JAP 
J AS 
J A T 
which is the most useful preparation of the 
kind hitherto invented, may be thus made. 
Take of seed-lac three ounces, and put it 
into water, to free it from the sticks and filth 
that are frequently intermixed with it ; and 
which must be done by stirring it about, and 
then pouring off the water, and adding fresh 
quantities, in order to repeat the operation, 
till it is freed from all impurities, as is very 
effectually done by this means. Dry it then, 
and powder it grossly, and put it, with a pint 
of rectified spirit of wine, into a bottle, of 
which it will not fill above two-thirds. Shake 
the mixture well together, and place the 
bottle in a gentle heat, till the seed-lac ap- 
pears to be dissolved ; the shaking being in 
the mean time repeated as often as may be 
convenient ; and then pour off all that can 
be obtained clear by this method, and strain 
the remainder through a coarse cloth. The 
varnish thus prepared, must be kept for use 
in a bottle well stopped. 
When the spirit of wine is very strong, it 
will dissolve a greater proportion of the seed- 
lac; but this quantity will saturate the com- 
mon, which is seldom of a strength suffici- 
ent to make varnishes in perfection. As the 
chilling, which is the most inconvenient ac- 
cident attending varnishes of this kind, is 
prevented or produced more frequently, 
according to the strength of the spirit ; we 
shall therefore take this opportunity of shew- 
ing a method by which weaker rectified 
spirits may with great ease at any time be 
freed from the phlegm, and rendered of the 
first degree of strength. 
'fake a pint of the common rectified spirit 
of wine, and put it into a bottle, of which it 
will not fill above three parts ; add to it half 
an ounce of pearl-ashes, salt of tartar, or any 
other alkaline salt, heated red-hot, and pow- 
dered as well as it can be without much loss 
of its heat. Shake the mixture frequently 
for the space of half an hour ; before which 
time, a great part of the phlegm will be sepa- 
rated from the spirit, and will appear, toge- 
ther with the undissolved part of the salts, 
in the bottom of the bottle. Let the spirit 
be poured off, or freed from the phlegm and 
the salts, by means of a tritorium, or separat- 
ing funnel ; and let half an ounce of the 
pearl-ashes, heated and powdered as before, 
be added to it, and the same treatment re- 
peated. This may be done a third time, if 
the quantity of phlegm separated by the ad- 
dition of the pearl-ashes appears considerable. 
An ounce of alum reduced to powder, and 
made hot, but not burnt, must then be put 
into the spirit, and suffered to remain some 
hours, the bottle being frequently shaken ; 
after which the spirit, being poured off from 
it, will be fit for use. 
The addition of the alum is necessary to 
neutralize the remains of the alkaline salt, 
which would otherwise greatly deprave the 
spirit, with respect to varnishes and lacquer 
where vegetable colours are concerned, and 
muff consequently render another distilla- 
tion necessary. 
The manner of using the seed-lac, or white 
varnish, is the same, except with regard to 
the substance used in polishing : which, 
where a pure white of a great clearness of 
Other colours is in question, should be itself 
white; whereas the browner sorts of polish- 
ing-dust, as being cheaper, aud doing their 
business with greater dispatch, may be used 
in other cases. The pieces of work to be 
varnished, should be placed near a fire, or 
in a room where there is a stove, and made 
perfectly dry ; and then the varnish may be 
rubbed over them by the proper brushes 
made for that purpose, beginning in the mid- 
dle, and passing the brusii to one end, and 
then with another stroke from the middle, 
pa-sing it to the other. Hut no part should 
be crossed, or twice passed over, in forming 
one coat, where it can be possibly avoided. 
When one coat is dry, another must be laid 
over it ; and this must be continued at least 
five or six times, or more, if on trial, there 
is not sufficient thickness of varnish to bear 
the polish, without laying bare the painting 
or ground-colour underneath. 
When a sufficient number of coats is thus 
laid on, the work is fit to be polished; which 
must be done, in common cases, by rubbing 
it with a rag dipped in tripoli, or rottenstone, 
finely powdered ; but, towards the end of the 
rubbing, a little oil of any kind should be 
used along with the powder; and when the 
work appears sufficiently bright and glossy, 
it should be well rubbed with the oil alone, 
to clean it from the powder, and give it a 
still brighter lustre. 
JARGON. See Zircon*. 
JASIONE, a genus of the monogamia 
order, in the syngenesia class of plants, and 
in the natural method ranking under the 49th 
order, campanacea?. 'l'he common calyx is 
ten-leaved ; and the corolla has five regular 
petals ; the capsule beneath, two-celled. 
There are four species, shrubs of the West 
Indies. 
