This will do to begin with. Now have a clean tin dish, and pour therein a quart or two of water; then put in about one pound of the White Wax, and let it boil. When cool enough, so the bubbles will not form on top, it is ready to sheet, which is done as follows: Take half a window pane, 7x9, and after having washed it clean dip into a dish containing weak soap-suds; then dip into the Wax, and draw out steadily, and plunge it into the suds, when the sheet will readily come off. Lay it on a cloth or clean paper to dry. Proceed in like manner until you have enough of the white; then add enough of the green powder to make a bright color, and heat and stir thoroughly until the color is evenly distributed, then proceed as for sheeting white wax. The other colors are rubbed into the leaves after they are cut out, rubbing light or heavy according to shade.

For patterns you can use any natural leaf, forming the creases in wax with thumb nail or needle. To put the flowers together, or the leaves on the stem, hold in the hand until warm enough to stick. If the sheeted wax is to be used in summer, put in a little Balsam of Fir to make it hard. If for winter, none will be required.

You can make many flowers without a teacher, but one to assist in the commencement would be a great help, though the most particular thing about it is to get the wax sheeted. The materials I have suggested can be procured at any drug store, and will cost from $3.00 to $4.50.

PORTABLE LEMONADE.--Tartaric Acid one ounce, White Sugar two pounds, Essense of Lemon one-fourth ounce; powder and keep dry for use. One dessert spoonful will make a glass of lemonade.

TO NEUTRALIZE WHISKY TO MAKE VARIOUS LIQUORS.--To forty gallons of Whisky add one and one-half pounds unslacked Lime, three-fourths of a pound of Alum, and one-half pint Spirits of Nitre. Stand twenty-four hours and draw it off.

MADEIRA WINE.--To four gallons prepared Cider, add one-fourth pound Tartaric Acid, four gallons of Spirits, three pounds Loaf Sugar. Let stand ten days, draw it off carefully. Fine it down, and again rack it in another cask.

SHERRY WINE.--To forty gallons prepared Cider add two gallons Spirits, three pounds of Raisins, six gallons good Sherry and one-half ounce Oil of Bitter Almonds, dissolved in Alcohol. Let it stand ten days, draw it off carefully. Fine it down, and again rack it in another cask.

ARTIFICIAL HONEY.--Take eight pounds of White Sugar, add two quarts of Water, boil four minutes, then add one pound of Bee's Honey. Strain while hot. Flavor with a drop of Oil of Peppermint and a drop of the Oil of Rose.

PORT WINE.--To forty gallons prepared Cider add six gallons good Port Wine, ten quarts Wild Grapes, clusters, one-half pound bruised Rhatany Root, three ounces Tincture of Kino, three pounds Loaf Sugar, two gallons Spirits. Let this stand ten days. Color, if too light with Tincture of Rhatany, then rack it off and fine it. This should be repeated until the color is perfect and the liquid clear.

CLEANING COMPOUND.--Mix one ounce of Borax and one ounce Gum Camphor with one quart of boiling water. When cool add one pint of Alcohol, bottle and cork tightly. When wanted for use, shake well and sponge the garments to be cleaned. This is an excellent mixture for cleaning soiled black cashmere and woolen dresses, coat collars and black felt hats.

SHAVING SOAP.--Good white Soap in fine shavings, three pounds; Balm Soap, one pound; Soft Water, three-fourths of a pound; Soda, one ounce. Melt carefully over a slow fire in an earthen vessel; then add Oil of Lavender sixty drops, Oil of Lemon forty drops; mix well and make into forms.

LEATHER CEMENT.--Take Gutta Percha cut in Chloroform to right consistency for use. Equal to Cook's best for putting patches on leather, cloth shoes or boots. Well worth $100.

TO FASTEN PAPER TO TIN.--Take good clear pale yellow Glue, break it into rather small pieces, and let it soak a few hours in cold water. Pour off the supernatant water, place the glue thus softened in a wide-mouthed bottle; add sufficient Glacial Acid to cover the Glue, and facilitate the solution by standing the bottle in warm water. This Acetic will stick almost anything.

HUNTERS' AND TRAPPER'S SECRET.--Take equal parts of Oil of Rhodium, Anise Oil, Sweet Oil and Honey, and mix well. Put a few drops on any kind of bait. For musk-rats use sweet apples or vegetables for bait. For mink use a chicken's head or a piece of fresh meat.

