Cooley's Cyclopaedia of Practical Receipts Volume I Part 262

4. To the last, before distillation, add, of oil of caraway, 1/2 fl. oz.; oil of sweet fennel, 1/4 fl. oz.; cardamoms (ground), 8 oz.

5. To No. 3 add, of essential oil of almonds, 1 dr.; essence of lemon, 4 dr.

6. To No. 1, before distillation, add of creasote, 3 fl. dr.

7. To No. 3 add of creasote, 2 dr.

8. Proof spirit, 80 galls.; oil of turpentine, 3/4 pint; oil of juniper, 1/4 pint; creasote, 2 dr.; oranges and lemons, sliced, of each 9 in no.; macerate for a week, and distil 100 galls. 22 u. p.

9. To No. 1 add of rectified fusel oil, 1/2 pint.

10. To No. 1 add of oil of juniper, 1/2 pint.

_Concluding Remarks._ The oil of turpentine for this purpose should be of the best quality, and not that usually vended for painting, which always contains resin and often fixed oil. Juniper berries, bitter almonds, and the aromatic seeds, may be used instead of the essential oils; but the latter are the most convenient. Turpentine conveys a plain-gin flavour,--juniper berries or oil gives a Hollands flavour,--creasote imparts a certain degree of smokiness, or whiskey flavour,--lemon and the other aromatics, a creaminess, fulness, and richness. The flavour imparted by cardamoms, when used judiciously, is peculiarly agreeable and appropriate. That from caraways is also in general esteem. Ca.s.sia in extremely small proportions also tells well. Fusel oil gives a whiskey-gin flavour; and in conjunction with creasote or crude pyroligneous acid, a full whiskey flavour. The only danger in the employment of all these articles is using too much of them. When this misfortune happens, the remedy is to add sufficient plain spirit to reduce the flavour to the proper standard. The creaminess and smoothness so much admired in 'foreign geneva' results chiefly from age. The English rectifier endeavours to imitate this by the addition of a little sugar. A rich mellowness, that combines well with gins turning on the 'Hollands flavour,' is given by a very small quant.i.ty of garlic, and with Canadian balsam or Strasburg turpentine. The peculiar piquancy, or the property of 'biting the palate,'

regarded as a proof of strength and quality by the ignorant gin-drinker, is imparted to the liquor by the addition of a little caustic pota.s.sa.

Sliced horseradish gives piquancy as well as mellowness. Grains of paradise, cayenne pepper, and sulphate of zinc, are also commonly added by fraudulent dealers.

Although gin is always prepared on the large scale by distillation, it may also be made by the simple solution or digestion of the flavouring ingredients in the spirit; but it is, of course, better for distillation.

If made in the former way, no salt must be employed. The gin produced by the above formulae is that denominated in the trade 'UNSWEETENED GIN,'

'GROG GIN,' &c.; but the gin usually sold in the metropolis is a sweetened spirit, and hence is technically distinguished by the terms 'SWEETENED,'

or 'MADE UP,' The generality of London gin-drinkers prefer the latter article, even when weaker and inferior, which it usually is, as the addition of sugar permits adulteration and watering to an enormous extent with absolute impunity. Sweetened spirit cannot be easily tested for its strength, and is taken by the Excise at the strength which it is declared to possess by the dealer. To ascertain whether gin is sweetened or not, a little may be evaporated in a spoon, over a hot coal or a candle, when, if it is pure, it will leave the spoon scarcely soiled; but if, on the contrary, it has been sweetened, a small quant.i.ty of syrupy liquid, or sugar, will be obtained, the sweetness of which may be easily recognised by tasting it.

The whole of the casks and utensils employed for gin should be perfectly clean, and properly prepared, so as not to give colour; as, if this spirit acquires the palest coloured tint, its value is lessened, and if much coloured it is rendered unsaleable. When gin has once become much stained, the only remedy is to re-distil it; when it is only slightly stained, the addition of a few lbs. of acetic acid (B. P.) to a pipe or b.u.t.t, a spoonful or two to a gallon, or a few drops to a decanterful, will usually decolour it, either at once or as soon as it is mixed with water to make grog. See ALCOHOLOMETRY, CASKS, DISTILLATION, HOLLANDS, SPIRITS, &c., and _below_.

=Gin, Cor'dial.= This is gin sweetened with sugar, and slightly aromatised.

