*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 76021 ***


  TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE

  Italic text is denoted by _underscores_.

  Bold text is denoted by =equal signs=.

  Underlined text is denoted by +plus signs+.

  Some minor changes to the text are noted at the end of the book.




                                  THE

                           HARDWOOD FINISHER.

                      _WITH RULES AND DIRECTIONS_,

            FOR FINISHING IN NATURAL COLORS AND IN ANTIQUE,
          MAHOGANY, CHERRY, BIRCH, WALNUT, OAK, ASH, REDWOOD,
                 SYCAMORE, PINE, AND ALL OTHER DOMESTIC
                                 WOODS.


       _FINISHING, FILLING, STAINING, VARNISHING, AND POLISHING._


                                _ALSO_:
         MISCELLANEOUS RULES FOR DYEING, GILDING, AND BRONZING

                        _COMPILED AND EDITED BY_
                            FRED T. HODGSON,
                    Editor of THE OPERATIVE BUILDER.
      Late Editor of “BUILDER AND WOOD-WORKER,” and “CABINET-MAKER
                           AND UPHOLSTERER.”

                               NEW YORK:
                  THE INDUSTRIAL PUBLICATION COMPANY,
                                 1892.
                Copyright secured 1892, by John H. Phin.




                               PREFACE.


The subject of wood-finishing is one that interests every person who
has anything to do with the construction or decoration of buildings, be
he architect, carpenter and joiner, painter, decorator or carver, and
it is to meet the requirements of these artists and artisans, in these
respects, that this work has been prepared.

In order to make the book as complete as possible it has been necessary
to consult a variety of authorities on the subject, and cull from them
whatever in my opinion—based on experience—I thought best, and here and
there add to, or eliminate, such matter as my experience proved to be
good on the one hand, and what I thought useless or absurd on the other.

I am of course aware that there are some methods of finishing that I
have not touched upon; such as the finishing of musical instruments,
toys, wooden bric-a-brac, lacquered Japanned ware, walking sticks,
etc., etc., but as this work is only intended for the finishing of
wood-work employed in the construction and completion of buildings,
it was thought better to confine it to that department alone; thereby
keeping its cost within reasonable limits.

Among the works drawn from I may mention, CABINET-MAKING AND
UPHOLSTERY, THE BUILDER AND WOOD-WORKERS, CARPENTRY AND BUILDING,
SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN, FURNITURE MEN’S MANUAL, SPON’S WORKSHOP
RECEIPTS, THE WORKSHOP COMPANION, ENGLISH MECHANIC, HOUSE PAINTING
AND DECORATING, THE PAINTERS MAGAZINE AND COACH PAINTER, ENCYCLOPEDIA
BRITANNICA, ninth edition, and many other works.

While believing the work, as now presented to be equal, if not superior
to any published on the subject; I feel that it is defective in some
minor points; as it would be impossible to convey to the mind of
the operator all the minutiæ of each and every process required in
wood-finishing; for the perfect wood-finisher can only be the outcome
of experience and observation added to the knowledge and instructions
derived from the teachings of others. The latter is offered in this
volume; the experience and observation must rest with the learner; and
if he takes advantage of his opportunities and masters all the details
offered herewith, there is no valid reason why he should not become an
expert WOOD-FINISHER.

                                                        FRED T. HODGSON.

  NEW YORK,
  _August, 1892_.




                             INTRODUCTION.


Doubtless, the arts of Carpentry and Joinery were among the oldest
in the world, and these arts must have flourished for many centuries
before anything like polish or fine finish on wood-work were even
thought of. The handles of stone weapons were probably the first
specimens of the wood-worker’s art, then clubs and other wooden weapons
subsequently the “dug-out” and the paddle or oar. Huts or wooden
dwellings with doors and shutters, roofs and floors did not appear
until much later.

Nature always makes her works fittest for the intended end, and
beautiful as well. So long as mankind were in constant contact with
Nature’s works they tried to imitate her methods, but at last this
involved two processes, so, that, when they ceased to care for beauty,
they grudged the necessary labor required to attain it. Therefore, in
anything made by the hands of man, with no other motive in view but
that of utility, the chances are a thousand to one that beauty will be
conspicuous only by its absence.

That wood plays a very important part in the affairs of mankind,
I scarcely need mention, and nature seems to have well understood
our wants for it is claimed by those who claim to know, that about
one-third of the earth’s surface is covered with trees, all of which
are capable of contributing in some form or another to the wants of man.

In this country, the art of using wood for almost every purpose, has
gone far beyond anything that has ever been attempted by any other
people. The introduction of wood-working machinery for the rapid
manipulation of intricate mouldings, spirals, flutings, beadings
and carvings, has in a great measure, had a tendency to elevate the
taste of the whole community, though I must confess that artistic
excellence of a high order, in the mechanical arts, is now scarcely
found among our younger workmen; machinery having almost done away
with the necessity for the fine kinds of hand and brain work. Fashion,
which rules despotically in the wardrobe, influences, to a greater or
lesser degree, the style and finish of wood-work, and to a certain
extent, the kind of wood that must be used for certain purposes. It
is but a few years since, when no other wood than clean white pine,
would be permitted to do service in a building. Every thing must be
pine, floors, doors, windows, and skirtings, even to the bath fittings.
Then Dame fashion sent forth her decree, and a mixture of white pine,
Norway and Southern pine, was used followed shortly afterward by the
abominable mixture of ash, walnut and chestnut. Some architect who
deserves well of his country, introduced all walnut and all mahogany
fitments; and at once, people of taste who saw this manner of finish
noticed its superiority over the “trash-like” mixture at once; and the
fashion then of finishing in one kind of wood became the rage. Walnut
was found too dark for general purposes and was soon abandoned for
the lighter woods; chestnut, sycamore, ash and oak were then tried,
but I believe I voice the opinion of a majority of architects when
I say that, with the exception of oak, the light colored woods were
not successful, from an æsthetic point of view, and it is on record,
that many buildings finished in these woods, have recently had their
wood-work cleaned and stained to imitate darker woods or have been
painted. One of the valuable qualities of white oak, is, that it grows
richer in color as it gets older, and no matter how it is finished, so
long as the grain is visible, it mellows and improves with age. This
is a quality that no other of our American woods possess in the same
degree. All the oaks have this quality to a certain extent, but the
white oak (Quercus alba), possesses it more than any other. Mahogany
too, has this quality largely, if true Spanish mahogany is used, but
little of this is in the market; though there are many woods which have
the appearance of mahogany, and are called mahogany, and both buyer and
user are oftentimes deceived, and pay for what they do not get.

We have often been reproached with willfully or ignorantly ignoring
or destroying our own handsome woods, while importing from abroad
at excessive cost, and the payment of heavy duties, foreign woods
which are much inferior to many of our native productions. This folly
prevailed at a time when it was fashionable and even popular to believe
there was no merit in domestic productions of any sort, this state
of things, however is now at an end; and in the neighborhood of all
large towns, and in country places as well, a finish in hard wood is
the rule, and a finish in pine the exception, if the building to be
finished, makes any pretension of being “up to the times.”

With regard to the difference in cost between a finish in the best
clear pine, and the best selected hard wood, there is really but
little, if any, if we take into consideration durability and good
taste. As between pine wood and good well finished hard wood, the
disparity in value and merit is so very little as to completely silence
any comparison. Between poor pine and poor hard wood the preference
should by all means be given to the former; because, poor pine as it
reveals its defects can be puttied and painted in a manner to disguise
them; whereas the defects of poor hard wood are almost incurable. The
rationale of the subject seems to resolve itself into the following
statement.

Modern taste in expensive dwellings calls for the free use of hard
woods. It is immaterial which are used, but highly essential that the
best seasoned woods should be selected; and, further, that they should
be skillfully treated and finished.

The principal recommendation of hard wood is that it admits of a
treatment which renders it impervious to the effects of atmospheric
changes, and, therefore can be made more durable and ultimately less
expensive than pine wood. A hard wood that is well seasoned before
use, that is treated with proper fillers to close up its pores, and
then finished with successive coats of copal varnish, well rubbed in
with pumice-stone, being finally brought to a higher flat finish,
presents the most attractive, serviceable and reliable style of
wood-work that can be introduced into a house. Well finished hard wood
obviates the expense and annoyance of constant renewals, which pine
work calls for in patching, puttying and painting. The most brilliant
gloss of finished hard wood can be restored by a skilled person without
disturbing the furniture or carpets of a house.

Pine work seems peculiarly and incomparably adapted for cheap work.
A good article of common pine, suitable for ordinary work can be
procured, and worked at considerably less expense than would be
involved in using good hard wood. The use of poor hard wood in any work
should not be tolerated or thought of under any circumstances, for
the simple reason that it is certain to create annoyance and expense,
which no house-owner, especially of moderate priced property, should be
subjected to.

I have deemed the foregoing introduction necessary as it will enable
the workman to have some idea of the development of the art of joinery,
and the transition from the use of pine and the softer woods, to that
of the hard woods.

In the following work it is my intention to take each of the woods most
in use; describe them, say what I think they are best adapted for,
and the best way to finish them, as far as my knowledge extends. By
this means the reader will have, under one head, all the book contains
concerning the particular wood he is about to finish.




                             PRELIMINARY.


If the workman who finally finishes wood-work, had the selection of
the materials out of which the work is formed; and wrought the work
himself; the following suggestions would scarcely be required, for he
would see to it that the material was free from shakes, cracks, worm
holes, doze, sap and fractures; and he would so choose his material,
that the full beauty of the grain would show, when the polish coat went
on. He would also see, that the work was _clean_. That is, that no
plane marks were visible, no rough spots, or cross-grains noticeable,
and that all angles were sharp and definite, all mouldings smooth and
not a nail head or screw top to be seen, nor any point that could
suggest a nail head. As a rule, however, the workman who puts on the
last finishing touches never makes the work, though he is _always_
expected to cover and hide all the faults of bad workmanship, bad
selection of timber, and a thousand other objectionable things in
connection with work, over which he has had no control. In order to aid
the finisher as much as possible, I give a few hints herewith, for the
use of the workman whose duty it may be to prepare and put up the work
to be finished. The suggestions given, are equally applicable for hard
and soft woods and I trust they will not be out of place.

First, then see that the material is dry, free from imperfections,
of the full sizes required, and of such variety of grain as may be
suitable for the purpose intended. Next, make all joints close and as
near perfect as possible as on this point rests, in a great measure,
the artistic appearance of the work. Make all angles sharp and clean,
and all mitered mouldings true and with perfect intersections. Never
use glass-paper where a scraper can be applied, and when a large
quantity of mouldings of similar contour and size are to be employed;
it is always better to make a scraper their reverse shape, and use it
in cleaning and preparing the mouldings for the varnisher, than to use
glass-paper for the purpose.

[Illustration: FIG. 1.]

Wherever possible and suitable I would advise the use of glue in
putting up finish, and I may here remark to the workman, that after
a little practice in the use of glue and a little knowledge of its
worth and capabilities, he will prefer it, to nails or screws where
he can apply it; further on I will give a few hints and suggestions
on the proper methods of using glue in house finishing. Of course,
I am well aware that the use of nails and screws is a necessity in
wood-finishing, but where the work is to be left natural color, or
stained and polished, there should not be the slightest suspicion
of a nail or screw head, and to meet this condition the skilled
workman resorts to several expedients to hide the fastenings among
which are the following. These methods, which are similar, are called
“sliver-nailing,” or sometimes, “chip blind-nailing.” In the first
method, shown at Fig. 1, the wood is raised with a firmer chisel and
the screw or nail is then put in place and driven home. At Fig. 2,
the “sliver” or chip, is raised with a gouge. In the first instance a
sharp knife should be employed to draw lengthwise with the grain two
deep cuts the width of the chisel, as this keeps the sides of the chip
from splitting. The chisel should be set at a steep angle at first
till the proper depth is reached, and then made to turn out a cut of
even thickness until there is room to drive in a screw or nail. If too
sharp a curve is given, the “sliver” is likely to break apart in being
straightened out again. In Fig. 2, I show how the “sliver” is raised
by using a gouge. To do this nicely a gouge about three-quarters of an
inch across the face should be used and the curve should be quick. In
this case no knife cut is needed, as the corners of the gouge will cut
as it progresses.

[Illustration: FIG. 2.]

The cut being made and the “sliver” slightly raised as shown in both
cuts, the screw or nail may be driven without disturbing either the
“sliver” or the cut underneath. See that the head of either screw or
nail be sunk beneath surface of recess, so that the “sliver” will fit
back in its place without obstruction. Now take properly prepared glue
and, after warming the “sliver” and recess with a warm cloth, cover the
underside of “sliver” and the wood underneath, seeing that the glue is
not too thick; press down the “sliver” in place, then rub with the face
of a hammer until the glue holds; then leave until dry, when the whole
may be dressed off and finished. Another way is to glue the “sliver”
down and then take a flat piece of pine about an inch thick, and glue
over the “sliver,” rubbing the pine block to and fro until the glue
takes. The block is left on until dry and solid. The pine block may
be split off, and the face of the wood dressed clean and finished. In
hardwood finish for interior housework this latter plan of fastening up
stuff is often resorted to.

When the work has been made secure by any or all the methods described,
the next thing to be considered is the smoothing and final finishing,
and these two processes as here defined, pertain to all sorts of wood,
hard or soft, that is intended to be finished in the natural colors or
stained. In order to obtain a fine and substantial finish the work must
either be smoothed fine with a plane, scraped with a steel scraper, or
rubbed down with the finest glass-paper. For very hard or irregular
grained wood, such as is made into veneers or employed for the finer
kinds of work, the cleaning-off process consists first in planing the
surfaces with a toothed plane, having a serrated edge like a comb, this
tool scratching away the high places and leveling the surface without
pulling or splintering the wood, as a common knife will do unless very
carefully adjusted and worked. After tooth-planing, the surfaces are
scraped with a steel hand scraper until the scratches made by a tooth
plane are removed, and the surface is then finished by rubbing with
glass-paper of different finenesses.

Straight-grained hard woods can be cleaned off by planing with a common
smoothing plane, and then scraping and rubbing them with glass-paper.
Soft wood requires only careful planing and glass-papering, but if
scraping is omitted great care must be taken in planing, or else the
plane marks will show by reflection when the surface is polished,
varnished or painted. I have known of cases where the finishers were
wrongly accused of improper execution of the work because the finish,
after being exposed to the changes of temperature occurring in a year,
became impaired on account of the appearance of fine cracks running
with the grain, differing from those caused by the improper application
of varnish, which always runs across the grain. Among other reasons for
this premature impairment, one is that the fine fibres become affected;
sandpapering the wood lengthwise or with the grain will loosen these,
but will not break them off. The application of the filler will force
them down into the pores, the filler making them adhere perfectly
tight for some time; but the changing of the temperature expands and
contracts the wood, thus causing the fibres to loosen and work out,
making their appearance in fine cracks and impairing the finish.

This fault most frequently occurs in open-grained wood especially when
employed in the common class of cabinet-work which is transferred to
the finishing-room directly upon leaving the machinery where it has
been sandpapered lengthwise by a set of cylinders under heavy pressure,
and should be guarded against with great care. “This sandpapering,”
finishers will generally say, “is a matter for the cabinet-maker or
the carpenter; daub it over and let it go.” It is immaterial to them
how the finish holds out after leaving their hands; but I find it is
well for a finisher to do his duty by at least insisting upon having
the work lightly cross-sandpapered with paper with No. 1. or No. 1½
paper. This process will loosen the fibres at both ends; consequently,
they will fall off, or, if they do not do so, they should be dusted off
previous to filling.

There is one more source of injury which should be guarded against with
great care, and that is finishing over wet timber; nor should steam,
water or dampness in any form be allowed to come in contact with the
smooth dry surface, as it will raise the grain, making redressing by
the joiner a necessity.

In their natural state all woods are more or less porous consisting
of bundles of hard fibres, with interstices filled with a softer
substance. These constitute the grain, and as the hard or soft parts
predominate, the wood is said to be hard, fine, or close-grained,
or soft and open-grained. To fill these softer parts, or pores, and
give to the whole an even, uniform surface, hard, and capable of a
brilliant polish, is the object of the finishers’ art. This hard, firm
surface was formerly gained by the successive application of several
coats of varnish, at least three preliminary coats being required to
fill the pores; the inequalities were then reduced by fine sand or
glass-paper, and several additional coats laid on, the last, after
becoming thoroughly hard being polished if desired. In this operation,
however, a great quantity of varnish is absorbed by the open pores of
the wood, and it is consequently so expensive that it is now seldom
used. Recourse is therefore had to various plans to render the wood
non-absorbent before applying varnishes, and certain compounds called
fillers are largely used for this purpose. These I will endeavor to
describe, and give the methods of application in the following section.


                    WOOD-FILLERS AND WOOD-FILLING.

In woods employed for house and cabinet work there are two distinct
natures, therefore different treatment is required in finishing. First,
there is the coarse or open-grained wood, having its surface perforated
with innumerable pores or cells. In order to obtain a smooth and even
finish, these pores should be filled up to a level with the hard grain,
or, as the grainer would term them, the “lights” of the wood. Next we
have the fine or close-grained wood, which, like the preceding, also
contains these pores, but they are of a very fine character, and simply
sealing them up with a liquid filler will enable one to produce a fine
smooth finish, which we shall consider farther on.

I will now return to the open or wide-grained wood which requires more
attention and care than the closer-grained wood, if same results are
expected. There are many things that will serve the purpose of fillers
and make pretty fair work; among these may be mentioned, china clay,
silver white and corn starch; the best of which is probably the last
named. This is well adapted to the work being equally useful with
light, or when colored with dark wood; one fault with it, is that it
never hardens. China clay—the English is the best—makes an exceedingly
good filler; it is light in color, very fine and dries as hard as
cement.

There are an hundred ways of preparing fillers for use, and nearly as
many different materials for making them; I would recommend however,
that wherever it is possible, that Wheeler’s patent quartz filler be
used; though I am aware, that in many cases, it may not be advisable to
use it, and to meet these rare conditions the following mixtures may be
substituted.

A filler should be so mixed that the greater portion of the vehicle
will penetrate into the wood, leaving the pigment on the surface to
be rubbed into the pores and still retain enough combining property
to form a hard and impenetrable surface. This depends entirely upon
the proportions of the vehicles employed, and, as different pigments
require different quantities of vehicle, I seldom mix filler by actual
measurement unless it be in large amounts. I proceed with the mixing
by filling my pot two-thirds full of the dry pigment, then add boiled
linseed oil, producing the consistency of putty, then dilute with
about one part japan and two parts turpentine. Should it be required
to keep the wood as light as possible, replace the boiled oil with
raw, using a smaller quantity, but a little more japan. For all light
wood the light japan should be preferred, although there are many
who never use anything but the common brown. Naphtha can also be
employed in place of the turpentine, somewhat reducing the expense;
but, as naphtha evaporates much faster, it prevents the operator from
covering an extended surface without running the risk of having it dry
hard. This causes difficulty at “rubbing it in” and wiping off the
surplus, although “wiping off” should not proceed until the filler has
flatted—or, at least, “set.” This to a certain extent the operator can
accelerate or retard by omitting or adding a small quantity of oil,
keeping in view the fact that the smaller the quantity of oil used, the
lighter colored, but the less durable, will be the finish.

Oil is sometimes used as a filler, but its use is not recommended;
applied directly to the wood, its effect is to swell the fibres, or
“raise the grain,” which remains in that condition until the oil
becomes entirely dry or disappears. During this time the fibres are
gradually shrinking, and consequently moving or checking the varnish.
The qualities essential to a good filler are that it shall readily
enter the porous portion of the wood, and shall very soon harden and
render the wood impervious to the varnish, which should lie smoothly
upon the surface, giving brilliancy and effect to the natural beauty
of the wood; and that it shall not raise the grain of the wood; and
that it shall not change the color of the wood. These conditions are
satisfactorily fulfilled by few of the home-made fillers ordinarily
used in shops, and while I give a number of receipts, my readers are
advised that they will obtain better satisfaction, at less cost by
purchasing some of the patent fillers now coming into general use. In
these fillers very little oil is used and a large amount of dryers, so
that the wood becomes perfectly dry and hard in a few hours preventing
any swelling or shrinking of the fibres of the wood after the varnish
is applied. The following fillers should be allowed to dry until quite
hard. A period of about eight hours is usually sufficient, but it is
better to let the work stand for twenty-four hours before touching it
with glass-paper. In applying a filler it should always be borne in
mind that the substance of wood consists of a multitude of small tubes
lying side by side. These tubes or cells are not continuous from top
to bottom of the tree, but are comparatively short and taper out to
points so that they are thickest in the middle. Most of the common
woods have the walls of these tubes so thin that liquid is readily
absorbed by them and carried into the substance for some distance.
Different kinds of wood differ much in the shape and arrangement of
these cells. In filling the pores the first step is taken in providing
an absolutely smooth surface. We trust mainly to mechanical force
in rubbing in, aided by the absorptive powers of the wood. Formerly
successive varnishings and rubbings and scrapings took much time and
when they were done, the final finish had still to be applied, but the
whole process has now been simplified, by using fillers.

The careful workman will not leave “great daubs” of superfluous filler
here and there on the work, but will see that all corners and heads and
quirks of mouldings are well cleaned off before it gets too hard to
remove easily, and should there be any nail holes—which there ought not
to be—he will have them filled with properly colored putty or cement
and nicely smoothed down before he makes any attempt to put on his
finishing coats.

Among the many home-made fillers I have endeavored to select the best.

=Walnut Filler.=—For Medium and Cheap Work.—10 lbs. bolted English
whiting, 3 lbs. dry burnt umber, 4 lbs. Vandyke brown, 3 lbs. calcined
plaster, ½ lb. Venetian red, 1 gal. boiled linseed oil, ½ gal. spirits
turpentine, 1 quart black japan. Mix well and apply with brush; rub
well with excelsior or tow, clean off with rags.

=Walnut Filler.=—For Imitation Wax Finish.—5 lbs. bolted whiting, 1 lb.
calcined plaster, 6 oz. calcined magnesia, 1 oz. dry burnt umber,
1 oz. French yellow, 1 quart raw linseed oil, 1 quart benzine spirits,
½ pint very thin white shellac. Mix well and apply with a brush. Rub
well in and clean off with rags. Before using the above filling give
the work one coat of white shellac. When dry, sandpaper down and
apply the filler.

=Walnut Filler.=—For First-Class Work.—3 lbs. burnt umber, ground in
oil, 1 lb. burnt sienna, ground in oil, 1 quart spirits of turpentine,
1 pint brown japan. Mix well and apply with a brush; sandpaper well;
clean off with tow and rags. This gives a beautiful chocolate color to
the wood.

=Filler for Light Woods.=—5 lbs. bolted English whiting, 3 lbs.
calcined plaster, 1 lb. corn starch, 3 oz. calcined magnesia, ½ gallon
raw linseed oil, 1 quart spirits of turpentine, 1 quart brown japan,
and sufficient French yellow to tinge the white. Mix well and apply
with a brush, rub in with excelsior or tow, and clean off with rags.

=Filler for Cherry.=—5 lbs. bolted English whiting, 2 lbs. calcined
plaster, 1½ oz. dry burnt sienna, 1 oz. Venetian red, 1 quart boiled
linseed oil, 1 pint spirits of turpentine, 1 pint brown japan. Mix
well, rub in with excelsior or tow and clean off with rags.

=Filler for Oak.=—5 lbs. bolted English whiting, 2 lbs. calcined
plaster, 1 oz. dry burnt sienna, ½ oz. dry French yellow, 1 quart raw
linseed oil, 1 pint benzine spirits, ½ pint white shellac. Mix well,
apply with brush, rub in with excelsior or tow, and clean off with rags.

=Filler for Rosewood.=—6 lbs. bolted English whiting, 2 lbs. calcined
plaster, 1 lb. rose pink, 2 oz. Venetian red, ½ lb. Vandyke brown,
½ lb. brandon red, 1 gallon boiled linseed oil, ½ gallon spirits of
turpentine, 1 quart black japan. Mix well, apply with brush, rub in
with excelsior or tow, and clean off with rags.

=Another.=—Stir boiled oil and corn starch into a very thick paste; add
a little japan, and reduce with turpentine, but add no color for light
ash. For dark ash and chestnut use a little raw sienna; for walnut,
burnt umber, add a small quantity of Venetian red; for bay wood, burnt
sienna. In no case use more color than is required to overcome the
white appearance of the starch, unless it is wished to stain the wood.
The filler is worked with brush and rags in the usual manner. Let it
dry forty-eight hours, or until it is in condition to rub down with
No. 0 sandpaper without much gumming up, and if an extra fine finish is
desired, fill again with the same materials, using less oil, but more
of japan and turpentine.

=Another.=—Take three papers corn starch, one quart boiled linseed
oil, two quarts turpentine, one-quarter pint japan; cut in half the
turpentine before mixing; it will not cut perfectly otherwise. For dark
woods add burnt umber to color. When nearly dry rub off with cloths.
The above mixture must be used fresh, as it is of no value after it is
four or five days old. The cloths used in rubbing as above mentioned
should be destroyed immediately after use, as spontaneous combustion is
likely to ensue from the ingredients employed.

=Preparation of Wood for Staining.=—As a filler of wood to be stained,
apply French plaster of Paris, mixed as a creamy paste with water,
and after rubbing in, clean any surplus off; or use whiting finely
powdered, or white lead slacked with painters’ drying oil, and used
as a filler. Another process is that of oiling then rubbing crosswise
to the grain with a sponge dipped in thin polish composed of melted
beeswax, resin, and shellac, and smoothing the surface, when dry, with
pumice-stone, or fine glass-paper. Embody the work a second time with
thicker polish, or a mixture of polish and varnish. The rubbers will
work easily with half the quantity of oil which is ordinarily used.
This second body should be rubbed very smooth with moist putty.

