I 
 

 
 ♦ 
 
 
 
 0 
 
 
 
 
 \ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

LONDON 
 
 W« S. ORR tc C?, AMEN CORNER 
 
THE 
 
 WORLD IN ITS WORKSHOPS: 
 
 A PRACTICAL EXAMINATION OF BRITISH AND FOREIGN 
 PROCESSES OE MANUFACTURE, 
 
 WITH 
 
 A CRITICAL COMPARISON OF THE FABRICS, MACHINERY, 
 
 AND WORKS OF ART 
 
 CONTAINED IN 
 
 THE GREAT EXHIBITION. 
 
 BY JAMES WARD. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 WILLIAM S. ORR AND CO., AMEN CORNER, 
 
 PATERNOSTER ROW. 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 : ’ 
 
 
 
 
 * ■ 
 
 r 
 
 
 
 
 
 
TO 
 
 THE RIGHT HON. THE EARL GRANVILLE, K.C.B., 
 
 VICE-PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD OF TRADE, &c. &c. &c. 
 
 -4- 
 
 My Lord, 
 
 To whom can I more appropriately address these 
 volumes than to one who has been so largely instrumental in 
 carrying out the grand object of which they are a humble and 
 limited illustration ? 
 
 Assuming that your Lordship w 7 ill approve of the contents 
 of the second, as you did of the first, edition of the Wealth 
 of the Woriel, and thanking you for the favour of your valuable 
 suggestions, which have been carefully adopted, 
 
 I have the honour to remain, 
 
 My Lord, 
 
 Your Lordship’s obedient Servant, 
 
 THE AUTHOR. 
 

 
 
 o r 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ■ . ' I 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 -♦- 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 1 
 
 I. STEEL.17 
 
 II. SWORDS, GUNS, AND PISTOLS . . . . 28 
 
 III. PERCUSSION CAPS.36 
 
 TV. COPPER, BRASS, AND MIXED METALS . . . 39 
 
 V. STEEL PENS.4 5 
 
 VI. PIN-MAKING AND WIRE-DRAWING .... 47 
 
 VII. NEEDLES.51 
 
 VIII. BUTTONS . . ..55 
 
 IX. PLATE, SHEFFIELD PLATE, AND ELECTRO-PLATE . 62 
 
 X. TYPOGRAPHY, LITHOGRAPHY, STEREOTYPE . . 97 
 
 XI. MACHINERY, ETC.88 
 
 XII. AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS.108 
 
 XIIT. GLASS.119 
 
 XIV. SCULPTURE.139 
 
 XV. WOOD-CARVING.162 
 
 XVI. DESIGNS AND DECORATIONS . . . . 167 
 
 XVII. PAINTING ON GLASS.175 
 
 XVIII. PAPER-STAINING AND PAPER-HANGINGS . . 183 
 
 XIX. CABINET WORK.192 
 
 XX. PIANOFORTES ....... 200 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER 
 
 XXI. PAPIER MACHE .... 
 XXII. POTTERY AND PORCELAIN 
 
 XXIII. SILKS . 
 
 XXIY. PRINTED FABRICS 
 XXV. CARPETS ..... 
 XXVI. THE ETCETERAS OF THE EXHIBITION 
 PATENTS—PATENT LAWS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 206 
 
 214 
 
 222 
 
 240 
 
 250 
 
 254 
 
 260 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 -*- 
 
 “ Have I made up my mind upon the Exhibition ?” you enquire. 
 I have not; nor, indeed, can I at present. I have scarcely recovered 
 from the bewilderment and confusion of mind which is incident to 
 such a singular sight. In that wondrous structure there is study for 
 a month, reflection for a year, and instruction for ever. At present I 
 can merely discern a few outlines of its great industrial features, and 
 the filling up of each outline is a world within itself. Look at that 
 machine, for example; simple as it seems, it is the epitome of man’s 
 industrial progress—of his untiring efforts to release himself from his 
 material bondage. And how many thoughts, ideas, and experiments 
 have been expended upon that apparently simple structure—how 
 many brains puzzled, pained, ay, even paralysed, to bring it to its 
 present usable state ? However, let us leave the comparative anatomy 
 of that industrial phenomenon to some mechanical Cuvier—he alone 
 can do justice to its illustration. Nevertheless, just analyse that 
 fabric on the opposite side of the building ; it is so delicate in texture, 
 and so beautiful in colouring. It would sorely puzzle even a practi¬ 
 cal mind to enumerate the processes through which it must have 
 passed ere it arrived at its present finished state. Look where you 
 may, in fact, the same difficulties present themselves; the mind is 
 barely able to take more than a skin-deep glance at the varied and 
 surrounding objects, unless it happen to have been instrumental in the 
 production of either one or other. And even if we make this conces¬ 
 sion, how much have we diminished the difficulty ? “ I made that 
 
 piece of silk down at Manchester, in a Jacquard loom, so I know all 
 about it,” exclaims some well-meaning but dogmatic weaver, if you 
 will only encourage him to speak his mind. Indeed, so my dear 
 man, because you wove that piece of silk you conclude that you know 
 all about it. You received, for instance, the warp in a dyed state, of 
 which, I presume, you know little or nothing, for dyeing involves a 
 knowledge of the rather mysterious science of chemistry, which 
 requires a special study. That is only one stage preceding your ope¬ 
 rations upon it. Next comes the “ throwing ” of the silk, which you 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 2 
 
 probably never saw; still it is a study of itself, requiring considerable 
 mechanical skill, great knowledge of the raw material, and the capa¬ 
 city to make the most of both. Then there is the raw material itself. 
 What know you whence it came, how cultivated—whether hy Chris¬ 
 tian, Mahommedan, or Chinese ? We need go no further. What you 
 do know is invaluable; but it is only a tithe of the knowledge com¬ 
 prised in that simple piece of silk. You know how to throw the 
 shuttle, perhaps to put the warp in the loom, to pick off the fluff, if 
 there chance to be any, to weave so many shoots to the inch, and to take 
 home the work when finished for your pay. That is about the extent 
 of your knowledge; however, it is as much as can be expected, and is 
 very creditable to you. Ex uno disce. This simple but dogmatic 
 weaver is a fair type of the majority of what are called “ practical ” 
 spectators. 
 
 “ Do I mean to say that practical minds are not capable of availing 
 themselves of the improvements they may see in the Exhibition ?” I 
 really do. Take the mass of what are called “ practical” minds, as a 
 body they are nearly as inapt to appreciate and apply improvements 
 as the mere loungers and idlers who saunter through the treasure- 
 stored avenues of the building. They will look with perhaps a 
 shrewder eye at the several objects upon the production of which they 
 may have been partially engaged; but the result, in a majority of 
 cases, will prove little more than a negative; they must wait for the 
 thinldng few to lead them, from whom all practical knowledge of a 
 valuable nature is derived. These few are the stars that guide the 
 many in the true path of improvement; hut as yet they are below the 
 horizon, gathering light, as it were, to shine steadily and clearly on 
 the future coarse of their humbler “ practical” brethren. 
 
 You remember the picture which political economists delight to 
 draw when they want to demonstrate one of their favourite theorems.* 
 They paint a man brought up in civilized life as cast upon a desert 
 island ; he is without food, without clothes, without fire, and without 
 tools. “We see the human being,” they say, “in the very lowest 
 state of helplessness. Most of his preceding knowledge would be 
 worse than useless, for it would not be applicable to his new position.” 
 By way of alleviating his case they say, “ Let the land upon which he 
 is thrown produce spontaneous fruits, let the climate be most genial, 
 still the man would he exceedingly powerless and wretched.” No 
 doubt. But why ? “ The helplessness of this man’s condition,” they 
 tell us, “would principally be the effect of one circumstance: he 
 * “ Capital and Labour Charles Knight. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 3 
 
 would possess no accumulation of former labour , by which his present 
 labour might be profitably directed 
 
 This is a somewhat fanciful picture, you will say ; but has it no 
 pendant in practical life ? Place the same individual, for instance, in 
 the Grand Transept of the Crystal Palace, with the prodigies of art, 
 of science, and of labour before him, where the resources of human 
 ingenuity are displayed in every variety of substance and form, and 
 the chances are that he would experience a perplexity of mind fully 
 equal, if not so painful as though he were upon the desert island, and 
 the presumed destitution staring him in the face. What could he look 
 at first, and how would he look at it, seeing that his preceding experi¬ 
 ence, or, to use the precise term of the sages just cited, his accumula¬ 
 tion of knoivledge, would be of comparatively little avail ? On the one 
 hand, he would scarcely know how to provide against the destitution 
 staring him in the face ; on the other, he would be equally puzzled to 
 worm his way rightly and instructively through the intellectual zig¬ 
 zag in which he must naturally find himself. Look where he might, 
 his eye would soon become embarrassed by the novelty of the scene, 
 both in form and material— 
 
 “ A scene so various that would seem to be 
 Not one, but all tbe world’s epitome.” 
 
 His first sensation—and it must have been that of thousands who have 
 visited the Exhibition—would be that of wonder and surprise at the 
 overwhelming mass of beautiful objects which the skilled industry of 
 the age had ranged before him ; when he had partially recovered from 
 this state, his imagination might chance to take a turn in such a region 
 of fairy revelry, but some time must necessarily elapse ere reason 
 could exercise her influence, and calm down his mind to sit quietly on 
 its judgment seat, to enable him to view things in a clear and truth¬ 
 ful light. His state of mental helplessness, in fine, would be equally 
 conspicuous whether contemplating the embarras des richesses in the 
 great ark of industry, or placed in the supposed lowest state of human 
 existence on the desert island. He would lack the necessary instruc¬ 
 tion in both instances. 
 
 In the retreat from Moscow—“ what has the retreat from Moscow 
 to do with the Exhibition?”—Simply this, that the human mind, 
 under the most opposite circumstances, sometimes exhibits a similarity 
 of action, however the motives may vary. In the retreat from 
 Moscow some of the soldiers were heavily laden with the spoils of the 
 city, and Segur, in his account of that terrible event, gives a painfully 
 ludicrous description of their embarassment when compelled by fatigue 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 4 
 
 to abandon a portion of their treasures. There must have been a 
 strange conflict in the minds of those harassed troopers—a fearful 
 struggle between greed, on the one hand, and the apprehension of 
 death on the other—as to what they should retain and what abandon 
 in their hurried, uncertain, and melancholy route. A similar feeling, 
 it is fair to presume, pervades the multitude of spectators while wan¬ 
 dering through the wondrous avenues of the Exhibition, from the 
 sheer want of a simple and judicious direction ; and the majority 
 must leave those trophies of a peaceful conflict with the painful 
 impression that they are utterly incapable of estimating the relative 
 merits of the industrial combatants. Like the soldiers of Napoleon, 
 the spectators are compelled to leave the spolia opima , if we may be 
 allowed the phrase, behind them—not solely from the fatigue they 
 endure to acquire it, but principally from incapacity to form a correct 
 notion of its value. And it is in the nature of things that it should 
 be so. JDid you ever experience a similar sensation when your young 
 feet first paddled along the sea-shore ? Had you then no difficulty in 
 making a choice of the objects everywhere around you ? We had. 
 At the first sight of that multitude of shells and stones, which were 
 so beautiful and diversified in appearance, so clear and so bright, the 
 receding waves having just washed over them, our young mind was 
 strangely perplexed. At length we picked up one, then another, then 
 a third, and so on, the last always appearing the most beautiful, until 
 we had gathered so large a quantity that we could scarcely carry 
 them. Then came the time for ultimate selection—the most difficult 
 of all tasks to our youthful fancy and taste, until reason determined 
 the point to lie between our strength, on the one hand, and our choice 
 on the other. The question, therefore, was partially settled, and we 
 reduced our quantity to a comparative few, which appeared to our 
 wondering and uninitiated eyes as the most rare and beautiful speci¬ 
 mens of their kind. Nevertheless, we were guided more by caprice 
 than by judgment; and showiness of appearance rather than intrinsic 
 beauty and utility, which instruction alone can discern, were the 
 prevailing qualities of our choice. 
 
 “ What notion have I formed, then, of the Exhibition, after all my 
 bewilderment and perplexity ?” 
 
 I will endeavour to tell you. I think that its friends are a little 
 too sanguine, and that its enemies are a great deal too doleful and 
 condemnatory. It is much more likely to effect the good anticipated 
 on the one hand than it is to inflict the evil so gloomily depicted on 
 the other. Let us avoid extremes. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 5 
 
 u Premature, do you say ?” Not in my opinion ; it has taken place 
 at precisely the right time; it is a natural consequence of a preceding 
 cause. The error on the part of several of its opponents consists in 
 mistaking it for a cause instead of a consequence. The elements to 
 produce such a result have been long at work, and something of the 
 kind has been quietly and gradually developing itself in the practical 
 and calculating mind of the world for these years past, although the 
 latter may be, in some degree, startled at its peculiar aspect and hear¬ 
 ing. In fine, I view the Exhibition as natural a complement to the 
 preceding movements of material industry, as a field of battle is to 
 the concentration of armies, for 
 
 “ Coming events cast their shadows before.” 
 
 u The comparison is strained, is it ?” In what way is it strained. 
 Has not all Europe been strenuously endeavouring, for the last quar¬ 
 ter of a century, to bring each other into closer connection ? Have 
 not railways enabled the Englishman to visit Yienna and Berlin, Paris 
 and Dresden, as easily as he could Manchester and Edinburgh some 
 twenty-five years ago ? And have not the same lines of communica¬ 
 tion enabled the several inhabitants of those cities to pay England a 
 similar compliment ? Having visited those great central points of 
 civilisation, and finding something in each different to our own, it is 
 natural that we should treasure that something in our minds, and also 
 endeavour to realise it for the gratification of our senses. We see, 
 for example, a piece of furniture, a pattern of silk, a porcelain vase, 
 or any other object which strikes the eye as differing from what we 
 are accustomed to, and the desire is naturally awakened to possess 
 it. It is purchased, brought home, and most likely admired; others 
 do the same, until the whole circle of society, both here and abroad, 
 becomes more or less influenced by similar feelings. The possessors 
 of these exclusive objects naturally prize them, and in several in¬ 
 stances unduly vaunt their excellence, which creates a feeling of 
 rivalry on the part of others who are not so fortunate, hut who are 
 also equally desirous to obtain them. The dealer then steps in, and 
 with the cunning belonging to his craft, turns the public weakness to 
 account, by flattering the few who possess these rare and exclusive 
 objects in order that he may supply the many who desire them. This 
 dealer is no better judge of the relative excellence of foreign and home 
 manufactured objects, nor in many instances so good as those who 
 possess them, hut with the turn-a-penny tact which he has acquired, 
 he assumes a thorough knowledge of both. The dealer, in this in- 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 6 
 
 stance, "becomes, as it were, the arbiter of home and foreign produc¬ 
 tions, utterly regardless of every feeling hut one—“ which will yield 
 me the most profit ?” The result inevitably follows—our manufac¬ 
 turers complain, our artisans complain, and our general producers 
 complain at what they call, and justly, too, in many instances, the 
 undue preference given to foreign commodities. Under these circum¬ 
 stances what would common sense suggest ? Unquestionably a fair, 
 a just, and an equitable comparison between the objects manufactured 
 abroad, and the objects manufactured at home, in order that there 
 should be no delusion as to relative excellence. And how could you 
 obtain such a comparison hut through the medium of the Exhibition, 
 or something analogous to it ? Endure me for a moment. You have 
 not only railways to whisk mankind about the world, hut you have 
 the incomparably quicker instrument—the electric telegraph. When 
 you see the charged-wire obedient to the commands of man, not only 
 to move as he directs, hut to speak as he bids, when, in short, he has 
 reduced by this powerful agent time and space to an almost incom¬ 
 putable quantity, is it not natural to expect that everything within 
 the sphere of human influence should he proportionahly affected. The 
 momentum once given to the elements of man’s social existence, it 
 never ceases until the whole is perceptibly influenced and homoge¬ 
 neously directed. When the quick-footed step on quicker than is their 
 wont in the race of life, those of slower pace must make a propor¬ 
 tionate measure in their footsteps, or they will he grievously worsted 
 in the race, if indeed they do not entirely drop off, and even lose sight 
 of the rear. If one portion of mankind adopt the spirit of improve¬ 
 ment with greater aptitude than another—if they enrich themselves 
 ere the other have made up their minds to even recognise its exist¬ 
 ence, one of two things must ensue—either the sluggards must 
 quicken their mode of action, or they will he thrust aside by others 
 of more resolute aim and more determined energy. It is not in the 
 nature of things that the active and stirring minds of our workshops 
 and counting-houses should sweep round the world in search of new 
 materials and new wants without disturbing those of a more slug¬ 
 gish and sleepy disposition; but, happily for the latter, it is so ar¬ 
 ranged in the providential government of human affairs that what 
 frequently appears contrary to our interests, ultimately proves to be 
 beneficial; and seeing also that change is a condition of our exist¬ 
 ence, it is much more salutary and judicious to prepare for it, than 
 blindly attempt to resist its progress. In a council of owls you would 
 naturally expect the proposal to reduce the light to the dimness of 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 7 
 
 their orbs, but in an assembly of rational minds, the suggestion would 
 rather be to enlarge the power of the eye—to improve its visual 
 faculty—so that the full blaze of intelligence might beam upon it. 
 
 However “ strained,” then, the comparison may be between the 
 Exhibition as a sequence to the industrial movements of mankind, and 
 the field of battle as a sequence to the concentration of opposing 
 armies, there are one or two points of resemblance that surely must 
 strike you. Let us quietly examine the phenomena as they present 
 themselves on both sides the comparison. The industrial forces of 
 the world have long been moving to a single point, just as much so 
 as the military forces of Europe were, preceding a great single result; 
 and the only perceptible difference between yon dark column of 
 machinery (the metaphor allowed), which has marked a line for itself 
 right through the territories of industry—tumbling, tossing, uprooting, 
 and whisking settled interests about as though they were old rags 
 only fit to be pulped into new forms ; and the armed battalions of 
 troops is simply this—that one leads to a victory over the moral forces 
 of man’s nature, while the other leads to a conflict of the evil 
 passions of his nature, as though man was born for mere sa¬ 
 vage and destructive pastime. The one, it is true, is a sustain¬ 
 ing and creative rivalry; the other a destructive and desolating con¬ 
 flict. The first teaches man, though the instruction is somewhat 
 roughly given, how he may improve his moral and social condition 
 by augmenting his productive power; while the latter has no other 
 effect but to inspire him with brutal feelings, and to inflame the 
 savage instincts of his nature. The operation of the industrial and 
 moral forces of man’s nature must therefore naturally terminate in 
 some such scene as the Exhibition in Hyde Park ; and such a ter¬ 
 minus is just as appropriate as is that of his evil passions in the 
 scenes enacted on the plains of Leipsic or of Waterloo. Certes, the 
 peaceful trophies of the one are a more soul-cheering sight than the 
 sanguinary results of the other, so that the Exhibition, if the com¬ 
 parison may be continued, simply denotes a change in the ordinary 
 strife of the world; and in lieu of fabricating weapons for mutual 
 destruction, mankind seem tacitly agreed to rival each other in the 
 manufacture of commodities essentially requisite for their mutual 
 . advantage. 
 
 <' It is simply a transfer of skill and industry—from bullets of lead 
 to bales of cotton, and in lieu of conflicting armies we are destined, 
 for some time at least, to endure conflicting tariffs. The movements 
 of the industrial and military forces of the world have, therefore, 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 8 
 
 been in nearly parallel lines ; and there is this condition attached to 
 the movement, that those who wish to do justice to themselves and to 
 their fellow-members of the community must become thoroughly pre¬ 
 pared for the industrial conflict, or they will be thrust to the rear, or 
 trodden down by their more disciplined competitors. 
 
 “ What good do I expect to accrue from the Exhibition ?” This. 
 The manufacturer, the artisan, and the consumer, now know in what 
 relation they stand to the foreigner, as regards their respective inte¬ 
 rests. The first will naturally direct his energies to the improvement 
 of his fabric ; the second will endeavour to augment his skill; and the 
 third will be enabled to see more clearly how to guide his judgment to 
 a right selection in his choice of objects. Many misconceptions will 
 be obliterated, and many errors removed; the whole circle of the pro¬ 
 ducing and consuming world stand then on a perfectly fair footing to 
 justly appreciate and understand each other. This, indeed, is a great 
 good. Great and inestimable, however, as this good appears, the Ex¬ 
 hibition presents another of equal importance in relation to our social 
 and moral well-being. It is a great advantage to have our eyes 
 opened; it is still greater to have them opened in a right direction. 
 The English artisan now knows in what degree he is inferior to the 
 foreign artisan, and in what degree he is superior ; and not only has 
 the artisan acquired this important knowledge, but the manufacturer 
 and the consumer know likewise. So that the former need not be 
 deterred from improving his skill by the prejudiced ignorance of the 
 one, or the too easy credulity of the other. The artisan, for the first 
 time in the history of the world, has obtained a clear stage and no 
 favour ; it will depend, in a great measure, upon himself whether he 
 be capable of turning so excellent an opportunity to good account. 
 
 “ Wherein do we excel, and wherein are we deficient ?” We excel 
 in administering to the ordinary wants and comforts of the world, but 
 it must be confessed that our manufacturers and artisans are deficient 
 in beauty of design, in high artistic conception and skill, and in deco¬ 
 rative art, as compared to the foreigner. The following remarks, in 
 the first edition of the Wealth of the World in its Workshops , have 
 been fully borne out by the fruits of the Exhibition, and explain, in 
 some measure, the reason why we are inferior to the foreigner in these 
 several respects. In speaking of the British manufacturer, we ob¬ 
 served .—“ That in those branches of operative skill and art, which ' 
 are peculiarly British, they will prove unrivalled; and that, even in 
 some in which the superiority of our continental neighbours is rather 
 a lingering tradition from the past than a reality of the present, they 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 9 
 
 will be able to assert an equality of excellence which has hitherto 
 been injuriously denied them. There are others, however, in which 
 we can scarcely hope to find them pre-eminent—in those principally 
 in which the perfection of the art of design is an indispensable 
 element. There are many reasons for the present superiority of, at 
 least, our French neighbours in this respect, and it will not be un¬ 
 interesting or uninstructive to discuss the chief of them briefly in this 
 place. 
 
