ON COLORING. 69 



in a decoction of one or more dye-stuffs, as directed below. 

 The cloth must now be soaked in warm water, in which a little 

 ox gall has been infused, and rinsed out, without rubbing, till 

 the gum and loose particles of matter applied by the pencil, 

 are washed out. Let it be now immersed in a decoction of 

 quercitron bark, as directed for a yellow dye, and afterwards 

 dipped in a mixture of warm water and powdered chalk, or 

 weak lime water, and it will be found that the parts alumed 

 have become a bright yellow, the alumed parts to which the 

 indigo was applied have become green, the indigo on other parts 

 remaining blue, the black unchanged, other colors produced on 

 those parts upon which other mordants have been applied, and 

 the remainder of the cloth slightly stained with the bark, which, 

 however, will be readily removed by washing with cold or warm 

 water, or by boiling it with water mixed with bran, and then 

 slightly bleaching it in the sun and air on the grass. If you wish 

 an addition of red, it may be now applied to the white or yellow 

 parts in the following manner. Take alum two scruples, sugar 

 of lead one scruple, nitro-muriate or murio-sulphate of tin one 

 scruple, cochineal two scruples, water three ounces — boil them 

 together, thicken with gum arabic, and apply it with a pencil as 

 suits your fancy ; on the yellow it will produce a scarlet, and on 

 the white crimson. If instead of using the quercitron bark, you 

 dye the cloth with madder, or Nicaragua wood, the alumed parts 

 will become red, the indigoed purple, &c. 



The preceding essay has been carefully, though hastily, com- 

 piled from Bancroft's Philosophy of permanent colors, and sev- 

 eral other treatises on coloring, of good authority. Many of the 

 methods directed we have proved correct, by experiments of our 

 own, and we confidently recommend them to all interested. If 

 the directions given be carefully followed, we doubt not any of 

 the above colors will be obtained in a good degree of perfection. 

 Good dyestuffs, of the kinds mentioned, will be indispensable to 

 success. To distinguish the true quercitron from the bark of 

 other oaks which nearly resemble it, you will do well to soak a 

 small piece of it either in your mouth or in warm water, and dip 

 it in the murio-sulphate or other solution of tin. If it be the 



