FORMULAS FOR COLORING TRANSPARENCIES.
As we have received many inquiries in regard to the colors used in making the tinted transparencies described in No. 857 of the Round Table, we give the following formulas for preparing the coloring solutions, which are by M. Gachinot, Paris, France, all of which can be successfully used. Having printed the plate according to the directions given, immerse in any of the following solutions till the desired color or tint is obtained:
RED BATH.
| Carmine (in grains) | 5 | parts. |
| Liquid Ammonia | 15 | " |
| Distilled Water | 120 | " |
BLUE BATH.
| Prussian Blue | 50 | parts. |
| Oxalic Acid | 50 | " |
| Distilled Water | 120 | " |
YELLOW BATH.
| Gamboge | 50 | parts. |
| Saffron | 50 | " |
| Distilled Water | 150 | " |
The yellow bath must be boiled for five minutes, and filtered.
VIOLET BATH.
| Permanganate of Potash | 10 | parts |
| Distilled Water | 100 | " |
GREEN BATH.
| Prussian Blue | 50 | parts. |
| Oxalic Acid | 50 | " |
| Picric Acid | 15 | " |
| Distilled Water | 150 | " |
Dissolve by heat.
Aniline colors may also be used, and are both cheap and easily prepared. Dissolve one ounce of any aniline color in ten ounces of distilled water, and immerse the transparency in the solution till the desired tint is obtained. Wash in several changes of water till the whites are clear. Dry in a place free from dust.
Sir Knight R. H. Wyld says that in developing some pictures taken with a pocket Kodak the pictures came out positive instead of negative. The picture was overdeveloped. Probably the developer worked rather slow, and the picture may also have been under-exposed. The rest of the material will probably be all right with proper time exposure. Cold sometimes retards the action of the developer. The temperature of the developer should never be below 65° Fahr. The process for making plain salted paper was described in Nos. 796 and 803, and was also given in the circular issued last fall announcing the photographic competition.
J. W. B. encloses two prints, and asks what is the matter with them. The prints were made too dark, and in order to tone them out they were overtoned. The negatives are evidently thin, which also accounts for the gray tone of the print. The blue print formula may be found in Nos. 797, 823, and 828.
Sir Knight Russel Senior asks if different colored inks can be used to color transparencies, if aristotype prints put in a glycerine solution to keep them flat injures the gloss when they are ready to be burnished, and for a simple way to enlarge negatives. The colored inks are made from aniline colors, and it is better to prepare the color according to directions given in this paper for using aniline colors. Glycerine does not affect the polish of the print. Directions for enlarging may be found in No. 801, March 5, 1895. If you have not a file of the Round Table, enclose five cents to Harper and Brothers, and the number will be sent to you. As the directions occupy all the space devoted to the Camera Club, they cannot be repeated in "Answers to Queries"; but another paper on enlarging will be printed in a few weeks for the benefit of our new members.
Sir Knight Leonard S. Whittier asks if the editor has heard of the "Quad Camera," and if it is a good camera for five dollars, and also asks the addresses of firms that manufacture cameras at this price or less. The "Quad" camera is said to do very good work for so small a camera. The Eastman Kodak Co., Rochester, N.Y., Kombi Camera Co., Chicago, Ill., Manhattan Optical Co., Cresskill, N.J., are among the firms that manufacture low-priced cameras. A card sent to Scovill, Adams Co., or E. & H. T. Anthony and Co., New York, will bring a catalogue of cameras and photographic outfits.
Sir Knight Herschel F. Davis wishes a good formula for a one-solution metol developer, and asks if the exposure should be shortened when using metol for a developer. A single solution of metol is made as follows:
| Metol | 30 | grs. |
| Sodium Sulphite (crystals) | 180 | " |
| Potassium Carbonate | 90 | " |
| Water | 4 | oz. |
In mixing this developer the potassium carbonate can be left out till the detail is out, then add the potassium, and leave the plate in the developer till the required density is gained. One can make the exposure much shorter with the metol, and this developer is specially good for under-exposed plates.