 “There is in France, as compared with England, so little em¬ 
 ployment for juvenile labour, that the rising generation has ample 
 leisure for some preliminary instruction before it is summoned to the 
 active duties of life. In and around all our great seats of manufac¬ 
 turing industry, a child can be put to some use, so as to contribute 
 something towards the support of the family, at a very early age; 
 and hence we find that, when grown up, they have acquired no 
 accomplishments in the way of education, farther than such as enable 
 them to read a newspaper and (with some difficulty) to write a letter. 
 For the peculiar occupation to which they are destined they receive 
 no preparatory education at all; they take to it, when very young, 
 nothing more than their natural strength and mother wit; and they 
 grow up as nothing more than the motive power of the tools they are 
 taught to use, or the tools of the motive power which it is their busi¬ 
 ness to attend to. They thus become most expert workmen—and, 
 perhaps, they owe a portion of their excellence in this respect to all 
 their mental energies being concentrated in what may be called the 
 manipulation of the task they are performing. To that task they 
 daily apply themselves without troubling their heads about how their 
 labour might be abridged, or how the product might be improved. 
 But in France, a contrary system is prevalent, arising from the dif¬ 
 ferent circumstances of the two countries. Children, as we have 
 said, have there a few years for education before they are called to 
 contribute to their own support; and the State has wisely provided 
 that this education shall be such as will be of some service to them¬ 
 selves and to society in after-life. The art of design is a principal 
 feature in it—though not to the exclusion of the ordinary rudiments 
 of reading and writing—and thus it may be truly said, that the child 
 is made the father of the man, for he acquires in childhood that which 
 will be most serviceable to him in manhood, and which can rarely be 
 acquired after the cares of manhood have begun, and the habits of 
 self-satisfied ignorance have become confirmed. It is this early and 
 appropriate education which renders almost every operative in France 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 10 
 
 an artist likewise in the branch of manufacture to which he has been 
 devoted. Hence he has a superior taste for the beautiful to what the 
 English operative can boast; and the fruits of this elevation in the 
 capacity and imagination of the French operatives are naturally 
 observable in the greater delicacy or grandeur of French designs, as 
 the occasion may require. We do not mean that the French opera¬ 
 tives universally supply the designs for the productions upon which 
 they are engaged; hut when they do not, it is a necessary conse¬ 
 quence of their being such respectable masters of the art of design, 
 that those who make the art of design a profession, must he very 
 superior masters of it indeed, and that the operatives themselves, from 
 their capacity to appreciate the ideas of the designer, must he capable 
 of interpreting and expressing them in the execution of the work 
 more effectually than if they had no more sense of their beauty than 
 the scene-painter, however expert in the use of the brush, may he 
 supposed to have of the beauty of a Claude or Canaletti. 
 
 ***** 
 
 “But the Exhibition, while it cannot fail to prove highly instruc¬ 
 tive to our skilled artisans, by the studies which it will bring before 
 them for the enlargement of their conceptions and the improvement 
 of their taste, will also undoubtedly conduce, in another manner, to 
 the elevation of their calling in an intellectual, and of their condition 
 in a worldly, sense. It has generally been assumed, as we have 
 before remarked, that the inferiority of the British artisan in design 
 is a natural defect, and that taste is a gift which has been hut very 
 moderately vouchsafed to him. But this theory will not bear a 
 philosophic examination. Always and everywhere the development 
 of any faculty, and its progress towards perfection, have depended 
 upon the demand for its employment, and the rewards offered for its 
 exercise. If the great body of the people do not appreciate, or have 
 no relish for, any particular kind of excellence, the talents which 
 could otherwise display it will remain dormant. Thus, while the 
 people of this country had no taste for music of a refined and elevated 
 character, we had no native composers in the higher walks of the art; 
 but since the public taste has been educated in this respect, and the 
 great body of the people can enjoy and require what their forefathers 
 had no ear for, we have had a galaxy of composers, scarcely inferior 
 to the brightest stars ox Italy. And so it has been, and will he, with 
 our skilled artisans. If they have not hitherto shone in the higher 
 walks of ornamental art, it has been because the mass of the commu¬ 
 nity has not appreciated it, and that there has therefore been no 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 11 
 
 sufficient demand for its production to reward its cultivation. But 
 let the public taste become educated in this respect—and what means 
 so powerful to this end as such Exhibitions as that intended ?—let 
 there thus arise a demand for greater excellence in decorative works 
 than those which satisfy the ignorant simplicity of the present day, 
 and latent talent will be evoked to supply it. Elegance in dress, in 
 furniture, in household fixtures, in every requisite for personal and 
 domestic enjoyment, will conventionally become one of the prime 
 decencies of life ; and who can doubt that such a consummation 
 would greatly elevate the worldly condition of the skilled artizan; 
 while, as callings are always estimated according to the intellect 
 required in their exercise, it would equally elevate him in the scale 
 of society. 
 
 “We must also solicit attention to another consideration. The 
 skilled artisan in this country will always possess one great advantage 
 over the artisan of any other, namely, the vast abundance of capital 
 which in this country is always ready to avail itself of his talents. 
 It will be said that the artisan has not found this to be invariably 
 the case; but this seeming contradiction to the assertion is easily 
 explained. Hitherto our artisans have had little more than mere 
 manual skill to offer, and the capitalist has regarded them, according 
 to the different branches of employment for which they are fitted, as 
 being all nearly equal to each other in this respect, that it has not 
 been worth his while to make any discrimination between them. If 
 he required a hundred hands, he went into the appropriate labour- 
 market, and took those out of the number competing for work, who 
 were willing to work, on the lowest terms. This practice is very 
 injurious to the artisans as a body, for not only have the best been 
 excluded from employment by the competition of the worst, but the 
 rate of remuneration became fixed by what the very worst hands 
 were willing to accept. This has arisen from the difficulty of disco¬ 
 vering beforehand any difference in the value of the mere manual 
 labour of individuals. The artisan has had nothing to offer to the 
 competition of capitalists, for the competition has been the other way, 
 manual labour competing for employment. But how different would 
 be the case, if the artisan was an artist also—one not only with 
 hands to execute, but with a head to design ? This would at once 
 do away with the equality in the value of the services of all, 
 which has reduced all to the necessity of contending amongst 
 themselves for employment, the strange principle of their rivalry 
 for the notice of the capitalist being, not who can do the best 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 12 
 
 work, but who will sacrifice himself for the worst wages. Let the 
 artisan, we repeat, become an artist also, and this would be done 
 away with; for though there may be no difference between the 
 value of one pair of hands and that of another pair of hands, there 
 will always be a difference between the value of one man’s intellec¬ 
 tual gifts and those of another man. If then the artisan had not 
 only a pair of hands but a head also to be employed, his situation 
 would be most happily reversed. Instead of waiting in the labour- 
 market for the chance of being the lowest bidder for employment, he 
 would go to the capital-market to find the highest bidder for his ser¬ 
 vices. Capitalists would then be the competitors for high-priced 
 talent, and not artisans the competitors for low-priced work. 
 
 “ Lastly, let none be so near-sighted and narrow-minded as to urge 
 that the Exhibition will be a stimulus to foreign nations to excel in 
 the industrial arts. We trust that it may be so, and that it may 
 conduce to their rapid progress in prosperity. We wish to see them 
 rich and flourishing; for what reason have we, even on the score of 
 selfishness, to desire that they should remain in poverty or fall into 
 decay ? We are—with our great natural advantages, our unbounded 
 supply of coals and of all the useful metals, the energetic and never- 
 tiring industry of our population, the enterprising spirit of our An¬ 
 glo-Saxon blood, our peculiar climate which renders bodily and 
 mental activity a condition of healthy existence, and our insular 
 position, so pre-eminently favourable to commerce—we are, by these 
 and other great natural advantages, and for an indefinite term must 
 continue to be, the great manufacturing and mercantile nation of the 
 world. What, therefore, have we to fear ? Not that other nations 
 may grow rich, but that they may grow poor; for poor countries 
 must ever be poor customers to us. Let our artisans ever remember 
 this.” 
 
 “ What is the most significant feature of the Exhibition ? ” In¬ 
 disputably the machinery, its beautiful structure, and the altered tone 
 in relation to its bearing on human labour. This, you will acknow¬ 
 ledge, is a step in the right direction, and its importance is equally 
 recognized by the foreigner as by ourselves. Here and there, it is 
 true, a lingering prejudice or so may be entertained, but it finds little 
 countenance from the great bulk of our artisans. One and all of the 
 more intelligent and really influential among that useful class of men 
 are convinced that machinery is a powerful adjunct, and that the more 
 perfect it becomes the more powerful is its agency, and, also, the 
 moi*e valuable its assistance to their manual labour. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 13 
 
 We have frequently laboured to impress this great truth upon 
 the minds of the working classes* ; and under trying circumstances 
 too, therefore feel a more than ordinary pleasure at perceiving its 
 recognition. We addressed the workmen employed on the Trench 
 railways, whose hatred to machinery was evinced rather inconve¬ 
 niently on one or two occasions, in the following terms, which may 
 not be inappropriately applied to the present time :— 
 
 “ What is a machine ? A contrivance by man to increase his 
 power over matter. If the power of man, then, to subdue matter be 
 a good, which, we presume, no one will .deny, the increase of that 
 power must be a greater good, and its ultimate perfection the greatest 
 of all goods. The mind may conceive, as it frequently does, the 
 grandest projects for human improvement, but the hand alone cannot 
 execute them. There have been thousands of instances of this kind, 
 which the world has never known, and which must have died away 
 in the brain that conceived them. One of the great causes, if not 
 the principal, of man’s advancing so slowly in the path of ameli¬ 
 oration, has been the incapacity of his hand to execute the conceptions 
 of his head; it follows, therefore, that the nearer the power of the 
 hand approximates to that of the head, the more rapid will be his 
 advance. 
 
 “ Man is the creature of machinery in a civilized state ; deprive 
 him of it and he instantly becomes helpless and unprotected. Man 
 himself is a magnificent machine, and God, his creator, exclaims the 
 pious and eloquent Barrow, is the first of mechanicians. Look at the 
 form of man, either in repose or in activity, and you cannot but ad¬ 
 mire its beauty. What a majestic pile is that bony construction !— 
 how ingeniously devised and how exquisitely formed !—how true in 
 principle and how admirable in practice ! 
 
 “Man, know thyself,” says the Scripture, which may be inter¬ 
 preted, without the slightest irreverence, “ contemplate thine own 
 frame, examine its construction, and imitate its perfection, in thy 
 works !” The nearer man, therefore, approaches to the perfection of 
 his own frame in his mechanical contrivance, the nearer he approaches 
 to divine wisdom. And without violating the implicit reverence 
 which is due to the Creator, may we not imagine some superior spirit 
 whispering in the ear of earth’s first-born—“Man, make a machine, 
 and your condition shall be improved, and the more perfect you get in 
 machinery, the happier, the better, your state of existence, and the 
 only possible way to obtain absolute dominion over the earth is by 
 * Vide “ Machinery, is it a Good or an Evil.” Paris, 1844. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 14 
 
 mechanical perfection. There is one thing, however, very clear, that 
 man has partially emancipated himself from his material slavery hy 
 his mechanical inventions; and when the spade first assisted the power 
 of his hand, and the plough first followed the direction of his head, 
 the beginning of his emancipation must practically have commenced.” 
 
 Could the holy army of martyrs, who were literally hunted out of 
 existence for displaying the inventive powers with which the Creator 
 had endowed them, once more revisit their earthly habitations, how 
 strange must he their sensations ! William Lea here would see mil¬ 
 lions depending upon his stocking-frame for their daily bread, though 
 he wandered from place to place with that sacred treasure, heart-broken 
 and starving, without meeting with a single soul capable of recogniz - 
 ing its wondrous utility ; and Hargraves would find some consolation 
 for the bitterness of his existence in the fact of his invention being 
 universally cherished and improved; nor would the delight of Jacquard 
 he less could his spirit quietly contemplate the improvements of his 
 loom, whereby the use of cards is altogether dispensed with. Poor 
 Jacquard thought that he had attained all that was requisite, hy the 
 substitution of cards for the old cords and pedals; hut were he to 
 examine the loom now in the Exhibition—the first of the kind, and 
 the invention of a Belgian—his benevolent heart would leap with de¬ 
 light. The ingenious Frenchman diminished the number of unsightly 
 cripples by his comparatively easy process of weaving the fabric ; and 
 the Belgian, carrying improvement a step further, has greatly facili¬ 
 tated the power of production, by diminishing the complication and 
 weight of labour. Thousands of other instances might be adduced, 
 were we to enumerate, even partially, the progressive stages of im¬ 
 provement which one and all of the mechanical contributions to the 
 Exhibition present. Each machine, in short, is little more than a 
 monument of mental martyrs. 
 
 An old writer, whose name we have forgotten, pithily remarks, 
 that “what is man’s calamity in his ignorance, is his blessing in his 
 intelligence.” This remark may be applied, more or less, to the 
 whole range of human actions, but to none more closely than to 
 man’s treatment of his mechanical inventions. Some few years ago, 
 the bulk of artizans were much opposed to machinery, and did all 
 they could to arrest its improvement. The machines they were in the 
 habit of using were thought sufficiently perfect; and those that had the 
 slightest tendency to interfere with them were uniformly condemned. 
 They committed the logical absurdity of protecting imperfection , and 
 of condemning perfection. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 15 
 
 Happily for themselves, and for mankind at large, our artizans 
 have become more enlightened, and view the rich treasure of mecha¬ 
 nical skill in the Exhibition with feelings of almost affectionate ad¬ 
 miration. Of all the changes in the industrial relations of the world 
 we deem this the most important, therefore have considered it as the 
 prominent feature of the Exhibition. Machinery, it will he found, is 
 the true source of moral progress and industrial improvement. 
 
 Another feature equally deserving of notice, however, is the con¬ 
 tributions of raw materials. As the latter compose the basis of all our 
 manufactures, it is indispensable that we should form a correct judg¬ 
 ment of their relative excellence, and not depend upon caprice or 
 accident for our supplies. Hitherto this has been the case, for the 
 merchant has made the latter dependant upon his exports, and not 
 shaped his exports so as to bring hack the best specimens of the raw 
 material. For instance, we export a great quantity of manufactured 
 articles to the Brazils, and to secure a return cargo our ships are 
 laden, perhaps, with rosewood, although a finer quality of that mate¬ 
 rial may he found elsewhere, which would prove highly advantageous 
 to our cabinetmakers. The same remark is partially applicable to the 
 hulk of raw materials, which materially retards the excellence of our 
 general industry. The Exhibition has evoked from every quarter of the 
 globe the finest specimens of its raw productions, and has afforded an 
 opportunity of examining them “ cheek by jowl,”—an opportunity of 
 immense utility to the industrial interests of the country. The con¬ 
 sumer now will not content himself with receiving comparatively had 
 timber from Canada, inferior bark from France, and mediocre linseed 
 from Prussia ; but as he ranges his eye round the Exhibition he will 
 immediately detect the whereabouts of the finest qualities of each of 
 these important articles. The same remark may be applied to the 
 iron, the lead, the copper, the ores, the minerals, and, indeed, to the 
 whole range of our contributions. If the Exhibition has effected 
 only this good, it has amply repaid the time, the trouble, the 
 anxiety, the expense, the annoyance, and every other the , that a dis¬ 
 turbed imagination, a narrow judgment, and a malevolent disposition, 
 could attach a disparaging and contemptuous epithet to. Taking even 
 this microscopic view of the Crystal Palace we can discern sufficient 
 materials for the commendation of those who have been more immedi¬ 
 ately instrumental in its erection, but this is a theme upon which we 
 have no desire to dwell. Let it suffice that we recognise the Exhibi¬ 
 tion as un fait accompli, and shall treat it accordingly ; and we can the 
 better afford this, seeing that we were about the first in the field to 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 16 
 
 anticipate the benefits which have already accrued from it. “ There is 
 nothing succeeds like success,” says the French proverb, and we have 
 a lively recollection of the strange and gibberish notes that were rife 
 in many quarters when the idea of the Crystal Palace was in embryo, 
 which contrast somewhat strangely with the Io Peans now so lustily 
 shouted in its favour. N’importe; we shall continue in the same strain, 
 and simply repeat our thanks to the Prince, whose moral courage never 
 for a moment flagged, and whose practical sagacity must have astonished 
 even his friends. Every obstacle—and their name is legion—was 
 quietly overcome by patient endurance and untiring perseverance, in 
 spite of the cold discouragement of many, and the positive obstruction 
 of the few. 
 
 One word more. In a somewhat hasty glance at the varied and 
 valuable collection of objects, it is natural to suppose that many of 
 a highly interesting nature must have escaped our notice. The fol¬ 
 lowing fact is an instance in point:—The American revolving pistol 
 is noticed under its proper head, with a due acknowledgment of the 
 originality of the invention, and its powers of destruction; but, since 
 these observations were committed to type, we have derived some 
 information which leads us to modify our first impressions. The ori¬ 
 ginality of the invention is questionable,—it being a simple improve¬ 
 ment upon a preceding production. Some thirty years ago the Messrs. 
 Evans and Son, of Wardour Street, the eminent machinists, manufac¬ 
 tured 200 revolving barrels, enclosing lesser barrels, exactly like the 
 pistol in the Exhibition, and the only difference between the two in¬ 
 ventions is simply this—the cylinder of the original was pressed back 
 by the finger and thumb of the left hand, while the pistol revolves 
 by means of a click after each discharge. In almost every other re¬ 
 spect the productions are the same. It is somewhat singular that the 
 order was given to Messrs. Evans and Son by a Mr. Collyer, an 
 American; and if he were the inventor of the revolving barrel, it is 
 equally creditable to the ingenuity of our transatlantic brethren. 
 
 In presenting the second edition of the “Wealth of the World in 
 its Workshops” to the reader, we have simply to remark that the 
 illustration of the useful rather than the ornamental, in industrial art, 
 has been our principal aim, believing with Milton that— 
 
 “ . . . . that which before us lies 
 In daily life is the prime wisdom,” 
 
PEODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 -♦- 
 
 CHAPTER I.—STEEL. 
 
 The art of making steel of the finest quality is almost exclusively 
 confined to this country. In France and in Germany the theory has 
 been studied with the utmost attention, but, whether it be deficiency 
 of means or inferior chemical knowledge of this particular material, 
 or both combined, the fact still remains: the practical skill of neither 
 of these countries is equal to our own. 
 
 Steel is a combination of iron and carbon in certain proportions. 
 Cast iron is more highly charged with carbon than steel; while bar- 
 iron, being deprived of the carbon it contained in a pig-state, by 
 the process of puddling and rolling, must he recharged before it can be 
 made into steel. This is done by what, at Sheffield, is called “cement¬ 
 ing.” Bar-iron, mostly Swedish and Russian, is there charged with 
 carbon until it becomes steel, and by hammering and rolling, is 
 refined and brought to the desired state of perfection. Hence, 
 there are two processes resorted to, that of decarbonizing to make 
 bar-iron, and that of recharging or cementing, to restore the carbon. 
 Steel, therefore, occupies a middle place between malleable iron and 
 cast iron; hut its qualities are different from either, depending, in a 
 great measure, on the manner in which the two combine. Some¬ 
 times the combination presents a granulated texture, sometimes 
 fibrous, sometimes smooth and glittering, at other times it is rough 
 and dull. How these changes take place is still a mystery, even to 
 practical and scientific observers. It will suffice, for our purpose, to 
 state that all our steel is made from bar-iron, which has been pre¬ 
 viously made from the ore, and that the change from iron to steel is 
 effected by a series of processes which we shall now briefly detail. 
 
 Sheffield is the principal seat of the manufacture of steel, as Man¬ 
 chester is of cottons and Leeds of woollens. In that busy town 
 there are several establishments where the iron is converted into 
 steel; some of these are called “tilts,” others “mills,” and others 
 
PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 18 
 
 again “ converting-works,” while a few combine all the operations 
 within themselves. Some manufacturers are entirely occupied in 
 converting, or making the crudest form of steel; others in tilting, or 
 giving a further development to it; others in casting, which is an ad¬ 
 vanced stage of the metal, being poured into ingots or moulds in a 
 liquid state; and others in milling or rolling, which shapes the steel 
 either into bars or sheets; and, in a few instances, all these operations 
 are performed in a single establishment. The “ converting,” or first 
 process, is as follows :—The bars of iron, cut to a particular length, 
 are packed or piled up in the furnace, which somewhat resembles a 
 glass-house, having a conical covering to the oven. There are two 
 . oblong troughs in the oven, each measuring about twenty feet in 
 length, a yard deep, and the same in width, and so placed that a strong 
 body of flame, by playing round both of them, may augment the heat 
 within. On the bottom of each trough is spread a layer of coarsely 
 powdered charcoal, then a layer of iron bars, side by side, as many as 
 the width will admit; then another layer of charcoal, then a layer of 
 iron, and so on till the trough is filled, which contains about thirty 
 alternations of charcoal and iron. The surface is covered with a 
 clayey substance called wheelswarf, made into a kind of cement, ob¬ 
 tained from the abrasion of the grindstones used at Sheffield. A coal 
 fire is then kindled, and kept up fiercely for several days, during 
 which time the iron is in a red-hot, or, white-heat, state; the char¬ 
 coal also becomes highly heated, being covered with a coating of 
 wheelswarf, so that the iron gradually absorbs a portion of it. The 
 workmen, from long practice, can easily test the progress of the ope¬ 
 ration, which requires to be carefully watched, as the subsequent ap¬ 
 plication of the metal is mainly decided by it. Steel intended for 
 coach-springs, for instance, requires a comparatively low degree of 
 heat, hut for several articles of manufacture it requires a higher de¬ 
 gree of conversion ; that which is subsequently “ sheared” or ham¬ 
 mered for knife-blades and other purposes, still higher; for files a yet 
 higher conversion is necessary ; and steel to he cast in a fluid state, 
 requires the highest of all. It will easily be inferred that great 
 nicety of observation is necessary through all these processes of 
 conversion. 
 
