A History of Hindu Chemistry from the Earliest Times to the Middle of the Sixteenth Century A.D. v1.c18.s5.29

v1.c18.s5.29

It has been mentioned above that the loss during the third operation of colouring is considerable. Indeed, from the records of observation given at the end of this section, it is clear that the loss is not only large, but that its extent is also uncertain in the extreme. In some cases it is as low as half a pie per tola, while in others it reaches the ruinous figure of six pies per tola, or nearly one tenth of the whole weight. The average amount of 2½ pies per tola, which is obtained from our figures, is not very different from the idea of experienced *rungwalas* and goldsmiths on the subject. The largeness and uncertainty of loss are easily accounted for by the ever-varying constitution of the bazar articles used in the operation, some of them being very nearly pure, while others contain as much as 25 to 30 per cent of impurities, as well as by the want of any accurate precision as regards the proportion of materials employed. The ingredients are seldom weighed before being mixed together; and the varying amount of water present physically in the salts is an additional source of error and confusion in settling the proportion by mere inspection of bulk.