704 PEWTER AND THE REVIVAL OF ITS USE. 



that the PeAvterers' Company possessed and exercised their peculiar 

 poAvers. Thus, as has been noted, all tin brought to London was 

 liable to be assayed by the companv's inspector before being sold, 

 and it could be seized and forfeited if of inferior quality, no matter 

 to whom it might belong. It was also ordered (in 1438) that all 

 articles (in accord with a published list) should be of a certain 

 standard AA'eight, thus insuring to purchasers a definite quantity of 

 the metal. This was doubtless an excellent rule to prevent fraud 

 when recasting was so constantly resorted to in order to make good 

 the constant wear and tear to which pewter articles were liable at 

 a time Avhen they AA^ere used for practicall}' all domestic purposes. 

 Thus, it AA^as a definite rule that " chargeours " of the largest size 

 were to AA-eigh three-fourths hundredAveight per dozen, i. e., 7 pounds 

 each, and small " belles " 13 pounds per dozen. 



In the present day and of late years many experiments haA^e been 

 made and various modifications haA'e been tried in the composition of 

 pcAvter, nearly every manufacturer having his oAvn particular for- 

 nuda. For the p)roduction of modern peAA'ter goods aspiring to be 

 classed as artistitfin design, the inferior alloy containing lead is dis- 

 carded altogether (except by the Japanese in the manufacture of 

 their antimony Avare). And to avoid as far as possible the use of 

 copper, which some consider to have a bad effect on the color, tin is 

 noAAadays alloyed in the proportion of about 5 per cent of antiuKmy, 

 or bismuth, or both. An excess of copper imparts a broAvnish tint, 

 whilst the use of lead (ahvays be it remembered the alloy of the 

 so-called second quality peAvter) imparts the Avell-known gray color 

 lone Avhich, be it acknoAvIedged, has for some of us a decided charm. 

 Still, as AA'e knoAv, if lead is used beyond a certain proportion it ren- 

 ders the peAvter dangerous for the use of liquors containing acids, 

 such as beer, Avine, vinegar, etc., b}^ reason of the chemical action they 

 set up, the excess lead producing poisonous oxides. 



A series of ex])eriments Avere made some years ago under the 

 auspices of the French (iovernment, Avhich resulted in a laAA' being 

 passed prescribing the proportion of lead which may safely be used, 

 and this was fixed for France at IG^ per cent. The old peAA^terers 

 appear to have had one advantage over the modern in the fact that 

 their lead nearly always contained a small jjercentage of silver, 

 AA'hich (unfortunately for the pcAvter trade) science has enabled the 

 modern smelters to extract. That is to say, the fascinating luster 

 AA'hich many old pieces of peAvter possess is generally ascribed to the 

 presence of this small proportion of silver in alloy. Modern German 

 peAA^ter, as compared Avith modern English, contains a much larger 

 proportion of antimony, Avith some bismuth, and gives out when bent 

 or bitten (which the mo(knni English does in a far less degree) the 

 Avell-knoAvn distinguishing crackle or cri. Modern German pewter 