 The blister-steel absorbs about one per cent, of carbon, and is sel¬ 
 dom used in this state, except for coarse goods; it is called common 
 steel when it has undergone a good hammering, after being reheated, 
 which imparts to it a tougher quality. The next process is shearing, 
 which consists in heating several pieces and hammering them 
 
STEEL. 
 
 19 
 
 together, until a single mass is formed, which becomes more dense 
 and tougher than the blister-steel from which it is made. The bars of 
 blister-steel are broken into pieces of a foot long, which are heated in 
 a furnace until they attain a white heat, then they are placed under a 
 large tilt-hammer, which beats them out to thirty inches in length. 
 To change these pieces into shear-steel, half a dozen of them are put 
 one upon another in a pile, and firmly fixed at one end in a groove : 
 this pile is placed in a furnace to soak , or to become partially heated. 
 The group is then transferred to another furnace, where it is brought 
 to a white heat. Great nicety is required in these several operations. 
 When sufficiently heated it is submitted to a shear hammer, where it 
 receives a beating on all four sides until it becomes thoroughly homo- * 
 geneous, and assumes the form of a bar of steel two or three inches 
 square. In some instances the operations are carried still further, the 
 bar being cut in two, reheated and rewelded, and, according to the 
 degree to which it is welded or sheared, the steel is called “ double¬ 
 shear,” “single-shear,” or “half-shear.” The shear-steel made by 
 this process loses all the flaws and blisters which distinguished it as 
 blister-steel; it also acquires an evenness of surface throughout, and 
 is more malleable and tenacious than it was before. 
 
 We now come to cast-steel, which perhaps is the most important 
 process of all, as the beauty of steel manufactured articles are mainly 
 dependent upon it. The heat required to melt steel is very intense, 
 the furnaces, crucibles, and other apparatus used in the process, 
 must therefore be so formed as to endure it. The crucibles are 
 made of Stourbridge clay, carefully prepared for that purpose ; they 
 are rather less than two feet in height, and have a kind of sugar-loaf 
 shape, each weighing about twenty-six pounds before it is annealed 
 and thoroughly prepared for use. Before the crucibles are filled with 
 metal they are placed in the furnace, where they remain until they 
 become sufficiently durable for three successive meltings of four 
 hours each. Each furnace, in which the crucibles are arranged side 
 by side, is supplied with a certain quantity of coke, and, after a little 
 time, more coke is thrown in, until it entirely surrounds them both. 
 They are left in the furnace until they attain a white heat, when the 
 cover of the latter is removed, and a long funnel let down into each 
 pot, having its open end at a convenient height above. The steel, 
 broken into fragments, is thrown through the funnel into the crucibles, 
 which hold about forty pounds each of the metal. The crucibles are 
 then closed, and occasionally watched during the melting process, more 
 coke being added when necessary, and there being generally from four 
 
20 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 to five tons of coke used in melting one ton of steel. The moulds, into 
 which the molten metal is poured, are shaped so as to give oblong 
 bars or ingots weighing from thirty-six to two hundred pounds each, 
 according as they are wanted. Each mould is divided into two 
 halves, which are bound closely together when the casting is about to 
 take place, previous to which they are coated inside with an oily 
 composition, and placed vertically in a hole of the cast-house, with 
 the upper end open. The metal is then poured in, which is an 
 arduous task for the workmen, the heat being so intense, especially in 
 the furnace whence it is drawn. This process is repeated thrice in 
 one day, when the crucible is no longer fit for use. Changes in the 
 process of melting steel have taken place during the last few years, 
 each manufacturer trying experiments of his own. For instance, it 
 was conjectured that Swedish iron derived some of its valuable pro¬ 
 perties from the presence of a small portion of manganese, hence the 
 latter has been introduced to the melting-pot, in order to improve the 
 quality of cast-steel, or, in other terms, to make it more workable for 
 certain articles of cutlery. If the cast-steel be for the purpose of 
 making saws, the ingots are rather flat, so as to be conveniently rolled 
 into sheets; but for other purposes, they are generally about as 
 thick as they are wide. 
 
 The tilting of steel is another process. The object is to close the 
 pores of the metal and to render it as dense as possible. All steel ap¬ 
 plied to the manufacture of the best articles is tilted, whether it be 
 “ shear” or “cast,” which is effected thus:—The workmen are seated 
 in suspended cradles in the tilt-house before the tilt-hammer, holding 
 the bars of steel to be tilted, as they can move their bodies to and fro 
 more easily, by paddling along with their feet, than if they stood or 
 walked. The bars of steel are heated to a certain temperature, and 
 are brought under the action of the hammer as described, which ex¬ 
 poses every part to the blow of the instrument in an equable manner. 
 
 Let us now turn to the continental process of making steel, about 
 which a great deal has been recently said, especially since the opening 
 of the Exhibition, which contains one or two singular specimens of 
 the manufacture. At Loh, near Miisen, on the Sieg, the process of 
 making raw-steel is carried on to a considerable extent. The large 
 slabs which are run from the furnace are broken into pieces, and a 
 lump of about eight cwt. is heated by lying on the coals of the fur¬ 
 nace used for puddling or decarbonizing. This is a low open furnace, 
 containing a bed of charcoal about two and a half feet in depth and 
 four feet square. The lump is plunged into the middle of the bed, 
 
STEEL. 
 
 21 
 
 and exposed to the action of a blast until it comes to a melting state; 
 and the puddler’s art consists in so regulating the blast that no more 
 carbon shall be extracted than is necessary, by checking the fusion at 
 the precise moment. The lump is frequently brought under a heavy 
 hammer, when it is shaped to a peculiar form and cut into four 
 pieces. Each of these pieces, after being reheated several times, is 
 reduced to a bar an inch and a half square, the temper of which is 
 tried by breaking off the end with a blow on an horizontal bar. If j 
 it breaks short off, and the core is perfect, it is reckoned to be a good 
 article; on the contrary, if a black core is generated, either from 
 burnt metal or from extraneous matter that has not been expelled 
 under the hammer, it is thrown aside as inferior metal. The analysis 
 of the raw steel bars shows that they contain about two per cent, of 
 carbon,—nearly double the quantity that English cast-steel contains; 
 so that by “ shearing” or welding together strips of this steel with 
 strips of bar-iron, under heavy hammers, or by means of casting with 
 a proportion of malleable iron, the infusion of carbon is obtained, and 
 what is called steel is produced. 
 
 The Messrs. Hundsdecker, whose works are near Altena on the 
 Sieg, manufacture steel principally in this way. The iron-ore which 
 is most abundant in the Sieg district, is of a steelly nature, and may 
 be denominated a carhuretted protoxide of iron. When puddled with 
 charcoal, according to the custom of the country, what is called steel 
 is made from it without any cementing process. This may he called 
 steel-pig, which, when mixed with a due proportion of bar-iron, pro¬ 
 duces what is called cast-steel. At Burg, near Solingen, scissors and 
 other implements of low quality are cast and turned out malleable by 
 the simple process of uniting the pig with bar-iron in due pro¬ 
 portions. 
 
 And this leads us naturally to advert to the large lump of metal 
 which M. Krupp, of Essen, has contributed to the Exhibition, and 
 which he designates cast-steel. It may be so in the Prussian sense 
 of the term, but not, assuredly, in the Sheffield sense. The practical 
 manufacturers of the latter city would call it a bar, or lump, of cast 
 and wrought iron, mixed in due proportions, the latter having gone 
 through the process of puddling. The only thing, therefore, that 
 entitles it to the name of steel is, that a certain, and we apprehend a 
 small, portion of the lump has gone through the first process towards 
 becoming steel; but to compare it, in its compact mass, with the 
 finished production which we call steel, and which has gone through 
 such a variety of trying, improving, and refining processes that are 
 
PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 22 
 
 invariably adopted at Sheffield, in the manufacture of that metal, 
 would he truly ridiculous, to speak in the most moderate terms. 
 
 The proportion of sulphur that is imbibed by all iron smelted with 
 coke is what makes English bar-iron inferior to Swedish or Russian : 
 hence, we are compelled to use the latter for the manufacture of steel. 
 Some of the Russian iron is equal to the Swedish, and a great number 
 of experiments have been made in Germany during the last ten or 
 fifteen years, especially in the Rhenish districts, to find a shorter and 
 cheaper mode than the ordinary one for turning iron into steel. In 
 some instances, these experiments have turned out highly useful, 
 though they have not yet resulted in placing the conversion of the 
 general qualities of the metal upon anything like a sound and syste¬ 
 matic basis. In favour of one of the experiments may be cited the 
 files of Solingen, which were in considerable demand some few years 
 ago, from their tough and elastic qualities; but the Sheffield file is 
 now much preferred, and where quality is a desideratum, it invariably 
 supersedes its once German rival. For fine cutlery the highly fin¬ 
 ished steel of Sheffield is still imported into Germany, and it has been 
 found hitherto impossible to make a chisel of the German steel that 
 will cut iron like an English chisel. Files are likewise imported 
 from Sheffield into Germany; while sugar-knives, or matchets, and 
 wood-cutter’s implements for rough and pioneering work, are still in 
 demand at Solingen. 
 
 We have traced the manufacture of steel from the rude ore up to 
 the state when it is ready for conversion into general use; but it 
 would occupy too large a space to describe the different processes to 
 which the metal is subjected before it assumes either of the forms 
 indicating its finished state. Let it suffice that we describe the 
 manufacture of a razor, one of the most difficult articles to finish 
 properly that comes under the workman’s hands. 
 
 The blade of a razor is forged from steel of a peculiar quality. 
 The rod of steel is heated at one end, and hammered into a shape 
 bearing a rude resemblance to that of a razor. The concavity of the 
 surface is produced by hammering the blade on the rounded edge of 
 an anvil. The piece is then cut off, with an additional length to form 
 the tang for insertion in the handle. The quality of the metal is 
 tested by the severe hammering which it necessarily receives 
 before the edge becomes sufficiently fine and tapered from the back. 
 Razors are generally tempered before they are ground; sometimes, 
 however, they are ground before they are tempered. Very small 
 stones are used for grinding; often those which have been worn 
 
STEEL. 
 
 23 
 
 away to too small a size for other purposes. A razor ground upon a 
 four-inch stone is considered as a test of its goodness, which may he 
 thus explained:—Every razor is concave or hollow on the surface ; 
 this concavity must be produced or maintained in grinding by the use 
 of a stone equally convex. "When a stone four inches in diameter is 
 employed, it must give to the razor a corresponding concavity, or a 
 curve of two inches radius; and this can only he produced by wearing 
 away the metal until a thin edge is gained, and the thinner the edge, 
 the finer and sharper can it be made in the process of whetting. The 
 inference is simply this, that other things being equal, a razor ground 
 on a four-inch stone will yield a keener edge than one ground on a 
 stone six, eight, or ten inches in diameter. The concavity of a razor, 
 according to the grinding savans of Sheffield, ought to hear some rela¬ 
 tion to the kind of beard with which it is to he brought in contact. 
 Thus, a strong, wiry heard, requires a razor whose edge possesses 
 strength as well as keenness, and the latter ought, therefore, to be 
 ground on a stone larger than four inches in diameter. Such a heard 
 would spoil a very fine and delicately-edged razor. The tempering of 
 a razor is not less important than the grinding, since the fineness and 
 durability of the edge greatly depend upon it. This tempering is given 
 by exposing the article to a certain temperature, and then allowing it 
 to cool gradually ; the particular temperature chosen being a matter 
 of experience. There is no known principle to test the temper of a 
 razor, each workman depending upon his own experience ; and the 
 colour of the steel when hot is generally taken as the test, each kind 
 of cutlery having a colour best fitted for itself. The razor, when 
 ground, tempered, and polished, is fitted into its handle, which is 
 an ordinary and simple process. 
 
 The metalliferous contributions to the Exhibition are, as was to 
 be expected, various and diversified. The continent has done its best, 
 doubtless, to maintain its preceding reputation, both in the crude and 
 in the most finished condition of the metals. Sweden, whose name is 
 suggestive of iron, has furnished several specimens of her productive 
 power, from the rough ore in its natural state, up to the stamped bar 
 ready for the steeling process of Sheffield. To the geologist, as well 
 as to the practical mind, this contribution must prove equally interest¬ 
 ing and instructive. In the Zollverein, we have a large assortment of 
 metal-work in a manufactured state, principally tools and instruments 
 used in the ordinary occupations of the working-man. The Messrs. 
 Ditmar, of Wurtemherg, have furnished a great variety of the latter, 
 several of which vary in their construction from similar tools in this 
 
24 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 country, the saws especially; it will be for the practical man to appre¬ 
 ciate the merit of the variation, while as regards the finish and quality, 
 it requires but little experience to note cheir inferiority when com¬ 
 pared to the productions of Sheffield. M. Fischer, of Hainfield, has 
 contributed his excellence in the manufacture of files to perplex the 
 eye of even the initiated, and in many of their surface-forms they are 
 singularly different to our manufacture; still, according to practical 
 experience, after the severest of all trials, they are considered much 
 inferior to ours, both in hardness and elastic durability. 
 
 The cutlery, throughout the foreign departments, especially the 
 “ Steyer ” (Austria), is well worth examining, if it be simply to note 
 down the different means which different minds adopt to attain the 
 same end; as to the intrinsic quality of the productions, the beauty of 
 their finish, or their adaptability to their several purposes, with few 
 exceptions, there cannot be a moment’s consideration about the mat¬ 
 ter—Sheffield is so much a-head in almost every respect. 
 
 The designs of several of the stoves in the foreign contributions 
 may be studied with advantage, especially that of M. Banns, of Cobourg, 
 which is alike novel and ingenious in construction; but, as regards 
 the quantity of fuel it is likely to consume, or the relative heat it can 
 impart to the room in which it may be fixed, we can only form a faint 
 conjecture at the most. The Yieille Montagne Company, in addition 
 to their large statue of the Queen, occupying a prominent position 
 in the eastern nave, have contributed specimens of zinc-sheet work; 
 and the reputation which the company has acquired will ensure for its 
 productions a minute and careful examination. Their supremacy 
 however, in the manufacture of zinc has been some time on the 
 decline, and even their equality is now threatened by the contribu¬ 
 tions from one or two of our manufacturers of that metal. 
 
 We now turn more immediately to the steel articles in the Exhi¬ 
 bition of the English manufacturers, many of them making an effective 
 display. Among the most interesting contributions must be ranked that 
 of Messrs. Johnson, Cammell, & Co.,* of the Cyclop Works, Sheffield, 
 at least to the practical mind. Here we have specimens of the different 
 processes of making steel, from the imported iron up to the most refined 
 state of the metal; and, also, of manufactured articles in which the best 
 quality of steel is an indispensable requisite. Follow that piece of iron 
 through all its various stages—carbonized, converted, melted, and re- 
 
 * This enterprising firm, were the inventors of the well known cast-steel 
 springs, and by their skilful manipulation of the metal have vastly enlarged its 
 consumption and improved the general manufacture of steel. 
 
STEEL. 
 
 25 
 
 fined—until it terminates in one of the laminae of those highly-finished 
 coach-springs, and you have a lesson in manufacturing art few of which 
 can be more useful and instructive. Then let your mind range over 
 the fabrication of the metal—in Prussia, for instance, and trace in 
 imagination the progressive stages of a similar piece of the raw 
 material in the foundries of that country, described in a preceding 
 page, and you will instantly recognize the cause of our superiority 
 in the manufacture of steel. Indeed, the metal of Prussia, in its most 
 finished state, is scarcely worthy the name of steel, not having passed 
 through the cementing ordeal to which it is subjected in England, 
 The steel of the above firm has acquired, we believe, a high name 
 for its quality, whether it be in the condition of “ cemented 
 blister,” “double-refined cast,” “double shear,” or “elastic-spring,” 
 all of which enter largely into the general purposes of manu¬ 
 facture. In locomotive mechanical aids, such as springs, files, &c., 
 &c., they make an interesting display; the “curvilinear tanged file,” 
 for instance, being a great improvement upon the common forms of 
 that tool, for certain purposes; so, also, is the “ continuous tooth 
 concave and convex file,” which received the recognition of a medal 
 from the Society of Arts. In instruments such as these are to be 
 traced the latent principle of progress; they not only simplify, hut 
 greatly diminish, the amount of labour. In mentioning one firm of 
 real practical eminence, we mention, as it were, all that come within 
 the range of their peculiar class of manufacture ; therefore, by way of 
 limiting our labours, we shall direct attention to the files of Johnson 
 Cammell & Co., whose careful finish will he immediately recognized, to 
 their springs for railway-carriages, and, above all, to their piston-rod, 
 weighing 16 cwt., the finest and largest piece of steel in the Exhi¬ 
 bition. This rod is of cast steel, and has passed through the several 
 processes of manufacture already enumerated; and, as regards its 
 working qualities, it is fair to assume that they are far more efficient 
 than those of the ordinary pistons, which are generally made of greatly 
 inferior metal. These, we believe, are the main points in which we 
 are superior to the continent in the manufacture of steel, and truly 
 important they are in every sense. The Messrs. Rogers occupy a 
 large space in the western nave, with a case containing 230 pairs of 
 scissors, of different sizes and patterns. The beauty and ornamenta¬ 
 tion of these productions attest the excellence we have attained in 
 cutlery; and their quality, according to general repute, is fully equal 
 to their ornamentation. The process of manufacturing the scissor is 
 also exhibited throughout its ten different stages, which is highly 
 
26 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 interesting to the uninitiated in such matters. The monster and 
 miniature knives, with their numerous blades, are curiosities in their 
 way—wondrous feats in mechanical and manipulative skill—and 
 will, at least, have the effect of making many a little hoy wish that 
 he was the fortunate possessor of them. The Lilliputian razors, we 
 presume, are simply made to display the ingenuity of our workmen, 
 and, as such, are marvellous curiosities. Naylor, Vickers, and Co. 
 have a large display of rods, bars, &c., of steel, which exhibit the 
 general excellence of their work, and contribute effectually to the 
 Exhibition ; so also have Spear and Jackson, in sending their series 
 of saws, for which they are deservedly celebrated. The cast-steel 
 circular saw, five feet in diameter, is a fine piece of metallic work. 
 Equally attractive to the cutler is the large saw of Joseph Peace & Co.; 
 the quality, however, can only be tested by use, steel in a manufac¬ 
 tured state so frequently deceiving the eye of even practical experience. 
 There are, likewise, a few other articles in the contribution of the 
 latter firm well deserving of attention. Messrs. Unwin and Rogers 
 have contributed an excellent display of pistol-knives, spring-knives, 
 &c., for which they are generally considered unsurpassed; and their 
 surgical instruments are equally entitled to remark, from their fine 
 quality and finish. There are several other exhibitors, whose speci¬ 
 mens are entitled to the minutest and most careful examination, and 
 will amply repay the time bestowed upon them. 
 
 Turning to another branch of metal-work, grates, we have a rich 
 and varied display, which far excels the foreign contributions in all 
 respects, if we, perhaps, except one or two instances where the design 
 may be a little a-head of us. In the beauty of the material, in the 
 truthful finish of the work, and, apparently, in the enduring qualities 
 of the article, there can be no question of our marked superiority; 
 and, as regards price, we are eqxially on the fortunate side, as the 
 foreigner cannot compete with us on the ground of economy in objects 
 of iron and steel work. The Coalbrook Dale Company have made a 
 grand display of their peculiar excellence in the manufacture of grates ; 
 so have Yates, Haywood, & Co., besides other ironworks equally cal¬ 
 culated to arrest the attention. Jobson has two very handsome grates, 
 with more pretension to excellence than the majority of others, in 
 regard to the isolated position in which they are placed ; neverthe¬ 
 less, they are highly finished productions, and are an ornament to the 
 Exhibition. Feetham & Co., in our humble opinion, have contributed 
 the most stylish grates, both in design and in ornamentation, and, as 
 regards workmanship, they have no superior ; while Rippon & Burton 
 
STEEL. 
 
