Manner of Holding the Stylus When Tracing the Design on the Back Side of the Paper
As it is best to adopt a distinctive form of monogram or design for stationery and to use it without deviation, it should be selected or worked up with care until something is outlined that will suit. With the design settled upon and drawn on a piece of paper, go over it with a soft pencil to deposit sufficient graphite for an impression. Lay the pattern, face down, upon the back of the paper to be embossed, and directly opposite the spot on the other side where the raised characters are to appear. With the handle of a knife or scissors rub over the back of the pattern till the graphite has left the tracing of the design reversed on the writing paper.
The pattern is now laid aside until required for transferring the design to another sheet of writing paper. Lay the blotter on some smooth, hard surface, such as a desk leaf or table top and lay the writing paper on the blotter, reversed design uppermost. Hold the stylus firmly at an angle as shown in the illustration and keep the blotter and paper from moving with the other hand. Carefully trace the design, using considerable pressure to insure a good relief upon the opposite side of the paper. A soft eraser should be used to remove the guide marks on the back of the sheet when the relief is finished.
After a little practice with a certain design, if it is not too intricate, the operator will find that it can be reproduced quite faithfully freehand, without the use of the pattern, but, of course, the use of the pattern will be the only guarantee of exact duplicates.
A Homemade Hydrometer
The hydrometer is an instrument used in determining the specific gravity of a liquid, such as acids, etc. The specific gravity of any material is the ratio of the weights of equal volumes of the material and water. Thus if a pint of acid weighs 1.2 times a pint of water, its specific gravity is said to be 1.2.
A very simple and inexpensive hydrometer, similar to the one shown in the sketch, may be easily constructed, and will give quite satisfactory results, if the scale on the instrument is carefully marked when it is calibrated.
Purchase from the local druggist or doctor two test tubes, one large enough to contain the other, as shown. The smaller tube is to form the hydrometer proper, while the larger one is to serve as a containing vessel in which the liquid to be tested is placed. The large tube should be mounted in a vertical position, by placing it in a hole bored in a small block of wood, or a suitable metal or wooden frame may be made that will accommodate one or more tubes.