Candles from Tallow.—Candles may be made in the proportion of 3 parts of mutton tallow to 1 part of beef tallow, but they are likely to be soft and often turn yellow, especially in summer time; hence the following methods are used to harden the tallow: Put the tallow over the fire, and when nearly melted stir in 1 pound of alum dissolved in hot water for each 5 pounds of tallow, until all is melted. Or melt together 11 pounds of mut ton tallow, 8 ounces of beeswax, ounce of camphor, and 4 ounces of alum. Either of these will be as hard and durable as wax, and if the wicks are properly prepared will burn with a clear and steady light.
Tallow used for candles must be clear-grained fat, which may be puri fied as recommended under " Soap Making," or by mixing tallow, bees wax, and other ingredients, and melt ing all together in a kettle with a weak potash or soda lye. Put the kettle on the range to boil in the morning while other work is being done, and let boil for two or three hours, stirring occasionally, and skim ming off the impurities with a coarse strainer. Let stand over night, and when cold take off the cake of tallow and wax from the lye, scrape off the soft part next the lye with its impuri ties, and boil up with a fresh kettle of lye. So continue two or three days, and the last day, instead of lye use for each 30 pounds of tallow wa ter containing 1 pound of alum and 1 pound of saltpeter. Remove the cake when cold and the tallow will be purified ready for use.
Candles from Lard.—Put 10 pounds of lard on the fire, and before it is quite melted add 1 pound of salt peter and 1 pound of alum dissolved in half a pint or a little more of boiling water. Boil until all the water has been evaporated. Skim off any impurities that rise to the surface. Meantime, stir vigorously to prevent burning. As soon as the steam ceases to rise, pour off the tal low and rinse the boiler. The tallow is now ready.
Or mix 1 pound of lard with 7 pounds of beeswax. Melt with gentle heat and add carefully 1 ounce of nitric acid, stirring vigorously.
Stearin, or Stearic Acid.—This is the principal fatty acid contained in animal fats. Tallow and other fats contain also glycerin and various im purities. To remove these, take 3 ounces of slaked lime to 11 pounds of common tallow, and have ready 4 ounces of sulphuric acid. Melt the tallow and stir in the lime, boiling over a slow fire until a lime soap is formed. Turn off the lime soap into
another kettle, add the sulphuric acid, boil, and stir until the fat separates. The sulphuric acid will unite with the alum, forming sulphate of lime and water. When cool, remove the cake of fat; melt this with gentle heat, stir ring vigorously to prevent burning, until any water it may contain is driven off. The resulting product is stearin, or stearic acid, a perfectly dry, inflammable substance, but with out any greasy feel, and having a somewhat pearly luster. Stearin alone does not form good candles, as after melting it cools in the form of hard crystals; but mixed with one tenth its weight of wax it forms the finest grade of commercial candles. Stearin is also made by separating the glyce rin from cocoanut oil or palm oil by a jet of dry steam. Stearin candles give better light and burn longer than any other kind.
To Dip Candles.— First cut the wicks to the proper length, then dip them in melted tallow, roll them be tween the hands to thoroughly incor porate the tallow with the wick, pull them straight, and allow them to harden. Adjust the wicks on the dipping frame, which may be pur chased or homemade of wire, being merely two rings of wire separated the proper distance by three or four stiff wire standards. Set the wicks a little more than twice the thickness of a candle from each other. Melt the tallow over a slow fire, but do not let it burn. Dip the frame in the melted tallow by means of a wooden handle. Remove it, touch the bot toms of the candles gently upon a smooth board, and suspend the frame in a aught of cool air, if possible, to set and harden. When cold, im merse a second time, and so continue until the candles are of the proper size.
To Mold Candles.— Candle molds may be purchased made either of tin or pewter. Candles are molded up side down, the tray or trough at the upper part of the mold corresponding to the bottom of the candle, and the lower part of the mold being shaped to mold the candle top and having a small aperture in the center to re ceive the wick. Loop one end of the wick over a wire suspended across the top of the mold, thread the other end into a large darning needle, and drop it down through the aperture at the bottom of the mold.