 27 
 
 have furnished, perhaps, the most effective and economical specimen. 
 Their “Nautilus Grate” is one of the most compact and simply con¬ 
 structed objects we have yet seen, and is highly deserving of careful 
 examination. In the display of useful domestic articles, and even of 
 those of higher pretension, Messrs. Maplebeck & Lowe are peculiarly 
 conspicuous ; not so much in the quantity as in the peculiar uses to 
 which their comparatively few objects are adapted. The agricultural 
 implements of this firm are also a highly creditable contribution; 
 and the “ Improved Door Fittings,” from their appearance, are likely 
 to become generally useful. Messrs. Benetfink & Jones have a credit¬ 
 able display, but not so numerous and attractive as several around 
 them, in appearance at least; still they exhibit one or two objects 
 which fully entitle them to a distinct notice. Messrs. Cocker & Sons 
 exhibit their peculiar make of cast-steel needles, from the wire up to 
 their finished state, and an interesting exhibition it is : this firm, we 
 believe, were the first to alleviate the condition of the “ dry grinders ” 
 in their destructive occupation, by constructing a powerful fan under¬ 
 neath the stone of the pointer, which draws down the dust and 
 particles into a pipe, leaving the atmosphere of the room perfectly 
 clear, so that a “dry grinder” can now pursue his occupation as 
 healthily as others engaged in needle-making. Chubb makes a fine 
 display of locks, manufactured in the most perfect manner : nor 
 must we omit to note the case of locks of massive and bold 
 workmanship, exhibited by Messrs. Bramah and Son. It is really 
 quite a treat to observe the excellent workmanship and high finish 
 which they one and all exhibit. In another important branch of manu¬ 
 facture, where excellence of work is equally exhibited, we have some 
 good specimens—we allude to screws. At one time we fell off in the 
 manufacture of screws, from the apathy of some of our manufacturers, 
 but the trade is again returning to Birmingham, through the energy 
 of one or two spirited individuals. America was compelled, in self- 
 defence, as it were, to make the great bulk of the screws she 
 required ; but since we have improved, both in the quality of the 
 metal and the work, she finds it more advantageous to purchase her 
 •supplies here. Messrs. Henn & Bradley have supplied a good assort¬ 
 ment of their peculiarly effective make—“The Crown-Tapered Screw.” 
 Formerly, the screw in general use was as thick at the end as at the 
 base, which had a tendency to splinter and break the wood when in¬ 
 serted in it, and several houses even now still make them on the old 
 plan. The old-fashioned screw, however, does not bite so closely as 
 the taper screw, which gradually insinuates itself, and becomes as 
 
28 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 firm and fixed as though it were part of the material in which it is 
 inserted. Henn and Bradley have wrought a great change in the 
 application of screws, exhibiting specimens of the most delicate struc¬ 
 ture for pianofortes, and also those for the heaviest railway purposes. 
 
 In the foreign contributions there are one or two objects that we 
 have omitted to call attention to. F. Ivrupp of Essen, one of the 
 most intelligent and successful manufacturers in Prussia, exhibits the 
 piece of rolled metal to which we have already alluded. Also a roll¬ 
 ing-mill, which is represented to have the rollers of an equal hardness 
 throughout; consequently, the pressure upon the metal rolled must be 
 equal, a great desideratum, which is attainable more by accident than 
 by design. The mass of “ forged cast-steel,” as it is called, may be 
 as tough as alleged; if it be, our manufacturers at Sheffield are 
 bestowing a great deal of unnecessary labour upon their tough steel, 
 seeing with how little labour, comparatively, that lump has been 
 produced. The mounted cannon is a specimen of highly-finished 
 mechanism; the metal has been first cast, then bored, and finally 
 polished. The polished rollers just below it are a fine specimen of 
 the exquisite surface which may be obtained on steel by certain pro¬ 
 cesses, which, however, are known here as well as abroad. 
 
 In the Belgian department there are some fine specimens of razors, 
 which, for ornament and polish, appear fully equal to our own, but as 
 the proof of the pudding is in the eating, according to the proverb, so 
 the fact of the foreigner imposing high duties upon the importation of 
 our steel goods, and, in some instances, entirely prohibiting them, is 
 the best proof of their superior quality. 
 
 —♦- 
 
 CHAPTER II.—SWORDS, GUNS, AND PISTOLS. 
 
 In the manufacture of swords we still excel the foreigner, although 
 Solingen has advanced somewhat rapidly upon us within the last few 
 years or so; but, if due regard be paid to quality as well as to price, 
 Birmingham has no equal on the continent. The same remark will 
 apply to other military weapons. True, the trade in muskets has 
 migrated to Belgium, so has that of common fowling-pieces, both 
 branches within these few years affording almost constant employment 
 to thousands of hands in and around Birmingham ; and the same 
 observation will apply to swords, the manufacture of which has taken 
 its flight to Solingen, where they can be produced, we presume, 
 
SWORDS, GUNS, AND PISTOLS. 29 
 
 cheaper and of a more sightly and taking condition than in this country. 
 This, however, is a point well deserving the attention of our manufac¬ 
 turers, as it naturally suggests some grave reflections as regards the 
 future. Let any one walk through the town of Liege, and mark 
 attentively the nature of the predominant industry of that city; he 
 will not be long there before he descries its presence, a quantity of 
 muskets, in every stage of manufacture, being constantly intruded 
 before his eyes. Liege has become the Birmingham of the world, at 
 least for muskets. Whence has arisen this change ? Most of the con¬ 
 tinental manufacturers aim at cheapness, with the view of supplying 
 the demand which more or less exists among the semi-civilised por¬ 
 tions of mankind, and consider the high finish, the goodness of work¬ 
 manship, and the effective quality of the instrument, but of minor 
 importance. Birmingham, on the contrary, prides herself upon the 
 excellent character of her work ; and perhaps there is no branch of 
 industry in which a larger amount of mechanical skill is displayed than 
 in the manufacture of military weapons. One or two causes may be 
 assigned for the diminution of employment in this branch of industry. 
 First, the decrease of wars, so that orders are only given on great 
 emergencies, such as the coup ftetat of M. Thiers in 1840, which 
 imparted a sudden gush to the manufacture of Birmingham ; at other 
 times, the continental governments supply themselves from their own 
 manufactures, which have sprung up in almost every state since the 
 peace of 1815. The only demand, therefore, is from North and South 
 America, Brazil, Mexico, &c., which are principally supplied by 
 Solingen and Belgium, who copy our patterns, and manufacture an 
 inferior article. Secondly, there is the proof required in this country, 
 which necessarily compels the manufacturer to use a certain weight 
 of metal, while the foreigner, on the contrary, has no such restriction 
 imposed on his productive power : hence he can produce cheaper. We 
 are not attempting to decry the proof of a gun, believing it to be a 
 humane provision, and one which ought to be exacted of every manu¬ 
 facturer of fire-arms, but simply cite it as one of the causes of the 
 decline of our manufacture. Again, the fabrication of swords bv 
 the English government has somewhat diminished the trade in that 
 weapon; and the custom of officers, on state occasions, using their 
 ordinary field swords, has given an additional blow to the highest class 
 of productions. We shall somewhat minutely describe the process of 
 this interesting manufacture. 
 
 The preparation of the steel for swords is a matter of great import¬ 
 ance, which may readily be inferred when we state that the value 
 
30 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 of the metal varies from £25 to £85 per ton. Suppose a mould of 
 steel of sufficient length, when cut in two, to make a couple 
 of blades. These are called sword-moulds. The flutes, or creases, 
 on the back of the blade are formed in the process of hammering, 
 by means of variously-shaped pieces of steel, fastened to the 
 anvil and curved, or fitted, into a gauge which corresponds to 
 the indentation to he made. The process of hardening succeeds, 
 which is accomplished by heating the metal gradually, and by 
 immersing it in water. It is then tempered, or brought back to a 
 straw-colour, tested by striking it on the back and edge against a 
 wooden block, and if the blade stands this test, it is handed to the 
 grinder, who speedily removes, with his large stone, all the irregula¬ 
 rities of the hammering on its surface. The dexterity of hand required 
 before it is transferred to the grinder, is one of the most noticeable 
 features in sword-making, as some workmen make little or no waste, 
 whilst others spoil no inconsiderable portion of the blades they temper. 
 To clean the grooves, stones with raised beads are used; then follows 
 glazing, on what are called “ bobs ” of wood, with emery and glue; 
 and, finally, the process of polishing is effected by a series of wheels, 
 or “ bobs,” with fine emery and oil. The brilliant polish is obtained 
 by powdered ironstone, or crocus. The hilts of the best swords are 
 forged out of steel, but most of the inferior makers get them cast from 
 malleable iron, and to give them the appearance of steel they are sub¬ 
 mitted to a process which makes them brittle, and comparatively 
 unserviceable. This process, however, enables certain houses to 
 supply the present regulation swords for light and heavy cavalry at 
 very low prices, as there is a saving of at least sixty-five per cent, when 
 compared to the forged or wrought method of making the hilts. The 
 latter are modelled in wax before they are cast, which is a somewhat 
 expensive item in a first-class sword-making establishment. The 
 important qualities in a sword are—length of blade, strength and 
 firmness, combined with lightness, elasticity and easy balance, which 
 make it readily wieldable, all of which are mainly dependent upon its 
 tempering. The clearness of the steel, its freedom from blacks and 
 flaws, or cracks, is likewise a desideratum; and lastly, its high finish 
 and ornamentation. Some of the hilts are elaborately worked out of 
 solid steel, requiring a great deal of labour. A piece of cast-steel 
 is drilled in holes as small as a pin’s point, the latter being filed out 
 bit by bit into shapes which ultimately form the pattern. This kind 
 of work is occasionally so minute that a workman has been employed 
 on a single hilt for three months at a stretch. 
 
SWORDS, GUNS, AND PISTOLS. 31 
 
 Of course, our remarks have reference exclusively to the highest 
 class of sword-makers, such as Reeves, Grieves, & Co., who employ 
 the best hands and turn out the best work; just as much so as Westley 
 Richards, or Tipping and Lawden, do in the manufacture of guns. 
 
 The much-vaunted Damascus blade is inferior to the best made 
 English, at least if tested by the qualities required in a good sword— 
 clearness of surface, length and strength, elasticity and lightness. 
 In fact, the Damascus blade is unfit for the general use of the British 
 soldier, being too much curved, and too heavy for the exercise to 
 which the latter is subjected. The only excellence of a Damascus 
 blade consists in the granular structure of the steel, which certainly 
 adds to its beauty, if not to its effectiveness. These blades, moreover, 
 are seldom elastic, and, when tested like the English, are little better 
 than iron; besides, experience has shown that an English cast-steel 
 blade, of the same weight and shape, will cut them to pieces with 
 the greatest ease; nevertheless the prestige is in their favour, and many 
 an Englishman, accustomed to wear a sword, will give from £20 to 
 £50 for a Damascus blade, while he almost grudges 50 or 60 shillings 
 for a superior one of English make. 
 
 The ornamentation of swords is a peculiar art. What is called 
 Damascening , or introducing precious metals, consists in making an 
 incision in the surface of the blade, and introducing by pressure 
 threads of gold and silver. This process is capable of displaying the 
 taste of the artizan, and was eagerly adopted by the sword-cutlers of 
 the middle ages. Etching, another mode of ornamentation, is effected 
 by covering the blade with a ground, upon which a design is cut, 
 when, an acid being applied and the ground removed, the design is 
 found on the weapon quite perfect. Steel sheaths are made by 
 bending thin plates round a mandril, after which they are soldered, 
 ground, and ultimately polished. 
 
 Turning to the Exhibition, we are brought at once into imme¬ 
 diate contact with the Toledo manufacture of blades, so famous 
 throughout the world for their elastic properties. “ The flexibility,” 
 says Inglis, speaking of the Toledo make, “and excellent temper of 
 the blades are surprising. There are two trials which every blade 
 must undergo before it is pronounced sound—the trial of flexibility 
 and the trial of temper. In the former it is thrust against a plate in 
 the wall, and bent into an arc at least three parts of a circle; in the 
 second it is struck edgeways upon a leaden table, with the whole force 
 which can be given by a powerful man holding it with both hands.” 
 The blow is diminished about one third by holding the weapon with 
 
32 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 both hands; the object being to strike evenly, so that all parts of the 
 blade should be equally affected, which never can be the case when 
 wielded by one hand. This is no very extraordinary proof of the 
 elasticity of the Toledo blade. Take our method of testing a blade, 
 which is much more severe—metal against metal: a stout cavalry 
 sabre, for example, which contains about three times the weight of 
 metal that a fine Toledo does. The point is placed against a pin in a 
 board, and the blade bent round a curve formed by six or eight pins 
 placed equidistant in the board; the degree of flexure being such that 
 the middle of the sword deviates seven or eight inches from a straight 
 line drawn from heel to point. It is then pressed down with its point 
 on a board, and bent round or back to a prescribed distance. It is 
 lastly struck, with all the force a man can use, against a stout wooden 
 block, the edge, the back, and both sides, being struck in succession. 
 When the sword has borne all these severe tests, it is declared fit for 
 service. 
 
 The Spanish contribution, in fact, is simply a collection of rare 
 and scattered curiosities, which doubtless have been made at Toledo, 
 or elsewhere in Spain, but at an enormous cost of time and labour, 
 and ought not to be considered as fair samples of their present manu¬ 
 facture. Alm ost every sword-cutler of that country has one of these 
 rar<z aves dangling in his workshop or in his house, and were you to 
 place any credence in their magniloquent stories, you must conclude 
 that they are the finest sword-makers in the world. The reverse is 
 known to be the case, as every practical and unprejudiced mind will 
 allow. These Toledo blades are sometimes undulated like a serpent, 
 when unsheathed ; but in the scabbard, they are almost bent to a circle. 
 There can be no question about the temper of the steel, which can be 
 as easily attained in this country, and indeed much easier than in 
 Spain, and all we want to guard against is the notion that Spain excels 
 us in the delicate manipulation of that metal. The pistols in the 
 same case may be dismissed with a similar remark; they simply 
 indicate that the Spaniards once possessed a knowledge of the highest 
 branches of the manipulative art, and that it has long departed from 
 them. The swords in the Russian department, although few, appear 
 to be highly finished, both in polish and in ornamentation, and one 
 or two specimens in the Zollverein indicate clearly that the Continent 
 has paid considerable attention to this branch of manufacture. With 
 the exception of Reeves and Grieves, R. Mole, and one or two 
 others of trifling importance, there are but few contributions of our 
 manufacture to the Exhibition ; but it is evident to the practised eye 
 
SWORDS, GUNS, AND PISTOLS. 
 
 33 
 
 that we have little to fear from our neighbours on this head, apart from 
 the circumstances already enlarged upon. In quality of metal, in orna¬ 
 mentation, and in all the really essential qualities of a sword, we occupy 
 very high ground ; in other respects we must yield to the foreigner. 
 
 "We have already remarked that the manufacture of muskets and 
 common fowling-pieces has migrated, in a great measure, to Belgium. 
 But the better kind of work is still retained in this country, Birming¬ 
 ham being the principal seat of its manufacture, while the metropolis 
 engrosses a certain portion of the finishing process, from its superior 
 skill and workmanship. 
 
 There is no such thing as a gun-maker, properly speaking, each 
 establishment confining itself to the production of parts only of a gun; 
 so that the latter has to pass through a series of independent hands 
 before it assumes a finished form. The most important part of a gun 
 is the barrel, and the manufacture of this involves larger arrangements 
 than any other part. These barrels are of two kinds, plain and 
 twisted; the latter being the best and most expensive. Imagine, 
 reader, heaps of old horse-nails, used-up coach-springs, and other 
 fragments of well-seasoned iron, all jumbled together and thrown into 
 the forge, where it remains until it is melted. The “ puddler ” then 
 places a portion of the molten metal under an enormous hammer 
 worked by steam, where it receives a welding that renders it hard, 
 strong, and tough. It is now in the form of a thick sheet, which is cut 
 into strips sufficient for the barrels. This strip, called a “ skelp,” is 
 heated at the thicker end in a fire, placed upon a hollow groove in an 
 anvil, and hammered so as to turn up the two edges, thereby giving 
 it a concave form. A mandril is inserted in this cavity, and the 
 hammerman dextrously heats up the iron round this mandril until it 
 becomes a tube. The mandril being withdrawn, the iron is again 
 heated to a welding temperature, and hammered until the two edges 
 become firmly united, the whole length of the “ skelp” being gradually 
 and successively treated in the same way. A twisted barrel is brought 
 to the tubular form in a very curious way. The iron is cut to the 
 shape of very long narrow strips; and one end of a strip being 
 fastened to a rotating mandril, the whole is turned round the latter 
 in a spiral form, exactly like a spiral spring. This spiral is taken off 
 the mandril, heated, and hammered in such a way that all the edges 
 weld and close together, forming a continuous tube. The tube is now 
 course and rough, both within and without; and to impart the neces¬ 
 sary evenness to the inside, it is scooped and scraped with a rod of 
 iron, until it is perfectly cylindrical and smooth. The exterior is then 
 
 q 
 
34 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 ground by large rough stones ; sometimes it is turned by cutting tools, 
 as in other kinds of turning. The barrel is now ready for the “ proof,” 
 where it is conveyed, and loaded with a charge about five times 
 greater than it will have to carry in actual use. If it prove defective, 
 the proof-man marks it with a piece of chalk, indicating the part to 
 be re-forged. The next process is cleaning and finishing, after which 
 the “ stocker” takes it in hand. He makes the stock, or wood work, 
 generally of walnut-wood, which is cut to the required form by saws, 
 planes, &c., when the “putter-together” fixes the barrel into it by 
 means of screws. The bronzing, polishing, &c., is another depart¬ 
 ment. The gun is now in a complete state. The majority of locks, 
 it is necessary to remark, are made at Wolverhampton, their manufac¬ 
 ture requiring a nicety of touch and finish which the better sort of 
 smiths alone can give. A word or two on steel-barrels, about which 
 a great deal has been recently said, in consequence of the explosion at 
 Battersea Fields. First, the steel-barrels have not generally been 
 made of sufficiently good metal, and, secondly, the practice of filing 
 them down at the breech, after proof, to such a degree of fineness as 
 fancy or fashion may dictate, has rendered them dangerous. Respect- 
 ing the quality of the metal, we were informed by one of the first 
 manufacturers at Birmingham that the general run of barrels are 
 made, for the sake of economy, with steel worth about fivepence per 
 pound, whereas the metal ought to be so prepared that it would be 
 worth about twelvepence. There, in a great measure, lies the defect. 
 
 The manufacture of “ Rifles ” is also deserving of a word or two. 
 The manufacture of this instrument is based upon the principle, that 
 if the bullet can be made to spin round, or rotate on its axis while 
 passing through the barrel, it will continue to worm its way through 
 the air with more straightness of path than otherwise would be attained. 
 The bullet from a gun will be projected straight forward, provided it 
 passes equably through the barrel; but if, as is sometimes the case, it 
 rubs more against one side of the barrel than the other, from being 
 unevenly rammed in, it will be diverted from its right course, and 
 curve round while passing through the air, so that the marksman 
 misses his aim. To rectify this, the barrel of a rifle is grooved spirally 
 on the inside, in order that the bullet, by winding along these grooves 
 in its progress, may acquire a rotatory motion round its own axis, 
 which afterwards prevents it from swerving either to one side or to 
 the other. This rifling is effected by a spiral-cutting instrument, 
 fixed on the end of a rod, to which a peculiar movement is given. 
 The number of grooves in this spiral, the number of turns which each 
 
SWORDS, GUNS, AND PISTOLS. 
 
 35 
 
 ma kes in its course through the barrel, and the depth of the grooves, 
 are all points determined on differently, according to practical 
 opinions, the principle being the same in all. 
 
 Having indulged in this brief description of gun-making, &c., we 
 shall now glance at the contents of the Exhibition. Where to begin 
 is the difficulty, there being so rich and varied a contribution of fire¬ 
 arms. Almost every name, of any repute in the gun-making art, has 
 sent a specimen or two; one alone excepted, and that perhaps the 
 greatest. We allude to Purday. We had rather, indeed, abstain 
 from giving any opinion upon such a take-for-granted subject as judg¬ 
 ing of guns, rifles, or pistols ; for who would follow the dictates of his 
 eye, seeing that so much depends upon trial, the only safe test, as 
 respects the intrinsic quality of such objects. Place a piece of print, 
 or silk, or woollen, before a man of practical experience in such 
 materials, and he will he able to form a pretty accurate opinion of 
 their respective qualities by simply examining them, either by touch 
 or sight, or by both combined ; but hand him a gun, or rifle, from one 
 of the contributions in the Exhibition, at the same time studiously 
 concealing 'the name of the maker, and the chances are that he will 
 he completely bewildered, however profound and practical he might 
 consider himself in such matters. In short, as far as we are con¬ 
 cerned, it will be nothing more nor less than a complete begging of 
 the question respecting the relative merits of the fire-arms in the 
 Exhibition; and we would humbly suggest that it must he so, more or 
 less, with any one who presumes in so a priori a manner to judge of 
 such objects. But, it will be said, surely we can obtain something 
 approximating to a correct judgment in such matters. Granted. 
 Nevertheless, with the best practical experience, the judgment given 
 must he influenced rather by the antecedent reputation of the maker 
 of the object, than by the intrinsic quality of the object per se. The 
 easiest, and perhaps the safest solution of the problem will he, unfor¬ 
 tunately for all unknown contributors,—given the maker’s name, and 
 such and such is the best made article. 
 
 We shall content ourselves, therefore, with simply enumerating 
 the “celebrities” in the art of gun-making who have contributed to 
 the Exposition, and leave the rest to the practical profundity of the 
 jury chosen to decide upon the subject. 
 
