RECIPE.--To four pounds best quality Whiting, add one-half pound Cream Tartar and three ounces Calcined Magnesia; mix thoroughly together, box and label.

_Directions._--Use the polish dry with a piece of chamois skin or Canton flannel, previously moistened with water or alcohol, and finish with the polish dry. A few moments' rubbing will develop a surprising l.u.s.tre, different from the polish produced by any other substance.

RECIPE.--Follow the same directions as in "Starch Enamel," and perfume as follows: Take two ounces Oil Lemon Gra.s.s and one-half ounce Oil of Cloves, and one-fourth ounce Oil of Lavender flowers; mix them well together. For this amount of perfume you require about four quarts of the liquid paraffine. Pour the oils into the melted paraffine while warm, stirring it well while pouring. Stamp into square cakes and put into neatly printed envelopes. Sell for ten cents a cake, cost two cents. Agents can sell 100 cakes a day.

THE LIGHTNING INK ERASER.--The great Lightning Ink Eraser may be used instead of a knife or sc.r.a.per for erasing in order to rectify a mistake or clean off a blot, without injury to the paper, leaving the paper as clean and good to write upon as it was before the blot or mistake was made, and without injury to the printer's ink upon any printed form or ruling upon any first-cla.s.s paper. Take of Chloride of Lime one pound, thoroughly pulverized, and four quarts of Soft Water. The above must be thoroughly shaken when first put together. It is required to stand twenty-four hours to dissolve the Chloride of Lime. Then strain through a cotton cloth, after which add a teaspoonful of Acetic Acid (No. 8 commercial) to every ounce of Chloride of Lime Water. The eraser is used by reversing the penholder in the hand, dipping the end in the fluid, and applying it, without rubbing, to the blot to be erased. When the ink has disappeared, absorb the fluid into a blotter, and the paper is immediately ready to write upon. Put up in common ink bottles and retail for 25 cents each.

THE MAGIC ANNIHILATOR.--To make one gross eight-ounce bottles--aqua ammonia one gallon, soft water eight gallons, best white soap four pounds, saltpetre eight ounces. Shave the soap fine, add the water, boil until the soap is dissolved, let it get cold, then add the saltpetre, stirring until dissolved. Now strain, let the suds settle, skim off the dry suds, add the ammonia, bottle and cork at once. Cost about $7.25 per gross; sells for $72.00. It will do everything claimed for it and more, too. It is no mixture of soap suds as some may suppose, but a pure scientific, chemical preparation. If you wish to make a small quant.i.ty for trial, take aqua ammonia two ounces, soft water one quart, saltpetre one teaspoonful. Shave the soap fine, mix all, shake well, and let settle a day or two to dissolve the soap.

_What It Will Do._--It will remove all kinds of grease and oil spots from every variety of wearing apparel, such as coats, pants, vests, dress goods, carpets, etc., without injury to the finest silks or laces. It will shampoo like a charm, raising the lather in proportion to the amount of dandruff and grease in the hair. A cloth wet with it will remove all grease from door-k.n.o.bs, window sills, etc., handled by kitchen domestics in their daily routine of kitchen work. It will remove paint from a board, I care not how hard or dry it is, if oil is used in the paint, yet it will not injure the finest textures. Its chemical action is such that it turns any oil or grease into soap, which is easily washed out with clear cold water. For cleaning silver, bra.s.s and copper ware it can't be beat. It is certain death to bed bugs, for they will never stop after they have encountered the Magic Annihilator.

_Directions for Use._--For grease spots, pour upon the article to be cleaned a sufficient quant.i.ty of the Magic Annihilator rubbing well with a clean sponge, and applying to both sides of the article you are cleaning. Upon carpets and coa.r.s.e goods, where the grease is hard and dry, use a stiff brush and wash out with clear cold water. Apply again if necessary. One application is all that is needed for any fresh grease spots, but for old or dried a second may be required. For shampooing take a small quant.i.ty of the Magic Annihilator with an equal quant.i.ty of water, apply to the hair with a stiff brush, brushing into the pores of the scalp, and wash out with clear water. You will be surprised at the silk gloss of your hair. For cleaning silver ware, etc., buy five cents' worth of whitening, mix a small quant.i.ty with the magic annihilator, and apply with a rag, rubbing briskly. For killing bed bugs, apply to the places they frequent, and they will leave in short order. You will find it useful in many other ways. (See price list of labels.)

CHAPTER IX.

MISCELLANEOUS DEPARTMENT.

FIRE-PROOF PAINT.--Take a sufficient quant.i.ty 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 quant.i.ty 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 pa.s.s 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 quant.i.ty 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 Sh.e.l.lac 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 gla.s.s is that sold under the name of Diamond cement; it is colorless and resists moisture. This is made by soaking Isingla.s.s 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 gla.s.s 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; Sh.e.l.lac 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 Isingla.s.s 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 advertis.e.m.e.nt. 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 Sh.e.l.lac; 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 bra.s.s 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 Isingla.s.s 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 Sh.e.l.lac 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 Qua.s.sia. 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 GLa.s.s.--The only difference between ordinary painting and painting on gla.s.s 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 gla.s.s 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 Mola.s.ses 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 Sh.e.l.lac 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.