CHAMBERS'S INFORMATION FOR THE PEOPLE. 



shell is fit for a cabinet after such mutilation. 

 Shells may be either kept in trays divided into 

 numerous compartments, or attached to cards 

 with a little gum. In the latter case, it requires 

 two specimens one to exhibit the front, the other 

 the back of the shell. Minute and fragile shells 

 are best preserved in glass-tubes common test- 

 tubes. 



Minerals are kept with little trouble, if dust be 

 excluded. Never lift a fine specimen with the 

 naked hand ; stains of grease and perspiration 

 are intolerable. Dust always with a pair of bel- 

 lows. Certain species will endure washing ; in 

 other cases, the appearance may be restored by 

 fracturing anew. 



Preserving Flowers Fresh. Flowers may be 

 preserved in a fresh state for a considerable time 

 by keeping them in a moist atmosphere. In the 

 Gardeners Chronicle, the following remarks ap- 

 pear on this subject : ' It is now eighteen years 

 ago since we first saw, in the drawing-room of a 

 gentleman, in the hot dry weather of the dog-days, 

 flowers preserved day after day in all their fresh- 

 ness by the following simple contrivance : A flat 

 dish of porcelain had water poured into it. In the 

 water a vase of flowers was set ; over the whole 

 a bell-glass was placed with its rim in the water. 

 This was a " Ward's Case " in principle, although 

 different in its construction. The air that sur- 

 rounded the flowers being confined beneath the 

 bell-glass, was constantly moist with the water 

 that rose into it in the form of vapour. As fast 

 as the water was condensed, it ran down the sides 

 of the bell-glass back into the dish ; and if means 

 had been taken to inclose the water on the out- 

 side of the bell-glass, so as to prevent its evapor- 

 ating into the air of the sitting-room, the atmos- 

 phere around the flowers would have remained 

 continually damp. What is the explanation of 

 this ? Do the flowers feed on the viewless vapour 

 that surrounds them? Perhaps they do ; but the 

 great cause of their preserving their freshness is 

 to be sought in another fact. When flowers are 

 brought into a sitting-room, they fade because of 

 the dryness of the air. The air of a sitting-room 

 is usually something drier than that of the garden, 

 and always much more so than that of a good 

 green-house or stove. Flowers, when gathered, 

 are cut off from the supply of moisture collected 

 for .them by their roots, and their mutilated stems 

 are far from having so great a power of suck- 

 ing up fluids as the roots have. If, then, with 

 diminished powers of feeding, they are exposed to 

 augmented perspiration, as is the case in a dry 

 sitting-room, it is evident that the balance of gain, 

 on the one hand, by the roots, and of loss, on 

 the other hand, by their whole surface, cannot be 

 maintained. The result can only be their destruc- 

 tion. Now, to place them in a damp atmosphere, 

 is to restore this balance ; because, if their power 

 of sucking by their wounded ends is diminished, 

 so is their power of perspiring ; for a damp 

 atmosphere will rob them of no water hence 

 they maintain their freshness. The only difference 

 between plants in a " Ward's Case," and flowers 

 in the little apparatus just described, is this that 

 the former is intended for plants to grow in for a 

 considerable space of time, while the latter is 

 merely for their' preservation for a few days ; and 

 that the air which surrounds the flowers is always 

 charged with the same quantity of vapour, and 



798 



will vary with the circumstances, and at the will 

 of him who has the management of it. We recom- 

 mend those who love to see fresh flowers in their 

 sitting-rooms in dry weather to procure it. The 

 experiment can be tried by inverting a tumbler 

 over a rosebud in a saucer of water.' 



PERSONAL ECONOMY THE TOILET. 



Personal cleaning and decoration are the proper 

 duties at the toilet. We shall speak first of 

 matters connected with the gentleman's toilet : 



Shaving. Some beards are more hard and 

 difficult to shave than others. The usual plan is 

 to soften them with soap-lather ; but this is not 

 sufficient with beards that are somewhat stubborn. 

 We recommend all who in these days of long 

 beards still prefer a shaven chin, to try the follow- 

 ing plan : Rub the face or beard with a little soap 

 and water with the hand over the basin, and when 

 pretty well rubbed or softened, apply the lather. 

 Raise the lather with warm water, and apply with 

 a brush. Among the shaving pastes in vogue, 

 that sold in the shops as almond cream is one of 

 the best, although not better, probably, than any 

 good toilet soap. Although warm water is most 

 agreeable and suitable for shaving with, it is ad- 

 vantageous for every one to accustom himself to 

 shaving with cold water, as it will render him inde- 

 pendent of such assistance when travelling, or in 

 cases of emergency. 



It is of no use going to great expense in pur- 

 chasing razors. A razor of the best kind may be 

 had for from four to eight shillings ; and as their 

 tempering is very much a matter of chance, some- 

 times a first-rate razor may be had for one or two 

 shillings. Supposing a sharp and good razor to 

 be procured, it may last a whole lifetime with 

 ordinary care. When to be used, dip the 

 razor in hot water, for this adds keenness to the 

 edge ; and before putting it away, wash the razor 

 gently, to remove all impurities. Do not wipe it 

 with or upon paper, for that spoils the edge ; wipe 

 it only with a fine rag. Before putting it away in 

 its case, give it a turn or two on a strop. Several 

 kinds of strops are now offered for sale ; and all, 

 very properly, are mounted on hard board. In 

 any case, take care always to draw the razor 

 smoothly and flatly from heel to point along the 

 strop. Do not draw first one way and then push 

 another. In general, one or two turns will be 

 enough. Never leave your razors in drawers or 

 cases which are accessible to servants or children. 

 By locking them up, you will keep them in better 

 order than by all the other means you employ. 



Razor-pastes. This is the term applied to cer- 

 tain compositions applied to razor-strops to give 

 them the necessary whetting surface. The follow- 

 ing are recommended : i. Emery reduced to an 

 impalpable powder, two parts ; spermaceti oint- 

 ment, one part : mix together, and rub it over 

 the strop. 2. Prepared putty-powder, one ounce ; 

 powdered oxalic acid, one-fourth ounce ; powdered 

 gum, twenty grains ; make it into a stiff paste 

 with water, and evenly and thinly spread it over 

 the strop. With very little friction, this last is 

 said to give a fine edge to the razor, and its effi- 

 ciency is still further increased by being moistened. 



Cut in Shaving. The bleeding may be at once 

 effectually stopped by placing on the wound a 

 small portion of wool from a beaver-hat. We 



