Dissolve the oils and ethers in the alcohol, and the sugar in the water. Mix and filter.

Prepare as in Formula I.

Dissolve the sugar in the water by the aid of a gentle heat, express the oranges, add the juice and rinds to the syrup, put the mixture into a cask, keep the whole in a warm place for 3 or 4 days, stirring frequently, then close the cask, set aside in a cool cellar and draw off the clear liquid.

II.—Express the juice from sweet oranges, add water equal to the volume {765} of juice obtained, and macerate the expressed oranges with the juice and water for about 12 hours. For each gallon of juice, add 1 pound of granulated sugar, grape sugar, or glucose, put the whole into a suitable vessel, covering to exclude the dust, place in a warm location until fermentation is completed, draw off the clear liquid, and preserve in well-stoppered stout bottles in a cool place.

III.—Orange wine suitable for “soda” purposes may be prepared by mixing 3 fluidounces of orange essence with 13 fluidounces of sweet Catawba or other mild wine. Some syrup may be added to this if desired.

Rose Cordial.—

Dissolve the sugar in the water and the oils in the alcohol; mix the solutions, color a rose tint, and filter clear.

Spearmint Cordial.—

Dissolve the sugar in the water and the oil in the alcohol; mix the two solutions, color green, and filter clear.

Absinthe.—

Dissolve the oils in the alcohol, add the water, color green, and filter clear.

Dissolve the oils and ether in the alcohol and the sugar in the water; then mix thoroughly, color green, and filter clear.

Detannating Wine.

According to Caspari, the presence of appreciable quantities of tannin in wine is decidedly objectionable if the wine is to be used in connection with iron and other metallic salts; moreover, tannin is incompatible with alkaloids, and hence wine not deprived of its tannin should never be used as a menstruum for alkaloidal drugs. The process of freeing wines from tannin is termed detannation, and is a very simple operation. The easiest plan is to add ¹/₂ ounce of gelatin in number 40 or number 60 powder to 1 gallon of the wine, to agitate occasionally during 24 or 48 hours, and then to filter. The operation is preferably carried out during cold weather or in a cold apartment, as heat will cause the gelatin to dissolve, and the maceration must be continued until a small portion of the wine mixed with a few drops of ferric chloride solution shows no darkening of color. Gelatin in large pieces is not suitable, especially with wines containing much tannin, since the newly formed tannate of gelatin will be deposited on the surface and prevent further intimate contact of the gelatin with the wine. Formerly freshly prepared ferric hydroxide was much employed for detannating wine, but the chief objection to its use was due to the fact that some iron invariably was taken up by the acid present in the wine; moreover, the process was more tedious than in the case of gelatin. As the removal of tannin from wine in no way interferes with its quality—alcoholic strength and aroma remaining the same, and only coloring matter being lost—a supply of detannated wine should be kept on hand, for it requires very little more labor to detannate a gallon than a pint.

If ferric hydroxide is to be used, it must be freshly prepared, and a convenient quantity then be added to the wine—about 8 ounces of the expressed, but moist, precipitate to a gallon.

Prevention Of Fermentation.

Fermentation may be prevented in either of two ways:

(1) By chemical methods, which consist in the addition of germ poisons or antiseptics, which either kill the germs or prevent their growth. Of these the principal ones used are salicylic, sulphurous, boracic, and benzoic acids, formalin, fluorides, and saccharine. As these substances are generally regarded as adulterants and injurious, their use is not recommended.

(2) The germs are either removed by {766} some mechanical means such as a filtering or a centrifugal apparatus, or they are destroyed by heat or electricity. Heat has so far been found the most practical.

When a liquid is heated to a sufficiently high temperature all organisms in it are killed. The degree of heat required, however, differs not only with the particular kind of organism, but also with the liquid in which it is held. Time is also a factor. An organism may not be killed if heated to a high temperature and quickly cooled. If, however, the temperature is kept at the same high degree for some time, it will be killed. It must also be borne in mind that fungi, including yeasts, exist in the growing and the resting states, the latter being much more resistant than the former. One characteristic of the fungi and their spores is their great resistance to heat when dry. In this state they can be heated to 212° F. without being killed. The spores of the common mold are even more resistant. This should be well considered in sterilizing bottles and corks, which should be steamed to 240° F. for at least 15 minutes.

Practical tests so far made indicate that grape juice can be safely sterilized at from 165° to 176° F. At this temperature the flavor is hardly changed, while at a temperature much above 200° F. it is. This is an important point, as the flavor and quality of the product depend on it.