_Prep._ Good gin (22 u. p.), 90 galls.; oil of almonds, 1 dr.; oils of ca.s.sia, nutmeg, and lemon, of each 2 dr.; oils of juniper, caraway, and coriander, of each 3 dr.; essences of orris root and cardamoms, of each 5 fl. oz.; orange-flower water, 3 pints; lump sugar, 56 to 60 lbs.; dissolved in water, 4 galls. The essences are dissolved in 2 quarts spirit of wine, and added gradually to the gin until the requisite flavour is produced, when the sugar (dissolved) is mixed in, along with a sufficient quant.i.ty of soft water, holding 4 oz. of alum in solution, to make up 100 galls. When the whole is perfectly mixed, 2 oz. of salt of tartar, dissolved in 2 or 3 quarts of hot water, are added, and the liquor is again well rummaged up; after which the cask is bunged up, and allowed to repose. In a week, or less, it will have become brilliant, and may be either 'racked,' or drawn from the same cask. _Product._ 100 galls., about 30 u. p.

=Gin, Sweetened.= _Prep._ From unsweetened gin (22 u. p.), 95 galls.; lump sugar, 40 to 45 lbs., dissolved in clear water, 3 galls.; mix well, and fine it down as above. _Product._ 100 galls., at 26 u. p. This, as well as the last, is usually 'permitted' at 22 or 24 u. p., which is also done when the gin has been further lowered with water so as to be even 30 or 35 u. p. See SPIRITS, and _above_.

=GIN'GER.= _Syn._ GINGER ROOT; ZINGIBERIS RADIX, ZINGIBER (B. P.), L. "The sc.r.a.ped and dried rhizome" (rootstock or underground stem) of "_Zingiber officinale_"--(B. P.). Ginger is an aromatic stimulant and stomachic, very useful in flatulence and spasms of the stomach and bowels, and in loss of appet.i.te and dyspepsia, arising from debility, or occurring in old or gouty subjects. A piece chewed an hour before dinner tends to provoke the appet.i.te; as a masticatory, it often relieves toothache, relaxation of the uvula, tender gums, and paralytic affections of the tongue. Made into a paste with warm water, and spread on paper, it forms a useful and simple 'headache-plaster,' which frequently gives relief when applied to the forehead or temples. As a condiment and flavouring ingredient, it is perhaps one of the most wholesome of the aromatic kinds, and is less acrid than the peppers.--_Dose_, 10 gr. to 1/2 teaspoonful, stirred up in any simple liquid.

_Pur., &c._ The best is that known in commerce as 'UNBLEACHED JAMAICA GINGER,' which is an uncoated pale variety, occurring in large, bold, fleshy pieces ('RACES'), which cut soft, bright, and pale-coloured. The inferior varieties occur in smaller pieces, and are darker-coloured, flinty, and shrivelled. The dealers frequently 'dress up' the common dark-coloured gingers by was.h.i.+ng them in water, drying them, and then 'rouncing' them in a bag with a little calcined whiting or magnesia (WASHED GINGER); or they bleach them by dipping them into a solution of chloride of lime, or by exposing them to the fumes of burning sulphur (BLEACHED GINGER); or they dip them into a milk formed of quicklime or whiting and water (WHITE-WASHED GINGER). The last has a chalk-white surface, which cannot be mistaken for the natural one. POWDERED GINGER is with difficulty obtained pure and good. The common adulterants are wheat-flour, or East Indian arrow-root, and plantain-meal. The first may be detected by the microscope, the others by the flavour and action of hot water. See LOZENGES, &c.

=GINGERIN.= _Syn._ OLEORESINA ZINGIBERIS. _Prep._ (Pharm., U. S.) Put 1 lb. (Troy) of ginger in fine powder into a percolator, and pour on it 12 ounces (old measure) of pure ether. When this has been absorbed, add rectified spirit until 12 ounces (old measure) have been obtained. Recover the greater part of the ether by distillation over a water bath, and expose the residue in a porcelain dish until the volatile part has evaporated. Keep it in a stoppered bottle.

=GINSENG.= The root of the _Panax Schinseng_ (Ginseng) is greatly esteemed in China, where it is regarded as a panacea for nearly all diseases, and where it realises a high price in consequence. This opinion of its therapeutic value is not shared by British and American pract.i.tioners, who look upon it as a comparatively inert substance. An allied species, the _Panax quinquefolium_, is sold in America, less for the sake of its very feeble demulcent properties, than to supply the demand of those who have acquired a taste for it. "The root has a somewhat bitter taste, and is somewhat mucilaginous. It occurs in pieces usually about three or four inches long, often partially divided, being joined together at the base; when clean it has a semi-transparent appearance."[333]

[Footnote 333: 'Gardener's Chronicle.']