In the use of any filler, care must be taken in the selection of
color, for the employment of a light colored filler on dark wood or
_vice versa_ would result in gross defacement, as the lighter color
would show at the pores of the wood in the one case, and the darker in
the other. Therefore, to avoid this the filler should be as near as
possible the color of the wood to be filled.

As a general thing, paint manufacturers who do not make fillers a
specialty use opaque colors to stain their filler, as it requires a
less quantity. This will do sometimes, but not always. But those which
give to the wood a clear and bright appearance, and therefore produce
the best results, are stained with transparent colors; those chiefly
employed are burnt umber and sienna, Venetian red, Vandyke brown and
charcoal black, the charcoal being ground fine in oil, while the others
can be used dry and according to the following recipes with good
results:

In mixing any or all dark fillers the same pigments used for the light
(previously described) should be kept for a basis, with sufficient
coloring to stain it to the desired depth of shade.

Filler for Walnut is very often stained with burnt umber; this
is reddish in hue and gives to the wood a pleasing effect. Others
use Venetian red darkened somewhat with lamp black; this is rather
opaque, and tends to deaden the color of the wood. There is another
article—namely, Vandyke brown—which gives fair results. In order to
obtain a rich effect, the filler should be made considerably darker
than the wood when new.

Fillers for mahogany, cherry, California redwood, and other woods of
similar shade, should be stained with burnt sienna, as they should
be finished very clear. It is well to know that charcoal black, and
Venetian red will give the desired shade for any dark-colored wood in
common use or for all colors in antique, but it does not show up quite
as clear as some other combinations.

For rosewood, charcoal as a stain will suffice, and for vanilla or
Brazil-wood the use of rose-pink will give good results.

The methods of mixing these fillers are quite numerous. It is
impossible to give the proportions definitely, owing to the strength of
the colors or the transparency of the chief ingredient, but one cannot
go astray by following the preceding rules.

Mix the light pigment to a paste with boiled oil, which must be well
stirred up. Then in another pot mix a quantity of the colored pigment
with turpentine or naphtha; and when thoroughly “cut,” or dissolved,
add sufficient of it to the light to give the shade required. After
this is obtained, dilute with turpentine or naphtha and japan, as
directed in mixing light filler. This applies to all colors except
black, which is seldom obtained finely ground unless in oil, and
properly thinned down.

There are many finishers and firms who exclusively use manufactured
fillers, and in consequence meet with many difficulties as to the shade
they require, as different manufacturers use different colors to stain
their filler. But this difficulty can be overcome by a few experiments
with the above-named stains.

As the foregoing gives pretty nearly all the fillers in general use
with the exception of some of the manufactured mineral preparations
of which I will have more to say further on, I will now proceed to
describe the method of application, and for the greater portion of
this description, and other matters in this work, I am indebted to Mr.
R. A. A. Bahre’s papers on the subject contributed to _House-Painting
and Decorating_, a monthly magazine published in the city of New York.

The secret of this is to do the work well, quickly and economically.
These points are dealt with in the following:

Have your filler mixed to the consistency of ordinary lead paint;
then apply to the prepared surface of the wood with a pound brush,
or, what is still better, a 3-0 or 4-0 oval chisel varnish brush. In
applying the filler it is not necessary to cover all the small beads
and carvings; and if the filler be light better avoid coating them at
all, and if dark or antique stain them with a little of the filler,
much reduced with spirits of turpentine. For this purpose have at hand
a small pot with a small fitch or sash tool.

By not filling the beads and carvings, the varnish is not so liable to
run down in them, although sufficient remains to produce a finish equal
to the balance of the surface.

After enough surface has been covered with the filler, so that what
has been first applied begins to flatten, the process of wiping should
immediately begin, using for that purpose either a rag or a handful
of waste or Excelsior. If the wood is very open-grained, waste is
preferable. With a piece of this that has previously been used and is
pretty well supplied with filler, rub crosswise of the grain, rather
rubbing it into the grain than wiping it off. After the whole surface
has been gone over in this way, take a clean piece of waste or rag
(never use Excelsior for wiping clean) and wipe the surface perfectly
clean and free from filler, using a wooden pick the point of which
has been covered with a rag or waste to clean out the corners, beads,
etc. It is well to give these picks some attention, as a person once
accustomed to certain tools can accomplish more and better work than
with tools that feel strange in his hands; therefore, each finisher
should furnish his own pick. As to their construction, these are best
made from second-growth hickory, which can be procured at any carriage
repair shop, such as old spokes, broken felloes, etc. They are made
eight inches in length, half inch oval at one end and tapering down to
the point at the other. Sharpen the oval end like a cold chisel, then
smooth with sandpaper, which should also be used to sharpen the tool
when the same becomes worn dull.

This picking out of the filler from beads, etc., can be accelerated by
the use of a picking brush manufactured especially for that purpose,
but it is not advisable to use this on very coarsely grained wood, as
it scrubs the filler out of the pores.

There are several fillers used which do not require this picking and
scrubbing. One is a liquid filler used chiefly for carriage finishing;
but it can be used successfully on butternut, bird’s-eye maple, curly
maple, satinwood, hickory, etc. It is made from gum and oil. Another
is a filler made from finely-ground pumice stone, mixed as other
fillers. It is applied with a brush, and must be left to dry at least
twenty-four hours; it is then sandpapered smooth, when an oil varnish
is applied, rendering it completely transparent. This last can be used
only upon light wood.

The workman, as a matter of course, will understand that different
woods, require slightly different treatment, and the finer-grained
woods, among which are the pines, maples, cedars and poplars, of
different varieties, and birch, cherry, beech, sycamore, white box,
satinwood, etc., require no filling, not that a filling would prove
detrimental to the finish—except upon stained work or white holly,
which in order to maintain a clear color should never be filled—but,
from the condition of all fine wood, it is superfluous, and only causes
unnecessary labor and expense. At this point it will be convenient to
pause to consider the subject of mineral or prepared wood-fillers.

I think I have prepared the mind of the reader to receive the fact,
that of all the several manufactured preparations in the market I think
that Wheeler’s patent filler made by the Bridgeport Wood-Finishing
Company, is decidedly the best and the most economical to use, for
many reasons, the chief one being its certainty of action. A great deal
of time and money have been wasted in attempting to make good fillers,
to no purpose, and a great variety, as I have shown—of substances as
chalk, plaster of Paris, corn starch, etc., etc., have been mixed with
various vehicles and rubbed into the wood with but indifferent success.
Most of these compounds labor under the disadvantages of forming
chemical compounds with the oil and consequently they shrink very much
on drying, so that though the surface may appear smooth when they are
first put on, waves and hollows make their appearance as they dry.
These waves having round edges, are difficult to fill, the second coat
building up as much or more upon the level spaces as in the hollows.
It sometimes seems almost impossible with these fillers in the latter
coats to make the hollows hold any substance, the filler clinging
chiefly to the surfaces.

I have thought it necessary to show how the ordinary or home-made
fillers act, and fail in order to show by contrast how much easier it
is to work efficiently with the mineral fillers. The mineral quartz,
when mixed with oil, probably shrinks less in drying than any other
similar known mixture. If a surface of wood be covered with this and
then rubbed, the sharp and angular particles of the silica imbed
themselves in the pores of the wood, closing them up, while the oil
cements them fast. This is the foundation of Wheeler’s wood-filler,
and which we recommend for use by all wood finishers. When the pores
have been filled with the silica, and are cemented fast by the proper
mixture of gums and oils, the difficult part of the work is done.

After a good surface has been made upon the article it is ready for
the filler, which is to be selected according to the color desired.
In putting the filler on it is thinned with turpentine until about
like flowing varnish, and is applied with a brush. Only so much of the
surface is covered as can be cleaned off before it hardens. When it has
set so that the gloss has left the surface, it is at once rubbed off
with “excelsior” or shavings, going across the grain with the strokes.
If the filler dries too fast or too light a little raw linseed oil may
be used in it.

For a nicer job the filler is rubbed in with a rubber, made by gluing
a piece of sole or belt leather on the face of a block of wood and
trimming the edges flush with the block. The rubbing is done after the
filler has set and before it is cleaned off. If it dries off too light,
a little white japan may be added on nice work. The light colored
filler should be used on all work where light and dark woods are used
together. The filling, it must be understood, is done by the silica,
which will often be found in the shape of a sediment in the bottom of
the mixture. Eight hours is generally considered a sufficient time for
the filler to dry.

When the work with the filler is done the surface of the wood ought
to be like so much ground glass. Such portions of the wood as show a
solid grain need very little filler. On Georgia pine, after the filler
is dry, a little rubbing in the direction of the grain with very fine
sandpaper is an advantage. If the filler has been properly used the
desired results will be obtained with little labor.

The wood is now in a condition to receive the final coatings. Whether
the work is to be polished or “dead finished,” do not employ shellac
or “French polish.” If a “dead” surface is wanted, wax finish is
easily put on, and as easily rubbed to a good surface. F. W. Devoe &
Co. prepare a wax finish, which is a convenient preparation of wax
and gums, and can be applied with a brush and then rubbed down with a
woolen cloth, tied up to make a hard rubber, until a fine lusterless
surface is obtained. With mahogany and similar woods this greatly
improves the color of the wood. When this has dried, which will be in
the course of a few hours, the work is ready for use. The wax finish,
like many of the furniture creams, has the advantage that it can be put
on in a few minutes at any time to brighten up work when it has become
dull. A piece of work prepared in this way, after four operations,
will present as fine an appearance as the best cabinet work found in
the furniture stores.

The materials which have been described, it will be noticed, are both
manufactured articles. The prepared filler is indispensable; the
wax finish can be made by the mixing together, by the aid of heat,
white wax and spirits of turpentine until they are of the consistency
of thick paste. Another wax finish is made of beeswax, spirits of
turpentine and linseed oil in equal parts. The addition of two drams of
Alkanet root to every twenty ounces of turpentine darkens and enriches
the color. The root is to be put into a little bag and allowed to stand
in the turpentine until it is sufficiently colored.

An altogether more durable surface can be made by a little change in
the treatment. When the wood is filled instead of applying the wax,
take some hard oil finish, a preparation manufactured by Messrs. Berry
Bros., of Detroit, Mich., and put it on with a brush precisely like
varnish. The coat should not be too heavy, especially on vertical
surfaces, and the brush used ought to be a good one. This material
gives a most brilliant polish. By rubbing it down with a woolen cloth
and pumice-stone powder it can also be made dull. Hard oil finish does
not spot with hot or cold water, is slightly elastic and is not injured
by pretty severe soaking in water. It gets hard in twelve hours or less
in warm weather and over night in winter time. It is one of the best
surfaces which can be used, and has the advantage of working very well
in the hands of one who is not an expert in the art of finishing wood
or handling varnish. It will make a very fair surface applied direct to
the unfilled wood, in which case it is a good substitute for shellac.

Wax finish has the advantage that scratches can be easily repaired
without sending to the cabinet-maker or the painter. Here a word of
advice to the carpenter who does any work of this character may save
him some trouble and make way for the further use of the same kind of
finish. When the wood-work of a house is treated in this way, be sure
and leave a little bottle of the wax polish with the housekeeper, with
directions as to the method of using it. In sending out a “what-not,”
book-case, or any other article of similar kind, put up a little bottle
of the polish and show the owner, or, preferably the lady of the house,
how to repair any little scratch and make the work look “as good as
new.” The fresh appearance of the work will be a good advertisement,
while it will prevent complaints and dissatisfaction that often follow
the use of work which, when injured, cannot be restored.

It may be said that either of the methods of finishing involves a great
deal of labor. This is true; but the amount is not much greater than
is needed for three coats of paint, and the cost of the paint would
probably be more than the cost of the finish. The labor in one case
can be of a cheap character, and in the other an experienced painter
must be employed. The profit upon the “dead finish” can go into the
pocket of the carpenter, while that of the painting must in any event
be divided between the carpenter and painter, or belong to the latter
altogether who is, after all the proper person to do the work.

I have now said about all that is necessary in the matter of “fillers”
and “filling,” but, as sometimes happens, the old system of “sizing,”
has to be resorted to for certain kinds of work, I give herewith a
formula for its construction and use:

Size of different kinds is sometimes applied to the surface of wood
to prevent absorption of the varnish. The kind of material used for
the size is not important, the object being only to prevent absorption
by a very thin coat of some substance not soluble in the varnish.
For dark-colored wood, thin size, made by reducing ordinary glue
with water, is generally used; but for lighter-colored surfaces a
white size is used, which is prepared by boiling white kid or other
leather or parchment-cuttings, in water for a few hours, or until it
forms a thin jelly like substance, which is reduced with water to a
thin consistency, and used in a tepid state. Sometimes solutions of
isinglass or tragacanth are employed in like manner. Unlike the best
fillers, sizes of any kind do not improve the finish, and are sometimes
a positive detriment to it. They are used solely as an economy to
reduce the quantity of the varnish needed; and their use is not
recommended for the best work.


            STAINING, FINISHING, VARNISHING AND POLISHING.

The following will apply to nearly all stained work with the exception
that the coloring materials must be chosen to suit the results desired;
directions for mixing and preparing will be found under the head of
woods.

Staining, or dyeing, though not very modern, has grown in popularity of
late. This is due not so much to the natural imitation of valuable wood
as to the beautiful colors in which it may be produced—for example, the
deep red, generally represented as mahogany, which forms a handsome
and lively contrast with nearly any color or style of finishing. In
house interiors, however, it has not been so extensively used as it
has on furniture, owing to the preference for the light wood for house
finishing. But, despite its handsome color, at the present time it is
obliged to yield to the more artistic and substantial old oak, which,
it is generally anticipated, will continue in vogue a greater length of
time than did the stained work. An objection to stained work is that
after it has been in service a comparatively short time the finish
and stain wear off from those portions most exposed to severe usage.
The appearance is thereby destroyed, and it cannot be restored by
refinishing. Another objection to stains is that they fade, a fault to
which all these bright colors are subject.

Whether this style of work is _la mode_ or not, it will always remain
in greater or less demand. A few details of staining will, therefore,
be due. Now, if the object of staining is to imitate natural wood,
it would be found desirable to procure specimens of the woods to be
imitated. Excellent and most convenient specimens can be obtained at
any scroll-saw supply house at a trifling expense. Commence by oiling
and varnishing the specimen to bring out the color, or apply a darkener
if an antique color is required. As a darkener for cherry, apply with
a brush aqua-ammonia diluted with water according to the depth of color
required. This is probably the best mixture for all red woods, as it
develops the colors to their utmost intensity. Lime-water and lye
(potash solution) are also frequently used, although lye should be used
cautiously; for if applied too strong, it destroys the red color after
developing it. Iron fillings or shavings boiled in vinegar produce a
darkener for oak, and are frequently employed in producing the “darks”
or shades in sixteenth century finish.

After darkening with a water solution the specimens should not be
oiled, but after having thoroughly dried should receive a coat of
shellac, and, when dry, a coat of varnish. Having the colors well
brought out, they will be found of great utility in preparing a stain
of accurate shade. Now, the secret in preparing a good stain is that it
should be perfectly transparent, which may be produced in either oil or
water colors. The latter, however, with a few exceptions, will be found
to give the best results, for several reasons. In the first place, it
penetrates deeper into the wood, thus producing a more substantial
finish. Next, the wood employed is generally hard and fine, and by an
application of water stain the grain is raised, whereby the “lights”
or veins are more prominently brought out, imparting to the finish
a more vivid appearance, which cannot be so effectually produced in
oil colors. Still another advantage in water stain is the saving of
time in its application; for when properly prepared, it can be used
for dipping, which is the method practised in our cabinet shops for
staining much furniture. It can also be applied with a brush, although
good results by this method are accomplished only when skill and
practice are exercised. In applying it a four or-five-inch flat bristle
brush would be found the right size, enabling the operator to cover
over any one part or section before the stain penetrates the wood. It
will be found less difficult to apply oil stain uniformly with a brush,
and it is, therefore, generally employed in staining softwood and
especially the different species of pine, all of which absorb water
stain in spots, giving it a daubed appearance.

The first thing to be considered is the receptacle or vessel in which
the water or acid stains are to be prepared. This should be formed
of a material which is unaffected by the corrosive action of acid.
Porcelain-lined iron or glazed earthenware in the way of kettles or
common stew crockery are commonly used. As the latter are often cracked
by the heat required in boiling, it is safer and cheaper in the end to
use porcelain-lined kettles.

I need not say that care and cleanliness are two very necessary
qualities in the preparation and application of stains, for a good
workman is always a careful and a clean workman.

In finishing “rubbing” may be considered one of the most essential
qualities, since it gives to the varnish when laid upon the wood a
degree of smoothness not otherwise attainable; for by the use of
the brush alone minute furrows and ridges are left upon the plastic
surface of the varnish, and although good varnish possesses in itself
a high gloss, the gloss is not nearly so agreeable to the eye as the
brilliant polish of which rubbing is the preliminary. The reduction of
these ridges and furrows is accomplished by means of finely-powdered
pumice-stone moistened with raw linseed oil, applied with a piece of
haircloth or other coarse and fibrous material. For rubbing large flat
surfaces the haircloth is sometimes folded over a block of convenient
size, but this is not practicable for articles of small size or
irregular shape. In rubbing, considerable force must be used, but
the stroke must be steady, and as long as possible, and great care
should be taken to rub the surface uniformly, as in case it is rubbed
unevenly the varnish is liable to be worn away quite to the wood in
some places, and the perfect smoothness that is the beauty of a good
finish will thus be impossible. The edges especially are liable to be
rubbed bare, and should be carefully treated. The crevices and hollows
of carvings are rubbed by means of hard-pointed sticks of various
convenient sizes. The rubbing should be continued until the entire
surface appears perfectly smooth and free from marks of any kind. The
surplus pumice-stone and oil should all be carefully removed from the
surface by means of rags, and the work may then be cleaned up with a
little sweet oil well rubbed in, and retouched with a cloth slightly
dampened in alcohol, which serves to remove any remaining oil from the
surface. If the article has veneered panels they are now ready for the
final processes of “polishing,” or “flowing,” processes, whatever the
kind of “finishing,” the workman should make it a point where possible,
to have a suitable temperature. No good finishing can be done under
60°, and it is hard to get the temperature too high for this work. The
wood should be warm and perfectly dry, and visitors, flies, dirt, dust
and dampness should rigorously be excluded from the room while the work
is in progress.

The word “shellacking” has become of late very common with finishers
and is often applied to first coating or “sizing,” whether shellac
be used or not. This, doubtless, arises from the fact of the general
employment of shellac for first coating and up to the present time has
proved the most suitable medium discovered for the purpose. 1 again
quote from R. A. Bahre’s papers on this subject.

Before proceeding with the application of shellac, it will be necessary
to investigate the condition of the surface of the wood, taking care
that no successive application is made before the preceding one is
perfectly dry.

The dry condition of water-stained work may easily be determined by
the uniformly dead appearance it presents, especially in the corners
and angles. A surface treated with oil stain, when dry, will impart no
color to the finger if brought in contact, and is effected in twelve or
fifteen hours according to the amount of japan used.

The condition of a filled surface cannot be so readily observed, for in
wiping off the filler from the surface, the moisture is likewise wiped
off, and the surface is dry to the touch. But let us examine the pores,
which have become small receptacles filled to the brim with a fatty
substance. We find that the bulk of the substance in these pores does
not dry so fast as were it spread out in a thin layer upon an extended
surface. When regard is not paid to this condition and the surface is
prematurely coated, it will be but a matter of a short time before the
effects will become manifest by the cracking of the varnish, caused by
the varnish becoming dry before the filler. We shall have something
more to say on this subject later.

The safest way to ascertain whether a filler has become perfectly dry
is to drop, while filling, a few drops upon a board and let them remain
until they become hard enough to resist the pressure of the finger
nail. The length of time required will depend upon the amount of oil
contained in the filler.

Upon acquiring this degree of hardness the filler in the work may be
considered dry, and ready to receive the first coating. This coating,
which should be employed on all first-class work, is an alcoholic
solution of gum shellac.

Among the advantages of this solution are, first, that it dries very
rapidly, thus preventing it penetrating and sinking into the pores.
Besides levelling the surface, it forms a close impenetrable body for
receiving the varnish. By reason of this property it is also used
for sealing up the pores of fine grained wood by applying two coats.
On account of its best solvent (alcohol), it is indispensable for
developing, certain stains, especially the aniline and other water
stains which do not contain lye or glue. Alcohol does not affect the
stains nor the glue; for this reason an alkali stain should first
receive a light coat of oil, while the glue stains require a strong
glue size for their development.

The second advantage of shellac solution is its exceedingly hard drying
qualities; as it dries in five or six hours sufficiently hard to
sandpaper, and in eight or ten hours becomes so hard that the finger
nail can make no impression upon it, the surface is then ready for the
second coat. In addition to this, its quality of hardness makes it
indispensable for the first coating of all resinous woods, especially
the pines, of which it not only seals up the pores but prevents the
exudation of the resin while it sandpapers as fine as satin.

In preparing shellac for general use, dissolve in a gallon of alcohol
(ethylic alcohol, spirits of wine) four pounds of the orange or five
pounds of the white shellac, using the white upon light wood if a clean
or clear job is required, and the orange if the color is immaterial
or is required to be darkened, as the cost of the orange gum is about
forty per. cent. less. The clearness of the orange gum depends much
upon its freshness, and it is therefore undesirable to prepare it until
it is wanted for use, when the dissolving of the gum can be accelerated
by warming and continually agitating the mixture. Wood spirit (methylic
alcohol) also dissolves this gum and is frequently substituted for pure
alcohol, its cost being about one-third; but on account of disagreeable
odor and deleterious effect it is rejected for first-class work.

The application of shellac is to an experienced finisher the most
agreeable and least difficult part of finishing; but to a beginner it
is often most aggravating and discouraging, it being very difficult
to prevent lapping or doubling up. Especially is this the case when
the lac is darker than the wood, as, for instance, in shellacking pine
shutters with orange shellac, when the attempt of the beginner usually
results in a total botch. An experienced hand will produce a clear
and even effect by proceeding in the following manner: Having in view
the fact that the wood is very soft, he will dilute his lac somewhat
with the spirits, to make it work free. Then, with a double-thick
flat-chiselled bristle brush about two inches wide he will apply a very
free coat to the closed slats, on the bar side, including the small
ogee edge of the frame, taking care to daub none on the flat surface.
Then, quickly turning to the other side and opening the slats, he will
finish and lay off the sides, and, again closing the slats, proceed by
coating them upon the plain (non-bar) sides, including the other edge
of the frame. He will then return to the bar side, open, lay off and
finish; then, running the brush up and down the bar, complete that
portion of the work. It may be laid down as a rule that one section
should be completed before another is started. When one portion is
coated, proceed with the frame by coating the outside edges and then
the centre rail, cutting the joints clean. Then begin at one end of
the style and follow around until the starting-point is reached, being
always careful to complete as you go on.

It is sometimes required to finish shutters in a hanging condition,
but, on account of the speed required in applying the shellac, there is
much danger of spattering the walls or windows. If, therefore, they are
hung with loose joint butts, it will be found economical to remove them
and finish them in a separate room.

We have thus far referred to the shellacking of pine shutters with
orange shellac. If one has acquired proficiency in this point, all
the remainder will come very easy to him, especially when using white
shellac (transparent), which does not show the laps after varnishing.
The whole secret of shellacking may be condensed in adherence to the
following simple rules: First, to keep a wet edge to work to; second,
always to work to a joint before stopping; and third, never to repeat
with the brush after becoming partly set, thereby causing it to “double
up.”

There are several substitutes for shellac, but the operator should
remember they are only “substitutes,” and cannot compare with the “real
thing” and only the man who takes his work at starvation prices, will
use the “subs,” unless such be specified.

Oil shellac, which is used to a great extent, is generally supposed to
be gum shellac dissolved in a volatile oil, and in quality virtually
equal to alcohol shellac. This supposition is wrong however, for the
gums employed are of an inferior sort, being chiefly taken from our
pines and dissolved in turpentine or naphtha, and having a little
linseed oil and chemical dryer thrown in. When dry it is very brittle,
easily spoils and will not resist the action of water on the grain, and
is utterly useless as a substantial finish. This so-called shellac, is
applied in the same manner as varnish.

Glue size proves most effectual in holding out varnish, and while the
work is new, it is not easily marred. In the course of two or three
years, however, the glue decays, when the slightest bruise causes the
varnish, size and all to give. For developing water-stains containing
alkali it is quite effective.

“Hard oil finish” so-called, is simply an application of a quick-drying
brittle varnish, that will polish with rubbing; for inside work it
contains very little “oil” while that prepared for outside purposes,
contains more “oil,” is more expensive, dries slower and is more
durable.

It matters but little whether we employ shellac or a substitute, or
even varnish for first coating. It should be allowed to dry and then
receive a rubbing to take off all the grit or roughness which may
have been caused by a little filler remaining on the surface or dust
settled upon it before dry. Whatever it may be, it should be smoothed
before applying a coat of varnish. For this purpose No. 0 sandpaper
will be found the best adapted, but, as the ordinary sandpaper is very
heavy, and therefore stiff, we are liable to cut through the edge in
using it. Neither does it conform easily to mouldings and corners. It
is therefore advisable to employ the thin paper especially prepared
for the purpose; but if it cannot be obtained, the heavy should be
split—that is, by detaching one or two layers of the back paper. This
can be accomplished in the following manner: Hold one corner of the
sheet between the thumb and forefinger; rub that corner briskly with
a moistened finger of the other hand, and the layers will then become
detached and can easily be separated by running the finger down the
edge between the two layers. Then, holding the paper down upon a flat
surface, the layers can be drawn asunder across the whole width of
the sheet. By tearing the sheet once lengthwise and twice crosswise,
we have pieces of a convenient size for use. As new paper scratches
more or less, it will be advisable to rub the grit off upon another
piece; then by moistening the back we are able conveniently to get into
the corners without scouring the edges through. Should the sandpaper
still scratch (which it frequently does when inferior stock is used
for coating), haircloth will do instead, using the hair side on the
surface. This can be obtained at any furniture repair shop.

