268 WHEN ALONE WE HAVE OUR THOUGHTS TO WATCH; the pot briskly by the handle for a few minutes, take off the lid, and with the spatula scrape the iced cream from the sides, mixing the whole smoothly; put on the lid, and whirl again, repeating all the operations every few minutes until the whole of the cream is well frozen. Great care and considerable labour are required in stirring, so that the whole cream may be smoothly frozen, and not in hard lumps. When finished, if it is required to be kept any time, the melted ice and salt should be allowed to escape, by removing the cork, and the pail filled up with fresh materials. It is scarcely necessary to add, that if any of the melted ice and salt is allowed to mix with the cream, the latter is spoiled. From the difficulty of obtaining ice in places distant from large towns, and in hot countries, and from the impracticability of keeping it any length of time, or, in fact, of keeping small quantities more than a few hours, its use is much limited, and many have been the attempts to obtain an efficient substitute. For this purpose various salts have been employed, which, when dissolved in water, or in acids, absorb a sufficient amount of heat to freeze substances with which they may be placed in contact. We shall not attempt, in this article, to describe all the various freezing mixtures that have been devised, but speak only of those which have been found practically useful, state the circumstances which have prevented any of them coming into common use, and conclude by giving the composition of the New Freezing Preparation, which is now exported so largely to India, and the composition of which has hitherto never been made public. Many of the freezing mixtures which are to be found described in books are incorrectly so named, for although they themselves are below the freezing point, yet they are not sufficiently powerful to freeze any quantity of water, or other substances, when placed in a vessel within them. In order to be efficient as a freezing mixture, as distinguished from a cooling one, the materials used ought to be capable of producing by themselves an amount of cold more than thirty degrees below the freezing point of water, and this the ordinary mixtures will not do. Much more efficient and really freezing mixtures may be made by using acids to dissolve the salts. The cheapest, and perhaps the best, of these for ordinary use, is one which is frequently employed in France, both for making dessert ices, and cooling wines, &c. It consists of coarsely powdered Glauber salt (sulphate of soda), on which is poured about two-thirds its weight of spirit of salts (muriatic acid). The mixture should be made in a wooden vessel, as that is preferable to one made of metal, which conducts the external heat to the materials with great rapidity; and when the substance to be cooled is placed in the mixture, the whole should be covered with a blanket, a piece of old woollen carpet doubled, or some other non-conducting material, to prevent the access of the external warmth; the vessel used for icing wines should not be too large, that there may be no waste of the freezing mixture. This combination produces a degree of cold thirty degrees below freezing; and if the materials are bought of any of the wholesale druggists or drysalters, it is exceedingly economical. It is open, however, to the very great objection, that the muriatic acid is an exceedingly corrosive liquid, and of a pungent, disagreeable odour: this almost precludes its use for any purpose except that of icing wines. 1921. FURTHER DIRECTIONS.-Ac tual quantities-one pound of muriate of ammonia, or sal ammoniac, finely powdered, is to be intimately mixed with two pounds of nitrate of potash or saltpetre, also in powder; this mixture we may call No. 1. No. 2 is formed by. crushing three pounds of the best Scotch soda. In use, an equal bulk of both No. 1 and No. 2 is to be taken, stirred together, placed in the ice-pail, surrounding the ice-pot, and rather less IN OUR FAMILIES OUR TEMPERS, AND IN SOCIETY OUR TONGUES. cold water poured on than will dissolve the whole; if one quart of No. 1, and the same bulk of No. 2 are taken, it will require about one quart of water to dissolve them, and the temperature will fall, if the materials used are cool, to nearly thirty degrees below freezing. Those who fail, may trace their want of success to one or other of the following points: the use of too small a quantity of the preparation, the employment of a few ounces; whereas, in freezing ices, the ice-pot must be entirely surrounded with the freezing material: no one would attempt to freeze with four ounces of ice and salt. Again, too large a quantity of water may be used to dissolve the preparation, when all the excess of water has to be cooled down instead of the substance it is wished to freeze. All the materials used should be pure, and as cool as can be obtained. The ice-pail in which the mixture is made must be of some nonconducting material, as wood, which will prevent the access of warmth from the air; and the ice-pot, in which the liquor to be frozen is placed, should be of pewter, and surrounded nearly to its top by the freezing mixture. Bear in mind that the making of ice-cream, under any circumstances, is an operation requiring considerable dexterity and practice. 