=Preserved Ginger.= _Syn._ CONDITUM ZINGIBERIS, L. An excellent stomachic sweetmeat or preserve. It is chiefly imported from the West Indies and China. See CANDYING, &c.

=A Fact.i.tious Preserved Ginger= is sometimes met with, prepared from the stalks of lettuces just going to seed, using a concentrated syrup, strongly flavoured with Jamaica ginger. See CANDY, &c.

=GIN'GER BEER.= See BEER.

=GIN'GERBREAD.= _Prep._ 1. (Dr Colquhoun.) Flour, 1 lb.; carbonate of magnesia, 1/4 oz.; mix; add, of treacle, 1/2 lb.; moist sugar, 1/4 lb.; melted b.u.t.ter, 2 oz.; tartaric acid (dissolved in a little water), 1 dr.; make a stiff dough, then add of powdered ginger and cinnamon (ca.s.sia), of each 1 dr.; grated nutmeg, 1 oz.; set it aside for half an hour or an hour before putting it into the oven. _Obs._ It should not be kept longer than two or three hours at the utmost, before being baked.

2. Flour and treacle, of each 1 lb.; b.u.t.ter, 1-1/2 oz.; carbonate of magnesia, 1 oz.; add spices (ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, cayenne, corianders, &c.) to taste; mix as last. _Obs._ Fit for baking in from four to six hours.

3. Flour, 2 lbs.; carbonate of magnesia, 1/2 oz.; mix; add, treacle, 1-1/2 lb.; b.u.t.ter, 2 oz.; spice, q. s.; tartaric acid, 1/4 oz.; mix quickly, and make it into forms. _Obs._ Ripe for the oven in half an hour to one hour.

4. Instead of tartaric acid in the last formula, use cream of tartar (dissolved in water), 2 oz. _Obs._ Ripens in 40 or 50 minutes.

5. Flour or fine pollard, 1 lb.; treacle, 3/4 lb.; salt of tartar, 1/2 oz., dissolved in water, q. s., b.u.t.ter, 1 oz.; spices, to palate. _Obs._ Takes several days to ripen; sometimes a fortnight.

6. (Extemporaneous.)--_a._ From flour, 1-1/4 lb.; moist sugar and treacle, of each 1/2 lb.; b.u.t.ter, 2-1/2 oz.; baker's salt (carbonate of ammonia), 1/4 oz., dissolved in cold water, q. s.; ginger, 3 dr.; nutmeg, 2 dr.; ca.s.sia, 1 dr.; cayenne pepper (best), 1/2 dr.

_b._ From flour, 6 lb.; powdered ginger, 2-1/2 oz.; caraway seeds, 1 oz.

(and other spices to palate); candied lemon and orange peels, of each 2 oz.; moist sugar and melted b.u.t.ter, of each 1/2 lb.; treacle, 4 lb.; volatile salt, 2 oz.; water, q. s.; mix as above. May be baked at once.

_c._ From Jones's patent flour, 2 lbs.; treacle, 1 lb.; moist sugar, 3/4 lb.; b.u.t.ter, 2-1/2 oz.; spice, q. s.; mix as quickly as possible, and bake it instantly. If the dough is expertly mixed up, the quality of the product is fully equal, if not superior, to that of any of the preceding formulae.

_Obs._ Gingerbread is either rolled out into thin sheets and cut into cakes or nuts (GINGERBREAD NUTS) with the top of a wine-gla.s.s or canister, or is formed into thick cakes, which are baked in 'batches' (ordinary GINGERBREAD). Both varieties require a pretty brisk oven; the thinner kinds (nuts, &c.), especially, must be baked as crisp as possible, without being burnt. The varieties called LEMON GINGERBREAD, CARAWAY G., &c., have a perceptible predominance of these flavouring ingredients. The addition of a little alum, dissolved in water, makes the bread both lighter and crisper, and causes it to ripen quicker, but at the same time lessens its wholesomeness.

=GIN'GER CAN'DY.= See CANDYING.

=GIN'GER DROPS.= See DROPS (Confectionery).

