Fire-places and Kitchen Utensils. 451 



what he may have no curiosity to examine, I shall divide 

 my subject as much as possible, and shall treat each 

 distinct branch of it under a separate head of inquiry. 



I shall likewise make a liberal use of figures, for by 

 means of them it is often possible to convey more satis- 

 factory information at a single glance than could be 

 obtained by reading many sentences. Whenever I sit 

 down to write, I feel my mind deeply impressed with 

 a sense of the respect which I owe, as an individual, 

 to the public, to whom I presume to address myself; 

 and often consider how blamable it would be in 

 me, especially when I am endeavouring to recommend 

 economy, to trifle with the time of thousands. 



Too much pains cannot be taken by those who write 

 books to render their ideas clear, and their language 

 concise and easy to be understood. 



Hours spent by an author in saving minutes or even 

 seconds to his readers is time well employed. But I 

 must hasten to get forward. 



Of the Construction of cheap Boilers and Stewpans of 

 Tin or cast Iron, proper to be used with small port- 

 able Furnaces. 



These utensils, when they are made of tin, may be 

 constructed on the same principles as the tea-kettles 

 described in the last chapter; that is to say, their bot- 

 toms being raised up about half an inch above the 

 level of the lower part of their conical or cylindrical 

 sides, and being moreover made of a proper diameter 

 to fit the sand-rim of the furnace, they may be used 

 without being made double. When they are of cast 

 iron, they may be made of the same form below as the 



