The "dry bowl candle" at Hashiguchi Street

In the city's Qiaokou Street, there was a famous “dry bowl candle workshop”. The owner of the workshop was Ma Wenliang. As early as the 1930s, the city of Dezhou had a restless phrase, saying: Ma Wenliang’s candle— Dry bowl of. What is a dry bowl? That is, after the candle is lit, there is no liquid grease around the wick, and there is no liquid flow phenomenon. Therefore, under the condition that there is no battery or electric light, the lighting in the home depends on candles, especially dragons, high jumpers, and dry boats. There are also donkeys, who need candles at night and need dry bowl candles to prevent the burning of candles and misfires caused by the flowing of candles. Therefore, Ma Wenliang’s candles are prosperous and the market has been snapped up. Many businesses have long since gone into the twelfth lunar month. Order before the door to sell at the end of the year and early spring season.

How is the dry bowl candle made? In general, it is purely hand-made, commonly known as: wax. In general, there are more than a dozen processes such as selecting enamel, wicking wick, scorpion casket, wolfberry fruit, chemical oil, stirring cylinder, dipping wax, peeling wax, hanging skin, coloring, and cooling wax. The process of dipping wax should be etched for five to eight times, once again, and the hot oil should be aired into a solid and then sticked a second time. It can be formed by dipping five to eight times. The key to the dry bowl is that the wax skin and the wax core use different fats and utilize the different melting points of animal fats and mineral fats, resulting in internal melting and incompatibility, forming oil bowls. The melted oil is burned in the oil bowl for the wick, and the candle does not flow as long as the wick is not burning on one side. This is the waxing secret that Mr. Wen Liang’s original creation possesses. At the same time, in order to ensure the quality of candles, he adhered to strict rules, careful operation, consistent, meticulous, and outstanding performance in three aspects.

One is the selection of raw materials. The main raw material of the candle is cow's and sheep's fat, requiring the oil to be pure, white, pure, and no impurities, and the appearance is the same. Otherwise, no goods will be accepted. The main wick of the wick is the reeds. The requirements are the droughts and floods. Do not grow scorpions in the water. Do not rough and do not. As long as the middle section is thick and thin, uniform, and not bent, the slight bend must be straightened after baking with the lights.

The second is strict operation. The cotton must be wrapped around the cotton, and it must be wrapped around the cotton. If it does not wrap around, it must not be wrapped or wrapped. It must be thick and thin evenly, otherwise it will affect the thickness of the wax evenly. Stirring is the most critical process for dipping wax. The oil in the cylinder can neither be too thin nor too thick, nor can it have flaws. Therefore, the control of the oil temperature is unique, the oil temperature will be high, the oil will be thin, the oil temperature is too low, the oil is too thick, and the thick oil is not sticky to the wax. The method of stirring the tank and heating the oil is used to adjust the oil temperature and thick, once the temperature is suitable. Wax must be applied as soon as possible. Therefore, the operator must take eight rakes in one hand to dip the oil in the tank before the temperature of the oil is reduced. The second cylinder is still refueling and stirring, and the temperature is adjusted. At this time, the first time the oil has cooled and solidified on the scorpion, it starts to dip a second time, and then sticks for five to eight times. The candle is basically formed.

Third, the shape should be beautiful. Candles can be divided into red and white categories. Red waxes are used for festive events. Han Chinese New Year's offerings and funerals use white wax. Wax is divided into two types: size, weight, and weight, which can be divided into two heads, four heads, and eight heads. From the shape of the head with thick and thin tails, there are heads and tails of fine, heavy, but also from the end to the end of the thick. In the era of no mold, it is necessary to maintain the perfect shape, relying entirely on hand skills and experience. Especially the eight-headed ones, which are only fifteen centimeters in length, are shaped like heads with fine-brimmed, heavy-durum tails. The pomegranate tails are like the tails of the pomegranate flowers. Therefore, it is difficult to meet the requirements without long-term tempering and practice. In addition, beauty in the form of beauty is even more beautiful. Redness is brighter and white is more clean. It makes people feel refreshed when they see it. In order to ensure the above effects, it is necessary to use high-grade pigments. The most important thing is the ratio and temperature of the pigments and oils. The improper proportioning or temperature is not correct, and if the weight is uneven, the color is not uniform. In the age when there was no thermometer, the mastery of temperature was based solely on the visual inspection. The wisdom and hardships of the artisans can be seen. What is even more admirable is that Mr. Ma Lao did not go to school, but he could use the golden powder on the red candles on both heads to write the cursive characters of “Fu Ru Donghailiushui, Shou Bi Nan Shan Bu Laosong”, which greatly increased the cultural connotation. , won the customer's favorite.

The times are advancing, science is developing, and the backward hand-made waxes have been eliminated. However, the beauty of hand-made waxes and the characteristics of dry bowls have disappeared. When people enjoy bright electric lighting, do they also recall the romance and happiness of writing articles or a family gathering together under candlelight? Maybe the mother sewed clothes in the candlelight, and the beautiful scene where the children wrote their homework has become a memory for many people...