XVI 



AMERICAN MOMES AND GARDENS 



September, 1910 



measures of sand per measure of lime for 

 ground and to mix the sand with the hot 

 good work, but it is doubtful whether the 

 resulting mortar is greatly improved. On 

 the other hand, if plaster of paris be mixed 

 with the lime, a greater proportion of sand 

 can be carried without loss of strength, 

 though it is hardly worth doing, owing to 

 the extra cost of the plaster and to its solu- 

 bility. 



If a( stronger mortar be required, as in 

 very thin partition walls, or in weight-car- 

 rying piers, Lius lime should take the place 

 of the ground stone lime, or else Portland 

 cement should be used. With cement as the 

 matrix the proportion of sand may be raised 

 to as much as six to one in almost all cases. 

 Cement mortar must only be mixed as re- 

 quired, a little at a time, else it will com- 

 mence to set before it is finally worked up 

 with the trowel before use, and if this oc- 

 curs, its strength becomes greatly impaired. 



Coloring substances ought not to be 

 mixed with mortar, particularly if they are 

 of an earthy nature, like the umbers and 

 ochers, but a dark mortar, very suitable for 

 the facing of red brickwork, can be made 

 by using blacksmith's ashes or foundry sand 

 in place of ordinary yellow sand. 



Lime mortar is best mixed in a mortar 

 mill, the sand and lime being shoveled in as 

 it revolves, three spadefuls nf one to one 

 spadeful of the other, only just enough wa- 

 ter being added to bring the whole to the 

 consistency of porridge ; but cement mortar 

 having to be made in small quantities, must 

 be mixed by hand. Like cement concrete, it 

 should be mixed dry, the water added 

 through the rose nf a walcriug pot, ami 

 then mixed again with wet. 



ETCHING ON GLASS 



FANCY ornamental work, ornamental 

 figures, lettering, and monograms are 

 most easily and neatly cut into glass 

 by the sand-blast process. Lines and fig- 

 ures on tubes, jars, etc., may be deeply 

 etched by smearing the surface of the glass 

 with beeswax, drawing the lines with a 

 steel point, and exposing the glass to the 

 fumes of hydrofluoric acid. This acid is 

 obtained by putting powdered fluorspar 

 into a tray made of sheet lead and pouring 

 sulphuric acid on it, after which the tray 

 is slightly warmed. The proportions will, 

 of course, vary with the purity of the ma- 

 terials used, fluorspar (except when in 

 crystals) being generally mixed with a 

 large quantity of other matter, but this 

 point need' not alTect the success of the 

 operation. Enough acid to make a thin 

 paste with the powdered spar will be about 

 right. Where a lead tray is not at hand, 

 the powdered spar may be poured on the 

 glass and the acid poured on it and left or 

 some time. As a general rule, the marks 

 are opaque, but sometimes they are trans- 

 parent. In this case, cut them deeply and 

 fill up with black varnish, if they are re- 

 quired to be very plain, as in the case of 

 graduated vessels. Liquid hydrofluoric 

 acid has been recommended for etching, 

 but is not suitable, as it leaves the surface 

 on which it acts transparent. The agent 

 which corrodes the glass is a gas which 

 does not remain in the mixture of spar and 

 acid, but passes off in the vapor. 



The following formula has been pub- 

 lished under the title of "Etching Ink" : 



. Ammonium fluoride ... 2 drachms 

 Barium sulphate 2 drachms 



Reduce to a fine powder in a mortar, 

 then transfer to a lead dish and make into 



Sunlight Double Glass Sash in yaril of R. A. Mason, Westerly, R. I. 



Winter Gardening Without the Worry 



and Drudgery. 



With Sunlight Double Glass Sash you eliminate the covering and 

 uncovering, the getting out in the cold or snow or wet to handle 

 heavy shutters or soggy mats. 



You never have to cover .Sunlight Double Glass Sa'h 

 All you have to do is to rai.se the sash to admit air on warm 

 days, or occasionally to water the beds. 



This double layer of glass does it 



Between the two layers is a %-inch transparent blanket of dry still 

 air, keeping in the heat, keeping out the cold. Better than hea\y, expeii- 

 ^i\e mats or buards because it sales labor and permits the plants to get all 

 tliejight all the time, which means that they will grow faster and become 

 hardier. Glass s ips in and is securely held without putty; easily re- 

 paired; cannot work loose. 



Some of the things you can grow 



I'rcsh lettuce and radishes all winrcr. Cabbage, cauliriower, beets, 

 tomatoes, peppers and sweet pot.atoes to set out early in the spring. \'iolets 

 all winter, paiisies in bloom in February or Marcii. Last season amateurs 

 all over the country were phenomenally successful. 

 Get these two books 



One is our free catalna The 

 other is a book on liolbeds and 

 coldfranies by Prof. Massey, an 

 authority on the subject. U tells 

 huw to make and care for the 

 beds, what and when to plant. 

 -Ic. in stamps will bring Prof. 

 Massey's book in addition to the 

 caialog. 



Agents wanted — write us and finil out bow 

 you can get agency for these sash. 



SUNLIGHT DOUBLE GLASS SASH CO. 



943 E. Broadway, Louisville, Ky. 



FARR'S PEONIES 



Strong — Healthy — True to Name 

 — Plant Now — Gain a Year's Time 

 — And Have Blooms Next June. 



