GRAPHIC DELINEATION A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON THE ART OF ETCHING; ©c /Manner of Copying D unites atilt Bralotngs BY A METHOD AT ONCE SCIENTIFIC, TASTEFUL, AND AMUSING: TO WHICH ARE ADDED, INSTRUCTIONS, DETAILING MINUTELY THE WHOLE PROCESS OF REPRESENTATION, FROM AN OUTLINE TO A FINISHED PRINT, WITH DIRECTIONS FOR MAKING AND COMPOUNDING EVERY ARTICLE USED IN THE PROCESS. ILLUSTRATED WITH PLATES IN PROGRESS, OF LANDSCAPE, CATTLE, AND FIGURES, FROM ORIGINAL WORKS OF CLAUDE LORRAINE, REMBRANDT, BERGHEM, OSTADE, PAUL POTTJER, &c. &c. BY J. HASSELL. LONDON: PRINTED FOR W. SIMPKIN AND R. MARSHALL, STATIONERS’ HALL COURT, LUDGATE-STREET. AND SOLD BY J. F. SETCHELL, 23, KING-STREET, COVENT GARDEN : ALSO BY M. HASSELL, THE WIDOW, No. 9, KNIGHTSBRIDGE. M.D.CCC.XXVI. PRACTICAL TREATISE ON THE ART OF ETCHING. Recreations, in the Fine Arts, are so very desirable, that we see many exalted characters emulating the Artists of every period ; but the line most calculated to gratify, appears generally, from the pleasure it gives, and the ease with which it can be executed, to be that of Landscape delineation. The very first painters, though gratified with their Oil paintings, have usu- ally been desirous to hand down to posterity fac-similes of their works, by means of the Graphic Art : — hence arise the numberless productions of the various Schools which we possess, and still more, admire, in a variety of etch- ings they have executed. Their studies and sketches we can rarely procure but at an exorbitant price, and then single specimens can only be had for the more affluent connoisseur’s port-feuille ; whereas by multiplying their works in etchings, we have a beautiful assemblage and variety of the different Mas- ters and their styles, for supplying the less wealthy admirer and student ; be- sides, when time and accidents shall have despoiled us of the rarest of paint- ings, the Graphic Art is still a record of all their former excellencies. 4 A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON The Flemish and Dutch Masters made their works particularly noticed and known, by graphic representations of their choicest pictures, disposing of their etchings all over Europe : these have the breadth and fire of their paintings. As the subjects they gave to the world were generally from their most cele- brated performances, and prototypes of those excellencies — it was rarely they wanted purchasers or patrons for their good performances ; in addition to which they had an opportunity of obliging friends with copies of their works, and pupils with studies to direct them. Among the most eminent historical, landscape, and cattle draftsmen, who have left us specimens of their excellencies in etchings, are Rembrandt, Claude, Both, Hobbima, Berghem, Cuyp, Wynants, Paul Potter, Waterloo, Hollar, Vandevelde, Everdingen, Weirotter, and many others of the various Schools, which are now purchased at high prices and with avidity. It appears prevalent, at the present time, for amateur draftsmen to go be- yond their pencil sketches— by giving us specimens of their works on copper; and, when it shall be still more generally adopted, it may then be expected we shall have illustrations of the works of many excellent performances from the drawings of some of our titled and fashionable artists. Etching and Outlining, upon a moderate or small scale, requires very little trouble ; and is as an amusement a delightful recreation. It may be left off or commenced without the least inconvenience, care only being required to place or lock up your subjects, while in progress, where no accident can hap- pen to the grounds on the copper-plate. By outlining pictures or drawings, a connoisseur painter can tint them up to a variety of effects, handing to his friends fac-similes of every subject THE ART OF ETCHING. 5 that pleases him ; and those ladies who pursue the Fine Arts as an amuse- ment, will find a superior gratification while delineating their works upon copper — combining science with art, and an intellectual treat with industry. Rembrandt has left us excellencies in his etchings, which are so universally admired, that every collector of judgment seeks them with avidity; — his land- scapes have all the effect of his pictures, and the handling of his needle was only surpassed by that of his pencil. Claude Gelle, of Lorraine, the prince of landscape-painters, etched a num- ber of subjects, with a peculiar detail and sweetness ; but often ruined his best productions by a negligence of biting-in — apparently from his aqua-fortis be- ing too strong, and the grounds on which he worked breaking up, from the too great strength of the acids. The contrast in the etched works of the above two Masters, though both exquisite, are excellent guides for inexperienced artists : the former to be courted for his minutiae of every part of the Art ; the latter serving as a caution to avoid precipitancy, and the abuse of too strong a nitrous acid. In the concluding part of this work, we shall refer to those Masters, whose works we have given as specimens of etching. The materials used in etching are : — transparent tracing-paper, etching-nee- dles or points, scrapers, burnisher, hand-vice, an oil-rubber, gravers, a blind- wax, for walling the plate round to hold the aqua-fortis ; etching-ground of dif- ferent descriptions, viz. — hard, soft, and transparent ; and dabbers of various sizes ; an etching-board or bridge, — a large camel-hair pencil, a wax- taper, compass, ruler, and parallel ruler, and a Turkey oil-stone. 