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solvent may readily be procured from or through any 

 apothecary. It is produced on a commercial scale by 

 the dry distillation of acetate of lime. It resembles al- 

 cohol in appearance, is highly volatile and inflammable, 

 has a slight empyreumatic odor, is neither acid nor al- 

 kaline, and is one of the best solvents for resins, fats, 

 camphor, and gun-cotton, of which two latter bodies cel- 

 luloid is a product. Besides its ordinary use as a sol- 

 vent, it is employed in the arts for the manufacture of 

 chloroform, and as a solvent for gun-cotton and nitro- 

 glycerine in the production of smokeless powders. It 

 is as safe as alcohol if the same precautions are taken 

 in its use. 



The procedure may be substantially as follows : 

 Gradually add translucent scrap celluloid, such as is 

 used in photographic films, to a pint or more of acetone 

 until the resulting solution is of the desired consistency. 

 Then try a drop or two to see whether it dries transpa- 

 rent and firm, or white and friable. If the first, it is all 

 right ; if the last, it is all wrong. 



The same test should be applied if bought celluloid 

 varnish is to be used. A small sample should be thinned 

 with acetone to the desired degree, and then a drop or 

 two should be tried in the same way. In either case if 

 the varnish dries white it is due to water in the acetone. 

 Like alcohol, all acetone contains water unless special 

 means have been taken to eliminate it. From a solu- 

 tion of celluloid in acetone, the highly volatile acetone 

 first evaporates, leaving the water, until the remaining 

 solvent contains so large a proportion of water as to be 

 no longer a solvent and the celluloid separates. 



Assuming that the varnish dries white, then add pe- 

 troleum benzine of low boiling point, such as is used to 



