Note 34 — Chapter IV · THE SALT-GLAZE POTTERS.

The incident referred to, which Shaw says occurred to Astbury, and Wedgwood to Heath, was as follows:—One of them was on a business journey to London, then naturally taken on horseback; before reaching Dunstable or Banbury, his horse’s eyes became inflamed. The ostler of the Inn put a piece of flint into the fire; when it was red-hot he quenched it with water and pounded it to a fine powder, a little of which was blown into the horse’s eye, relieving the inflammation. The potter, noticing the extreme whiteness of the calcined flint, and also the ease with which it was powdered, was led to try this material to improve the whiteness of his ware, and with the most successful results.