=GLAIRE.= White of egg. See ALb.u.mEN and EGG.

=GLAN'DERS.= _Syn._ FARCINOMA, L. A contagious disease, generally confined to the horse, a.s.s, and mule, but communicable to man, in whom it a.s.sumes a highly malignant and often fatal character. This disease appears under two forms--1. SIMPLE ACUTE GLANDERS, marked by copious discharge of foul mucous matter from the nostrils and adjacent parts; and--2. FARCY, FARCIN, or FARCY GLANDERS, when it attacks the lymphatics of the skin, either generally, producing a distended appearance of the vessels, like moles or b.u.t.tons (LEAD or b.u.t.tON FARCY), or locally, when it takes the form of dropsical acc.u.mulations in the legs (WATER FARCY).

_Treat._ Mr Youatt considers it useless to attempt the cure of glandered horses; but that farcy in its earlier stages and milder forms may be often successfully treated. "All the mercurials have been used with benefit in farcy; but they must be discontinued as soon as the mouth is sufficiently affected, or sickness, loss of appet.i.te, and like symptoms, are produced."

(Blaine.) Feeding the animal entirely on green food appears to be the best mode of treatment in both varieties. The b.u.t.tons are generally removed with caustic or a red-hot iron.

"Glanders is quite incurable, but by generous diet, good stabling, and mineral tonics, life, except in extremely acute cases, may be prolonged for many weeks. This, however, is not desirable; for it involves great risk, not only to other horses, but also to the attendants." (Finlay Dun.)

=GLa.s.s.= _Syn._ VITRUM, L. This well-known substance is essentially a mixture of silicates with an excess of silica or silicic acid. It generally contains the silicates of pota.s.sa, soda, lime, baryta, magnesia, alumina, and lead, coloured by small portions of iron, manganese, cobalt, uranium, copper, or gold. In its usual form it is brittle, transparent, noncrystalline, insoluble, and fusible; but it sometimes exhibits other properties.

The manufacture of gla.s.s is one of the highest beauty, and, considering the comparative worthlessness of the materials of which it is made, and the various purposes of a useful, ornamental, and scientific nature which it subserves, it may be regarded as, perhaps, the most important in the history of inventions. The principle of its production is very simple, although great skill and experience are necessary to ensure its excellence. Silica (commonly under the form of sand) is heated with carbonate of pota.s.sa or of soda, and slaked lime or oxide of lead, until the mixture fuses, and combination takes place. After a time the melted ma.s.s becomes perfectly limpid and free from air-bubbles, when it is allowed to cool until it a.s.sumes the peculiar tenacious condition proper for working. The operation of fusion is conducted in large crucibles of refractory fire-clay, which, in the case of 'lead-gla.s.s,' are covered with a dome at the top, and have an opening at the side by which the materials are introduced, and the melted gla.s.s withdrawn.

The manufacture of gla.s.s is only conducted on the large scale, and the precise character and proportions of the ingredients used by the gla.s.s-maker must necessarily greatly depend upon the nature of the raw materials furnished by his locality, or otherwise at his command. The attention of the manufacturer should be directed to the use of his materials in such proportions as will furnish, in the melting-pot, the proper quant.i.ties of the essential ingredients, as determined from the known composition of the best commercial samples. The purity of the raw materials and the accuracy of his proportions and quant.i.ties are proved or disproved by the excellence of the product; and the cause of error (if any) may be at once determined by carefully ascertaining the quality of the ingredients employed, and the composition of the defective gla.s.s.

A writer (in 'Chem. Centr.,' 1872, 528) points out that very generally the soda used in gla.s.s making, contains sulphate, and that when this is so a poor gla.s.s is produced. The addition of 75-1 part of wood charcoal for every 100 parts of true soda--improves the quality of the gla.s.s.

_Prep._ The following formulae exhibit the composition of the leading commercial gla.s.ses, as shown by chemical a.n.a.lysis, together with the proportions of the raw materials used in their production.

BOTTLE GLa.s.s. Sp. gr. 2700 to 2735.--

_a._ Composition by a.n.a.lysis:--

1. Silica, 5355%; lime, 2922%; mixed alkali, 548%; alumina, 601%; oxide of iron, 574%. Dark green.

2. Silica, 52%; baryta, 216%; soda, 261%; oxides of iron and manganese, 3%. Pale green; very superior.

_b._ Raw materials used:--