 Westley Bichards, of Birmingham, exhibits rifles, double tiger- 
 guns, a punt gun, and pistols. Lancaster, of London, has a peculiar 
 rifle with what he calls an “ elliptic smooth bore, twisted or spirally 
 inclinedand Lang, his alliterative competitor, presents the whole 
 
36 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 series of fire-arms, “ guns, rifles, pistols, and revolvers." Tipping 
 and Lawden have furnished specimens of the gun-making process, 
 from the hunch of stub nails up to the fine polish in the barrel, by 
 way, we presume, of teaching “the young idea how to shoot and 
 Egg, influenced apparently by a similar feeling, has hatched expressly 
 for the occasion, a “ self-priming and double-barrel copper cap fowling 
 piece." Manton and Son, a familiar name, determined not to he 
 worsted in the contest, have sent “double guns, double rifle, and 
 duelling pistols with apparatus.” The latter is very suggestive—it 
 seems to say : Come to my shop if you want to kill, or be killed, in a 
 trice ; and Wit ton and Daw, directing their killing-skill, apparently, 
 into a really suitable direction, exhibit “ rifles for India and Africa." 
 The two-ounce rifle of these manufacturers would make Gordon Cum- 
 ming’s mouth water; so at least we should infer, from hearing the 
 remarks of an American upon it. Then we have Hart, of Birming¬ 
 ham, illustrating nearly the whole process of the manufacture; in 
 short, detailing, as it were, the “ birth, parentage, and edification ” of a 
 fire-arm, with his “ specimens of gun barrel manufacture in every 
 state, from the old horse-nail stubs of earliest period to the latest im¬ 
 provements ;" and Wilkinson and Son, of Pall-mall, determined, ap¬ 
 parently not to he outrun, on the fire-arm educational course, have 
 also carefully prepared their “ illustrations of the manufacture of gun 
 barrels," &c., &c. May the race, say we, he to the swift, and the 
 battle to the strong, even in the excellence of gun-making. Amongst 
 the foreign contributions, the “ American Revolver" attracts the most 
 attention, and deservedly so, according to the opinions of practical 
 judges. There is an exact copy of it in the Belgian department, which 
 seems equally well made, and rather smarter in appearance; of its 
 destructive qualities, of course, we can say nothing, nor of its proto¬ 
 type, the American, except by report, which would appear to be based 
 upon very good authority. The several guns, pistols, and rifles in the 
 French and Belgian contributions, to say the least of them, appear 
 highly finished; in every other respect silence is probably the best. 
 
 -♦- 
 
 CHAPTER III—PERCUSSION CAPS. 
 
 In the fire-arm department of industry we ought not to omit the 
 manufacture of percussion caps, which, though apparently insignifi- 
 
PERCUSSION CAPS. 
 
 37 
 
 cant, gives employment to a great number of hands, and requires no 
 little skill to perfect it. The machinery in common use for making 
 caps was the invention, principally, of Mr. Bichard "Walker, of Bir¬ 
 mingham, himself the largest manufacturer of caps in this country. 
 In some respects it is exceedingly simple; in others, complicated; in 
 its general operation most effective. We have examined caps at 
 this establishment fitted for every possible size and variety of fire¬ 
 arms, from those used in the smallest nipple up to those required for 
 instruments of the most destructive calibre. The average supply, 
 from this manufacturer, to the two great consumers of caps—the 
 Government and the East India Company—is about a ton a month ; 
 each ton containing about a million of caps. The process of manufac¬ 
 turing this destructive little instrument is as follows:—Suppose a 
 strip of metal about four and a quarter inches wide, one-sixteenth of 
 an inch thick, and about five hundred yards long. This strip is passed 
 through an ingeniously-constructed machine, which cuts diagonally 
 thirteen small crosses, or blanks, at a time, and drops them into a box 
 below. The machine performs 140 revolutions in a minute, so that 
 570 blhnks are struck in a second. This is the first stage of the 
 manufacture of the cap. The machine, indeed, may be called self¬ 
 feeding, for when the coil or ribbon of metal is once within its grasp, 
 it never loses hold, until the whole length has its surface cut with the 
 nicest precision. The blanks are then put, one by one, into a screw- 
 press, worked by the hand, which gives them the form of a cap; and 
 so dextrous are some of the hands (mostly women) engaged in this 
 process, that they can make 15,000 caps per day. The caps are next 
 cleaned, then primed with a detonating compound at the rate of 
 twenty-one gross per minute; after this they are dipped in a simple 
 machine containing a prepared solution, forty-two at a time, which 
 renders the priming impervious to the moisture of the atmosphere. 
 The cap is then taken to the heating-room, where great care is neces¬ 
 sary to prevent explosion, then follows glazing, and lastly, a minute 
 examination of each cap, when the manufacture is completed. 
 
 The exhibition of caps in the Great Building is comparatively in¬ 
 significant. The French have sent a specimen of their manufacture, 
 but they appear ragged and meagre compared to our own; there are, 
 likewise, specimens in the Belgian department, which are as much 
 superior to the French, as we are to the Belgians. Upon repeated 
 trials neither of these manufactured caps will resist the damp or fire 
 so certainly as the English; the best quality of the latter will stand a 
 good soaking October shower, and yet fire effectually, whereas the 
 
38 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 Trench will scarcely endure the slightest damp. We have known 
 soldiers in the African army, who complained bitterly of the bad 
 quality of the caps supplied to them by the French Commissariat, and 
 have remarked that, after a night’s dew, they had great difficulty in 
 disharging their muskets. Many a poor fellow’s life has depended 
 upon the quality of his percussion cap. 
 
 The case of Kichard Walker is decidedly the finest specimen of the 
 English manufacture of caps; it contains almost every kind in use, 
 and all appear to be well and substantially made. Joyce’s contribu¬ 
 tion comes next, and, with the exception of another of no great pro¬ 
 mise, we believe that we have mentioned the whole. We have little 
 to apprehend from the foreigner on this ground, although Belgium has 
 greatly improved within the last five years, as we know from practical 
 experience. A. and E. Holler, of Solingen, exhibit a curiously-deviced 
 sword or two, some foils, and rapiers, and damask blades in the oriental 
 style of ornamentation. The finish, workmanship, and apparent 
 quality of the steel, are much to be preferred to those exhibited in the 
 scissors, penknives, table cutlery, and razors of the same exhibitors ; 
 but in neither one nor the other do they equal the respective produc¬ 
 tions of this country. A. Mannesmann, of Remscheid, exhibits a 
 great variety of files, screws, and steel in its several forms or states ; 
 but there is nothing beyond the ordinary character of manufacture in 
 their appearance. L. Sauerbrey, of Gotha, has contributed a some¬ 
 what singular fire-arm—a double rifle of solid cast steel. The barrels 
 are bored in a converging direction, so as to aim at the object with 
 both balls. The idea is original, if not practically effective, as it in¬ 
 volves a curious problem of the propelling forces. And L. Teutenberg, 
 of Heiter, shows a “ rifle with seven barrels,” which he designs for 
 wild fowl shooting, as all the barrels can be fired and loaded at once; 
 here again we are met with a similar difficulty, assuming the rifle to 
 be fit for ordinary use, as who can calculate the mutual action of the 
 barrels on each other, all being subjected at the same moment to the 
 violence of a discharge. Messrs. Sellier and Bellot, of Prague, have 
 furnished a handsome specimen of their manufacture of percussion 
 caps, and accompanied it with a statistical fact of some importance, 
 were it a little less conjectural and more circumstantial. They state 
 that “ the total manufacture of ‘ caps’ for sporting guns in Europe 
 may be estimated at one thousand three hundred millions yearly, and 
 that some idea may be formed of its importance from the quantity of 
 copper requisite for its production, viz., 396,000lbs. weight.” Their 
 “ caps are distinguished by accuracy of bore, malleability of the copper, 
 
COPPER, BRASS, MIXED METALS. 39 
 
 superior quality of powder, exact adjustment of the proportions so as 
 to insure ignition without danger of accident, and by lowness of price 
 when the quality is considered. Their varnished caps may remain in 
 the water for seventy-two hours without losing their power of imme¬ 
 diately igniting.” This is quoted simply to show the variety of forms 
 which puffing assumes : here we have it as fresh and as fair as Messrs. 
 Moses are in the habit of issuing their invitations to the public, and 
 none hut those who have read the glowing descriptions of the White¬ 
 chapel garments, and compared them with the garments themselves, 
 can have an idea of the immense distance there is between the imagi¬ 
 native quality of the brain, and the manipulated quality of the shop— 
 “ Hyperion to a satyr,” the Whitechapel poet’s fancy to the sham and 
 shabby-genteel article of his employer. And so it is with these 
 “ caps,” when compared with either Walker’s or Joyce’s, especially 
 the former, where your practical eye can detect at once their quality, 
 their substance, and, what experience has over and over again proved, 
 their safety. We question much if the Austrians equal the French in 
 the manufacture of caps, and every gunsman knows the quality of the 
 latter. The Maison Givelot, of Paris, have also a case of caps, ex¬ 
 cellently arranged for show; beyond that observation we will not 
 venture. 
 
 Before we close these remarks upon the foreign contributions, we 
 cannot refrain from noticing the beauty of finish, the variety, and 
 the exquisite ornamentation of the fire-arms of France. In all these 
 respects they present a model for imitation ; as regards the quality of 
 the instrument there can he little question, judging by what we have 
 already accomplished, and by the specimens of our own manufacture 
 in the Exhibition. A gun, as we have already remarked, must be 
 tried before it can be pronounced a good and safe article, unlike, in 
 that respect, almost every thing else ; for our sight or touch, or both 
 combined, are generally right in guiding us to a just conclusion 
 when judging of most other articles. Not so as regards a gun. 
 
 - + - 
 
 CHAPTER IV.—COPPER, BRASS, MIXED METALS. 
 
 Copper is one of the metals which is almost invaluable, from its 
 fitness and adaptability to such a variety of manufacturing purposes. 
 It forms the basis of almost all our ornamental metals, and when 
 
40 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 used alone there is no metal, except iron, that contributes more 
 largely to the convenience of man. 
 
 The process the “ cake ” or “ tile ” of copper undergoes to prepare 
 it for subsequent application is that of being rolled. The power of 
 machinery required for this process, irrespective of its ingenious con¬ 
 struction, at once commands the admiration and attests the marvel¬ 
 lous grasp which the genius of man has acquired over the inert mass 
 of materials, which he turns to his purpose and fashions to his wants. 
 Let the reader imagine a cake of prepared copper, about one foot and a 
 half long, one foot wide, and weighing about 100 pounds, placed in an 
 oven, and heated to the required state ; and then let his imagination 
 follow this cake through the following stages, and he will have a faint 
 conception of the power and skill called into requisition for rolling the 
 metal. When sufficiently heated, the metal is drawn from the oven 
 and placed between two enormous rollers, revolving by means of a 
 sixty or one hundred horse-power engine, which flattens and lengthens 
 it to a certain size. It is again heated and rolled until it becomes 
 reduced to a quarter of an inch in thickness, when it is placed 
 under enormous shears, which cut it like a ribbon to the required 
 form. After rolling and cutting, the metal is placed in a trough and 
 well pickled, to remove all impurities from its surface. The metal 
 can be rolled to any given thinness, according to the construction of 
 the rollers. These rollers are also deserving of notice. They are solid 
 cast-iron, carefully prepared to obviate breaking, have a highly- 
 polished surface, and measure about four feet long, by seventeen to 
 twenty inches in thickness. They present a surface like a mirror, 
 and are worth from £30 to £50 each, the polishing process being 
 effected by emery and oil. The copper described is generally used 
 by braziers. The sheathing process is precisely the same. The 
 rolling of brass is similar, except that cold water is used to prevent 
 the heat, generated by the enormous friction of the process, from 
 destroying the equality of the surface of the rollers. The brass is 
 annealed after being rolled, and can be reduced to any given tenuity. 
 Gold, silver, and steel are treated in the same way, cold water being 
 used to obviate the friction, and prevent the uneven expansion of the 
 rollers. The prepared steel is first cut into strips or ribbons, trans¬ 
 versely to the grain of the sheet; then they are annealed in an 
 oven, after which they are “pickled” in a strong acid to cleanse 
 them, and the ultimate process is rolling, when they are reduced to 
 the thinness required. We minutely examined these several pro¬ 
 cesses at the rolling-mills of Mr. Charles Clifford, Fazeley Street, 
 
COPPER, BRASS, MIXED METALS. 41 
 
 Birmingham ; whose courtesy and intelligence we thus publicly ac¬ 
 knowledge, although inefficiently, when compared to the benefit we 
 received. 
 
 The manufacture in brass and other mixed metals is carried on 
 extensively at Birmingham, chiefly for ornamental purposes. Brass 
 is not a simple metal like copper or tin, but is compounded of copper 
 and zinc, nearly in the proportion of two of the former to one of the 
 latter. There is a gold-coloured alloy, containing about equal por¬ 
 tions of the two mentioned metals. Bronze, for casting purposes, 
 consists of copper and tin, with a little zinc or lead added, the copper 
 forming about eight-tenths of the weight. But each manufacturer 
 has his own plan of mixing the metals, and is constantly trying- 
 experiments to vary and improve his required alloys; still the 
 analysis we have given is an approximate basis of all the mixtures. 
 Let us follow this brass through a few of its subsequent applications. 
 Brass tubing is made from sheet metal, by cutting up the sheet into 
 long strips, and bending them round a central coil or mandril, whose 
 thickness equals the intended internal diameter of the pipe. The 
 two opposite edges are made to lap over each other, and in that state 
 are soldered together. When soldered, the tube is cleansed and 
 brightened by means of dilute acid, and is then ready for “drawing.” 
 The drawing is effected by a mandril being passed through the tube, 
 which is drawn forcibly through a circle smaller than its external 
 diameter; and being pressed closely on every side, its internal and 
 external surface become regular and smooth. There are other modes 
 of making tubes besides this : in the Exhibition there arc specimens 
 of tubes which have no joining, therefore must have been drawn or 
 cast in a mould. The tubes to which we allude are of French manu¬ 
 facture, and deservedly attract attention. When once the rod or 
 tube of brass is made, the turning-lathe, the file, and the drill can 
 transform it into almost any shape that fancy or fashion may devise, 
 differing in this respect but little from the hard metals. Perhaps the 
 casting process is the most important as regards brass and bronze, for 
 these metals are capable of being applied to the whole range of orna¬ 
 mental art, from a simple bracket up to an elaborate balustrade or 
 gate. Witness the gates in front of the Fitzwilliam Museum at 
 Cambridge, by Messenger and Sons, and the nobly-ornamented pair 
 attached to the Marble Arch, which forms so magnificent an entrance 
 to Hyde Park. The casting of these metals is effected in a similar 
 manner to other kinds of castings; that is, by models of clay or wax, 
 and a fine sand which abounds in the immediate neighbourhood of 
 
42 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 Birmingham. In some instances a permanent metal pattern is pro¬ 
 duced exactly like the original model, and from this pattern the 
 articles are afterwards made. Some of the manufacturers have a 
 heavy weight of metal by them in castings alone, amounting to 
 several thousands of pounds in value. The stock of Messenger’s 
 casting models is a large capital of itself, and the same remark will 
 apply to Winfield and Sons’ collection. There are several methods 
 of giving a high finish to bronze and brass objects, which the metal 
 in its original state would not present. The “ verde antique,” the 
 warm brown tint, and the metallic hue, are all imparted to bronze by 
 certain compositions applied to the surface after casting. Brass work 
 is brought to a bright yellow appearance by lacquering, which is so 
 skilfully performed that it has the appearance of gilding. 
 
 When any of the numerous articles of brass which Birmingham 
 produces has been formed by casting, drawing, stamping, chasing, or 
 other mechanical operations, they are cleansed from grease by being 
 heated, then laid to “ pickle ” in dilute acid, and brushed well with a 
 hard brush. Each article is then dipped in aquafortis, by which 
 means it speedily acquires a clear bright yellow colour, wholly free 
 from specks and stains; the cleansed and brightened article is then 
 washed in water, dried in hot sawdust, and then burnished. The 
 burnishers are made of blood-stone, and the method pursued is pre¬ 
 cisely similar in all branches of manufacture; the burnished article 
 finally receives a rich deep tint by being lacquered, or by being 
 brushed .over with a mixture of spirits of wine, gum-lac, turmeric, 
 saffron, and one or two other ingredients, which in a compound state 
 is called lacquer. The almost countless articles made of bronze or 
 brass—bells, cannon, lamps, candelabra, ornamental railings, rods, 
 handles, rosettes, scrolls, &c.—are produced by the several processes 
 enumerated, but with certain modifications in each. 
 
 With these few preparatory observations upon the processes of 
 manufacturing the metals, and preparing them for ornamental and 
 useful appliances, we shall proceed to an analysis of the contents of 
 the Exhibition, strictly confining ourselves to those branches which 
 are in immediate relation to our preliminary description. 
 
 The contribution of Messrs. Winfield is highly characteristic of 
 the busy hive of Birmingham. Their plain and ornamental tubes, 
 which are applied in so many ways for domestic purposes, are pro¬ 
 bably the best specimens of the kind in the Exhibition. The wire 
 and rolled metals are also entitled to commendation; but the brass 
 bed seems to attract most attention, from its richly-ornamented style 
 
COPPER, BRASS, MIXED METALS. 43 
 
 of structure. As far as our taste is concerned, we prefer the brackets 
 and light-pendants, several of which are highly artistic and original, 
 therefore shall leave the multitude of useful articles which present 
 themselves at their stand, for the consideration of those who are 
 more practically conversant in them. Analogous to the preceding 
 contribution is that of Messrs. Peyton and Harlow. The patent beds 
 of this firm appear the most effective articles of the kind that it is 
 possible to conceive, uniting elegance of form and lightness of ap¬ 
 pearance with facility of use ; nor are their ornamental properties 
 less distinguishable. These metal beds are fast superseding those of 
 wood, not only from the healthiness of their use, but also from the 
 ease and facility with which they are capable of being managed, an 
 ordinary domestic attendant, without any external aid, being able to 
 take them to pieces or put them together, so simply, yet soundly, are 
 they constructed. The possessor of these simply-constructed articles 
 may literally take up his bed and walk, whether in the lonely route 
 across the desert, or in the uninhabited pampas of the tourist and 
 the traveller. Let any one, with an eye to comfort and security, 
 examine one of these truly useful constructions, and he will imme¬ 
 diately assent to our remarks. The pillars, too, are drawn, and not 
 rolled and soldered in the ordinary way of manufacturing tubes, 
 which imparts to them a greater strength and beauty; in addition to 
 which the separate sections of the pillars are fastened upon a new 
 principle, a strong welding being cast round the parts where they 
 join, which makes the latter the strongest instead of being the 
 weakest part of the pillar. 
 
 Among the display of brass-work, not the least interesting is the 
 contribution of Messrs. Hardman, the ecclesiastical decorators. This 
 work is distinguished from the casting process, as it is beaten out 
 with the hand, and worked up to the nicest finish by the same means. 
 Those splendid coronse in the Mediaeval room are almost wholly 
 produced by the “cunning” of the hand, the hammer being the 
 principal assistant; and the only wonder is that the manipulative 
 art can be so beautifully carried out, seeing that mechanical and 
 other processes have comparatively neutralised the dexterity of ma¬ 
 nipulation. This, to our minds, is one of the most interesting 
 branches of metalliferous workmanship, and deserving of attentive 
 examination. 
 
 Let us now direct our attention to the splendid group of Mes¬ 
 senger and Sons, which, perhaps, is the finest illustration of metal¬ 
 liferous art in the Exhibition, taken as a whole. The group occupies 
 
44 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 a prominent but proper position in the western nave, and elicits 
 general admiration. It consists of objects in bronze and ormolu, 
 besides others illustrative of the manufacture, from the first rough 
 casting up to the most finished state of workmanship. The centre of 
 the group is composed of a column and capital in high relief; in the 
 foreground there is a domestic group, in due proportion, of the Queen 
 and the Prince of "Wales, one in bronze and the other in ormolu, 
 modelled by Bell, and finished to the nicest touch of artistic excel¬ 
 lence. A bronze figure of the “Iron Duke” on his charger is placed 
 on the left of the column, and on either side, immediately behind the 
 foremost groups, are specimens of bracket mouldings, elaborate iron 
 scrolls, and groups of animals, interspersed with candelabra, the 
 columns of the latter exhibiting the finest order of workmanship. 
 The bronze balustrade, forming part of the group, is remarkably rich 
 and effective; the quality of the metal and high finish of the work 
 are more than ordinarily remarkable. Directing our view a little 
 way further, we encounter a series of objects of a similar nature, 
 although not so classical and true, either in design or finish, yet 
 withal evincing a fertile if not highly-cultivated taste. The bronze 
 display of Mr. William Potts is highly creditable to the manufac¬ 
 turing excellence of Birmingham. Casting our eye over the multi¬ 
 tude of objects, many of which we greatly admired, having seen 
 several in their preparatory stages, our attention was instantly 
 arrested by the boudoir-glass executed for the Duchess of Sutherland. 
 The dimensions of this beautiful metal frame is about six feet long 
 by four wide. The character of the design is somewhat original, 
 representing two naiads seated on aquatic foliage, one on each side 
 of the mirror, but apart from it. The naiads are sculptured in por¬ 
 celain; and, seated on two brackets, are adjusting their hair, as 
 though they had just been bathing. The reflection of the figures in 
 the mirror is a novel idea. Just above these nymphs are a couple of 
 herons, each supporting in its beak a chain, at the end of which is a 
 pastille-burner ; while the toilet bottles rest on a metal scroll, just 
 over a shell, into which the perfumed liquid is supposed to run. 
 There are other ornamental devices round the frame which add to 
 the beauty, while they preserve the character of the original design. 
 
 Birmingham is rich in the display of lamps, one of the leading 
 branches of her elegant and refined industry. Salt and Lloyd have 
 furnished a most excellent sample of the skill which we have attained 
 in this manufacture ; and J. and H. Batcliffe have maintained their 
 preceding reputation, if they have not indeed surpassed it. For 
 
STEEL PENS. 45 
 
 originality of design, excellence of work, and beautiful finish, they 
 have few equals in this department of industry. 
 
 Glancing for a brief space of time at the useful, we remark the 
 great variety of articles designed for the conveniences of life in metal¬ 
 liferous art. Bell hanging, brass works, door handles, tea hells, cor¬ 
 nice poles, and a multifarious collection of devices to consult the com¬ 
 forts of the several sections of society—through the medium, too, of a 
 style and art suitable to the presumed requirements of each. In this 
 useful department Messrs. W. and T. Harcourt seem predominant, 
 and their contribution naturally attracts the spectator who looks with 
 an ulterior view, rather than for the mere object of gratifying a luxu¬ 
 riant and refined taste. In this branch of trade Birmingham may he 
 said to stand alone ; at least the Continent pales its fires before it. 
 
