The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-07-13

singular but ingenious process for making
glass veneers. The invention relates pri-
marily to the production of ornamental
glass, which may be either semi-trans-
parent or Opaque, and is made to repre-
sent highly polished wood of any descrip-
ton. When used for veneering it is par
ticularly adapted for vestibule and other
doors, the exterior of the glass having the
appearance OF polished wood, while in the
interior of the house it shows semi-trans-
parent. The process by which this mate
rial is produced is to cloud sheet of
ground or plain glass on one side with a
liquid dye of the proper color to represent
any desired wood. The dye is applied by
means OF a sponge, which is so manipu-
lated as to bring out the semblance of the
grain of the wood upon the surface
Of the glass. A badger brush is used to
soften the shading. The glass is then COW
cred with photographers varnish. This
leaves the grain clear and fast without the
necessity OF using any geIatlnous sub
stance, which would render it liable to
crack and spoil the effect. To complete
the operation the glass is slightly heated,
and the various shades required for the
particular wood to be initiated are caused
to flow over it by means of syringe. The
merging of the standings into each other is
prevented by the heating of the glass.
The whole is made semi-transparent by
the application of another coat of pho
tographers' varnish, which preserves and
protects the dyes. The exterior surface
then presents the appearance Of finely
polished, solid wood finish.
A HINT TO FARMERs.-A correspondent
of the London Times suggests, in view of
the great depression in both agriculture
and the textile industries, that silk culture
should be resuscitated in England. 1t is
an industry, he says, which might be re-
introduced without a great capital expen-
diture, the main expense being the plant
ing of mulberry trees. AS glass houses can
now be had at so small a cost, forcing
might be had recourse to during the incep-
ton of the industry, and the young trees
might, moreover, be green continuously
night and day by the help of the electric
light, especially where water-power is avail
able. This expedient would clear up an
interesting point. The late Sir w. Siemens
demonstrated that tree grown without
any rest, while being stunted, became
more vigorous, having thicker stem and
leaves of darker green than tree grown
with the natural alterations of light and
Huguenots had in Canterbury alone
thousand silk looms, giving employment
to some 5000 men, and all the raw material
was cultivated in the neighborhood of
London. Many parts of this country,
where the climate is temperate and equa-
BILE. would be specially suited for this cul-
ture.
CATCHING KANSAS CHINcH BUGs.-A Kan.
sas agricultural correspondent says that he
has just saved sixty-five acres of splendid
corn from the ravages of the chinch bug
by very simple and inexpensive expe-
dent. On the east of his cornfield and
separated from it by 16-foot lane was a
wheatfield of forty-six acres. Two or
three days before cutting he mixed salt
and coal oil in vessel, putting from one
half to one pint of coal oil to one-half
bushel of salt He then made line with
this salt the whole width of the corntield
(ninety rods) through the center OF the
l6-foot lane The line of salt was about
three inches wide at the base. He then
bored holes with post-auger about three
rods apart to depth of about eight inches