Use only clean, sound, well-ripened, but not over-ripe grapes. If an ordinary cider mill is at hand, it may be used for crushing and pressing, or the grapes may be crushed and pressed with the hands. If a light-colored juice is desired, put the crushed grapes in a cleanly washed cloth sack and tie up. Then either hang up securely and twist it or let two persons take hold, one on each end of the sack and twist until the greater part of the juice is expressed. Next gradually heat the juice in a double boiler or a large stone jar in a pan of hot water, so that the juice does not come in direct contact with the fire at a temperature of 180° to 200° F., never above 200° F. It is best to use a thermometer, but if there be none at hand heat the juice until it steams, but do not allow it to boil. Put it in a glass or enameled vessel to settle for 24 hours; carefully drain the juice from the sediment, and run it through several thicknesses of clean flannel, or a conic filter made from woolen cloth or felt may be used. This filter is fixed to a hoop of iron, which can be suspended wherever necessary. After this fill into clean bottles. Do not fill entirely, but leave room for the liquid to expand when again heated. Fit a thin board over the bottom of an ordinary wash boiler, set the filled bottles (ordinary glass fruit jars are just as good) in it, fill in with water around the bottles to within about an inch of the tops, and gradually heat until it is about to simmer. Then take the bottles out and cork or seal immediately. It is a good idea to take the further precaution of sealing the corks over with sealing wax or paraffine to prevent mold germs from entering through the corks. Should it be desired to make red juice, heat the crushed grapes to not above 200° F., strain through a clean cloth or drip bag (no pressure should be used), set away to cool and settle, and proceed the same as with light-colored juice. Many people do not even go to the trouble of letting the juice settle after straining it, but reheat and seal it up immediately, simply setting the vessel away in a cool place in an upright position where they will be undisturbed. The juice is thus allowed to settle, and when wanted for use the clear juice is simply taken off the sediment. Any person familiar with the process of canning fruit can also preserve grape juice, for the principles involved are identical.

One of the leading defects so far found in unfermented juice is that much of it is not clear, a condition which very much detracts from its otherwise attractive appearance, and due to two causes already alluded to. Either the final sterilization in bottles has been at a higher temperature than the preceding one, or the juice has not been properly filtered or has not been filtered at all. In other cases the juice has been sterilized at such a high temperature that it has a disagreeable scorched taste. It should be remembered that attempts to sterilize at a temperature above 195° F. are dangerous so far as the flavor of the finished product is concerned.

Another serious mistake is sometimes made by putting the juice into bottles so large that much of it becomes spoiled before it is used after the bottles are opened. Unfermented grape juice properly made and bottled will keep indefinitely, if it is not exposed to the atmosphere or mold germs; but when a bottle is once opened it should, like canned goods, be used as soon as possible to keep from spoiling.

Another method of making unfermented grape juice, which is often {767} resorted to where a sufficiently large quantity is made at one time, consists in this:

Take a clean keg or barrel (one that has previously been made sweet). Lay this upon a skid consisting of two scantlings or pieces of timber of perhaps 20 feet long, in such a manner as to make a runway. Then take a sulphur match, made by dipping strips of clean muslin about 1 inch wide and 10 inches long into melted brimstone, cool it and attach it to a piece of wire fastened in the lower end of a bung and bent over at the end, so as to form a hook. Light the match and by means of the wire suspend it in the barrel, bung the barrel up tight, and allow it to burn as long as it will. Repeat this until fresh sulphur matches will no longer burn in the barrel.

Then take enough fresh grape juice to fill the barrel one-third full, bung up tight, roll and agitate violently on the skid for a few minutes. Next burn more sulphur matches in it until no more will burn, fill in more juice until the barrel is about two-thirds full; agitate and roll again. Repeat the burning process as before, after which fill the barrel completely with grape juice and roll. The barrel should then be bunged tightly and stored in a cool place with the bung up, and so secured that the package cannot be shaken. In the course of a few weeks the juice will have become clear and can then be racked off and filled into bottles or jars direct, sterilized, and corked or sealed up ready for use. By this method, however, unless skillfully handled, the juice is apt to have a slight taste of the sulphur.

The following are the component parts of a California and a Concord unfermented grape juice:

This table is interesting in so far that the California unfermented grape juice was made from Viniferas or foreign varieties, whereas the Concord was a Labruska or one of the American sorts. The difference in taste and smell is even more pronounced than the analysis would indicate.