JASMINUM, Jasmine, or Jessamine- 
tree, a genus of the rnonogynia order, in 
the diandria class of plants, and in the na- 
tural method ranking under the 44th order, 
sepiariae. The corolla is salver-shaped, the 
berry dicoccous ; the seeds arillated, the an- 
ther® within the tube. There are 17 species. 
The most remarkable are: l. The officinalis, 
or common white jasmine, with shrubby long 
slender stalks and branches, rising upon sup- 
ports 15 or 20 feet high, with numerous white 
tlowersfroin the joints and ends, of a very 
fragrant odour. There is a variety with 
white-striped, and another with yellow-striped 
leaves. 2. The fruticans, or shrubby yellow 
jasmine, has shrubby, angular, trailing stalks 
and branches, rising upon support eight or 
ten feet high; trifoliate and simple alternate 
leaves; with yellow flowers from the sides 
and ends of the branches, appearing in June; 
frequently producing berries of a black co- 
lour. This species is remarkable for sending 
up many suckers from its roots, often so 
plentifully as to overspread the ground, if not 
taken up annually. 3. The humilis, or dwarf 
yellow jasmine, has shrubby firm stalks, and 
angular branches, of low, somewhat robust 
and bushy growth ; broad, trifoliate, and pin- 
nated leaves; and large yellow flowers in 
July, sometimes succeeded by berries. 4. The 
graudillorum, or great-flowered Catalonian 
jasmine, has a shrubby, linn, upright stem, 
branching out into a spreading head from 
about three to six or eight feet high, with 
large flowers of a blueish-red colour with- 
out, and white within, appearing from July 
to November. Of this there is a variety with 
semidouble flowers, having two series of pe- 
tals. 5. The azoricum, or azorian white jas- 
mine, has shrubby, long, slender stalks and 
branches, rising upon supports 15 or 20 feet 
high, with pretty large flowers of a pure 
white colour, coming out in loose bunches 
from the ends of the branches, and appearing 
most part of the summer and autumn. 6. 'l'he 
odoratissimum, or most sweet-scented yel- 
low Indian jasmine, has a shrubby upright 
stalk branching erect, without support, six or 
eight teet high, with bright yellow flowers in 
bunches, from the ends of the branches ; 
flowering from July till October, and emit- 
ting a most fragrant odour. 
i he first three species are sufficiently 
hardy to thrive in this climate without any 
shelter, 'l'he other three species, which are 
tender, may be increased by layers or seeds, 
or by grafting and budding them upon the 
common white and shrubby yellow jasmine 
They require shelter in a greenhouse in 
winter, and therefore must always be kept in 
pots to move them out and in occasionally. 
JASPER. Ibis stone is an ingredient in 
the composition of many mountains. It oc- 
curs usually in large amorphous masses, 
sometimes in rounded or angular pieces. Its 
fracture is conchoidal. Specific, gravity from 
2.3 to 2.7. Its colours are various. When 
heated, it does not decrepitate. It is usually 
divided into 4 subspecies. 
1. Egyptian pebble. 'Phis variety is found 
chiefly in Egypt. It usually has a spheroidal 
or flat-rounded figure, and is enveloped in a 
coarse rough crust. Specific gravity 2.564 
to 2.6. It is chiefly distinguished by the 
variety of colours which always exist m the 
same specimen, in concentric stripes or layers. 
These colours are diffeient browns and yel- 
lows, greens, <Scc. 
2. .Striped jasper. 'Phis variety is also 
distinguished by concentric stripes or iaver* 
of different colours : these colours are yellow, 
brownish-red, and green. It is distinguished 
from the last variety by its occurring in large 
amorphous masses, and by the disposition of 
its stripes. 
3. Porcelain jasper. So called because its 
fracture presents the appearance of porce- 
lain. Its colours are various shades of grey, 
yellow, red, brown, green, mixed together. 
Found in mass, and in rounded pieces. Grea- 
sy. Fracture imperfectly conchoidal: opaque: 
brittle. According to Rose it is composed of 
60.75 silica 
27.25 alumina 
3.00 magnesia 
2.50 oxide of iron 
3.60 potass 
97.10 
Found in the neighbourhood of pseudo vol- 
canoes, supposed to have been altered by the 
action of lire. 
4. Common jasper. Specific gravity from 
2.53 to 2.7. Its colours are different shades 
of white, yellow, red, brown, and green ; often 
variegated, spotted, or veined, witli several 
colours. 
JA'l ROPIIA, the cassada plant, a genus 
of the monadelphia order, in the moncecia 
class of plants, and in the natural method 
ranking under the 38th order, tricocca. 
There is no male dalyx; the corolla is inono- 
petalous, and funnel-shaped; there are ten 
stamina, one alternately longer than the other. 
There is no female calyx; the corolla is pen- 
tapetalous and patent ; there are three bifid 
