Part 23

II.—Corrosive sublimate, 1 ounce; carbolic acid, 1 ounce; methylated or rum spirit, 1 quart.

Where it is necessary to keep books or paper of any description in boxes, cupboards, or closed bookcases, some naphthalene balls or camphor should be always present with them. If camphor be used it is best to wrap it in paper, otherwise it volatilizes more quickly than is necessary. In dry weather the doors of closed bookcases should be left open occasionally, as a damp, still atmosphere is most favorable for deterioration.

«How to Open a Book.»—Never force the back of the book. Hold the book with its back on a smooth or covered table; let the front board down, then the other, holding the leaves in one hand while you open a few leaves at the back, then a few at the front, and so on, alternately opening back and front, gently pressing open the sections till you reach the center of the volume. Do this two or three times and you will obtain the best results. Open the volume violently or carelessly in any one place and you will probably break the back or cause a start in the leaves.

BOOK DISINFECTANT: See Disinfectants.

BOOKS, TO REMOVE FINGER-MARKS FROM: See Cleaning Preparations and Methods.

BOOKBINDERS’ VARNISH: See Varnishes.

BOOKWORMS: See Insecticides.

BOOT DRESSINGS: See Shoe Dressings.

BOOT LUBRICANT: See Lubricant.

BOOTS, WATERPROOFING: See Waterproofing.

«BORAX FOR SPRINKLING.»

I.—Sprinkling borax is not only cheaper, but also dissolves less in soldering than pure borax.

The borax is heated in a metal vessel until it has lost its water of crystallization and mixed with calcined cooking salt and potash—borax, 8 parts; cooking salt, 3 parts; potash, 3 parts. Next it is pounded in a mortar into a fine powder, constituting the sprinkling borax.

II.—Another kind of sprinkling borax is prepared by substituting glass-gall for the potash. Glass-gall is the froth floating on the melted glass, which can be skimmed off.

The borax is either dusted on in powder form from a sprinkling box or stirred with water before use into a thin paste.

BORAX AND BORIC ACID IN FOOD: See Food.

BORDEAUX MIXTURE: See Insecticides.

BOROTONIC: See Dentifrices. {126}

BOTTLE-CAP LACQUER: See Lacquer.

BOTTLE CLEANERS: See Cleaning Preparations and Methods, under Miscellaneous Methods.

BOTTLE STOPPERS: See Stoppers.

BOTTLE VARNISH: See Varnishes.

BOTTLE WAX: See Photography.

BOUILLON: See Beverages.

BOURBON METALS: See Alloys.

BOWLS OF FIRE TRICK: See Pyrotechnics.

BOX GLUE: See Adhesives.

BRAGA: See Beverages.

«BRAN, SAWDUST IN.»

For the detection of sawdust in bran use a solution of 1 part of phloroglucin in 15 parts of alcohol, 15 parts of water, and 10 parts of syrupy phosphoric acid. Place 2 parts of the solution in a small porcelain dish, add a knifepointful of the bran and heat moderately. Sawdust is dyed red while bran parts only seldom acquire a faint red color. By a microscopic examination of the reddish parts, sawdust will be readily recognized.

«Bottles»

«Magic Bottles.»—

The mystery of the “wonderful bottle,” from which can be poured in succession port wine, sherry, claret, water, champagne, or ink, at the will of the operator, is easily explained. The materials consist of an ordinary dark-colored pint wine bottle, seven wine glasses of different patterns, and the chemicals described below:

Solution A: A mixture of tincture of ferric chloride, drachms vi; hydrochloric acid, drachms ii.

Solution B: Saturated solution of ammonium sulphocyanide, drachm i.

Solution C: Strong solution of ferric chloride, drachm i.

Solution D: A weak solution of ammonium sulphocyanide.

Solution E: Concentrated solution of lead acetate.

Solution F: Solution of ammonium sulphide, drachm i; or pyrogallic acid, drachm i.

Package G: Pulverized potassium bicarbonate, drachm iss.

Having poured two teaspoonfuls of solution A into the wine bottle, treat the wine glasses with the different solutions, noting and remembering into which glasses the several solutions are placed. Into No. 1 wine glass pour one or two drops of solution B; into No. 2 glass pour one or two drops of solution C; into No. 3 one or two drops of Solution D; leave No. 4 glass empty; into No. 5 glass pour a few drops of Solution E; into No. 6 glass place a few grains of Package G; into No. 7 glass pour a little of solution F.

