Then put on a coat or two of French zinc ground in damar varnish, thinned with 1 part damar varnish and 2 parts turpentine. Next put on a coat of damar varnish mixed with a little zinc ground in damar, just enough to make the varnish white. Flow on a coat, and be careful that it does not run on your work. To avoid runs always commence at the top of a panel with a full brush and work down so as not to have a surplus in the lower corners of the panels; this applies to all parts of the work. It is quite a knack to put on a full coat of this varnish and zinc, and not have it run.
In all cases put on enough zinc coats to make a clear white before you put on the varnish. The small quantity of zinc is put in the varnish to take off the yellow tinge, and to keep it from turning yellow. Use lead putty. See recipes to make it on another page.
ANOTHER WAY.
Very hard and white, for parlors.—To prepare the wood for the finish, if it be pine, give one or two coats of the “Varnish—Transparent for wood,” which prevents the pitch from oozing out, causing the finish to turn yellow; next, give the room, at least, four coats of pure zinc, which may be ground in only sufficient oil to enable it to grind properly; then mix to a proper consistency with turpentine or naphtha. Give each coat time to dry. When it is dry and hard, sandpaper it to a perfectly smooth surface, when it is ready to receive the finish, which consists of two coats of French zinc ground in, and thinned with damar varnish, until it works properly under the brush.
LEAD POISONING—HOW TO AVOID IT.
White lead may enter the human system in three ways, to-wit: Through the stomach, the lungs and the skin. In other words, it may be eaten, inhaled or absorbed, hence the stomach, lungs and skin should each be carefully guarded against it. To guard the stomach, through which you are in the most danger of taking in the poison, make it a rule to keep the mouth closed as much as possible when using white lead, and especially when sandpapering. Make it a rule to never eat or drink without first carefully cleansing your lips, and carefully removing the paint from your hands before eating. Tobacco chewers, who carry tobacco in their pockets, are in especial danger of lead poison, if working in paint, because the tobacco becomes more or less poisoned with lead from the fingers, if the painter is not careful to clean his hands before taking a chew. There is no great danger from inhaling white lead, except when sandpapering, or when dusting after sandpapering.
It is a pretty good thing to carefully guard the nose with a damp sponge while sandpapering, and to carefully free the nostrils from lead. There is no danger of poisoning by absorption through the skin, unless the painter is careless. When T see some men at work, I wonder how they can possibly escape lead poisoning. Their clothing glazed with oil paint, their hands daubed to the wrist by grasping the brush by the head, instead of by the handle; or by general carelessness in mixing and handling paints.
SYMPTOMS OF LEAD POISON.
Tired feeling, wakefulness at night, neuralgic pains, “shaky” hands, constipated bowels, bad taste in the mouth, and pain in the bowels, a blue edge on the gums, and a coated tongue. If you get the colic, see a doctor; for the other symptoms, get away from paint for a while if possible, and take the following: Iodide of potash, ½ oz.; syrup sarsaparilla, 8 oz. Dose:—Teaspoonful three or four times a day in half a cup of milk. Eat graham mush and drink milk.