6 A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON ETCHING GROUNDS Are made according to the time of year, either hard or soft; — the former for summer, and the latter for winter. There are a great variety of receipts for making etching- grounds, from the time of Hollar, who was said to be particular in his compounding hard var- nishes for that purpose, down to the present period. There are several different compounds, but the best, and what is most generally used, is the late celebra- ted Mr. Woollet’s receipt, which is as follows : — An equal weight of asphal- tum and virgin wax, one fourth of Burgundy pitch, and the same quantity of common pitch, mixed in a glazed pipkin over a slow fire : the asphaltum put in first, which ought to be finely powdered with the virgin wax ; to which, when well dissolved, you may add the other articles. They must be suffered to simmer gently, and kept well stirred with a piece of stick, until the whole are incorporated ; this will be ascertained by dropping a small quantity in a saucer, which, when cold, will break, by being three or four times twisted in the fingers. Great care must be taken while making this ground, after the asphaltum and i virgin wax are dissolved, that the pipkin is taken from the fire, while intro- ducing and dissolving the Burgundy pitch ; otherwise, as it melts, it will cause the whole of the ingredients to boil up, and run over the pipkin, if not very large. The common pitch, which is the last put in, must be dissolved very gently, or the same effect may take place. When taken off the fire, pour the whole through a thin piece of Persian silk, into cold water — the silk being first wet with water, otherwise the ground will THE ART OF ETCHING. 7 not run through it ; after which, it should be well worked between the fin- gers, and well pulled, to get the water out of the material, and to mix the in- gredients. If, on a trial, the ground should be found too soft, dissolve it again, and add a little more asphaltum, and if too hard, a little more virgin wax : when finished divide it into moderate sized balls, which are to be tied up in silk, when they will be ready for use. Transparent etching-ground is composed of two ounces of virgin wax, one ounce and a half of asphaltum, one ounce of gum-mastic, half an ounce of Burgundy pitch, and a piece of common pitch the size of a moderate nutmeg, dissolved, and made as the foregoing ground, and equal care must be ob- served. The dabher is to be made of fine raw cotton, of a proper quantity, tied up in a piece of strong black silk, with a circular bit of pasteboard at the top, of any diameter you please — an inch and a half to two inches is the usual size ; but much depends on the size of the copper about to be used, which will direct your judgment. The silk must be gathered over the pasteboard and tied tight up, when the dabber will be fit for use. TRANSPARENT TRACING-PAPER Is to be bought at every shop in the Metropolis, where materials for draw- ing are sold. The trouble of making it will occupy ten times the period the material is worth. A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON 8 WALLING WAN, For the bordering round of the plate, to hold the aquafortis on its surface T ake a quarter of a pound of bees’-wax, a quarter of a pound of virgin- wax, and two ounces of horse-turpentine ; put them into a glazed pipkin, and let them very gradually dissolve over the fire. There are other methods of making the same material, but none so tough and easy to work. Another composition, for this purpose, is Burgundy-pitch, half a pound ; a quarter of a pound of bees’-wax ; when well dissolved ov4* a slow fire, add half a gill of sweet oil. Both these mixtures, when taken off the fire, should be poured into a basin of cold water ; and, when cool, be worked by the hand into rolls for use. They may be kept in the pipkin they are dissolved in, and when wanted for use, put a quantity of lukewarm water on them ; when they will supple and give to the hand, and can be easily made a wall of, to go round the copper-plate. Etching-needles are to be procured at shops where materials and tools for the watchmakers are sold ; as also are gravers, scrapers, burnishers, hand-vice, and Turkey-stone, for setting the various tools upon. There are particular shops also, for engravers’ tools ; these are also to be bought at some of the artists’ colour-shops. Etching-needles must be had of various sizes, to suit the different parts of a subject : — foregrounds requiring a much larger and broader point than dis- tances and offskip. To whet the points of your needles for etching on your Turkey-stone, a small quantity of sweet oil must be dropped in the centre of it, and if you wish the needle to be round at the extremity, you must whet THE ART OF ETCHING. 