Small quantities of grape juice may be preserved in bottles. Fruit is likely to be dusty and to be soiled in other ways, and grapes, like other fruits, should be well washed before using. Leaves or other extraneous matter should also be removed. The juice is obtained by moderate pressure in an ordinary screw press, and strained through felt. By gently heating, the albuminous matter is coagulated and may be skimmed off, and further clarification may be effected by filtering through paper, but such filtration must be done as rapidly as possible, using a number of filters and excluding the air as much as possible.

The juice so obtained may be preserved by sterilization, in the following manner: Put the juice in the bottles in which it is to be kept, filling them very nearly full; place the bottles, unstoppered, in a kettle filled with cold water, so arranging them on a wooden perforated “false bottom” or other like contrivance as to prevent their immediate contact with the metal, this preventing unequal heating and possible fracture. Now heat the water, gradually raising the temperature to the boiling point, and maintain at that until the juice attains a boiling temperature; then close the bottles with perfectly fitting corks, which have been kept immersed in boiling water for a short time before use.

The corks should not be fastened in any way, for, if the sterilization is not complete, fermentation and consequent explosion of the bottle may occur unless the cork should be forced out.

If the juice is to be used for syrup, as for use at the soda fountain, the best method is to make a concentrated syrup at once, using about 2 pounds of refined sugar to 1 pint of juice, dissolving by a gentle heat. This syrup may be made by simple agitation without heat; and a finer flavor thus results, but its keeping quality would be uncertain.

The juices found in the market are frequently preserved by means of antiseptics, but so far none have been proposed for this purpose which can be considered entirely wholesome. Physiological experiments have shown that while bodies suited for this purpose may be apparently without bad effect at first, their repeated ingestion is likely to cause gastric disturbance.

Sparkling Wines.

An apparatus for converting still into foaming wines, and doing this efficiently, simply, and rapidly, consists of a vertical steel tube, which turns on an axis, and {768} bears several adjustable glass globes that are in connection with each other by means of distributing valves, the latter being of silver-plated bronze. The glass globes serve as containers for carbonic acid, and are kept supplied with this gas from a cylinder connected therewith.

The wine to be impregnated with the acid is taken from a cask, through a special tube, which also produces a light pressure of carbonic acid on the cask, the object of which is to prevent the access of atmospheric air to the wine within, and, besides, to cause the liquid to pass into the bottle without jar or stroke. The bottles stand under the distributing valves, or levers, placed above and below them. Now, if the cock, by means of which the glass bulbs and the bottles are brought into connection, is slightly opened, and the desired lever is put in action, the carbonic acid at once forces the air out of the bottles, and sterilizes them. The upper bottles are now gradually filled. The whole apparatus, including the filled bottles, is now tilted over, and the wine, of its own weight, flows through collectors filled with carbonic acid, and passes, impregnated with the gas, into other bottles placed below. Each bottle is filled in course, the time required for each being some 45 seconds. The saturation of the liquid with carbonic acid is so complete and plentiful that there is no need of hurry in corking.

By means of this apparatus any desired still wine is at once converted into a sparkling one, preserving at the same time its own peculiarities of taste, bouquet, etc. The apparatus may be used equally well upon fruit juices, milk, and, in fact, any kind of liquid, its extreme simplicity permitting of easy and rapid cleansing.

Artificial French Brandy.

I.—The following is Eugene Dieterich’s formula for Spiritus vini Gallici artificialis:

Mix, adding the water last, let stand for several days, then filter.

II.—The Münchener Apotheker Verein has adopted the following formula for the same thing:

Add the acids, ethers, etc., to the alcohol, and finally add the water. Let stand several days, and, if necessary, filter.

III.—The Berlin Apothecaries have adopted the following as a magistral formula:

Mix the tincture and ether with the alcohol, add the water and for every ounce add one drop of tincture of rhatany.

Of these formulas the first is to be preferred as a close imitation of the taste of the genuine article. To imitate the color use burnt sugar.

Liqueurs.

Many are familiar with the properties of liqueurs but believe them to be very complex and even mysterious compounds. This is, of course, due to the fact that the formulas are of foreign origin and many of them have been kept more or less secret for some time. Owing to the peculiar combination of the bouquet oils and flavors, it is impossible to make accurate analyses of them. But by the use of formulas now given, these products seem to be very nearly duplicated.

It is necessary to use the best sugar and oils obtainable in the preparation of the liqueurs. As there are so many grades of essential oils on the market, it is difficult to obtain the best indirectly. The value of the cordials is enhanced by the richness and odor and flavor of the oils, so only the best qualities should be used.

For filtering, flannel or felt is valuable. Flannel is cheaper and more easily washed. It is necessary to return filtrate several times with any of the filtering media.

