44 
ON MADDER. 
for the sake of ascertaining its quality, it is exposed to a 
moist air, its orange-red changes to a bright red, of a rich 
depth of color. The Dutch madder works more than the 
others, according to the commercial term, L e. it presents 
more decided modifications of color by exposure to moist 
air. 
Dutch madder is stripped or not stripped. In the first 
case, the roots have been freed from their epidermis, which 
gives greater brightness to the powder ; in the second, they 
have been triturated without undergoing this operation, 
when the powder is of a more sombre color. This mad- 
der cannot be used while fresh ; it must be a year in the 
cask at least. After three years it is in full vigor. 
The pale powder, or of a yellow aspect the first year, 
soon undergoes fermentation with age : the divided parts 
then unite with each other, agglomerate, and increase in 
volume to such a degree, that, after several years, the dila- 
tation is so great that the bottoms of the casks present a 
very marked convex form. The madder is then so hard, 
that in order to take it out of the cask, a mallet or chisel 
must be used. This madder ferments more than the others. 
It keeps several years after having attained its greatest 
tinctorial power (about three years,) after which the layers 
which line the sides of the casks begin to lose their bright- 
ness ; the madder assumes a pale brown color, and it en- 
ters into decomposition. The progress of this is slow but 
certain ; it subsequently becomes quite extinct, and the mad- 
der has a brown-red color, 
In its decomposition it may still be used for brown grounds 
or colors ; but when age has destroyed all the coloring 
principle, it can only serve as mulle. 
The marks current in our markets are — 
Mulle - - 1 C Mulle. 
Superfine - - v or < Fine grappe. 
Not stripped or stripped ) ( Superfine grappe. 