9 the instrument short, turning it round in your fingers all the time. If the needle is wanted rather sharper, it must be set more angular. For dry pointing, a very sharp inward angle must be given to the tool. To take the roughness off after setting the needle, have a piece of buck leather fastened, by glue, on a flat piece of wood, on the surface of which, rub in a quantity of crocus martus, with oil ; on this surface rub them well, and it will make them fit for use. For very delicate etchings, I usually construct my own needles, which are of various sizes, of the best Whitechapel needles, used for sewing. These I place in pencil sticks, which I cut to nearly as fine a point as the needle, and then slit the stick up, as far as is necessary to place the needle in a bed, so that it may have a firmness when used against the copper. It is then to be bound up with a waxed silk thread, beginning at the lower end, nearest the point, and binding it very tight all over the slit part, and a little above it, where it is to be fastened. The scraper is used for taking down parts that are over bitten by the aqua- fortis ; the preference is usually given to those which are hollow fluted and triangular. The burnisher has the same property as the scraper, for taking down parts, but gives a better surface to the copper it goes over, and is not so likely to leave scratches behind. A hand- vice is for holding the copper-plate, while you are laying on the etching-ground. The oil-rubber is made of list or cloth, or a piece of black felt, or beaver, rolled up very close, and then tied remarkably tight from the bottom to the top : care must be taken in rolling it up, that the lower part, which is applied 12 A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON whole together. This little flambeau will give an even surface, and black the etching-ground much better than the common candle. The Etching-board is a flat piece of wood, of any length you please, and about four inches wide, very smoothly planed on both sides : at each end on the bottom side, must be glued a small piece of wood, the breadth of the board, and about half an inch deep, forming a sort of bridge to lay over the plate, to prevent the hand touching or injuring the etching-ground. In the foregoing list I have detailed all the requisite articles for the pur- poses of etching ; and now proceed to the preparation of a copper-plate for receiving the subject to be delineated. For the purpose of putting the walling wax round the plate, at least half an inch of margin will be necessary round the three parts, and an inch ought to be allowed for the bottom at least. Thus the copper to be used must be one inch in length, and one and a half in depth more than the drawing about to be represented. With the hand-vice lay hold of the copper-plate in the centre of the bottom, and between the upper teeth of the hand-vice and the copper-plate, introduce a piece of writing-paper, three or four times doubled, and of the size of the vice, which will prevent any mark being left on the copper, from the pressure of screwing the instrument tight, to hold the copper steady with. You will now place the back part of the copper over a clear fire, or else heat it with pieces of paper rolled up. Some have chaffing dishes with charcoal, to heat by ; when a quantity are required to be heated, this last system is certainly very desira- ble ; but, for a single small plate, the tire or paper are the most expeditious. When heated sufficiently, so that the etching-ground will discharge itself through the silk it is wrapt in, pass the same backwards and forwards lightly. THE ART OF ETCHING. 13 and with the grain of the copper, which invariably runs the lengthway, to prevent any scratches, which will sometimes happen when the etching- ground has been used often and wrinkled the silk. The plate must now be laid flat on a table, and with a cotton dabber in the right hand, pat it smartly all over the surface of the plate, taking care to lay it very even, until the whole surface of the copper disappears, and not thicker dabbed in one place than another. In all probability, if in winter-time, the etching-ground will be too dry to lay even at the first dabbing ; therefore it must be moderately heated, as before, when first laying the ground on ; this may be repeated, until you have a very even and clear ground. While yet warm, and that the ground appears in a liquid state, light your wax-taper flambeau, which hold upwards above your head, with the grounded side downwards, and then pass the flare of the lighted taper gradually back- wards and forwards, taking particular care that the snuff of the cotton does not touch the etching ground ; also be careful not to burn any part of the varnish, as you will be compelled to lay a fresh ground, for fear the aqua- fortis should bite through the part so rotted, and spoil all the work. The ground thus laid, (and before the back part of the copper, where there is no ground upon, can get cool,) continue pouring some cold water from a spouted mug upon it, until the plate cool, holding the copper-plate in a slant- ing direction, to let it run off at the opposite side. From this operation, the varnish on the plate will receive a beautiful gloss, and will take the tracing- much better than if neglected. 