To Polish Silver. — All plate and silverware which is in regular use and not stored in such a way as to pro tect it from discoloration should be carefully polished once a week. It is best to have a regular time for this purpose. Never use sand or scouring soaps, pumice stone, or gritty wash ing powders for silverware, or any other polishes the nature of which you do not understand. Many of them will scratch the silver, and others will dis color it.
Articles recommended for polishing silver if not much stained are whiting —either fluid, dry, or moistened with alcohol or sweet oil—prepared chalk, cream of tartar, milk, or a solution of alum.
To apply these use chamois skin or velveteen. Or use pieces of old woolen or flannel underwear or pieces of old linen tablecloths.
Or apply with an old toothbrush or a nailbrush with soft bristles.
Or prepare and have ready polish ing cloths as follows: dissolve half a cupful of scraps of castile or toilet soaps, or any hard white soap, in a cupful of water, and allow to cool. This will make a soft-soap jelly. Stir into this when cold 3 heaping table spoonfuls of powdered whiting. In this soak suitable pieces of cloth, as old flannel underwear, pieces of table cloths, and the like, letting them ab sorb as much as possible. Wring them out so they will not drip, and allow them to dry. These are convenient polishing cloths for silver, as they are always ready.
Or moisten whiting with soapy water, rub it over the silver carefully, and allow it to dry on. Then rub it off with a very soft woolen or linen cloth. Use a soft brush to remove the whit ing from carvings or deep cuttings and rough surfaces of the larger•sil ver articles.
Caution. — Care must be taken in polishing silver not to use too much force, as severe rubbing will wear solid silver and soon wear out the best of plated articles.
To Remove Stains and Discolora tions. — Methods recommended for cleaning discolored silver are boiling in suds or in water containing soda, sal soda, alum, cream of tartar, borax, or lye, or rubbing with dry salt, whit ing, grated potatoes, or solutions of sulphuric acid, chloride of lime, alum, or cream of tartar.
To Boil Tarnished Silver.—If the silver is much tarnished, boil for five minutes in water containing a mix ture of equal parts of cream of tar tar, common salt, and alum, using 1 teaspoonful of each to 1 pint of water.
Or use a strong solution of washing soda, 2 teaspoonfuls to 1 quart of water.
Or put 1 tablespoonful of borax or potash lye in 2 quarts of water, put in the silver and boil five minutes, or longer if necessary. Pour off the liquid, rinse the silver in boiling water, and polish. This method will be found a quick and easy way to cleanse a communion set or other set of numer ous pieces.
To Polish Tarnished Silver.—After boiling tarnished silver, if necessary apply with a sponge or rag powdered whiting moistened with sweet oil or alcohol. Rub over the articles thor oughly with this and allow it to dry on. Afterwards rub it off with a soft cloth and polish with chamois leather.
Or use prepared chalk and alcohol. If the articles are carved or rough, use a soft bristle brush to remove the cleanser.
Or, if silver is badly tarnished, moisten whiting with ammonia, or pol ish with a cloth dipped in ammonia water or in a mixture of 1 teaspoon ful of ammonia water and 10 tea spoonfuls of vinegar. But use the ammonia with caution, as it tends to dull the luster of the finest silver.
Or use whiting moistened with vin egar.
Or polish with flannel dipped in kerosene and afterwards in dry whit ing.
Or, to remove stains that remain after boiling, take a piece of raw po tato dipped in common baking soda.
Or dissolve 1 tablespoonful of alum and 1 ounce of hard white soap in I pint of water, and apply by rubbing.
Or the burned-out hood or mantel of a Welsbach gas burner is one of the most effective silver polishes. Drop the hood into a tin spice can or other small covered can or jar, and pulver ye it with the fingers. It will fall to pieces at a touch. Moisten a cloth with water and apply the pulverized ash to the tarnished spots. One hood will clean about two dozen knives, forks, or spoons.
Or put all the silver in a shallow pan, cover with sour milk or butter milk, and let it lie until it is bright. Afterwards wash in soapsuds and pol ish.
To Remove Egg Stains.—The sul phur contained in eggs speedily dis colors any silver that comes in contact with it. The air is also con taminated from the sulphur in illu minating gas, other gaslights, or gas cook stoves, and from rubber. Hence silver should be kept from contact with these or any other sulphur com pound. A small piece of camphor put with the silver will prevent it from staining. To remove the stains mois ten a cloth in water and dip it in dry table salt. Rub with this and polish.