As a clarifying agent talcum allowed to stand several days acts well. These rules are common to all. {769}

The operations are all simple:

First: Heat all mixtures. Second: Keep the product in the dark. Third: Keep in warm place.

The liqueurs are heated to ripen the bouquet flavor, it having effect similar to age. To protect the ethereal oils, air and light are excluded; hence it is recommended that the bottles be filled to the stopper. The liqueurs taste best at a temperature not exceeding 55° F. They are all improved with age, especially many of the bouquet oils.

Bénédictine.—

Mix. Let stand 9 days with occasional agitation. Filter sufficiently.

Mix.

Mix together, when clear solution of sugar is obtained. Color with caramel. Filter sufficiently.

NOTE.—This liqueur should be at least 1 year old before used.

Essence Bénédictine for Bénédictine No. II.—

Mix, macerate 10 days and filter.

Mix A, B, and C.

NOTE.—This essence should stand 2 years before being used for liqueurs.

Subject the above ingredients to maceration for a week with alcohol (96 per cent), 1,000 parts, then squeeze off and distill the liquid obtained over a certain quantity of fresh herbs of balm and hyssop. After 125 parts of sugar have been added to the resultant liqueur, filter.

The genuine Chartreuse comes in three different colors, viz., green, white, and yellow. The coloration, however, is not artificial, but is determined by the addition of varying quantities of fresh herbs in the distillation. But since it would require long and tedious trials to produce the right color in a small manufacture, the yellow shade is best imparted by a little tincture of saffron, and the green one by the addition of a few drops of indigo solution.

Mix. Dissolve sugar in warm water, cool, strain, add remainder of ingredients, and filter. This is known as yellow Chartreuse. {770}

Curaçao Liqueur.—

Mix A, B, and C. Filter. Color with caramel.

In Baden and in Bavaria in preparing Maitrank the practice was formerly to first make an essence—Maitrankessenz, for the preparation of which every housewife had a formula of her own. The following was that generally used in the south of Germany:

Digest together for 14 days, then filter and press off. Many add to this some flavoring oil. As coumarin has been found to be the principle to which the Waldmeister owes its odor, many add to the above Tonka bean, chopped fine, 1 part to the thousand. From about 12 to 15 drachms of this essence is added to make a gallon of the wine, which has about the following formula:

II.—Take enough good woodruff (Waldmeister) of fine aroma and flavor. Remove all parts that will not add to the excellence of the product, such as wilted, dead, or imperfect leaves, stems, etc., and wash the residue thoroughly in cold water, and with as little pressure as possible. Now choose a flask with a neck sufficiently wide to receive the stems without pressing or bruising them, and let the pieces fall into it. Pour in sufficient strong alcohol (96 per cent) to cover the herbs completely. In from 30 to 40 minutes the entire aroma is taken up by the alcohol, which takes on a beautiful green color, which, unfortunately, does not last, disappearing in a few days, but without affecting the aroma in the least. The alcohol should now be poured off, for if left to macerate longer, while it would gain in aroma, it will also take up a certain bitter principle that detracts from the delicacy of flavor and aroma. The extract is now poured on a fresh quantity of the herb, and continue proceeding in this manner until a sufficiently concentrated extract is obtained to give aroma to 100 times its weight of wine or cider.

III.—Fresh woodruff, in bloom or flower, is freed from the lower part of its stem and leaves, and also of all foreign or inert matter. The herb is then lightly stuck into a wide-mouth bottle, and covered with strong alcohol. After 30 minutes pour off the liquor on fresh woodruff. In another half hour the essence is ready, though it should not be used immediately. It should be kept at cellar heat (about 60° F.) for a few days, or until the green color vanishes. Any addition to the essence of aromatics, such as orange peel, lemons, spices, etc., is to be avoided. To prepare the Maitrank, add the essence to any good white wine, tasting and testing, until the flavor suits.

The following are other formulas for the drink:

Mix.

Maraschino Liqueur.—

Make a liquor in the usual manner.

Medicinal Wines:

Rub the extract of beef with the hot water, and add, while stirring, the alcohol. Allow to stand 3 days or more, then filter and distill off the alcohol. Add to the residue 750 cubic centimeters of the wine, to which the compound spirit of orange has been previously added. Finally add the tincture of citro-chloride of iron, syrup, and enough wine to make 1,000 cubic centimeters. Filter if necessary.

