THE YOUNG SCIENTIST. 
97 
gether and determined not to lend their wood to 
tlie construction of the cfoss. They all ke|)t 
their word except tlie holm oak. The other trees 
broke in pieces when an attempt was made to 
utilize them for cross-makinf^. The holm oak 
iilone allowed itself to be made use of: wherefore 
it is looked upon as accursed. Wild chicory has 
been made the subject of many legends, espe- 
cially in Germany, where it is known by several 
names, one of them beinfj: wegewarte, or road- 
guardian. The popular explanation of the term 
is as follows: A young princess whom her be- 
loved spouse had abandoned, declared that she 
would like to die, but yet she longed to see the 
loved one again ; and the maidens who bore her 
■company expressed a similar desire. Their 
wishes were realized. They were turned into 
flowers, white and blue, a,nd stationed along the 
sides of roads, so as to l)e able to see the loved 
and lost prince whenever he rode by. And since 
that time the plant has been called the guardia,n 
of roads. 
27. Tom H., Providence, E. I.-— The divining 
rod, or, as it is caJled in this country, the " Witch- 
Hazel," is a forked branch of hazel, suspended by 
two ])rongs between the balls of the thumbs. Th(^ 
inclinati'>n of the rod indicates the presence of 
water-si)rings, precious metals, and anything 
else that simpletons will pay for. This is a very 
ancient belief which pertains to the yet lingering 
practice of witchcraft. There are many people 
in this country who believe in the efficacy of this 
method for determining the whereabouts of 
water-springs, etc. ; and in Continental Europe, 
even amongst the educated classes, there are 
many persons who would not think for a moment 
of sinking a, well without first consulting an ex- 
pert diviner, and, indeed, many of these diviners 
may be found among the ecclesiastics, who 
make it a soui'ce of income. The action of the 
" Witch-Hazel " in the hands of some people has 
never yet been satisfactorily explained, but is 
supposed to be the result of unconscious effort 
on the part of the holder. It m;iy be safely stated, 
however, that the presence of water or precif)us 
metals has nothing to do with the movements of 
the twig. 
28. MoNOGKAMS, J. H. P., Brooklyn. N. Y — I en- 
close three monogra,ms of the initiais J. H. P., T. 
W. T., and S. N. B , and hope they will suit yonr 
querists. If these are satisfactory, I shall be 
S N B. T W T. 
pleased to send others for publication, if yourl 
subscribers will make known their wants in, this 
line. I am very much pleased with the Young 
Scientist, and expect to send you a big club from 
this city before long, as I am going to make an 
■ effort to capture that gold watch you offer as a 
premium for the largest number of subscriptions 
.sent to you during the present year.— X., Cincin- 
nati, O. 
Note.— We sliall be pleased to award the watch 
to friend X., and liope he will have the success 
"hp expects and deserves in obtaining names for 
the Young Scientist. We hope all of our young 
readers will take an interest in this extra pre- 
mium scheme. We invite all our readers— boys 
and girls— to canifully read the second page of 
fi'ont cover, and see the fine chances Ave are offer- 
ing them for obtaining something useful, and at 
the same time making money on the commis- 
sions offered. We shall be pleased to give any 
further information on tliis matter to such of our 
readers as may require it, if they will communi- 
cate with us on the subject. 
29. Nina, Toledo, O.— If Nina will adhere to the 
following instructions, she will obtain excellent 
results: 
Cut from the lithograph or engraving you wish 
to transfci-, all rh(j margin, then lay it in a pan of 
tepid Wiitei- until it sinks, after which remove it 
and place it betwi^en di-y papers to dry. This 
done, clean a sqmire or ovai piece of glass and 
wipe dry; cover it with Damar varnish, spread- 
ing it on evenly with a flat varnish brush. This 
done, lay away until nearly dry, so it will not 
stick to your Angers when touched, but snap when 
your finger is removed; then lay your picture 
upon a,ny smooth surface, with the right side up. 
and hold vour varnished glass on it with the var- 
nished side down in the position yon want the 
picture on the glass. Lay the glass down care- 
fully; this will unite the glass and the face of the 
l)icture. 
Next take a piece of dry paper and lay on the 
back of the picture. Where air bubbles or blis- 
t<M-s are seen, press them lightly with your fin- 
gers from the centre of the picture outwards. Do 
not let a> single one remain, and alwa,ys keep a 
dry paper between your fingers and the picture, 
01-' you will roll up the paper and spoil the pic- 
ture. 
When the blisters are all removed, set away 
until the varnish is dry. which will take about 
twelve hours. Wet the i^ajK^r with water, and rub 
it with your fingers until all the paper is removed 
but a light film ; then set away for twenty min- 
utes; varnish again with Damar varnish, and 
tlnitwill make it clear and transparent. When 
the picture is well dried, paint it on the wrong 
side, following the bounda,ry and covering the 
surface and form of every figure and iiortion of 
your design as designated by your picture, using 
J H P. 
I artists' colors and brushes. Lay yonr colors on 
liea,vily;mix them with r'lirixar varnish before 
using. No shading is required, as that is given 
by the engraving. In painting the figure of a 
person, first paint the eyes and hair, let them 
dry; then the flesh color; then the draperies and 
backgrounds. Paint very carefully, and do not 
let the colors run into each other. In painting 
the eyes, first paint the white of the eye with sil- 
ver white; for the pupil, ivory black; for blue 
•iyes. Prussian blue and silver white mixed; for 
hazel, yellow ochre, Va.ndyke brown and a, little 
ra,w sienna mixed. For flesh tints mix Naples 
yellow, scarlet lake, and silver white to the de- 
^ sired tint. 
