Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1881-03-10

FIR. w. MENzIEs gives in the Chemist
ana Druggist the following practical
recipe for making soap without boiling:
Take exactly ten pounds of double-re-
lined ninety-eight per cent. caustic soda
powder, put it in any can or Jar with
forty-five pounds flour and half gal
lons) OF water, stir it once or twice.
when it will dissolve Immediately and
become quite hot; let it stand until the
lye thus made is cold. Weigh ont and
place in any convenient vessel for mix
ing exactly seyenty-five pounds Of clean
grease, tallow, or oil (not mineral OILY.
1t grease or tallow be usad, melt IL
slowly over the fire until it is LIQUID and
just warm-say, temperature not over
1O0 degrees Fahrenheit. IF oil be used.
no heating is required. Pour the I've
slowly into the melted grease or oil in 4
small stream continuously, at the same
time stirring with a fiat wooden stirrer
about three inches broad; continue
gently stirring until the lye and grease
are thoroughly combined and in appear
ance like honey. Do not stir too long,
or the mixture will separate itself again.
The time required varies somewhat with
the weather and the kind OF tallow,
grease, or oil used; from fifteen to twen-
mixing is completed, pour off the LIQUID
soap into an old square box for a mold
sufficiently large to hold it, previously
dampening the sides with water, SO as
to prevent the soap sticking. Wrap up
the box well with old blankets, or, bet
ter still, put it in warm place until the
next day, when the box will contain a
block OF one hundred and thirty pounds
of soap, which can afterward be cut up
with wire. Remember the chief points
In the above directions, which must be
exactly followed. The I've must be al
lowed to cool. II melted tallow
or grease be used it must not be
more than warm. The exact weight of
double-refned ninty-eight per cent
powdered caustic soda and tallow or oil
must be taken; also, the I've must be
stirred into the grease, not grease or oil
added to the I've. If the grease or tallow
used be not clean, or contains salt, it
must be rendered." or purified, pre-
vious to use, that is to say, boiled with
water and allowed to become hard again
to throw out the impurities. ANY salt
present will spoil the whole operation
entirely, but discolored or rancid grease
or tallow is just as good as fresh for
soap-making purposes.
If the soap turns out sticky and un-
even it has not been thoroughly mixed.
Ii very sharp to the taste, too much soda
has been taken. If soft, mild and
greasy, too little soda has been used.
In either case it must now be thrown
into pan, and brought to boil with
little more water. In the first case boil
ing is all that is necessary; in the other
instances a very little oil or very little
more of the double-refined powdered
caustic soda must be added to the water.
These things will never happen, how
ever, if the directions are exactly fol-
lowed, and after the soap has been made
several times, with the experience thus
gained the process is extremely easy,
and the result will be always q good
batch of soap. Beef tallow makes the
hardest soap, mutton fat rather softer
soap; of oils, cotton-seed is the cheapest
and best, but the soap is much softer,
lathering very freely indeed, Ordinary
household fat or dripping will make a
nice soap, and in many places can be
obtained at trifing cost, and in ex-
change for goods sold. Such grease,
however, must be carefully examined
for salt, which it often contains. 1t
will be evident that any smaller guam
tity of .soap can be made at time, ac-
cording to the above directions, by
taking the ingredients in exact proper
ton. It is not advisable to make more
than double the quantity prescribed, as
it is difficult to work more by hand.