1922. To make Dessert Ices, 269 employed. Of course the quantity of sugar must be proportionately diminished. 1925. STRAWBERRY-WATER ICE.One large pottle of scarlet strawberries, the juice of a lemon, a pound of sugar, or one pint of strong syrup, half a pint of water. Mix,-first rubbing the fruit through a sieve,-and freeze. 1926. RASPBERRY-WATER ICE in the same manner. 1927. LEMON-WATER ICE.-Lemon juice and water, each half a pint; strong syrup, one pint: the rind of the lemons should be rasped off, before squeezing, with lump sugar, which is to be added to the juice; mix the whole; strain after standing an hour, and freeze. Beat up with a little sugar the whites of two or three eggs, and as the ice is beginning to set, work this in with the spatula, which will much improve the consistence and taste. 1928. ORANGE-WATER ICE in the same way. 1929. Nitrate of Ammonia as a Freezing Mixture.--Another substance which is free from any corrosive action or unpleasant odour, is the nitrate of ammonia, which, if simply dissolved in rather less than its own weight of water, reduces the temperature to about twenty-five degrees below freezing. The objections to its use are, that its frigorific power is not sufficiently great to freeze readily; and if it be required to form both Cream and Water. dessert ices, it is requisite to renew the 1923. STRAWBERRY ICE CREAM.process, at the expiration of a quarter Take one pint of strawberries, one pint of an hour, a second, or even, if the of cream, nearly half a pound of pow-weather is very hot, and the water dered white sugar, the juice of a lemon; used is rather warm, a third or fourth mash the fruit through a sieve, and time. Again, the nitrate of ammonia take out the seeds: mix with the other is a very expensive salt; even in France, articles, and freeze. A little new milk where it is manufactured expressly for added makes the whole freeze more this purpose, it is sold at the rate of quickly. three francs a pound; and in this country it cannot be obtained under a much higher price. One great recommendation, however, attends its use, namely, that it may be recovered again, and used any number of times, by simply boiling away the water in which it is dissolved, by a gentle fire, until a 1924. RASPBERRY ICE CREAM.The same as strawberry. These ices are often coloured by cochineal, but the addition is not advantageous to the flavour. Strawberry or raspberry jam may be used instead of the fresh fruit, or equal quantities of jam and fruit 1 270 FEWER ACQUAINTANCES, AND MORE FRIENDS. small portion, on being removed, crystallizes on cooling. 1930. Washing Soda as a Freezing Mixture.-If, however, nitrate of ammonia in coarse powder is put into the cooler, and there is then added twice its weight of freshly crushed washing soda, and an equal quantity of the coldest water that can be obtained, an intensely powerful frigorific mixture is the result, the cold often falling to forty degrees below freezing. This is by far the most efficacious freezing mixture that can be made without the use of ice or acids. But, unfortunately, it has an almost insuperable objection, that the nitrate of ammonia is decomposed by the soda, and cannot be recovered by evaporation; this raises the expense to so great a height, that the plan is practically useless. cannot be regarded as a freezing one, although very efficient in cooling. The other powder is formed simply of the best Scotch soda, crushed in a mortar, or by passing through a mill; although, as hitherto prepared, its appearance has been disguised by the admixture of small quantities of other materials, which have, however, tended to diminish its efficacy. The two powders so prepared must be separately kept in closely-covered vessels, and in as cool a place as possible; for if the crushed soda is exposed to the air, it loses the water it contains, and is considerably weakened in power; and if the other mixture is exposed, it attracts moisture from the air, and dissolves in it-becoming useless. To use the mixture, take an equal bulk of the two powders, mix them together 1931. The New Freezing Pre- by stirring, and immediately introduce paration without Ice or Acids them into the ice-pail, or vessel in obviates all these objections. It is easy which they are to be dissolved, and of use, not corrosive in its properties, and pour on as much water (the coldest capable of being used at any time, at a that can be obtained) as is sufficient to minute's notice; is