This Department is conducted in the interest of Girls and Young Women, and the Editor will be pleased to answer any question on the subject so far as possible. Correspondents should address Editor.
So you, my little Irene, are appointed a delegate to a great convention, and mamma has consented to let you go with the other young people to a city half-way across the continent—you who at seventeen have never made a journey except under your mother's care. It is your first flight from the nest, and I do not wonder that you and she both anticipate it with a good deal of thought and some perplexity. To you, of course, the outlook is all roseate; you are sure you will have an enchanting time, and you have no forebodings; but mamma, being older and having experience, feels less at her ease. And yet it is a simple matter to travel under auspices so agreeable as those which belong to Christian Endeavorers when they go to an annual assemblage of their great society.
Resolve beforehand to go equipped lightly as to luggage. A pretty travelling-dress, with an extra waist for any emergency or occasion of ceremony, is all you will require in the way of a gown, and a change of under-clothing will go with the waist in your hand-bag. An oil-silk bag for your sponge, your needful toilet articles, and such trifles as pins, needle and thread, shoe buttons, and light overshoes can easily be compressed into a very small space. An extra pair of gloves should be taken, and a small bottle of camphor or other remedy for sudden indisposition will not be amiss.
On the journey, whether by boat or by train, keep strictly with your own party. There will probably be a number of your friends, very likely your pastor and his wife, in the company, and you must be careful to stay where they stay, and go where they go. You are not an independent traveller. You belong to a party, and must conform to its regulations. Especially when your objective point is a strange city, where you will be thrown among hundreds of people unknown to you, be sure that you do not separate in any way from your own particular group.
Arrived at your destination, you will probably find that quarters have been assigned to you in hospitable homes. Here, as you are received with friendly greetings, do your utmost to prove that you appreciate the kindness shown. Give as little trouble as possible to your entertainers. Every home has its fixed hours for meals, and visitors should be ready at the moment, so that the hostess shall not be embarrassed in her proceedings by any lack of punctuality in theirs. If prayers in the family are before breakfast, be sure that you rise early enough to attend them, and in every point make your visit a pleasure to those who kindly invite you to be a guest beneath their roof.
In visiting a strange place avail yourself of each opportunity for seeing interesting points, for going to see objects of natural interest, museums, libraries, etc., always, however, visiting these with your own party, or with friends who are responsible for your safety.
You will need very little money on such a journey as I am thinking of, your tickets being procured beforehand, and your only requirement being for small change. The funds of the party should be in the hands of one person, selected before starting, who will act as treasurer on the trip, keeping a strict account of her disbursements, so that she may render it at the journey's end.
Marjorie Daw.—Miss Deland's Oakleigh is, in my opinion, as entertaining a book as Little Women. The Story of a Short Life and Jackanapes were written by Mrs. Ewing, who died some years ago. Grandma's Attic Treasures is by Mary D. Brine.
Marion D.—Send your invitations for the garden party in the shape of informal notes, written in the ordinary way. "Dear Alice,—Come to my party next Saturday afternoon at 4 o'clock. Tea in the garden," or, "My dear Mary,—Will you give me the pleasure of your presence at a lawn-party next Saturday at four o'clock, to meet Miss Elsie Morrow and Miss Nancy Page, of Baltimore." Let your little note be brief but cordial. It is quite proper to write such an invitation on one's visiting-card.
Carrie H. D.—I do not think that a girl should too confidently depend on her friend's opinion that she can write short stories. The only way to really test the matter is to send the stories, written plainly, or type-written, and, of course, on one side of the paper only, with return postage enclosed, to the editor of a paper. A girl should read the best stories she can find, and the best essays and historical sketches too, and be in no haste to publish. I cannot advise a young girl to go upon the stage. She should certainly not think of this, unless her parents and teachers not only fully approve, but also urge her to do so. In my experience girls of all periods are much alike. I think the girls of to-day are not at all silly; in some particulars, as in opportunities for out-door sports, and in excellent health, they surpass the girls of a few years ago. Girls are fascinating creatures, and I dearly love them.
