Important: Safety Warning
This page describes practices involving highly flammable materials in ways that create a serious risk of fire or explosion.
In addition, this page describes trade processes that use dangerously toxic materials such as cyanide solutions, mercury amalgams, or strong acids. These processes require training, equipment, and precautions far beyond what the text describes.
This information has been left in for historical purposes but should not be acted upon.
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To Obtain Absolute Alcohol
A German savant has recently improved on the well-known method employed by Mendelejeff, for obtaining absolute alcohol. Strong alcohol is boiled with quicklime, the pieces of the latter projecting above the surble, and the boot is mended. If liquid rubber is not obtainable, dissolve small pieces of pure rubber (not vulcanized), in warm spirits of turpentine, to the consistence of syrup. 6375. Το Preserve and Restore Oil Paintings. Many valuable paintings suffer premature decay from the attacks of a miface of the liquid for 1/2 hour or more, with a croscopic insect of the mite class. The best condenser inverted so that the liquid may re- method of preventing this species of decay turn by its own gravity to the flask. The is to add a few drops of creosote to the paste condenser is then reversed, and the alcohol redistilled. If the alcohol contains more than 5 per cent. of water, the process must be repeated 2 or 3 times. The vessel should only be half filled with the pieces of lime, as the rapid formation of hydrate of lime may break it to pieces. (Sce No. 1442.)