The ferrotype and how to make it - The Grian Press

70
THE FERROTYPE.
mines of this country is the Com stock Lode,
in the territory of Montana, out of which
fabulous amounts are taken yearly.
Silver melts at a temperature of 1873° Fah-
renheit, and at a higher temperature it burns
with a reddish colored flame, and when fused by
a powerful current of electricity, the flame is of
a greenish cast.
This metal is so malleable and ductile that it
ranks next to gold in that respect, and its
tenacity is so great that it may be drawn into
wire of exceeding fineness, of which lace and
other delicate fabrics, are made. It is capable of
a most brilliant polish; the ancients used highly
polished plates of silver as mirrors. For the
brilliancy of polish, as well as for other high
qualities, it is used in the manufacture of many
articles of beauty and utility. Mixed with
copper, in the proportion of 12J to 1, it forms
the standard of British coinage.
The earliest mention of silver is in the Holy
Bible, in the time of Abraham. We are not there
informed of the first discovery or use of silver,
either in the arts or as an article of value for ex-
change for other commodities as Abraham used it;
so that Tubal Cain, the first worker in brass and
ir©n, might also have been the first silversmith.
Silver as well as gold, and indeed most other
metals, may be dissolved in acid ; the acid being
evaporated, the silver remains in a state of crys-
tallizatio*^ as a salt of silver.