Oxalic Acid Solution

Ingredients

• Crystals of oxalic acid, 2 ounces
• Water, 1 gill

Method

1. 1

   Place the oxalic acid crystals in a bottle, add the water, and shake frequently until many of the crystals have dissolved, which may take up to 12 hours.

2. 2

   Strain off the solution.

3. 3

   For general bleaching, mix 1 gill of the solution into a gallon of water.

4. 4

   For stain removal, add a gill of the solution to a pint of water and apply to the stain.

As published

This recipe was extracted from Around-the-world cook book (1913) by Mary Louise Barroll, page 102. The excerpt below is the record exactly as published.

Crystals of oxalic acid, 2 ounces, Water, 1 giU. Place the oxalic acid crj'stals in a bottle, add the water, and shake frequently until many of the crystals have dis- solved, which may not, possibly, be before 12 hours. If the crystals are small it may be less. Then strain off the solution, 1 gill of which put into a gallon of water if the acid is to be used for a general bleach for clothes that have been made yellow by being long put away. But even in this case the clothes must be well wet before being put into the acid bath. To use for taking out stains, add a gill of the solution to a pint of water, and the spot to be removed is touched with it, the same as with javelle water. Both javelle water and oxalic acid are poison, and the bot- tles should be so labeled. They should not be used if there are abrasions on the hands. REMOVING STAINS WITH SULPHTm MATCHES Very small spots on white linen may be removed by wetting the heads of sulphur matches, one after the other, and rub- bing them over the discoloration. It is the sulphur in the composition which acts as a bleach. TO CLEAN DECANTERS OR WATER-BOTTLES Mix half a gill of vinegar with a handful of salt, and put a little of the liquid in each decanter, and shake well then rinse in clear water. Milk bottles should be washed first with cold water. SOFT SOAP Potash, % pound, Grease, 1 pound. 305 AROUND-THE-WORLD COOK BOOK Soak the potash in cold water overnight, and next day boil it until the potash dissolves, then while still boiling hot, pour it over the grease which has been placed in the receptacle in which you intend to keep the soap. Every day pour on more boiling water, according to the quantity of soap being made, and stir well. Twenty-five pounds of grease will make about 1 barrel of soap. Pour on a kettle of hot water each day until it comes to the right consistency. TO EEMOVE SPOTS FROM CLOTHING Sometimes the application of soap, ammonia, or gasoline to fabrics that have been soiled seems only to make the stains more prominent. This is partly because the cleaning agent was not suitable to the material. No matter whether it is silk, wool, or cotton, there should always be a fresh piece of cloth placed underneath, to absorb the soiled fluid that soaks through, otherwise the cleaning- fluid, laden with dirt, has no place to go, and simply spreads over the original place. Several layers of some absorbent ma- terial should be used; layers of cheese-cloth are very good for this purpose. It is also important that the fabric to be cleaned be spread out smoothly, so that it may be seen that no dirty ring is formed outside the stained portion. To prevent the forma- tion of such a ring, the stained portion should be surrounded with cornstarch, which will prevent the cleaning-fluid from spreading. If there should be a ring formed outside the cleaned portion, it may in some cases be removed by holding it over the spout of a boiling tea-kettle. The absorbent cloth should also be large enough to admit of moving the stained spot to a different place, so as not to rub in again, the old washed-out dirt. Use a piece of old, but clean flannel for wetting and for 306 AROUND-THE-WORLD COOK BOOK rubbing; and also have another clean piece for use in drying the spot as nearly as possible. GREASE SPOTS ON LINEN OR COTTON To remove grease spots from linen or cotton, use soap or weak lyes, and rub well with glycerin, and wash them out in warm water. TO REMOVE GREASE SPOTS FROM WOOLENS To remove grease spots from woolen goods use soapsuds, or ammonia. TO REMOVE GREASE SPOTS FROM SILKS To remove grease spots from silks, use benzine, ether, mag- nesia, chalk, or ammonia. TWEED AND SERGE GARMENTS For cleaning tweed and serge garments, a mixture of pure alcohol and salt is very useful. As much coarse common salt should be used as the alcohol will absorb, and the liquid should be applied as evenly as possible over the whole spot to be cleaned, using a brush to apply it. TO REMOVE MILDEW FROM LINEN To remove mildew from linen rub the linen well with soap, and then add a scraping of fine chalk. Cover well with the soap and chalk, and rub it well into the fabric. Put it in the air, and as it dries keep moistening it again. After two or three applications of the chalk and soap, the mildew will disappear. Another method of removing mildew is by using chlorid of lime. For strong fabrics dissolve 4 tablespoons of dry chlorid 307 AROUND-THE-WORLD COOK BOOK of lime in half a pint of water, and let the mildewed article lie in this for 15 minutes ; then wring it out gently, and put it into weak muriatic acid solution

Cook this with the app: pantry check, scaling, and the assistant.