 —♦— 
 
 CHAPTER V.—STEEL PENS. 
 
 It may he interesting to many who are daily using this useful 
 article, to know something of the process of its manufacture, and the 
 various stages it passes through in its transformation from a ribbon of 
 steel to a finished pen. We have already described the process of 
 rolling and cutting steel, therefore must crave the reader’s attention 
 to the advanced stage when the metal is cut into strips, put into cast- 
 iron boxes, and placed upon a “ muffle,” where they are annealed or 
 softened by a certain process of heat. These strips are now fit to be 
 rolled into the thickness necessary for the pen. The rollers consist of 
 metal cylinders revolving on each other. A man and boy attend at 
 each ; the first introduces the slip of steel between the opposing sur¬ 
 faces, and the boy on the opposite side pulls it out considerably 
 lengthened. In this state it is ready to be cut into pens by means of 
 a press, in which are fitted the proper tools for cutting out the “blank.” 
 The use of the press is to give a regulated amount of pressure to the 
 tools fitted to it. These presses are worked by women, who are so 
 dextrous that the average product of a good hand is 200 gross, or 
 28,000 per day of ten hours. Two pens are cut out of the width of 
 the steel, the broad part to form the tube, and the points are cut to 
 such a nicety, that there is but little waste. The “ blanks” are now 
 taken to be pierced, and here the little central hole and the side slits 
 are cut, by another press. These semi-pens are now placed in a 
 
46 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 heating oven to make them softer, after which they are “ marked,” 
 by the aid of a die worked by the foot, which stamps the name of the 
 maker on the back; the half-finished little instrument is then placed 
 in a groove, and by a machine converted from a flat, into a cylindrical 
 form. This is called “raising” the metal. The pens are again placed 
 in the “ muffle,” packed in small iron boxes with lids, and heated to a 
 white heat. They are then withdrawn, and suddenly thrown into a 
 large vessel of oil, where they acquire a brittleness that makes them 
 almost crumble at the touch. The next process is “ cleaning,” then 
 “ tempering,” which restores the pens to the required elasticity, by 
 placing them in a large tin cylinder, open at one end, and turned over 
 a fire, in the same manner that coffee is roasted. The heat changes 
 the colour of the pens, first grey, then straw colour, next to a brown 
 or bronze, and lastly to a blue. Still there is a roughness to be re¬ 
 moved from the surface, which requires the pens to be placed in large 
 tin cans, with a small quantity of sawdust. These cans are horizon¬ 
 tally placed in a frame, and made to revolve by steam, the pens rub¬ 
 bing against each other, by which means they are cleaned. After the 
 “scouring” process, they are taken to the “grinding-room,” where 
 each individual pen is ground at the back in two ways, at right angles 
 to each other, or rather over each other, the quality of the pen very 
 much depending upon this operation. By the aid of a pair of nippers 
 the girl takes up the pen, holds it for a moment or so on a revolving 
 “ bob,” and the grinding is over. Now follow the pen to the “ slit- 
 ting-room,” where it is placed in a press, where the process is instantly 
 effected. The pens are next examined, and sorted according to their 
 qualities; after which they are varnished with a solution of gum, 
 when they are considered ready for sale. 
 
 The name of Gillott is as strikingly identified with the manufac¬ 
 ture of steel pens, as that of Joe Manton with guns, or Mordaunt with 
 pencil-cases. If not the inventor, he was the first to establish a 
 manufacture of that useful little instrument upon anything like a scale 
 of magnitude, and, consequently, to bring it into almost general use. 
 Before this ingenious manufacturer applied his industry to the fabri¬ 
 cation of a metal pen, the quill was in universal requisition; but now 
 a little bit of steel, after going through a series of transformations, by 
 the “ cunning” device of machinery, has become the winged-purveyor 
 of our thoughts, and the ready transmitter of our desires. This, per¬ 
 haps, may be cited as another striking illustration of the mastery of 
 mind over the material properties of nature, and how the intelligence 
 of man may be exercised in the development of his social and moral 
 
PIN-MAKING AND WIRE-DRAWING. 47 
 
 well-being. Turn we now to the contents of the case which refers to 
 the name of Gillott, in the Exhibition. There you may see pens of 
 almost every possible form, from the magnum bonum to the tiniest 
 purveyor of human thought, which requires a microscope to minutely 
 examine its make. The monster pen weighs five pounds, and measures 
 one yard in length; the Lilliputians are about four grains in weight, 
 and are simply illustrative of the ingenious power of our machinery. 
 The monster contains sufficient metal to make 1,092,397 of its dimi¬ 
 nutive likeness, yet both are cut in all their parts with the nicest pre¬ 
 cision for use. But perhaps the most remarkable feature in this sin¬ 
 gular contribution is the colouring imparted to the metal, which is 
 the finest and richest we ever beheld, except some metal-foiling in 
 France, in which our neighbours are particularly happy. The next 
 contribution of importance is that of Hincks and Wells, which is 
 equally remarkable in many respects. These ingenious manufacturers 
 exhibit a gross of pens which only weighs fourteen grains; here, 
 again, we had recourse to our microscopic friend to descry their pecu¬ 
 liar excellence, when we discovered that they were mechanically true, 
 and must have been produced by the exercise of the most minute in¬ 
 genuity. As far as appearance goes, these pens were fully equal to 
 those of Gillott, although not quite so tastefully arranged, which is a 
 purely subordinate point, and scarcely worth noticing. The Messrs. 
 Mitchel have each a contribution of the same article, and, for what we 
 know, may be fully equal in quality to the others; but we must 
 remark, that their mode of arrangement is anything but attractive, and 
 appearance is becoming daily a most important element in our com- * 
 mercial, as well as in our social, relations. The gold pens of Wiley 
 are deserving of attention, from the care apparently bestowed upon 
 their production; in addition to which, if they are only capable of 
 performing a tithe of what is promised of them, they must be con¬ 
 sidered as a desideratum long sought for, and now found—an ever¬ 
 lasting nibbed pen, as the Americans—their inventors, we believe— 
 dubbed them. 
 
 —♦— 
 
 CHAPTER VI.—PIN-MAKING AND WIRE-DRAWING. 
 
 Industry developes itself in a variety of forms in the busy hive 
 of Birmingham, and whether in its minute or in its magnitudinous 
 operations, it is equally suggestive of man’s power when judiciously 
 
48 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 directed. From the rolling of a ponderous lump of metal into a thin 
 sheet, to the making of a pin, or attenuating a thread of wire, there is 
 equally manifest the over-mastering power of the hand when guided 
 by the head—in the dexterity of the one, and the ingeniously-con¬ 
 ceived instruments of,the other. Man’s power, indeed, over the 
 material world has been achieved solely by his mechanical inventions, 
 and his ultimate redemption must mainly depend upon his perfection 
 therein. In every branch of industry this is more or less self-evident; 
 hut it is only when his inventive faculty forcibly presents itself either 
 in a machine of a minute or ponderous power, that it strikes upon the 
 imagination with more than ordinary effect. 
 
 These reflections were naturally awakened on viewing the process of 
 wire drawing and pin manufacture at Birmingham and the adjacent 
 neighbourhood. The manufacture of pins is not so much localised as 
 many other branches of manufactures in metal. In London, War¬ 
 rington, and in Gloucestershire, there are large factories; hut the 
 newly-improved process, secured by patent, is principally carried on 
 at Birmingham. Before we describe the pin process of manufacture, 
 we shall give a sketch of wire drawing, the preparatory stage of that 
 useful little instrument. Imagine, gentle reader, coil upon coil of 
 what are technically called charcoal and “puddled” rods, fresh from 
 the iron-makers, and varying from a half to the seven-sixteenth of an 
 inch in diameter. The first process consists in pointing the end of each 
 rod; the second in cleansing the rods by placing them in a cast iron 
 barrel, measuring eight feet long, and three feet in diameter, which is 
 driven in cold water by steam-power for ten hours, at the rate of 
 thirty revolutions a minute. This process completely denudes the 
 rods of every objectionable concretion. After this the rod is drawn 
 down on a series of blocks, through hard steel plates, perforated with 
 holes, and graduated to the size of the wire, until the latter attains 
 the required thinness. The fourth process consists in placing from 
 two to three tons of this drawn wire in a cast iron annealing pot, 
 measuring seven feet deep by three in diameter, where it is fined for 
 seven hours; after this the wire is cooled, then cleaned in vitriol. 
 The number of times the wire passes round the blocks, or, in other 
 terms, the velocity with which the block moves, depends entirely upon 
 the thickness of the wire. The thick wires are generally used for 
 fencing and telegraph purposes, while the finer are required for the 
 manufacture of wire blinds, hooks and eyes, needles, brushes, &c., 
 which consume great quantities. Electro, or copper-coloured wire, is 
 drawn through wet acids, and is used for sofa and other springs. 
 
PIN-MAKING AND WIRE-DRAWING. 49 
 
 Tinned wire is produced by a swift, or wheel of wire running through 
 boiling tin, after being prepared in acids; it is principally used for 
 lacing and bottling purposes. Wire in a finished state is made up 
 into bundles of 631bs. each. Number one wire contains 84 yards to 
 the bundle, and number twenty 52 yards. The finer gauges, such as 
 20 to 36, are made up into 121b. parcels, number twenty containing 
 1008 yards, while number 36 measures 18,133 yards. The preceding 
 description of wire-drawing applies to the process carried on at the 
 large establishment of Messrs. Edelston and Williams, of Birmingham, 
 and with a few trifling exceptions, at Messrs. Baron Webster’s, Penn, 
 near Birmingham. 
 
 The manufacture of pins is carried on under two different forms ; 
 the one by hand labour almost exclusively, and the other wholly, or 
 nearly so, by machinery. We shall describe the latter process, as it 
 is fast superseding the former. The first process is drawing the wire 
 to the thickness required for the pin, round a series of blocks already 
 described; the second in straightening the wire, and cutting it into 
 segments from six to eight inches long, which are afterwards pointed 
 at each end on a rotatory file of steel, making about 6000 revolutions 
 per minute. These segments are then cut into what are technically 
 called “ shanks,” or shafts, of sufficient length for the pin. The third 
 process consists in heading the pin, which is exceedingly ingenious. 
 The head is formed out of the same piece of wire as the shank, by an 
 ingenious machine invented by Messrs. D. F. Taylor, but perfected by 
 their successors, Messrs. Edelston and Williams, which renders it per¬ 
 fectly immovable. By the old method, generally pursued in Glou¬ 
 cestershire and elsewhere, the heads are detached, and frequently slip 
 off the shank; by this process the head forms part of the shank, is 
 solidly constructed, and cannot possibly be separated from the pin. 
 There we observed the manufacture of every kind of pin, from the 
 minutely-shaped one for the entomologist to the blanket pin; and 
 some idea may be formed of the organisation of the establishment 
 when we state that 8000 pins can be made every minute, or about 
 6,000,000 per day of twelve hours, which, allowing 300 working days 
 for the year, gives the almost incomputable quantity of 1,800,000,000. 
 After the heading process is gone through, the pin is whitened, or sil¬ 
 vered in tin, which is a preparation of acids ; it is then stuck upon 
 paper suitable for its destined market, bundled and labelled, when it 
 may be said to be complete. Loose pins are put up in half, quarter, 
 two-ounce, and one-ounce papers ; sometimes they are placed in boxes 
 of one and two ounces, and sorted in qualities and sizes. 
 
 D 
 
50 
 
 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 The firm to which we allude in the preceding remarks have 
 sent a singular specimen of their manufacturing excellence, in the 
 shape of a brilliant star of pins, comprising every kind in use, from 
 the three - inch corkin to the minutest entomological transfixer; 
 some, in gold, others in silver, and all made in the same way as 
 regards the head, which forms a portion of the metal, and not stuck 
 on according to the ordinary mode of making the article. The 
 quality of the wire, a most important point in the manufacture of 
 pins, as in that of needles, is most carefully attended to by these 
 manufacturers; hence, we presume, the reputation they have ac¬ 
 quired in the art. Messrs. Kirby, Beard, & Co., have also a highly 
 creditable specimen of their industrial skill in the Exhibition. Their 
 name is as familiar in relation to pins as that of Gillott is with steel- 
 pens ; and, judging by appearances, they seem strenuously desirous 
 to maintain it. Their needles and fish-hooks have not, as yet, acquired 
 the name which those of Redditch enjoy, and almost everything de¬ 
 pends on the name in these capriciously little instruments. In pins 
 and needles we have no rivals worthy of the name, amongst our con¬ 
 tinental neighbours. 
 
 -♦— 
 
 CHAPTER VII.—NEEDLES. 
 
 The manufacture of needles is principally carried on at Redditch. 
 No fewer than thirty separate processes are involved in the manu¬ 
 facture of a good needle, affording an example of subdivided employ¬ 
 ment scarcely paralleled in any other branch of industry. The first 
 process is bringing the steel into a fine wire. Suppose a store-room 
 hung round with hoops of wire, of varied thickness, and each hoop 
 containing on an average about fourteen pounds of wire, the length 
 varying according to the diameter. The sizes of sewing needles vary, 
 but the ordinary sizes range from No. 1, of which twenty-two thick¬ 
 nesses make an inch, to No. 12, of which there are a hundred to an 
 inch. Take No. 6, by way of example. The coil of wire is about 
 two feet in diameter, weighing about thirteen pounds ; the length is 
 about a mile and a quarter, and it will produce forty or fifty thousand 
 needles. The size of the needle is gauged by a small piece of steel, 
 with eighteen or twenty slits in the edge, all of different sizes, with a 
 particular number attached to each. The diameter of each coil of 
 
NEEDLES. 
 
 51 
 
 wire is tested by this gauge, and by the number each diameter is 
 known. The coil is next cut into pieces equal to the length of two 
 needles, then straightened by being annealed in a furnace. A number 
 of rings, varying in diameter from three to seven inches, are placed 
 upright on their edges, at a little distance apart; and within these are 
 placed some thousands of wires, which are kept resting on the interior 
 edges of the rings. When red-hot they are taken out and placed on 
 an iron plate, the wires being horizontal and the rings in which they 
 are inserted being vertical. The process of “ straightening” or rub¬ 
 bing then commences. The workman inserts a long piece of iron 
 about an inch wide into the rings, and rubs the needles backwards 
 and forwards, causing each needle to turn on its own axis, and also 
 over and under those which surround it. As the wire, when cut from 
 the hoop, is in a curved form, the action of one upon the other makes 
 them all straight; and, by this process of rubbing, any convexity is 
 pressed out. The wires are now about three inches long, blunt at 
 both ends, and dull on the surface; and each of these wires is to 
 make two needles, the two ends forming the points, which are made 
 before the wire is divided. This process is extremely interesting to 
 the spectator, but extremely hurtful to the workman, whose life is 
 materially shortened by pursuing it. The workmen are seated on 
 stools with a bunch of wires in their hands, before a series of small 
 stones, from eight to twenty inches in diameter, rotating vertically 
 about two feet from the ground, and with a velocity amounting to two 
 thousand revolutions per minute; the wires they gently press upon the 
 stones. A handkerchief is wrapped over their mouths to prevent them 
 from inhaling the small particles of steel which float in the air around 
 them, but even with this precaution they inhale a certain portion, which 
 renders the pursuit so destructive to life that few live much beyond 
 thirty years of age. The workman places the fingers and palm of one 
 hand diagonally over those of the other, and grasps the wires between 
 them, the latter being parallel; the thumb of the left hand comes 
 over the back of the fingers of the right, and the knuckles and joints 
 are so arranged that every wire can be made to rotate on its own axis, 
 by a slight movement of the hand, without rolling over the others. 
 By causing the wire to rotate while in contact with the stone, the 
 pointer works equally on all sides of it, and brings the point in the 
 axis of the wire. Every now and then he adjusts the wires to a pro¬ 
 per position, against a stone or plate, and dips their ends in a little 
 trough of liquid, placed between him and the stone. Each wire sends 
 out its stream of sparks, which ascend diagonally in a direction oppo- 
 
52 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 site to the workman; and so rapid are his movements that he will 
 point seventy or a hundred needles in half a minute, or ten thousand 
 in an hour. It is a curious sight to see many of the workmen pursu¬ 
 ing their task in the dark, their faces lit up by the cone of sparks 
 issuing from the grinding steel, which reflects a vivid light upon their 
 pale and attenuated forms, forming a tableau vivant worthy of the 
 pencil of a Rembrandt. The next process is to pierce two holes, or 
 eyes, through the centre of the wire, which is to form two needles; 
 this involves great nicety of touch in order to prevent what is called 
 “ cutting in the eye.” The germ of the eye is given to each half of 
 the wire by a stamping machine and a hammer weighing about 
 thirty pounds: upon the surfaces of the wire the die is impressed in the 
 form of a gutter or channel. In this channel the eye of the needle is 
 pierced. One stamper can stamp four thousand wires in an hour, or 
 eight thousand needles, although he has to adjust e*ich needle to the 
 die. The piercing of the eye is effected by boys, each of whom holds 
 a number of needles or wires, spread out like a fan, which he lays flat 
 on a small iron or slab, holding one end of each wire in his left hand, 
 and bringing the middle of the wire to the middle of the press. Two 
 steel points or cutters are affixed to the upper arm of the press, 
 exactly the size of the eye they are to form, and both these points are 
 made to pass through the wire very nearly together, and at a small 
 distance on each side of the centre of the wire, thereby forming the 
 eyes for two needles. This operation requires a steady hand and 
 good eye-sight, to effect it properly. After the needles are “ eyed,” a 
 wire is passed through each, which is called “ spitting.” Two pieces 
 of wire, exactly the size of the needle-eye, are held in the right hand, 
 and a distance apart, corresponding to the space between the eyes in 
 each needle-wire ; the pierced needles, held in the left hand, are now 
 threaded upon the wires, and, when completed, the latter have the 
 appearance of a fine-toothed comb. A workman now files down the 
 bur, or inequalities, left on the side of the eye by stamping. The 
 piece of wire, which is to form two needles, is then separated by the 
 dextrous manipulation of the workman, who works the comb in his 
 hands until he has broken it into two halves, each being “ spitted” by 
 one of the perforating wires. The “ soft-straightener” next takes the 
 needles in hand, which are placed on a small steel plate, by separat¬ 
 ing them from the group with a bar of a curious form, which is worked 
 with the hand. Each needle is rolled over two or three times with 
 the lower surface of the instrument upon the plate, until every un¬ 
 evenness of surface is effaced ; and so quickly is this done that three 
 
NEEDLES. 
 
 53 
 
 thousand needles can be straightened in an hour by one person. The 
 needles are now to be “hardened” and “ tempered” by heat, which 
 is effected by placing them in ovens, spread in thick layers on narrow 
 trays of iron, where they remain for a certain time ; after receiving 
 the proper degree of heat they are transferred to a perforated vessel, 
 immersed in cold water or oil, where they are cooled and “ hardened.” 
 If the hardeninghas been effected in water the needles are simply dried ; 
 but, if in oil, they are washed in an alkaline ley to free them from 
 the oil. The needles are “ tempered” on an iron plate, heated from 
 beneath, and moved about with trowels until each one has been gra¬ 
 dually brought to a certain temperature. They have now to be 
 straightened by small hammers, having become slightly distorted by 
 the heat. This process is performed by women, who, with a light 
 hammer, give a number of gentle blows to the needles, placed in a 
 small steel block with a smooth upper surface, and so tedious is it 
 that an expert workwoman cannot straighten more than five hundred 
 needles in an hour. The “ scouring” machine is next called into 
 requisition, which is composed of a square slab working to and fro on 
 a long bench or bed. The object is to make the needles perfectly 
 smooth. A strip of thick canvas is laid out open on a bench, and on 
 this a large heap of needles, amounting to twenty or thirty thousand, 
 is laid, all the needles being parallel to each other and to the length of 
 the cloth. The needles are then coated with a mixture of emery and 
 oil, and tied up tightly in the canvas, the whole forming a compact 
 mass about two feet long and two inches in thickness. Twenty-four 
 rolls being thus prepared, comprising about six hundred thousand 
 needles in all, they are placed under the rubbers of the scouring- 
 machines, two rolls to each machine. The bundles are made to roll 
 over each other, by which an intense degree of friction is excited 
 among the needles, each rubbing the other smooth. This scouring 
 endures eight hours, when the needles are taken out, washed in suds, 
 placed in fresh canvas, touched with a new portion of emery and oil, 
 and subjected to another eight-hours’ friction. This process is re¬ 
 peated five or six times over. They are next taken to the “ header,” 
 who turns all the heads one way and all the points another. The 
 girl sits with her face to the window, and has the needles ranged 
 in a row before her, the needles being parallel with the window. She 
 draws out laterally to the right those having their eyes on the right 
 hand, into a heap; and to the left those which have their eyes in that 
 direction, in another. During the process of “ scouring” it sometimes 
 happens that as many as eight or ten thousand out of fifty thousand 
 
54 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 are spoiled. “ Drilled-eyed needles” are produced by being drilled 
 with a fine instrument, which makes them as smooth in the eye as 
 any other part of the needle. The head is first “ blued,” or heated, to 
 temper it for working; then the eye is “ counter-sunk,” which con¬ 
 sists in. bevelling off the eye by means of a triangular drill, so that 
 there may be no sharp edge between the eye and the shaft of the 
 needle. Drilling succeeds. The workman takes up a few needles 
 between the fingers and thumb of his left hand—spreads them out like 
 a fan with the eyes uppermost—brings them one by one opposite the 
 point of the drill working horizontally with great rapidity before 
 him, governing the handle of the drill with his right hand, and drills 
 the eye, which is equivalent to making it circular, smooth, and 
 polished. By shifting the thumb and finger round, he brings all the 
 needles in succession under the action of the drill, which is prepared 
 with great nicety, being a wire of polished steel three or four inches 
 long, and by which the high finish of the needle is ultimately pro¬ 
 duced. The heads are now rounded, by the men grinding them upon 
 stones, about five or six inches in diameter, attached to a horizontal 
 axis. These stones revolve about three thousand times in a minute, 
 consequently the needles are but slightly touched by them ; after this 
 they are “polished,” which may be termed the final process of the 
 manufacture. The polishing wheel consists of wood coated with 
 buff-leather, whose surface is slightly touched with polishing paste ; 
 the needles being applied to them in every part successively, first the 
 surface, then the pointed and eyed end, and about a thousand in an 
 hour can be polished by each man. The needle is now finished. 
 
