I

Sprinkling borax is not only cheaper, but also dissolves less in soldering than pure borax.

The borax is heated in a metal vessel until it has lost its water of crystallization and mixed with calcined cooking salt and potash—borax, 8 parts; cooking salt, 3 parts; potash, 3 parts. Next i; is pounded in a mortar into a fine powder, constituting the sprinkling borax.

II

Another kind of sprinkling borax is prepared by substituting glass-gall for the potash. Glass-gall is the froth floating on the melted glass, which can be skimmed off.

The borax is either dusted on in powder form from a sprinkling box or stirred with water before use into a thin paste.

Sawdust In Bran

For the detection of sawdust in bran use a solution of 1 part of phloroglucin in 15 parts of alcohol, 15 parts of water, and 10 parts of syrupy phosphoric acid. Place 2 parts of the solution in a small porcelain dish, add a knifepointful of the bran and heat moderately. Sawdust is dyed red while bran parts only seldom acquire a faint red color. By a microscopic examination of the reddish parts, sawdust will be readily recognized.