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Scan 315
Old Violins And Their Makers, 1883
4 lines. Read by computer on 27 September 2026. Printed page 301. See the scan on archive.org.
1avoiding blotches. Behind a shut window in the sun would, all other circumstances being suitable, prove the best place for the process.
3Mastic is a resinous exudation of the Pistacia lentiscus, a bush from 10 to 12 feet high, which grows on the coast and islands of the Mediterranean. It is extensively cultivated in the island of Scio, and the natives chew the resinous substance for the purpose of strengthening the gums and cleansing the teeth, a practice to which it owes its name. It is imported in the form of flattish, irregular tears, of a pale yellow, their surfaces being generally covered with dust from rubbing together. The smaller tears are often spherical. Its transparency is slightly opalescent, particularly in the centre of the tears, and as it is frequently mixed with sandarach and the smaller fragments of dammar, it would be necessary carefully to eliminate these resins before use, as sandarach is not soluble in essential oil, and the unnoticed presence of dammar might disarrange the proportions for your varnish. Unlike sandarach, mastic does not remain gritty under the action of the teeth, but becomes soft and pliant. It has a sweet and agreeable smell and an aromatic taste. As imported, it is not always pure, but is sometimes mixed with dirty grains and minute fragments of the lentisk bark. It ought to be chosen in as clean, clear, and transparent tears as possible. It is recommended to wash them in boiling water and dry them in the sun, and again in alcohol or essential oil, and immediately thereafter, and without drying, to unite them with the essence. Mastic is not entirely soluble in alcohol, which precipitates a portion sometimes called masticine;
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