A very important part of hardwood finishing is the varnishing. Simple
as it looks, it is extremely difficult to properly lay on a coat of
varnish, and experienced varnishers will tell us that this is so.
Scarcely two varnishers work alike, and it takes time and patient
experience with any particular varnish to learn its peculiarities. We
cannot teach how the varnishing should be done, but we can give a few
general directions that may prove helpful. In the first place, do not
be afraid of your varnish; do not get excited if it threatens to give
trouble. I have seen a carriage-painter tremble so when applying a
strange varnish that he appeared as though in an ague-fit, and it is
needless to say that it was a bad job. Apply the varnish quickly and
freely, and do not work it much; the less varnish is worked after being
applied, the higher will be the lustre. Remember this, for it is true
and very important to know. Flow it on freely with a flat brush of
suitable width, and use a badger or fitch hair brush; a fine elastic or
half-elastic chiselled bristle brush is very good. I mention the badger
and the fitch more because they will outwear any bristle varnish brush
and of course are cheaper.

A pound or any other bristle brush will answer for varnishing grained
or painted work, on which the varnish is generally scrubbed, but
in varnishing natural wood it should be laid on so as to level the
surface, for which purpose fine-haired brushes are necessary.

Having the surface of the wood filled and shellacked, we have a
ground-work suitable for any class of work from piano polish to
cheap one-coat work. In selecting the varnish for the latter—which
is generally left in the gloss—use a “finishing” varnish; that is,
a varnish retaining a bright gloss when dry. However, the varnishes
with the brightest gloss are generally not very durable. When
successive coats are to be applied either in oil—finishing—_i. e._,
oil rubbing—or polishing, a varnish is required that dries hard, but
not brittle, the latter especially being characteristic of cheap gum
varnish, such as colophony—common pitch or rosin—poor copal, etc. If
the varnish contains much oil, it will render it elastic, making it
difficult to rub; and therefore a good rubbing varnish should be made
either of amber or of copal, the former being especially adapted to
the manufacture of polishing varnish, as the gum is susceptible of a
very fine polish. Varnishes to suit almost any purpose are generally
obtainable at the dealers. We never can expect good results if we put
a hard varnish over an elastic one or apply a coat before the previous
one is dry. These are the main causes for varnishing cracking. The same
trouble also arises when varnish is applied too heavily, so that the
coat forms an enamel on the surface, remaining soft underneath, and
then drying very slowly. While drying, the surface enamel contracts,
consequently drawing the cracks open quite wide.

It is impossible to lay down rules which by simply being read would
make a practical varnisher of a person, as varnishing requires much
judgment and practice, but a few “tips” may not go amiss; at any rate,
they assist in completing the subject.

We will now enter a room that has been sandpapered as described
previously, having a temperature of about seventy degrees. We sprinkle
with water, not flooding the floor, as a very damp atmosphere would
prove injurious to the gloss of the varnish, then with a painter’s
duster carefully dust off all the work. This generally ends the
preparation, but in order to remove all the dust it requires wiping
off with a damp chamois skin; and when all is clean and dry, we are
ready for the varnish. For a bucket or pot use one of the clean tin
pails known as “two-quart-lunch pails.” Then, to prevent the varnish
from running down the outside by scraping the brush over the edge,
a bar should be soldered across the pail about ½ inch from the top
and a little on one side from the centre. Manufacturers claim that
varnish should be used just as it is sold, and we find that nearly all
good quality of varnishes work freely without diluting, but how to
obtain good results with some of their cheap stuff without diluting
remains a mystery to finishers. If, therefore, the varnish is of a
poor, thick quality, add turpentine until it spreads freely with your
“fitch brush,” which, if the work is very complicated, should be two
inches in width; and if the work be plain, a three-inch could be used
to advantage. Varnish should be applied freely—or, rather, flowed
on, and not rubbed out, or “skinned” on, as finishers term it. In
applying the varnish, first run freely over a panel, then run over
it crosswise. If there are projections rising with an angle, or any
grooves or depressions, as in mouldings, they will retain more varnish
than the flat surface, and to prevent running down in them it requires
drawing out. This is done by stabbing the brush into the angles and
at the same time drawing it out toward the flat surface; and when
this is done, the whole length of the angle, we finish by laying off
up and down. This should complete this portion of the work without
being obliged to touch it again, and thus proceeding until a section
of panels have been finished, when the frame should be gone over. In
coating the panels the surface of the frame is very often daubed—in
fact this is nearly inevitable—and to coat over this would form fat
edges; so we shall again make it fluid by mixing it with the fresh
varnish, and this is done by “pounding” it up well—or, as a painter
would call it, “stabbing” it—when it can be evenly laid off. The
amount a surface will hold without running can be ascertained only by
experience and judgment; although much depends upon the way it is laid
off, as a greater quantity can be applied if laid off up and down than
horizontally, as the brushmarks give occasion for the varnish to “sag.”
But if such should take place after the varnish is partly set, it could
be stopped by stabbing with the brush rubbed out dry, although this
will leave the surface pitted, but, at any rate, much easier to rub out
than a run. The brushes, when not in use, should be kept in varnish
or washed out clean, which can be done by rubbing them out well with
kerosene and then washing them with soap and water until perfectly
clean.

Should it be desired after applying one coat of varnish, to proceed
with the oil finish, that is “oil rubbing or polishing,” we should
first take into consideration the condition of our surface. Providing
that one coat has filled the little depressions of the grain to a
perfect level, we are prepared to proceed with the rubbing; but
this levelling is seldom effected with one coat, requiring, as a
rule, at least two coats for fine wood and three or four coats for
coarse-grained woods. The main object, however, is to form a coating
sufficiently heavy to prevent rubbing it entirely off from the
elevations in getting it down to that in the depressions.

As to the best method of rubbing and polishing as much or more
diversity of opinion exists than in any other branch of the trade. This
is probably due to the scheming and experimenting of the so-called
“rushers,” who get nervous at seeing a man take sufficient time
to rub down a surface, and thus devise some new plan for hustling
out the work, and generally, when the gloss is removed, the job is
completed regardless of appearance. But nevertheless in all of these
snide finishes there is generally a point or two of importance for
us. We have for instance, a dead finish produced by adding wax to
varnish. This is made by scraping the wax fine, putting it into a
dish and covering it with a good turpentine japan placed over a fire
to dissolve, but with a moderate heat. When dissolved, add twice its
amount of varnish and apply with a fitch flowing brush. Although
this does not produce a rubbed finish, it produces quite a clever
imitation, and we can use it to advantage on the slats of shutters and
on elaborately carved capitals, etc. It is not infrequently employed in
floor finishing.

There is a method practised which removes the gloss from the varnish
by rubbing with a mixture of oil and pumice-stone applied with a
furniture scrub brush, or, for a large flat surface, a commercial
stencil brush—No. 12 or 14 is frequently used—dipping the brush into
the mixture and scrubbing it on to the surface; three or four scrubs
are generally sufficient, depending particularly upon the cleaning off
with wadding completely to remove the gloss. Unless the varnish has
been very cleanly applied and is perfectly level, it does not amount to
much, for it does not smooth the surface.

Others, again, first sandpaper the surface with fine sandpaper, then
rub it a trifle with oil and pumice, using a piece of burlap or old
felt boot for a rubber. The only way yet discovered by which to level
the surface is to rub it down with felt. For this operation we provide
ourselves with a set of rubbers which may be made as follows: First
take a piece of white Spanish felt one inch thick and about 3x5 in
size; split it in two, and keep one half for the large plain surfaces.
Then again split the other half, obtaining two thin pieces, reserving
one for mouldings, etc., to which it will easily conform. We now want
some tools to get into small corners so we whittle sticks about six or
eight inches long and in shape of a triangle, half round and oblong;
then, cutting the ends square, glue a piece of thin felt upon it,
allowing the glue to dry thoroughly before putting in oil. For getting
around in the bottom of carvings, we whittle a stick of basswood bark,
and, moistening it, stub the end to a pulp. A scrub brush will also
be necessary to remove the gloss from the beads and around the edges
of the panels, etc. The oil generally used for rubbing is golden oil,
known as machine oil, although crude petroleum, raw linseed and cotton
seed oils are often used, but none of the latter cut so rapidly or
clean off so well as the golden.

Pumice-stone No. 0 is generally used, although some prefer No. 00 or
000, but these are quite fine, and therefore do not cut very fast. In
applying the oil and pumice, some prefer dipping the rubber first into
the oil, then into the powder, and thus convey it to the surface, while
others apply the oil with a piece of wadding, then sprinkle on the
powder.

To excel in rubbing, like all other branches of the trade, requires
practice, always remembering that if the rubber is allowed to lag
over the edge while drawing back and forward it will rub the edge
through. And, furthermore, the work should always be rubbed lengthwise
the grain, so if it be necessary at the ends of panels next to the
rails, where it is generally inclined to be rough, to rub crosswise,
it should be rubbed down crosswise, but finished lengthwise, to take
away the scratchy appearance. Before attempting to rub, the varnish
should resist the impression of the finger nail, or when rubbed before
dry it will again flow, causing bright spots to reappear, generally
known as “sweating,” and would require re-rubbing after becoming
dry. An experienced hand could easily tell when his surface was
sufficiently rubbed by raising the felt or edge and drawing a clean
streak the length of the work, and if the surface has lost its pitted
appearance the rubbing is complete and ready to be cleaned off. This
is accomplished easier if done directly, not allowing the oil to soak
and soften the varnish, which causes the surface to appear mottled and
smeary.

In cleaning use fine softwood sawdust, moistened a trifle to prevent
scratching; and when the bulk of the oil is removed, the corners picked
out and the work dusted it is again wiped off with wadding or waste,
splitting the sheets of wadding to get the soft inside, then with the
point of a pick and the wadding the beads and corners are carefully
freed from all particles of oil and pumice. Should there be sags and
runs or wrinkles which the ordinary rubbing did not remove, they should
be rubbed out with pumice and strong soapsuds, then rubbed over a
little with the oil again.

It is often required, in finishing a job, to form a contrast by
polishing the raise of the panels, thus producing a rich and elegant
finish.

In polishing as well as rubbing the hustlers have their schemes. One
scheme commonly practised is, after the ordinary oil rubbing, to rub
the surface to be polished with a bunch of raw cotton moistened with
about equal parts of sweet oil and alcohol, the oil and spirits
being put into a bottle and well shaken before moistening the cotton.
Although this may be a hustler’s scheme, an experienced hand with
it can produce elegant results. In hand polishing proceed somewhat
differently. First complete the oil rubbing, omitting the parts to be
polished, then proceed by rubbing those parts with pumice and water,
using pumice for that purpose, levelling the surface as much as the
coating will permit, then cleaning off with damp chamois frequently
rinsed in clean water. We then apply a coat of polishing varnish,
which, when dry, is again rubbed down with pumice flour and water,
using a fine but soft piece of felt; and when perfectly smooth, it is
carefully cleaned off, so that none of the pumice remains upon the
surface, as this will scratch and destroy the polish. It is then rubbed
again with rotten-stone and a piece of chamois leather, using the lump
of rotten-stone and changing the rubber by rubbing it over the lump
three or four times, then rubbing the surface quite briskly, for in
this rubbing is where the polishing really is done. This powder then is
allowed to dry upon the surface, and then with a short circular motion
with the ball of the hand we proceed to rub off the powder, frequently
wiping the hand upon a rag free from all other dust or pumice-stone.
Then, if the varnish was of a superior quality, the polish is complete;
but should the varnish contain cheap gum or a too great amount of oil,
it is nearly impossible to produce a bright polish, although in this
case the method first mentioned would prove quite effective—viz., that
of using an old silk handkerchief to rub with in place of the cotton.

In the finest sort of general work, get a good quality of carriage
varnish, and be sure and, do not _mix_ either _oil or turpentine_
with it, as it is prepared and put up for immediate use and specially
prepared to meet special needs. Two coats of varnish are usually
sufficient when the filling has been complete. When the first coat
is dry, rub it down with pulverized pumice-stone and water—in some
cases simply with curled hair, which removes the gloss and makes a
good finishing-coat possible. The rubbing accomplished, wash and dust
off well; then apply the finishing-coat of varnish. If a “polished”
surface be required, the last coat must be rubbed down as before with
pumice-stone and brought to a mirror-like surface with rotten-stone and
water. Clear up with a little sweet oil, and afterward with a cloth
dampened with alcohol. A “dead finish” is produced by rubbing the
varnished surface with powdered pumice-stone and raw linseed oil, which
gives a semi-lustrous finish of great beauty and durability. Another
method of polishing hardwood is described as follows: Take a long piece
of list or coarse flannel and roll it up in a wad like a roll of rope,
and over this wrap a soft piece of linen several times doubled up; sew
it on tightly and form a sort of handle by tying up a round wad. Then
put into a saucer some shellac varnish, into which dip the flat side
of the wad until it becomes saturated. Pouring a few drops of boiled
linseed oil on the face of the wad, rub the work briskly and lightly
in a circular direction, doing a small space at a time until the whole
surface is gone over. Repeat the operation, allowing each successive
application to dry well, or rubbing dry and not putting on too much
polishing-liquid at a time.

Observe cleanliness and care during these operations. Such parts as
cannot well be reached with the wad polish with a bit of flannel. This
will give a very durable polish, and the parts are readily brightened
up at any time by means of flannel moistened with oil. Remember that in
all these operations the utmost care and patience must be exercised if
one would have a perfect job. Do not slight the work in the minutest
particular. Take your time and do everything as it should be done,
filling in well, rubbing down smoothly and dusting off carefully.

A term sometimes used by American workmen is somewhat misleading; I
refer to the word “flowing,” as applied to varnishing. The term is
given to the process of giving the work, after it has been properly
prepared, a coat of varnish made expressly for that purpose, called
“flowing varnish.” The process as so named, as given herewith is quoted
from an English authority:

Veneered panels are usually finished that way. Some finishers, when
the body-work is to be dead finish with flowed panels, coat the panels
with the same varnish—shellac or other—used for the body, and rub them
with pumice-stone and oil; in fact, up to the point of flowing make no
difference whatever in the treatment of the body-work and the panels.
Such treatment is not recommended; whatever varnish is used for the
body-work, the panels should be coated with two or three coats of the
best rubbing varnish; oil should not be used for rubbing, as, if the
surface is at all greasy, the subsequent coat of flowing varnish cannot
be evenly laid, therefore water should be used with the pumice-stone
for rubbing, in place of oil. After the rubbing is completed, wash off
with a sponge, and dry with a chamois skin. Let it stand for a day, and
after freeing the work from all pumice-stone and dust, taking it to the
flowing-room, which should be clean, dry, and free from all draughts
of air, apply the varnish with a flat brush of suitable width, made of
badger or fitch hair; lay the varnish on smoothly and evenly, leaving
no marks of the brush. The quicker the varnish is put on, and the less
it is worked, the better it will look. Let it stand in the room until
it is hard enough to handle. Upholstered work should not be flowed
until it comes from the hands of the upholsterer and is ready for the
ware-rooms.

Varnish polishing is used when it is desired to give to the work a
bright lustre, differing from the natural gloss, and resulting from a
perfectly smooth surface produced by rubbing. The previously applied
coats of rubbing varnish having been rubbed down with pumice-stone
and water, one or more coats of polishing varnish are applied, rubbed
down as before, and brought to a bright mirror-like surface with
rotten-stone and water. Clean up with a little sweet oil, and afterward
with a cloth damped in alcohol.

There are many makes of varnish in the market at the present writing,
that are especially adapted for natural wood finish and which may be
obtained from any respectable dealer. The most reliable manufacturers
of varnish in the United States, whose preparations may be depended
on to a dead certainty, do not number more than a half a dozen firms
among which may be named Devoe & Co., of New York City, Murphy & Co.,
of New York, and Berry Bros., of Detroit, Mich. The Murphy Company
make a transparent varnish that is extensively used in the trade. It
is used for either a high polish or dead surface. It is recommended
especially for developing the grain of natural wood; for durability in
all temperatures, freedom from discoloration from soap, water or acids,
a perfect adherence to the surfaces, preventing cracking, flaking or
blistering, while acting as a good preservative of the wood or metal,
preventing either decay or rust.

It is made in different qualities, adapted to interior finishing
on walls, floors or ceilings in halls, bath-rooms or kitchens for
dwellings, asylums and hospitals, and also for exterior work, such as
front doors, vestibules, window castings, and protecting the wood from
weather exposure.

The Berry Bros. of Detroit, also make a white varnish that possesses
all the requisites of a first-class finishing material. The
preparations of Devoe & Co. are so well known and so universally used,
that only a bare reference to them is necessary. Doubtless there are
other makes of varnish that answer equally well with those named.

I think I have now placed before the reader pretty nearly all that is
worth saying on the subject of hardwood and natural wood finish, and
have drawn largely from the best authorities extant; but it would not
be wise to close this section, without giving as briefly as possible,
a few rules on the now almost obsolete process of French polishing, as
occasionally this method of finishing is employed for certain purposes:

French polishing is a method of varnishing by rubbing the varnish
upon the surface of the wood instead of applying it with brushes.
When varnish is applied simply with a brush, a comparatively uneven
surface results, rendering necessary the subsequent process of rubbing
and polishing, but by the method of French polishing, a smooth and
continuous, surface hard and not easily scratched, is secured.

All the polishes are applied very much in the same way, and a general
description will therefore be sufficient. To obtain a good polish
with lac varnish on wood, the quantity applied must be very small,
and must be rubbed continuously until dry. If the work be porous or
cross-grained, it will be necessary to give it a coat of thin clear
size previous to commencing with the polish; when dry, the surface must
be smoothed with fine glass or sandpaper. The size fills up the pores
and saves the polish, and also saves considerable time in the operation.

Make a wad of cotton-batting, covered with several folds of very new
fine soft linen cloth; put the wad or cushion to the mouth of the
bottle containing the preparation (or polish) and shake it sufficiently
to damp the cloth; then proceed to lightly rub the work with circular
motion; as the rubber becomes drier, the pressure may be increased, but
care should be taken not to press too heavily when the rubber contains
much polish, as a streakiness will result. The circular motion should
be continued until the rubber becomes quite dry, when more polish may
be taken upon it and the rubbing renewed. It should be borne in mind
that the rubber should never be raised directly from the work, but
should be raised with a sweeping motion; also that it should never for
a moment remain quiet upon the surface; and that its motion should be
as even as possible; neglect of these precautions will produce a rough
surface wherever the rubber remains quiet or is improperly removed. The
circular rubbing must be continued until the surface appears perfectly
smooth and the pores are no longer visible. Be very particular to keep
the cloth covering of the wad clean and soft; it is desirable to use a
clean portion each time it is dipped in the polish. It is quite likely
that in about twelve hours after the above operation the surface of
the work will be lustreless, and the grain plainly visible, in that
case proceed over the work again until the grain is thoroughly filled.
French polishing is a process requiring particular care and skill, and
considerable experience is necessary to produce good results.

Beginners will find that they will be more successful with a flannel
rubber, made in the shape of a ball. Most polishers use wadding, which
is more pliable and better to get in the internal angles or small
mouldings. A bottle with a slit cork is the best to apply the polish to
the rubber. In commencing, the rubber should not be rubbed quite dry,
as you will never get any body on the work by so doing; but, as the
shiny appearance advances, you must rub each rubber dry. Every time the
rubber is wetted with polish it should be pressed in the palm of the
left hand, which will equalize the polish. After the cover is put over,
which should be some clean old cotton or print rags, the top of the
finger should be dipped in linseed oil and applied to rubber-cover—just
enough to keep it from sticking. As soon as the cover has a shiny
appearance, it should be removed to a fresh place. As soon as the work
has got a good body of polish on, it should be set away for at least
ten hours, to allow for the polish to sink, which always takes place.

Before commencing to polish again, the work should be very carefully
rubbed over with the finest glass-paper obtainable, taking care not
to cut through the skin; then proceed as before. Be sure never to let
the rubber stop in one place for an instant, as it will surely take
off the polish to the bare wood and spoil the job. After the work has
sufficient polish on, it should be allowed to stand three or four hours
before spiriting off.

The same rubber will do; only use spirits. Just damp the rubber, and
cover three or four times double with cover, and rub very lightly over
the work; but care must be taken not to make the rubber too wet, or the
work will be spoilt. The same process will answer for pine or deal,
only no filling is required, but a coat of clean patent size, before
applying the polish.

The ingredients for the above kind of work are quite numerous, but
shellac, dissolved in alcohol, is the basis of all French polishes,
and some finishers use thin shellac varnish without other admixture,
slightly moistening the rubber with linseed oil to prevent stickiness
and make it work smoothly. There is a great variety of admixtures and
diversity in the proportion of ingredients, but the differences are not
material. I subjoin a number of receipts.

=First and Best.=—To one pint of spirits of wine add a quarter of an
ounce of gum-copal, a quarter of an ounce of gum-Arabic, and one ounce
of shellac.

Let the gums be well bruised, and sifted through a piece of muslin.
Put the spirits and the gums together in a vessel that can be closely
corked; place them near a warm stove, and frequently shake them. In
two or three days they will be dissolved. Strain the mixture through a
piece of muslin, and keep it tight corked for use.

=Next.=—Take one ounce each of mastic, sandarac, seed lac, shellac,
gumlac, and gum-Arabic; reduce them to powder; and add a quarter of an
ounce of virgin wax; put the whole into a bottle, with one quart of
rectified spirits of wine; let it stand twelve hours, and it will be
fit for use.

=Another.=—Put into a glass bottle one ounce of gumlac, two drachms of
mastic in drops, four drachms of sandarac, three ounces of shellac,
and half an ounce of gum dragon; reduce the whole to powder; add to it
a piece of camphor the size of a nut, and pour on it eight ounces of
rectified spirits of wine. Stop the bottle close, but take care, when
the gums are dissolving, that it is not more than half full. Place near
a warm stove until dissolved.

=Other French Polish Receipts.=—1 pint naphtha, 3½ ounces orange
shellac, ½ ounce elima. Darken with red saunders wood.

To one pint of spirits of wine, add half an ounce of gum shellac, half
an ounce of seed lac, and a quarter of an ounce of gum sandarac; submit
the whole to a gentle heat, frequently shaking it, till the various
gums are dissolved, when it is fit for use.

Shellac, 6 ounces; naphtha, 1 quart; sandarac, 1 ounce; benzoin, ¾
ounce.

Three ounces shellac, ½ ounce of gum mastic pulverized, and one pint of
methylated spirits of wine added. Let it stand till dissolved.

Twelve ounces shellac, 2 ounces gum elima, 3 ounces gum copal, 1 gallon
of spirits of wine; dissolve.

The following must be well mixed and dissolved:—Pale shellac, 2¼
pounds; 3 ounces mastic, 3 ounces sandarac, 1 gallon spirits of wine.
After the above is dissolved, add 1 pint copal varnish, 1¼ ounces
shellac, ½ ounce gum juniper, ½ ounce benzoin, ½ pint of methylated
alcohol.

=A Good Polish.=—To a pint of spirits of wine add, in fine powder,
one ounce seed lac, two drachms of gum guaiacum, two drachms of
dragon’s-blood, and two drachms of gum mastic; expose them, in a vessel
stopped close, to a moderate heat for three hours, until you find the
gums dissolved; strain the whole into a bottle for use, with a quarter
of a gill of the best linseed oil, to be shaken up well with it.

This polish is more particularly intended for dark-colored woods—for
it is apt to give a tinge to light ones, as satinwood or air-wood,
etc.—owing to the admixture of the dragon’s-blood, which gives it a red
appearance.

=A Polish that Will Stand Water.=—Take a pint of spirits of wine,
two ounces of gum benzoin, a quarter of an ounce of gum sandarac,
and a quarter of an ounce of gum anime; these must be put into a
stopped bottle, and placed either in a sand-bath or in hot water till
dissolved; then strain the mixture, and, after adding about a quarter
of a gill of the best clear poppy oil, shake it well up, and put it by
for use.

=Prepared Spirits.=—This preparation is useful for finishing after any
of the foregoing receipts, as it adds to the lustre and durability, as
well as removes every defect, of the other polishes; and it gives the
surface a most brilliant appearance.

Half a pint of the very best rectified spirits of wine, two drachms of
shellac, and two drachms of gum benzoin. Put these ingredients into a
bottle, and keep it in a warm place till the gum is all dissolved,
shaking it frequently; when cold, add two teaspoonfuls of the best
clear white poppy oil; shake them well together, and it is fit for use.

This preparation is used in the same manner as the foregoing polishes;
but, in order to remove all dull places, you may increase the pressure
in rubbing.

=Polish for Turner’s Work.=—Dissolve 1 ounce of sandarac in ½ pint
of spirits of wine; shave 1 ounce of beeswax, and dissolve it in a
sufficient quantity of spirits of turpentine to make it into a paste,
add the former mixture to it by degrees; then, with a woollen cloth,
apply it to the work while it is in motion in the lathe, and polish it
with a soft linen rag; it will appear as if highly varnished.

=A French Polish Reviver.=—Beat gum acacia and white of two eggs in a
mortar until they amalgamate; then add half a pint of raw linseed oil
and best vinegar, eight ounces methylated spirits of wine, one ounce
hydrochloric acid and two ounces muriate of antimony. They are to be
rubbed on the surface of the furniture until dry, and will give a
brilliant and lasting polish.

It now remains to explain the several varieties of finishing in use;
these are largely derived from the peculiar qualities of the different
varnishes used. Polishing varnishes, which are very hard and durable,
are so called because their surface can be brought to a high lustre
by rubbing with the proper materials. Flowing or finishing-varnishes
contain more oil than polishing-varnishes, dry more slowly, and are
softer, but their peculiar qualities are brilliancy and durability,
fitting them for work requiring a brilliant gloss, such as veneered
panels. Rubbing-varnishes are those that dry sufficiently hard to admit
of being rubbed to a smooth surface. Turpentine varnishes, being the
cheapest variety, are employed for cheap work, such as common chairs,
bedsteads, &c.