FIRE KINDLERS--To make very nice fire kindlers take Resin, any quantity, and melt it, putting in for each pound being used two or three ounces or Tallow, and when all is hot stir in Pine Sawdust to make very thick, and while very hot spread it out about one inch thick, upon boards which have fine Sawdust sprinkled upon them to prevent it from sticking. When cold break up into lumps about an inch square. But if for sale take a thin board and press upon it while yet warm, to lay it off into inch squares. This makes it break regularly, if you press the crease sufficiently deep. Grease the marked board to prevent it sticking.

RED SEALING WAX.--Purchase four pounds Shellac, one and one-half pounds Veneer Turpentine, three pounds finest Cinnabar, and four ounces Venetian; mix the whole well together and melt over a very slow fire. Pour it on a thick, smooth glass, or any other flat smooth surface, and make it into three, six or ten sticks.

FURNITURE POLISH.--Equal parts Sweet Oil and Vinegar and a pint of Gum Arabic finely powdered. Shake the bottle and apply with a rag. It will make furniture look as good as new.

BLACK SEALING WAX.--Purchase the best Black Resin three pounds, Beeswax one-half pound, and finely powdered Ivory Black one pound. Melt the whole together over a slow fire, and make it into sticks.

CEMENT FOR LEATHER.--Virgin India Rubber dissolved in Bisulphide of Carbon. Add Bisulphide until of proper consistency to apply. After applying hold a moderately warm iron over the patch.

AROMATIC SCHIEDAM SCHNAPPS, to imitate.--To twenty-five gallons good common Gin, five over proof, add fifteen pints strained Honey, two gallons clear Water, five pints White Sugar Syrup, five pints Spirits of Nutmeg, mixed with Nitric Ether, five pints Orange Flower Water, seven quarts pure Water, one ounce Acetic Ether, eight drops Oil of Wintergreen dissolved with the Acetic Ether. Mix all the ingredients well; if necessary, fine with Alum and Salt of Tartar.

CHAMPAGNE CIDER.--Good Cider, pale, one hogshead, Spirits three gallons, Honey or Sugar twenty pounds. Mix and let them stand for two weeks; then fine with skimmed Milk one-half gallon. This will be very pale, and a similar article, when bottled in champagne bottles and silvered and labeled, has often been sold to the ignorant for champagne.

CIDER WITHOUT APPLES.--To one gallon of cold Water add dark brown Sugar one pound, Tartaric Acid one-half ounce, Yeast three tablespoonfuls. Shake well together.

ST. CROIX RUM.--To forty gallons p. or n. Spirits add two gallons St. Croix Rum, two ounces Acetic Acid, one and one-half ounces Butyric Acid, three pounds Loaf Sugar.

IRISH OR SCOTCH WHISKY.--To forty gallons proof Spirits add sixty drops Creosote dissolved in one quart of Alcohol, two ounces Acetic Acid, one pound Loaf Sugar. Stand forty-eight hours.

FRENCH BRANDY.--Pure Spirits one gallon, best French Brandy for any kind you wish to imitate, one quart, Loaf Sugar two ounces, Sweet Spirits Nitre one-half ounce, a few drops of Tincture of Catechu or Oak Bark, to roughen the taste, if desired, and color to suit.

ENGLISH GIN.--Plain Malt Spirits one hundred gallons, Spirits of Turpentine one pint, Bay Salt seven pounds. Mix and distill. The difference in the flavor of Gin is produced by varying the proportion of Turpentine, and by occasionally adding a small quantity of Juniper Berries.

FRENCH FURNITURE POLISH.--Alcohol 98 per cent one pint, Gum Copal and Shellac of each one ounce, Dragon's Blood. Mix and dissolve by setting in a warm place.

TO TAKE FAC-SIMILES OF SIGNATURES.--Write your name on a piece of paper, and while the ink is wet sprinkle over it some finely powdered Gum Arabic, then make a rim around it and pour on it some Fusible Alloy in a liquid state. Impressions may be taken from the plates formed in this way by means of printing ink and a copperplate press.