II.—For Poultry and Stock.—A good formula for wine of beef and iron is as follows:

Pour the hot water in the beef extract and triturate until a smooth mixture is made. To this add, gradually and under constant stirring, 12 ounces of the wine. Add now, under same conditions, the iron, stir in well, and finally add the remainder of the wine.

II.—Yvon recommends the following formula:

Macerate the bark with the acid and alcohol for 6 days, shaking from time to time, add the wine, macerate for 24 hours, agitating frequently, then filter.

WINTERGREEN, TO DISTINGUISH METHYL SALICYLATE FROM OIL OF.

A quantity of the sample is mixed in a test tube with an equal volume of pure concentrated sulphuric acid. Under these conditions the artificial compound shows no rise in temperature and acquires only a slight yellowish tint, while with the natural oil there is a marked rise in temperature and the mixture assumes a rose-red color, gradually passing into darker shades.

WIRE ROPE.

See also Steel.

A valuable anti-friction and preservative compound for mine cables is as follows: Seven parts soft tallow and 3 parts plumbago, mixed thoroughly; make a long, hollow box or trough, gouge out a 4 by 6 piece of scantling about 2 feet long, sawing it down lengthwise and hollowing out the box or trough enough to hold several pounds of the compound, making also a hole lengthwise of the {772} trough for the cable to run through; then affix to rope and clamp securely, having the box or trough so fixed that it cannot play, and letting the cable pass through it while going up or down, so that it will get a thorough coating. This, it is found, will preserve a round cable very well, and can be used at least once a week. For a flat steel cable raw linseed oil can be used instead of the tallow, in about the proportion of 6 parts oil and 3 plumbago. If tar is used, linseed oil is to be added to keep the tar from adhering, both ingredients to be mixed while warm.

To preserve wire rope laid under ground, or under water, coat it with a mixture of mineral tar and fresh slaked lime in the proportion of 1 bushel of lime to 1 barrel of tar. The mixture is to be boiled, and the rope saturated with it while hot; sawdust is sometimes added to give the mixture body. Wire rope exposed to the weather is coated with raw linseed oil, or with a paint composed of equal parts of Spanish brown or lampblack with linseed oil.

WIRE HARDENING: See Steel.

WITCH-HAZEL JELLY: See Cosmetics.

WOOD

Decorative Wood-finish.

Paint or stencil wood with white-lime paint. When it has dried slowly in the shade, brush it off and a handsome dark-brown tone will be imparted to the oakwood. Some portions which may be desired darker and redder are stained again with lime, whereby these places become deeper. It is essential that the lime be applied in even thickness and dried slowly, for only then the staining will be red and uniform.

After the staining saturate the wood with a mixture of varnish, 2 parts; oil of turpentine, 1 part; turpentine, ¹/₂ part. When the oil ground is dry apply 2 coatings of pale amber varnish.

Colored decorations on pinewood can be produced as follows:

The most difficult part of the work is to remove the rosin accumulations without causing a spot to appear. Burn out the places carefully with a red-hot iron. Great care is necessary to prevent the iron from setting the rosin on fire, thus causing black smoke clouds.

The resulting holes are filled up with plaster to which a little light ocher is added to imitate the shade of the wood as perfectly as possible. Plaster up no more than is necessary.

Rub the wood down with very fine sandpaper, taking especial care to rub only with the grain of the wood, since all cross scratches will remain permanently visible.

After this preliminary work cover the wood with a solution of white shellac, in order not to injure the handsome golden portions of the wood and to preserve the pure light tone of the wood in general.

On this shellac ground paint and stencil with glazing colors, ground with isinglass solution. The smaller, more delicate portions, such as flowers and figures, are simply worked out in wash style with water colors, using the tone of the wood to remain as high lights, surrounding the whole with a black contour.

After this treatment the panels and decorated parts are twice varnished with dammar varnish. The friezes and pilaster strips are glazed darker and set off with stripes; to varnish them use amber varnish.

The style just mentioned does not exclude any other. Thus, for instance, a very good effect is produced by decorating the panels only with a black covering color or with black and transparent red (burnt sienna and a little carmine) after the fashion of boule work in rich ornaments, in such a way that the natural wood forms the main part and yet quite a considerable portion of the ornament.

Intarsia imitation is likewise well adapted, since the use of variegated covering colors is in perfect keeping with the decoration of natural wood. How it should be applied, and how much of it, depends upon one’s taste, as well as the purpose and kind of the object.