Request some one to bring you some cold drinking water, and to guarantee that it is pure show that your wine bottle is (practically) empty. Fill it up from the carafe, and having asked the audience whether you shall produce wine or water, milk or ink, etc., you may obtain any of these by pouring a little of the water from the bottle into the prepared glass. Thus No. 1 glass gives a port-wine color; No. 2 gives a sherry color; No. 3 gives a claret color; No. 4 is left empty to prove that the solution in the bottle is colorless; No. 5 produces milk; No. 6, effervescing champagne; No. 7, ink.

«Bottle-Capping Mixtures.»—

I.—Soak 7 pounds of good gelatin in 10 ounces of glycerine and 60 ounces of water, and heat over a water bath until dissolved, and add any desired color. Pigments may be used, and various tints can be obtained by the use of aniline colors. The resulting compound should be stored in jars. To apply liquefy the mass and dip the cork and portion of the neck of the bottle into the liquid; it sets very quickly.

II.—Gelatin 1 ounce Gum arabic 1 ounce Boric acid 20 grains Starch 1 ounce Water 16 fluidounces

Mix the gelatin, gum arabic, and boric acid with 14 fluidounces of cold water, stir occasionally until the gum is dissolved, heat the mixture to boiling, remove the scum, and strain. Also mix the starch intimately with the remainder of the water, and stir this mixture into the hot gelatin mixture until a uniform product results. As noted above, the composition may be tinted with any suitable dye. Before using, it must be softened by the application of heat. {127}

III.—Shellac 3 ounces Venice turpentine 1 1⁠/⁠2 ounces Boric acid 72 grains Powdered talcum 3 ounces Ether 6 fluidrams Alcohol 12 1⁠/⁠2 fluidounces

Dissolve the shellac, turpentine, and boric acid in the mixed alcohol and ether, color with a spirit-soluble dye, and add the talcum. During use the mixture must be agitated frequently.

«Show Bottles.»—

I.—Place in a cylindrical bottle the following liquids in the order named:

First, sulphuric acid, tinted blue with indigo; second, chloroform; third, glycerine, slightly tinted with caramel; fourth, castor oil, colored with alkanet root; fifth, 40-per-cent alcohol, slightly tinted with aniline green; sixth, cod-liver oil, containing 1 per cent of oil of turpentine. The liquids are held in place by force of gravity, and alternate with fluids which are not miscible, so that the strata of layers are clearly defined and do not mingle by diffusion.

II.—Chromic acid 1 drachm Commercial “muriatic” acid 2 ounces Nitric acid 2 ounces Water, enough to make 3 gallons

The color is magenta.

The following makes a fine pink for show carboys:

III.—Cobalt oxide 2 parts Nitric acid, c. p. 1 part Hydrochloric acid 1 part

Mix and dissolve, and to the solution add:

Strongest water of ammonia 6 parts Sulphuric acid 1 part Water, distilled, q. s. to make 400 parts

This should be left standing in a dark, cool place for at least a month before putting in the window.

IV.—Green.—Copper sulphate, 300 parts, by weight; hydrochloric acid, 450 parts, by weight; distilled water, to 4,500 parts, by weight.

V.—Blue.—Copper sulphate, 480 parts, by weight; sulphuric acid, 60 parts, by weight; distilled water, to 450 parts, by weight.

VI.—Yellowish Brown.—Potassium dichromate, 120 parts, by weight; nitric acid, 150 parts, by weight; distilled water, to 4,500 parts, by weight.

VII.—Yellow.—Potassium dichromate, 30 parts, by weight; sodium bicarbonate, 225 parts, by weight; distilled water, to 4,500 parts, by weight.

VIII.—Red.—Liquid ferric chloride, officinal, 60 parts, by weight; concentrated ammonium-acetate solution, 120 parts, by weight; acetic acid, 30 per cent, 30 parts, by weight; distilled water, to 9,000 parts, by weight.

IX.—Crimson.—Potassium iodide, 7.5 parts, by weight; iodine, 7.5 parts, by weight; hydrochloric acid, 60 parts, by weight; distilled water, to 4,500 parts, by weight.