14 A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON TRACING OF DRAWINGS. If the drawing you are about to transfer upon copper is not mounted, it can be traced against the light, by placing it against a pane of glass, covering your drawing with the transparent paper before mentioned, fastened to it by a pin, or else wrapped over the margins of the drawing, and tracing the whole of the outlines with a free working black lead pencil, and those parts also that require the greatest minuteness. Should the drawing be on a mount of several papers thickness, the tracing-paper must be fastened behind the draw- ing, and brought over to cover the work completely ; then trace the same, as before observed, with a black lead pencil. Many artists use a solution of India ink, or sepia, and trace the outline with a sharp pointed pen. Should it be a painting, this last method is to be preferred. Some prefer tracing at the window, with the black lead, on a thin drawing paper, and then correcting the outline from the original drawing lying before them ; after which, they transfer it on the etching-ground of the plate, by running it through a printer’s press, which any copper- plate printer can do. It is usual, before it undergoes this ordeal, to have a damped piece of paper laid upon the tracing, which must be placed with the outline downwards, to face the etching-ground ; the impression is thus left sharp and clear, with a silver appearance, and reversed on the surface of the plate to be etched. The system of reducing an outline is very often had recourse to, where the subject of the picture or drawing to be represented is much larger than the copy to be etched. This is done by reducing it mechanically with squares. For illustrating this method, we have annexed an explanatory plate, with a THE ART OF ETCHING. 15 subject on a large, and another on a reduced scale. The same manner may be had recourse to should the picture to be represented be ever so large, or vice versa. Should a small subject want enlarging, the same method will give you an easy enlargement. The outline thus made may be transferred upon the copper-plate, and will be found more accurate than a tracing, taking particular care that the back- ing paper, which is damped, and to be laid upon the back of the outline to be passed through the press, is sufficiently saturated to give moisture enough to the paper on which the outline is drawn, that it may deliver the markings of the pencil freely. , The size of a picture, by this easy and simple means, can, with the greatest ease, be reduced from the proportion of a foot, to an inch, half an inch, or even a quarter : and all the spirit of the original will be still retained. An easy method of squaring a small subject is by taking a strip of paper, the length of the drawing intended to be reduced, and dividing into halves, quar- ters, eighths, and sixteenths : if you have a very intricate subject to copy, and one that requires minuteness, the paper may be again divided into thirty-two parts, by reducing the sixteen divisions into halves. The paper thus marked, is to be placed parallel with the work of the draw- ing, and at each division make a small dot on its margin, both at top and bot- tom. The sides are then to be measured in the same manner, taking in as many squares as the height of the drawing requires, dotting the distances in the same manner as at the top and bottom ; this done, number each dot, beginning with number one, two, and so on progressively until the whole are marked, taking care to make the perpendicular lines, from bottom to top, correspond in number : the 16 A FRACTICAL TREATISE ON same attention, of course, must be observed in the lines from each side. To pre- vent injury to drawings you wish to copy, by drawing pencil lines across them, to form the squares, recourse may be had to pins and very fine thread or cotton ; the distances marked must be carried to the very extremity of the mount of the drawing, at the bottom and sides ; into each dot a pin must be driven, until the whole round of the drawing is secured ; after which, fasten the thread on the pin marked number one, and then pass it to the same number at the top, and from thence round number two, and down again to the corresponding mark, continuing on, upwards and downwards, until the top and bottom num- bers have the thread passed upon them. After which, the same process is to be pursued in traversing the sides, when complete squares will be formed over the whole drawing. When you have determined the smaller size that you intend your subject shall be made, by the same method as you have squared the larger drawing or picture, you can subdivide the smaller size, until it corresponds with the original you are about to copy. This last, instead of having threads passed over it, must be lightly ruled with a black lead pencil, from one number to the corresponding number, when it will appear in all the proper proportions of squares, and be ready to receive the copy upon it. If the drawing is to be transferred from the transparent paper, on to the etching-ground, the paper on which the subject is, must be cut to the exact size of the copper-plate ; and the corners all fastened down, with small pieces of the walling wax, and stretched to either extremity of the copper : another piece of paper, about the substance of thin post, must then be rubbed on one side all over either with red chalk or Vermillion, so ground into the paper THE ART OF ETCHING. 