Part 285

II.—Dissolve white wax, 5.0 parts, in ether, 20.5 parts, and add spirit, 75.0 parts. Shake before use.

Heat until melted, in a pot, 1,000 parts {445} of wax and 1,000 parts of stearine, as well as a few drops of an essential oil. To the hot liquid add with careful stirring 250 parts of ammonia lye of 10 per cent, whereby a thick, soft mass results immediately. Upon further heating same turns thin again, whereupon it is diluted with 20,000 parts of boiling water, mixed with 100 parts of starch and poured into molds.

«STARCHES.»

Most laundry starches now contain some polishing mixture for giving a high luster.

I.—Dissolve in a vessel of sufficient capacity, 42 parts of crystallized magnesium chloride in 30 parts of water. In another vessel stir 12 parts of starch in 20 parts of water to a smooth paste. Mix the two and heat under pressure until the starch is fluidified.

II.—Pour 250 parts, by weight, of water, over 5 parts, by weight, of powdered gum tragacanth until the powder swells uniformly; then add 750 parts, by weight, of boiling water, dissolve 50 parts, by weight, of borax in it, and stir 50 parts, by weight, of stearine and 50 parts, by weight, of talcum into the whole. Of this fluid add 250 parts to 1,000 parts of boiled starch, or else the ironing oil is applied by means of a sponge on the starched wash, which is then ironed.

By weight

III.—Starch 1,044 parts Borax 9 parts Common salt 1 part Gum arabic 8 parts Stearine 20 parts

«WASHING FLUIDS, BRICKS AND POWDERS:»

«Washing Fluids.»—Rub up 75 parts of milk of sulphur with 125 parts of glycerine in a mortar, next add 50 parts of camphorated spirit and 1 part of lavender oil, and finally stir in 250 parts of rose water and 1,000 parts of distilled water. The liquid must be stirred constantly when filling it into bottles, since the sulphur settles rapidly and would thus be unevenly distributed.

«Grosser’s Washing Brick.»—

Water 54 parts Sodium hydrate 38.21 parts Sodium biborate 6.61 parts Sodium silicate 1.70 parts

«Haenkel’s Bleaching Solution.»—

Water 36.15 parts Sodium hydrate 40.22 parts Sodium silicate 23.14 parts

«Luhn’s Washing Extract.»—

Water 34.50 parts Sodium hydrate 25.33 parts Soap 39.40 parts

«Washing Powders.»—

I.—Sodium carbonate, partly effloresced 2 parts Soda ash 1 part

II.—Sodium carbonate, partly effloresced 6 parts Soda ash 3 parts Yellow soap 1 part

III.—Sodium carbonate, partly effloresced 3 parts Soap bark 1 part

IV.—Sodium carbonate, partly effloresced 1 part Borax 1 part Yellow soap 1 part

V.—A good powder can be made from 100 parts of crystal soda, 25 parts of dark-yellow rosin-cured soap, and 5 parts of soft soap. The two latter are placed in a pan, along with one-half the soda (the curd soap being cut into small lumps), and slowly heated, with continual crutching, until they are thoroughly melted—without, however, beginning to boil. The fire is then drawn and the remaining soda crutched in until it, too, is melted, this being effected by the residual heat of the mass and the pan. The mass will be fairly thick by the time the soda is all absorbed. After leaving a little longer, with occasional stirring, the contents are spread out on several thin sheets of iron in a cool room, to be then turned over by the shovel at short intervals, in order to further cool and break down the mixture. The soap will then be in a friable condition, and can be rubbed through the sieve, the best results being obtained by passing through a coarse sieve first, and one of finer mesh afterwards. With these ingredients a fine yellow-colored powder will be obtained. White stock soap may also be used, and, if desired, colored with palm oil and the same colorings as are used for toilet soaps. The object of adding soft soap is to increase the solubility and softness of the powder, but the proportion used should not exceed one-third of the hard soap, or the powder will be smeary and handle moist. The quality of the foregoing product is good, the powder being stable and not liable to ball, even after prolonged storage; neither does it wet the paper in which it is packed, nor swell up, and therefore the packets retain their appearance. {446}

In making ammonia-turpentine soap powder the ammonia and oil of turpentine are crutched into the mass shortly before removing it from the pan, and if the powder is scented—for which purpose oil of mirbane is mostly used—the perfume is added at the same stage.

«To Whiten Flannels.»—Dissolve, by the aid of heat, 40 parts of white castile soap, shaved fine, in 1,200 parts of soft water, and to the solution, when cold, gradually add, under constant stirring, 1 part of the strongest water of ammonia. Soak the goods in this solution for 2 hours, then let them be washed as usual for fine flannels. A better process, in the hands of experts, is to soak the goods for an hour or so in a dilute solution of sodium hyposulphite, remove, add to the solution sufficient dilute hydrochloric acid to decompose the hyposulphite. Replace the goods, cover the tub closely, and let remain for 15 minutes longer. Then remove the running water, if convenient, and if not, wring out quickly, and rinse in clear water. One not an expert at such work must be very careful in the rinsing, as care must be taken to get out every trace of chemical. This is best done by a second rinsing.

«Ink for the Laundry.»—The following is said to make a fine, jet-black laundry ink:

a. Copper chloride, crystals 85 parts Sodium chlorate 106 parts Ammonium chloride 53 parts Water, distilled 600 parts

b. Glycerine 100 parts Mucilage gum arabic (gum, 1 part; water, 2 parts) 200 parts Aniline hydrochlorate 200 parts Distilled water 300 parts

Make solutions a and b and preserve in separate bottles. When wanted for use, mix 1 part of solution a with 4 parts of solution b.