183S] 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



133 



and dovelopcs in it an acid. This cfl'cct is avII- 

 nessod principally when ihc lermcntin^ tun issunl< 

 in moist earlh, and may be olivialeciby placinii: it 

 upon baked wooden bearers, reslin>j; upon dry bricks 

 or wooden piers, so as to ell'ect its insulation. 

 JVlr. J>lack also stated, that durinji; the prevalence 

 of hifjhly electrified clouds, the labricalion of cast 

 iron does not succeed so well as in other slates of 

 the atmosphere. 



From the Quarterly Journal of Agriculture. 



ENAMELLED HARDWARE. 



This admirable substance is of German inven- 

 tion, and has only of late years been introduced 

 into the southern part of this country, where it is 

 still but partially known. The art of enamelling 

 on iron, it is said, cannot be accomplished by our 

 manufacturers; and we are in a degree disposed 

 to give credence to the assertion; for we know two 

 instances in which potters have given their opi- 

 nions ofthe impracticability of its accomplishment. 

 During a visit to London three or four years since, 

 our attention was attracted by some iron sauce- 

 pans and frying pans, as we passed the shop of 

 an ironmonger at the corner ofthe Old Bailey, on 

 Ludgate Hill, which appeared as if they were 

 lined with white paper, instead of being tinned in 

 the usual way. On investigation, we found them 

 to be enamelled; and, by inquiry, learnt the fol- 

 lowing particulars: — That they are imported, a 

 ship-load at a time, from Germany; that the 

 manufacture is unknown in England; that they 

 are durable, and not liable to injure. 



We immediately purchased one; and, subse- 

 quently, several others of difierent sizes, as well 

 as a frying pan, and are entirely satisfied xoiih 

 them all. We will enumerate their advantages, 

 and our readers will thus judge for themselves, 

 whether or not our panegyric is too highly colored, 

 when we pronounce them to be the ne plus ultra 

 of cooking utensils, — without a fault! They are 

 kept clean with the least possible trouble; they 

 never crack or craze, and they perfectly retain the 

 color and the flavor of every product ofthe culina- 

 ry art; so many sad accidents have resulted, and 

 are still occurring, from the use of copper sauce- 

 pans, stew-pans, &c., that it becomes a duty, 

 with every writer of infiuence, to dissuade the 

 public from the use of them, by urging the delete- 

 rious nature of copper on their attention. To our 

 readers, we are well aware, this information will 

 be superfluous; but they must know, as well as 

 ourselves, that errors remain unrectified, — abuses 

 exist unabated — faults rest unreproved — dangers 

 lurk and threaten uncared for, until our natural 

 supineness is roused by an actual evil overtaking 

 us, which miffht and ought to have been prevent- 

 ed from existing. When too late to avert a ca- 

 lamity, we wonder at our apathy, and bewail our 

 culpable remissness. Gentlemen are out of the 

 sphere of copper stew-pans, and provided they find 

 their dinners well appointed, care nought for the 

 kind of metal in which they are cooked; domestic 

 matters being very properly consigned to the lady 

 of the establishment. But it unfortunately hap- 

 pens, that ladies dislike to interfere, and rely upon 

 the sagacity of their housekeepers, who also de- 

 pend upon the cleanliness of their subordinate 

 kitchen-maids; and thus may the lives of a whole 

 household be periled by the ignorance or idleness 



of this denizen of the scullery, as yft unvisilcd by 

 "divine philosophy." Wc can well iniagiiM', that 

 on reaching this period of our subject, some ''lord 

 of a wide domain " looking off liom his " Quar- 

 teiiy Journal," will address his lady with this 

 startling question, " Are there any copper stew- 

 pans or saucc-paiis in the kitchens, my love7" To 

 wliicli she will, with unleigncd surprise, reply, 

 "Really, my dear, I not know, but I dare say Har- 

 ris can inform you ;" and the aflair of poison in a 

 ragout being momentous, the housekeeper would 

 be summoned, and be in turn astonished with a 

 similar query. Her reply of "Yes, at least a do- 

 zen," would complete tne incipient dismay; and 

 an order to have the dangerous utensils abolished, 

 with the reason assigned, would infallibly elicit a 

 decided assurance on the part of the confidential 

 servant, that "all stews ?wi/si be made in copper, 

 lor iron, tinned, would impart a flavor; that pre- 

 serves and pickles must be boiled in copper, be- 

 cause they would lose all color, and not be fit 

 to be placed on table, if iron was to be substituted." 

 This imperative "wwsi" would, alas ! in too 

 many cases, decide the matter, and that vile per- 

 nicious copper still bear sway in the kitchens. In 

 these admirable German stew-pans, however, we 

 have a succedaneuni of unquestionable capabili- 

 ties, to supersede the necessity of pleasing our eye 

 at the risk of our lives. Every species of cooking 

 has been performed in our own utensils for several 

 years, and to liir greater perfection than we ever 

 experienced, previously to the introduction of the 

 enamelled hardware. Independently of its salu- 

 brity, we should give it tlie preference over every 

 other; for, in consequence of the delicate and inno- 

 cent nature of the glaze, which resembles that of 

 china, all color and flavor are preserved in their 

 utmost purity; and all housewives are aware, that 

 these are desiderata in pickling and preserving. 



We have stated that this ware is not liable to 

 injure; but we ought to have placed this essential 

 advantage in much more forcible language. The 

 union of the enamel with the iron is so intimate, 

 ihcy are so entirely amalgamated, that it is utter- 

 ly impossible to effect a separation; and we have 

 known, that in the attempt several iron tools have 

 been broken. 



If we knew of a fault in them we would gladly 

 name it, not only as a guide to ourselves in our 

 future purchases, but because our readers would, 

 perhaps, trust rather to qualified than unqualified 

 praise. The only drawback which we ever ibund, 

 was in their weight, which was greater than 

 those made in England ofthe same size, and per- 

 haps a dissightliness in the forms compared with 

 those of" our own manufacture; but both of these 

 triliing objections have recen.ly been removed. 

 We confess that we had migivings when we 

 made up our mind to order a frying-pan, that the 

 enamel would not endure the very great heat to 

 which that kind of cooking necessarily subjects 

 the vehicle in which it is performed; but we are 

 gratified in being able to assert, that we have had 

 one in frequent use for some months past, and it is 

 as white and uninjured as when we received it 

 first. , 



We should rejoice to hear that our manufiic- 

 turers intend to give their attention to this useful 

 and beautiiul art; and what can they not achieve 

 with that industry, perseverance, science, wealth, 

 and emulation, for which they arc, above those of 

 all other nations, celebrated? 