''ici|iialedin splendor and stateli'ness, 

 nil •, were tlie clianii of the old-fashioned 

 U L;.irden, and the wonderful new varie- 

 le. eiitlv iiilru iti>ed. are ihe . Iiit-f ^-lory 

 \u h.irdj- -^-aui.-ii ,,t tud.iv 



100,000 Peonies in Over 500 Varieties 



theellurtto m,-ike th W V( )M ISSIN( ; C> )\ 

 oiiiplete andaiithentiL. I tan guarantee tlieiii 

 nil' I know e\ery variety I offer. 



:— Irises, with a sliiniiiieriiig of soft, iri- 

 liine"' of early sprin^j Later a bla;:e 

 of Phloxes and a sea of blue where the Delphiniums rear their spires. But 

 ill "Peony Time" the Queen of the Hardy Garden reigns supreme, our de- 

 \otion to her shown not less lo\al y liecause one his hne'I the Iris which 

 has passed, or that we may enjov the lat-r treasures the garden ha^ 

 in store. My book of HARDY PLAN V SPECIALTIES tells all about 

 these. Let nie .sent! it to you — free. 



I_^BERTRAND H. FARR, Wyomissing Nurseres, 809 E Pe.-!ii St. READING, PA. 



I li.ive stient tt-ii ye.irs i 

 MXTION (JF rjiUN'itS 

 to lie true to nanit- for 1 :.:ro\v n 



1 grow Peonies .ind other t! 

 descent color throiii/liont the "I 



^ When conveni- 

 ence is our first 

 thought, the imita- 

 tion candle makes 

 the use of many an 

 old lighting instru- 

 ment possible, re- 

 taining the beautiful 

 clear-cut shades 

 and globes as used 

 on the old lamps 

 for the protection 

 of the flame. 



THE ENOS COMPANY 



Makers of Lighting Fixtures 



Offict and Factory : SEVENTH AVE. and SIXTEENTH STREET 

 Saltirooms: 36 WEST THIRTY-SEVENTH STREET. Ntw York 



Baltimore: 519 North Charles St. 



San Francisco: J 34 Sutter Street 



Toronto: 94 King Street, West 



Pittsburgrh: The Norton Company, Century Building' ® 



Chicago: The A. Neilson Company, 139 Michigan Avenue »»*»y\"**» 



Boston: H. F, Estabrook, Inc., 9 Park Street 



Portland: J. C. English Co., 128 Park Street 



Los Angeles: Biooks Decorating Co., 696 S. Alvarado St. 



C. J. Netting Co., 256 Woodward Ave., Detroit, Mich. 



a thin writing-cream with hydrofluoric acid 

 (some make use of fuming sulphuric acid). 

 Use a piece of lead to stir the mixture. 

 The "ink" may be put up in bottles coated 

 with parafin, which can be done by heating 

 the bottle, pouring in some melted paraffin, 

 and letting it flow all around. Tlie writing- 

 is done witli a quill, and in about half a 

 minute the ink is washed ofl". 



Extreme caution must lie observed in 

 handling the acid, since when l)rought in 

 contact with the skin it produces danger- 

 mis sores very difficult to heal. The vapor 

 is also dangerously jioisonous when in- 

 haled. — Pharmaceutical Era. 



COAL ASHES 



Are coal ashes good for the soil? is a 

 question we are often asked. 



Under ordinary circumstances they are 

 u.seless because they contain no plant food, 

 not even lime. If much refuse is burned 

 with the coal and if wood is used to light 

 the fire every day, then the ashes of the 

 refuse and wood, though adulterated, is 

 valuable, although pure coal ashes have no 

 value as fertilizer. 



Their mechanical effect on heavy soils is 

 very valuable. When the soil is wet, lumpy 

 and clayey an application of coal ashes will 

 lighten it, making it easier to work, more 

 porous and less likely to bake in the sun. 

 On such a soil it will be almost impossible 

 to get on too much ashes if they are 

 worked in well. Deep ploughing and thor- 

 ough harrowing should follow the applica- 

 tion of the ashes. 



A sandy soil or a soil of pure humus or 

 peat might be seriously injured by coal 

 ashes. They are only to be used to make 

 heavy soils light and on soils already light 

 they are, of course, undesirable. As a 

 mulch and as a protection from insects, 

 coal ashes are good for growing plants. In 

 winter they could be used to cover tender 

 roses and will be found a better protec- 

 tion than earth. 



DOMES OF SILENCE 



MANY articles of interest intended for 

 use in homes are generally subject 

 to the inquiries : Is it correct in tone? 

 Is it agreeable in color? Does it match 

 with the surroundings? Not so of the 

 "Domes of Silence," those bright little 

 disks which glide so smoothly over fabrics, 

 fibers, rubber and hard material floors, un- 

 der moving furniture, for these are invis- 

 ible and noiseless. By means of these 

 diminutive aids to household comforts, all 

 sizes and kinds of furniture may discard 

 the loud, mutilating and breakable castor 

 and be moved or glided over floor areas 

 whether of tile, mosaic, carpet or polished 

 wood, without friction to the surface tra- 

 versed, and at the slightest expenditure of 

 force, just as one is inclined, and with no 

 hitch in the changing of directions. The 

 disks are in evidence only in their power to 

 tran.sport objects easily and quietly and in 

 the economy of saving cost, carpets and 

 floors. Driving them in with a small ham- 

 mer does not endanger the bottom corners 

 or the feet of pieces of furniture. The 

 hardware and leading stores and furniture 

 dealers keep the domes in stock in three 

 sizes. The largest is adapted for use on 

 the heaviest furniture and over the thickest 

 pile carpets. It is only the matter of a 

 moment of time to attach a set to a chair, 

 table, bureau, lounge, etc. This new cas- 

 tor disk is a patented article of highly pol- 

 ished steel, and it will soon be a feature in 

 all well ordered homes. 