 The preceding detail of the manufacture of needles will enable the 
 reader to look with an eye of greater interest, whenever that diminu¬ 
 tive and useful instrument attracts his attention,—be it in the glorious 
 Palace of Industrial Art, fresh and glittering from its native work¬ 
 shop, or in the humbler sphere of the domestic circle, where its really 
 useful office begins and ends. Redditch, like its neighbouring hives, 
 has furnished some fine specimens of its industry, which is unequalled 
 throughout the world. The art of needle-making has been perfected 
 there and within a small circle round it; and the manufacturers of 
 Redditch appear to have acquired the art to conceal the art, so exclu¬ 
 sively do they maintain their power. Messrs. Bartlett and Sons have 
 furnished specimens of the different stages of the manufacture of 
 needles, already described, which will be viewed with interest by 
 those whose intelligence happens to take that direction; and Messrs. 
 Boulton & Son have imparted an additional interest to their needle 
 
BUTTONS. 
 
 55 
 
 contribution, by accompanying it with steel meshes, surgeons’ needles, 
 sail-hooks, bodkins, harpoons, and with other instruments for the sports 
 of the deep. While Mr. H. Hemming, by way of preserving the repu¬ 
 tation of the name, has furnished a similar contribution. Extending 
 our view a little farther, we find that Mr. J. James has sent specimens 
 of the different processes of the manufacture of both needles and fish¬ 
 hooks, which are equally deserving of attention. The general excel¬ 
 lence of these contributions necessarily precludes any attempt to 
 individualize their respective merits, and it would require a nice eye, 
 however practical, to discern much difference in them. Like guns, 
 such articles as these are only appreciated after their working qualities 
 are tested, therefore an a priori j udgment upon their merits would be 
 simply ridiculous, if not something worse. Each maker has his 
 special reputation, to which the public tenaciously cling when once 
 clearly and practically established in their minds, and for a very 
 good reason,— that it can only be formed by a series of experiments, 
 many of which involve considerable time and trouble, irrespective of a 
 certain, and frequently a considerable, expense. 
 
 —♦— 
 
 CHAPTER VIII.—BUTTONS. 
 
 The rise, progress, and present excellence of the manufacture of 
 buttons, would form an appropriate introduction to the metalliferous 
 art of Birmingham, as it has long formed one of the staple productions 
 of her busy and prolific hive. The fabrication of the gilt button pre¬ 
 ceded that of the covered, or Elorentine, as it is technically called, and 
 required a considerable amount of ingenuity to keep pace with the 
 adaptation of tastes, which the caprices of fashion are ever and anon 
 in the process of generating; but a greater amount of ingenuity was 
 evoked when the covered button came into general use, as the old 
 method of covering bone moulds by the hand with a needle and 
 thread was superseded by the use of dies and the screw-press. The 
 latter process not only effected a complete change in the manufacture 
 of covered buttons, but it materially enlarged its power, both in the 
 variety and the extent of its production. The first patent taken out 
 for making covered buttons by dies and pressure stands in the name 
 of Mr. B. Sanders, who removed from Birmingham to Broomsgrove in 
 order that he might conceal the process from the prying eye of his 
 
PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 56 
 
 manufacturing contemporaries; but as he soldered iron shanks to the 
 back of his covered buttons, it was some time before the public 
 became reconciled to them, from the general dislike to that form of 
 shank. On the expiration of his patent in 1828, Mr. Sanders cut 
 away the iron shank, and substituted the present flexible or woven 
 shank, for which he attempted to establish a patent; but the objec¬ 
 tions against it were so strong that it was refused, as the flexible 
 shank, made of catgut, had been in use fifty years preceding, the 
 manufacturers of the gilt buttons having applied it. The rejection 
 of this patent had the effect of opening the trade to the town of Bir¬ 
 mingham, which has since become so important, not only from the 
 number of hands it employs, but also from the almost constant 
 demand which it creates for ingeniously constructed machinery. 
 
 The material of which buttons are made is somewhat various, 
 which gives rise to a subdivision of labour resembling other branches of 
 manufacture. There is the well known gilt button, plain and figured; 
 there are plated, silk, Florentine, and other covered buttons; pearl, 
 horn, shell, bone, wood, glass, and porcelain buttons. Most of these 
 are made at Birmingham. We shall briefly describe the process of 
 making a gilt button. The metal is a compound of copper, &c., rolled 
 out to certain dimensions, and cut into “ blanks ” by the screw-press. 
 Females generally, almost universally, perform this operation. Take, 
 for instance, what is called a “ shell ” button, which is hollow, and 
 made of two pieces of metal, one for the front and the other for the 
 back. The button requires two blanks, one called the shell and the 
 other the bottom. The shell is pressed to a convex shape by a 
 machine similar in principle to the punching-press, but having a 
 curved polished surface to act upon the metal, instead of a punch. 
 The blanks, as they come from the punching-press, have a rawness of 
 edge which requires to be smoothed to fit them for their after appear¬ 
 ance. This is done by turning them in a lathe : in order to bring the 
 two parts of a “shell” button together, they are subjected to the 
 action of a die and punch, so peculiarly adjusted that the edge of the 
 shell becomes bent over and lapped down upon the bottom, securing 
 the two together in a way at once firm and neat, without the employ¬ 
 ment of any agent whatever. The surface of the button has some¬ 
 times a device upon it, which is produced by means of a die worked 
 by the foot. The man places a button on the lower die, raises a 
 heavy weight, to the lower part of which the upper die is attached, 
 and allows it to fall with great force, by which the button becomes 
 indented with the figure of the die. The “ shanking ” is rather a 
 
BUTTONS. 
 
 57 
 
 singular process. The shank is not made upon the premises, being a 
 distinct occupation; the machinery to twist that simple bit of wire is 
 very expensive, therefore must he worked on a great scale to become 
 profitable; so that one shank-twister supplies several button-makers. 
 The shanks are made of brass wire, and vary from eight to forty gross 
 per pound weight. The blank, or body of the button, being ready to 
 receive the shank, a woman takes up the latter and places it in the 
 proper position on the button ; at the same time she takes up a little 
 piece of bent iron, capable of acting as a spring-clasp, which holds the 
 shank tightly to the button; she then puts a piece of solder at the foot 
 of the shank, which, when finished, is placed on an iron plate, and 
 exposed to a heat in the furnace sufficient to melt the solder and unite 
 the shank firmly to the button. This process is performed with great 
 celerity. The mode of silvering is as follows. The buttons, after 
 being thoroughly cleansed in an acid solution, are put into an earthen 
 pan containing a dry mixture of silver, common salt, cream of tartar, 
 and other trifling ingredients. The buttons are well worked up with 
 this mixture, and in the course of a minute or two the whole are 
 coated with a clear and equable surface of silver. The gilding is 
 rather complicated. It is necessary, also, to observe the distinction 
 between “yellow” and “orange” gilding, the former being affected 
 in colour by the previous use of a mixture called “ similor,” made of 
 zinc and mercury. Take an “ orange all-over,” for example. When 
 properly cleaned, they are placed in an earthen pan with “ quick- 
 water” and gold-amalgam, which chemically act upon each other. 
 The gold is mixed up into a kind of paste with mercury, which, how¬ 
 ever, will not act upon the button unless a thin film of mercury be 
 previously deposited on the surface, and the “ quick-water,” or 
 gilder’s aquafortis, a solution of nitrate of mercury, is used for that 
 purpose. When mixed together in a pan, a chemical action is pro¬ 
 duced between the copper of the button and the mercury of the quick- 
 water, and the required result ensues. The next object is to get rid 
 of the mercury, which is effected by placing the buttons in an oven, 
 and subjecting them to a strong heat, which causes the mercury to 
 evaporate ; a careful arrangement of flues being adopted to carry the 
 latter to condensing chambers, where it resumes its metallic form. 
 Then succeeds the “ burnishing ” process, which is effected by placing 
 each button upon a lathe, when the workman applies to it a blood¬ 
 stone, which produces a brilliant surface in a few seconds. We are 
 indebted, in a great measure, to the Messrs. Elliott & Son for the 
 preceding details, having minutely examined their large and well- 
 
PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 58 
 
 arranged establishment at Birmingham, where we received every 
 courtesy and attention. 
 
 In the same establishment we also observed the process of manu¬ 
 facturing Florentine buttons. Two circular bits of iron, a bit of 
 pasteboard, a bit of thick canvas, and a bit of lasting or silk, are cut 
 out by stamping each circular disk, and the mode of fixing these 11 bits ” 
 together is somewhat curious. There is no glue, riveting, screwing, 
 plaiting, or other mode of fastening ; all being fixed and adjusted by 
 stamping or pressure. Within the outer cloth covering is an iron 
 casing called the “ shellwithin this is a disk of paper, then one of 
 cloth, and at the back of all a disk of iron, having a hole in the centre, 
 through which some of the canvas is forced, as a means for sewing 
 the button on the garment. All these are placed, in their proper 
 order, in a die, and a descending punch, worked by a press, first fixes 
 the cover to the shell, and then these two to the other three bits, 
 curling up the edges of the two disks of iron in such a way as to 
 enable them to clasp all the five bits firmly, and to hide all imperfec¬ 
 tions on the edge. The internal mechanism of the presses—some of 
 them being invented by Mr. Elliott himself—is exceedingly ingenious 
 and effective. There are a great variety of covered buttons ; but the 
 main features in the manufacture are the punching out of separate 
 little disks, and the fixing of these by pressure. We believe we are 
 indebted to the same firm for the white linen button, one of the recent 
 novelties of industrial art. They consist of a tin or white metal ring, 
 over which a disk of linen is stretched, and the mode of fixing them 
 together by the press is singular and ingenious. All these operations 
 are performed with incredible rapidity by females ; and although to 
 put together a single button fourteen pair of hands and a number of 
 machines are employed, a set of fourteen buttons can be sold for Id. 
 or lfd. 
 
 One of the most recently invented methods of making covered 
 buttons has been patented by Messrs. Chatwin & Sons, of Birmingham. 
 The ingenuity is not the only recommendation of this new mode ; it 
 is also more economical in the use of material than the one it is fast 
 superseding. The covering for the front of the button is kept down 
 by turning over the circumference of the shell upon which it is placed, 
 then the latter is forced through a machine which fixes the covering 
 upon its surface, instead of placing the covering between the back and 
 front parts, according to the ordinary method. There is a saving of 
 about one half the silk in this invention. These manufacturers have 
 also introduced another improvement which is equally deserving of 
 
BUTTONS. 
 
 59 
 
 notice. A braiding, or edged border, is made round the button, which 
 not only adds to its appearance, but protects the surface from so 
 readily wearing out. A great improvement has also been effected in 
 the designs for woven fabrics used in the manufacture of buttons. Ten 
 or twelve years ago, the woven figure of a flower for the centre of a 
 button would have comprised merely the outline of two or three 
 leaves, and a small dot in the centre ; but the weavers of Spitalfields 
 have been stimulated to such an extent, that in the woven designs for 
 small buttons even the minutest point, or mark of the pencil, is now 
 preserved, whether it be in satin or terry velvet. In this branch of 
 manufactures ingenuity keeps pace with the growing wants of the 
 age, as may be observed in the covering of nails for the general orna¬ 
 mentation of furniture, the old brass-headed nail being now but little 
 used. These covered buttons are a great improvement as they corre¬ 
 spond with the material to which they are affixed, and prove that a 
 more refined and subdued taste is gradually introducing itself. 
 
 The manufacture of the pearl-button is simple, yet interesting; the 
 button is placed in a lathe, and after passing through four or five 
 operations, is considered finished. The material of which it is made is 
 brought from the Eastern Archipelago, principally from the coast of 
 China; it resembles a large oyster-shell, in almost every respect, and 
 is found in considerable quantities in the eastern seas, being formerly 
 brought home as ballast. But since the shell has been applied to the 
 manufacture of buttons, a ton of them is worth about £19. The waste 
 is considerable in the processes of the manufacture of this kind of 
 button. The horn-button is a distinct branch of manufacture. The 
 hoofs of oxen, principally derived from South America, are boiled and 
 cut into certain forms, which are punched with a screw-press into 
 little circular pieces. These pieces are then dyed with logwood, 
 which gives them a blue-black appearance, after which they are sub¬ 
 jected to a heavy pressure with a die, which stamps upon their surface 
 a pattern. The dies in all the button manufacturing establishments 
 form a large item in the plant, their weight of metal, irrespective of the 
 expense of cutting them, amounting in some instances to several tons. 
 
 In the multitude of small articles which may be denominated 
 Birmingham specialities , to Anglicise a French phrase, we have a 
 considerable display, in one department or other, in the Exhibition. 
 Not only in the manufacture of the metal button, but in steel orna¬ 
 ments, in brooches, bracelets, studs, book-ornaments, glove and 
 parasol fastenings—in short, in almost every conceivable article for 
 ornamental and useful purposes which the inventive genius of fashion 
 
PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 60 
 
 or convenience can possibly suggest—the variety is singular and 
 abundant. In the well-arranged case of Charles Rowley, for example, 
 whose manufacturing genius seems to take a minute direction, these 
 multifarious articles may be found, and they are well worthy of 
 examination; for their manufacture involves a considerable amount 
 of capital, a minute division of labour, and the employment of a great 
 number of hands. The die of that metal button, with its high relief, 
 must have been cut to the nicest precision ; nor was the dexterity of 
 hand to impress it on the button, and finish the latter throughout, 
 one jot less remarkable. Look at that weaver’s mail, or the small 
 eyelet-hole button for gloves, braces, &c., then you may trace a simi¬ 
 lar minuteness of work, both in hand and in machinery. Ten years 
 ago that eyelet for stays was selling at 3s. per gross ; now it can be 
 obtained for 3d., as good, aye better, in quality, and yielding quite as 
 much wages to the labourer. That wire-loop button is equally 
 ingenious, and equally useful, being so shaped that it obviates the 
 cutting of the thread. Then—but we are tired of enumerating these 
 ingenious yet highly useful contributions. 
 
 Before we close our article on metalliferous works, let us glance 
 at an unassuming, yet interesting branch—Hollow Ware, as it is 
 technically termed. The principal seat of this manufacture, which, 
 we believe, is worked under a patent, is at Wolverhampton. Now, 
 reader, just as you emerge from one of the lateral avenues into the 
 western grand nave, exactly opposite Chubb’s locks, to which we have 
 already called attention, you will find a few saucepans, in company 
 with other humble vessels and implements, and looking for all the 
 world as though they had no business to be amongst such fine com¬ 
 pany. Nevertheless, take one up and examine it; you perceive that 
 they are whited with enamel within, and varnished black without, 
 but the former is the principal feature, as it enables every one who 
 possesses them to cook their food in a clean manner, and to have no 
 apprehension of deleterious consequences. Just, if you please, trans¬ 
 port yourself from that bright and brilliant structure to a dun casting 
 smithy at Wolverhampton, as though you were quitting the enchanted 
 palace of some fairy to take up your abode in a gasometer, and then 
 you may observe the process of manufacturing that useful little vessel 
 yclept a saucepan. First, the casting process. You are now in along 
 gloomy building, full of men and boys in a swarthy condition, and 
 stripped to the shirt; most of those fellows are working as hard as 
 their limbs will allow them, the boys shovelling up a dark fine sand 
 which has just been emptied from the mould, and the men kneading 
 
BUTTONS. 
 
 61 
 
 the sand into the moulds at their respective troughs, so as to form the 
 matrix of whatever they may require the molten metal to run into. 
 In the mean time the furnaces are melting the iron, which will he 
 shortly tapped and poured into the matrices, where it soon solidifies. 
 The saucepan, after passing through a variety of stages, which we 
 have not space to detail, is now ready for the enamelling process. A 
 mixture of a perfectly homogeneous nature is prepared, spread equally 
 over the inside of the saucepan, and fixed by means of a fine dry 
 powder. The saucepan is now placed in an oven, well heated till the 
 concrete fuses, when the enamelling is complete. There is required 
 great dexterity of hand in almost all the processes of the manufacture 
 of this article, as it is fashioned to every shape that may he required 
 in any part of the globe. The Messrs. T. and C. Clark and Co. are the 
 manufacturers whose establishment we examined, and observed the pro¬ 
 cesses here somewhat too briefly enumerated. The manufacture of 
 hinges at the same place is equally deserving of notice, as they are ex¬ 
 ported to almost all parts of the world, having a peculiar shape and make. 
 
 One word to the Birmingham workmen. In our humble opinion 
 they are, taken as a class, the best mechanics of the day. This fact 
 became thoroughly impressed upon our minds after minutely observing 
 the different branches of manufacturing industry in that town, the 
 superiority of manual skill over that of mere mechanical labour being 
 visible in almost every direction. At all our great manufacturing 
 seats, with rare exceptions, the human being is subordinate to the 
 mechanical power, or, in other terms, he works up to the machine ; 
 hut in Birmingham the machine may he said to work down to the man. 
 In most of the leading manufactories here, the dexterity of the hand is 
 predominant in the fabrication of the articles, and, in some instances, 
 to such a nicety is that dexterity displayed, that it surpasses the finest 
 productions of mechanical power. 
 
 In fashioning the vessels for electro-plating, and the brass-orna¬ 
 mental works for ecclesiastical purposes, it is especially so; and 
 what gives a zest to the distinction between the manual and mechani¬ 
 cal power of the workmen, is the fact, that the majority of the class to 
 whom we especially allude, are a sober, industrious, and well-ordered 
 body of men; studious to improve their condition, and sensitively 
 alive to the mental movements of the day. Having mixed much with 
 them, understanding their feelings, and fully appreciating their pecu¬ 
 liar excellence, we should he wanting in ordinary discernment, and in¬ 
 different to human progress, did we not thus publicly acknowledge these 
 phenomena, in relation to the interesting community of Birmingham. 
 
62 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 CHAP. IX.—PLATE, SHEFFIELD PLATE, ELECTRO-PLATE. 
 
 The general application of the precious metals to manufacturing 
 purposes, although of recent date, presents a wide field for practical 
 observation, and deserves to he ranked with the choicest branches of 
 industrial art. We are indebted to science for this new and beautiful 
 discovery. The consumption of gold and silver was comparatively 
 limited until chemistry revealed the secret properties of their nature, 
 and by her searching analysis pointed out to industry the varied uses 
 to which they might he applied. 
 
 The manufacture of articles for general purposes, on which a sur¬ 
 face of silver or gold is applied, to a groundwork of inferior metal, 
 has, consequently, materially enlarged the consumption of the precious 
 metals ; and it is no uncommon thing now-a-days to observe objects 
 of silvered art on the sideboards of the middle classes of society, which 
 have all the external beauty of their more rare and costly prototypes, 
 and are in nowise inferior to them either for ornamental or for useful 
 purposes. The skilful aim of industrial art, we apprehend, is to pro¬ 
 duce the utmost possible effect with the smallest possible means , and the 
 electro-plating of metals, upon the newest process, is daily furnishing 
 proofs of the truth of that economical axiom. Your vessels of gold, 
 and your vessels of silver, in every age of the world, have been equally 
 sought after by the great ones of the earth, and the value of either one 
 or the other has occasionally been more highly esteemed than the pro¬ 
 duce of a whole province, or even of a petty kingdom. Homer relates 
 that the ships of Tyre were in the habit of visiting the isles of Greece, 
 in order to seduce, or kidnap, the young Greeks, whom they sold in 
 the Asiatic market as slaves. The Phenician pirates effected their 
 purpose by exhibiting a gold chain, or some other costly and glittering 
 toy, before the wondering eyes of the simple and unwary Greeks, and 
 the estimation in which such articles were then held may he divined 
 by the words which the poet puts in the mouth of Eumaeus :— 
 
 “ Freighted, it seems, with toys of every sort, 
 
 A ship of Sidon anchor’d in our port. 
 ****** 
 
 An artist to my father’s palace came, 
 
 With gold and amber chains, elaborate frame; 
 
 Each female eye the glittering links employ; 
 
 They turn, review, and cheapen every toy.” 
 