It is a well-known fact that the large pores of oak always look rather smeary, according to whether the workshop is more or less dusty. If this is to be avoided, which is essential for neat work, take good wheat starch, pound it fine with a hammer and stir by means of a wooden spatula good strong polish with the wheat starch to a paste and work the paste into the pores by passing it cross-wise over the wood. After about ¹/₂ hour, rub down the wood thus treated in such a manner that the pores are filled. In case any open pores remain, repeat the process as before. After that, rub down, polish or deaden. If this operation is not performed, the pores will always look somewhat dirty, despite all {773} care. Every cabinetmaker will readily perceive that this filling of the pores will save both time and polish in the subsequent finishing.

Wood Fillers.

The novice in coach painting is quite as likely to get bewildered as to be aided by much of the information given about roughstuff, the more so as the methods differ so widely. One authority tells us to use a large proportion of lead ground in oil with the coarser pigment, while another says use dry lead and but a small percentage, and still another insists that lead must be tabooed altogether. There are withal a good many moss-grown superstitions associated with the subject. Not the least of these is the remarkably absorbent nature which the surface that has been roughstuffed and “scoured” is supposed to possess. By many this power of absorption is believed to be equal to swallowing up, not only all the color applied, but at least 3 coats of varnish, and none of these would think of applying a coat of color to a roughstuffed surface without first giving it a coat of liquid filler as a sort of sacrificial oblation in recognition of this absorbing propensity. Another authority on the subject has laid down the rule that in the process of scouring, the block of pumice stone must always be moved in one direction, presumably for the reason that some trace of the stone is likely to be visible after the surface is finished.

If the block of stone is scratching, perhaps the appearance of the finished panel may be less objectionable with the furrows in parallel lines than in what engravers call “cross-hatching,” but if the rubbing is properly done it is not easy to discover what difference it could make whether the stone is moved in a straight line or a circle. As to absorption, it cannot be distinguished in the finished panel between the surface that was coated with liquid filler and that to which the color was applied directly, except that cracking always occurs much sooner in the former, and this will be found to be the case with surfaces that have been coated with liquid filler and finished without roughstuff. Among the pigments that may be used for roughstuff, and there are half a dozen or more, any of which may be used with success, there is no doubt but that known as “English filler” is best, but it is not always to be had without delay and inconveniences.

Yellow ocher, Reno umber and Keystone filler are all suitable for roughstuff, the ocher having been used many years for the purpose, but, as already remarked, the English filler is best. This is the rule for mixing given by Nobles and Hoare: Four pounds filler, 1 pound ground white lead, 1 pint gold size, 1 pint varnish and 1 ¹/₄ pints turpentine, or ³/₄ pint good size and ¹/₂ pint boiled oil in lieu of the varnish. In regard to the use of white lead ground in oil, it makes the rubbing more laborious, increases the liability to scratching, and requires a much longer time to harden before the scouring can be done, without in any appreciable manner improving the quality of the surface when finished.

It may be remarked here that the addition of white lead, whether ground in oil or added dry to the coarser pigment, increases the labor of scouring just in proportion as it is used until sufficient may be used to render the scouring process impossible; hence, it follows that the mixing should be governed by the character of the job in hand. If the job is of a cheap class the use of very little or no lead at all is advisable, and the proportion of Japan and turpentine may also be increased, with the result that a fairly good surface may be obtained with much less labor than in the formula given.

The number of coats of filler required to effect the purpose in any given case must depend upon how well the builder has done his part of the work. If he has left the surface very uneven it follows, as a matter of course, that more coats will be required to make it level, and more of the roughstuff will remain after the leveling process than if the woodwork had been more perfectly done. While the merits of a system or method are not to be judged by its antiquity, there should be a good reason to justify the substitution of a new method for one that has given perfect satisfaction for generations and been used by the best coach painters who ever handled a brush.

A well-known writer on paints says that the effect of a varnish is usually attributed to the manner of its application and the quantity of thinners used for diluting the melted gums, with the prepared oils and the oxidizing agents used in its manufacture. While this has undoubtedly much to do with the successful application of varnish, there are other facts in this connection that should not be overlooked. For example, varnish is sometimes acted on by the breaking up, or the disintegration of the filling coats; which in turn is evidently acted on by the wood itself, according to its nature. {774}

With the aid of the microscope in examining the component parts of wood a cellular tissue is observed which varies in form according to the species and the parts which are inspected. This cellular tissue is made up of small cavities called pores or cells, which are filled with a widely diversified matter and are covered with a hard and usually brittle substance called lignin.

