but probably would do better, we banished amalgam
from the office for the succeeding seven years, using in the place of
it tin, oxychlorid, and gutta-percha. Since that time we have seen no
good reason for abandoning the use of tin, as time has proved it worthy
of great confidence. There is no better dental litmus to distinguish the
conservative from the progressive dentist.

If we take a retrospective view and consider what tin foil was thirty
years ago, we do not wonder that so many operators failed to make tight,
good-wearing fillings. As it came from the manufacturer it looked fairly
bright, but after being exposed to the air for a short time it assumed a
light brassy color, and lost what small amount of integrity it
originally possessed. This tin was not properly refined before beating,
or something was put on the foil while beating, so that it did not have
the clean, bright surface and cohesive quality which our best foil now
has. No. 4 was commonly used, but it would cut and crumble in the most
provoking manner. Fillings were made by using mats, cylinders, tapes,
and ropes, with hand-pressure, on the plan for manipulating non-cohesive
gold foil, but it was difficult to insert a respectable approximal
filling.

From the best information obtainable, the writer believes that Marcus
Bull (the predecessor of Abbey) was the first to manufacture and sell
tin foil in the United States, as he began the manufacture of gold foil
at Hartford in 1812.

Several years ago a radical change came about in the preparation of tin
foil, for which the manufacturer should have his share of the credit,
even if the dentist did ask for something better, for the quality
depends largely upon the kind and condition of the tin used and on the
method of manufacture.

For making tin foil for filling teeth, the purest Banca tin that can be
obtained is used. The tin is melted in a crucible under a cover of
powdered charcoal. It is then cast into a bar and rolled to the desired
thickness, so that if No. 6 foil is to be made, a piece one and one-half
(1-1/2) inches square would weigh nine grains. This ribbon is then cut
into lengths of about four feet, and spread on a smooth board slanted,
so that the end rests in a vat of clean water.

Then apply to the exposed surface of the ribbon diluted muriatic acid,
and immediately wash with a strong solution of ammonia. Turn the ribbon
and treat the other side in the same way. It is then washed and ru