_Dead Finish_ is a term applied to the finish produced by the reduction
of any of the rubbing varnishes with powdered pumice-stone, and raw
linseed oil, the surface thus produced being left in the semi-lustrous
state by omitting the polishing process. It is now more used than any
other for body-work, shellac varnish being generally employed because
of its adaptation to the requirements of fine cabinet-work, and its
properties of quick and hard drying. Copal, anime, and amber varnishes
are also used, but are slower drying. The number of coats required
depends somewhat upon the quality of the filler, but usually three
coats, and sometimes less, are amply sufficient.

=Varnish Finish.=—=For Cheap Work.=—One coat of filler or stain
followed by one coat of cheap turpentine varnish without rubbing. In
this class of work the brilliancy of the gloss and covering qualities
of the varnish are principally considered. The cheaper turpentine
varnishes have a brilliant gloss, and dry very hard, but the gloss is
not permanent, and after drying the gum is very brittle and easily
cracked and broken. The gum is principally common resin.

=Wax Finish.=—Mix together, with heat, white wax, and spirits of
turpentine to the consistency of thick paste; when cold, apply it to
the work with a rag; rub on heavily so as to fill the pores of the
wood; remove all wax from the surface with a wooden scraper made in
the shape of a carpenter’s chisel; smooth off with a bunch of soft
rags by rubbing hard and quick for a few minutes; finish with a little
French polish applied with a cotton pad. For table tops and all large
flat surfaces, allow the wax to remain on, and finish with a warm iron
by passing it lightly and quickly over the work until the wax is made
smooth and the surface is sufficiently polished. This is not considered
a desirable finish, as it is not durable, and water spots it very
easily.

The brushes required for varnishing are of many kinds and sizes and
a description of even a portion of them, is out of the question in a
small work of this kind; however a few remarks concerning them may not
be out of place. For spirit varnishes, camel’s-hair pencils and brushes
are used, the sizes of which vary from one-quarter to three-quarters of
an inch diameter, according to the size of the work. When the surfaces
are very large, flat camel-hair brushes are used; but from their
comparative thinness they scarcely contain a sufficient quantity of
varnish to preserve the brush uniformly charged in passing over a large
surface. Turpentine and oil varnishes require less delicacy; and flat
brushes, made of fine soft bristles, are generally used, or sometimes
ordinary painting brushes are employed, but they are rather harsh, and,
owing to the adhesion of the varnish, the hairs are apt to be loosened,
and come out. Brushes should always be kept perfectly soft and clean,
and therefore should never be laid aside when through work, without
cleaning. For this purpose turpentine is best; the brushes can either
be washed out quite clean in it, dried on a cloth, and laid aside,
or the bristles can be partially immersed in turpentine and allowed
to remain in it until wanted for use. Warm water and soap will also
serve to clean the brushes. If, however, the brushes are laid aside
without being thoroughly cleaned, they will certainly be ruined by the
hardening of the varnish.

Varnish pans can be procured at any varnish shop. They are constructed
of tin, with a false bottom; the interval between the two bottoms is
filled with sand, which being heated over the fire keeps the varnish
fluid, and it flows more readily from the brush. There is a tin handle
to them, and the false bottom slopes from one end to the other, which
gives sufficient depth when the varnish is low. They should also have
a wire fixed across the top to wipe the brush against. An ordinary
preserve jar is frequently used for containing the varnish, and is
sufficiently suitable; but it also should have a wire or string
stretched across the top, for reducing the quantity of varnish taken
up by the brush. The quantity of varnish poured into the jar should be
sufficient to nearly cover the hairs of the brush in order to keep it
soft. Too small a quantity of varnish is liable to thicken rapidly by
evaporation, which should at all times be prevented as far as possible,
by keeping the vessel closely covered when not in actual use.

=The Various Woods, their Stains and Finish.=—The foregoing rules
and instructions apply, in a great measure to all woods that are to
be finished in natural colors or stained, but under this head it is
intended to take each wood separately, with regard to coloring, and
other matters not before mentioned, that may be considered necessary to
insure good work.

It should not be forgotten, when speaking of hardwood finishing, that
some of the prettiest woods used, are not “Hard” but soft woods among
which may be mentioned pine of various kinds, poplar, cedar, redwood,
hemlock and basswood. When some of these are finished in their natural
state or stained to imitate harder woods their beauty is much enhanced
and they become deserving of more than a passing notice. Pine when
properly prepared, is in my opinion one of the most useful as well as
one of the prettiest woods that Nature has given to this continent,
and hemlock which is a much despised wood, when properly prepared and
finished in the natural state, or slightly “Mahoganized,” makes the
richest of panels for doors, wainscot or other house finish. As oak and
mahogany are rivals as to which is the better and handsomer woods for
finish, I will commence this section with those woods, giving oak the
preference.

=Oak.=—We have in this country over forty kinds of oak nearly every
one of which may be used for some special purpose, those most used for
building finish and for furniture however are only few, among which are
the white oak, (_Quercus rulia_), rock oak (_Quercus primas murticola_)
and black oak (_Quercus tindoris_). All of the above named oaks are
capable of being handsomely finished, the white and black oaks being
the best and the red being next.

What is known as quarter-oak is made by first sawing the log from
end to end through the middle. Then each half is sawed from end to
end through the middle, thus leaving four quarters. Each quarter has
only three sides, one side the bulge part of the log, and the other
two sides flat and coming to an edge. The boards are sawed off the
sharp edge, and each sawing, therefore, throws off a board wider than
one before it. Sawing the quarters of the log in this manner, lumber
possesses that beautiful cross-grained figure so much in fashion now
that it has become somewhat of a craze. This cross-grained material
finds favor in the finest furniture and interior work. The wood is
susceptible of the very finest polish, and the cross-grain produces an
effect made by both nature and the saw, that is quite superior to the
art of the most skillful grainer. To effect a good imitation of antique
oak lamp black or Vandyke brown in oil is applied to the surface of the
wood, darkening its natural hue, but this is not by any means best or
the only way, but answers very well where other processes or methods
are not available. With regard to giving oak an antique appearance,
many opinions exist. Formerly—and probably the first—imitations of
antique oak were produced by exposing the bare dressed surface to the
steam of boiling ammonia. This process, however, it was impossible to
apply to casings of house interiors, thus leading to the application
of the aqua ammonia with a brush, but, it is by repeated application
that the desired results are produced. It stains the wood gray. There
are finishers who claim this to be the only process by which to
imitate Nature, but another much faster, and one which gives the same
results, is to use strong vinegar with iron filings or shavings added;
by a little experimenting, this can be made to suffice with one coat,
depending upon the amount of iron added.

A very clever imitation of the general antique can be obtained by
staining the filler with Vandyke brown and charcoal, equal parts, using
about one part of the colored to four parts of the light. Then there is
another antique which imitates certain oak from the sixteenth century:
the peculiarity of it consists in dark cloud streaks permeating the
wood in every direction some of them crossing the panels in a V-shape,
others straight near top and bottom. To give them an odd appearance, a
pair of panels can be clouded by streaking one three or four times and
the other once or twice. These stripes vary in width from three to five
inches. The wider streaks look well across the top of a table three or
four times, or even partly across, while the narrow ones would do well
around the legs and across the styles and rails of panelled work. In
putting these on, they should be dark in the centre and blend out at
the edges. This is done with an automatic paint burner, allowing the
flames to scorch the wood nearly black; but care must be taken not to
char it. After the work is all streaked the wood is filled with filler
stained with burnt umber mixed as for black walnut.

Care must be taken to have the filler stained to the proper tint, and
in applying correctly. By following the rules given under the head
“Filling” the operator should have no trouble in making good work, and
we here repeat the instruction.

“After enough surface has been covered with the filler, so that what
has been first applied begins to flatten, the process of wiping should
immediately begin, using for that purpose either a rag or a handful
of waste or excelsior. If the oak is very open-grained, waste is
preferable. With a piece of this that has previously been used and is
pretty well supplied with filler, rub crosswise of the grain, rather
rubbing it into the grain than wiping it off. After the whole surface
has been gone over in this way, take a clean piece of waste or rag
(never use excelsior for wiping clean) and wipe the surface perfectly
clean and free from filler, using a wooden pick, the point of which
has been covered with a rag or waste to clean out the corners, beads,
etc. It is well to give these picks some attention, as a person once
accustomed to certain tools can accomplish more and better work than
with tools that feel strange in his hands; therefore, each finisher
should furnish his own pick. As to their construction, these are
best made from second-growth hickory, which can be procured from
any carriage repair shop, such as old spokes, broken felloes, etc.
They are made eight inches in length, half inch oval at one end and
tapering down to the point at the other. Sharpen the oval end like a
coal chisel, then smooth with sandpaper, which should also be used to
sharpen the tool when the same becomes worn dull.”

This picking out of the filler from beads, etc., can be accelerated by
the use of a picking brush manufactured especially for that purpose,
but it is not advisable to use this on very coarse-grained oak, as it
scrubs the filler out of the pores.

There are several fillers used which do not require this picking and
scrubbing. One is a liquid filler used chiefly for carriage finishing;
but it can be used successfully on butternut, bird’s-eye maple, curly
maple, satinwood, hickory, etc. It is made from gum and oil. Another
is a filler made from finely-ground pumice stone, mixed as other
fillers. It is applied with a brush, and must be left to dry at least
twenty-four hours; it is then sandpapered smooth, when an oil varnish
is applied, rendering it completely transparent. This last can be used
only upon light wood.

It is a well-established fact that nearly all the oaks grow dark with
age; many of them assume an entirely different shade from that which
they have when new and first cut. For instance, light oak, when new,
is of a sort of cream color; when aged in a dry atmosphere, it will
assume a reddish brown, and in a damp atmosphere it will turn a gray
with a blue tinge and eventually become brown. Cherry will turn from a
light salmon to a maroon, and the same with mahogany. It has not been
so long since mahogany and cherry were antiquated by being colored dark
with stains or other coloring material, while, at the same time, oak
was finished light. At present this manner of finishing is entirely
reversed. Cherry, mahogany and all dark woods are finished as light as
possible, while oak and ash, especially black ash, are finished antique.

Another method of rendering new oak wainscoting and other oak work
dark, and give it an antique appearance is given.

A correspondent in the _English Mechanic_ gives the following process
of treatment, which he considers the best, after trying the various
other processes used by builders and cabinet-makers to darken woods:
“Oak is fumigated by liquid ammonia, strength 880°, which may be bought
at any wholesale chemist’s at 5s. a gallon. The wood should be placed
in a _dark_ and _air-tight_ room (in a big packing case, if you
like!), and half a pint or so of ammonia poured into a soup plate, and
placed upon the _ground_ in the center of the compartment. This done,
shut the entrance, and secure any cracks, if any, by pasted slips of
paper. Remember that the ammonia does not touch the oak, but the gas
that comes from it acts in a wondrous manner upon the tannic acid in
that wood, and browns it so deeply that a shaving or two may actually
be taken off without removing the color. The depth of shade will
entirely depend upon the quantity of ammonia used and the time the wood
is exposed. Try an odd bit first experimentally, and then use your own
judgment.”

Short pieces of stuff may be so treated by using an air-tight box. The
box-ready, a flat dish or plate of strong ammonia should be placed in
the bottom, so that the fumes will _rise_ and surround the object.
All that is now necessary is to place the article in the box, nailing
up as close as possible and await results. Ten hours exposure using
strong ammonia, should give a good color; if not dark enough let it
remain longer, bearing in mind, however, that the wood will present
no noticeable change until oiled or brought in contact with a wet
substance such as shellac. It is well, therefore, to note the progress
by touching the wood with the wet finger when it will show at once the
stage it has reached.

There could be no better method devised to stain oak than this when
practicable, and in adopting it we simply anticipate nature which in
time through the action of the ammonia of the atmosphere would present
the same result. Mahogany may also be treated similarly with success.

Here is another method of making antique oak, and I might add, that
white, and black ash, and chestnut, similarly treated, will give a fair
imitation of antique oak: The job should be made of hard wood, with
as full an open grain as possible to secure a fine effect. Sandpaper
this and clean off. Then prepare a priming made of 1 part japan, 1 part
raw linseed oil and 1 part rubbing varnish. Drop into ½ gallon of the
liquid 1 pound of commercial corn starch, such as is used for culinary
purposes. Next take some good, dry, burnt Turkish umber, and add about
¼ pound of this to the starch. Apply to the job a good flowing coat of
this priming. Let stand until it is set and has soaked well into the
grain, and then take a broad putty knife and stick it into the grain,
working the knife crosswise of the grain. Again let stand a little
while, and then wipe with rags; especially clean out all the corners,
and get the job into as good condition as possible as regards having
the grain well filled.

Upon the completion of the operation above described it will be found
that the open grain has absorbed the starch and umber, and that these
portions now show the dark shade suggestive of age, while all the rest
of the surface is also slightly darkened.

When again perfectly dry, give one coat of rubbing varnish, prepared
by adding to it ½ pound of starch to each gallon of varnish. This coat
should be flowed on freely as a medium coat of rubbing varnish, but be
careful not to have runs of sags. This ought to completely fill the
wood, after which proceed to varnish, rub and finish the job in the
usual manner. To produce a natural oak finish, follow precisely the
same course as above described, with the single exception of omitting
the umber. This will leave the wood in its natural color.

Some of the most attractive work in this line, however, is effected by
simply spreading on the surface of the material a concentrated solution
of permanganate of potash, this being allowed to act until the desired
shade is obtained. Five minutes suffice ordinarily to give a good
color, a few trials indicating the proper proportions. The substance
named is decomposed by the vegetable fibre with the precipitation of
brown peroxide of manganese, which the influence of the potash, at the
same time set free fixes in a durable manner on the fibres. When the
action is terminated, the wood is carefully washed with water, dried,
then oiled and polished in the usual manner. The effect produced by
this process in several woods is really remarkable. On the cherry
especially it develops a beautiful red color which well resists the
action of air and light, and on the other woods it has a very pleasing
and natural effect.

Along with the foregoing may be added the following stains for oak:
add to a quart of water 2 ounces each of potash and pearl-ash. This is
a very good stain, but it should be used carefully as it blisters the
hands and softens brushes. The stain may be made lighter by adding more
water.

=Other Oak Stains.=—To darken the color of oak any of the following may
be used:

Liquid ammonia laid on evenly with a rag or brush will deepen the color
immediately, and it will not fade, this being an artificial production
of result produced naturally by age.

Bichromate of potash, dissolved in cold water, and applied with a
brush, will produce a similar result.

A decoction of green walnut-shell will bring new oak to any shade or
nearly black.

=Another.=—To two quarts of boiled oil; half a pound of ground umber,
mixed in oil by colorman; one pint of liquid driers, stirred in; one
pint of turpentine; mix. After cleaning and planing your boards, lay
this on with the grain of the wood. If required lighter add naphtha
till the required shade is attained; it darkens with age. Give it
twelve hours to dry; then varnish with wood varnish, or use only
beeswax and turpentine. The result is good in time, but slower than
varnish.

=Mahogany.=—(_Svietened._)—The tree has a darkish-brown bark and a
reddish-brown, coarsely fibred, streaky, hard wood. The tree grows to
the height of 35 metres, and is pretty strong. The chief varieties
are the common mahogany, with a very hard, very durable wood, which
is never attacked by worms, and is excellent for ship-building; but
its capability for taking a fine polish is its chief recommendation.
_Mahagoni Haiti_, _Mahagoni Jamaika_, _Mahagoni Havanna_ are the other
chief kinds.

Thirty-five years ago mahogany was commercially designated as “St.
Domingo,” from the island of St. Domingo, and “Baywood,” or “Bay
Mahogany,” from the vicinity of the Bay of Honduras, in Central
America. The Central American wood was condemned as being too soft,
of light weight, straight-grained and characterless. In recent years
it has ceased coming to this market, but one cargo having arrived at
the port of New York (the largest mahogany market in the world) in
six years. St. Domingo mahogany likewise exists only in name, the
original growth having long since been utilized; only the small and
stunted second growth being received here now. The individual logs of
great size and best quality are so seldom found as to come within the
category of “rare specimens.”

The Central American wood having been debarred by reason of softness,
and the St. Domingo being virtually extinct, it became a matter of
discovery where else to find this wood. From the island of Cuba a
considerable quantity of the smaller sizes, of good texture and hard,
suitable for small work, is obtained; but it is from the vast forest of
Mexico that the great markets of the world are now supplied, not alone
with the bulk of the best mahogany, but much that is soft, though these
soft grades are superior to the Baywood of olden times from Central
America.

With, perhaps the exception of our oaks, no wood possesses like
advantages of combined soundness, large size, durability, beauty of
color and richness of figure. So, when compared with other woods,
mahogany costs no more to work and stands better than any other—the
only point to weigh against this last great feature is the slight
difference in the first cost of the wood in the rough; but if mahogany
stands better and longer, and needs no attention afterward, surely the
sole advantage of less cost at first which any other wood may possess
is overcome.

But another merit, equal to any thus far mentioned, is the warmth in
its color and the glory in the figure of this beautiful wood. The air
of elegance, artistic effect and gentle breeding it imparts to all
its surroundings, its joy and life—all these cannot be measured by
a few cents a square foot. Its growing splendor with age that gives
increasing satisfaction may safely be contrasted with the tameness of
other woods, which, though pleasing at first, deteriorate rather than
improve. Does not mahogany add to the value of a private residence
or public building? I believe it does; and it is this very fact that
encourages so much imitation in housefinishing and in furniture.

When the real wood is used, but little more is necessary than to fill
and varnish or polish, as it cannot be much improved upon. Sometimes,
however, it may be deemed proper to darken it somewhat to take away the
reddish hue that newly wrought mahogany presents, and this can best be
done by darkening the filler, to suit the taste, trying the mixture
first on a piece of the dressed stuff, until the desired shade is
obtained, staining the varnish or polish with dragon’s-blood or other
suitable dyes, will also accomplish the desired end.

Staining by the fumes of ammonia will probably give the best results,
as almost any tinge can be given the work from the newness of youth,
to the mellowness of extreme age. This method is considered the best
for imparting to mahogany the appearance of age, and for those wishing
to avail themselves of an easy, clean and certain means of gaining the
result, fumigating offers no serious obstacle to its accomplishment,
the articles necessary being easy of acquirement, and at small expense.

I give a number of receipts for making stains to imitate mahogany.
These stains may be applied to cherry, black birch, white wood,
basswood, pine or sycamore, with pretty fair results. The best of these
enumerated are cherry, birch and pine, as from these woods the best
results are obtainable:

A good imitation of and substitute for mahogany, useful in fine
manufactures, is made by procuring any species of close-grained wood,
such as cherry, beech or birch, and properly preparing it smooth and
clean. Then rub with diluted nitric acid, which prepares it for the
materials subsequently to be applied. These consist of one and a half
ounces of dragon’s-blood, dissolved in a pint of spirits of wine, and
one-third of that quantity of carbonate of soda, mixed together and
filtered, the liquid in this state being rubbed, or rather, laid upon
the wood with a soft brush. This process is repeated with very little
alteration, and in a short interval the wood possesses all the external
appearance of mahogany.

For other stains the following are given: Two ounces of dragon’s-blood
dissolved in one quart of rectified spirits of wine, well shaken; or
raw sienna in beer, with burnt sienna to give the required tone; for
darker stains boil a half-pound of madder and two-ounces of logwood
chips in one gallon of water and brush the decoction while hot over the
wood. When dry paint with a solution of two ounces of potash in one
quart of water. A solution of permanganate of potash forms a rapid and
excellent brown stain.

For the color of new mahogany, see Cherry Stains.

A decoction of logwood chips, made by boiling in a closely-covered
vessel one part of the chips in two parts water for two hours; then
strain through a muslin cloth. Should this be required dark, as for
antique mahogany, condense by a gentle heat.

_Another._—For the red generally called mahogany, add to a strong
decoction of logwood chips a small quantity of chloride of tin. Or add
to the decoction a trifle eosine. Apply two coats.

_Another._—Add to archil (orchil) sufficient eosine to produce a
natural color.

_Another._—Dilute alizarin-paste to the proper consistency and color.

_Another._—To produce the red in oil, apply two coats of crimson or
rose-lake diluted with turps and japan.

To darken mahogany, apply a weak solution of bichromate of potash in
water. Apply successive coats, allowing each to dry, until the required
shade is secured.

Half a pound of madder, two ounces of logwood chips boiled in a gallon
of water; brush over the wood while hot. When dry, go over the whole
with pearl-ash solution, two drachms to a quart of water. Size and
polish. If a redder shade be required, it can be produced by smearing
the surface with a strong solution permanganate of potash, which is
left on for a longer or shorter time, according to the shade required;
in most cases, five minutes will be enough. The wood is then carefully
washed, dried and polished in the ordinary way.

The reader will understand that the mahogany stains mentioned are
mostly intended for staining inferior woods to imitate mahogany, for as
mentioned before only in isolated cases, will the genuine wood require
to be stained—“good wine needeth no bush.”—

=Cherry.=—(_Prunus cerasus._)—This is a fine grained wood, tough and
light, is capable of taking the very finest finish. Is harder than
Baywood, and is the nearest approach in color, grain and texture, to
mahogany than any other native wood.

One of the best methods for making cherry look like mahogany is to have
the wood rubbed with diluted nitro acid, which prepares it for the
materials subsequently applied. Afterwards to a filtered mixture of one
ounce and a half of dragon’s-blood dissolved in a pint of spirits of
wine is added one-third that quantity of carbonate of soda. The whole
constituting a very thin liquid is brushed with a soft brush over the
wood. This process is repeated with very little alteration, and in a
short interval of time the wood assumes the external appearance of
mahogany. If the composition has been properly made the surface will
resemble an artificial mirror and should this brilliancy ever decline
it may be restored by rubbing the surface with a little cold drawn
linseed oil.

When cherry is nicely filled and rubbed well down and not varnished,
it has a soft glow not possessed by any other, and has none of those
distortions of grain that are so unpleasant in mahogany. The timber
is chosen from the wild cherry, which in New England and the North
generally does not usually grow to a girth of more than 20 inches,
but in some of the Western States and in the South frequently attains
a diameter of 24 inches. The domestic fruit cherry gives some good
specimens of small timber, but as the tree is rarely sacrificed until
it is past bearing and is decayed, this source of supply is precarious.
The facility with which cherry can be worked makes it a favorite with
the cabinet-maker and the house joiner; and it also possesses the
quality of “staying where it is put,” and that is more than can be said
of many of the hard woods.

I give below several stains for making pine and other suitable woods to
have an appearance of cherry.

1. To prepare this color in water stain, boil in a gallon of water
one pound of Spanish annotto and one ounce of concentrated lye
(potash). Should this not be deep enough, allow the water to evaporate
by a gentle heat. The stain can also be darkened by adding gamboge
previously dissolved in a weak potash solution.

2. Gamboge in oil, diluted with turpentine, and a little japan added as
a siccative. This produces the same color in oil as the former in water
stain, and can be deepened with dragon’s-blood in oil or finely-ground
burnt sienna in oil.

3. Mix together, by stirring, 1 quart of spirits of turpentine, 1 pint
of varnish, and 1 lb. of dry burnt sienna; apply with a brush and after
it has been on about five minutes wipe it off with rags. This stain
takes about 12 hours to dry.

4. Take 1 quart alcohol, 2 ozs. of dragon’s-blood; pulverize the latter
along with ¼ oz. of alkanet root; mix and let stand in a warm place a
couple of days. Shake frequently in the meantime. Apply with a sponge
or brush. Two or three coats may be required. This makes a fine stain.

There are a number of other compounds, but it is considered that the
above are ample for all ordinary purposes. When stains are wanted in
large quantities it is much better to purchase them, as a number of
excellent mixtures are now obtainable, among which may be mentioned
those of the Chilton Mfg. Co., New York, who make fine ebony, mahogany
and cherry stains. Aniline stain may be purchased at any color shop.

=Ash.= (_Fraxinus excelsior._) This wood is now used very much by
cabinet-makers and house joiners in place of oak, and I have often
seen furniture palmed off, to unsuspecting customers as antique oak
and in one instance I know of an architect who specified oak, and who
“passed” a mixture of white and black ash, as oak, either knowingly or
otherwise. I am not sure that the owners in either case lost anything,
for good sound Canadian ash, is decidedly better than dosey red oak.

In finishing ash, either black or white, the same methods are adopted
as for finishing oak and similar processes will give similar results.
Ingenious stainers and finishes can make ash resemble oak wainscot, in
vein and color so correctly that it is almost impossible for the most
experienced connoisseur to distinguish the genuine from the spurious.
In order to do this some finishers make a commencement by sketching
out, upon certain parts of the ash exterior, the requisite white
veins, by means of a camel-hair pencil, with white stain; that done,
they coat the veins with thin varnish, and then darken the general
ground, dealing carefully throughout the entire process with the veined
portions. Others stain and embody, _i. e._ French polish—the ash with
the ordinary preparation, after which they pursue an operative course
termed “champing”; that is, scratching fancifully, so as to form the
veins, upon different parts of the coated surface, before it gets time
to harden, with a saturated rag. The former process is, however, the
most suitable of the two.

=Birch.= (_Betula Nigra._) or Canadian birch is superior to all other
birches for constructive purposes and when properly finished has a
fine quiet refined look that commands itself to all lovers of domestic
woods. So popular has the use of black birch become within the last ten
years, that the price of good grades has advanced from $8 per M feet,
in 1880 to $100 per M feet, in 1892.

