Making Ink.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Pomegranate-Ink/

Quill Knife (Pen Knife), Folding Knife & Ink Erasers.

I still need to do more research on this subject to be sure of my facts, but to date this is what I have found. Early 18th century quill or pen knives were of the fixed blade type. Later in the 18th century folding quill knives start to appear & become more common in the 19th century.

Folding quill knives tend to have small or short narrow blades where as the common clasp knives tend to have longer wider blades.

1725 silver handles fixed blade quill knife.

http://www.loringpage.com/pens/cat01d.htm;

Early 18th century fixed blade quill knife.

http://www.loringpage.com/pens/cat01d.htm;

A John Wilson quill knife 1870, fixed blade.

http://www.vintagepens.com/catill_dip_pens_etc.shtml;

Early 18th century fixed blade quill knife.

http://www.vintagepens.com/catill_dip_pens_etc.shtm

1890 folding quill knife.

Rogers quill knife 1890.

http://www.vintagepens.com/catill_dip_pens_etc.shtml;

1780 folding quill knife.

http://www.loringpage.com/pens/cat01d.htm;

Rodgers scraper: ink eraser 1870.

http://www.vintagepens.com/catill_dip_pens_etc.shtml;

My copy of an early to mid 18th century clasp knife. Friction blade.

Post mid 18th century clasp knife.

Mid 18th century Gully knife.

Post mid 18th century clasp knife.

On Making Ink.

47. To make good ink for writing, particularly for books.-
Take 4 bottles of good wine, white or red, and 1 lb. of galls, slightly bruised, which must be put into the wine, and allowed to stand for 12 days, and be stirred every day with a stick. The twelfth day it must be strained through a strainer of fine linen, and must be poured into a clean jar, and put on the fire to get hot, until it almost boils. Then remove from the fire, and when it has cooled so as only to be tepid, put into it 4 oz. of gum-arabic, which must be very bright and clear, and stir it with a stick, then add ½ lb. Roman vitriol, and stir it continually with the stick, until all things are well incorporated together, and let it cool and keep for use. And note, that ink made with wine is good for writing books upon the sci­ences, because, when books are written with it, the letters do not fade, and can hardly be scraped out or discharged from parchment or paper. But if they are written with ink made with water, it is not so, for they can easily be scraped out, and it may happen that the letters written with it will fade.
4 bottles of wine, or water, or half of each.
1 pound of galls of xij. oz. to the pound.
4 oz. of gum Arabic.
6 oz. Roman vitriol.
And if you took equal parts of each, galls, gum, and vitriol, as much of one as of the other, by weight, it would still be good; as for instance, 6 oz. of each, would be sufficient for the said 4 lbs. of wine or water, or wine and water mixed as before.

Jehan Le Bégue (1431)

http://travelingscriptorium.library.yale.edu/2013/03/21/iron-gall-ink/

To make excellent ink
Raine water 3 gallons, of white wine vinegar a quart, gaules two pounds, gum arabeck one pound, pomegranate pills one quarter of a pound, all these bruised but not beat too small, copporus two ounces, this will be ready the sooner, if it stand near by the fire, or in the sun.

Late 17th Century.

http://travelingscriptorium.library.yale.edu/2013/03/21/iron-gall-ink/

A direction to make good inke.
Take six ounces of galls, three ounces of gumme Arabeck, three ounces of green coppresse. Crack the galls grosly and put all these to two quartes of the best drink ready to be put up, as followeth.
First put the galls into the drink in a glasse bottell, stop it close and let it stand in the sun 14 dayes, & shake the bottell twice ot thrice in each day. Then at the end of those dayes strayne out the galls & fling them away, & strayne out the drink & wash the glass cleane, & put in the drink agayne, & then put in your coppresse, and let it stand 14 dayes, & then put in you gumme, and put in two or three knives pointe full of sugar to keep it from hoaring .
And put to it a little ising glasse.

http://travelingscriptorium.library.yale.edu/2013/03/21/iron-gall-ink/

Manuscript Inks.

http://home.teleport.com/~tcl/mi.htm

Making iron Gall Ink.
http://westdeanconservation.com/2014/05/11/making-iron-gall-ink/

Making Ink.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_gall_ink

Making A Quill Pen. VIDEO.

NARRATIVE OF THE CAPTIVITY OF WILLIAM BIGGS. Part 10.

I was sitting on a bench, when the old chief got up and put both his hands on my head and said something, I did not know what. Then he gave me a name and called me "Mohcossea," after the old chief that was killed, who was the father of the Indian that I was given up to. Then I was considered one of that family, a Kickapoo in place of their father, the old chief. Then the principal chief took the peace pipe and smoked two or three draws. It had a long stem about three feet in length. He then passed it round to

the other Indians before they raised from their council. He held the pipe by the end and each of them took two or three draws. Then he handed it to me and I smoked. The chief then said I was a Kickapoo and that they were good Indians and that I need not be afraid; they would not hurt me, but I must not run away.

 By this time their dinner was prepared and they were ready to eat. They all sat down and told me to sit by. I did, and we all eat a hearty dinner and they all appeared to be well pleased with their new adopted Kickapoo brother.

These Indians lived about six miles west of the old Kickapoo trading town, on the west side of the Wabash river. They had no traders in their town. After dinner was over, they told the interpreter Coons that I must write to their trading town for some bread. I told Coons to tell them I had nothing to write with--no paper, nor pen and ink. They said I must write. I told Coons to tell them again I had no paper nor nothing to write with. Coons told them. Then the Indian that claimed me went to his trunk and brought me a letter that had one-half sheet of it clean paper. I told Coons to tell them I wanted a pen. The same Indian went and pulled a quill out of a turkey wing and gave it to me. I told Coons I wanted a knife to make the pen. The same Indian got his scalping knife; he gave it two or three little whets and gave it to me. I then told Coons I wanted some ink. Coons says, "Ink--ink; what is tat? I ton't know what ink is." He had no name for ink in Indian or English. I told him to tell the Indian to get me some gunpowder and water and a spoon and I would make the ink myself. The Indian did so. I knew very well

what their drift was; they wanted a proof to know whether I told them any lies when they examined me in their council. When I had made the ink and was ready to write I asked Coons how many loaves of bread I should write for. He says, "Ho! a couple of lofes; tay only want to know if you can write or if you told them any lies or not." I wrote to the English trader, that I mentioned before that I had made some acquaintance with

the day I passed the old trading town, for to get me two loaves of bread. He very well knew my situation and circumstances. There was a Frenchman, a baker, that lived in the trading town.

When I had finished writing, the Indian took it up and looked at it and said, "Depaway, vely good." Coons' master, a brother to the one that claimed me, told Coons to go catch his horse and take the letter for the bread, not stay, but return as soon as possible. Coons hurried off immediately and soon returned. As soon as he came back he brought the two loaves of bread and gave them to me. I then asked Coons what I should do with this bread, as he was somewhat better acquainted with the ways of the Indians than I was. He says, "Kife one loaf to tay old squaw and her two little chiltren, and tofide the otter loaf petween you and your master, put keep a pigest half." I did so. This old squaw was the mother of the two Indians that claimed Coons and myself. The old squaw and her two children soon eat their loaf. I then divided my half between the two little children again. That pleased the old squaw very much; she tried to make me sensible of her thanks for my kindness to her two little children.