17 with a piece of rag, that no superfluous particles may lodge about it ; this paper, with the coloured part downward, is to be passed between the tracing- on the transparent paper and the etching-ground on the copper ; then, with a blunt pointed needle trace, beginning at your left hand, and gradually working to the right, the drawing upon the etching ground : the pencil lines will be very discernible from the white paper beneath, showing a contrast to the tra- cing. As you proceed, lift up the papers, to see if the lines from the coloured paper are sufficiently made out on the copper ; and if any superfluous material appears to clog or make the work appear thick, take out your tracing paper, and give it a smart rubbing on the coloured side, with a clean piece of linen rag ; after which, fillip it on the wrong side to discharge any superfluous par- ticles that hang about its surface. During the tracing, be very particular not to disturb the upper paper, with the copy on it, from the place it was first put on, as the least shifting of it will throw the whole into confusion, and perhaps make it necessary to trace the subject anew. It is absolutely necessary to be very minute in every thing that relates to transferring draw- ings upon copper. The plate is now ready for outlining, which is the first part of etching. With a camel-hair pencil brush off all the dust or superfluous particles that may have come from the chalk or Vermillion paper, and then blow on the plate three or four times to give it a complete clearance. Begin your etching by putting in the distances with a fine needle : if the outline on the copper is meant for colouring up in imitation of a drawing, the distances ought only to be dotted, and that very fine ; and, if slightly bit- in it will give a delicacy, and appear like a drawing. As you advance c 18 A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON towards the foreground, a larger tool may be used. If the foliage and materials of the nearest parts of the picture are rough and bold, a still broader pointed needle must be used. In the event of making mistakes or false lines, which must be stopped out, the following is a varnish used for that purpose, with a fine camel-hair pencil. STOPPING-OUT VARNISH. Take some very fine lamp-black, and, if you have convenience, grind it on a stone with a muller, adding a small portion of turpentine to make it work free, turning it repeatedly with your pallet-knife, occasionally adding more black and turpentine, until you have sufficient — which put into a child’s tea-cup, and then add a quantity of turpentine varnish to it, stirring it toge- ther with a piece of wood, until it is well incorporated. A very small quantity of this varnish may be made at the time required; but to save repeated trouble, if a quantity is made and put into a phial, a little can be taken out at a time, and put in a saucer for use. If the compo- sition gets thick, add a little spirits of turpentine to it, and when not in use, let it be kept in a very cool place. When an error or false line is made in etching, cover over the place with a small quantity of this varnish, with your camel-hair pencil, and let it dry quite hard ; then you may venture to retouch it without any danger ; but if touched upon before it has hardened, it is likely to clog and draw with it a stringy line, which will not receive any effect from the aquafortis. THE ART OF ETCHING. 19 To give sweetness to a plain and simple outline requires infinite care ; the different needles you use are to be handled the same as a black-lead pencil, and every care must be taken to give an equal pressure to the instrument in your hand, to all those parts which are to be of the same colour ; thus for instance, if the second distance has a number of objects to be represented, be particular in marking them with the same strength, though perhaps with a finer needle than the first distance : and again, the nearer objects and the fore- ground must have a bolder character and more determined handling, and per- haps may require a broader tool. The outline etching being now ready to receive the aquafortis, we must wall round the margin of the plate with wax to hold the same. Generally keeping my walling wax in the pipkin in which it is made, I usually put cold water to it, and by placing it over the fire to warm gradually, it imbibes the heat and works very readily in the hand : it must then be moulded into long flat pieces, near an inch deep, for large plates, and a proportioned depth for smaller ones. In winter, it will be necessary to warm at the file the edge of the wax you intend going on the copper, to make it adhere closely, and after- wards press it smartly down between your finger and thumb, made wet to prevent it sticking. On the outside rim of the wax, and close to the copper, pass a hot iron round the whole, which will completely fix the wax to the copper : at the bottom and on the right hand corner of the plate, make an indentation in the wax, and spread it out to form a spout, to pour off the aquafortis or the water, when wanted. 