All the solutions IV to IX should be filtered. If distilled water be used these solutions should keep for five to ten years. In order to prevent them from freezing, either add 10 per cent of alcohol, or reduce the quantity of water by 10 per cent.

«A Cheap and Excellent Warming Bottle.»—Mix sodium acetate and sodium hyposulphate in the proportion of 1 part of the former to 9 parts of the latter, and with the mixture fill an earthenware bottle about three-quarters full. Close the vessel well with a cork and place it either in hot water or in the oven, and let remain until the salts within melt. For at least a half day the jug will radiate its heat, and need only be well shaken from time to time to renew its heat-giving energy.

«Bottle Deodorizer.»—Powdered black mustard seed is successfully employed. Pour a little of it with some lukewarm water into the receptacle, rinsing it afterwards with water. If necessary, repeat the process.

BRANDY AND BRANDY BITTERS See Wines and Liquors.

«Brass»

Formulas for the making of Brass will be found under Alloys.

«Colors for Polished Brass.»—The brass objects are put into boiling solutions composed of different salts, and the intensity of the shade obtained is dependent upon the duration of the immersion. With a solution composed of

Sulphate of copper 120 grains Hydrochlorate of ammonia 30 grains Water 1 quart

greenish shades are obtained. With the following solution all the shades of brown from orange brown to cinnamon are obtained: {128}

Chlorate of potash 150 grains Sulphate of copper 150 grains Water 1 quart

The following solution gives the brass first a rosy tint and then colors it violet and blue:

Sulphate of copper 435 grains Hyposulphite of soda 300 grains Cream of tartar 150 grains Water 1 pint

Upon adding to the last solution

Ammoniacal sulphate of iron 300 grains Hyposulphite of soda 300 grains

there are obtained, according to the duration of the immersion, yellowish, orange, rosy, then bluish shades. Upon polarizing the ebullition the blue tint gives way to yellow, and finally to a pretty gray. Silver, under the same circumstances, becomes very beautifully colored. After a long ebullition in the following solution we obtain a yellow-brown shade, and then a remarkable fire red:

Chlorate of potash 75 grains Carbonate of nickel 30 grains Salt of nickel 75 grains Water 16 ounces

The following solution gives a beautiful, dark-brown color:

Chlorate of potash 75 grains Salt of nickel 150 grains Water 10 ounces

The following gives, in the first place, a red, which passes to blue, then to pale lilac, and finally to white:

Orpiment 75 grains Crystallized sal sodæ 150 grains Water 10 ounces

The following gives a yellow brown:

Salt of nickel 75 grains Sulphate of copper 75 grains Chlorate of potash 75 grains Water 10 ounces

On mixing the following solutions, sulphur separates and the brass becomes covered with iridescent crystallizations:

I.—Cream of tartar 75 grains Sulphate of copper 75 grains Water 10 ounces

II.—Hyposulphite of soda 225 grains Water 5 ounces

Upon leaving the brass objects immersed in the following mixture contained in corked vessels they at length acquire a very beautiful blue color:

Hepar of sulphur 15 grains Ammonia 75 grains Water 4 ounces

«Miscellaneous Coloring of Brass.»—Yellow to bright red: Dissolve 2 parts native copper carbonate with 1 part caustic soda in 10 parts water. Dip for a few minutes into the liquor, the various shades desired being obtained according to the length of time of the immersion. Green: Dissolve 1 part copper acetate (verdigris), 1 part blue vitriol, and 1 part alum in 10 parts of water and boil the articles therein. Black: For optical articles, photographic apparatus, plates, rings, screws, etc., dissolve 45 parts of malachite (native copper carbonate) in 1,000 parts of sal ammoniac. For use clean and remove the grease from the article by pickling and dip it into the bath until the coating is strong enough. The bath operates better and quicker if heated. Should the oxidation be a failure it should be removed by dipping into the brass pickle.

A verdigris color on brass is produced by treating the articles with dilute acids, acetic acid, or sulphuric acid, and drying.

Brown in all varieties of shades is obtained by immersing the metal in solutions of nitrates or ferric chloride after it has been corroded with dilute nitric acid, cleaned with sand and water, and dried. The strength of the solutions governs the deepness of the resulting color.