CHEMICAL COMPOUND.--Aqua Ammonia two ounces, soft Water one quart, Saltpetre one teaspoonful, Shaving Soap in shavings one ounce. Mix all together. Dissolve the Soap well, and any grease or dirt that cannot be removed with this preparation nothing else need be tried for it.

DISTILLING WHISKY FROM MOLASSES.--Take five gallons of Molasses, mix thoroughly with twenty-five gallons soft Water in a barrel. Stir in one-half gallon Brewer's Yeast; let it set from five to seven days in a warm place, say 70 degrees. During this time fermentation will proceed, which is known by a bubbling sensation. When this subsides it is ready for distilling. To distill use a common washing boiler, with the top well closed and a hole in the same, or thimble soldered on for the steam to pass through a pipe. Connect a tin pipe, say two inches in diameter and ten feet long with a short elbow end to the boiler; let the other end incline downward. Fill the boiler one-half full of the fermented wort, boil slowly and regularly until there is no taste of spirits left. The atmosphere condenses the steam. In this case if it should not entirely condense it lengthen or enlarge the pipe. The liquid thus obtained is low wines, and to use the same process of running proof spirits can be obtained. To continue this daily any given amount of molasses, etc., can be mixed, say one barrel each day. Five quarts can be obtained from four quarts of common molasses.

Intoxicating liquors of any and all kinds are the father of crime, the mother of abomination, the devil's best friend, and God's worst enemy.

INK POWDER.--Powdered Nut Galls four ounces, Copperas three ounces, Logwood one ounce, Gum Arabic one-half ounce. Sufficient for one quart of water.

FLORIDA WATER.--Dissolve in one-half gallon of 90 per cent Alcohol, one ounce each of Oil of Lavender, Oil of Bergamot and Oil of Lemon and Oil of Cloves and Cinnamon, one drachm each; add one gallon of Water and filter.

MOLASSES CANDY.--Boil Molasses over a moderately hot fire, stirring constantly. When you think it is done drop a little on a plate, and if sufficiently boiled it will be hard. Add a small quantity of Vinegar to render it brittle and any flavoring ingredient you prefer. Pour in buttered tin pans. If nuts are to be added strew them in the pans before pouring out the candy.

TO MAKE EGGS OF PHARAOH'S SERPENTS.--Take Mercury and dissolve it in moderately diluted Nitric Acid by means of heat, take care, however, that there be always an excess of Metallic Mercury remaining. Decant the solution and pour it in a solution of Sulphocyanide of Ammonia or Potassium, which may be bought at a good drug store or of a dealer in chemicals. Equal weights of both will answer. A precipitate will fall to the bottom of the beaker or jar, which is to be collected on a filter, and washed two or three times with water, when it is put in a warm place to dry. Take for every pound of this material one ounce of Gum Tragacanth, which has been soaked in hot water. When the gum is completely softened, it is to be transferred to a mortar, and then pulverized and dried precipitate gradually mixed with it, by means of a little water, so as to present a somewhat dried pill mass, from which, by hand, pellets of the desired size are formed, put on a piece of glass, and dried again. They are then ready for use.

BOOT AND SHOE BLACKING.--Ivory Black one pound, Molasses two ounces, Olive Oil four ounces, Oil of Vitriol four ounces, Alcohol eight ounces, Rye Flour one pound. Mix them together in a kettle.

ANGLER'S SECRET NO. 1.--Mix the juice of Lovage or Smellage, or spoiled cheese, with any kind of bait.

No. 2.--Mullen Seed pulverized and mixed with dough, and sprinkled on the surface of still water, intoxicates fish and makes them turn up on the top of the water.

BRISTOL'S TOOTH POWDER.--Prepared Chalk one pound, Castile Soap one-half pound, powdered Yellow Bark two ounces, powdered Gum Myrrh two ounces, powdered Loaf Sugar two ounces, powdered Orris two ounces; mix intimately, after having first pulverized the Castile Soap.

ROYAL WASHING POWDER.--Mix any quantity of Soda Ash with an equal portion of Carbonate of Soda--ordinary Soda--crushed into coarse grains. Have a thin solution of Glue, or decoction of Linseed Oil ready, into which pour the Soda until quite thick. Spread it out on boards in a warm apartment to dry. As soon as dry, shake up well, so that it will pack easily into nice square packages. Label neatly. Pound packages cost seven cents; retails for thirty-five cents.

