A polymeric solution comprising: water; about 0.005 to about 0.5 moles of an inorganic acid, an inorganic case or an inorganic salt per 100 ml of such water; and about 0.1 to about 5.0 grams of a polymeric complex per 100 grams of said water, said polymeric complex produced by the interaction of a first water soluble copolymer formed from a water soluble nonionic monomer and an anionic comonomer by a free radical copolymerization, said first water soluble nonionic monomer being selected from the group consisting of acrylamide, methacrylamide and vinylpyrrolidone, said anionic comonomer being about 1 to about 35 weight percent of said first water soluble copolymer, said anionic comonomer containing anionic groups, said anionic comonomer being selected from the group consisting of metal styrene sulfonate, metal vinyl sulfonate, and a metal salt of 2-acrylamide-2-methyl propane sulfonate; and a second water soluble copolymer formed from a second water soluble monomer and a cationic comonomer by a free radical copolymerization, said second water soluble monomer being selected from the group consisting of acrylamide, methacrylamide and vinyl pyrrolidone, said cationic comonomer being about 1 to about 34 weight percent of said second water soluble copolymer, said cationic comonmer containing cation group, said cationic comonomer being selected from the group consisting of N,N,N-trimethylammoniumpropylmethacrylamide and vinylpyridine or their quarternary salts, wherein the molar ratio of anionic to cationic functional groups in the water soluble polymer complex is about 50/1 to about 1.2/1 or from about 0.8/1 to about 1/50, said ratio always being such that there is at least an excess of said water soluble copolymers over the other said water soluble copolymer of at least about 20 mole percent.