Black birch is a close-grained, handsome wood, and can be easily
stained to resemble walnut exactly. It is just as easy to work, and is
suitable for nearly, if not all, the purposes to which walnut is at
present applied. Birch is much the same color as cherry, but the latter
wood is now scarce, and consequently dear. When properly stained it is
almost impossible to distinguish the difference between it and walnut,
as it is susceptible of a beautiful polish, equal to any wood now used
in the manufacture of furniture, and inside finishings.

There is a species of bird’s-eye birch, but it is very scarce. An
evidence of the weight and solidity of the wood is the fact that it
will sink after being a few days on the water. It also possesses the
quality of durability in a pre-eminent degree.

Birch is generally finished the same as cherry, and directions given
under that head will apply here also.

=Pine.=—(_Pinus Strobus_). If oak is the king of woods, pine is most
assuredly “president,” for it is at once the most useful and the
most democratic of woods. It is found in the halls of the great and
powerful, and in the cottage of the most humble among us. It is strong
and vigorous, plain or ornamental and is not out of place either in the
backwoodsman’s cabin or in the stately cathedral, and like a true man
of the world, it adapts itself to every condition that circumstances
may place it in.

Pine can be made to look like any known wood, but is at its best when
left natural and finished in clear shellac. There is no wood grows,
that will convey so cheerful a feeling to the beholder as yellow or
white pine finished in a natural state. Next to being finished in a
natural state, is to imitate mahogany or light cherry which coloring it
takes readily.

Where the pine—of any kind—is to be either stained or left natural, it
should be “quarter sawed” as it will show a finer grain, shrink less,
and last longer. The softness of its texture and its susceptibility to
injury may have had some influence in preventing its general use for
ornamental purposes, but the wood can be “filled,” so that much of this
objection is removed. Its pure white color—white as compared with other
woods—recommends it for purposes for which holly has been heretofore
used; and the size of the timber from which clear boards may be cut is
greatly in its favor, boards of a width of sixteen, and even twenty
inches being not uncommon, with no shade of distinction between sap
wood and heart, and only the faintest perceptible grain.

Some specimens lately examined show a greatly enhanced beauty by very
simple treatment—the filling with warm shellac varnish, bleached
shellac in alcohol, applied with a brush while warm. Several coats
are given, the last coat being rubbed with pumice and rotten-stone,
moistened with water, not oil. A finish of a flowing coat of copal
varnish completes the preparation. Thus treated, the wood is of a
faint creamy tint, with an appearance of semi-transparency. Beautiful
gradations of tone were obtained by panels of this prepared pine.

Most of the stains given under previous heads, are applicable to pine,
I add, however a few more, so that the workmen may have a number of
recipes to draw from:

For Walnut No. 1.—Dissolve by boiling one part each of Epson salt and
permanganate of potash in about twenty-five parts of water. This stain
may be improved by adding a little eosine, and it works best when
applied hot.

2. Catechu broken into crumbs and boiled in about twice its bulk of
water until dissolved. To darken to the required depth, add bichromate
of potash previously dissolved in about eight times its equivalent of
water. If the deep yellow shade peculiar to the Southern walnut be
required, add yellow chromate of potash. For the reddish shade of the
Northern wood, add more eosine.

3. For oil stain, use Vandyke brown toned up with the siennas, the
colors being strictly pure and finely ground in oil, and diluted with
turpentine and a small amount of japan.

4. Burnt Turkey umber mixed in the same way as the former.

5. Mix together, by stirring, 1 quart spirits of turpentine, 1 pint
asphaltum varnish, 1 pint of japan, 1 lb. dry burnt umber, 1 lb. dry
Venetian red; apply with a brush. This stain is transparent, and allows
the grain of the wood to show through.

6. Boil 1½ ounces washing soda, and ¼ ounce bichromate of potash, in
1 quart of water; add 2½ ounces Vandyke brown. This stain may be used
either hot or cold.

7. With a brush apply a thin solution of permanganate of potassa in
water, until the desired color is produced, allowing each coat to dry
before another is applied.

For Mahogany or Cherry No. 1. For mahogany, use a pint of turpentine
and an ounce of color known as dragon’s-blood. Dissolve and shake well
before applying. For ebony, use hot liquor from logwood chips, and
after dry apply a coat of tincture of steel. For walnut, use two ounces
of washing soda, darkened with Vandyke brown in water. Add two ounces
of bichromate of potash in pint and a half of water.

2. Mix together, by stirring, 1 quart of spirits of turpentine, 1 pint
of varnish, and 1 lb. of dry burnt sienna; apply with a brush, and
after it has been on about five minutes wipe it off with rags. This
stain takes about 12 hours to dry.

3. Take 1 quart alcohol, 2 ozs. of dragon’s-blood; pulverize the latter
along with ¼ oz. of alkanet root; mix, and let stand in a warm place a
couple of days. Shake frequently in the meantime. Apply with a sponge
or brush. Two or three coats may be required. This makes a fine stain.

For Rosewood No. 1. Mix in a bottle ¼ lb. of extract of logwood, 1
oz. salts of tartar, and 1 pint of water; in another bottle, put 1
lb. of old iron in small pieces, and 1 pint of vinegar, which, after
standing twenty-four hours, will be ready for use; make a hard stiff
brush with a piece of rattan sharpened at one end in a wedge shape,
pounding it so as to separate the fibre. Mix in 1 pint of varnish, ¼
lb. of finely-powdered rose-pink. The materials are now ready, and the
first thing in the process is to stain the wood with the logwood stain;
give two coats of this, allowing the first to become nearly dry before
applying the second; then dip the rattan brush in the vinegar, and with
it form the grain, after which give the work a coat of the varnish and
rose pink. There can be no definite directions given for graining,
except to study the natural wood and imitate it as near as possible.
With the above materials skilfully applied, any common wood can be
made to resemble rosewood so nearly that it will take a good judge to
distinguish the difference.

2. Boil 1 lb. of logwood in 1 gallon of water, add a double handful of
walnut shell, boil the whole again, strain the liquor and add to it 1
pint of the best vinegar. It is then ready for use. Apply it boiling
hot, and when the wood is dry, form red veins in imitation of the grain
of rosewood with a brush dipped in the following solution: Nitric acid,
1 pint; metallic tin, 1 oz.; sal-ammoniac, 1 oz. Mix and set aside to
dissolve, occasionally shaking. If carefully executed it will give the
appearance of dark rosewood.

For surface stains the following are sometimes used: The colors are all
to be mixed with very thin glue size, laid on warm with a soft woollen
material, and the wood wiped dry after application. All the colors used
is staining should be well pulverized, and before use the liquid should
be strained.

=Imitation Oak Stain.=—Equal parts burnt umber and brown ochre.

=Imitation Mahogany Stain.=—One Part Venetian red, and two parts yellow
lead.

=Imitation Rosewood Stain.=—Venetian red, darkened with lamp black to
required shade.

=Imitation Walnut Stain.=—Burnt umber and yellow ochre, mixed in
proportions to give desired shade.

Before leaving the subject of pine, it may be as well to say a few
words regarding the long leaved, or Georgia pine (_Pinus Pulustris._)
as a great deal of it is used now in and about the city of New York,
and other large centres. This wood is very fine, strong and lasting.
Some of it is insusceptible of fine finish, but the best success with
it, is when treated with shellac finish. In all other respects, when
used as a finishing material, it may be treated the same as ordinary
pine.

=Walnut.=—(_Juglans Nigra._)—As this wood is seldom or never stained
it is unnecessary to say more about it other than it may be treated
like oak cherry or birch. It looks well filled and finished in shellac.
Birch stained and properly finished looks very much like walnut, and
with a little care in getting a proper tint in the stain, can scarcely
be known from the real thing. “Filling,” in walnut finishing, is one of
the most important processes, if the richness of the wood is desired to
be shown as much depends on the “tint” as on the filling material.

=Poplar.=—(_Populus balsamifera._)

=Basswood.=—(_Tieia Americana._)

=Cedar.=—White—(_cupressus thuyoides_) which is really a spruce, and
all similar woods, should never be finished in a natural state. Deep
stains or surface stains should always be employed on these woods if
they are not to be painted.

=Beech.=—(_Fagus ferruginea._) This is one of the unnoticed woods of
former years but is now gradually gaining in favor as a decorative
wood. It is cheap and also quite abundant, while the more popular hard
woods are beginning to grow scarcer and higher in price. Beechwood has
a fine grain, is quite durable, and can be used in the manufacture of
furniture and for decorative purposes generally. The red variety has
a handsome appearance and is especially suitable for use where a good
imitation of cherry is desired.

If “quarter sawed” it shows a fine grain and has a character distinctly
its own which I think has never been properly appreciated. When
quartered, properly finished, filled and polished, it looks something
like dark leopard wood. It will assume a dark mahogany color if
prepared like cherry or birch, or it may be made to appear like walnut
if treated with walnut stains and finish.

=Elm.=—(_Ulmus Americana._)

=Chestnut.=—(_castanea vesca._)

=Butternut.=—(_Juglans cinerea._)

These three woods are often used in inferior work, and are very soft
and easily dented. The best is perhaps the elm, which does very well
for bath-room finish, panels for ash doors and similar work. All
require a great deal of “filling” and this should be well rubbed in if
a good job is required. All of these woods have a very coarse grain,
but if care is taken in selecting the material, very odd and oftimes
pleasing effects may be obtained. Any of the stains used on pine, will
answer for these woods, dependent of course on the tints desired. The
best results with these woods is derived by giving the work one coat of
shellac after filling and staining, then sandpaper well and apply your
varnish or oil finish or whatever you purpose finishing in.

=Cypress.=—(_Cupressus sempervierens._) The light the dark and the bald
are good woods and are coming more and more in favor every day.

This wood contains a very small amount of resin, and a very high
polish can be given it; in fact, because of its not being affected by
moisture, it is being used for cisterns, hogsheads, and sugar, molasses
and honey barrels. The red cypress is the favorite, and some of it
is so heavy that it will sink upon being placed in water. The white
variety is much lighter, and will float after being deadened a short
while before being cut, but it has not the firm grain of the red. The
red cypress has a straight trunk with a small top, and the bark when
cut has a reddish tint. These woods may be treated like cherry or birch
with good results. They look well when left their natural color and
finished “dead finish.”

=Sycamore=, or Buttonwood, as it is sometimes called (_acer pseudo
platanus_) when quarter sawed and properly finished makes a good
appearance, and in many cases is superseding cherry owing to its beauty
and cheapness. Heretofore its natural beauty has been destroyed in many
cases by staining the wood, and thus preventing the development of many
chemical changes which take place and are thrown to the surface when
properly treated. When quarter sawed, a light bodied and light colored
shellac should be used, when by a natural chemical process a beautiful
silver leaf is developed and the surface assumes a charming pink hue.

=Hemlock.=—(_Abies Canadensis._) This is rarely used for finishing
owing to its brittleness and splintery nature. Clean boards, however,
made into panels or other similar work and then finished in natural
color, assumes a very handsome appearance. It has a pink tint of the
most delicate kind which improves and mellows with age. It should be
finished in the same manner as pine.

=Rosewood.=—(_Dalbergia Nigra._) It seldom falls to the lot of the
ordinary finisher to have to “try his hand” on the genuine wood, but
sometimes it _does happen_ and it is just as well that he should be
armed with the means to wrestle with the work if such is ever thrown
in his way. To finish rosewood, requires about the same treatment as
mahogany, though, as a matter of fact, many pieces of rosewood will be
found to have a coarser grain than mahogany, and will require much care
in filling. The main thing to be observed, is to see that the filling
is a shade or two darker than the wood to be filled, before any varnish
is laid on. For imitation of rosewood I give below a few recipes:

Take half a pound of logwood, boil it with three pints of water till
it is of a very dark red, to which add about half an ounce of salt of
tartar. When boiling hot, stain your wood with two or three coats,
taking care that it is nearly dry between each; then, with a stiff,
flat brush, such as is used for graining, make streaks with a very
deep black stain, which if carefully executed will be very near the
appearance of dark rosewood. The following is another method: Stain
your wood all over with a black stain, and when dry, with a brush as
above dipped in the bright liquid form real veins in imitation of the
grain of rosewood, which will produce, when well managed, a beautiful
effect. A handy brush for the purpose of graining may be made by taking
a flat brush such as used for varnishing, and cutting the sharp points
of the hairs and making the edge irregular; by cutting out a few hairs
here and there the grain may be imitated with great accuracy.

This is suitable to pine, cedar, cyprus, whitewood, basswoods while the
following should only be used in mahogany, cherry, or birch, spread on
the surface of the material a concentrated solution of hypermagnate
of potassa, to act until the desired shade is obtained. Five minutes
suffice, ordinarily, to give a deep color, a few trials indicating the
proper proportions. The hypermagnate of potassa is decomposed by the
vegetable fibre with the precipitation of brown peroxide of manganese,
which the influence of the potassa, at the same time set free, fixes in
a durable manner the fibres. When the action is terminated the wood is
carefully washed with water, dried, and then oiled and polished in the
usual manner. The effect produced by this process in several woods is
really remarkable.

It has been a mystery to many people why the dark wood so highly prized
for furniture is called “Rosewood.” Its color certainly does not look
much like a rose, so we must look for some other reason. It is claimed
by some that when the tree is first cut the wood possesses a very
strong roselike fragrance, hence the name. This is the most probable
reason for its name. There are about a half a dozen kinds of rosewood
trees. The varieties are found in South America, and in the East Indies
and neighboring islands. Sometimes the trees grow so large that boards
or planks four feet broad and ten feet in length can be cut from them.
The broad boards are used for the tops of piano fortes. When growing in
the forests the tree is remarkable for its beauty, but such its value
in manufacturing as an ornamental wood that some of the forests where
it once grew abundantly now have scarcely a single specimen left.

I have purposely left unmentioned a number of our finest woods such
as our maples, and others, which, would it not increase the size of
this volume, beyond reasonable dimensions. I should have more to say
concerning them. The workmen will know, from what has already been
said, how these light woods may be treated, and I may add, that the
various maples, though rather light in color for general purposes, make
the most delicate of finish. Gum wood of late, has been used to some
extent and is not hard to deal with when to be finished. It should be
treated about as cherry and birch, and finished in a similar way, and
when done nicely the work looks quite well.

Redwood is getting to be a favorite wood with some builders, owing
no doubt to its cheapness, and its easiness to work. It may be
classed among the softer woods and requires treating about the same
as chestnut, butternut and the cedars. The following formula and
directions have been highly recommended as a finish, but for my own
part, I prefer using Wheeler’s filler as I think better results are
obtained. Here is the formula:

  Take one quart Spirits Turpentine.
  Add one pound Corn Starch.
  Add  ¼    “   Burnt Sienna.
  Add one tablespoonful Raw Linseed Oil.
  Add  “        “       Brown Japan.

Mix thoroughly, apply with a brush, let it stand say fifteen minutes;
rub off all you can with fine shavings or a soft rag, then let it stand
_at least twenty-four hours_ that it may sink into and _harden_ the
fibres of the wood, afterward apply two coats of white shellac; rub
down well with fine flint paper, then put on from two to five coats
best polishing varnish; after it is well dried rub with water and
pumice-stone ground very fine, stand a day to dry; after being washed
clean with chamois, rub with water and rotten-stone; dry, wash as
before clean, and rub with olive oil until dry.

Some use cork for sandpapering and polishing, but a smooth block of
hard wood like maple is better. When treated in this way redwood will
be found the peer of any wood for real beauty and life as a house trim
or finish. By proper attention, redwood may be made to appear like
mahogany or cherry but its softness is very much against it.

=General Recipes.=—_Ebonizing._—Prepare some shellac varnish by
dissolving half a pound of gum shellac in a quart of alcohol; put in a
tightly corked bottle, set in a warm place, and shake frequently. When
completely dissolved, add sufficient dry lamp or bone black. It will
require only about a heaping tablespoonful to half a pint of varnish.
Should it be too thick to flow easily from the brush, and spread
evenly, add alcohol. Give the wood two or three coats of this, which
can be done within two days. For fine work give three coats of the
black varnish and allow it to dry thoroughly; then take some 00 or 000
sandpaper and rub the work down lightly until the surface is smooth and
even, being careful not to rub through to the wood. Then apply two or
three coats more, and rub down again with the sandpaper; give two coats
more and allow it to dry perfectly hard. Make some rubbers of felt, an
old felt hat is good, by tacking the felt on blocks of soft wood of
proper shape, which should be flat, concave or convex to fit the work.
Apply a few drops of sewing machine oil to the felt and sprinkle on a
pinch of pulverized pumice-stone. Rub the work with this, keeping the
rubber moist with oil and supplied with the pumice, until the wood
shows a perfectly smooth surface, without any gloss. When it has all
been gone over wipe off the surface and rub clean with dry flannel
cloths. The result is fine imitation of ebony. If the shellac varnish
is colored with aniline instead of lamp black, the finished surface is
smoother and finer.

_Others._—1. Infuse gall-nut in vinegar, into which rusty nails have
been soaked; paint the wood with this, polish and burnish when dry. 2.
Wash the wood repeatedly with a solution of sulphate of iron, made by
dissolving 2 oz. of sulphate in a pint of hot water. When dry, apply a
hot decoction of logwood and nut-galls two or three times. When dry,
clean with a wet sponge and then polish. 3. Brush the wood with a
strong decoction of logwood chips several times. When dry, give it a
coat of vinegar in which rusty iron has been placed. Dissolve beeswax
in turpentine by setting in a warm place; apply warm with a brush, and
rub it till it shines. 4. Wash with a concentrated aqueous solution of
logwood several times, and then with a solution of acetate of iron of
40 deg. Baume. Repeat till a deep black is produced. 5. Put 2 oz. of
logwood chips with 1¼ oz. of copperas in a quart of water, boil, and
lay on hot. When dry, wet the surface again with 2 oz. of steel filings
dissolved in half a pint of vinegar. When dry again, sandpaper smooth,
then oil, then fill it with powdered drop-black mixed in the filler.
Work to be ebonized should be smooth and free from holes. Give it a
light coat of quick drying varnish, then rub with finely pulverized
pumice-stone and linseed oil until very smooth. 6. Boil ½ pound of chip
logwood in two quarts of water, and add ½ oz. of verdigris and ½ oz.
of copperas, strain, and put in ½ pound of rusty steel filings. With
this go over the work a second time. 7. A pound of logwood boiled in
four quarts of water, add two handfuls of walnut shells or peel, boil
up again, take out the chips, add a pint of vinegar, and apply boiling.
Afterwards dissolve 1 oz. of green copperas in a quart of boiling water
and apply hot. 8. First sponge the wood with a solution of chlorhydrate
of aniline in water, to which a small quantity of copper chloride is
added. When dry, go over again with a solution of potassium bichromate.
Repeat this twice or thrice. 9. One gallon of vinegar, ½ pound of green
copperas, ¼ pound of China blue, 2 oz. nut-gall, 2 pounds extract
of logwood. Boil all these over a slow fire, and add half a pint of
iron-rust. Apply as usual. A good varnish for ebonized work is made by
dissolving in alcohol some black wax.

=Stains.=—Many excellent stains for pine may be obtained by using
the ordinary graining colors, Vandyke brown, raw and burnt sienna,
ultramarine blue, etc., applied with a brush, without previous
preparation and then wiped off with a cloth—a method that brings out
clearly the grain or marks of the wood, which in pitch pine, now being
extensively used for fittings, are often extremely beautiful. A better
method for general work, French polish being ordinarily too expensive,
is, where dark oak or mahogany stains are not wanted, light varnishes,
of which two coats are to be applied. The glue size with which the work
is first coated, in order to fill up the pores of the wood, should not
be too thick, as in that case it is liable to crack.

Logwood, lime, brown soft-soap, dyed oil, sulphate of iron, nitrate
of silver exposed to the sun’s rays, carbonate of soda, bichromate
and permanganate of potash, and other alkaline preparations, are used
for darkening the wood; the last three are specially recommended. The
solution is applied by dissolving one ounce of the alkali in two
gills of boiling water, diluted to the required tone. The surface is
saturated with a sponge or flannel, and immediately dried with soft
rags. The carbonate is used for dark woods. Oil tinged with rose madder
may be applied to hard woods like birch, and a red oil is prepared
from soaked alkanet root in linseed oil. The grain of yellow pine
can be brought out by two or three coats of japan, much diluted with
turpentine, and afterwards oiled and rubbed. To give mahogany the
appearance of age, lime water used before oiling is a good plan. In
staining wood, the best and most transparent effect is obtained by
repeated light coats of the same. For oak stain a strong solution of
oxalic acid is employed; for mahogany, dilute nitric acid. A primary
coat or a coat of wood-fillers is advantageous. For mahogany stains,
the following are given: two ounces of dragon’s-blood dissolved in
one quart of rectified spirits of wine, well shaken, or raw sienna in
beer, with burnt sienna to give the required tone; for darker stains
boil half pound of madder and two ounces of logwood chips in one gallon
of water, and brush the decoction while hot over the wood; when dry,
paint with a solution of two ounces of potash in one quart of water.
A solution of permangate of potash forms a rapid and excellent brown
stain.

Oak or ash may be stained brown by using linseed oil and benzine half
and half, and burnt umber or Vandyke brown incorporated with this.
Maple can be stained green-gray by using copperas in water; oak will
also be changed to a dark green blue through the same agency, the
effect on ash being various shades of olive green. Ammonia applied to
oak produces the bronze olive tint now used so much by architects.

Wash any compact wood with a boiling decoction of logwood three or four
times, allowing it to dry between each application. Then wash it with a
solution of acetate of iron, which is made by dissolving iron fillings
in vinegar. This stain is very black, and penetrates to a considerable
depth into the wood, so that ordinary scratching or chipping does not
show the original color.

A wash of one part of nitric acid in ten parts of water will, if well
done, impart a stain resembling mahogany to pine wood which does not
contain much resin. When the wood is thoroughly dry, shellac varnish
will impart a fine finish to the surface. A glaze of carmine or lake
will produce a rosewood finish. A turpentine extract of alkanet root
produces a beautiful stain which admits of French polishing. Asphaltum,
thinned with turpentine, makes an excellent mahogany color on new wood.

=A Method.=—Of imparting to any plain white wood the appearance of
cedar wood is as follows:—Mix two parts of catechu, and one part of
caustic soda, in a hundred parts of water (all by weight). The article
to be stained should be boiled in this solution for some hours, and is
then rinsed in clear water and dried. If the desired depth of tone has
not been obtained, a second boiling must be resorted to. This stain is
said to sink so deep into the wood that even thick sheets of veneer
thus treated will be colored right through; while other wood articles
thus stained may be safely manipulated without any fear of the original
color of the wood showing through.

=For a Brown Stain.=—Boil 1 lb. of the brown pigment called Terre de
Cassel with 4 quarts of water, until it is reduced one-third. Mix two
ounces (Troy) of white potash with sufficient water to dissolve it, and
mix with the Terre de Cassel. This stain must be applied with a brush,
two or even three times, according to the depth of the shade required.

=Another.=—Paint the wood with a solution made by boiling one pot of
catechu with thirty parts of water and a little soda; when dry paint
over with another solution made of one part bichromate of potash and
thirty parts water. By a little difference in the mode of treatment,
and by varying the strength of the solutions, several shades of color
may be given.

=For a Black Dye.=—Put 6 lbs. of chip logwood into the copper, with as
many veneers as it will conveniently hold, without pressing too tight;
fill it with water, and let it boil _slowly_ for about three hours;
then add half a pound of powdered verdigris, half a pound of copperas,
and four ounces of bruised nut-galls; fill the copper up with vinegar
as the water evaporates; let it boil gently two hours each day till the
wood is dyed through.

=To Brighten Stains.=—Any of the stains named (except the surface
stains) will be rendered much more brilliant by an application of the
following: 1 oz. nitric acid, ½ teaspoonful muriatic acid, ¼ oz. grain
tin, 2 ozs. rain water. Mix in a bottle, at least two days before
using, and keep the bottle well corked.

The above stains are probably the most important to a house finisher,
and, as they have all been employed and found practicable, they can be
relied upon. In performing a small job it will generally be found more
convenient and economical to obtain the stain from some furniture shop
where it is kept in bulk.

The best way to preserve stain is to keep it in bottles or jugs. It is
said that four or five drops of creosote added to a quart of stain will
prevent it from becoming mouldy and stagnant.

The stainers at the furniture shops have contrived a scheme to prevent
their hands from becoming deeply stained while at work, by dipping them
into a quick-dry varnish or oil shellac, and then in cleansing them
they rinse them first in water to remove the stain, and then submit
them to a turpentine bath, thus removing the varnish.

=Miscellaneous.=—Many processes have of late been applied to the
finishing of wood-work, such as staining in various colors, fumigating
and other methods. A new finish is now practised in the European
market, and is known as the Rubenick process. It is used for giving a
metallic surface to wood, and consists in first immersing the wood in
a bath of caustic alkaline lye, in which it is allowed to remain for
two or three days, according to the degree of permeability of the wood,
at a temperature of 167° to 194° F. From this bath the wood passes to
another of hydrosulphate of calcium, to which is added, after 24 or 36
hours, a concentrated solution of sulphur. Here it remains for about 48
hours at a temperature of 95° to 122° F., and, lastly, for from 30 to
50 hours the wood is immersed in a solution of acetate of lead at the
same temperature. The timber, thus pickled, is allowed to dry, when it
is said to be susceptible, after burnishing, of a high polish and even
metallic luster, which is more brilliant if the surfaces of the wood
have been previously rubbed with lead, tin or zinc plates, and then
polished with a glass or porcelain burnisher. Treated in this way the
wood may assume the appearance of a metallic mirror, being also hard
and very strong.

