you how we make a reflector, for instance. The glass is blown into a
large bubble, which is worked flat across the top, and saucer-shaped
at the bottom. Then the blower puts his mouth to the pipe, but,
instead of blowing, he sucks, and draws the top in until it almost
touches the bottom. Then you have something like a broad, shallow dish
with a lining. Here are half a dozen of them. The hole in the bottom
part is caused by the cracking off of the pipe after it is blown. You
see there is a narrow space between the bottom part and the lining. Now
I'll show you how the silvering is done."
The gaffer took a tall measuring-glass, and went
into another room, where there were some jars of transparent liquid on
a shelf.
"This jar," said he, "contains nitrate of silver";
and he poured a small quantity into the glass. Then he went to another
jar. "This is a solution of grape sugar,-- nothing more nor less"; and
he poured in a still larger quantity of that. He then went to a third
jar. "This is pure water"; and he filled the glass with it.
He then turned the reflectors down on a counter,
and filled the space between the bottom part and the lining of each by
pouring the mixed contents of the glass in through the hole. When they
were full, he took them to an oven, and placed them on a pan of hot sand.
"That is all," said he, shutting the oven. "In
half an hour I come again and take them, pour out the
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