EGYPTIAN CEMENT.--For mending china, glass or woodenware: Take one pound of the best White Glue, one-half pound dry White Lead, one quart soft Water, one-half pint Alcohol. Put the three first articles in a dish, and that dish in a pot of boiling water. Let it boil until dissolved, then add the Alcohol, and boil again until mixed. A little Camphor should be added, to preserve it and disguise its composition. Put in small bottles; 25 cents each.

"HANDY" WATER PENS.--Take best quality violet Analine, reduce to a thick paste with water; then add Mucilage and mix thoroughly. Apply the paste thus made to the pen, and let it dry twelve hours Any steel pen may be prepared in this way. We always keep in stock the best violet Analine, also a large stock of pens.

_Directions for Using._--Start action by dipping into water up to filling. If pen should be greasy, wet point with the tongue. To make the ink flow thick, dip to the filling; if wanted thin or pale, dip only to the eye of the pen after starting. After using throw the water off, but don't wipe it, for it will dry in a minute.

ARTIFICIAL OYSTERS.--Grate green corn in a dish; to one pint of this add one egg well beaten, small teacup of flour, half a cup of butter, salt and pepper; mix well together and fry them brown.

PASTE THAT WILL NOT SOUR.--Dissolve one-half of an ounce of Alum in a pint of boiling water, add an equal weight of Flour, made smooth in a little cold water, and a few drops of Oil of Cloves, and let the whole come to a boil. Put it into glass or ointment jars. It will keep for months.

ESSENCES are made with one ounce of any given oil added to one pint of Alcohol. Peppermint is colored with Tincture Turmeric, Cinnamon with Tincture Red Saunders, Wintergreen with Tincture Kino.

TINCTURES are made with one ounce of Gum, Root, or Bark, etc., dried, to each pint of proof spirits and let it stand one week and filter.

OLEOMARGARINE MANUFACTURE.--The process by which suet is converted into the substance called oleamargarine is as follows: The crude suet after first being washed in cold water is "rendered," melted, and then drawn off into movable tanks. The hard substance is subjected to a hydraulic pressure of 350 tons, and the oil extracted. The butter is made from the oil thus obtained, while the hard substance remaining is disposed of as stearine. The oil, being carried off into churns, is mixed with milk and from three to five per cent of dairy butter. It is then drawn off in a consistent form, and cooled with broken ice. The latter is soon removed, and the butter worked up with a small portion of salt. When this is done the article is ready for packing and consumption.

SILVER PLATING FLUID.--Take one ounce Precipitate Silver to one-half ounce Cyanite of Potash and one-fourth ounce of Hyposulphate of Soda. Put all in a quart of water, add a little Whiting, and shake before using. Apply with a soft rag. Put up in ounce bottles, and retail for 25 cents. The secret is worth $100 to an agent to sell to families.

MUCILAGE FOR LABELS.--Dextrine two ounces, Glycerine one drachm, Alcohol one ounce, water six ounces.

FIG CANDY.--Take one pound of Sugar and one pint of Water, set over a slow fire. When done add a few drops of Vinegar and a lump of Butter, and pour into a pan in which Figs are laid.

RAISIN CANDY.--Can be made in the same manner, substituting stoned raisins for the Figs. Common Molasses Candy is very nice with any kind of nuts added.

PEPPERMINT, ROSE, or HOARHOUND CANDY.--These may be made as Lemon Candy. Flavor with Essence of Rose, or Peppermint, or finely powdered Hoarhound. Pour it out in a buttered paper, placed in a square tin pan.

COLOGNE.--Take one gallon 95 per cent Alcohol or Cologne Spirits, two ounces Oil of Bergamot, one-half ounce Orange, one-half ounce Oil of Cedar, one-half drachm Oil of Nevio, one-half drachm Oil Rosemary. Mix well and it is fit for use. A nice article.

BAY RUM, EQUAL TO THE BEST IMPORTED.--Oil of Bay, fine, one and one-half drachms, Oil of Neroli (bigard) ten drops, Ether Acetic two drachms, Alcohol deod. (strong) three pints, Water, two and one-fourth pints, Caromel sufficient to tinge. Let it stand two weeks and filter.

