Part 56 (1/2)

”Stop,” said Uncle Richard

”Really, I should like to see the end of the experiment”

”And hear the end of the lecture directly after dinner,” said Uncle Richard ”Tom, run in and tell Mrs Fidler to put another chair to the table Mr Maxted will stay Now let's have a walk down the garden till the dinner-bell rings”

CHAPTER THIRTY

”Now to prove the success of the ical trick,” said the Vicar, as they all rose from the table, and walked across to the old mill ”Really, Brandon, honestly I never felt so much interest in chemistry before, and I feel quite disposed to take it up where one left off at college But oh, dear, how little time one has!”

”True,” said Uncle Richard, ”the days always seem too short to a busy man Now, Tom, let's look and see whether we have succeeded or failed”

”Succeeded,” cried Toment of the speculum was lifted out of the hot sunshi+ne perfectly dry, and laid flat upon the bench ”Look, Mr Maxted, you can see that it is silvered all over”

”Yes; a dull, dingy coating of silver,” said the Vicar, who had put on his glasses and was now leaning over the glass ”Wonderful indeed And now, I suppose, you polish this lass?”

”Yes, with leather and rouge,” said Uncle Richard, as he too put on his glasses and exa about it”

”Wrong? Oh no, uncle; that stuff has all turned to silver plainly enough,” cried Tom

”True, boy, but ht olden rosy hue, and that a very little polishi+ng should make it brilliant”

”Perhaps this will be,” said the Vicar, ”when it is polished”

”I'm afraid not,” said Uncle Richard ”There is a hitch somewhere

Either I have made some error in the quantities of lass in the solution too long, with the result that the silver has beco precipitation left when the metallic silver is thron However, we are very near success, and we'll polish and see what result we get Now, To down froe, the packet of cotton-wool, and the roll of fine chamois leather

One moment--the scissors too, and the ball of twine”

Tom ran up-stairs, found the articles required, and was about to descend, when, glancing froht of Pete Warboys, who had raised hi his toes in so his folded ar hard at the mill

”Oh, how I should like to be behind hihed to himself as he turned away and went down, to find that his uncle had just uncovered the great speculuround and polished, where it stood upon a stout shelf at the far side of the workshop, and was pointing out its perfections to the Vicar

”Yes, Brandon,” said the latter, ”I suppose it is very beautiful in its shaping, but toto silver that?”

”When I a,” replied Uncle Richard ”I must experis down and colass to lie upon the shelf

We'll lay a board down here, and turn the speculum face doards upon the floor”

Tom hurried to his uncle's side, and after the board had been laid upon the floor, and covered with a soft cloth and several sheets of paper, the speculum was carefully lifted, turned over face doards, covered with another cloth, and left close to the wall

”No fear of that falling any farther,” said Uncle Richard, s, as he crossed the workshop deliberately ”Now for the polishi+ng”

He cut off a piece of the soft, delicate leather, about three inches square, made a ball-like pad of cotton-wool, and covered it with the leather, and then tied the ends tightly with so what resembled a soft leather ball with a handle, and patted it in his hand so as to flatten it a little

”Now then,” he said, ”this is to be another ic touch If I succeed, you will see your faces brilliantly reflected in the glass; if I fail--”