Purple. — For five pounds goods, cream of tartar, four
ounces; alum, six ounces; cochineal, well pulverized two
ounces; muriate of tin, one-half teacupful. Boil the cream of
tartar, alum, and tin fifteen minutes; then put in the cochineal
and boil five minutes; dip the goods two hours; then make a
new dye with alum, four ounces; Brazil wood, six ounces;
logwood, fourteen ounces; muriate of tin, one teacupful, with
a little chemic; work again until pleased.
Silver Drab. — Light. — For five pounds of goods, alum,
one small teaspoonful, and logwood about the same amount;
boil well together, then dip the goods one hour; if not dark
enough, add in equal quantities alum and logwood until
suited.
Dark Colors. — To Extract and Insert Light. — This
recipe is calculated for carpet-rags. In the first place let the
rags be washed clean; the black or brown rags can be colored
red, or purple, at the option of the dyer; to do this, take, for
every five pounds of black or brown rags, muriate of tin, three-
quarters of a pound, and the lac, one-half pound, mixed with
the same as for the lac red; dip the goods in this dye two
hours, boiling one half of the time. If not red enough add
more tin and lac. The goods can then be made a purple by
adding a little logwood; be careful and not get in but a small
handful, as more can be added if not enough. White rags
make a beautiful appearance in a carpet, by tying them in the
skein, and coloring them red, green, or purple; gray rags will
HOUSEHOLD. 225
take a very good green; the coloring will be in proportion to
the darkness of mix.
Black. — For five pounds of goods, sumach, wood and
bark together, three pounds; boil one-half hour, and let the
goods steep twelve hours; then dip in lime water one-half hour;
then take out the goods, and let them drip an hour; now add
to the sumach liquor, copperas, eight ounces, and dip another
hour; then run them through the tub of lime-water again for
fifteen minutes; now make a new dye with logwood, two and
one-half pounds; by boiling one hour, and dip again three
hours; now add bichromate of potash, two ounces to the log-
wood dye, and dip one hour. Wash in clear, cold water and
dry in the shade. You may say this is doing too much. You
cannot get a permanent black on cotton with less labor.
Blue on Cotton or Linen. — With Logwood.— In all
cases, if new, they should be boiled in a strong soap-suds or
weak lye, and rinsed clean; then for cotton, five pounds, or
linen, three pounds, take bichromate of potash, three-quarters
of a pound; put in the goods and dip two hours; then take
out and rinse; make a dye with logwood, four pounds; dip in
this one hour, air, and let stand in the dye three or four hours,
or till the dye is almost cold; wash out, and dry.
Page 156
Presented as published in 1883. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
Purple. — For five pounds goods, cream of tartar, four ounces; alum, six ounces; cochineal, well pulverized, two ounces; muriate of tin, one-half teacupful. Boil the cream of tartar, alum, and tin fifteen minutes; then put in the cochineal and boil five minutes; dip the goods two hours; then make a new dye with alum, four ounces; Brazil wood, six ounces; logwood, fourteen ounces; muriate of tin, one teacupful, with a little chemic; work again until pleased.
Silver Drab. — Light. — For five pounds of goods, alum, one small teaspoonful, and logwood about the same amount; boil well together, then dip the goods one hour; if not dark enough, add in equal quantities alum and logwood until suited.
Dark Colors. — To Extract and Insert Light. — This recipe is calculated for carpet-rags. In the first place let the rags be washed clean; the black or brown rags can be colored red, or purple, at the option of the dyer; to do this, take, for every five pounds of black or brown rags, muriate of tin, threequarters of a pound, and the lac, one-half pound, mixed with the same as for the lac red; dip the goods in this dye two hours, boiling one half of the time. If not red enough add more tin and lac. The goods can then be made a purple by adding a little logwood; be careful and not get in but a small handful, as more can be added if not enough. White rags make a beautiful appearance in a carpet, by tying them in the skein, and coloring them red, green, or purple; gray rags will
take a very good green; the coloring will be in proportion to the darkness of mix.
Black. — For five pounds of goods, sumach, wood and bark together, three pounds; boil one-half hour, and let the goods steep twelve hours; then dip in lime water one-half hour; then take out the goods, and let them drip an hour; now add to the sumach liquor, copperas, eight ounces, and dip another hour; then run them through the tub of lime-water again for fifteen minutes; now make a new dye with logwood, two and one-half pounds; by boiling one hour, and dip again three hours; now add bichromate of potash, two ounces to the logwood dye, and dip one hour. Wash in clear, cold water and dry in the shade. You may say this is doing too much. You cannot get a permanent black on cotton with less labor.
Blue on Cotton or Linen. — With Logwood.— In all cases, if new, they should be boiled in a strong soap-suds or weak lye, and rinsed clean; then for cotton, five pounds, or linen, three pounds, take bichromate of potash, three-quarters of a pound; put in the goods and dip two hours; then take out and rinse; make a dye with logwood, four pounds; dip in this one hour, air, and let stand in the dye three or four hours, or till the dye is almost cold; wash out, and dry.