easy of transport, dissolve them; if a pint measure of each being in a solid form, and, moreover, of the powders is used, they will require moderate in its cost. In India, to about a pint of water to dissolve them. which country it has been exported in More water than is necessary should enormous quantities, it has excited the not be used, as in that case the addimost lively interest, and the Nepaulese tional water is cooled instead of the princes, when in London, paid the substance that it is wished to freeze. greatest attention to its use. It con- Less than a pint of each powder, and sists of two powders, the first of which about the same quantity of water, will is composed of one part by weight of be found sufficient to ice two bottles of muriate of ammonia, or sal-ammoniac wine, one after the other, in the hottest powder, and intimately mixed with of weather, if a tub is used of such a size two parts by weight of nitrate of pot-as to prevent the waste of materials. ash, or saltpetre. These quantities 1932. Muriate of Ammonia as are almost exactly in (what is called by chemists) the combining proportions of the two salts, and by reacting on each other, the original compounds are destroyed, and in the place of muriate of ammonia and nitrate of potash, we have nitrate of ammonia and muriate of potash; thus we have succeeded in producing nitrate of ammonia at a cheap rate, accompanied by another salt, the muriate of potash, which also produces considerable cold when dissolved: but this mixture, used alone, a Freezing Mixture. If the ordinary sal ammoniac of the shops is used, it will be found both difficult to powder, and expensive; in fact, it is so exceedingly tough, that the only way in which it can be easily divided, except in a drug mill, is by putting as large a quantity of the salt into water which is actually boiling as the latter will dissolve; as the solution cools, the salt crystallizes out in the solid form, and if stirred as it cools, it separates in a state of fine division. As this process is troublesome, and as the EVERY ONE BASTETH THE FAT HOG, WHILE THE LEAN ONE BURNETH. 271 paste, plenty of clean water, and keep sal ammoniac is expensive, it is better to use the crude muriate of ammonia, which is the same substance as sal ammoniac, but before it has been purified by sublimation. This is not usually a cock bird from a hen, observe the bird kept by druggists, but may be readily when it is singing, and if it be a cock obtained of any of the artificial manure you will perceive the throat heaving merchants, at a very moderate rate; with a pulse-like motion, a peculiarity and its purity may be readily tested by which is scarcely perceptible in the placing a portion of it on a red-hot iron, hen. Feed young canaries with white when it should fly off in a vapour, and yolk of hard egg, mixed together leaving scarcely any residue. with a little bread steeped in water. This should be pressed and placed in one vessel, while in another should be put some boiled rape seed, washed in fresh water. Change the food every day. When they are a month old, put them into separate cages. Cut the claws of cage birds occasionally, when they become too long, but in doing so be careful not to draw blood. 1933. COLDNESS OF THE MATERIALS USED. It is hardly necessary to add, that in icing wines, or freezing, the effect is great in proportion to the coldness of the materials used: therefore, every article employed, viz., the water, tubs, mixtures, &c., should be as cool as possible. 1934. Blackbirds. The cock bird is of a deep black, with a yellow bill. The female is dark brown. It is difficult to distinguish male from female birds when young; but the darkest generally are males. Their food consists of German paste, bread, meat, and bits of apple. The same treatment as given for the thrush applies to the blackbird. 1935. Food of Blackbirds.The natural food of the blackbird is berries, worms, insects, shelled snails, cherries, and other similar fruit; and its artificial food, lean fresh meat, cut very small, and mixed with bread, or German paste. 1936. Thrushes.-A cock may be distinguished from a hen by a darker back, and the more glossy appearance of the feathers. The belly also is white. Their natural food is insects, worms, and snails. In a domesticated state they will meat raw meat, but snails and worms should be procured for them. Young birds are hatched about the middle of April, and should be kept very warm. They should be fed with raw meat, cut small, or bread mixed in milk with hemp seed well bruised; when they can feed themselves give them lean meat cut small, and mixed with bread or German 1938. Canaries. Especial care must be taken to keep the canary scrupulously clean. For this purpose, the cage should be strewed every morning with clean sand, or rather, fine gravel, for small pebbles are absolutely essential to life and health in