INDELIBLE WRITING.
As the art of man can unmake whatever his ingenuity can make, we have no right to expect an indelible ink; however, an approximation to it may be made as follows: make a saturated solution of indigo and madder in boiling water, in such proportions as to give a purple tint; add to it from one-sixth to one-eighth of its weight of sulphuric acid, according to the thickness and strength of the paper to be used. Write with this ink, and expose the paper to a gradual heat from the fire, when the characters will be completely black, the letters being burnt in and charred by the sulphuric acid. If the acid has not been used in sufficient quantity to destroy the texture of the paper, and reduce it to the state of tinder, the colour may be discharged by washing it with a strong solution of oxalic acid in water. When the full proportion of acid has been employed, crumple and rub the paper, and the charred letters will fall out; then by placing a black ground behind the letters, they may be preserved, and thus a species of indelible writing may be procured, the letters being, as it were, stamped out of the paper.