With the majority of lumbermen the term hardwood includes everything
except white pine, and is accepted in that sense generally by the
trade, though in reality there are two or three woods, such as buckeye
and Southern white lynn, that are softer than white pine. Some writer,
we know not who, says: “The relative hardness of woods is calculated
by the hickory, which is the toughest. Estimating this at 100, we get
for pignut hickory 96, white oak 84, white ash 77, dogwood 75, scrub
oak 73, white hazel, 72, apple tree 70, red oak 79, white beech 65,
black walnut 65, black birch 62, yellow and black oak, 60, hard maple
56, white elm 58, red cedar 56, cherry 55, yellow pine 54, chestnut 52,
yellow poplar 51, butternut and white birch 43, and white pine 35.”

According to this formula, woods possessing a degree of hardness equal
to only about 40 per cent., or less than that of hickory, should not
be classed as hardwoods. Such woods are, however, limited in quantity,
and are not of sufficient importance to justify a classification, and
the trade will continue to construe hardwood to mean everything except
white pine.

=Dyeing= wood is mostly applied for the purpose of veneers, while
staining is more generally had recourse to give the desired color to
the article after it has been manufactured. In the one case, the color
should penetrate throughout, while in the latter the surface is all
that is essential.

In dyeing, pear tree, holly and beech, take the best black; but for
most colors holly is preferable. It is also best to have wood as young
and as newly cut as possible. After the veneers are cut, they should be
allowed to lie in a trough of water for four or five days before they
are put into the copper; as the water, acting as a purgative to the
wood, brings out an abundance of slimy matter, which must be removed,
or the wood will never be a good color. After this purificatory
process, they should be dried in the open air for at least twelve
hours. They are then ready for the copper. By these simple means the
color will strike much quicker, and be of a brighter hue. It would also
add to the improvement of the colors, if, after the veneers have boiled
a few hours, they are taken out, dried in the air, and again immersed
in the coloring copper. Always dry veneers in the open air, for fire
invariably injures the colors.

=Fine Black Dye.=—Put 6 lbs. of chip logwood into the copper, with as
many veneers as it will conveniently hold, without pressing too tight;
fill it with water, and let it boil _slowly_ for about three hours;
then add half a pound of powdered verdigris, half a pound of copperas,
and 4 ounces of bruised nut-galls; fill the copper up with vinegar as
the water evaporates; let it boil gently two hours each day till the
wood is dyed through.

_Another._—Procure some liquor from a tanner’s pit, or make a decoction
of oak bark, and to every gallon of the liquor add a quarter of a pound
of green copperas, and mix them well together; put the liquor into the
copper, and make it quite hot, but not boil; immerse the veneers in it,
and let them remain for an hour; take them out, and expose them to the
air, till it has penetrated its substance; then add some logwood to
the solution, place the veneers again in it, and let it simmer for two
or three hours; let the whole cool gradually, dry the veneers in the
shade, and they will be a very fine black.

=Fine Blue Dye.=—Into a clean glass bottle put 1 lb. of oil of vitriol,
and 4 ozs. of the best indigo pounded in a mortar (take care to set
the bottle in a basin or earthen glazed pan, as it will ferment); then
put the veneers into a copper or stone trough; fill it rather more
than one-third with water, and add as much of the vitriol and indigo
(stirring it about) as will make a fine blue, which may be known by
trying it with a piece of white paper or wood, Let the veneers remain
till the dye has struck through.

The color will be much improved if the solution of indigo in vitriol
be kept a few weeks before using it. The color will strike better if
the veneers are boiled in plain water till completely soaked through,
and then allowed for a few hours to dry partially, previous to being
immersed in the dye.

_Another._—Throw pieces of quicklime into soft water; stir it well;
when settled, strain or pour off the clear part; then to every gallon
add ten or twelve ounces of the best turnsole; put the whole into the
copper with the veneers, which should be of white holly, and prepared
as usual by boiling in water; let them simmer gently till the color has
sufficiently penetrated, but be careful not to let them boil in it, as
it would injure the color.

=A Fine Yellow Dye.=—Reduce 4 lbs. of the root of barberry, by sawing,
to dust, which put in a copper or brass trough; add 4 ozs. of turmeric
and 4 gallons of water, then put in as many white holly veneers as the
liquor will cover; boil them together for three hours, often turning
them; when cool, add 2 ozs. of aquafortis and the dye will strike
through much sooner.

=A Bright Yellow Dye.=—To every gallon of water necessary to cover the
veneers, add 1 lb. of French berries; boil the veneers till the color
has penetrated through; add to the infusion of the French berries, the
liquid for brightening colors given on page 78, and let the veneers
remain for two or three hours, and the color will be very bright.

=Bright Green Dye.=—Proceed as in either of the previous receipts to
produce a yellow; but instead of adding aquafortis or the brightening
liquid, add as much vitriolated indigo (see page 80) as will produce
the desired color.

=Green Dye.=—Dissolve 4 ozs. of the best verdigris, and of sap-green
and indigo half an ounce each in 3 pints of the best vinegar; put in
the veneers, and gently boil till the color has penetrated sufficiently.

The hue of the green may be varied by altering the proportion of the
ingredients; and it is advised, unless wanted for a particular purpose,
to leave out the sap-green, as it is a vegetable color very apt to
change, or turn brown, when exposed to the air.

=Bright Red Dye.=—To 2 lbs. of genuine Brazil dust, add 4 gallons of
water; put in as many veneers as the liquor will cover; boil them for
three hours; then add 2 ozs. of alum, and 2 ozs. of aquafortis, and
keep it lukewarm until it has struck through.

=Red Dye.=—To every pound of logwood chips, add 2 gallons of water; put
in the veneers, and boil as in the last; then add a sufficient quantity
of the brightening liquid (see page 78) till you see the color to your
mind; keep the whole as warm as the finger can be borne in it, till the
color has sufficiently penetrated.

The logwood chips should be picked from all foreign substances, with
which it generally abounds, as bark, dirt, etc.; and it is always best
when fresh cut, which may be known by its appearing of a bright-red
color; for if stale, it will look brown, and not yield so much coloring
matter.

=Purple Dye.=—To 2 lbs. of chip logwood and half a pound of Brazil
dust, add 4 gallons of water, and after putting in the veneers, boil
them for at least three hours; then add 6 ozs. of pearl-ash and 2 ozs.
of alum; let them boil for two or three hours every day, till the color
has struck through.

The Brazil dust only contributes to make the purple of a more red cast;
you may, therefore, omit it, if you require a deep bluish purple.

_Another._—Boil 2 lbs. of logwood, either in chips or powder, in 4
gallons of water, with the veneers; after boiling till the color is
well struck in, add by degrees vitriolated indigo (see page 80) till
the purple is of the shade required, which may be known by trying it
with a piece of paper; let it then boil for one hour, and keep the
liquid in a milk-warm state till the color has penetrated the veneer.
This method, when properly managed, will produce a brilliant purple,
not so likely to fade as the foregoing.

=Liquid For Brightening= AND SETTING COLORS.—To every pint of strong
aquafortis, add 1 oz. of grain tin, and a piece of sal-ammoniac of the
size of a walnut; set it by to dissolve, shake the bottle round with
the cork out, from time to time; in the course of two or three days it
will be fit for use. This will be found an admirable liquid to add to
any color, as it not only brightens it, but renders it less likely to
fade from exposure to the air.

=Orange Dye.=—Let the veneers be dyed by either of the methods given
in page 81, of a fine deep yellow, and while they are still wet and
saturated with the dye, transfer them to the bright red dye as in page
82, till the color penetrates equally throughout.

=Silver Grey Dye.=—Expose to the weather in a cast-iron pot of six or
eight gallons, old iron nails, hoops, etc., till covered with rust; add
1 gallon of vinegar and 2 of water, boil all well for an hour; have
the veneers ready, which must be hardwood (not too dry,) put them in
the copper used to dye black, and pour the iron liquor over them; add
1 lb. of chip logwood and 2 ozs. of bruised nut-galls; then boil up
another pot of the iron liquor to supply the copper with, keeping the
veneers covered, and boiling two hours a day, till the required color
is obtained.

=Gray Dye.=—Expose any quantity of old iron, or what is better, the
borings of gun-barrels, etc., in any convenient vessel, and from time
to time sprinkle them with spirits of salt (muriatic acid) diluted in
four times its quantity of water, till they are very thickly covered
with rust; then to every six pounds add a gallon of water, in which has
been dissolved two ounces of salt of tartar; lay the veneers in the
copper, and cover them with this liquid; let it boil for two or three
hours till well soaked, then to every gallon of liquor add a quarter of
a pound of green copperas, and keep the whole at a moderate temperature
till the dye has sufficiently penetrated.

=Gilding, Silvering and Bronzing= are processes of applying to
previously prepared surfaces a thin layer of gold or silver leaf, or in
bronzing, of a fine powder, prepared from various metals and intended
to imitate the peculiar appearance of genuine bronze. The processes
of gilding and silvering being identical, the description of one will
suffice to explain the other.

=Gilding.=—Gold leaf, applied to articles of furniture as a means
of decoration, is used in two ways; it is applied over an ordinary
varnish or other finish, in which case but little special preparation
is necessary; or, as when used for picture-frames, cornices, etc., it
is applied to a specially prepared foundation, the basis of which is
whiting, mixed with various other ingredients suggested by experience
or fancy. In either case, the gold leaf is caused to adhere to the
work, by size specially prepared for the purpose, receipts for which
follow herewith; the size being first applied to the work, and when
it has become of the right consistency, the gold is laid upon it.
OIL-GILDING and BURNISH-GILDING are different methods used to obtain
certain desired effects, the former principally for articles exposed
to the weather, and for heightening the effect of incised carving or
engraving, and the latter for picture-frames and articles having a
specially prepared foundation, whose entire surface is to be gilded. It
is intended that the gold shall adhere to the work only in the places
to which the size has been applied, but the smallest portion of oil
or even a slight dampness may cause the gold to partially adhere to
the adjoining surface, resulting in slightly ragged edges; to prevent
this, before applying the size to the desired design, the entire
surface is covered with a thin film of some substance perfectly free
from moisture, and easily removable by water, after completion of the
process.

=The Requisites.=—First, a sufficient quantity of leaf-gold, which is
of two sorts—the deep gold, as it is called, and the pale gold. The
former is the best; the latter very useful, and may occasionally be
introduced for variety or effect.

Second, a gilder’s cushion: an oblong piece of wood, covered with rough
calf-skin, stuffed with flannel several times doubled, with a border
of parchment, about four inches deep, at one end, to prevent the air
blowing the leaves about when placed on the cushion.

Thirdly, a gilding-knife, with a straight and very smooth edge, to cut
the gold.

Fourthly, several camel-hair pencils in sizes, and tips, made of a few
long camel’s hairs put between two cards, in the same manner as hairs
are put into tin cases for brushes, thus making a flat brush with a
very few hairs.

Lastly, a burnisher, which is a crooked piece of agate set in a long
wooden handle.

=Sizes.=—These are of two kinds: oil sizes are those which when
applied, present an adhesive surface, requiring the immediate laying of
the gold-leaf upon it; of this class is the oil-size commonly used in
decorating furniture; water-sizes are those that are allowed to become
dry and hard when applied, and are rendered adhesive when the gold is
to be laid, by brushing over with water; for burnish-gilding these are
always employed, as oil-size does not dry sufficiently hard to permit
of burnishing.

=Oil Size for Oil-Gliding.=—Grind calcined red-ochre with the best
and oldest drying-oil. When desired for use, add sufficient oil of
turpentine to make it work freely.

=Parchment-Size.=—For preparing Frames, etc.—To half a pound of
parchment shavings, or cuttings of white leather, add three quarts of
water, and boil it in a proper vessel till reduced to nearly half the
quantity; then take it off the fire, and strain it through a sieve. Be
careful in the boiling to keep it well stirred, and do not let burn.

=Gold-Size for Burnish-Gilding.=—Grind fine sal-ammoniac well with a
muller and stone; scrape into it a little beef suet, and grind all wet
together; after which, mix in with a pallet knife a small proportion of
parchment-size with a double proportion of water. When about to use,
add parchment-size until it will just flow from the brush.

_Another._—Grind a lump of tobacco-pipe clay into a very stiff paste
with thin size; add a small quantity of ruddle and fine black lead,
ground very fine, and temper the whole with a small piece of tallow.
When ready to use, reduce with parchment size until it will just flow
from the brush.

_Another._—Grind separately in water, 1 lb. Armenian bole, 2 ozs. red
lead, a sufficient quantity of black lead; mix, and regrind with a
small quantity of olive oil. Reduce with parchment size to the proper
consistency.

=To Prevent Gold Adhering.=—Either one of the following methods will
prevent gold-leaf or bronze from adhering to the surface beyond the
outlines of the sizing laid on to receive it:

1. Whiting used dry, and applied by means of a pounce bag.

2. Whiting mixed in water, and applied with a soft brush. When the
water has evaporated, dust off the superfluous whiting with an ordinary
paint duster. By this method a very thin coating of whiting remains,
which is free from any grittiness. One advantage gained by the use of
whiting thus applied is, it furnishes a whitish ground over which clear
varnish or oil-size may be distinctly seen as the striping progresses.
After the leaf or bronze has been applied, the work must be carefully
washed, so as to insure the removal of the whiting.

3. White of egg reduced with water, and applied with a piece of sponge.

4. A thin wash of starch water, either brushed on with a flat
camel-hair brush, or applied with a soft sponge.

5. Take ball liquorice and water, a weak solution, and apply with a
soft brush. This may be kept in a bottle ready for use at any time.

6. Cut a new potato in two, and rub over the part to be sized with the
raw face exposed, allowing the juice to remain until dry.

It will be observed that any substance which interposes a film over the
varnish, itself being free from tackiness and readily removed by water,
will answer the purpose.

=Oil Gilding.=—Applying the Gold.—If the wood to be gilded is finished
with varnish or otherwise, no additional foundation is necessary upon
which to lay the gold-leaf; if the wood is not finished, after it has
been smoothed and dusted, give it one or two coats of parchment size,
after it is perfectly dry and hard, again smoothing the surface with
fine sandpaper. That the gold may not adhere to any part of the work
except where the size is hard, powder the surface lightly with whiting
from a pounce-bag, which is a small bag made of material sufficiently
loose to permit the powdered whiting to sift through as fine dust; if
preferred, any of the preceding receipts for that purpose can be used
instead. Remove the surplus whiting with the dusting-brush, and the
work is then ready for the size. Apply this with a sable or fit brush
of the proper size, carefully observing to make the outer lines of the
design clear and sharp, that the work may not appear ragged. Let the
size remain until it feels tacky, when the gold may be applied. This is
the most difficult part of the operation, and experience is necessary
before gold-leaf can be laid smoothly without a wrinkle or a break.
Turn a leaf of gold out of the book upon the cushion; breathe gently
upon the centre of the leaf and it will lay flat on the cushion; cut
it to the proper size by bringing the knife perpendicularly over it,
and sawing it gently until divided. Take your tip (a brush used for
the purpose) and after drawing it lightly over your hair to remove any
particles or dust that may be upon it, breathe upon it gently, which
will dampen it sufficiently to cause the leaf of gold to adhere to it;
lay the tip upon the leaf of gold and carefully transfer it to the
work; blow upon it gently and it will straighten out and adhere. It may
be rendered quite smooth by slightly dabbing it with a bit of cotton.
In about an hour wash off the superfluous gold from the edges, with a
sponge and water. If the article is to be exposed to the weather or
much wear, the gilding may be varnished with copal varnish.

=Burnish-Gilding.=—As previously stated, this process requires a
specially prepared foundation upon which to lay the gold, and as the
preparation of this foundation is a distinct trade, the furniture
dealer or cabinet-maker seldom finds it necessary to undertake it,
the articles coming to his hand ready-prepared for gilding; but as in
repairing picture-frames, cornices, mirror frames, etc., it frequently
becomes necessary to renew the foundation, a comprehensive description
of the whole process is given.

=Preparing the Woodwork.=—After smoothing and dusting the work, coat
the frames in every part with boiling-hot parchment-size, as previously
described, then mix a sufficient quantity of whiting with size to the
consistency of thick cream, and with it by means of a brush, coat
every part of the frame several times, permitting each coat to become
perfectly dry before proceeding with the next. The wood will thus be
covered with a layer of hard whiting nearly or quite a sixteenth of an
inch in thickness. The size must not be too thick, and when mixed with
the whiting should not be so hot as the preliminary coat of size.

=Polishing.=—When the preparations are quite dry, clean and polish
them. To do this, wet a small piece at a time, and, with a smooth, fine
piece of cloth, dipped in water, rub the part till all the bumps and
inequalities are removed; and for those parts where the fingers will
not enter, as the mouldings, etc., wind the wet cloth round a piece of
wood, and by this means make the surface all smooth and even alike.

Where there is carved work, etc., it will sometimes be necessary to
bring the mouldings to their original sharpness by means of chisels,
gouges, etc., as the preparation will be apt to fill up all the finer
parts of the work, which must be thus restored. It is sometimes the
practice, after polishing, to go over the work once with fine yellow or
Roman ochre; but this is rarely necessary.

=Applying the Size.=—Select the proper gold-size from the receipts
previously given; add parchment size until it will just flow from the
brush; make it quite hot, and apply it to the wood with a very soft
brush, taking care not to make the first coat too thick; let it dry and
give two or three successive coats, after the last brushing it with a
stiff brush to remove any inequalities. The work is then ready for the
gold.

Laying the gold. The manipulation of the gold leaf has been described
under the heading OIL GILDING. In the paint now being described, size
used (being water-size, which previously explained is permitted to
become hard and dry after being applied) must be moistened to cause
the gold-leaf to adhere to it. For this purpose, with a long-haired
camel-hair pencil, dipped in water, go over as much of the work as you
intend the piece of gold to cover; then lay the gold upon it in the
manner previously explained. Be sure that the part to which the gold is
applied is sufficiently wet; indeed it must be floating, or the gold
will be apt to crack. Proceed in this manner a little at a time, and
do not attempt to cover too much at once, until by experience you are
going to handle the gold with freedom.

=Burnishing.=—When the work is covered with gold, set it by to dry;
there is a particular state or degree of dryness, known only by
experience in which the moulding is in a fit state for burnishing; it
will probably be ready to burnish in about eight or ten hours, but it
will depend on the warmth of the room or state of the air.

When it is ready, those parts intended to be burnished must be dusted
with a soft brush; then wiping the burnisher with a piece of soft
wash-leather (quite dry) begin to burnish about an inch or two in
length at a time, taking care not to bear too hard, but with a gentle
and quick motion, applying the tool until all the parts of the surface
are equally bright.

=Matting or Dead Gold.=—Certain portions only of the work are
burnished, according to the fancy, and the facility with which the
burnishing tool can be applied; the remaining parts are now to be
deprived of their metallic lustre, to make a more effective contrast
with the burnishing. The parts thus treated are said to be matted or
dead gold. The process is as follows:

Grind some vermilion or yellow ochre very fine, and mix a very small
portion either with the parchment size or with the white of an egg,
and with a very soft brush lay it evenly on the parts to be dulled; if
well done, it will add greatly to the beauty of the work. Previous to
matting, the work must be well cleared of superfluous gold, by means of
a soft brush.

=Finishing.=—In elaborate works it is frequently impossible to lay
gold-leaf into all the intricacies of an elaborate design, and the
parts thus left bare must be finished by touching up with a small brush
charged with shell-gold, or gold-powder, mixed with gum-Arabic to the
proper consistency. The following receipt describes the preparation of
shell-gold:

=Shelled Gold.=—Take any quantity of leaf-gold and grind it with a
small portion of honey, to a fine powder, add a little gum-Arabic and
sugar-candy, with a little water, and mix it well together; let it dry.

=Silver Size.=—Grind pipe-clay fine with a little black lead and good
soap, and add parchment-size as directed for gold-size.

=Composition for Frame Ornaments.=—The ornaments for gilded
mirror-frames, etc., are usually moulded from some plastic substance
that is somewhat tougher and more durable than the ordinary gilding
foundation of whiting and size. The proper moulds being prepared
they are thoroughly rubbed upon the inside with sweet oil, and the
composition firmly pressed in; after removing the mould the cast may
be dried by a gentle heat, or while still plastic it can be applied in
its proper place and bent into any position. Following are receipts for
composition:

Dissolve 1 lb. of glue in 1 gallon of water. In another kettle boil
together 2 lbs. of resin, 1 gill of Venice turpentine, and 1 pint of
linseed oil; mix altogether in one kettle, and boil and stir till
the water has evaporated. Turn the whole into a tub of finely-rolled
whiting, and work till it is the consistency of dough.

Boil 7 lbs. of best glue in 7 half-pints of water. Melt 3 lbs. of
white resin in 3 pints of raw linseed oil. When the above has been
well-boiled put them into a large vessel and simmer them for half an
hour, stirring the mixture and taking care that it does not boil over.
The whole must then be turned into a box of whiting rolled and sifted,
and mixed till it is of the consistency of dough.

=To Manipulate Gold Leaf.=—Get a piece of paper, thin enough to show
shadow of gold-leaf through, slightly wax it, lay it on gold-leaf, the
latter will then adhere, and can be easily worked and will come off
clean. The paper should be slightly larger than the gold-leaf, and the
fingers passed over the paper to make the gold-leaf adhere.

Bronzing.—This is a process for imitating on metal, plaster wood, or
other material, the peculiar appearance produced by chemical action
upon the surface of bronze metal. It is accomplished by spreading over
the surface of the material to be ornamented a very thin coating of
bronze-powder, which is caused to adhere either by applying it directly
upon a coating of any of the sizes mentioned in the foregoing pages, or
by mixing with a vehicle, such as gum-Arabic or transparent varnish.
The latter is most desirable, as in the other case, being subject to
the direct action of the atmosphere, the bronze-powder soon tarnishes.
In ornamenting furniture, bronzing is generally employed to represent
gilding, a variety of bronze called gold-bronze being used, which
affords an excellent imitation but is not very lasting. It is usually
applied after the completion of the other finishing processes, the
ground-work being prepared in the manner described under OIL-GILDING,
and the size likewise applied as there described. A small wad of cotton
batting is then dipped in the bronze and passed gently over the sized
portions, causing the bronze to adhere. In the other method—that of
applying the bronze by means of a vehicle—the preliminaries of whiting
the ground and sizing are not necessary, a small quantity of bronze
being simply mixed with the vehicle employed to such a degree of
fluidity that it will flow easily, and in that condition applied with a
fine brush. Many preparations are used as vehicles such as transparent
varnish thinned with turpentine, gum-Arabic, dissolved in water, and
gold-size reduced with parchment-size. There are a variety of colors
in bronze-powders, and to produce the best effect the size or vehicle
should be of a color similar to that of the bronze used; in gold-size
the coloring pigment is ochre, and in its place, for green-bronze,
or blue-bronze, may be employed respectively verditer, vermillion or
Prussian blue, a very small quantity being sufficient. In bronzing on
painted work the ground should be as nearly as possible the color of
the bronze to be applied.


                               THE END.




                                INDEX.


  A filler for rosewood, 18.

  Another method of filling, 18.

  A good recipe for French polish, 47.

  Another recipe for French polish, 47.

  A good polish, 48.

  A polish that will resist water, 48.

  A French polish reviver, 49.

  Antique oak, 53.

  Ash, 63.

  A fine yellow dye, 81.

  A bright yellow dye, 81.

  Applying size, 88.


  Berry Bros. hard oil finish, 25.

  Brushes for varnishing, 35.

  Birch, 64.

  Basswood, 69.

  Beech, 69.

  Butternut, 69.

  Brown stain, 77.

  Brown stain by another method, 77.

  Black dye, 77.

  Bright green dye, 81.

  Bright red dye, 82.

  Burnish gilding, 87.

  Burnishing, 89.


  Carriage varnish, 41.

  Chamois skin, 41.

  Cleanliness in polishing, 42.

  Cotton wads for polishing, 45.

  Cherry, 62.

  Cedar, 69.

  Chestnut, 69.

  Cypress, 70.

  Cedarwood imitation, 77.

  Composition for frame ornaments, 90.


  Dead finish, 49.

  Dying wood, 79.


  Elm, 69.


  Filler for light woods, 17.

  Filler for cherry, 18.

  Filler for oak, 18.

  Filler for rosewood, 18.

  Filler for mahogany, redwood and cherry, 20.

  F. W. Devoe & Co.’s wax finishing, 24.

  Finishing, varnishing and polishing, 27.

  Flowing, 42.

  French polishing, 44.

  First and best recipe for French polishing, 47.

  Finish—dead, 49.

  Fine black dye, 80.

  Fine blue dye, 80.

  Finishing, 90.


  Glue size, 34.

  General recipes, 73.

  Green dye, 81.

  Grey dye, 83.

  Gilding, silvering and bronzing, 83.

  Gilding, 84.

  Gold size for burnish gilding, 85.


  Hard oil finish, 25.

  Hard oil finishing, 34.

  Hemlock, 70.


  Introduction, 5.

  Imitation oak stain, 68.

  Imitation mahogany stain, 68.

  Imitation rosewood stain, 68.

  Imitation walnut stain, 68.


  Liquid for brightening and setting colors, 82.


  Murphy’s transparent varnish, 44.

  Mahogany, 58.

  Miscellaneous, 78.

  Matting or dead gold, 89.


  Oil shellac, 33.

  Other French polish recipes, 47.

  Oak, 52.

  Oak stains, 58.

  Oak stain “No. 2,” 58.

  Orange dye, 83.

  Oil size for oil gilding, 85.

  Oil gilding, 86.


  Preliminary, 9.

  Preparation of wood for staining, 19.

  Polishing and finishing, 27.

  Preparing shellac, 32.

  Pumice-stone, 39.

  Prepared spirits, 48.

  Polish for turner’s work, 49.

  Pine, 65.

  Poplar, 69.

  Purple dye, 82.

  Parchment size, 85.

  Preparing wood-work, 88.

  Polishing, 88.


  Rubbing and finishing, 29.

  Rubber for polishing, 46.

  Rosewood, 71.

  Red dye, 82.


  Size and sizing, 26.

  Staining, finishing, varnishing and polishing, 27.

  Shellacing, 30.

