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Show "PAINTING THINCS RED." A United States Consul Hake an Important Import-ant Discovery. Washington, Oct. 81. The origin of "painting things red" has been discovered discov-ered by the American consul-general at ' Shanghai?' Tt is Chinese. In a letter to the state department about the manufacture manu-facture and use of vermillion, Mr.-Leo-: hard says: "Cinnabar is used in coloring red lacquered lac-quered ware. It is also employed in painting, and forms an ingredient in many medicinal preparations. In former for-mer times it was highly prized for its virtues and regarded as the philosopher's philosoph-er's stone and the immortal elixir. Vermillion Ver-million is made of fine cinnabar which has been purified by sublimation and is collected in circular crystals of a bright violet red. It is powdered between two stones turned by hand, mixing a little water at the time. The sticky mass is then put into pure water and frequently frequent-ly lavigated, decanted, and finally dried on heated ti'es or in the sun, when it is sifted for packing. The workingmen are particular about the purity as the water used. It is used for making Chinese red ink, for painting on porcelain porce-lain and wood and coloring candles and paper. Its consumption is enormous. enor-mous. The most of the numerous temples tem-ples throughout China are painted red, and everything lucky and pleasant among the Chinese is of vermillion color." |