Bismuth

a metallic element. Specific gravity 9.82. Bismuth melts at 510 deg. F. It is of a light reddish color. It resembles lead in some respects, but it is so brittle that it crumbles into a powder under the hammer. Bismuth is seldom used by itself in the arts, but its alloys are of commercial importance. Lead is hardened and toughened by the addition of bismuth. A soft solder, consisting of one part of bismuth, one of tin, and one of lead, is used by pewter workers. A second alloy containing five parts of bismuth, three of lead, and twenty of tin is used in stereotyping. This alloy melts at the boiling point of water. Metallic plugs of a similar alloy have been used in steam boilers, the idea being that they would melt when the heat rose beyond a certain point, and permit the escape of steam without bursting the boiler; but these plugs harden when in use and cannot be depended upon to melt at the critical moment.

One compound of bismuth is used in medicine as an astringent. In large doses it acts as a poison, and, when applied to the face as a cosmetic, it is said to paralyze the nerves. Bismuth is the basis of so-called sympathetic inks.

The Americana states that not over fifty tons of bismuth are used annually, and that the price ranges all the way from fifty cents to five dollars a pound. The metal is obtained from mines of Saxony, Austria, Norway, Cornwall, Spain, California, New South Wales, and certain mountainous districts of South America.