CANDLES AND LAMPS.
Candles.--Moulds for Candles.--It is usual, on an expedition, to take tin
moulds and a ball of wick for the purpose of making candles, from time to
time, when fat happens to be abundant. The most convenient mould is of
the shape shown in the figure. The tallow should be poured in, when its
heat is so reduced that it hardly feels warm to the finger; that is, just
before setting. If this be done over-night, the candles will come out in
the morning without difficulty. But, if you are obliged to make many at a
time, then, after the tallow has been poured in, the mould should be
dipped in cold water to cool it: and then when the tallow has set, the
mould should be dipped for a moment in hot water to melt the outside of
the newly-made candle and enable it to be easily extracted. By this
method, the candles are not made so neatly as by the other, though they
are made more quickly.
[Sketch of candle mould].
It is well to take, if not to make, a proper needle for putting the wicks
into the moulds. It should be a hooked piece of wire, like a crochet
needle, which catches the wick by its middle and pulls it doubled through
the hole. A stick across the mouth of the mould secures the other end.
When the tallow is setting, give an additional pull downwards. A
gun-barrel, with a cork or wad put the required distance down the barrel,
has been used for a mould.
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