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nireft and moft: lafting colours.— Dyers of the leffer dye, du petit teint, who are allowed to ufe the inferior forts of drugs, which only yield falfe and fading colours. — And filk, wool and thread dyers. — All the higher prized cloths and ftuffs are referved to the dyers of the firft fort : thofe of lefs value, par- ticularly fuch as are not rated at above 40 fols the ell in white are committed to the mafters of the petit te'mt. Blue, red, and yellow, are referved more peculiarly to thofe of the grand te'mt ; browns, fallows and blacks are common to both forts. As to black, it is begun by the dyers of the grand teint, and fmifhed by thofe of the kjfer '. — It feems there is a tradition among dyers, that Jefus Chrift was of their pro- feiuon ; which we alfo find delivered in the go/pel of the in- fancy of Jefus, though on what grounded we know not. But it is hence the Perfian dyers, notwithstanding all their Mahometanifm, have chofen Jefus for the patron of their art; infomuch that among them a dye-houfe is called Chrijfs jhop ra . — b V. Notit. Imper. Hoffiri. L. T. 1. p. 469. ' Pi- tifc. loc. cit. k New View of Land. T. 2. p. 601, feqq.
- Savar. D. Comm. T. 2. p. 1688. voc. Te'mt. m Sike Not.
ad Evang. Infant, p. 55. Hilfcher de Stud. Chrift. in Mifc. Lipf. Obf 96. §. 10. T. 5. p. 34. Requifttes in Dying. — There are three things demanded by the Greek chymifts to a good dye ; viz. — Aptzioiots, opening or rarefying of the body to be dyed, to difpofe it to imbibe the colour. — Ba^, the tincture or dye itfelf. — -Karo%^ or Stu- ■4-k, by the Romans called alligaiio, the binding or fixing the colour, to prevent its fading or being difcharged. — Some add a fourth condition, viz. Et^i?, by the Latins called lumen, by us hiftre or brightnefs.
Among fome, thefe three were done fcverally at three diffe- rent operations, in different liquors, or decoctions : by the firft, the fluff was prepared to receive the dye', this was called v?o$(i<ptov and Ctto^v^ ; by the fecond, the defired co- lour was given it ; and by the third, the colour was fixed on it. — But others did all three at once, with one decoction, and one dip. — V. Salrnaf. Exerc. ad Solin, T. 2. p. 11 46,
H
Advancement of Dying. The bafis of a juft hiftory of dy- ing, muff, be a theory of light and colours. See Light, Colour, and Rainbow.— -Two things, it may be obferv- ed, are chiefly aimed at in the enquiry of colours, the firfl to increafe the materia tinSioria; the fecond, to fix thofe co- lours we have.
In order to thefe it may be remembered, that fome colours 2re apparent, as thofe of flowers, the juices of fruits, and the fanies of animals. — Others latent, and only difcovered - by the effects which the feveral fpecies of falts and other things have on them.
Concerning the apparent colours of vegetables and animals, and the effects of different falts in changing them from one colour to another, we. have many inftances in Mr. Boyle, collected and ranged in a new order by Dr. Lifter, as, — ift, That acid falts advance the colours of flowers, and berries : thus they make the infufions of balauftia or pomegranate flowers, red-rofes, clove-july flowers, mezerion, peafe-bloom, violets, and cyanus flowers, of a fairer red ; and the juices of the berries of liguftrum, of black- cherries, and buck- thorn berries, of a much fairer red. To the fame purpofe it is obferved, that acid falts make no great alterations upon the white flowers of jafmin and fnow-drops. idly, Urinous falts and alcaly's, on the contrary, quite alter the colours of the flowers laft named, as well as the juices of the berries abovementioned, from red to green. 3r//y, Urinous falts and alcaly's advance, at leaft do not hurt the colours of the juices of vegetable leaves, woods and roots. — Thus urinous fpirits and alkaly's make the yellow in- fufions of madder roots, red ; of brazil wood purplifh ; of lignum nephriticum, blue; the red infufion of log-wood, purple ; and of the leaves of fena, red.
qthly, Acid falts quite alter the (aid infufions from red or blue to yellow.
Sthly, Cochineel, which of itfelf is red, upon the affufion of oil of vitriol, an acid fait, ftrikes the moft vivid crimfon that can be imagined j and with urinous falts and alcaly's, will be again changed into an obfcure colour betwixt a vio- let and a purple.
6thly, All red, blue and white flowers are immediately, upon the affufion of an alcaly, changed to a green colour ; and thence, in no long procefs of time, turn yellow. Jthly, All the parts of vegetables which are green, will in like manner ftrike a yellow with an alcaly. Sthly, What flowers are already yellow, are not much changed, if at all, by an alcaly, or urinous fpirit. gthly, The blue feed-hufks of glaftum fylveftre old gathered and dry, diluted with water, ftain a blue, which upon the affufion of lye ftrikes a green ; which faid green or blue be- ing touched with oil of vitriol dyes a purple : and all thefe three colours ftand.
lOthly, On the tops of the fungus tubulofus are certain red knots, which upon the affufion of lye, will ftrike a purple, and ftand.
