The Penn's Grove record., 1889-08-03
The Economy Of Ammonia.

fThA nnlEeIHkl use VI - oOAhC
form in the laundry and homework, as
well as for the toilet and bath, makes IL
desirable to have some definite and &C.
curste information in regard to the
nature and history Of ammonia.
Ammonia in the form of sal ammoniac
il one of the earliest known chemical
substances. The name comes from the
province of Ammon, in Egypt, where
sal ammoniac has been known for 1900
years, being produced by the decompo-
sition Of camel's dung.
Aqua ammonia or h eliquid ammonia
now used in the household was discov-
cred in the 18th century, but its nature
was not understood till 1885, when Ber-
thellot first discovered the true compo-
sition of ammonia gas, the basis oil all
ammonical preparations.
Until quite recently the only source
Of ammonia was from the decomposition
of animal substances which made it
comparatively scarce and expensive.
Ore of its sources was the distillation Of
horn, from which the name hartshorn
was derived.
When it was found that ammonia was
produced in large quantity in the man
ufacture of ordinary coal gas, with the
inc eased production the cost was so
much eheapened that it became possible
to use it for many new purposes.
The first ammonia yer bottled for
general family use was the now cele-
DRAFTED G. G. Parsons Household Am
monia. 1t took a long time to persuade
ladies who were used to buying q small
f-4I1. - o,~.,ADfn al n hTnh prtnn and
keeping it on their toilet table, that in
Household Ammonia they had an i'm
proved and economical rival for the
soaps and sodas they were familiar
with.
But time, a fortune spent in advertis-
ing, and its own merits, have done their
work, and the mail now brings orders
from every State and Territory in the
Union and from many foreign coun-
tries.
When bottled ammonia was first in
troduced to the public objection was
found with its destructive action on the
skin and clothes, for ammonia of full
strength is similar in its action to caus-
tic soda or potash: to overcome this diff
ficulty Household Ammonia was in
vented and patented, and its superiority
wei all other limitations has been the
foundation of an enormous business.
As it is patented, M of the ammo
MAS that initiate its appearance can
possess its chemical qualities; these imi:
tations are really frauds, and are no
more like the genuine Household AM
monia than a sateen is like the rich silk,
whose appearance it initiates.
Here should be spoken aword of eau
ton; the volatile gaseous nature OF am
monia makes it very easy to adulterate.
Dilute good ammonia with several times
its bulk of water and it will still have o
smell of ammonia. The only safe way
is to always buy goods made by a reli-
able house of long standing. Ammonia
is even sold bottled with cork. when, if
it had any strength at all, it would de-
stroy o cork in q few days.
Inventors have been attempting for
years to make an ammonia soap, but
the gaseous nature of the ammonia al
ways was found an insuperable obstacle,
no matter how carefully the ammonia
was put in or how tightly packed it
would escape in a short time, and you
would have only an ordinary soap left
behind.
With better fortune the inventor of
Household Ammonia, after q series of
experiments running up into the hun
dreds and continued for years, succeed
ed in preparing ammonia 70 that it
could be permanently combined with
soa =, and never lose its strength.
In an age less familiar with chemical
wonders Zomonia would have suggested
magic as its only possible explanation.
To the apparent evidence of all the
senses Zomonia is only a very nice soap
powder delicately scented, but put a lit
tie in the palm Of your hand, moisten it
and rub gently, andpresto you have the
strongest ammonia. In the same way,
when put into water in the wash tub or
for cleansing purposes, Zomonia dis
solves, and in solution You have the pre-
else mixture of soap and ammonia that
experience has shown has the greatest
efficiency.
While Zomonia is kept away from
water it will never lose its ammonia, al
though it may be exposed to the air
without danger of loss OF waste.
1t is impossiblet to imagine any further
steps or improvements in cleansing COM
pounds. A perfectly made neutral soap
was for years the ideal of all good house
keepers.
The introduction of Household AM
monia, the strongest, purest ammonia
bottled, and sold at a price that brought
it within everyone's reach, was an i'm
mense addition to the ease and comfort
of housekeeping.
Now, when a perfect neutral soap is
combined with full strength ammonia,
in the proper proportion, to give the
highest efficiency, the ammonia never
loosing its strength and yet always ready
for use, housekeepers have q perfect,
complete ammonia soap for every do
nestle use.
Before closing about ammonia it may
be well to call attention to one immense
advantage that ammonia has rel the
soda generally used in soaps OF soap
powders.
The volatile nature of ammonia makes
it the safest of all cleansers. When
soda is not very thoroughly rinsed out
of the clothes it stays in them, rotting
them, and turning them yellow.
As soon as clothes washed with ammo
mia are hung in the air the ammonia
goes right off and cannot injure them.