A very small piece of nitre, dissolved in water and applied to the face after shaving, will remove any unpleasant sensation, though the first application may be somewhat painful.
623. _Shaving Liquids._--1. Rub in a marble mortar an ounce of any fine soap, with two drachms of carbonate of potassa. When these two substances are incorporated, continue rubbing, and add gradually a pint of lavender-water, or any other odorous water made by dissolving essential oils in alcohol sixty degrees above proof. When the whole is well combined, filter the liquid, and bottle it for use. To make a lather, put a few drops into a wine-glass of tepid water; dip your brush in the mixture, and, when rubbed on the face, a fine lather will appear. 2. Dissolve any quantity of fine soap in alcohol, either with or without perfume. Use it according to the preceding directions.
624. _An Easy Shave._--The operation of shaving may be robbed of its unpleasant sensations by rubbing the chin over with grease, or a sweet oil, before the application of the razor. The best razor-strop in the world is one's own hand, moistened with its own natural oil or perspiration. Sharpen the razor thus before you wash your hands, and you will find this natural strop most efficacious. After shaving, to allay irritation, wash the chin with Portugal water.
625. _Composition for Shaving, without the use of razor, soap, or water._--Mix one pint and a half of clear lime-water, two ounces of gum-Arabic, half an ounce of isinglass, an eighth of an ounce of cochineal, a quarter of an ounce of turmeric-root (made into powder), an eighth of an ounce of salt of tartar, and an eighth of an ounce of cream of tartar, together: boil them for one hour at least (stirring up the mixture during the whole time of boiling, and be careful not to let it boil over), clear it through a sieve; then add two and a half pounds of pumice stone, finely pulverized; mix the whole together with the hands, by the assistance of the white of two eggs, well stirred up. Then divide the cake into twelve small ones. Dry them in the open air for three days; put them into an oven moderately heated for twenty-four hours, when they will be ready for use. Apply them, with a gentle friction, to the beard, and they will produce the effect of shaving by rubbing off the hair.