RURAL NEW-YORKER 
1421 
Simple Science 
By Dr. F. D. Crane 
Nickel and Silver Plating 
Cau a person do nickel plating of 
knives and forks at home, and silver plat¬ 
ing, also? E- A- D. 
Fairton, N. J. 
Not unless you already know the trade, 
unless you-are a very remarkable person, 
indeed. If you want to go into this, your 
lirst move should be to get a job where it 
was being done and learn the trade. 
Then, if you have the capital and think 
you have the ability, go ahead, for there 
is a steady demand for the product. But. 
so far as we know, none of the quick and 
easy processt^! so widely advertised gives 
results anywhere near equal to the stand¬ 
ard methods. “Good enough” has no 
place in the plating business; only the 
best will bring repeat orders. 
Effect of Freezing on Different Plants 
Why does rye live over Winter and 
corn die at the first hard frost? Why 
does freezing ruin potatoes and leave tur¬ 
nips untouched? H. c. w. 
New York. 
No one knows ; nor do we know why a 
duck egg cooks one way and a hen egg 
another, in the eame pot at the same 
heat. It is easy to name our ignorance 
and talk about the reactions of proto¬ 
plasm to variations in kinetic energy, but 
we get no further along, and it is not 
likely that we will for many years to 
<• 01110 . although some of the keenest 
trained minds are working on those prob¬ 
lems. If we knew what the stuff is that 
freezes or boils we wouhl be on the track, 
but we are just beginning to understand 
some of the simplest of the break-down 
products ; the things we fiml in live animals 
and vegetable.s which are changed by heat 
and cold into other things are still far in 
the unknown. We do not even know if 
we get them out unchanged, or if they 
begin to change in the very act of leav¬ 
ing the parent cell. Bo the best we can 
do is to treat each product according to 
experience. But there has been one step 
in advance, thanks to the Agricultural 
Deiiartment's recent work. They have 
shown that so long as potatoes are kept 
frozen they are as good for food as ever 
if cooked at once when thawed. There is 
practically no change in food value or 
composition. But if you let them thaw 
and stand around awhile, they will surely 
rot and become harmful. 
Solder from Tin "Cans 
Borne time ago I saw an item in a mag¬ 
azine about a woman and her little boy 
making some money by getting solder, 
lei d and old iron by melting up old tin 
cat s. There are some about here. Do 
you think it is worth while trying it? 
Butler, N. J. A. a. k. 
We do not wish to dispute the item 
you saw, but the circumstances must have 
been exceptional. Stray tin cans are like 
cats under a barn ; the more you look 
for them the fewer you find, and we are 
pretty sure you overestimate your avail¬ 
able raw material. However, there is 
nothing like a trial. Get an old iron pot 
reel hot and see how much solder you get 
from 25 tin cans, which you can juit in 
and take out with tong.s. The solder is 
the only thing of value you can get; the 
tin is removed by a special process Avhich 
cannot be worked on a small scale. You 
stand a better chance of making a few 
<lollars by collecting the cans and selling 
them as junk. 
Fireproof Paper 
What is a cheap way to fireproof paper 
to use in fixing up an attic? A solution 
of alum makes the paper too brittle. I 
would like something to fireproof cloth 
also. Would water glass do? F. u. 
Union City, Pa. 
Water glass is the best for the paper, 
if you use plenty of it, but it will make 
the paper brittle, and .so will anything 
else if you use enough of it to do any 
good. Y'^ou must use enough to cover 
each little fiber of the paper with some¬ 
thing that will not burn, and, of course, 
when you have done this the material is 
brittle. You do not say what you wish 
the cloth for. Water glass will make it 
very stiff, but fireproof; other things 
merely make it slow burning. We do 
not think very highly of these fireproofing 
schemes; none of them w'hieh leave the 
material usable are worth much, and they 
are apt to give a false sense of security. 
Anti-freezing Mixtures 
Can you tell me anything about the va¬ 
rious anti-freezing mixtures for auto ra¬ 
diators? Alcohol is expensive and is so 
apt to boil off below the safety line. Al.so, 
what about the substances to put into the 
gasoline to make it go farther and keep 
carbon out of the cylinders? d. At. u. 