  Shellac, preparing, 32.

  Sandpapering, 36.

  “Sag” in varnish, 37.

  Sweating varnish, 40.

  Sycamore, 70.

  Stains, 75.

  Silver grey dye, 83.

  Sizes, 85.

  Shelled gold, 90.

  Silver size, 90.


  The various woods, their stains and finish, 51.

  To brighten stains, 78.

  The requisites, 84.

  To prevent gold adhering, 86.

  To manipulate gold leaf, 91.


  Varnishing and polishing, 27.

  Varnishing hardwood, 35.

  Varnish brushes, 35.

  Veneered panels, 43.

  Varnish polishing, 43.

  Varnish finish for cheap work, 50.

  Varnish pans, 51.


  Wood fillers and wood-filling, 14.

  Walnut filler, medium, 17.

  Walnut filler for wax finish, 17.

  Walnut filler for first-class work, 17.

  Wheeler’s wood-filler, 22.

  Wax finish, 50.

  Walnut, 68.




                          +Established 1870.+

                             STANDARD BOOKS

                     PUBLISHED AND FOR SALE BY THE

                       INDUSTRIAL PUBLICATION CO.

                                                               New York.

_These books will be sent, postpaid, to any address in any accessible
part of the world, on receipt of price.—Full Descriptive Catalogues may
be had free.—New Catalogues, with additions of new books, are issued
from time to time, and will be sent to any address on request.—Address_,

              INDUSTRIAL PUBLICATION CO.,      New York.


THE STEEL SQUARE AND ITS USES.

  Being a Description of the Square and Its Uses in Obtaining the
  Lengths and Bevels of all kinds of Rafters, Hips, Groins, Braces,
  Brackets, Purlins, Collar-Beams, and Jack-Rafters.—Also, its
  Application in Obtaining the Bevels and Cuts for Hoppers, Spring
  Moldings, Octagons, Stairs, Diminished Stiles, &c.—By FRED. T.
  HODGSON, author of “Practical Carpentry,” “The Builders’ Guide,”
  &c.—Third Edition, Revised and Greatly Enlarged.—Illustrated by
  Nearly One Hundred Fine Engravings.—Cloth, gilt.                    $1

This is the only practical work on the steel square and its uses ever
published. It is thorough, accurate, clear, and easily understood.
Confounding terms and scientific phrases have been religiously avoided
where possible; and everything in the book has been made so plain that
a boy of twelve years of age, possessing ordinary intelligence, can
understand it from end to end.

This new edition, just issued, is illustrated by nearly one hundred
handsome engravings, showing how the square may be used for solving
nearly every problem in the whole art of carpentry. The carpenter who
possesses this book need not waste time and material “cutting and
trying.” He can lay out his work to a hair’s breadth, and “cut to the
line.” And, in these days, the workman who can not lay out his work
accurately at the first attempt stands no show.

The book is absolutely indispensable to every person who may have
to use a carpenter’s square. Joiners, cabinet-makers, bricklayers,
stonecutters, plasterers, lumber-dealers, amateurs, and all who build
a fence, tinker a gate, or make a chicken-coop will find something in
this little volume that will help and aid them to do their work better
and more intelligently than they could without a knowledge of its
contents.

Many difficult and troublesome mathematical problems can be solved by
the use of this tool, and the methods of solving them are shown in
this book. It describes how painting, plastering, and brickwork can be
measured, and how many mechanical difficulties can be overcome with
great ease. It explains how ellipses, parabolas, octagons, circles, and
many other figures, may be described by the steel square.

It is safe to say that this dollar book will easily enable any
intelligent mechanic to save ten dollars in time and material during
the first three months that he has it in use.


STEEL SQUARES AND THEIR USES.

  Being a Description of the Various Steel Squares and Their Uses
  in Solving a large number of Mechanical Problems in Constructive
  Carpentry, Joinery, Sheet-metal Work, Cut-stone or Brick-work. Also,
  showing how many Geometrical and other Problems may be solved by the
  use of the Steel Square.—By FRED. T. HODGSON, author of “The Steel
  Square and Its Uses,” “The Slide-Rule, and Its Uses,” “Practical
  Carpentry,” “The Builders’ Guide,” &c.—Finely Illustrated.—Cloth.   $1

This forms Part II of “_The Steel Square and Its Uses_,” and is not in
any sense a substitute for the First Part, which still remains what it
always has been—a necessity to every intelligent workman. Part II is an
extension and enlargement of the First Part, giving new problems, new
methods, and new wrinkles for shortening the labor and increasing the
accuracy of the workman. It is illustrated in the same handsome manner
which characterizes the First Part, to which it forms a companion
volume.

With these two volumes in his possession the workman has at command the
entire practical mathematics of construction, and is prepared to lay
out any piece of work more easily, quickly, and accurately than it can
be done by any other method.


PRACTICAL CARPENTRY.

  Being a Guide to the Correct Working and Laying out of all kinds of
  Carpenters’ and Joiners’ Work, with the Solutions of the Various
  Problems in Hip-Roofs, Gothic Work, Centering, Splayed Work, Joints
  and Jointing, Hingeing, Dovetailing, Mitering, Timber-Splicing,
  Hopper-work, Skylights, Raking Moldings, Circular Work, &c.—To
  which is prefixed a thorough treatise on “Carpenters’ Geometry.”—By
  FRED. T. HODGSON, author of “The Steel Square and Its Uses,”
  “The Slide-Rule, and How to Use It,” “The Builders’ Guide,”
  &c.—Illustrated by over Three Hundred Engravings.—Cloth, gilt.      $1

This is the most thorough book of the kind ever published. It is
thorough, practical, and reliable; and at the same time is written in a
style so plain that any workman or apprentice can easily understand it.


STAIR-BUILDING MADE EASY.

  Being a Full and Clear Description of the Art of Building the Bodies,
  Carriages, and Cases for all kinds of Stairs and Steps.—Together
  with Illustrations Showing the Manner of Laying Out Stairs, forming
  Treads and Risers, building Cylinders, preparing Strings; with
  Instructions for making Carriages for Common, Platform, Dog-legged,
  and Winding Stairs.—To which is added an Illustrated Glossary of
  Terms used in Stair-Building, and Designs for Newels, Balusters,
  Brackets, Stair-Moldings, and Sections of Hand-Rails.—By FRED. T.
  HODGSON, author of “The Steel Square and Its Uses,” &c.—Illustrated
  by over One Hundred and Twenty Engravings, many of them full-page
  size.—Cloth, gilt.                                                  $1

This work takes hold at the very beginning of the subject, and
carries the student along by easy stages until the entire subject of
stairbuilding has been unfolded, so far as ordinary practice can ever
require. This book, and the following one on _Hand-Railing_, cover
nearly the whole subject of _Stair-Building_.


A NEW SYSTEM OF HAND-RAILING.

  Or, How to Cut Hand-Railing for Circular and other Stairs, square
  from the Plank, without the aid of a Falling Mould.—By AN OLD
  STAIRBUILDER.—Edited and corrected by FRED. T. HODGSON, author of
  “Stair-building Made Easy,” &c.—Cloth, gilt                         $1

The system is new, novel, economic, and easily learned. Rules,
instructions, and working drawings for building rails for seven
different kinds of stairs are given.


THE BUILDERS’ GUIDE, and Estimators’ Price-Book.

  Being a Compilation of Current Prices of Lumber, Hardware, Glass,
  Plumbers’ Supplies, Paints, Slates, Stones, Limes, Cements, Bricks,
  Tin, and other Building Materials. Also, Prices of Labor and Cost of
  Performing the Several Kinds of Work Required in Building; together
  with Prices of Doors, Frames, Sashes, Stairs, Moldings, Newels,
  and other Machine-work.—To which is appended a large number of
  Building Rules, Data, Tables, and Useful Memoranda, with a Glossary
  of Architectural and Building Terms.—By FRED. T. HODGSON, author of
  “The Steel Square and Its Uses,” “The Slide-Rule, and How to Use It,”
  “Practical Carpentry,” &c.—Cloth                                    $2


CARPENTERS’ and JOINERS’ POCKET COMPANION

  Containing Rules, Data, and Directions for Laying Out Work, and for
  Calculating and Estimating.—With Frontispiece showing the parts of
  an Architectural Column; also containing many other Illustrative
  Engravings.—Compiled by THOMAS MOLONEY, Carpenter and Joiner.—Cloth
                                                                50 cents.

This is a compact and handy little volume, containing the most
useful rules and memoranda, practically tested by many years’
experience in the shop, factory, and building. Also, a treatise on
the framing-square. It is by a thoroughly practical man, and contains
enough that is not easily found any where else to make it worth more
than its price to every intelligent carpenter.


EASY LESSONS IN ARCHITECTURE.

  Consisting of a Series of Questions and Answers explaining in Simple
  Language the Principles and Progress of Architecture from the
  Earliest Times.—By THOMAS MITCHELL.—Illustrated by nearly One Hundred
  and Fifty Engravings.—New Edition, with American additions.—Cloth
                                                               50 cents.

Architecture is not only a profession and an art, but an important
branch of every liberal education. No person can be said to be well
educated who has not some knowledge of its general principles and
of the characteristics of the different styles. The present work is
probably the best architectural textbook for beginners ever published.
The numerous illustrative engravings make the subject very simple, and
prevent all misunderstanding. It tells all about the different styles,
their peculiar features, their origin, and the principles that underlie
their construction.


HINTS AND AIDS TO BUILDERS

  Gives hints and prices, tells how to measure, explains building
  terms, and, in short, contains a fund of information for all who are
  interested in building.—Paper                                25 cents.


BUCK’S COTTAGE AND OTHER DESIGNS.

  Buck’s Designs in Architecture, showing a Variety of Designs,
  together with a large amount of Miscellaneous Matter, making it a
  very valuable book.—Forty designs for fifty cents.

Just the book you want, if you are going to build a cheap and
comfortable home. It shows a great variety of cheap and medium-priced
cottages, besides giving a number of useful hints and suggestions on
the various questions liable to arise in building, such as selections
of site, general arrangement of the plans, sanatary questions. &c.
Cottages costing from $500 to $5,000 are shown in considerable variety,
and nearly every taste can be satisfied.

The information on site, general arrangement of plan, sanatary matters,
&c., is worth a great deal more than the cost of the book.


  =WATER-CLOSETS.=—A Historical, Mechanical, and Sanitary Treatise.—By
  GLENN BROWN, Architect; Associate American Institute of
  Architects.—Neatly bound in cloth, gilt title.                      $1

This book contains over 250 engravings, drawn expressly for the work
by the author. The drawings are so clear that the distinctive features
of every device are easily seen at a glance, and the descriptions
are particularly full and thorough. Every known water-closet is
fully described, and an account given of its qualities, advantages,
and defects. The paramount importance of this department of the
construction of our houses renders all comment upon the value of such a
work unnecessary.


PLASTER: HOW TO MAKE AND HOW TO USE.

  Being a Complete Guide for the Plasterer in the Preparation and
  Application of all kinds of Plaster, Stucco, Portland Cement,
  Hydraulic Cements, Lime of Tiel, Rosendale and other Cements. With
  Useful and Practical Information on the Chemistry, Qualities, and
  Uses of the Various Kinds of Limes and Cements.—Together with
  Rules for Measuring, Computing, and Valuing Plaster and Stucco
  Work.—To which is appended an Illustrated Glossary of Terms used in
  Plastering, &c.—By FRED. T. HODGSON, author of “The Builders’ Guide,
  and Estimators’ Price-Book,” “Practical Carpentry,” &c.—Cloth, gilt  $1

This work is illustrated with numerous engravings in the text and
three plates, giving some forty figures of ceilings, center-pieces,
cornices, panels, and soffits. It is an invaluable book for plasterers,
bricklayers, masons, builders, architects, and engineers.


HANDSAWS: THEIR USE, CARE, AND ABUSE.

  How to Select and How to File Them.—Being a Complete Guide for
  Selecting, Using, and Filing all kinds of Handsaws, Back-saws,
  Compass and Key-hole Saws, Web, Hack, and Butchers’ Saws. Showing
  the Shapes, Forms, Angles, Pitches, and Sizes of Saw-teeth suitable
  for all kinds of Saws, and for all kinds of Wood, Bone, Ivory, and
  Metal.—Together with Hints and Suggestions on the Choice of Files,
  Saw-sets, Filing-clamps, and other matters pertaining to the Care and
  Management of all classes of Hand and other Small Saws.—By FRED. T.
  HODGSON, author of “The Steel Square and Its Uses,” “The Slide-Rule,
  and How to Use It,” “The Builders’ Guide,” “Practical Carpentry,”
  &c.—Illustrated by over Seventy-five Engravings.—Cloth, gilt        $1

This work is intended more particularly for operative carpenters,
joiners, cabinet-makers, carriage-builders, and woodworkers generally,
amateurs or professionals.


THE PRACTICAL UPHOLSTERER.

  Giving Clear Directions for Skillfully Performing all kinds of
  Upholsterers’ Work in Leather, Silk, Plush, Reps, Cottons, Velvets,
  and Carpetings.—Also, for Stuffing, Embossing, Welting, and Covering
  all kinds of Mattresses, &c.—Rules for Measuring Valances, Curtains,
  Tapestry, Window and Door Drapery, Curtain Rods, Persian Beds, Mantel
  Drapery, Lambrequins, Cushions, Floor-Cloths, Festoon Blinds and
  Curtain-Hangings, and all kinds of Upholstery.—Fully Illustrated with
  Engravings of Tools, Sketches of Furniture, and numerous full-page
  Illustrations of Original Decorative Designs.—By A PRACTICAL
  UPHOLSTERER. 12mo, cloth                                            $1

This work contains a number of original designs in drapery and
upholstery, with full explanatory text, and an immense number of
working illustrations. It gives a description of tools, appliances,
and materials. It tells how to upholster chairs, parlor furniture,
bedroom furniture, &c. It contains rules for cutting bed-hangings,
window-curtains, door-hangings, blinds, and for measuring and cutting
carpets. It gives arithmetical calculations for cutting carpets,
curtains, &c., mantle-board drapery, festoons, and, in short,
everything pertaining to upholstery.

There is nothing published in this country that is so thorough and
complete in the instructions given for upholstering, as this book. It
is invaluable alike to the practical workman and the amateur.


CABINET-MAKING, UPHOLSTERING, FURNITURE.

  _Hints and Practical Information for Cabinet-makers, Upholsterers,
  and Furniture-men Generally._—Together with a Description of all
  kinds of Finishing, with Full Directions Therefor; Varnishes,
  Polishes, Stains for Wood, Dyes for Wood, Gilding and Silvering,
  Recipes for the Factory, Lacquers, Metals, Marbles, &c.; Pictures,
  Engravings, &c.—Cloth, gilt                                         $1

This book contains an immense amount of the most useful information
for those who are engaged in the manufacture, superintendence, or
construction of furniture or wood-work of any kind. It is one of the
cheapest and best books ever published, and contains over one thousand
hints, suggestions, and methods; and descriptions of tools, appliances,
and materials. All the recipes, rules, and directions have been
carefully revised and corrected by practical men of great experience,
so that they will be found thoroughly trustworthy. It contains many of
the recipes recently sold at from $5 to $500.


THE WORKSHOP COMPANION.—Part I.

  A Collection of Useful and Reliable Recipes, Rules, Processes,
  Methods, Wrinkles, and Practical Hints, for the Household and the
  Shop.                    Paper, 35 cents.—Cloth, gilt title, 60 cents.

This is a book of 164 closely printed pages, forming a dictionary
of practical information for mechanics, amateurs, housekeepers,
farmers,—everybody. It is not a mere collection of newspaper clippings,
but a series of original treatises on various subjects, such as alloys,
cements, inks, steel, signal-lights, polishing materials, and the
art of polishing wood, metals, &c.; varnishing, gilding, silvering,
bronzing, lacquering, and the working of brass, ivory, alabaster, iron,
steel, glass, &c.


THE WORKSHOP COMPANION.—Part II.

  A Collection of Useful and Reliable Recipes, Rules, Processes,
  Methods, Wrinkles, and Practical Hints, for the Household and the
  Shop.                    Paper, 35 cents.—Cloth, gilt title, 60 cents.

This is an extension of the first part, and contains subjects which
have not been discussed in the earlier volume. These two volumes
contain an immense amount of practical instruction on matters in regard
to which information is constantly desired by amateurs and practical
men.


  =THE PRACTICAL ASSISTANT, AND WORKSHOP COMPANION.=—A Treasury of
  Useful Information relating to the Arts and Sciences of everyday
  life.—Containing Useful and Reliable Processes, Recipes, Wrinkles,
  Methods, Rules, Data, Tables; and Hints for the Factory and the
  Household, the Shop and the Farm.—Edited by JOHN PHIN.—Cloth,       $1

This is Parts I and II of “The Workshop Companion,” described above,
handsomely bound together in cloth, with gilt title.


  =THE AMATEURS’ HANDBOOK OF PRACTICAL INFORMATION, for the Workshop
  and Laboratory.= Second Edition.—Greatly Enlarged.—Neatly bound.
                                                               15 cents.

This is a handy little book, containing just the information needed by
amateurs in the workshop and laboratory. Directions for making alloys,
fusible metals, cements, glues, &c.; and for soldering, brazing,
lacquering, bronzing, staining and polishing wood, tempering tools,
cutting and working glass, varnishing, silvering, gilding, preparing
skins, &c. The new edition contains extended directions for preparing
polishing powders, freezing mixtures, colored lights for tableaux,
solutions for rendering ladies’ dresses incombustible, &c. There has
also been added a Very large number of new and valuable recipes.

=The Workshop Companion, Part I=, above described, contains _all_ the
matter that is to be found in “The Amateurs’ Handbook.”


MECHANICAL DRAUGHTING.

  _The Student’s Illustrated Guide to Practical Draughting._—A series
  of Practical Instructions for Machinists, Mechanics, Apprentices, and
  Students at Engineering Establishments and Technical Institutes.—By
  T. P. PEMBERTON, Draughtsman and Mechanical Engineer.—Illustrated by
  numerous engravings.—Cloth, gilt.                                   $1

This is a simple but thorough book, by a draughtsman of twenty-five
years’ experience. It is intended for beginners and self-taught
students, as well as for those who pursue the study under the direction
of a teacher.


DRAWING INSTRUMENTS.

  Being a Treatise on Draughting Instruments, with Rules for their Use
  and Care; Explanations of Scales, Sectors, and Protractors. Together
  with Memoranda for Draughtsmen; Hints on Purchasing Instruments,
  Paper, Ink, Pencils, &c. Also, a Price-list of all Materials
  required by Draughtsmen.—Illustrated with twenty-four Explanatory
  Illustrations.—By FRED. T. HODGSON.—Paper.                   25 cents.


THE SLIDE-RULE, AND HOW TO USE IT.

  Being a Compilation of Explanations, Rules, and Instructions,
  suitable for Mechanics and others interested in the Industrial
  Arts.—Compiled and arranged by FRED. T. HODGSON.—25 cents.

Rules are given for the measurement of all kinds of boards and planks,
timber in the round or square, glaziers’ work and painting, brickwork,
paviors’ work, tiling and slating, the measurement of vessels of
various shapes, the wedge, inclined planes, wheels and axles, levers,
the weighing and measurement of metals and all solid bodies, cylinders,
cones, globes, octagon rules and formulæ, the measurement of circles,
and a comparison of French and English measures, with much other
information useful to builders, carpenters, bricklayers, glaziers,
paviors, slaters, machinists, and other mechanics.

Possessed of this little book and a good slide-rule, mechanics might
carry in their pockets some hundreds of times the power of calculation
that they now have in their heads, and the use of the instrument is
very easily acquired.


THE ENGINEER’S SLIDE-RULE, and Its Applications.

  A Complete Investigation of the Principles upon which the Slide-Rule
  is constructed; together with the Method of its Application to all
  the Purposes of the Practical Mechanic.—By WILLIAM TONKES.—Paper.
                                                               25 cents.


THE LIGHTNING CALCULATOR.

  _Practical Hints on Lightning Calculating._—To which are added Rules,
  Tables, Data, Formulæ, and Memoranda, for making rapidly those
  everyday calculations that are required in business, mechanics, and
  agriculture.—Paper.                                          20 cents.


A CENTURY OF INVENTIONS.

  An exact reprint of the famous “Century of Inventions” of the Marquis
  of Worcester (first published in 1663).—With an Introduction, Notes,
  and a Life of the Author.—With Portrait after a Painting by Van
  Dyke.—Edited by JOHN PHIN.—Cloth.                                   $1

This is one of the most extraordinary books ever published. The
famous “Century of Inventions” is of more than mere historical
interest. It contains numerous hints and suggestions of what might be
accomplished, and will be found of great interest and value to every
one interested in mechanics. Many persons claim that the Marquis of
Worcester anticipated many of our most important modern inventions and
discoveries. Great care has been taken to reproduce exactly (so far as
modern type, &c., could do it) the edition published by the Marquis
himself. It has been entirely out of print for many years.


THE ELECTRICIAN’S POCKET COMPANION.

  Electrical Rules, Tables, Tests, and Formulæ.—By ANDREW JAMIESON, C. E.,
  F. R. S. E.—Fully illustrated.—Cloth.                          75 cents.

This is the most compact and thorough work in the market for the
practical electrician. It contains minute directions for all
calculations, tests, &c., with clear engravings of the apparatus
employed. The following list of contents will give an idea of its
scope:—

  Formulæ of the Absolute Units.—Practical, Electrical, and Mechanical.
  Heat and Light Units.
  Electro-chemical Equivalents, Electrolysis, Heat and Energy of Combustion.
  Practical Methods of Electrical Measurements.
  Electric Conductors: Copper, &c.—Insulators: Guttapercha, &c.
  Submarine Cables.—Aerial Land-lines.
  Electric Lighting and Transmission of Power.


  =LECTURES IN A WORKSHOP.=—By T. P. PEMBERTON, formerly Associate
  Editor of _The Technologist_; author of “The Student’s Illustrated
  Guide to Practical Draughting.”—With an Appendix containing the
  famous papers by Whitworth “On Plane Metallic Surfaces of True
  Planes”; “On the Uniform System of Screw-Threads”; “Address to the
  Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Glasgow”; “On Standard Decimal
  Measures of Length.” Cloth, gilt.                                     $1

We have here a sprightly, fascinating book, full of valuable hints,
interesting anecdotes, and sharp sayings. It is not a compilation of
dull sermons or dry mathematics, but a live, readable book. The papers
by Whitworth, now first made readily accessible to the American reader,
form the basis of our modern systems of accurate work.


THE NEW POCKET CYCLOPEDIA.

  A Compendium of General Knowledge, Useful and Interesting Facts,
  Valuable Statistics, and Practical Information.—16mo., cloth.
                                                                 50 cents.

This is a handy volume of 164 pages, printed in small but clear type on
very fine thin paper, so that the book may be readily carried in the
pocket or trunk. It contains all those facts and figures which are most
commonly referred to in everyday life, great care being taken to secure
accuracy and clearness. It is not a collection of “curious information”
made up from newspaper clippings, but a thoroughly arranged manual of
the most useful general knowledge.


HOW TO BECOME A GOOD MECHANIC.

  Intended as a Practical Guide to Self-taught Men: Telling What to
  Study; What Books to Use; How to Begin; What Difficulties will be
  met; How to Overcome Them. In a word, how to carry on such a course
  of self-instruction as will enable the young mechanic to rise from
  the bench to something higher.—Paper.                         25 cents.

This is not a book of “goody-goody” advice, neither is it an
advertisement of any special system, nor does it advocate any hobby.
It gives plain practical advice in regard to acquiring that knowledge
which alone can enable a young man engaged in any profession or
occupation connected with the industrial arts to attain a position
higher than that of a mere workman.


CEMENTS, GLUE, AND PASTE.

  A Practical Treatise on the Preparation and Use of all kinds of
  Cements, Glue, and Paste.—By JOHN PHIN, author of “How to Use the
  Microscope.”—Paper.                                            25 cents.

Every mechanic and householder will find this volume of almost everyday
use. It contains nearly two hundred recipes for the preparation of
cements for almost every conceivable purpose.


  HINTS FOR PAINTERS, DECORATORS, AND PAPER-HANGERS.

  Being a Selection of Useful Rules, Data, Memoranda, Methods, and
  Suggestions for House, Ship, and Furniture Painting; Paper-Hanging,
  Gilding, Color-Mixing, and other matters useful and instructive to
  painters and decorators.—Prepared with special reference to the wants
  of amateurs.—By AN OLD HAND.—Paper.                            25 cents.


A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO


  =SUCCESS IN THE USE OF RECIPES=, Formulæ, &c., with Hints on Chemical
  and Mechanical Manipulation.—Intended as a supplement to all books of
  recipes.—By JOHN PHIN.—12mo, paper.                            25 cents.

While it is an undoubted fact that many of the recipes published in
the ordinary collections are erroneous, either from original blunders
on the part of the authors or from mistakes in copying, failure in the
use of others frequently arises from defective information and vicious
methods on the part of those who attempt to put them in practice. The
object of the present book is to give such hints and cautions as will
enable the worker to secure success where success is possible; and
where the products are intended for sale it gives special and valuable
advice as to the best methods of putting them on the market.


A MANUAL OF INSTRUCTION IN

THE ART OF WOOD ENGRAVING.

  With a Description of the necessary Tools and Apparatus, and
  Concise Directions for their Use; Explanations of the Terms used
  and the Methods employed for producing the various classes of Wood
  Engravings.—By S. E. FULLER.—Fully illustrated with engravings by the
  author, separate sheets of engravings for transfer and practice being
  added.—New edition, neatly bound.                             50 cents.

A really thorough and practical work, written for those who want to
learn the art without the aid of a teacher.