This diversified matter consists of mineral salts and various organic substances, gelatinous in their nature and held in solution by a viscous liquid and containing nitrogenous matter in different combinations, the whole being designated by the general name of albuminous substances. The older the wood the more viscous is the matter; while wood of recent growth (sapwood) contains less viscous matter holding these substances in solution. This albumen in wood acts on substances like filler and varnish in one way or the other, good or bad. The seasoning of wood does not dispose of these substances. The water evaporates, leaving them adhering to the sides of the cells. The drier these substances are the less action they exert on the filler or whatever substance is coated on the surface. If the filler disintegrates, it affects the varnish.

All albuminous substances, be they dry or in liquid form, are subject, more or less, according to the protein they contain—which seems, or rather is, the essential principle of all albuminous matter—to the influence of caustic potash and soda. Thus, the albumen of an egg is exactly like that contained in the composition of wood. As albumen in wood becomes solid by drying, it is easily dissolved again, and will then be acted on chemically by any extraneous substance with which it comes in contact.

Some of the shellacs, substitutes for shellacs, and some of the liquid fillers are manufactured from some of the following substances: Old linseed oil, old varnish, old and hard driers, turpentine, benzine, often gasoline, rosin, whiting, cornstarch flour, nulls, paint skins, silica, and so on. The list is long. To these must be added a large volume of potash, to bring it to and hold it in solution. There must be an excess of potash which is not combined into a chemical compound, which if it did, might mitigate its influence on the albumen of the wood. But as there is potash in its pure state remaining in the solution it necessarily attacks the albumen of the wood, causing disintegration, which releases it from the wood, causing white, grayish flakes, and the formation of a powder. This is not a conclusion drawn from an inference but an established scientific fact resulting from experiments with fillers the various compositions of which were known. All alkalies act on albumen. No one would knowingly varnish over a surface such as it would be were the white of an egg applied to it and then washed with an alkali solution; but that is just what is done when varnish is put over a wood surface filled with a filler which contains an alkali.

Most of the combinations of material used in the painting trade are mixtures; that is, each part remains the same—exerting the same chemical action on another substance, or any other substance coming in contact with a paint mixture will exert the same chemical action on any part, or on any ingredient it contains, the same as if that part was by itself.

We can now account for some of the numerous peculiarities of varnish. We know that any alkali when coming in contact with albumen forms a compound, which on drying is a white, brittle substance easily disintegrated. This is why potash, sal soda, and kindred substances will remove paint. The alkali attacks the albumen in the oil, softening it, causing easy removal, whereas if it were allowed to dry, the albumen in the oil would take on a grayish color quite brittle. Potash or other alkalies in filler not only attack the albumen in the wood, but also attack the albumen in the oil by forming a compound with it. Probably this compound is very slight, only forming a compound in part, enough, nevertheless, to start a destroying influence, which is demonstrated by the following results of experiments. The reader has, perhaps, some time in his career applied a rosin varnish over a potash filler and has been surprised by the good results, a more permanent effect being obtained than in other instances where the best of varnish was used. This is accounted for by the rosin of the potash. Again, the reader may have had occasion to remove varnish with potash and found that potash would not touch it. This is because of its being a rosin varnish. Potash in filler may be rendered somewhat inert, by reason of its compounding with other parts of the filler, but owing to the quantity used in some of the commercial fillers it is not possible that all the alkali is rendered inert. Hence it will attack the albumen wherever found, as all albumen is identical in its chemical composition.

Alkalies have but little effect on the {775} higher classes of gums, because of their effect on the albumen in the wood and oil. All alcohol varnishes or varnishes made by the aid of heat stand well over an alkali filler. Varnishes which contain little oil seem to stand well. This is accounted for by the fact that alcohol renders albumen insoluble. Alkalies of all kinds readily attack shellac and several other of the cheap gums, forming unstable compounds on which oil has but little effect.

Close-grained wood contains less albumen and more lignin than open-grained varieties, and consequently does not take so much filler, which accounts for the finish invariably lasting longer than the same kind used on an open-grained wood. Open-grained wood contains more sap than close grained; consequently there is more albumen to adhere to the sides of the cells. The more albumen, the more readily it is attacked by the potash, and the more readily decomposed, or rather destroyed.

Alcohol renders albumen insoluble immediately on application. It prevents it from compounding with any other substance, or any other substance compounding with it. Hence, we must conclude that an application of alcohol to wood before the filler is applied is valuable, which is proven to be a fact by experiment. Wash one half of a board with alcohol, then apply the potash filler over all. Again, wash the portion of the board on which is the filler and apply a heavy-bodied oil varnish. Expose to sunlight and air the same as a finished door or the like, and wait for the result. At the end of a few months a vast difference will be found in the two parts of the surface. The one on which there is no alcohol will show the ravages of time and the elements much sooner than the one on which it is.

