156 MR. E. R. WATSON ON 



(i) Five gms. of turmeric were pounded and mixed with 200 cc. of water, and 



5 gms. of the silk were worked in this decoction for half an hour at 65 °c, 



then rinsed in water and dipped in water acidulated with acetic acid 



[' raised' in 2 per cent, (on weight of silk) acetic acid]. Excess of turmeric 



was taken in order to get as full a shade as possible. A full bright yellow 



shade was obtained. 



(2) Five gms. of silk were boiled for 15 minutes in 200 cc. of alum solution 



(saturated at ordinary temperature), then rinsed in water and 



worked for half an hour at 65°c. in a turmeric bath as in (1). 



Rinsed in water. In this case, as in others where alum is used as 



a mordant, the cloth was mordanted previously to dyeing in order 



that the effect of the mordant should be as great as possible. A full 



bright yellow shade was obtained. 



Safflower or Kusum. — Process as described by Banerjee (/oc. cit., pp. 16, 17) and 



as employed for dyeing on cotton. One quarter of a pound of florets were used in 



making the bath, and as only 5 gms. of silk were dyed, a very large excess of dye was 



available. Worked for one hour in the bath a full pink shade was obtained. 



Sapan Wood or Bakam. — McCann {Report on the Dyes and Tans of Bengal, Calcutta, 

 1883, p. 3) says : " The wood is either cut into small pieces or else pounded into a powder 

 in a native mortar and is then boiled in water for from 5 to 8 hours. . . .Cloth or yarn 

 to be dyed red is sometimes simply steeped in this infusion for about half an hour 

 without the use of any mordant." In my hands this method only gave a light shade, 

 which was not further examined. McCann continues : " But alum is sometimes 

 employed as a mordant to fix the colour, being added to the water in which the 

 pounded bakam- wood is boiled." This method gave a deeper shade, but, owing to 

 the fact that alum added to the decoction of the wood throws down a precipitate, and 

 necessitates keeping the bath vigorously on the stir the whole time the cloth is 

 immersed, it was preferred to adopt the following modification : — 



(1) The cloth was mordanted with alum as in dyeing with turmeric (2), then 



boiled for one hour with a decoction from 5 gms. of the wood (100 per 

 cent, reckoned on weight of silk). A medium red shade was obtained. 



(2) The cloth was mordanted in an alum-soda bath prepared by dissolving 



4|lbs. alum in a little less than 7^ gallons water, adding 7J oz. soda 



crystals dissolved in a little water and making up to 7^ gallons exactly. 



The cloth was worked in this bath for 20 minutes, allowed to steep all 



night and wrung out. This mordanted cloth was worked at I70°F. for 



half an hour in a decoction from 10 gms. of the dye-wood (200 per cent. 



on weight of silk). A full crimson shade was obtained. 



Banerjee (loc. cit., p. 23) describes the production of a deep maroon, or of a dark 



purple colour, by soaking the cloth first in water prepared with myrabolams and green 



vitriol and afterwards in bakam water. This process was carried out as follows : — 



(3) Silk mordanted for one hour in 10 per cent, solution tannin, wrung out and 



dried, then worked for half an hour in a solution of 5 gms. cryst. ferrous 