  =A GUIDE TO COLLODIO ETCHING.=—By Rev. BENJAMIN HARTLEY.—Illustrated
  by the author.—12mo, cloth.                                      $1.00

This volume gives complete and minute instructions for one of the most
delightful of amateur arts. It is fully illustrated by woodcuts of all
the apparatus used (which is very simple and easily made), and also by
actual photo-prints of the etchings themselves.


THE PRACTICAL POCKET COMPANION.

  A Cyclopedia of the most useful Facts, Figures, and General
  Information required by everybody in everyday life.—Edited by
  JOHN PHIN, author of “How to Use the Microscope,” “The Workshop
  Companion,” “Chemical History of the Six Days of Creation,”
  &c.—Numerous illustrations.                                  10 cents.

CONTENTS.—Abbreviations in Common Use—Business Laws and Commercial
Rules—Acceptances—Agencies—Bills of Exchange—Checques—Common
Carriers—Corporations—Law of Finding—Indorsements—Innkeepers—Negotiable
Instruments—Partnerships—Promissory Notes—Protests—Receipts—Concrete
Walls for Houses—Copyrights—Rules for Correspondence—How to
treat Accidents to the Eye—Factors of Safety—Best Methods of
Extinguishing Fires—Language of Flowers—Significance of Gems
and Precious Stones—Periods of Gestation and Incubation—Legal
Holidays—Homestead Law—Distinguishing Characteristics and
Anxious Periods of Infectious Diseases—Prevention or Attacks
of Insects—Knots, and How to Tie Them, with full page of
illustrations—General Rules—Single Draw-knot—Galley-knot—Square-knot,
or Reefing-knot—Weaver’s-knot, or Sheet-bend-knot—Half-hitch—Two
Half-hitches—Clove-hitch—Timber-hitch—Bowline-knot—Fisherman’s-knot—Whipping
or Binding—Tying Parcels—Care of Leather—Lightning-rods,
general rules for—Best Materials—Proper Size and Best Shapes of
Rod—Painting—Points, or Air-Terminals—Ground Connections—Arrangement
and Mode of Attaching the Rod to the House—Value of Moneys of Foreign
Nations—Passports—Patents—Antidotes for Poisons—Postal Rules and
Rates—Railroad and Steamboat Signals—Rules for Spelling and the Use of
Capitals—Trade-marks—Weather Indications, &c.


  =WHAT TO DO AND HOW TO DO IT IN CASE OF ACCIDENT.=—A book for
  everybody.—Cloth, gilt.                                    50 cents.

This is one of the most useful books ever published. It tells exactly
what to do in case of accidents, such as severe cuts, sprains,
dislocations, broken bones, burns with fire, scalds, burns with
corrosive chemicals, sunstroke, suffocation by foul air, hanging,
drowning, frost-bite, fainting, stings, starvation, lightning, poisons,
accidents from machinery and from the falling of scaffolding, gunshot
wounds, &c. It ought to be in every house, for young and old are liable
to accident, and the directions given in this book might be the means
of saving many a valuable life.


COMMON SENSE IN THE POULTRY-YARD.

  A Story of Failures and Successes, including a full account of 1,000
  hens and what they did. With a complete description of the houses,
  coops, fences, runs, methods of feeding, breeding, marketing, &c.,
  and many new wrinkles and economical dodges.—By J. P. HAIG.—With
  numerous illustrations.—Cloth, gilt title.                          $1

This is a lively and entertaining work, which embodies the actual
experience of many years in the keeping of poultry in large and small
numbers. It is the most thoroughly practical work on poultry in the
market, and contains an amount of solid information which, to even the
keeper of a dozen fowls, will make it worth many times its cost.


A DICTIONARY OF PRACTICAL BEE-KEEPING.

  With Notes and Practical Hints.—By JOHN PHIN, author of “How to Use
  the Microscope,” &c.—Numerous illustrations.—Cloth, gilt.    50 cents.

This work discusses thoroughly nearly five hundred subjects. Gives in
condensed form an immense amount of valuable information under the
different headings. Under the heads _Bee_, _Comb_, _Glucose_, _Honey_,
_Race_, _Species_, _Sugar_, _Wax_, and others, it brings together a
large number of important facts and figures now scattered through our
bee literature and costly scientific works, and are not easily found
when wanted. Here they can be referred to at once under the proper head.


PLAIN DIRECTIONS FOR ACQUIRING

THE ART OF SHOOTING ON THE WING.

  With Useful Hints concerning all that relates to Guns and Shooting,
  particularly in regard to the art of loading so as to kill. To which
  has been added several valuable and hitherto secret recipes, of great
  practical importance to the sportsman.—By AN OLD GAMEKEEPER.—12mo,
  cloth.                                                       75 cents.

This book contains a novel and most valuable feature found in no other
work on this subject. This is a series of graduated lessons by which
the self-taught young sportsman is enabled to advance step by step
from such easy marks as a sheet of paper nailed on a fence to the most
difficult trap-shooting and the sharpest snap-shots.


  =THE PISTOL AS A WEAPON OF DEFENCE=, In the House and on the
  Road.—12mo, cloth.                                            50 cents.

This work aims to instruct peaceable and law-abiding citizens in the
best means of protecting themselves from the attacks of the brutal
and the lawless, and it is the only practical book published on this
subject. Its contents are as follows:—

The Pistol as a Weapon of Defence—The Carrying of Firearms—Different
kinds of Pistols in Market—How to Choose a Pistol—Ammunition, different
kinds: powder, caps, bullets, copper cartridges, &c.—Best form of
Bullet—How to Load—Best Charge for Pistols—How to Regulate the
Charge—Care of the Pistol: how to clean it—How to Handle and Carry the
Pistol—How to Learn to Shoot—Practical Use of the Pistol—How to Protect
Yourself and Disable your Antagonist.




                         The Hardwood Finisher.

     WITH RULES AND DIRECTIONS FOR FINISHING IN NATURAL COLORS, AND
           IN ANTIQUE, MAHOGANY, CHERRY, BIRCH, WALNUT, OAK,
                 ASH, REDWOOD, SYCAMORE, PINE, AND ALL
                         OTHER DOMESTIC WOODS;

      _ALSO FOR FILLING, STAINING, POLISHING, DYEING, GILDING AND
                               BRONZING_.
                Compiled and Edited by FRED. T. HODGSON,

   Editor of “The Operative Builder,” late editor of “The Builder and
        Woodworker,” and of “The Cabinetmaker and Upholsterer.”

                    Illustrated, 12mo, Cloth, $1.00.


In these days of “Hardwood Finish,” the carpenter and joiner who does
not make himself acquainted with all the new and latest methods of
working and finishing our native woods is handicapped, and will not be
as likely to receive as much money for his day’s work as the workman
who “knows all about it.”

This work has just been brought out at the very time it is wanted the
most, for finishing in the natural woods has lately become the fashion,
particularly in the better class of buildings. This is a proper and
healthy fashion, for paint, while all right in its way, is neither in
as good taste as the natural finish, nor is it as clean or as handsome.
We know that most carpenters and joiners who have had no experience in
preparing wood for this kind of finish do not care to try it for fear
of failure; but we can assure such that if they follow closely the
methods laid down in this book they will be astonished and gratified at
the results.

Directions are given at length for the preparation of the wood and the
application of “fillers,” with some good and sound advice regarding
these important operations. Hints in fixing hardwood finish so that
nail or screw heads cannot be seen are clearly presented, and the whole
practice of scraping, rubbing and polishing are given with a clearness
and simplicity that the dullest workman may readily understand.

The work is equally useful to the cabinet-maker, painter and decorator
as it is to the carpenter and joiner.

This book is written to enable the workman to know, who does not know,
as well as the man who does know, but who desires to know more; and, to
the American workman’s credit be it said, in this last class there are
many.

The following are a few of the many commendatory press notices the work
has received since its publication:

“Should be in the library of every painter who aims to keep up with the
times in the practice of his art, as a work of this character will be
of great assistance and value. The formulas and suggestions laid down
are good, and we find much to admire in the general make-up of the work.

“The writer is well known as the author of many practical books of the
day, and thoroughly understands the wants of the trade and meets them
in a satisfactory manner.”—_National Builder_, Chicago, Ill.

“In order to make it as complete as possible, a variety of authorities
on the subject have been consulted, and every effort put forth to make
the work practical in all respects.”—_Carpentry and Building_, New
York, N. Y.

“This excellent work, with its very practical aspect, seems to cover
a field that has been, perhaps, somewhat neglected. It is exceedingly
practical, and with numerous formulæ for all kinds of stains and wood
dyes, as well as finishes, is one that is to be found of value to many
operatives.”—_Scientific American_, New York, N. Y.




                          PRACTICAL CARPENTRY.

                          BEING A GUIDE TO THE

              Correct Working and Laying Out of all kinds
                   of Carpenters’ and Joiners’ Work.

    With the Solutions of the Various Problems in Hip-Roofs, Gothic
      Work, Centering, Splayed Work, Joints and Jointing, Hinging,
             Dovetailing, Mitering, Timber Splicing, Hopper
              Work, Skylights, Raking Mouldings, Circular
                            Work, Etc., Etc.

              TO WHICH IS PREFIXED A THOROUGH TREATISE ON

                        “CARPENTER’S GEOMETRY.”

                 _ILLUSTRATED BY OVER 300 ENGRAVINGS._

                          By FRED. T. HODGSON,

    AUTHOR OF “THE STEEL SQUARE AND ITS USES,” “THE BUILDER’S GUIDE
            AND ESTIMATOR’S PRICE BOOK,” “THE SLIDE RULE AND
                       HOW TO USE IT,” ETC., ETC.

                Handsomely Bound in Cloth, Price $1.00.

This is the most complete book of the kind ever published. It is
Thorough, Practical and Reliable, and at the same time is written in a
style so plain that any workman or apprentice can easily understand it.
The annexed table of contents will give a better idea of its scope and
value than can be had from any amount of notices or descriptions:


                           TABLE OF CONTENTS.

                                PART I.

  GEOMETRY.—Straight Lines.—Curved Lines.—Solids.—Compound
  Lines.—Parallel Lines—Oblique or Converging Lines.—Plane
  Figures.—Angles.—Right Angles.—Acute Angles.—Obtuse
  Angles.—Right-angled Triangles.—Quadrilateral
  Figures.—Parallelograms.—Rectangles.—Squares.—Rhomboids.—
  Trapeziums.—Trapezoids.—Diagonals.—Polygons.—Pentagons.—Hexagons.—
  Heptagons.—Octagons.—Circles.—Chords.—Tangents.—
  Sectors.—Quadrants.—Arcs.—Concentric and Eccentric
  Circles.—Altitudes.—Problems I. to XXIX.—Drawing of
  Angles.—Construction of Geometrical Figures.—Bisection of
  Lines.—Trisection of Lines and Angles.—Division of Lines into
  any Number of Parts.—Construction of Triangles, Squares and
  Parallelograms.—Construction of Proportionate Squares.—Construction
  of Polygons.—Areas of Polygons.—Areas of Concentric Rings and
  Circles.—Segments of Circles.—The use of Ordinates for Obtaining
  Arcs of Circles.—Drawing an Ellipse with a Trammel.—Drawing
  an Ellipse by means of a String.—Same by Ordinates.—Raking
  Ellipses.—Ovals.—Sixty-two Illustrations.

                                PART II.

  ARCHES, CENTRES.—Window and Door Heads.—Semi-circular Arch—Segmental
  Arches.—Stilted Arches.—Horseshoe Arch.—Lancet Arch.—Equilateral
  Arch.—Gothic Tracery.—Wheel-Windows.—Equilateral Tracery.—Square
  Tracery.—Finished Leaf Tracery.—Twenty-Two Illustrations.


                               PART III.

  ROOFS.—Saddle Roof.—Lean-to or Shed Roof.—Simple Hip-Roof.—Pyramidal
  Roof.—Theoretical Roof.—Roof with Straining Beam.—Gothic
  Roof.—Hammer-Beam Roofs.—Curved Principal Roofs.—Roofs with
  Suspending Rods.—Deck Roofs.—King-post and Principal Roof.—Queen-post
  and Principal Roof.—Roofs with Laminated Arches.—Strapped Roof
  Frames.—Tie-beam Roofs.—Roofs for Long Spans.—Theatre Roof.—Church
  Roof.—Mansard Roof.—Slopes of Roofs.—Rules for Determining the Sizes
  of Timbers for Roofs.—Acute and Obtuse Angled Hip-Roofs.—Development
  of Hip-Roofs.—Obtaining Lengths and Bevels of Rafters.—Backing
  Hip Rafters.—Lengths, Bevels and Cuts of Purlins.—Circular,
  Conical and Segmental Roofs.—Rafters with Variable Curves.—Veranda
  Rafters.—Development of all kinds of Rafters.—Curved Mansard
  Rafters.—Framed Mansard Roofs.—Lines and Rules for obtaining various
  kinds of Information.—Thirty-four Illustrations.


                                Part IV.

  COVERING OF ROOFS.—Shingling Common Roofs.—Shingling
  Hip-Roofs.—Method of Shingling on Hip Corner.—Covering Circular
  Roofs.—Covering Ellipsoidal Roofs.—Valley Roofs.—Four Illustrations.


                                PART V.

  THE MITERING AND ADJUSTING OF MOULDINGS.—Mitering of Spring
  Mouldings.—Preparing the Mitre-box for Cutting Spring
  Mouldings.—Rules for Cutting Mouldings with Diagrams.—Mitre-boxes of
  various forms.—Lines for Spring Mouldings of various kinds.—Seven
  Illustrations.

                                PART VI.

  SASHES AND SKYLIGHTS.—Raised Skylights.—Skylights with Hips.—Octagon
  Skylights with Segmental Ribs.—Angle-bars, with Rules and Diagrams,
  showing how to obtain the Angles, Forms, etc.—Sash-Bars, Hints on
  their Construction.—Twelve Illustrations.

                               PART VII.

  MOULDINGS.—Angle Brackets.—Corner Coves.—Enlarging and Reducing
  Mouldings.—Irregular Mouldings.—Raking Mouldings, with Rules
  for Obtaining.—Mouldings for Plinths and Capitals of Gothic
  Columns.—Mouldings around Square Standards.—Mitering Circular
  Mouldings with each other.—Mitering Circular Mouldings with Straight
  ones.—Mitering Mouldings at a Tangent.—Mitering Spring Circular
  Mouldings.—Description of Spring Mouldings.—Lines for Circular Spring
  Mouldings.—Seventeen Illustrations.

                               PART VIII.

  JOINERY.—Dovetailing.—Common Dovetailing.—Lapped Dovetailing.—Blind
  Dovetailing.—Square Dovetailing.—Splay Dovetailing.—Regular and
  Irregular Dovetailing.—Lines and Cuts for Hoppers and Splayed
  Work.—Angles and Mitres for Splayed Work.—Nineteen Illustrations.


                                PART IX.

  MISCELLANEOUS PROBLEMS.—Bent Work for Splayed Jambs.—Development of
  Cylinders.—Rules and Diagrams for Taking Dimensions.—Angular and
  Curved Measurements.—Eight Illustrations.


                                PART X.

  JOINTS AND STRAPS.—Mortise and Tenon Joints.—Toggle
  Joints.—Hook Joints.—Tongue Joint.—Lap Splice.—Scarfing.—Wedge
  Joints.—King-bolts.—Straps, Iron Ties, Sockets, Bearing-plates,
  Rings, Swivels and other Iron Fastenings.—Straining Timbers, Struts
  and King-pieces.—Three Plates, Sixty-Five Illustrations.


                                PART XI.

  HINGING AND SWING JOINTS.—Door Hinging.—Centre-pin Hinging.—Blind
  Hinging.—Folding Hinging.—Knuckle Hinging.—Pew Hinging.—Window
  Hinging.—Half-turn Hinge.—Full-turn Hinge.—Back Flap
  Hinging.—Rule-joint Hinging.—Rebate Hinging.—Three Plates, Fifty-one
  Illustrations.


                               PART XII.

  USEFUL RULES AND TABLES.—Hints on the Construction of Centres.—Rules
  for Estimating.—Form of Estimate.—Items for Estimating.—Remarks
  on Fences.—Nails: sizes, weights, lengths and numbers.—Cornices,
  Proportions and Projections for Different Styles of Architecture; and
  Tall and Low Buildings, Verandas, Bay Windows and Porches.—Proportion
  of Base-boards, Dados, Wainscots, and Surbases.—Woods, Hard and Soft,
  their Preparation, and how to Finish.—Strength and Resistance of
  Timber of various kinds.—Rules, showing Weight and other qualities
  of Wood and Timber.—Stairs, Width of Treads and Risers; their Cost;
  how to Estimate on them, etc.—Inclinations of Roofs.—Contents
  of Boxes, Bins, and Barrels.—Arithmetical Signs.—Mensuration of
  Superficies.—Areas of Squares, Triangles, Circles, Regular and
  Irregular Polygons.—Properties of Circles.—Solid Bodies.—Gunter’s
  Chain.—Drawing and Drawing Instruments.—Coloring Drawings.—Coloring
  for Various Building Materials.—Drawing Papers.—Sizes of Drawing
  Papers.—Table of Board Measure.—Nautical Table.—Measure of
  Time.—Authorized Metric System.—Measures of Length.—Measures of
  Surfaces.—Measures of Capacity.—Weights.—American Weights and
  Measures.—Square Measure.—Cubic Measure.—Circular Measure.—Decimal
  Approximations.—Form of Building Contract.




                               HAND SAWS.

                      _THEIR USE, CARE AND ABUSE._

                  HOW TO SELECT, AND HOW TO FILE THEM.

  Being a Complete Guide for Selecting, Using and Filing all kinds of
     Hand-Saws, Back-saws, Compass and Key-hole Saws, Web, Hack and
     Butcher’s Saws; showing the Shapes, Forms, Angles, Pitches and
       Sizes of Saw-Teeth suitable for all kinds of Saws, and for
        all kinds of Wood, Bone, Ivory and Metal; together with
        Hints and Suggestions on the Choice of Files, Saw-Sets,
              Filing Clamps, and other Matters pertaining
               to the Care and Management of all Classes
                     of Hand and other Small Saws.

    The work is intended more particularly for Operative Carpenters,
      Joiners, Cabinet-Makers, Carriage Builders, and Wood-Workers
                 Generally, Amateurs or Professionals.

             _ILLUSTRATED BY OVER SEVENTY-FIVE ENGRAVINGS._

                          By FRED. T. HODGSON,

  AUTHOR OF “THE STEEL SQUARE AND ITS USES,” “THE BUILDER’S GUIDE AND
       ESTIMATOR’S PRICE BOOK,” “PRACTICAL CARPENTRY,” ETC., ETC.

                              Price $1.00.


                           TABLE OF CONTENTS.

                                PART I.

  History of the Saw.—Saws of the Greeks.—Invention of the First
  Saws.—Egyptian Bronze Saws in the British Museum.—Antiquity of
  Saws.—Mention of Saws in Holy Writ.—Saws of the Stone Age.—Saws
  of the South-sea Islanders.—Saws for Cutting Stone.—Japanese
  Saws.—Different Varieties of Saws.—Manner of Using Saws by the
  Ancients.—Assyrian Saws.—Invention of Circular and Band-Saws.—First
  Circular-Saws in America.


                                PART II.

  Philosophy of the Cutting Qualities of Saw-Teeth.—The “Why and
  Wherefore” of the Cutting Pitch and Angles of Rip-Saw Teeth.—The
  Round Gullet-Tooth.—Chisel-Teeth and their Action on the Wood.-On
  the Various Angles Required for Cutting Hard and Soft Woods,
  with Explanations of Space, Pitch, Gullet, Gauge, Set, Rake and
  Points.—Names of Saws, with Dimensions, Form of Teeth, Descriptions
  and Explanations.—How to Choose a Saw; with Hints as to Form.
  Quality, Make and “Hang” of a Saw, with Remarks Concerning Different
  Makers—Sash-Saws, Dovetail-Saws, Rip-Saws, Panel-Saws, Cross-cut
  Saws, Bow-Saws, Web-Saws, Key-hole Saws, Compass-Saws and Tenon-Saws.


                               PART III.

  How to Use Hand-Saws.—How to Saw Well and Easily.—Hints for Sawing
  Straight.—Rules for New Beginners.—French. German and American
  Workmen.—Saws Filed to Work on the Pull-Stroke.—Changeable Key-hole
  Saws.—Use of Back-Saws.—Use of Web-Saws.—Care of Buck-Saws.—The
  Buck-Saw; the Terror of Boyhood, and Why.—The Butcher’s-Saw, the
  Hack-Saw, and the Surgeon’s-Saw with Description of Each, and Hints
  as to their Management.


                                PART IV.

  Filing and Setting Hand-Saws.—The Qualities Required to make a Good
  Filer.—Rules in some Old-time Joiner Shops.—Careless Filing and its
  Consequences.—Clamping Saws for Filing.—The Line of Teeth.—Angular
  Groove on Cutting Edge of Saw.—Filing Backs of Teeth.—Jointing
  the Sides of Teeth.—Shape of Teeth for Cross-cutting Hard Wood,
  Medium and Soft Wood.—Cutting Angles Required for Various Degrees
  of Hardness in Woods.—Angle to Hold the File—The True Theory
  of Saw-Filing.—Buckling and Twisting Saws; How Done and How
  Avoided.—“Hook and Pitch.”—Careless Use of Saws, and the Injuries
  Done to them in Consequence.—The Filing of Different Saws, and
  why One Class of Saws Require Different Treatment from Another.
  The Saw that Scrapes, and the Saw that Cuts; the “Why” of this
  Difference.—Why Some Men do Much More Work than Others, and with
  Greater Ease, when Sawing.


                                PART V.

  Miscellaneous Saws; their Uses, How to Care for Them, and How to Use
  Them.—The =M= Tooth, Teeth that Cut Both Ways, Crenate Teeth, Brier
  Teeth, Gullet Teeth, Parrot-bill Teeth, Hog Teeth, the Lancet and
  other Fancy Forms of Teeth, Described and Explained.—The Old-style
  “Peg Tooth,” for Two-handed Cross-cut Saws.—Various Examples of
  the “Peg-Tooth” Saw.—Hack-Saws; How to Use and How to Keep in
  Order.—Butcher’s-Saws, Surgeon’s-Saws, Saws for Cutting Combs, Ivory,
  Brass, Gold, and Silver.—Circular-Saws for Cutting Metal, Ivory,
  Tortoise-shell, and other Hard Materials.—Jig-Saws, Band-Saws; their
  Uses and How to Keep them in Order.—Scroll-Saws; their Uses and
  Care.—Progress of the Band-Saw; its Future; How to Make them do Clean
  Work.—Heating Saws; Rules for their Management.—Why Circular-Saws
  Burst.


                                PART VI.

  Remarks on Saws, Files, Sets, and other Appliances.—Saw-Files; what
  Constitutes a Good One, and How to Select.—Different Qualities
  of Saw-Files, and How to Know the Various Grades.—Why there
  are Different Grades.—Hints on the Use of Files.—Circular-Saws
  that are not Circular.—How to Become an Expert Sawyer.—Speed of
  Circular-Saws; Table of Same.—Speed of Reciprocating-Saws, or
  Jig-Saws, Speed of Feed for Same.—Working Action of Band-Saws.—How
  Band-Saws Became Possible.—French and American Band-Saw
  Blades.—Inside Sawing with Band-Saws.—Detachable Band-Saws.—Aids to
  Saw-Filing.—Saw-Clamps.—Saw-Filers.—Saw-Sets.—Hand-Setting with Punch
  and Hammer.—Setting with “Sets.”—Machine Band-Saw Setters—Devices for
  Holding Saws while being Set and Filed.


                               PART VII.

  Notes and Memoranda.—Saw-Gauges.-Comb-Saw Gauges.—Saw-Guides.
  Mitre-Boxes.—Circular _vs._ Band-Saws.—Emery Sharpeners.—Small
  Saws.—Machine-Saws.—Narrow Saws.—Brazing Band-Saws.—Remarks on
  Circular-Saws.—Power Required to Drive Circular-Saws.—Mill-Saws.—Saws
  with Few Teeth.




  TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE

  Illustrations in this eBook have been positioned between paragraphs
  and outside quotations. In versions of this eBook that support
  hyperlinks, the page references in the List of Illustrations lead to
  the corresponding illustrations.

  The index was not checked for proper alphabetization or correct page
  references.

  Obvious typographical errors and punctuation errors have been
  corrected after careful comparison with other occurrences within the
  text and consultation of external sources.

  Some hyphens in words have been silently removed, some added, when a
  predominant preference was found in the original book.

  Except for those changes noted below, all misspellings in the text,
  and inconsistent or archaic usage, have been retained.


  Page
  3     “laquered” replaced with “lacquered”
  3     “Enclyclopedia” replaced with “Encyclopedia”
  3     “Britanica” replaced with “Britannica”
  4     “minutæ” replaced with “minutiæ”
  6     “desereves” replaced with “deserves”
  22    “scrubing” replaced with “scrubbing”
  24    “similiar” replaced with “similar”
  32    “uniformily” replaced with “uniformly”
  39    “grass” replaced with “gloss”
  45    “removed” duplicate “of” in “covering of of the wad”
  52    “Querus” replaced with “Quercus” three times.
  52    “beatiful” replaced with “beautiful”
  66    “rotton” replaced with “rotten”
  66    “yellok” replaced with “yellow”
  69    Removed duplicate “and” in “are very soft and and easily dented”
  70    Replaced “in” with “is” in “white variety in much lighter”
  70    “brich” replaced with “birch”
  70    Replaced “superceding” with “superseding”
  71    Removed duplicate “a” in “It has a a pink tint”
  71    “cuttting” replaced with “cutting”
  72    “maganese” replaced with “manganese”
  73    “Tupentine” replaced with “Turpentine”
  84    “appled” replaced with “applied”
  89    “burishing” replaced with “burnishing”
  Ads:  “Sanatary” replaced with “Sanitary”
        “Eygptian” replaced with “Egyptian”




*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 76021 ***