562 
Varieties. 
/Am.  Jour.  Phaem. 
\     Dec.  1,  1872. 
Liquid  Glue  Prepared  from  Saccharate  of  Lime. — A  solution  of  one  part  of 
loaf  sugar  in  three  parts  of  water,  when  spread  on  paper,  imparts  to  it  neither 
gloss  nor  strength,  for  the  size  does  not  adhere  to  the  fingers  when  moistened. 
If,  however,  we  add  to  the  sugar  the  fourth  part  of  its  weight  of  slaked  lime 
and  warm  it  to  145°  to  165°  F.,  then  let  it  macerate  some  days,  shaking  it  fre- 
quently, we  shall  find  the  greater  part  of  the  lime  dissolved.  The  solution 
decanted  from  the  lime  sediment  is  then  found  to  have  the  properties  of  muci- 
lage, and  a  coat  of  it  possesses  gloss  and  firmness. 
If  we  soak  three  parts  of  glue  broken  in  small  pieces  in  12  to  15  parts  of  this 
saccharate  of  lime,  then  on  warming  it  the  glue  dissolves  rapidly,  and  remains 
liquid  when  cold  without  losing  its  strength,  as  glue  does  when  treated  with 
acid.  Glue  of  any  desirable  consistency  may  be  prepared  by  varying  the 
amount  of  saccharite  of  lime  added.  The  thicker  glue  keeps  its  muddy  color, 
the  thin  becomes  clear  on  standing. 
Gelatin  dissolves  in  this  solution  of  lime  and  sugar  without  previous  soaking; 
even  old  gelatin  which  has  become  insoluble  in  hot  water  is  soluble  in  this  com- 
pound. This  glue  has  great  adhesiveness,  and  admits  of  very  many  uses.  It 
cannot,  of  course,  be  used  on  colors  that  are  injured  by  the  lime,  as,  for  exam- 
ple, chrome  yellow,  Paris  blue,  zinc  green,  Behringer's  green  and  carmine. 
Ponceau  made  from  carbolic  acid  is  changed  into  a  beautiful  carmine  color. 
When  warming  the  glue  to  dissolve  it,  a  strong  smell  of  glue  is  given  off,  but 
this  is  destroyed  by  a  few  drops  of  oil  of  lavender.  A  small  admixture  of  2  to 
3  per  cent,  of  glycerin  is  also  an  advantage.  Carbolic  acid  acts  upon  the  lime 
when  the  glue  is  exposed  a  long  time  to  the  air,  producing  little  white  specks, 
without,  however,  affecting  its  adhesive  and  preservative  power. — Journ.  Appl. 
Chem.,  Nov.,  1872. 
A  Cement  to  stop  cracks  in  glass  vessels  to  resist  moisture  and  heat.  Dis- 
solve caseine  in  cold  saturated  solution  of  borax,  and  with  this  solution  paste 
strips  of  hog's  or  bullock's  bladder  (softened  in  water)  on  the  cracks  of  glass, 
and  dry  at  a  gentle  heat ;  if  the  vessel  is  to  be  heated,  coat  the  bladder  on  the 
outside,  before  it  has  become  quite  dry,  with  a  paste  of  a  rather  concentrated 
solution  of  silicate  of  soda  and  quick-lime  or  plaster-of- Paris. — Sci.  Amer., 
Oct.  19,  1872. 
On  Beavers  and  Beaver  Dams  in  Mississippi — By  Mr.  John  Shelton. — From 
a  letter  to  one  of  the  editors,  dated  Raymond,  Hinds  Co.,  Mississippi,  Sept.  12. 
— I  have  resided  in  this  county  since  1837,  now  for  nearly  thirty-five  years. 
When  I  came  here  I  was  young  and  somewhat  given  to  hunting.  At  the  out. 
set,  to  my  inquiries  of  other  hunters,  whether  ti^ere  were  beavers  here,  it  was 
replied,  that  there  were  a  few,  but  no  one  could  then  tell  me  where  there  was 
one  of  their  dams  in  this  neighborhood. 
And  yet  by  the  year  1850,  their  dams  were  to  be  found  in  nearly  all  the 
streams  in  the  county  that  were  not  so  small  as  to  become  dry  during  our  long 
summers,  or  too  large  for  the  operations  of  the  beaver.  They  continued  to 
increase,  greatly  to  the  injury  of  most  of  our  low  land,  and  to  the  annoyance 
/ 
