The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-11-19
CULTIvATING INK BLoTs.
Peculiar Pnsttme which Affords
Amusement for Some People.
From Parsons Magazine.

From Parsons Magazine.
This paper concerns blots-blots of ink
made on blotting paper grown and cul-
tlvated with care, until, perhaps after
many hours close attention, they have
assumed shapes of delicate pattern ana
extreme beauty.
If the reader has never before heard Of
beautiful ink biots-and, certainly, the
words would appear paradoxical-let him
read on, ana maybe he viii become 50
fascinated with the idea that he win take
up the hobby of culuvaung bots with
enthusiasm
1t must be explained that the blots I'M
der discussion are not made by merely fill
ing a pen with ink and allowing the drops
| to fall on paper; they are grown, ana
watched with anxious care until
| they attain their fun measure
of beauty and form. They may
he made with ordinary black or blue
black writing ink, or with colored inks.
or with mixtures Of several kinds Of inks;
| and. as a blot grows, the colors of the
ink sometimes form into differently colored
concentric rings. each color ring being
! sharply divided from the next.
In order to grow beautiful blots, you
only require small basin. an ink bottle,
a piece of glass tubing or a firm straw. a
| piece of soft lamp wick, and of course,
some ink and blotting paper. The ink bot
| tie is placed in the basin and Is filed with
| ink. The wick is inserted In the tube.
! which is placed in the ink bottle, and Is
kept in an upright position by a lid Of pa
! per or tin with "A hole in the center. The
| blotting paper is then placed over the basin
so that its center touches the slightly pro-
| trudng wick. The blotting paper thus
| fed by the wick, absorbs the ink while
the blot grows in the form of a circle and
! gradually widens owing to the force OF
| capillary attractions. In less than an hour
| 1t viii probably be four inches across: IL
may finally attain a diameter of about
twelve inches.
II must not be supposed that there is
anything at all difficult in the way OF blot
| growing. If you have not a basin, a wick
or tube at hand, dispense with the basin,
put any extemporary wick-say a piece
/ from a towels fringe-in any eXtemporary
tube-a piece of a quill pin. for instance.-
aud place the wick and tube in the ink
| bottle; arrange matters so that one end of
| the wick touches the ink and the other end
| touches the botting paper, and wait for
| the blot to develop.
Your interest will grow with the blots
| 1t viii be observed that the edges of the
| circles into which the blots form are some
times serrated or daintily scalloped; all
| though some inks preserve a perfectly
| smooth outline for each of the two three
or more concentric circles into which they
| may break. 1t becomes Accordingly inter-
| esting TO observe the different develop
ments caused by various inks; every new
| experiment yields a new result
| When the blot has been grown with q
certain kind Of ink, 1t is interesting to di-
lutte the ink with water and then to grow
| another blot and note the difference
| which viii often be surprising, or this ex-
pertinent may be varied by feeding a blot
with plain water after it has been grown
with undiluted ink; the water VIII often
cause the original blot to spread in a most
remarkable and unexpected manner.