cage-birds: fresh water must be given every day, both for drinking and bathing; the latter being in a shallow vessel; and, during the moulting season, a small bit of iron should be put into the water for drinking. The food of a canary should consist principally of summer rape seed, that is, of those small brown rape seeds which are obtained from plants sown in the spring, and which ripen during the summer; large and black rape seeds, on the contrary, are produced by such plants as are sown in autumn and reaped in spring. A little chickweed in spring, lettuce leaves in summer, and endive in autumn, with slices of sweet apple in winter, may be safely given; but bread and sugar ought to be generally avoided. Occasionally, also, a few poppy or canary seeds, and a small quantity of bruised hemp seed may be added, but the last very sparingly. Cleanliness, simple food, and fresh but not cold air, are essential to the wellbeing of a canary. During the winter, 272 TIME AND TIDE TARRY FOR NO MAN. the cage should never be hung in a room without a fire, but even then, when the air is mild, and the sun shines bright, the little prisoner will be refreshed by having the window open. The cage should never be less than eight inches in diameter, and a foot high, with perches at different heights. 1939. Bulfinches. Old birds should be fed with German Paste, No. 2, and occasionally rape seed. The Germans sometimes give them a little poppy-seed, and a grain or two of rice, steeped in Canary wine, when teaching them to pipe, as a reward for the progress they make. . Bird organs, or flageolets, are used to teach them. They breed three or four times a year. The young require to be kept very warm, and to be fed every two hours with rape seed, soaked for several hours in cold water, afterwards scalded and strained, bruised, mixed with bread, and moistened with milk. One, two, or three mouthfuls at a time. 1940. Linnets. -Cock birds are browner on the back than the hens, and have some of the large feathers of the wings white up to the quills. Canary and hemp seed, with occasionally a little groundsel, water-cress, chickweed, &c., constitute their food. lettuce, &c., and occasionally berries. When confined, they are usually fed with a paste made in the following manner:-Take a portion of bread, well-baked and stale, put it into fresh water, and leave it until quite soaked through, then squeeze out the water and pour boiled milk over it, adding two-thirds of the same quantity of barley meal well sifted, or, what is better, wheat meal. This should be made fresh every two days. Occasionally the yolk of a hard-boiled egg should be crumbled small and given to the birds, as well as a little hemp seed, meal worms, and elder berries. Great cleanliness should be observed in the cages of these birds. 1942. Parrots may best be taught to talk by covering the cage at night, or rather in the evening, and then repeating to them slowly and distinctly the words they are desired to learn. They should be kept away from places where they would be liable to hear disagreeable noises, such as street cries, and the whistling and shouts of boys at play, or they will imitate them, and become too noisy to be tolerated. Parrots may be fed upon soaked bread, biscuit, mashed potatoes, and rape seed. They are fond of nuts. Cayenne pepper, sprinkled upon a bone, and given to them occasionally, is said to be very beneficial. They should be kept very clean, and allowed a bath frequently. It would be difficult to point out modes of treatment of the diseases of parrots. When they become affected in any way, it is best to keep them warm, change their food for a time, and give them lukewarm water to bathe in. 1941. Skylarks. The cock is recognized by the largeness of his eye, the length of his claws, the mode of erecting his crest, and by marks of white in the tail. It is also a larger bird than the hen. The cage should be of the following proportions:-Length, one foot five inches; width, nine inches; height, one foot three inches. There should be a circular projection in front to admit of a fresh turf being placed 1943. German Paste.-German every two or three days, and the bottom paste for cage birds, which will be of the cage should be plentifully and found of better quality and cheaper constantly sprinkled with river sand. than what is sold in the shops. Boil four All vessels containing food should be eggs until quite hard, then throw them placed outside, and the top of the cage into cold water; remove the whites and should be arched and padded, so that grate or pound the yolks until quite the bird may not injure itself by jump- fine, and add a pound of white eaing about. Their food, in a natural meal and a tablespoonful of olive oil. state, consists of seeds, insects, and also Mix the whole up together, and press buds, green herbage, as clover, endive, | the dough through a tin cullender so as |