For the latent colours in animals and vegetables, difcovered to us by the affufion of falts ; they likewife are very nume-
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rous. We will only mention a few; — ift, The milky juice? of lactuca fylveftris, cofta fpinofa, h fonchus afper & lasvis, upon the affufion of lye, will ftrike a vivid flame-colour or crimfon, and after fome time quite degenerate into a dirty yellow.
idly, ^ The milk of cataputia major, upon the affufion of lye, efpecially if jt be drawn with a knife, and have any time ftood upon the blade thereof, will ftrike a purple or blood red colour, and by and by change into an ignoble yellow. idly, The common haw thorn- caterpillar will ftrike a purple or carnation with lye, and ftand.
4thly, The heads of beetles, pifmires, &c. will with lye ftrike the fame carnation colour, and ftand, Sthly, The amber coloured feolopcndra will give with lye a moft beautiful and plcafant azure, or amethyftine, and ftand. It remains to be obferved, — 1//, That in all the in- ftances abovementioned, whether vegetable or animal, there is not one colour truly fixed ; though there may be fome ufe made of them, as they are.— -By not truly ftxed, we mean, not proof againft fait and fire ; for, what feem to ftand, and be lye-proof, are either wholly deftroyed by a dif- ferent fait, or changed into a much different colour; which muft needs prove a ftain and blcmifh, when it fhall happen in the ufe of any of them.
idly, That both the apparent and latent colours of vegetables are fixable : an inftance whereof we may obferve in the feed hufks of glaftum, and the ufe dyers make of the leaves of that plant after due preparation.
yttyt It is probable from the fame inftance, that we may learn from the colour of fome part of the fruit or feed, what colour the leaves of any vegetable, and the whole plant, might be made to yield for our ufe.
4tbly, That the latent colours of vegetables are pre-exiftent, and not produced ; from the fame inftance of wood ; and likewife from this, that the milky juice of lactuca fylveftris affords of itfelf a red ferum.
Sthly, That the change of colours in flowers is gradual and conftant.
tthly, That the colours of flowers, which will not ftand with lye, feem to be wholly deftroyed by it, and irrecoverable. — Thus one part of a violet leaf, upon the affufion of lye, is changed very foon into yellow, and will never be revived into a red by an acid fait ; but if another part of the fame leaf be ftill green, it will be revived.
Jthly, That drynefs fcems to be a means, if not of fixing, yet of bringing the vegetable colour into a condition of not wholly and fuddenly perifhing by the otherwife deftroy- ing alcaly.
Sthly, That thofe plants or animals which will ftrike different yet vivid colours, upon the affufion of different falts, and. ftand, as the cochineel, and glaftum, are of all others to be reckoned the beft. — V. Lift, in Phil. Tranf. N° 70. p. 2132, feqq. See alfo Boerh. Elan. Chan. P. 3. T. 2. p. 467, feqq. Edit. Lipf. Dying ingredients, or the materia tinfloria, are beft reduced under two heads : — Colorata, or thofe which properly give the colour. — And non-colorata, ufed to prepare the ftuffs for better taking the dye, and to heighten the luftre of the colours.
The colouring ingredients are of three forts, blue, yellow and red. — To the firft fort, belong indigo, woad, weld, wood- wax, and log-wood ; to the fecond, fufiic ; to the third, madder, brazil, cochineel, kermes, fafHower and fanders.— To which may be added annotto, and young fuftic, for orange-colours : laftly, wood foot.
The non-colouring ingredients are, — Certain rejlringent or binding materials, as galls, fumac, alder bark, pomegranate peel, walnut rinds and roots, fapling bark and crab-tree bark. ■ — Certain falls, as alum, argol, falt-petre, fal armoniac, pot-afhes, lime and untie.*— -Liquors, as well water, river water, aqua vita?, vinegar, lemon juice, aqua fords, honey and mobiles. — Gums, as tragacanth, arabic, maftic, and fanguis draconis. — Smetticks, or abjlerfives, as foap, fullers earth, linfeed oil, ox gall, &c. — Metals, as fteel filings, flippe and pewter, to which add copperas, verdegreafe, an- timony, litharge and arfenic. — Laftly, bran, wheat flower, yolks of eggs, leaven, cumin feed, fenugreek feed, agaric and fenna.
Of moft of thefe ingredients fome account may be found un- der their refpective articles in the courfe of this book ; but with regard to their ufe and effect in dying, it will be necefla- ry to confider them more particularly, and to bring toge- ther in one view.
Among the non-colouring drugs, then, from the mineral king- dom come ;— \ft, Copperas, fteel filings, and flipp (the ftuff found in the troughs of old grind-ftones whereon edge-tools have been ground) which are ufed for all true or Spanifti blacks ; though not for the Flanders blacks. — idly, Pewter diflblved in aqua fortis, ufed for the new fcarlet or bowdye. Sdly, Litharge, though not owned or allowed, Is ufed to add weight to dyed filks. — \thly, Antimony ufed chiefly for the fame purpofe, though it alfo contain a tingent fuiphur, which by precipitation, t3V. affords a great variety of co- lours. — 5f/jJy» Arfenic ufed in dying crimfon, on pretence of D - giving
