File:American homes and gardens (1913) (14781477191).jpg

Identifier: americanhomesga101913newy (find matches)
Title: American homes and gardens
Year: 1905 (1900s)
Authors:
Subjects: Architecture, Domestic Landscape gardening
Publisher: New York : Munn and Co
Contributing Library: Smithsonian Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: Biodiversity Heritage Library

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charter, but no great prog-ress was made at that timeand the works were limited.One hundred years later acompany was formed, alsounder a royal charter, forthe making of glass, theirworks being at Ravenshead,in Lancashire. The workshave been very successfullycontinued, and according toa later writer were rivalledby none except those at St.Gobain in France. Themanufacture increased to awonderful extent, the quan-tity used in the constructionof the Crystal Palace for theWorlds Fair being probablymany times larger than thatmanufactured twenty yearsbefore in the Kingdom of Great Britain for oneyear. There was a queeridea that was for along time prevalentwith the people. Thiswas that glass drink-ing vessels made un-der certain astron-omical influenceswould certainly fly topieces if any poison-ous liquid was placedin it. Vessels of thiskind sold for enorm-ous prices. A sec-ond belief was, thatvessels of a certainform that were madein a peculiar state ofatmosphere and aftermidnight, would al-
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English liquor case. Atkinson collection low a pure diamond to pass directly through the bottom ofthe vessel. Various articles, such as colored goblets, werethought to add to the flavor of wine, and to detract mate-rially from its intoxicating influence. All these popularnotions added greatly to the mystery and renown of glassmanufacturers. There is no substance more beautiful than glass, for ithas, when properly treated, the brilliancy of a diamond orthe warm coloring of any of the richest gems, resemblingthem so closely that only an expert can tell the difference between the two. Then, too,it has properties which arepeculiarly its own. It istransparent in itself, al-though the substances fromwhich it is made are far frombeing so. Glass, unlike manysubstances, is not subject toheat or cold, and thereforeis adapted to many uses, andits field of usefulness is con-stantly increasing. To-day it has reached astate of comparative perfec-tion, although even now it issubject to constant impr

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