USE OF SOAP 233 



dirty, we must use plenty of soap and water. This water 

 must be soft, because hard water (which has certain min- 

 eral substances dissolved in it) will not always do its 

 work, even if soap is used. It is usually better to soak 

 the clothes in cold water first to loosen the dirt, and later 

 to wash in hot water. Boiling water should not be used 

 in washing woolen goods as it renders them less porous 

 and therefore not so warm. Alkaline soaps and other 

 alkalies should not be used in washing woolens because 

 alkalies dissolve wool. 



Bleaching. Sometimes we may bleach out the stains 

 after having placed the clothing in the water, and for 

 this purpose, nature's own ways, sunlight and the oxygen 

 of the air, are useful, although bleaching substances, 

 such as Javelle water, lemon juice, cream of tartar, and 

 other substances are used. A good home project would 

 be to find out the properties of some of the bleaching agents 

 mentioned, and some others sold in stores. In Javelle 

 water and in most household bleaching agents, the substance 

 which does the bleaching is chlorine, which forms the base of 

 some of the poison gases which have done such terrible 

 havoc on the battle fields of the World War. Chlorine 

 or bleaching powder must not be used in bleaching wool and 

 silk because it stains them yellow. 



Use of soap. We have all heard of the days when 

 our great-grandmothers made soft soap by placing to- 

 gether scraps of fat, butter, tallow candles, and the like, 

 and melting them down with a strong solution of lye, 

 which was made by treating wood ashes with lime. Now 

 hard soap is made by the addition of certain other sub- 

 stances and it has become a necessity of our lives. Soap is 

 a solvent which breaks grease up into tiny particles, form- 