Violet is caused by immersing the thoroughly cleaned objects in a solution of ammonium chloride.

Chocolate color results if red ferric oxide is strewn on and burned off, followed by polishing with a small quantity of galena.

Olive green is produced by blackening the surface with a solution of iron in hydrochloric acid, polishing with galena, and coating hot with a lacquer composed of 1 part varnish, 4 parts cincuma, and 1 part gamboge.

A steel-blue coloring is obtained by means of a dilute boiling solution of chloride of arsenic, and a blue one by a treatment with strong hyposulphite of soda. Another formula for bluing brass is: Dissolve 10 parts of antimony chloride in 200 parts of water, and add 30 parts of pure hydrochloric acid. Dip the article until it is well blued, then wash and dry in sawdust.

Black is much used for optical brass articles and is produced by coating with a solution of platinum or auric chloride mixed with nitrate of tin.

«Coloring Unpolished Brass.»—A yellow color of handsome effect is obtained on {129} unpolished brass by means of antimony-chloride solution. This is produced by finely powdering gray antimony and boiling it with hydrochloric acid. With formation of hydrogen sulphide a solution of antimony results, which must not be diluted with water, since a white precipitate of antimony oxychloride is immediately formed upon admixture of water. For dilution, completely saturated cooking-salt solution is employed, using for 1 part of antimony chloride 2 parts of salt solution.

«Coloring Fluid for Brass.»—Caustic soda, 33 parts; water, 24 parts; hydrated carbonate of copper, 5.5 parts.

Dissolve the salt in water and dip the metal in the solution obtained. The intensity of the color will be proportional to the time of immersion. After removing the object from the liquid, rinse with water and dry in sawdust.

«Black Color on Brass.»—A black or oxidized surface on brass is produced by a solution of carbonate of copper in ammonia. The work is immersed and allowed to remain until the required tint is observed. The carbonate of copper is best used in a plastic condition, as it is then much more easily dissolved. Plastic carbonate of copper may be mixed as follows: Make a solution of blue vitriol (sulphate of copper) in hot water, and add a strong solution of common washing soda to it as long as any precipitate forms. The precipitate is allowed to settle, and the clear liquid is poured off. Hot water is added, and the mass stirred and again allowed to settle. This operation is repeated six or eight times to remove the impurities. After the water has been removed during the last pouring, and nothing is left but an emulsion of the thick plastic carbonate in a small quantity of water, liquid ammonia is added until everything is dissolved and a clear, deep-blue liquid is produced. If too strong, water may be added, but a strong solution is better than a weak one. If it is desired to make the solution from commercial plastic carbonate of copper the following directions may be followed: Dissolve 1 pound of the plastic carbonate of copper in 2 gallons of strong ammonia. This gives the required strength of solution.

The brass which it is desired to blacken is first boiled in a strong potash solution to remove grease and oil, then well rinsed and dipped in the copper solution, which has previously been heated to from 150° to 175° F. This solution, if heated too hot, gives off all the ammonia. The brass is left in the solution until the required tint is produced. The color produced is uniform, black, and tenacious. The brass is rinsed and dried in sawdust. A great variety of effects may be produced by first finishing the brass before blackening, as the oxidizing process does not injure the texture of the metal. A satisfactory finish is produced by first rendering the surface of the brass matt, either by scratch-brush or similar methods, as the black finish thus produced by the copper solution is dead—one of the most pleasing effects of an oxidized surface. Various effects may also be produced by coloring the entire article and then buffing the exposed portions.

The best results in the use of this solution are obtained by the use of the so-called red metals—i. e., those in which the copper predominates. The reason for this is obvious. Ordinary sheet brass consists of about 2 parts of copper and 1 part of zinc, so that the large quantity of the latter somewhat hinders the production of a deep-black surface. Yellow brass is colored black by the solution, but it is well to use some metal having a reddish tint, indicating the presence of a large amount of copper. The varieties of sheet brass known as gilding or bronze work well. Copper also gives excellent results. Where the best results are desired on yellow brass a very light electroplate of copper before the oxidizing works well and gives an excellent black. With the usual articles made of yellow brass this is rarely done, but the oxidation carried out directly.

«Black Finish for Brass.»—I.—A handsome black finish may be put on brass by the following process: Dissolve in 1,000 parts of ammonia water 45 parts of natural malachite, and in the solution put the object to be blackened, after first having carefully and thoroughly cleaned the same. After letting it stand a short time gradually warm the mixture, examining the article from time to time to ascertain if the color is deep enough. Rinse and let dry.

II.—The blacking of brass may be accomplished by immersing it in the following solution and then heating over a Bunsen burner or a spirit flame: Add a saturated solution of ammonium carbonate to a saturated copper-sulphate solution, until the precipitate resulting in the beginning has almost entirely dissolved. The immersion and heating are repeated until the brass turns dark; then it is brushed and dipped in negative varnish or dull varnish. {130}

«To Give a Brown Color to Brass.»—I.—In 1,000 parts of rain or distilled water dissolve 5 parts each of verdigris (copper acetate) and ammonium chloride. Let the solution stand 4 hours, then add 1,500 parts of water. Remove the brass to be browned from its attachment to the fixtures and make the surface perfectly bright and smooth and free from grease. Place it over a charcoal fire and heat until it “sizzes” when touched with the dampened finger. The solution is then painted over the surface with a brush or swabbed on with a rag. If one swabbing does not produce a sufficient depth of color, repeat the heating and the application of the liquid until a fine durable brown is produced. For door plates, knobs, and ornamental fixtures generally, this is one of the handsomest as well as the most durable surfaces, and is easily applied.

II.—A very handsome brown may be produced on brass castings by immersing the thoroughly cleaned and dried articles in a warm solution of 15 parts of sodium hydrate and 5 parts of cupric carbonate in 100 parts of water. The metal turns dark yellow, light brown, and finally dark brown, with a greenish shimmer, and, when the desired shade is reached, is taken out of the bath, rinsed, and dried.

III.—Paint the cleaned and dried surface uniformly with a dilute solution of ammonium sulphide. When this coating is dry, it is rubbed over, and then painted with a dilute ammoniacal solution of arsenic sulphide, until the required depth of color is attained. If the results are not satisfactory the painting can be repeated after washing over with ammonia. Prolonged immersion in the second solution produces a grayish-green film, which looks well, and acquires luster when polished with a cloth.

«Refinishing Gas Fixtures.»—Gas fixtures which have become dirty or tarnished from use may be improved in appearance by painting with bronze paint and then, if a still better finish is required, varnishing after the paint is thoroughly dry with some light-colored varnish that will give a hard and brilliant coating.

If the bronze paint is made up with ordinary varnish it is liable to become discolored from acid which may be present in the varnish. One method proposed for obviating this is to mix the varnish with about five times its volume of spirit of turpentine, add to the mixture dried slaked lime in the proportion of about 40 grains to the pint, agitate well, repeating the agitation several times, and finally allowing the suspended matter to settle and decanting the clear liquid. The object of this is to neutralize any acid which may be present. To determine how effectively this has been done the varnish may be chemically tested.

«Steel Blue and Old Silver on Brass.»—For the former dissolve 100 parts of carbonic carbonate in 750 parts of ammonia and dilute this solution with distilled water, whereupon the cleaned articles are dipped into the liquid by means of a brass wire. After two to three minutes take them out, rinse in clean water, and dry in sawdust. Old silver on brass is produced as follows: The articles are first silvered and next painted with a thin paste consisting of graphite, 6 parts; pulverized hematite, 1 part; and turpentine. Use a soft brush and dry well; then brush off the powder. Oxidized silver is obtained by dipping the silvered goods into a heated solution of liver of sulphur, 5 parts; ammonia carbonate, 10 parts; and water, 10,000 parts. Only substantially silvered objects are suited for oxidation, as a weak silvering is taken off by this solution. Unsatisfactory coloring is removed with potassium-cyanide solution. It is advisable to lay the articles in hydrogen sulphide-ammonia solution diluted with water,wherein they acquire a blue to a deep-black shade.

«Tombac Color on Brass.»—This is produced by immersion in a mixture of copper carbonate, 10 parts; caustic soda, 30 parts; water, 200 parts. This layer will only endure wiping with a cloth, not vigorous scouring with sand.