COPYING PAD.--White Gelatine four ounces, Water eight ounces, Glycerine eight ounces, Gum Dextrine two ounces. Always use these same proportions for any amount. Melt the Gelatine in the water at a gentle heat, add to it the Glycerine, in which the Gum Dextrine has been thoroughly incorporated. Now stir all together until thoroughly mixed and then pour into pans of the desired size, to the depth of one-half inch.

_Recipe for Ink to Be Used._--Violet Analine forty grains, Gum Arabic twelve grains, Alcohol one-fourth ounce, Water one-half ounce. Dissolve the Gum in the Water and Alcohol, then add the Analine. Shake in a bottle from time to time until the Analine is dissolved.

_To work the Copying Pad._--Write with ink on any good paper, press the written surface on the pad and allow it to remain two minutes; then take off and the writing will remain, from which impressions may be taken by laying on plain paper, and smoothing with the hand. As soon as the last impression is taken be sure and wash off with a wet sponge.

TO BORE HOLES IN GLASS.--Any hard steel tool will cut glass with great facility when kept freely wet with camphor dissolved in turpentine. A drill bow may be used, or even the hand alone. A hole bored may be readily enlarged by a round file. The ragged edges of glass vessels may also be thus easily smoothed by a flat file. Flat window glass can be readily sawed by a watch spring saw by aid of this solution. In short the most brittle glass can be wrought almost as easily as brass by the use of cutting tools kept constantly moist with Camphorized Oil of Turpentine.

TO ETCH UPON GLASS.--Procure several thick, clear pieces of crown glass; and immerse them in Melted Wax, so that they may receive a complete coating, or pour over them a solution of Wax in Benzine. When perfectly cold draw on them with a fine steel point, flowers, trees, houses, portraits, etc. Whatever parts of the drawings are intended to be corroded with the acid should be perfectly free from the least particle of wax. When all these drawings are finished the pieces of glass must be immersed one by one in a square leaden box or receiver, where they are to be submitted to the action of Hydroflouric Acid Gas, made by acting on Powdered Flour-Spar by Concentrated Sulphuric Acid. When the glasses are sufficiently corroded, they are to be taken out, and the wax is to be removed by first dipping them in warm and then in hot water, or by washing with turpentine or benzine. Various colors may be applied to the corroded parts of the glass, whereby a fine painting may be executed. In the same manner sentences and initials of names may be etched on wine-glasses, tumblers, etc.

RUBBER HAND STAMPS.--Set up the desired name and address in common type, oil the type, and place a guard about one-half inch high around the form. Now mix Plaster of Paris to the desired consistency, pour in and allow it to set. Have your Vulcanized Rubber all ready, as made in long strips three inches wide and one-eighth of an inch thick, cut off the size of the intended stamp. Remove the plaster cast from the type, and place both the cast and the rubber in a screw press, applying sufficient heat to thoroughly soften the rubber, then turn down the screw hard, and let it remain until the rubber receives the exact impression of the cast and becomes cold, when it is removed, neatly trimmed with a sharp knife, and cemented to the handle, ready for use.

COMMON TWIST CANDY.--Boil three pounds of common Sugar and one pint of water over a slow fire for half an hour without skimming. When boiled enough take it off, rub your hands over with butter; take that which is a little cooled and pull it as you would molasses candy, until it is white; then twist or braid it and cut it up in strips.

STICKY FLY PAPER.--Boiled Linseed Oil and Rosin; melt and add honey. Soak the paper in a strong solution of Alum, then dry before applying the above.

KISS-ME-QUICK.--Spirits one gallon, Essence of Thyme one-fourth ounce, Essence of Orange Flowers two ounces, Essence of Neroli one-half ounce, Otto of Roses thirty drops, Essence of Jasmine one ounce, Essence of Balm Mint one-half ounce, Petals of Roses four ounces, Oil of Lemon twenty drops, Calorous Aromaticus one-half ounce, Essence Neroli one-fourth ounce. Mix and strain.

HOW TO TEST THE RICHNESS OF MILK.--Procure any long glass vessel--a cologne bottle or long phial. Take a narrow strip of paper, just the length from the neck to the bottom of the phial, and mark it off with 100 lines at equal distances, or into fifty lines, and count each as two, and paste upon the phial so as to divide its length into 100 equal parts. Fill it to the highest mark with milk fresh from the cow, and allow it to stand in a perpendicular position 24 hours. The number of spaces occupied by the cream will give you its exact percentage in the milk without any guess work.

FINE PEPPERMINT LOZENGES.--Best powdered White Sugar seven pounds, pure Starch one pound, Oil of Peppermint to flavor. Mix with Mucilage.

HOW TO FASTEN RUBBER TO WOOD AND METAL.--As rubber plates and rings are nowadays used almost exclusively for making connections between steam and other pipes and apparatus, much annoyance is often experienced by the impossibility or imperfection of an air-tight connection. This is obviated entirely by employing a cement which fastens alike well to the rubber and to the metal or wood. Such cement is prepared by a solution of Shellac in Ammonia. This is best made by soaking pulverized Gum Shellac in ten times its weight of strong Ammonia, when a slimy mass is obtained, which in three or four weeks will become liquid without the use of hot water. This softens the rubber and becomes, after volatilization of the Ammonia, hard and impermeable to gases and fluids.

TO TRANSFER PRINTED MATTER AND PRINT FROM IT AGAIN.--Take your picture or print and soak it for a short time in a weak solution of Caustic Potash, then remove it carefully, and let it dry on a sheet of clean paper. Then take a piece of copper, zinc, or steel, which has previously been well cleaned, and dip it into hot white wax. Let the first coat set, then dip again. Having got the plate thoroughly coated and set, lay the matter to be transferred on the plate, and rub it gently all over on the back; now raise it up, and it will be transferred on to the wax on the plate. Now take needles of a different thickness, and scrawl all over the wax, following the lines of the engraving. Having got the picture all traced out, pour upon it some weak acid if you use zinc, which is too soft to print many from, therefore it is better to use copper or steel. If you use copper, make the following solution to pour over it: Verdigris four parts, Salt four parts, Sal Ammoniac four parts, Alum one part, Water sixteen parts, Sour Vinegar twelve parts. Dissolve by heat. For steel, use Pyroligneous Acid five parts, Alcohol one part, Nitric Acid one part. Mix the first two, then add the Nitric Acid. Pouring the preparations over the plates where the traces of the pictures are, it will eat into the metal plate without affecting the wax. Let it stand till it has eaten a sufficient depth, then wash the plate with cold water, dry it and place it near the fire till all the wax is melted off. You can now print as many as you please from the plate by rubbing on it printer's ink, so as to fill all the fine spaces; which, when done, wipe it over smoothly with clean cloths to remove the superfluous ink which is on the face of the plate. Now take damp paper or cardboard, and press it on the plate, either with a copying press or the hand, and you get a fine impression, or as many as you want by repeating the inking process. I would recommend beginners to try their skill with valueless prints before attempting to make transfers of fine engravings, as the picture to be transferred is destroyed by the process.

I.X.L. BAKING POWDER.--Take one pound Tartaric Acid in Crystals, one and one-half pounds Bi-Carbonate of Soda, and one and one-half pounds of Potash Starch. Each must be powdered separately, well dried by a slow heat, well mixed through a sieve. Pack hard in tinfoil, tin or paper glazed on the outside. The Tartaric Acid and Bi-Carbonate of Soda can of course be bought cheaper of wholesale druggists than you can make them, unless you are doing things on a large scale, but Potato Starch any one can make. It is only necessary to peel the potatoes and to grate them up fine into vessels of water, to let them settle, pour off the water, and make the settlings into balls, and dry them. With these directions anyone can make as good baking-powder as is sold anywhere. If he wants to make it very cheap, he can take Cream of Tartar and common Washing (Carbonate) Soda, instead of the articles named in the recipe, but this would be advisable only where customers insist on excessively low prices in preference to quality of goods.

EVERLASTING FENCE POSTS.--I discovered many years ago that wood could be made to last longer than iron in the ground, but thought the process so simple and inexpensive that it was not worth while to make any stir about it. I would as soon have poplar, basswood, or quaking ash as any other kind of timber for fence posts. I have taken out basswood posts after having been set seven years, which were as sound when taken out as when they were first put in the ground. Time and weather seem to have no effect on them. The posts can be prepared for less than two cents apiece. This is the recipe: Take boiled Linseed Oil and stir it in pulverized Charcoal to the consistency of paint. Put a coat of this over the timber, and there is not a man that will live to see it rot.