Brooklyn, Conn. 
Alcohol is the one safe thing to use. for 
the glycerine is not only too expensive, 
but attacks any rubber connections sooner 
or later. As to the stuff that comes in 
fancy cans, all those which I have exam¬ 
ined have been siruply chloride of calci¬ 
um (not “chloride of lime”), with, per¬ 
haps, some other soluble salts, and the 
makers usually warn you not to use them 
if you have any aluminum in the water 
system. The claim is made that they will 
not act on the brass or copper (the iron 
would be safe with almost anything), but 
thei’e is more or less actibn at best; you 
simply take a chance that it will not go 
very far. Of course there are probably 
several which I have not met with, but 
the possibilities in this line, from a chem¬ 
ical standpoint, keeping price in mind 
also, seem rather limited. 
The things which are sold to put in the 
gasoline are many and various. Naphth¬ 
alene is often an ingredient, together with 
various volatile substances, but the mak¬ 
ers keep their formulas secret. Some 
seem to work, at least for a time, but 
whether there is any real saving “in the 
long run” is an open question. 
i Rusty Water 
We are last on the lino of our town 
water, and it always seems rusty. Even 
though it looks* clear when cold, it gets 
brown when warm, and the ordinary wa¬ 
ter-softening agents make it worse. Do 
you think it has any bad effect upon a 
person’s health ? M. L. l*. 
Lakewood, N. J. 
Answering the last question first, the 
very fact that it is a town supply makes 
it likely that it is harmless; in fact, there 
are those who think that a little iron in 
the water is an advantage. A local 
physician is the only one to pass on this 
side of the case. But the action on the 
white clothes is another matter, since 
you will be more or less troubled unless 
veBSuKH vsMJests 
- I He«0 
TWE. SvcH-V-eST 
Pt(AC» CKVt 
At)KlT eVAVUtS , 
TO- Pfti - 
006HT TO 
■v«e. kehc-dt 
\-T 
-v Me soMS 
neproduopd from N. Y. Eveuing Telegram 
you remove the iron rust first. The iron 
is held in the water by the carbonic acid ; 
if you use a little ammonia and ammo¬ 
nium carbonate, as formerly advised in 
this column, the iron will go out, as you 
have noticed. It will settle in time, but 
just a trace of water glass (sodium sili¬ 
cate) in the Avater you are to use for 
washing will probably speed up the set¬ 
tling. and Avill not hurt the Avash. But if 
this i.s too much trouble, you can try a 
final rinse in a dilute solution of oxalic 
acid, Avhich Avill be harmless in the very 
dilute solution in Avhich you Avill use it. 
But your case is a hard one to handle, 
and probably a cistern into Avhich the rain 
water from your house will be led is the 
only sure cure. If you can get the town 
or the Avater company, Avhichever owns 
the supply, to “blow the dead end” of the 
pipe from time to time, it Avill also help a 
lot. 
Brown Creosote Stain 
Can you give me the formula for a 
broAvn creosote stain, not too expensive, 
so I cau mi.-i a large quantity for all my 
buildings? AV. ii. M. 
Middleton, Mass. 
Makers of this class of goods do not 
seem to care to publish their formulas, 
hut the business end is either Avood creo¬ 
sote or “dead oil of tar,” which is tar 
creosote. To these are added various oils 
as diluents. The color is naturally a 
brown to black. Your trouble is going 
to be to get your raw material. If you 
can procure that you can dilute it to suit 
yourself, Avith nearly all oils, linseed the 
he.st and most expensive, and kerosene 
the cheapest and worst. Some creosotes 
will not dilute directly Avith linseed; a 
little mineral oil Avill make a three-sol¬ 
vent sj'stein that will Avork. But look 
out that you do not get the creosote on 
the skin, or on clothes Avhich will let it 
soak into the skin, or you may have a bad 
burn. If you do get a burn, wash Avell at 
once Avith linseed oil or denatured alcohol, 
or both ; do not use Avater till you have all 
off Avith the others, as it will only set it 
and it Avill burn far worse. 
Tomato Vinegar 
Can vinegar be made from tomatoes? 
