Part 125

Cut or shave up the soap, add the water, and heat on the water bath to a smooth paste. Remove, let cool, and add the other ingredients and mix thoroughly.

V.—Castile soap, white, old, and dry 100 parts Water 75 parts Tincture of quillaia 10 parts Ether, sulphuric 10 parts Ammonia water, FF 5 parts Benzine, deodorized 75 parts

Melt the soap, previously finely shaved, in the water, bring to a boil and remove from the fire. Let cool down, then add the other ingredients, incorporating them thoroughly. This should be put up in collapsible tubes or tightly closed metallic boxes. This is also useful for clothing.

«Liquid Cloth and Glove Cleaner.»—

Gasoline. 1 gallon Chloroform. 1 ounce Carbon disulphide 1 ounce {196} Essential oil almond 5 drops Oil bergamot 1 drachm Oil cloves 5 drops

Mix. To be applied with a sponge or soft cloth.

«STONE CLEANING:»

«Cleaning and Polishing Marble.»—I.—Marble that has become dirty by ordinary use or exposure may be cleaned by a simple bath of soap and water.

If this does not remove stains, a weak solution of oxalic acid should be applied with a sponge or rag, washing quickly and thoroughly with water to minimize injury to the surface.

Rubbing well after this with chalk moistened with water will, in a measure, restore the luster. Another method of finishing is to apply a solution of white wax in turpentine (about 1 in 10), rubbing thoroughly with a piece of flannel or soft leather.

If the marble has been much exposed, so that its luster has been seriously impaired, it may be necessary to repolish it in a more thorough manner. This may be accomplished by rubbing it first with sand, beginning with a moderately coarse-grained article and changing this twice for finer kinds, after which tripoli or pumice is used. The final polish is given by the so-called putty powder. A plate of iron is generally used in applying the coarse sand; with the fine sand a leaden plate is used; and the pumice is employed in the form of a smooth-surfaced piece of convenient size. For the final polishing coarse linen or bagging is used, wedged tightly into an iron planing tool. During all these applications water is allowed to trickle over the face of the stone.

The putty powder referred to is binoxide of tin, obtained by treating metallic tin with nitric acid, which converts the metal into hydrated metastannic acid. This, when heated, becomes anhydrous. In this condition it is known as putty powder. In practice putty powder is mixed with alum, sulphur, and other substances, the mixture used being dependent upon the nature of the stone to be polished.

According to Warwick, colored marble should not be treated with soap and water, but only with the solution of beeswax above mentioned.

II.—Take 2 parts of sodium bicarbonate, 1 part of powdered pumice stone, and 1 part of finely pulverized chalk. Pass through a fine sieve to screen out all particles capable of scratching the marble, and add sufficient water to form a pasty mass. Rub the marble with it vigorously, and end the cleaning with soap and water.

III.—Ox gall 1 part Saturated solution of sodium carbonate 4 parts Oil of turpentine 1 part Pipe clay enough to form a paste.

IV.—Sodium carbonate 2 ounces Chlorinated lime. 1 ounce Water 14 ounces

Mix well and apply the magma to the marble with a cloth, rubbing well in, and finally rubbing dry. It may be necessary to repeat this operation.

V.—Wash the surface with a mixture of finely powdered pumice stone and vinegar, and leave it for several hours; then brush it hard and wash it clean. When dry, rub with whiting and wash leather.

VI.—Soft soap. 4 parts Whiting 4 parts Sodium bicarbonate 1 part Copper sulphate 2 parts

Mix thoroughly and rub over the marble with a piece of flannel, and leave it on for 24 hours, then wash it off with clean water, and polish the marble with a piece of flannel or an old piece of felt.

VII.—A strong solution of oxalic acid effectually takes out ink stains. In handling it the poisonous nature of this acid should not be forgotten.

VIII.—Iron mold or ink spots may be taken out in the following manner: Take 1⁠/⁠2 ounce of butter of antimony and 1 ounce of oxalic acid and dissolve them in 1 pint of rain water; add enough flour to bring the mixture to a proper consistency. Lay it evenly on the stained part with a brush, and, after it has remained for a few days, wash it off and repeat the process if the stain is not wholly removed.

IX.—To remove oil stains apply common clay saturated with benzine. If the grease has remained in long the polish will be injured, but the stain will be removed.

X.—The following method for removing rust from iron depends upon the solubility of the sulphide of iron in a solution of cyanide of potassium. Clay is made into a thin paste with ammonium sulphide, and the rust spot smeared with the mixture, care being taken that the spot is only just covered. After ten minutes this paste is washed off and replaced by one consisting of white bole mixed with a solution of potassium cyanide (1 to 4), which is in its turn {197} washed off after about 2 1⁠/⁠2 hours. Should a reddish spot remain after washing off the first paste, a second layer may be applied for about 5 minutes.

XI.—Soft soap 4 ounces Whiting 4 ounces Sodium carbonate 1 ounce Water, a sufficient quantity. Make into a thin paste, apply on the soiled surface, and wash off after 24 hours.

XII.—In a spacious tub place a tall vessel upside down. On this set the article to be cleaned so that it will not stand in the water, which would loosen the cemented parts. Into this tub pour a few inches of cold water—hot water renders marble dull—take a soft brush and a piece of Venetian soap, dip the former in the water and rub on the latter carefully, brushing off the article from top to bottom. When in this manner dust and dirt have been dissolved, wash off all soap particles by means of a watering pot and cold water, dab the object with a clean sponge, which absorbs the moisture, place it upon a cloth and carefully dry with a very clean, soft cloth, rubbing gently. This treatment will restore the former gloss to the marble.

XIII.—Mix and shake thoroughly in a bottle equal quantities of sulphuric acid and lemon juice. Moisten the spots and rub them lightly with a linen cloth and they will disappear.

XIV.—Ink spots are treated with acid oxalate of potassium; blood stains by brushing with alabaster dust and distilled water, then bleaching with chlorine solution. Alizarine ink and aniline ink spots can be moderated by laying on rags saturated with Javelle water, chlorine water, or chloride of lime paste. Old oil stains can only be effaced by placing the whole piece of marble for hours in benzine. Fresh oil or grease spots are obliterated by repeated applications of a little damp, white clay and subsequent brushing with soap water or weak soda solution. For many other spots an application of benzine and magnesia is useful.