Wood finishers demand a difference in the composition of fillers, paste and liquid, for open- and close-grained wood, respectively; but unfortunately they do not demand a difference between either kind in themselves, according to the kind of wood. Paste fillers are used indiscriminately for open-grained wood and liquid for close-grained wood.

To find the fillers best adapted for a certain wood, and to classify them in this respect will require a large amount of chemical work and practical experiments; but that it should be done is evidenced by the fact that both success and failure result from the use of the same filler on different varieties of wood. After once being classified (owing to the large number now on the market), they will not number nearly so many in the aggregate as might be supposed; as it will be found in many instances that two entirely different varieties of wood resemble each other more closely in their vascular formation and cell characteristics than do two other specimens of the same variety. It is a recognized fact that paste fillers whose base is starch or the like work better and give better results in certain instances, while those whose base is mineral matter seem to do better in other cases.

It is noticed that rosewood as a finishing veneer is obsolete. This is not because of its scarcity, but because it is so hard to finish without having been seasoned for a long time. In these days, manufacturers cannot wait. It takes longer for the sap of rosewood to become inactive, or in trade parlance to “die,” than any other wood. This is because it takes so long for the albumen in the sap to coagulate. Rosewood has always been a source of trouble to piano makers, on account of the action of the sap on the varnish. However, if this wood, previously to filling, was washed with a weak solution of phosphoric acid, and then with wood spirit, it might be more easily finished. The phosphoric acid would coagulate the albumen on the surface of the wood immediately, while alcohol would reduce it to an insoluble state. The idea here is to destroy the activity of the sap, on the same principle as sappy places and knot sap are destroyed by alcohol-shellac before being painted.

Oak is another wood which gives the painter trouble to finish. This may be accounted for as follows: Oak contains a sour acid principle called tannic acid. It is a very active property. Wood during the growing season contains more albumen; thus in the circulation of the sap a large quantity of soft matter is deposited on the lignin which lines the cells, which lignin, if it contains any acid matter, acts on the material of the filler. Tannic acid has a deleterious effect on some of the material of which a number of fillers are made. Starch and many gums are susceptible to its influence, making some of them quite soft. Oak, like most other timber cut at the season when the least sap is in circulation, is the more easily finished.

The vascular formation may, and no doubt has, something to do with wood finishing. Different species of wood differ materially in their vascular and cellular formation. Wood finishers recognize a difference in treatment of French burl walnut and the common American {776} variety. Circassian and Italian walnut, although of the same species, demand widely different treatment in finishing to get the best results.

The only way to find the best materials to use in certain cases is to study and experiment with that end in view. If, by aid of a microscope, a certain piece of wood shows the same cellular formation that another piece did which was successfully finished by a certain process, it may be regarded as safe to treat both alike. If observation on this line is indulged in, it will not take the finisher very long to learn just what treatment is best for the work in hand. How often it has been noticed in something of two parts, like a door, that the panels when finished will pit, run, or sag, while the sides will present a surface in every way desirable and vice versa. This is due to the difference in the cellular construction of the wood and to the cellulose, and cannot be otherwise for the parts have been seasoned the same time and treated exactly alike. The physiology of wood is imperfectly understood, but enough is known to warrant us in saying with a certainty that the chemicals in fillers do act upon the principles embodied in its formation.

Some tried formulas follow:

I.—Make a paste to fill the cracks as follows: Old furniture polish: Whiting, plaster of Paris, pumice stone, litharge, equal parts, Japan drier, boiled linseed oil, turpentine, coloring matter, of each a sufficient quantity.

Rub the solids intimately with a mixture of 1 part of the Japan, 2 parts of the linseed oil, and 3 parts of turpentine, coloring to suit with vandyke brown or sienna. Lay the filling on with a brush, let it set for about 20 minutes, and then rub off clean except where it is to remain. In 2 days it will be hard enough to polish. After the surface has been thus prepared, the application of a coat of first-class copal varnish is in order. It is recommended that the varnish be applied in a moderately warm room, as it is injured by becoming chilled in drying. To get the best results in varnishing, some skill and experience are required. The varnish must be kept in an evenly warm temperature, and put on neither too plentifully nor too gingerly. After a satisfactorily smooth and regular surface has been obtained, the polishing proper may be done. This may be accomplished by manual labor and dexterity, or by the application of a very thin, even coat of a very fine, transparent varnish.

If the hand-polishing method be preferred, it may be pursued by rubbing briskly and thoroughly with the following finishing polish: