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Scan 285
Old Violins And Their Makers, 1883
2 lines. Read by computer on 27 September 2026. Printed page 271. See the scan on archive.org.
1be otherwise explained. Various experiments were tried with fish, Flanders, and other glues, but these were found too heavy. Egg albumen—the viscid liquor found under the beaten white of egg after a repose of fifteen or eighteen hours—was found to contract the wood, because, although it is very light, it has a remarkable degree of tenacity. Dextrine, dissolved in water, was also tried. This sizing did not in any way injure the vibration, but, after drying, it had a pasty look, which spoiled the polish, and when the varnish was applied made it look "clotty." The yellow tone so prevalent in many violins, even after the varnish has been used up, suggested the notion that the Cremonese makers sized their instruments with resinous gums soluble in alcohol, such as gamboge and aloes, which latter is said to have the property of preserving the wood from the attacks of the worm. These resins, dissolved in alcohol, make an excellent sizing, do not injure the vibration, nor the dryness of the wood, as the alcohol evaporates immediately, the solution penetrating the wood but slightly, and the molecules of these resins having a coherence insufficient to cause any injurious effect. From many experiments, needless to detail here, a conviction was attained that it was thus many of the Italian makers sized their instruments. Those on which this yellow tone is not found may have been sized with a varnish of sandarach and alcohol. The aloes and the gamboge were, however, found to be preferable. If gamboge is employed alone, a clear yellow is obtained, which, under a coloured varnish, will communicate to the latter a very harmonious yellow tint, and produce the effect of a red
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