Of the making of soft soap I can give little or no correct information,
never having been given any _certain_ rule myself, and my own experience
is too limited. I was, however, given a hint from a professional
gentleman, which I mean to act upon forthwith. Instead of boiling the
soap, which is some trouble, he assured me the best plan was to run off
the ley from a barrel of ashes: into this ley I might put four or five
pounds of any sort of grease, such as pot skimmings, rinds of bacon, or
scraps from frying down suet; in short any refuse of the kind would do.
The barrel with its contents may then be placed in a secure situation in
the garden or yard, exposed to the sun and air. In course of time the
ley and grease become incorporated: if the grease predominates it will
be seen floating on the surface; in such case add more ley; if the
mixture does not thicken, add more grease. Now, this is the simplest,
easiest, and clearest account I have yet received on the subject of
soap-making, which hitherto has seemed a mystery, even though a good
quantity was made last spring by one of my servants, and it turned out
well: but she could not tell why it succeeded, for want of being able to
explain the principle she worked from.