Enquire Within Upon Everything Part 173

_Observe_.--A teaspoonful or two of this is generally an acceptable addition, mixed with the gravy usually sent up for chops and steaks; or added to thick melted b.u.t.ter.

2234. Mock Crab.

Take any required quant.i.ty of good fat mellow cheese, pound it well in a mortar, incorporating made mustard, salad oil, vinegar, pepper (cayenne is the best), and salt sufficient to season and render it about the consistence of the cream of a crab. Add and mix well half a pint or more of pickled shrimps, and serve in a crab-sh.e.l.l, or on a dish, garnished with slices of lemon.

2235. Female Dress.

It is well known that a loose and easy dress contributes much to give the s.e.x the fine proportions of body that are observable in the Grecian statues, and which serve as models to our present artists, nature being too much disfigured among us to afford any such. The Greeks knew nothing of those ligatures and bandages with which our bodies are compressed. Their women were ignorant of the use of stays, by which ours distort their shape instead of displaying it. This practice, carried to excess as it is in England, is in bad taste. To behold a woman cut in two in the middle, as if she were like a wasp, is as shocking to the eye as it is painful to the imagination. Such a deformity would be shocking in a naked figure; wherefore, then, should it be esteemed a beauty in one that is dressed? Everything that confines and lays nature under restraint is an instance of bad taste.

This is as true in regard to the ornaments of the body as to the embellishments of the mind. Life, health, reason, and convenience ought to be taken first into consideration. Gracefulness cannot subsist without ease.

2236. How to take care of your Hat.

i. Should you get caught in a shower, always remember to brush your hat well while wet. When dry, brush the glaze out, and gently iron it over with a smooth flat iron.

ii. If your hat is VERY wet, or stained with _sea_ water, get a basin of clean cold water, and a good stiff brush; wash it well all over, but be careful to keep the nap straight; brush it as dry as you can, then put it on a peg to dry. When dry, brush the glaze out, and gently iron it over as above.

iii. Should you get a spot of grease on your hat, just drop one drop of benzine or sapine on the place, and then rub it briskly with a piece of cloth until out.

iv. Should you be travelling, always tie your hat up in a handkerchief before putting it into your case; this will save it from getting rubbed or damaged through the friction of the rail or steamboat.

v. Never put your hat flat on the brim, as it will spoil its shape; but always hung it up on a peg.

vi. Never put your hat, wet or dry, in front of the fire, as it will soften it, and throw it all out of shape.

vii. Before putting your hat down, be careful to see if the place is free from spots of grease, beer, sugar, &c., as these things often spoil a good hat more than a twelvemonths' wear, and are often very difficult to remove.

These simple rules will save a good hat for a very long time.

[MUSIC IS SOUL EMBODIED IN SOUND.]

2237. French Polishes.

i. Naphtha Polish.--Sh.e.l.l-lac, three pounds; wood naphtha, three quarts. Put the sh.e.l.l-lac in the naphtha and let it dissolve.

ii. Spirit Polish.--Sh.e.l.l-lac, two pounds; powdered mastic and sandarac, of each one ounce; copal varnish, half a pint; spirits of wine, one gallon. Digest in the cold till dissolved.

2238. French Polish for Boots and Shoes.

Mix together two pints of the best vinegar and one pint of soft water; stir into it a quarter of a pound of glue, broken up, half a pound of logwood chips, a quarter of an ounce of finely powdered indigo, a quarter of an ounce of the best soft soap, and a quarter of an ounce of isingla.s.s. Put the mixture over the fire, and let it boil for ten minutes or more. Then strain the liquid, and bottle and cork it: when cold it is fit for use. Apply it with a clean sponge.

2239. To Polish Enamelled Leather.

Two pints of the best cream, one pint of linseed oil; make them each lukewarm, and then mix them well together. Having previously cleaned the shoe, &c., from dirt, rub it over with a sponge dipped in the mixture: then rub it with a soft dry cloth until a brilliant polish is produced.

2240. Boots and Shoes.

Boots and shoes should be cleaned frequently, whether they are worn or not, and should never be left in a damp place, nor be put too near to the fire to dry. In cleaning them, be careful to _brush_ the dirt from the seams, and not to sc.r.a.pe it off with a knife, or you may cut the leather. Let the hard brush do its work thoroughly well, and the polish will be all the brighter.

2241. Blacking.

Blacking is generally made with ivory black, treacle, linseed, or sweet oil, and oil of vitriol. The proportions vary in the different directions, and a variable quant.i.ty of water is added, as paste or liquid blacking is required; the mode of making being otherwise precisely the same.

2242. Liquid Blacking.

Ivory black and treacle, of each, one pound; sweet oil and oil of vitriol, of each, a quarter of a pound. Put the first three together until the oil is perfectly mixed or "_killed_;" then add the oil of vitriol, diluted with three times its weight of water, and after standing three hours add one quart of water or sour beer. The ivory black must be very finely ground for liquid blacking, otherwise it settles rapidly. The oil of vitriol is powerfully corrosive when undiluted, but uniting with the lime of the ivory black, it is partly neutralized, and does not injure the leather, whilst it much improves the quality of the blacking.

2243. Paste Blacking.

Ivory black, two pounds; treacle, one pound; olive oil and oil of vitriol, of each, a quarter of a pound. Mix as before, adding only sufficient water to form into a paste.

2244. Best Blacking for Boots and Shoes.

Ivory black, one ounce and a half; treacle, one ounce and a half; sperm oil, three drachms; strong oil of vitriol, three drachms; common vinegar, half a pint. Mix the ivory black, treacle, and vinegar together, then mix the sperm oil and oil of vitriol separately, and add them to the other mixture.

2245. Waterproofing for Boots and Shoes (1).

Linseed oil, one pint; oil of turpentine, or camphine, a quarter of a pint; yellow wax, a quarter of a pound; Burgundy pitch, a quarter of a pound. Melt together with a gentle heat, and when required for use, warm and well rub into the leather before a fire, or in the hot sun.

The composition should be poured, when melted, into small gallipots, or tin boxes.

2246. To Render Shoes Waterproof (2).

Warm a little bees'-wax and mutton suet until it is liquid, and rub some of it slightly over the edges of the sole, where the st.i.tches are.

[OUT OF DEBT, OUT OF DANGER.]

2247. Directions for putting on Gutta-Percha Soles.

Dry the old sole, and rough it well with a rasp, after which, put on a thin coat of warm solution of gutta percha with the finger, rub it well in; let it dry, then hold it to the fire, and whilst warm, put on a second coat of solution thicker than the first; let it dry. Then take the gutta percha sole, and put it in hot water until it is soft; take it out, wipe it, and hold the sole in one hand and the shoe in the other to the fire, and they will become sticky; immediately lay the sole on, beginning at the toe, and proceed gradually. In half an hour, take a knife and pare it. The solution should be warmed by putting as much as you want to use in a cup, and placing it in hot water, taking care that no water mixes with it.

2248. Boot Tops (1).