The Washington times., 1895-06-18
CRYSTALS IN DROPS OF INK.
When You Writea Letter You Scatter
Din mnnds a nd Rmhies.

Do you K aow that when you dip your pen
in ink and write letter you make brilliant
crystals all over the paper? The poet has
been described putting down his burn
ing thoughts" but now it seems they
freeze unless he happens To write with
lead pencil. says the New York World.
These crystals appear whether You write
apoem or simply sigu your name toa check,
and there are as many crystals in the sig
nature Of John Garvey, the Astor tramp, as
in that Of Russell Sage
You must let the ink dry. Then If you
look at it through a powerful microscope
magnifyiug some 800 diameters you viii
see all sorts Of beautiful forms. These ap-
pear in endless variety, but with all the
symmetry uf frost crystals or of those
chemicals which precipitate into flowers
aud geumetrical forms before your eyes.
DR. z. Truuessart, a French savant, has
recently Investigated this inter esdng
branch of science and has produced some
exquisite examples of what he calls "fleurs
de Tencre' The method employed is very
simple a drop Of ink is allowed TO dry
on a slip of glass, and, when observed
under a microscope, shows the cTystaliZa-
tiun.
The inks Of commerce vary some what in
composition, but all inks having base OF
solution of gallnutS and sulphate OF iron
show the crystals The salt Of the inks
which thus Crystallizes has not yet been
identified, and Dr. TruueSsart has hesi-
tated to give it q name.
He has found that the ink crystals are
chiefly uf the cubicai form and this sug-
gests that they are magnetic oxide of iron.
Strange to say, these ink crystals are
white in culor. This, together with the
fact of the peculiar shapes Of some Of the
groups seems to indicate that iron disul-
phide OF maucasite is the substance in ques-
ton. In red and purple inks the crystals
are of a totally different shape from those
to be found in black inks. Indelible inks,
on the other hand, show few of the crystals.
You may write your name several times,
| using the same pen. ink and paper, and yet
| the crystals when observed are seen to be
! tOtaHydifferentine each case. Thustheyw
| not be available as methods Of identifica-
ton in forged-win cases or when the sig
/ natures to checks are in dispute.
There are no crystals in the ink as it
| smoothly gliGes from the point OF your pen
| tothepaper, but theyrapidlybe appear
asthe ink dries, formingin exquisite fashion
/ on water that is quickly freezing. Under
! the microscope Of the savant who has
! investigated this subject large crystals
| appeared in an instant, while the ink was
! drying, making geometrical forms at the
/ bidding of some mysterious force.
Squares and crosses were numerous.
| There were forms that looked like telegraph
| poles. and others that seemed like grid
! irons. Fair setted gems radiating light
! suddenly sprang into existence under the
/ astonished eyes Of the man Of science.
Being in aniiine ink, they took all the
coIors Of the rainbow, making a gorgeous
| display that rivaled that of jewelers. case
Of precious stones throwing off rays Of
! every color. Looked at from one point
/ there were diamonds, enneralds and rubieSin
the collection of ink crystals; then slight
| inclination of the paper turned them into
! sapphires, amethysts and opals, while from
| anotherpoint they seemed like garnets tour
naIines and bits of amber gently playing
with the shafts Of light under the eyes Of
| the observer.
Who knew before that ink could be so
| brilliant? The dullest man now can write
dazzling thoughts. 1t will not even be nee
essary for the ambitious author to find a
publisher, His gorgeous word-painting will
/ astonish the behoIder when put under the
ma gnifying glass.
| Rejected manuscripts are thus equally as
| brilliant as those that are accepted, and
after the latter are printed more so, for
printers ink, it has been found, is a thick
and muggy substance which shows none of
| the exquisite geometric figures of the ami
line inks. There are millions of embryo
I crystals in every bottle of ink, which is
a veritable jewelers. shop in what it may
! show to delight the eve.