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DRYING FLOWERS. 
La some parts of Germany the business of drying 
flowers is extensively carried on, and they have become 
quite an important article of export. Thousands of 
tasteful bouquets, wreaths and baskets of these flowers 
are annually sent to Paris, where they are in constant 
demand. The process is very simple, and with a little 
experience, almost any one may successfully dry 
flowers and keep them in a state of perfection for a 
long time. 
For a first trial take a common cigar-box, or any 
box of convenient size. You may also bore several 
holes in the bottom, and over these holes paste strong- 
stiff paper, as directed in the July number of the Cab¬ 
inet. The next thing of importance is the prepara¬ 
tion of the sand. Fine river sand, baked thoroughly 
dry, is the best adapted to the purpose. The leaves 
of many flowers are so glutinous that sand adheres to 
them with great tenacity, which will spoil the dried 
specimens. To prevent this the sand is prepared in 
the following manner: To 12-J pounds of well dried 
or baked sand take one ounce of stearine. Put the 
sand in a large flat pan over a good fire, heat it to 
such a degree that a small piece of stearine will imme¬ 
diately melt on it (the stearine should be scraped into 
fine shavings); now scatter over one or two teaspoon¬ 
fuls of it on the heated sand, being careful to stir the 
whole thoroughly all the while. After the first por¬ 
tion has been well absorbed by the sand, add another 
spoonful, and so on until the whole has been added. 
This requires care and some patience; do not get tired 
of stirring, and do not take the pan from the fire until 
every grain has received its proper share of stearine. 
Now pick out the flowers you wish to dry; they 
should be free from dew or any moisture. Through a 
fine sieve sift a layer of sand a quarter of an inch deep) 
into the box ; now lay carefully as many flowers and 
leaves on the sand as you can; the space between the 
larger flowers may be filled up by smaller ones; on 
this layer of flowers carefully sift another layer of 
saud; do not press the sand down with your hands— 
this would spoil the natural shape of the flowers—but 
knock gently with your fingers at the sides and bottom 
of the box until every little space between and under 
the flowers is well filled up; then put in another layer 
of flowers and proceed as before until the box is full. 
Tie down the lid with good strong cord and piut the 
box in a warm pdace. If in your own house there is 
not a constantly warm pilace under or near the stove, 
take the box to your baker’s and put it in a good 
warm position on his oven. In two to four days the 
flowers will be perfectly dry if the situation is really 
warm. When only exposed to the sun it requires 
much more time. 
When you wish to take out the flowers, cut through 
the paper at the bottom and let the sand slowly run 
out. The flowers at first are so brittle that you can¬ 
not take them out without breaking them; prat the 
open box in a cool moist pdace in a cellar or a ditch 
for several hours; you may then safely remove the 
contents. 
Do not expect to find every flower perfect; some 
will be spioiled in shape and color. With some expe¬ 
rience you will soon learn to know these, and leave, 
them out at your future trials. But others you will 
find in a splendid condition, and these will amply 
repay you for all your trouble. After some practice 
you may also learn to dry your favorites on a larger 
scale. These flowers are very beautiful for winter 
bouquets, and will look well for a long time if protested 
from dust and the rays of the sun. 
With flowers of long thin stems and leaves you may 
always be successful. Scabiosa, Primula, Forget-me- 
not, Honeysuckle, Pansies, Pinks, Sweet Peas, etc., 
are very reliable, but your own experience will teach 
you best which to take. Flowers with thick full 
corolla, also Tulips, Hyacinths, etc., are entirely use¬ 
less for this purpose. 
Richmond, Ya. Rev. Ed. Huber. 
Leaf Photographs. —A pretty amusement, espe¬ 
cially for those who contemplate the study of botany, 
is the taking of leaf photographs. One very simple 
process is this: At any druggist’s, get five cents’ 
worth of bi-chromate of potash; when the solution has 
become saturated, that is, the water has dissolved as 
much as it will, pour off some of the clear liquid into 
a shallow dish; on this, float a piece of ordinary writ¬ 
ing paper till it is thoroughly and evenly moistened; 
let it become nearly dry in the dark. It should be a 
bright yellow. On this, put the leaf, under it a piece 
of soft black cloth and several pieces of newspaper. 
Put this between two pieces of glass, all the pieces 
should be the same size, and with spring clothes-pins 
fasten them all together. Expose to a bright sun, 
placing the leaf so that the rays will fall on it as near¬ 
ly perpendicular as possible. In a few minutes it will 
begin to turn brown, but it requires from half an hour 
to several hours to produce a good print. When it 
has become dark enough, take it from the frame and 
put it in clear water, which must be changed every 
few minutes till the yellow part becomes perfectly 
white. Sometimes the venation of the leaves will be 
quite distinct. By following these directions it is 
scarcely possible to fail, and a little practice will make 
perfect. The photographs when well taken are very 
pretty and interesting. 
Pressing Flowers, Ferns and Grasses. —At this 
season of the year we frequently desire to preserve the 
beautiful flowers which bloom everywhere about us, 
whether in field or garden. The process is an exceed¬ 
ingly simple one, and does not require a handpress 
wherewith to accomplish the desired end, but a pair of 
flat irons, a large chair, or even the leg of a couch can 
be made to do duty for it. A number of sheets of buff 
manila or common brown paper are, however, essen¬ 
tial. Take care to gather the specimens on'a fine 
day, and either just before the dew has dried away, or 
just before it falls. If gathered at noonday, the 
flowers will not keep their colors as well, and if 
plucked in field or meadow it is well to place them in 
a tin box in order to retain their freshness. 
Skeleton Leaves. —Take three ounces of carbonate 
of soda, one and a half of quicklime previously slaked, 
and one quart of water. Boil ten minutes, and draw 
off the clear solution. Return this to the fire, with the 
leaves, boil briskly one hour, or till the epidermis and 
parenchyma separate easily. This can be done by 
rubbing between the fingers in clear water. A slower 
process is to keep the leaves in water until all the 
fibre decays. To bleach the leaves, mix a drachm of 
chlorate of lime with a pint of water and a little acetic 
acid. Steep the leaves in this about ten minutes, 
simmer, and place in books to press. Leaves with 
strong fibre, as the pear and ivy, are best. Fern, 
striped grasses, and some rose leaves do nicely. 
Drying Sea Mosses. —Sea mosses can be dried by 
placing them in a soup plate, or any shallow dish filled 
with fresh water, and a little bit of alum added to it. 
Float the moss by placing pieces of white paper under 
it, and then take a camel’s hair brush and arrange the 
! fibrous leaves in a natural manner upon the paper or 
cardboard. If the moss is very fine, the point of a 
needle will be useful in preparing it. When the 
specimens are placed to your mind, raise the paper 
carefully so that the moss will not be disturbed, and 
let it rest in a slanting position, so that the water can 
run off. When still damp, place an old bit of soft 
linen over it, and press in blotting paper. Let it re¬ 
main under heavy pressure until dry. With pink and 
green sea-weeds one can represent lovely moss rose¬ 
buds, and also other flowers. 
Mounting Leaves of Moss.— A lady who has a 
peculiar taste and genius for making pretty things out 
of the most common around us, tells how to mount the 
leaves of moss in an effectual manner. In the first 
place she would wash the moss well, drain off the 
superfluous water, lay it on the centre of a slide, and 
put on a thin glass cover. Secure this with a brass 
clip, and take hold of the slide with another clip. 
Now, let a little melted glycerine jelly run under by 
capillary attraction, and boil the side over a spirit 
lamp with a small flame, moving it about so that, 
being heated equally all over, it may not crack. 
When cold, all air bubbles will disappear if the jelly 
used be not too stiff. Clean the slide and varnish with 
gold size. She says she has mosses prepared in this 
way which have been mounted three years, and the 
color has not faded in the least. The glycerine jelly 
can be bought at any optician’s. She thinks that the 
empty fruit capsules and the peristomes look better in 
glycerine jelly than when mounted dry, for the colors 
are better preserved. 
Medley Picture. —For the foundation of the pic¬ 
ture take bleached muslin; draw over one inch on the 
back of the frame, then tack fast; with a pencil draw 
a margin to paste to; if a common centre is desired, 
paste around the outer edges first, till the centre is 
reached; if a plain view is desired, begin at top, 
passing in rows from left to right across the founda¬ 
tion ; if a square frame is used, select a picture suita¬ 
ble for each corner; the upper row looks best with 
sky displayed. Distance is better displayed by pasting 
only the lower half of the pictures; when the pictures 
are all pasted they will not appear in rows, as they 
vary so much in size; each row should lap more or 
less on each preceding row. 
In trimming pictures for a “medley,” one’s own 
taste should be consulted; if some individual is 
selected, it would look best cut close to the outline of 
the face and head. 
I find flour paste preferable to gum arabic or glue. 
To prepare it, take cold water and flour, stir smooth 
to the consistency of cream; place upon the fire, stir 
while boiling, till cooked smooth and thick. When 
made in this way it adheres better than when made in 
the ordinary way.— Cor. Cincinnati Gazette. 
To Wash White Nubias. —Take two quarts of 
flour and a little box-blue in your wash-boiler; rub 
with the hands as if washing in water, till the flour 
has access to every part. If much soiled repeat the 
operation in fresh flour; then hang in the wind 
and shake till all the flour is removed, and if done 
thoroughly it will look like new. ,, 
To make a pretty, graceful Screen for the 
front of a Grate. —Take a yard and a quarter of 
white tarlatan of quite coarse quality and sew one end 
of it along a strip of muslin; then begin at the oppo¬ 
site end and cut the whole piece into lengthwise strips 
three inches wide, up to the end where the muslin strip is. 
