'
Accordingly his servants dug some of the clay, and after it had been
carefully sifted through cloth, he put it upon the market as a new
wig-powder. Now in those days the more well-to-do persons had several
wigs or at least two, in order that while the one was being worn the
other might be sent away to the hair-dresser's to be curled and
powdered. Therefore, in the course of time it chanced that Boettger's
servant, like others, sent away his master's wig to have it freshened
up. When it came back it was beautifully dressed and was powdered with
some of the iron-master's new powder. It looked very fine indeed, and
Boettger had no fault to find with it until he took it up to put it on
his head; then he observed that it was strangely heavy. 'What's this!'
he cried to his servant. 'What have you been doing to my wig, rascal?'
Terror-stricken the servant protested that he had done nothing.
Boettger carried the wig into his laboratory that he might examine it
more carefully, and he soon came to the conclusion that the weight of
the article lay in the powder. He therefore shook it off and set to
work to analyze it. What was his surprise to find the powder a white
mineral substance of which he knew nothing.
Pages:
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113