LIQUID GLUE.--To one ounce of Borax in one pint of boiling water, add two ounces of Shellac, and boil until the Shellac is dissolved.

TO MEND TINWARE BY THE HEAT OF A CANDLE.--Take a phial about two-thirds full of Muriatic Acid and put into it little bits of Sheet Zinc as long as it dissolves them; then put in a crumb of Sal Ammoniac and fill up with water and it is ready to use. Then with the cork of the phial, wet the place to be mended with the preparation; then put a piece of Zinc over the hole and hold a lighted candle or spirit lamp under the place, which melts the solder on the tin, and causes the zinc to adhere without further trouble. Wet the zinc also with the solution; or a little solder may be put on instead of the zinc or with the zinc.

TO WHITEN AND SOFTEN THE HANDS.--Take one-half lb. Mutton Tallow, one ounce Camphor Gum, one ounce Glycerine; melt, and when thoroughly mixed, set away to cool. Rub the hands with this every night.

A BRANDING INK.--A waterproof branding ink, good for marking sheep: Shellac two ounces, Borax two ounces, Water twenty-four ounces, Gum Arabic two ounces, Lamp Black sufficient. Boil the Borax and Shellac in the water till they are dissolved, and withdraw them from the fire. When the solution becomes cold, complete 25 ounces with water, and add Lamp Black enough to bring the preparation to a suitable consistency. When it is to be used with a stencil it must be made thicker than when it is used with a brush. The above gives black ink. For red ink substitute Venetian Red for Lamp Black; for blue Ultramarine; and for green a mixture of Ultramarine and Chrome Yellow.

FRENCH POLISH, or DRESSING FOR LEATHER.--Mix two pints best Vinegar with one pint soft water. Stir into it one-fourth pound Glue, broken up, one-half pound Logwood chips, one-fourth ounce finely powdered Indigo, one-fourth ounce best soft Soap, and one-fourth Isinglass. Put the mixture over the fire, and let it boil ten minutes or more; then strain, bottle and cork. When cold it is fit for use. Apply with a sponge.

NEW YORK BARBER'S STAR HAIR OIL.--Castor Oil six and one-half pints, Alcohol one and one-half pints, Citronella and Lavender Oil, each one-half ounce.

BARBER'S SHAMPOOING MIXTURE.--Soft Water one pint, Sal Soda one ounce, Cream Tartar one-fourth ounce. Apply thoroughly to the hair.

CRUCIBLES.--The best crucibles are made of a pure fire clay, mixed with finely ground cement of oil crucibles, and a portion of black lead or graphite; some pounded coke may be mixed with the plumbago. The clay should be prepared in a similar way as for making pottery ware. The vessels, after being formed, must be slowly dried, and then properly baked in a kiln.

_Black Lead Crucibles_ are made of two parts of Graphite and one of Fire Clay, mixed with Water into a paste, pressed in moulds, and well dried, but not baked hard in the kiln. This compound forms excellent small or portable furnaces.

WHAT TO INVENT, AND HOW TO PROTECT YOUR INVENTION.

WHAT TO INVENT.--Cheap, useful articles that will sell at sight. Something that everyone needs, and the poorest can afford. Invent simple things for the benefit of the masses, and your fortune is made. Some years back a one-armed soldier amassed a fortune from a single toy--a wooden ball attached to a rubber string. They cost scarcely anything, yet millions were sold at a good price. A German became enormously rich by patenting a simple wooden plug for beer barrels. "What man has done, man may do."

HOW TO PROTECT YOUR INVENTION.--Patent it. If you do not, others will reap the benefits that rightfully belong to you.

A PATENT IS A PROTECTION given to secure the inventor in the profits arising from the manufacture and sale of an article of his own creation.

TO WHOM LETTERS PATENT ARE GRANTED.--Section 4886 of the Revised Statutes of the United States provides that: "Any person who has invented or discovered any new and useful art, machine, manufacture or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, not known or used by others in this country, and not patented or described in any printed publication in this or any foreign country, before his invention or discovery thereof, and not in public use, or on sale for more than two years prior to his application, unless the same is proved to have been abandoned, may, upon the payment of the fees required by law, and other due proceedings had, obtain a patent therefor."

And section 4888 of the same Statute enacts: