Part 33

The solution must never be allowed to boil, since this would render the gelatin brittle and would result in the picture, after having been finished, cracking off from the glass in a short time. When the picture has been attached to the glass plate without blisters (which is best observed from the back), the edge of the glass is cleansed of gelatin, preferably by means of a small sponge and lukewarm water, and the plate is allowed to dry over night.

When the picture and the gelatin are perfectly dry, coat the back of the picture a few times with castor oil until it is perfectly transparent; carefully remove the oil without rubbing, and proceed with the painting, which is best accomplished with good, not over-thick oil colors. The coloring must be observed from the glass side, and for this reason the small details, such as eyes, lips, beard, and hair, should first be sketched in. When the first coat is dry the dress and the flesh tints are painted. The whole surface may be painted over, and it is not necessary to paint shadows, as these are already present in the picture, and consequently show the color through in varying strength.

When the coloring has dried, a second glass plate should be laid on for protection, pasting the two edges together with narrow strips of linen.

«Cider»

«To Make Cider.»—Pick the apples off the tree by hand. Every apple before going into the press should be carefully {181} wiped. As soon as a charge of apples is ground, remove the pomace and put in a cask with a false bottom and a strainer beneath it, and a vessel to catch the drainage from pomace. As fast as the juice runs from the press place it in clean, sweet, open tubs or casks with the heads out and provide with a faucet, put in about two inches above bottom. The juice should be closely watched and as soon as the least sign of fermentation appears (bubbles on top, etc.) it should be run off into casks prepared for this purpose and placed in a moderately cool room. The barrels should be entirely filled, or as near to the bunghole as possible. After fermentation is well under way the spume or foam should be scraped off with a spoon several times a day. When fermentation has ceased the cider is racked off into clean casks, filled to the bunghole, and the bung driven in tightly. It is now ready for use or for bottling.

«Champagne Cider.»—I.—To convert ordinary cider into champagne cider, proceed as follows: To 100 gallons of good cider add 3 gallons of strained honey (or 24 pounds of white sugar will answer), stir in well, tightly bung, and let alone for a week. Clarify the cider by adding a half gallon of skimmed milk, or 4 ounces of gelatin dissolved in sufficient hot water and add 4 gallons of proof spirit. Let stand 3 days longer, then syphon off, bottle, cork, and tie or wire down. Bunging the cask tightly is done in order to induce a slow fermentation, and thus retain in the cider as much carbonic acid as possible.

II.—Put 10 gallons of old and clean cider in a strong and iron-bound cask, pitched within (a sound beer cask is the very thing), and add and stir in well 40 ounces of simple syrup. Add 5 ounces of tartaric acid, let dissolve, then add 7 1⁠/⁠2 ounces sodium bicarbonate in powder. Have the bung ready and the moment the soda is added put it in and drive it home. The cider will be ready for use in a few hours.

«Cider Preservative.»—I.—The addition of 154 grains of bismuth subnitrate to 22 gallons of cider prevents, or materially retards, the hardening of the beverage on exposure to air; moreover, the bismuth salt renders alcoholic fermentation more complete.

II.—Calcium sulphite (sulphite of lime) is largely used to prevent fermentation in cider. About 1⁠/⁠8 to 1⁠/⁠4 of an ounce of the sulphite is required for 1 gallon of cider. It should first be dissolved in a small quantity of cider, then added to the bulk, and the whole agitated until thoroughly mixed. The barrel should then be bunged and allowed to stand for several days, until the action of the sulphite is exerted. It will preserve the sweetness of cider perfectly, but care should be taken not to add too much, as that would impart a slight sulphurous taste.

«Artificial Ciders.»—To 25 gallons of soft water add 2 pounds of tartaric acid, 25 or 30 pounds of sugar, and a pint of yeast; put in a warm place, and let ferment for 15 days, then add the flavoring matter to suit taste. The various fruit ethers are for sale at any wholesale drug house.

«Bottling Sweet Cider.»—Champagne quarts are generally used for bottling cider, as they are strong and will stand pressure, besides being a convenient size for consumers. In making cider champagne the liquor should be clarified and bottled in the sweet condition, that is to say, before the greater part of the sugar which it contains has been converted into alcohol by fermentation. The fermentation continues, to a certain extent, in the bottle, transforming more of the sugar into alcohol, and the carbonic acid, being unable to escape, is dissolved in the cider and produces the sparkling.

The greater the quantity of sugar contained in the liquor, when it is bottled, the more complete is its carbonation by the carbonic-acid gas, and consequently the more sparkling it is when poured out. But this is true only within certain limits, for if the production of sugar is too high the fermentation will be arrested.

To make the most sparkling cider the liquor is allowed to stand for three, four, five, or six weeks, during which fermentation proceeds. The time varies according to the nature of the apples, and also to the temperature; when it is very warm the first fermentation is usually completed in 7 days.

Before bottling, the liquid must be fined, and this is best done with catechu dissolved in cold cider, 2 ounces of catechu to the barrel of cider. This is well stirred and left to settle for a few days.

The cider at this stage is still sweet, and it is a point of considerable nicety not to carry the first fermentation too far. The bottle should not be quite filled, so as to allow more freedom for the carbonic-acid gas which forms.

When the bottles have been filled, {182} corked, and wired down, they should be placed in a good cellar, which should be dry, or else the cider will taste of the cork. The bottles should not be laid for four or five weeks, or breakage will ensue. When they are being laid they should be placed on laths of wood or on dry sand; they should never be allowed on cold or damp floors.

Should the cider be relatively poor in sugar, or if it has been fermented too far, about 1 ounce of powdered loaf sugar can be added to each bottle, or else a measure of sugar syrup before pouring in the cider.

«Imitation Cider.»—

I.—A formula for an imitation cider is as follows:

Rain water 100 gallons Honey, unstrained 6 gallons Catechu, powdered 3 ounces Alum, powdered 5 ounces Yeast (brewer’s preferably) 2 pints

Mix and put in a warm place to ferment. Let ferment for about 15 days; then add the following, stirring well in:

Bitter almonds, crushed 8 ounces Cloves 8 ounces

Let stand 24 hours, add two or three gallons of good whiskey, and rack off into clean casks. Bung tightly, let stand 48 hours, then bottle. If a higher color is desired use caramel sufficient to produce the correct tinge. If honey is not obtainable, use sugar-house molasses instead, but honey is preferable.

II.—The following, when properly prepared, makes a passable substitute for cider, and a very pleasant drink:

Catechu, powdered 3 parts Alum, powdered 5 parts Honey 640 parts Water 12,800 parts Yeast 32 parts

Dissolve the catechu, alum, and honey in the water, add the yeast, and put in some warm place to ferment. The container should be filled to the square opening, made by sawing out five or six inches of the center of a stave, and the spume skimmed off daily as it arises. In cooler weather from 2 weeks to 18 days will be required for thorough fermentation. In warmer weather from 12 to 13 days will be sufficient. When fermentation is complete add the following solution:

Oil of bitter almonds 1 part Oil of clover 1 part Caramel 32 parts Alcohol 192 parts

The alcohol may be replaced by twice its volume of good bourbon whiskey. A much cheaper, but correspondingly poor substitute for the above may be made as follows:

Twenty-five gallons of soft water, 2 pounds tartaric acid, 25 pounds of brown sugar, and 1 pint of yeast are allowed to stand in a warm place, in a clean cask with the bung out, for 24 hours. Then bung up the cask, after adding 3 gallons of whiskey, and let stand for 48 hours, after which the liquor is ready for use.

CIDER VINEGAR: See Vinegar.

«Cigars»

«Cigar Sizes and Colors.»—Cigars are named according to their color and shape. A dead-black cigar, for instance, is an “Oscuro,” a very dark-brown one is a “Colorado,” a medium brown is a “Colorado Claro,” and a yellowish light brown is a “Claro.” Most smokers know the names of the shades from “Claro” to “Colorado,” and that is as far as most of them need to know. As to the shapes, a “Napoleon” is the biggest of all cigars—being 7 inches long; a “Perfecto” swells in the middle and tapers down to a very small head at the lighting end; a “Panatela” is a thin, straight, up-and-down cigar without the graceful curve of the “Perfecto”; a “Conchas” is very short and fat, and a “Londres” is shaped like a “Perfecto” except that it does not taper to so small a head at the lighting end. A “Reina Victoria” is a “Londres” that comes packed in a ribbon-tied bundle of 50 pieces, instead of in the usual four layers of 13, 12, 13 and 12.

«How to Keep Cigars.»—Cigars kept in a case are influenced every time the case is opened. Whatever of taint there may be in the atmosphere rushes into the case, and is finally taken up by the cigars. Even though the cigars have the appearance of freshness, it is not the original freshness in which they were received from the factory. They have been dry, or comparatively so, and have absorbed more moisture than has been put in the case, and it matters not what that moisture may be, it can never restore the flavor that was lost during the drying-out process.

After all, it is a comparatively simple matter to take good care of cigars. All that is necessary is a comparatively air-tight, zinc-lined chest. This should be {183} behind the counter in a place where the temperature is even. When a customer calls for a cigar the dealer takes the box out of the chest, serves his customer, and then puts the box back again. The box being opened for a moment the cigars are not perceptibly affected. The cigars in the close, heavy chest are always safe from atmospheric influences, as the boxes are closed, and the chest is open but a moment, while the dealer is taking out a box from which to serve his customer.

Some of the best dealers have either a large chest or a cool vault in which they keep their stock, taking out from time to time whatever they need for use. Some have a number of small chests, in which they keep different brands, so as to avoid opening and closing one particular chest so often.

It may be said that it is only the higher priced cigars that need special care in handling, although the cheaper grades are not to be handled carelessly. The Havana cigars are more susceptible to change, for there is a delicacy of flavor to be preserved that is never present in the cheaper grades of cigars.

Every dealer must, of course, make a display in his show case, but he need not serve his patrons with these cigars. The shrinkage in value of the cigars in the case is merely a business proposition of profit and loss.

«Cigar Flavoring.»—I.—Macerate 2 ounces of cinnamon and 4 ounces of tonka beans, ground fine, in 1 quart of rum.

II.—Moisten ordinary cigars with a strong tincture of cascarilla, to which a little gum benzoin and storax may be added. Some persons add a small quantity of camphor or oil of cloves or cassia.

III.—Tincture of valerian 4 drachms Butyric aldehyde 4 drachms Nitrous ether 1 drachm Tincture vanilla 2 drachms Alcohol 5 ounces Water enough to make 16 ounces

IV.—Extract vanilla 4 ounces Alcohol 1⁠/⁠2 gallon Jamaica rum 1⁠/⁠2 gallon Tincture valerian 8 ounces Caraway seed 2 ounces English valerian root 2 ounces Bitter orange peel 2 ounces Tonka beans 4 drachms Myrrh 16 ounces

Soak the myrrh for 3 days in 6 quarts of water, add the alcohol, tincture valerian, and extract of vanilla, and after grinding the other ingredients to a coarse powder, put all together in a jug and macerate for 2 weeks, occasionally shaking; lastly, strain.

V.—Into a bottle filled with 1⁠/⁠2 pint of French brandy put 1 1⁠/⁠4 ounces of cascarilla bark and 1 1⁠/⁠4 ounces of vanilla previously ground with 1⁠/⁠2 pound of sugar; carefully close up the flask and distil in a warm place. After 3 days pour off the liquid, and add 1⁠/⁠4 pint of mastic extract. The finished cigars are moistened with this liquid, packed in boxes, and preserved from air by a well-closed lid. They are said to acquire a pleasant flavor and mild strength through this treatment.

«Cigar Spots.»—The speckled appearance of certain wrappers is due to the work of a species of fungus that attacks the growing tobacco. In a certain district of Sumatra, which produces an exceptionally fine tobacco for wrappers, the leaves of the plant are commonly speckled in this way. Several patents have been obtained for methods of spotting tobacco leaves artificially. A St. Louis firm uses a solution composed of:

Sodium carbonate 3 parts Calx chlorinata 1 part Hot water 8 parts

Dissolve the washing soda in the hot water, add the chlorinated lime, and heat the mixture to a boiling temperature for 3 minutes. When cool, decant into earthenware or stoneware jugs, cork tightly, and keep in a cool place. The corks of jugs not intended for immediate use should be covered with a piece of bladder or strong parchment paper, and tightly tied down to prevent the escape of gas, and consequent weakening of the bleaching power of the fluid. The prepared liquor is sprinkled on the tobacco, the latter being then exposed to light and air, when, it is said, the disagreeable odor produced soon disappears.

CINCHONA: See Wines and Liquors.

CINNAMON ESSENCE: See Essences and Extracts.

CINNAMON OIL AS AN ANTISEPTIC: See Antiseptics.

CITRATE OF MAGNESIUM: See Magnesium Citrate.

CLARET LEMONADE AND CLARET PUNCH: See Beverages, under Lemonades. {184}

CLARIFICATION OF GELATIN AND GLUE: See Gelatin.

«CLARIFYING.»

Clarification is the process by which any solid particles suspended in a liquid are either caused to coalesce together or to adhere to the medium used for clarifying, that they may be removed by filtration (which would previously have been impossible), so as to render the liquid clear.

One of the best agents for this purpose is albumen. When clarifying vegetable extracts, the albumen which is naturally present in most plants accomplishes this purpose easily, provided the vegetable matter is extracted in the cold, so as to get as much albumen as possible in solution.

Egg albumen may also be used. The effect of albumen may be increased by the addition of cellulose, in the form of a fine magma of filtering paper. This has the further advantage that the subsequent filtration is much facilitated.

Suspended particles of gum or pectin may be removed by cautious precipitation with tannin, of which only an exceedingly small amount is usually necessary. It combines with the gelatinous substances better with the aid of heat than in the cold. There must be no excess of tannin used.

Another method of clarifying liquids turbid from particles of gum, albumen, pectin, etc., is to add to them a definite quantity of alcohol. This causes the former substances to separate in more or less large flakes. The quantity of alcohol required varies greatly according to the nature of the liquid. It should be determined in each case by an experiment on a small scale.

Resinous or waxy substances, such as are occasionally met with in honey, etc., may be removed by the addition of bole, pulped filtering paper, and heating to boiling.

In each case the clarifying process may be hastened by making the separating particles specifically heavier; that is, by incorporating some heavier substance, such as talcum, etc., which may cause the flocculi to sink more rapidly, and to form a compact sediment.

Clarifying powder for alcoholic liquids:

Egg albumen, dry 40 parts Sugar of milk 40 parts Starch 20 parts

Reduce them to very fine powder, and mix thoroughly.

For clarifying liquors, wines, essences, etc., take for every quart of liquid 75 grains of the above mixture, shake repeatedly in the course of a few days, the mixture being kept in a warm room, then filter.

Powdered talcum renders the same service, and has the additional advantage of being entirely insoluble. However, the above mixture acts more energetically.

«CLAY:»

«Claying Mixture for Forges.»—Twenty parts fire clay; 20 parts cast-iron turnings; 1 part common salt; 1⁠/⁠2 part sal ammoniac; all by measure.

The materials should be thoroughly mixed dry and then wet down to the consistency of common mortar, constantly stirring the mass as the wetting proceeds. A rough mold shaped to fit the tuyère opening, a trowel, and a few minutes’ time are all that are needed to complete the successful claying of the forge. This mixture dries hard and when glazed by the fire will last.

«Plastic Modeling Clay.»—A permanently plastic clay can be obtained by first mixing it with glycerine, turpentine, or similar bodies, and then adding vaseline or petroleum residues rich in vaseline. The proportion of clay to the vaseline varies according to the desired consistency of the product, the admixture of vaseline varying from 10 to 50 per cent. It is obvious that the hardness of the material decreases with the amount of vaseline added, so that the one richest in vaseline will be the softest. By the use of various varieties of clay and the suitable choice of admixtures, the plasticity, as well as the color of the mass, may be varied.

«Cleaning Preparations and Methods»

(See also Soaps, Polishes, and Household Formulas).

«TO REMOVE STAINS FROM THE HANDS:»

«Removal of Aniline-Dye Stains from the Skin.»—Rub the stained skin with a pinch of slightly moistened red crystals of chromic trioxide until a distinct sensation of warmth announces the destruction of the dye stuff by oxidation and an incipient irritation of the skin. Then rinse with soap and water. A single application usually suffices to remove {185} the stain. It is hardly necessary to call attention to the poisonousness and strong caustic action of chromic trioxide; but only moderate caution is required to avoid evil effects.

«Pyrogallic-Acid Stains on the Fingers» (see also Photography).—Pyro stains may be prevented fairly well by rubbing in a little wool fat before beginning work. A very effective way of eliminating developer stains is to dip the finger tips occasionally during development into the clearing bath. It is best to use the clearing bath, with ample friction, before resorting to soap, as the latter seems to have a fixing effect upon the stain. Lemon peel is useful for removing pyro stains, and so are the ammonium persulphate reducer and the thiocarbamide clearer.

«To Clean Very Soiled Hands.»—In the morning wash in warm water, using a stiff brush, and apply glycerine. Repeat the application two or three times during the day, washing and brushing an hour or so afterwards, or apply a warm solution of soda or potash, and wash in warm water, using a stiff brush as before. Finally, rub the hands with pumice or infusorial earth. There are soaps made especially for this purpose, similar to those for use on woodwork, etc., in which infusorial earth or similar matter is incorporated.

«To Remove Nitric-Acid Stains.»—One plan to avoid stains is to use rubber finger stalls, or rubber gloves. Nitric-acid stains can be removed from the hands by painting the stains with a solution of permanganate of potash, and washing off the permanganate with a 5 per cent solution of hydrochloric (muriatic) acid. After this wash the hands with pure castile soap. Any soap that roughens the skin should be avoided at all times. Castile soap is the best to keep the skin in good condition.

«CLEANING GILDED ARTICLES:»

«To Clean Gilt Frames and Gilded Surfaces Generally.»—Dip a soft brush in alcohol to which a few drops of ammonia water has been added, and with it go over the surface. Do not rub—at least, not roughly, or harshly. In the course of five minutes the dirt will have become soft, and easy of removal. Then go over the surface again gently with the same or a similar brush dipped in rain water. Now lay the damp article in the sunlight to dry. If there is no sunlight, place it near a warm (but not _hot_) stove, and let dry completely. In order to avoid streaks, take care that the position of the article, during the drying, is not exactly vertical.

«To Clean Fire-Gilt Articles.»—Fire-gilt articles are cleaned, according to their condition, with water, diluted hydrochloric acid, ammonia, or potash solution. If hydrochloric acid is employed thorough dilution with water is especially necessary. The acidity should hardly be noticeable on the tongue.

To clean gilt articles, such as gold moldings, etc., when they have become tarnished or covered with flyspecks, etc., rub them slowly with an onion cut in half and dipped in rectified alcohol, and wash off lightly with a moist soft sponge after about 2 hours.

«Cleaning Gilded and Polychromed Work on Altars.»—To clean bright gold a fine little sponge is used which is moistened but lightly with tartaric acid and passed over the gilding. Next go over the gilt work with a small sponge saturated with alcohol to remove all dirt. For matt gilding, use only a white flannel dipped in lye, and carefully wipe off the dead gold with this, drying next with a fine linen rag. To clean polychromed work sponge with a lye of rain water, 1,000 parts, and calcined potash, 68 parts, and immediately wash off with a clean sponge and water, so that the lye does not attack the paint too much.

«SPOT AND STAIN REMOVERS:»

«To Remove Aniline Stains.»—

I.—Sodium nitrate 7 grains Diluted sulphuric acid 15 grains Water 1 ounce

Let the mixture stand a day or two before using. Apply to the spot with a sponge, and rinse the goods with plenty of water.

II.—An excellent medium for the removal of aniline stains, which are often very stubborn, has been found to be liquid opodeldoc. After its use the stains are said to disappear at once and entirely.

«Cleansing Fluids.»—A spot remover is made as follows:

I.—Saponine 7 parts Water 130 parts Alcohol 70 parts Benzine 1,788 parts Oil mirbane 5 parts

II.—Benzene (benzol) 89 parts Ascetic ether 10 parts Pear oil 1 part

This yields an effective grease eradicator, of an agreeable odor. {186}

III.—To Remove Stains of Sulphate of copper, or of salts of mercury, silver, or gold from the hands, etc., wash them first with a dilute solution either of ammonia, iodide, bromide, or cyanide of potassium, and then with plenty of water; if the stains are old ones they should first be rubbed with the strongest acetic acid and then treated as above.