Part 13 (1/2)

What nation so greatly excelled in the manufacture of a beautiful species of Earthenware?

The Chinese,--who, as far as can be ascertained, were its inventors

Porcelain is a fine sort of earthenware, chiefly made in China, whence it was called China or China-ware; it is also brought from many parts of the East, especially fro porcelain was one of those in which Europe had been excelled by oriental nations; but for many years past earthenwares have been made in different parts of Europe, so like the oriental, that they have acquired the name of porcelain The first European porcelains were land, Germany, and Italy, all of which differed fro its peculiar character They are now brought to great perfection in Europe, particularly in England, France and Prussia

Before the invention of Earthenware, what supplied its place to the early inhabitants of the world?

The more civilized the inhabitants of any country beca vessels of various descriptions for holding or preparing their food; some of the objects which first presented theer kinds of shells; and, in hot cliourd In some cases the skins of beasts were used, as they still are in the East, where they are sewed together, and formed into a kind of bottle to hold milk, wine, &c; but the people of colder climates would not be able to avail theed to make use of other substances

What, then, would they ereat abundance, fro its for been baked in the fire, would naturally attract the attention of an i people: from this it arises that the early remains of culinary and other vessels which have been discovered have been forypt, numerous vessels have been found forh of rude workant in for to adhere

_Insoluble_, not capable of being dissolved

_Culinary_, belonging to cooking or domestic purposes

Of what are Needles o through a great nuht to perfection It was in the reign of Queen Elizabeth that the English learnt the art ofneedles

Of what are Pins made?

Of brass wire, blanched with tin They are land, France, the United States, and other countries Though there is scarcely any commodity cheaper than pins, there is no other which passes through the hands of a greater nu successively e of the brass wire to the sticking of the pin in the paper Pins are supposed to have been land about 1543, or even earlier Before this art was invented, the ladies made use of wooden skewers

_Blanched_, whitened

Of what is Paper s beaten to a pulp in water; also from straood, and , before the invention of Paper?

Various were the es and countries contrived to write: stones, bricks, the leaves of herbs and trees, and their rinds or barks; tablets of wood, wax, and ivory; plates of lead, silk, linen rolls, &c At length the Egyptian paper made of the papyrus, was invented; then parchs There are few sorts of plants which have not at some time been used for paper and books In Ceylon, for instance, the leaves of the talipot; in India, the leaves of the palm (hich they commonly covered their houses,) were used for books In the East Indies, the leaves of the plantain tree, dried in the sun, were used for the same purpose In China, paper is made of the inner bark of the mulberry, the bamboo, the elm, the cotton, and other trees

What is Papyrus?

A large rush, chiefly growing in Egypt, on the banks of the Nile The ancient Egyptians made sails, ropes, mats, blankets, and canvas, of the stalks and fibres of the papyrus Their priests also wore shoes ar was extracted from this plant Moses, the deliverer raised by God to rescue the Israelites froypt, was exposed to the Nile in a basket of papyrus The plant is noever, exceedingly scarce

Where was the first Paper Mill erected in England?