MohaAvk, N. Y. av. av. f. 
We find no definte recipe for it, but the 
chances are that it can. if the tomato 
juice contains even a moderate amount of 
sugar. The flavor would probably be un- 
(Continued on page 1423) 
Cut Your Firewood with 
a Disston Buck Saw 
It’s the fine quality of Disston Cross Cut and Buck SaAV 
blades that makes them eat up the timber and wood pile. 
They cut fast, sure and with the least possible effort. All 
Disston Saws are made from steel especially made for the 
purpose, in our own plant. 1 he Disston Trade Mark 
means the same on a Cross Cut or Buck Saw as it does 
on a hand saw—and three out of every four carpenters 
choose Disston Hand Saws—famous for value for 78 years. 
Disston Saws and Tools are sold by progressive hard¬ 
ware dealers the world over. 
Send for our Booklet, “Disston 
Sows and Toots for the Farm. ’’ 
HENRY DISSTON & SONS, INC. 
PHILADELPHIA. U. S. A. 
Canadian Works: Toronto, Canada 
Disston 
SAWS AND TOOLS 
in' 
‘mm 
JUST OUT —My New “direct 
from factory” Bargain Book 
on Fence and Gates. Prices 
way belowcompetition. Values 
bigger than ever. Get it today. 
I Pay ALL Freight 
Brown Fence lasts longest be¬ 
cause built strongest, stiffest. 
All wires same size, heavily 
g alvanized. 1I>0 styles. Also 
ates. Lawn Fence and Barb 
Wire at bargain prices. 
Sample and book free, postpaid. 
Brown Fence & Wire Co., Dept. 259 Cleveland, 0. 
J With this wonderful new Llb- 
ibay Automatic Water Bowl, 
' Each bowl controls own water 
’^snpply. Animal moves lever, 
^opening water valve, when it 
7 starts to drink. Lever 
jswinga back closing valve 
/ when animal stops drinking. 
f No float tank rMuired. Bowls 
'may be put at diilerent heights 
’or in any stall or pen. Cannot 
’overflow; cannot get out of order; 
almost no water left in bowl. Most 
I sanitary bowl ever sold. Prevents spread ef cen- 
Itagieus diseases. Increased milk yield quickly 
I pays back cost. Saves labor; saves 
feed. Write today. If interested in I 
I Stanchions, Stalls. Carriers, etc., ,| 
I ask for General Catalog. Sent free. 
C. A. LIBBEY company! 
1280 Marion St. ■ Oshkosh. Wis.J 
|A Real Farm Necessity 
r am 
' ■ ■ '■ 
A 5-Year Success 
On Hnndreds of Farms in the United States, 
Canada, Cuba, South America 
Don’t sell all your hogs and pay big butcher bills. 
Save some of them and have good, clean, sweet hams, 
bacon, sausagefor your own table when wanted—and at 
lewtfaanhalf market prices. You can do it easUy with the 
NATIONArCUNI 
_ ■»0»TABi.E r 
$MOHC« house 
NOTICE 
This is the origi¬ 
nal National Giant 
Port able Smoke House. 
Beware of Imitations 
or Experiments. 
After smoking meals use for store 
house. Absolutely bug and mite OToof. 
Keep3_ineat sweet all summer. Worth 
its price many times over for this 
feature alone. Book tells ail about it. 
AND SANITARY STORE HOUSE. 
This wonderful Smoke House is portable; can be ope¬ 
rated in basement or kitchen. same as a stove—or on 
the back porch or in the yard—anywhere. Made of 
I heavily galvanized sheet steel in 3 sizes. Runs on saw¬ 
dust and cobs and little hickory bark for 
seasoning. Gives better, cleaner, cheaper ' 
meat than you’ve ever had before. 
Send for FREE Book 
Contains valuable prize-winning fecipes for 
coring meats. Gives full description and 
handsome colored illustrations of the origi¬ 
nal National Giant Smoke House. Quotes 
prices and gives all other details. Write for 
this book today—now. Don’t miss it. 
Portable Elevator Mfg. Co. 
258 HcClun Street Bloomington. III. 