20 A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON AQUAFORTIS. Our next attention will be called to the making and application of the aquafortis, which certainly requires a strict and cautious judgment, so much so, that of late years there have been professional men who have made it their principal practice to bite-in the etching’s of engravers. O O NITRIC ACID. Nitre-fortis, or the best Spirits of Nitre,* can be had at the most respectable Chemists’ shops ; but the preference is always to be given to that bought at Apothecaries’ Hall; — it is generally stronger, and a purer spirit. It must be kept in a cool place, and in a bottle with a glass stopper to it, which ought also to be the receptacle for the diluted aquafortis. There is no absolute cri- terion for the mixture of acids, the genial effect of warmth in the atmosphere causing a more irritable and sharper action, than the humid or cold season. New aquafortis at all times bites a clear and sweet line ; whereas old, or a many times used acid, deposits the ponderous particles of corroded copper, it has imbibed, in the lines of the newly etched plate, and feeds upon itself rather than delve into the newly made lines. *. To a pound of nitre-fortis, I usually add twice the same quantity of water by measure, not by weight : this solution preserves the whole property of the acid, and prevents a rapid evaporation of the strong nitre, which will take place every time the bottle is opened, to make a fresh mixture. 1 01 biting-in an etching, which ought to be done very gently, to a quarter THE ART OF ETCHING. 21 of a pint of the above prepared acid, the same quantity of water may be added, and well shaken up ; and if the plate is of a moderate size, it will be quite sufficient to cover its surface. In the event of etching larger plates, the quantity of aquafortis must be increased in proportion. TO BITE-IN AN ETCHING. The plate being prepared, with the walling wax placed round the margin, you will lay it flat on a table, with the spout projecting over the edge of it, so that when you wish to pour off the acid or water, no inconvenience may arise from moving it when the liquid is on it. The aquafortis is to be poured on equally all over the etched copper, and if any places remain uncovered, brush the aquafortis over them with a common camel-hair pencil, or else with the end of a feather. The action of the aquafortis, as before observed, is much quicker in summer than winter ; and will be first perceptible by little globules aris- ing from the etched lines : if these rise too rapidly, the aquafortis should be taken off and more diluted, observing, at the same time, that a small ad- dition of water will now have a great effect. Having well shaken the water and acid together, if necessity has required it to be reduced, you will return it upon the copper, and when the globules begin to rise again, wipe them aside with the camel-hair pencil, or feather, as often as they appear full, and to accumulate upon the lines. To bite-in an etching cannot be performed too carefully ; and to guide your discretion, it would be as well, on the margin of your plate, at bottom, to 22 A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON make a small subject in imitation of the one you have done ; and as both will he bitten at the same time, you can scrape off a portion of the etching- ground from the small subject, to see how deep your lines are made upon the larger one on the copper. Your own judgment and practice must now, in a great measure, guide you ; refer to the drawing you are copying, and if your distance appears nearly of the same colour as your black-lead pencil, you may conclude it is deep enough, and ought to be stopped out ; which must be done with the composition before-mentioned, of turpentine, varnish, and lamp-black ; and, in a quarter of an hour or twenty minutes, your var- nish in the plate will be dry and hard enough to resist the aquafortis. The different parts of the etching, after a repetition of biting, accord- ing to the strength required, must be stopped out, until you are satisfied, that your line represents your drawing. It is not to be imagined that a first or second experiment will make the pupil perfect; practice, however, will soon gain him the desired object, which, once attained, will give him a high intellectual treat, and a recreation of the pleasantest description. To take off the walling wax and the etching-ground, the plate must be gently warmed with paper at its back, so that the wax will give from the cop- per, which must be taken immediately and rolled up by the hand and return- ed to the pipkin. Now drop some sweet oil up the etching-ground, and, with a small piece of rag, gently rub the surface of the copper all over, when the oil, incorporating with the etching-ground, will loosen it ; after which, give the plate another warming at the back, when the ground will become completely fluid, and is to be wiped off with a clean linen or cotton rag. After this, drop THE ART OF ETCHING, a small portion of spirits of turpentine, over the stopping-out varnish, and, with the oil-rag before used, loosen the black parts, and then wipe the sur- face dry. The oil-rubber must now b6 applied with a small portion of oil, to get the face of the etching clean, when it will be ready for having an impres- sion taken off by the copper-plate printer. The impression, which technically is called a proof, will show where the etching needle may have failed. If it is the desire of the amateur artist to have his etching or outline come the same way as his drawing, he must be sure to reverse the tracing of the subject the contrary way on the plate, which being etched backwards will, on being printed, correspond with the drawing. LONDON : PRINTED BY S. AND R. BENTLEY, DORSET STREET. FA LI- $ OF TIVOLI - HAS SELL. 1,1 7