 The adventurous and enterprizing Phenicians sent their ships to 
 the Baltic for the amber, an arduous voyage in those days, and 
 received the gold from the distant kingdoms of Arabia in exchange for 
 
PLATE, SHEFFIELD PLATE, ELECTRO-PLATE. 63 
 
 their merchandise, so that the value of the raw material may easily he 
 divined; then there was the labour employed upon that raw material, 
 which must have been expensive, notwithstanding the reputed skill 
 and cunning of the Tyrian workmen. Under these circumstances it is 
 clear, then, that the few alone could indulge in such rare and costly 
 articles; and as we come down the stream of time, and observe the 
 bubbles of empires, kingdoms, and states that here and there have floated 
 their hour upon its surface, we shall find among their more glittering 
 portions, if we may be allowed the metaphor, but little diminution in 
 the value of articles of gold, and of the precious metals, almost even to 
 the present day. From the time when Solomon contracted with Hiram, 
 whose father was a worker of brass and other metals down at Tyre, 
 the great workshop of the world—the Birmingham of that day—to 
 construct his palace, even down to the period when the great captain 
 of the present age received his service of gold plate from Portugal, the 
 precious metals, either as articles of use or ornament, and especially 
 in gold, have been dearly prized, and most eagerly coveted, even by 
 the refined and fastidious few. The labours of Hiram, the “ cunning ” 
 worker in precious metals, must have cost Solomon a good round sum, 
 as much, indeed, as the produce of a large slice of his then kingdom ; 
 and it is fair to presume that the gold service of the Iron Duke was, 
 in value, equal to the average annual produce of the whole province of 
 Oporto. By a simple discovery, then, we are enabled to obviate the 
 difficulty which has hitherto accompanied the use of objects made of 
 such expensive materials. Whole provinces need not now be beggared 
 for a period, in order to gratify the refined, though somewhat useful, 
 taste of the luxuriant few, as the recently improved process of elec¬ 
 tro-plating can supply the means upon more economical terms. The 
 cost of an object of art, manufactured by the electro-typing process, is 
 about one-fourth of those which are composed entirely of silver; yet 
 they have all the beauty, the refined taste, and the pleasing and instruc¬ 
 tive aspect, as though their every atom were a portion of that precious 
 metal. There is, on the best manufactured articles, a thick coating of 
 silver, which, with fair usage, will almost last the lifetime of an ordi¬ 
 nary aged individual; and in every sense they are fully equal to their 
 more costly rivals, if we except the impression, which may occasion¬ 
 ally arise in the mind of their purchaser, that they are not composed 
 of a pure and homogeneous metal. A mind, however, that is influenced 
 by such impressions as these, is too apt to lose sight of the end by 
 paying too much homage to the means by which it must be attained, 
 for where can be the difference between a Benvenuto Cellini cup, 
 
64 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 for example, manufactured upon the improved electro-typing process, 
 and one composed of genuine silver, assuming that the same art has 
 been employed upon both. Why is that form of cup so highly 
 prized ? Simply, we apprehend, from the beauty and the refined spirit 
 of art which it exhibits ; and are not these qualities as prominent in 
 a cup thickly coated with silver, as in one entirely composed of 
 that metal ? Unquestionably. And these remarks are equally appli¬ 
 cable to other objects of use and ornamentation, which are now becom¬ 
 ing more widely diffused, and mainly so through the instrumentality of 
 the process of electro-typing. 
 
 The art of electro-plating, or electro-typing, as we have already 
 remarked, is but of comparatively recent date. The principle in¬ 
 volved in the art may he mainly stated as follows :—Water consists 
 of oxygen and hydrogen, and if a metal (zinc for example) which 
 has great affinity for oxygen, is immersed in water, there is a 
 tendency to decomposition, the oxygen combining with the zinc, 
 which forms oxide of zinc, and the hydrogen being liberated. But 
 in order that this may take place, it is necessary to put in the same 
 liquid a piece of copper, which has less affinity for oxygen than 
 zinc has, and to connect these two metals by a piece of wire. A 
 decomposition of the water and the oxidation of the zinc ensues, and 
 while this is going on, there is a current of electricity passing invisibly 
 through the whole arrangement in a continuous circuit. This may be 
 called the basis of the art; the superstructure is the result of practical 
 observation. It was observed that when the electrical current passed 
 through a solution of sulphate of copper, in a particular form of bat¬ 
 tery, the sulphate became decomposed, separated the copper from the 
 sulphuric acid with which it was combined, and deposited it in a fine 
 metallic state upon the inner surface of the vessel which contained the 
 liquid. On removing carefully the thin coating of copper from the 
 vessel it presented an exact counterpart of its surface, even to the 
 minutest line and spot. From this simple incident maybe traced the 
 different processes of electro-plating, &c., as it established a great fact 
 —that if a galvanic current passes through a liquid containing sulphate 
 of copper, the latter will become precipitated on any surface fitted for 
 its reception, and will present an exact counterpart of that surface. It 
 was soon discovered that not only copper, but silver and gold, as well 
 as the lower metals, could be precipitated in a metallic form from their 
 solutions; and not only can a superficial film of these metals be depo¬ 
 sited, but a solid substance of pure gold, silver, or copper, can be com¬ 
 posed by such means. 
 
PLATE, SHEFFIELD PLATE, ELECTRO-PLATE. 65 
 
 The mode of plating is entirely distinct. The French mode of 
 silvering, by laying leaves of silver on heated metal, was so defective, 
 that it led to the method of plating, which is purely an English 
 invention. An ingot of copper and brass is first made about twenty 
 inches long, three broad, and one and a half thick. The surface of 
 the ingot is cleaned, and a sheet of silver, about one-fortieth the 
 thickness of the ingot, is laid on it. The two metals are then tied 
 together with wire, touched at the edges with a little borax to act as 
 a flux, and exposed to the heat of a furnace, which solders them firmly 
 together. The ingot is then rolled into thin sheets, which are stamped, 
 punched,or hammered into the shapes required, the copper forming 
 the basis and the silver the surface of the article. The “ solid silver 
 edges,” as the process is called, is a great improvement upon the old 
 method. A sheet of silver is rolled very thin, then stamped into forms 
 by dies, swages, and other apparatus, the hollow cavity thus formed 
 being filled up with a solder of lead and tin. These “ edges ” are then 
 soldered on any article of plated ware, and are stronger than the old 
 hollow edges, besides appearing more sightly when the silver is par¬ 
 tially worn off, as they present a whitish ground instead of one of 
 copper. The real gold and silver plate is manufactured by mechanical 
 means similar to those used in the plated manufacture. The articles are 
 either cast in molten metal, or hammered and stamped from sheets, and 
 brought to a highly finished state by chasing, engraving, and burnishing. 
 
 These are the ordinary processes of manufacturing plate, plated- 
 wares, and electro-plated articles. "We shall now confine ourselves to 
 articles coated by electro-chemical agency. The body before plat¬ 
 ing is a whitish metal, of greater strength and hardness than silver 
 itself, and is a compound of nickel, copper, and zinc. When in a 
 molten state, the metal is, in some cases, poured into sand moulds, 
 which are impressed by means of prepared models, and when cooled 
 it comes out a perfect countertype of the latter. Sometimes an object 
 is cast whole, if it be comparatively simple in its form; but it is 
 uniformly cast in separate parts whenever a complication of figure is 
 involved in its construction. These parts are then soldered together 
 in the ordinary way. The process of stamping comes next, and is 
 performed as follows :—The metal, being rolled to the required thin¬ 
 ness, is placed upon the surface of a die, when a heavy hammer, of the 
 reverse form of the die, is made to fall upon the metal, which receives 
 the precise form of the impression. The dies are of steel, while the 
 face of the hammer is usually of copper, and the weight and cost of 
 metal for this process, in a first-class establishment, are a somewhat 
 
66 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 heavy item. The stamped metal is now taken to the polishing depart¬ 
 ment, where it receives a surface, through the agency of emery, sand, or 
 rotten stone, applied by hand and brush, when it is suitable for the 
 reception of the electro deposit. But, before we describe the latter pro¬ 
 cess, let us glance at the brazing operation, which, perhaps, is the most 
 surprising of all, at least as far as manual dexterity is concerned. 
 Many articles are also brought into form from the sheet by the aid 
 of the hammer. The hammer generally used by the workmen is made 
 of hard wood, such as box, and covered with buff leather. There 
 are also bosses , or supports made of wood, on which the plate of metal 
 rests while being hammered. With these simple instruments the 
 process is conducted, the subsequent form depending upon the nicety 
 of touch of the workman, which, in many instances, is truly remark¬ 
 able. The next stage in the manufacture is “mounting,” which 
 simply consists in joining the various parts together by means of hard 
 solder, such as the handles, the borders, or any ornamental part, most 
 of which have been under the hand of the graver. We now arrive at 
 the silvering process. The solution of silver employed by the firm, 
 whose mode of manufacture we are now describing—the Messrs. 
 Elkington and Mason, of Birmingham, and who have placed this 
 beautiful branch of industrial art in its present elevated position, is 
 formed by dissolving an oxide, or salt of silver, in cyanide of potas¬ 
 sium. The length of time required for this operation depends upon 
 the coating of silver to he transferred to the article, and also upon the 
 proportional amount of silver in the solution. The arrangement is the 
 same in all electro-plating processes. The articles to be coated are 
 attached to a wire in connection with a zinc plate, which may be 
 termed the positive pole, and immersed in a solution of silver ; a plate 
 of silver, in connection with a plate of copper, the negative pole, is 
 placed in the same solution, when it becomes dissolved, and is trans¬ 
 ferred to the articles by a current of electricity passing between them. 
 
 The “ gilding” process is effected in a similar manner. Solutions 
 of gold are formed in the same manner as solutions of silver, but as a 
 less deposit of gold is generally required, the operation is completed in 
 a much shorter period; the silver requiring from five to ten hours 
 duration for a thick plating, while gilding rarely requires as many 
 minutes or seconds, the coating generally being much thinner. There 
 is also another method of gilding which is deserving of notice, as it is 
 generally adopted in France. It is gilding by “immersion” only. 
 This process was discovered by Messrs. Elkington in 1836, became 
 the subject of a patent, and received the award of the gold medal from 
 
PLATE, SHEFFIELD PLATE, ELECTEO-PLATE. 67 
 
 the Societe d'Encouragement, and the prize of 6000 francs from the 
 Academie des Sciences. The gold in this process is held in solution by 
 the bicarbonate of potash, which, at a boiling heat, dissolves a portion 
 of the copper to be gilded, when an equivalent of gold is deposited in 
 its place, the surface of the latter protecting the copper from further 
 action of the potash. The next, and final process, is that of polishing 
 or burnishing, which depends upon the character of the articles ; the 
 former being generally applied by means of rubbing the surface with 
 a burnisher dipped in soap and water. The burnishing instrument is 
 either formed of a bloodstone, or polished steel, and many of them vary 
 in shape. The process of polishing is generally applied to forks, spoons, 
 and other articles of a similar shape, and the friction and pressure 
 which they are subjected to proves clearly that they must have re¬ 
 ceived a pretty thick coating, or deposit of silver. The burnishing 
 process is equally trying, and requires an equally resisting body, in 
 the shape of a thick deposit. 
 
 We have hitherto confined our observations to simply covering in¬ 
 ferior metals with a superior coating, which was considered, and justly 
 so, as a great triumph of industrial art; we have now to detail a still 
 greater triumph which electro-chemistry has achieved, and which has 
 placed it among the wonders of even this creative age. By electro¬ 
 deposition the actual substance of the article can he wholly formed 
 from a liquid solution, and the process of formation may be described 
 as follows :—First, the intended article is modelled in wax, then the 
 model is moulded in lead, from which a brass pattern is cast, which 
 is brought to the required degree of finish. From this pattern a 
 second mould is made, composed of a yielding and plastic material; 
 and from the latter a composition model is cast, which forms a surface 
 on which electro-deposition is to take place. The composition model 
 is next transferred to a vessel where a deposit of copper is induced by 
 galvanic agency, the substance of the deposit depending upon the cir¬ 
 cumstances under which the operation is conducted. The composition 
 model is now coated with a layer of copper, and the next step is to 
 melt the former, and leave the copper shell, the interior of which 
 exactly corresponds to the exterior of the model. After a further pre¬ 
 paration the copper mould is immersed in the gold or silver solution, 
 the interior being prepared for the reception of the deposit, and the 
 exterior prepared with a resisting composition. The precious metal 
 is now deposited in the copper mould to any required thickness, after 
 which the copper is subjected to the action of a strong acid, which 
 gradually eats it away without injuring the silver, and the result is 
 
68 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 the production of a pure and genuine article of silver or gold. The 
 article when fresh from the solution has a dead appearance, the silver 
 in particular, and to give it a brighter surface, it has to undergo 
 the process of burnishing, which we have just described. Large sur¬ 
 faces of electro-typed articles are subjected to what is called “planish¬ 
 ing,” or hammering. This imparts an elastic, uniform texture to the 
 article, by bringing the metallic particles into more intimate union 
 with each other. The hammer is made of highly polished steel, and 
 requires to be used with considerable dexterity of hand, in order to 
 effect the desired purpose. 
 
 There is one peculiar advantage connected with electro-typing 
 which is especially deserving of notice; it is the only means yet dis¬ 
 covered of multiplying the beauty and excellence of the originals in 
 art. In painting we are limited to the engraving, with its cold black 
 and white, to multiply the original, the transcendant media of colours, 
 for the highest efforts of genius, being substituted by their compara¬ 
 tively uncongenial and repulsive negatives. The electro-typing pro¬ 
 cess, on the contrary, is capable of multiplying the objects of art to an 
 almost indefinite extent, and with all the beauty, the spirit, and the fine 
 intellectual touch, as though they were fresh from the brain of their 
 creator. Take, for example, the Warwick Vase, electro-typed by the 
 manufacturers just mentioned : in that object you have the exquisite 
 touch and skill of its antique originator, as fresh as when first con¬ 
 ceived and executed by his hand. Again, look at the reduced copy of 
 the Theseus, wherein you have an exact counterpart of the original, 
 both in the decayed portions, and in those which still preserve the fine 
 lessons for anatomical sculpture. By no other process could this be 
 obtained; and the advantage derived from it, even in this isolated in¬ 
 stance, is considerable, as students can now procure copies of the best 
 specimens of the antique in the British Museum to study from, who 
 have neither the opportunity nor the means to visit that building. 
 
 Let us now step out of the “workshop” and range our eye over 
 the objects in the Exhibition which have an immediate bearing upon 
 the preceding remarks. First in importance must be classed the pro¬ 
 ductions of Messrs. Hunt and Boslcill, better known as Storr and Mor¬ 
 timers, not so much for the beauty and originality of their works as 
 for the richness and variety which they display. They have literally 
 transferred their shop to the stalls of the Exhibition—at least, there is 
 an epitome of it. Jewels, diamonds, and precious stones of rare 
 beauty are glittering in all directions the moment your eye meets their 
 large contribution ; and this, we apprehend, is the chief cause of attrac- 
 
PLATE, SHEFFIELD PLATE, ELECTRO-PLATE. G9 
 
 tion, and not the artistic merit of their productions, several of which 
 are of a mediocre quality, when compared to those of one or two of 
 their neighbours. The finest work which Hunt and ftoskill exhibit, 
 to our conception of artistic beauty, is the large candelabrum, standing 
 in the western nave, and quite apart from their large show-box up 
 stairs. There they seem to have attained the true aim of art—the 
 utmost effect with the most limited means; there is a richness of 
 character, yet withal no heaviness, the great fault of almost all our 
 productions, and the effect is at once striking and impressive. The 
 burnished branches form a beautiful contrast to the dead shaft, and 
 the base is most elaborately light, yet well supportive of the super¬ 
 structure. The design, also, is highly effective. Most of the leading 
 and large objects up stairs are well known to the public, and have 
 been borrowed from their respective owners, we apprehend, simply to 
 make a “ show,” not exactly contemplated by the purport and spirit 
 of the Exhibition. The same remark will apply to Messrs. Garrard’s 
 display, which is likewise composed of contributions similar to the 
 preceding, their chief and almost exclusive merit being an embarras des 
 richesses. There appears such a ponderous waste of the precious metals 
 in the majority of these productions, as though John Bull could not 
 tolerate anything, even in the fine arts, without its assuming a solid 
 and substantial appearance. Pieces of this solid order of plate, it is 
 true, are of rare occurrence; but seeing so many collected together, 
 and all of the same pursy, puffed-out kind, we cannot but wish 
 that they were all melted down, and the proceeds applied to the pro¬ 
 duction of really artistic works. We never saw so small an amount 
 of really good art expended upon such splendid materials; or, in 
 other terms, we never saw such rich materials perverted by so much 
 comparatively useless labour and inferior art. We shall, however, 
 select two objects which display a more than ordinary amount of 
 talent, and are not justly chargeable with the demerits we have en¬ 
 deavoured to point out. The candelabrum of Messrs. Garrard is an 
 original and poetical conception of a fine subject—the “ Halting of 
 Saladin and Sir Kenneth” at the fountain beneath a knot of palm- 
 trees, so pictorially described by Scott in the “ Talisman.” The easy, 
 oriental attitude which Saladin assumes, as lithe as his fine-tempered 
 Damascus blade, and the stalwart, cool, and unblenching expression 
 of the knight, are admirably preserved. The artist has evidently 
 caught the spirit of that highly dramatic incident; you see it in the 
 expression and attitude of the two principal figures; you also see it in 
 the subordinate, yet really effective, addenda of the trees and other 
 
70 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 surrounding objects. It is, to our taste, an exquisite piece of art, and 
 not overloaded with material. The other object may be seen in the 
 collection of Messrs. Hunt and Roskill. There is a testimonial to Sir 
 Moses Montefiore, commemorative of his Eastern pilgrimage, under 
 the form of an allegory. It was designed by Sir G. Hayter, and 
 modelled from the design, evidently, too, with a good spirit and an 
 artistic feeling. The treatment of the subject is not strictly according 
 to the chronological order of events, nevertheless the artist has managed 
 to embody one or two of the grandest pages in Jewish history. The 
 captivity of the Israelites is typified by the Egyptian sphynxes ; their 
 deliverers are represented in the figures of Moses and Ezra, and the 
 delivered in a Jew of Damascus in chains, and another set free. The 
 apex is represented by David rescuing the lamb from the lion, and 
 the reliefs illustrate the passage of the Red Sea, and the destruction 
 of Pharaoh and his army. Sir Moses and his lady are figured as 
 landing on the shores of Egypt, and receiving the diploma of their 
 peaceful mission. The grouping, the character of the figures, the just 
 and subordinate keeping of ali the parts, and the general treatment of 
 the subject, stamp it as a work of great and rare merit. 
 
 We shall now pass to the case of Messrs. Morell, where may be 
 seen a horse standing upon two legs, and, what makes it more un¬ 
 common, is the circumstsnce of the animal not having one “off” and 
 one “ near” leg up at the same time, but he actually has both the 
 “ off” legs up and the “ near ” ones down. You really tremble to see 
 the poor thing standing “ upon such dangerous ground,” and naturally 
 expect that he will topple over and break through his glass covering, 
 rider and all. To be sure he is a silver horse, and no doubt well fixed 
 upon his pins, otherwise—we all know what must ensue. How the 
 artist could make such a blunder we cannot conceive, unless he has 
 strictly copied the original, like the minutely-correct Chinaman, 
 who made the whole service exactly like the original pattern, crack and 
 all, simply because the latter was accidentally there. The statuette in 
 question represents Queen Elizabeth going to St. Paul’s, to return 
 thanks for the defeat of the Armada ; it is taken from the bas-relief 
 on the great seal during her reign. Irrespective of the anomaly just 
 pointed out, it is a fine work of art, both as regards the high finish and 
 the general treatment of the work. There is, also, a superb centre¬ 
 piece, deserving of minute examination, by the same spirited manu¬ 
 facturers. C. F. Hancock has a choice, select, and really artistic, 
 collection. Among them we admired a large vase composed of open 
 vine-work, intended for Prince Frederick of the Netherlands; the 
 
PLATE, SHEFFIELD PLATE, ELECTRO-PLATE. 71 
 
 “ Goodwood Cup ” is a spii'ited production, and displays a more than 
 ordinary amount of merit, hut it does not equal the “ Cup ” for the 
 present year just placed in the Exhibition. The latter represents the 
 death of the young Lord Yilliers, in a skirmish with some of Crom¬ 
 well’s troops. The incident is effectingly told. Clarendon gives us a 
 brief but expressive outline of this episode of the Civil Wars. Lord 
 Yilliers, a young man of great personal beauty and high attainments, 
 had, with others, got up a plot to proclaim Charles II., when he and 
 his party were surprized by the Protector’s soldiers, under Colonel 
 Itich, at Kingston, in a lane leading from which place to Surbiton, the 
 young nobleman was slain, after a gallant defence. The artist, Maro- 
 chetti, has evidently caught the spirit of the incident in his telling 
 and picturesque group. The outline of all the figures introduced is 
 very masterly ; the rugged veterans of the Parliamentary army con¬ 
 trasting well with the gallant bearing of the royal cavalier. “ The 
 young lord,” says Clarendon, “ having had his horse killed under 
 him turned his back upon an old oak tree in the hedge, on the east 
 side of the lane, and fought most valiantly with half-a-dozen assail¬ 
 ants—two of whom he had killed, when a third coming up on the 
 other side of the hedge, killed him with a dagger.” The attitude of 
 the young and spirited cavalier against the tree, looking right and 
 left for assailants, is admirably portrayed; so also is the dying horse 
 in the foreground, the limbs of which are partly paralyzed, and ani¬ 
 mation is perceptibly departing. The character of the grouping is 
 somewhat colossal; and, in spirit, conception, and execution, is one 
 of the most effective productions of the day. The “Hunting group” 
 is a spirited illustration of the olden time, partly through the genius 
 of Marochetti, and the talent of McCarthy. The inlaid table and 
 silver vase, in pure Etruscan, by the same contributor, is beautifully 
 executed, and deserves commendation from its novelty, being the 
 only one of the kind in the Exhibition. Upon the whole this 
 contributor has displayed better taste than any other single exhi¬ 
 bitor in the precious metal branch of industry. Keith has fur¬ 
 nished some beautiful specimens of his silver-gilt chalices, and 
 ocher ecclesiastical vessels; Attenborough has prepared a bouquet of 
 diamonds and emeralds, which are placed in the forms of convolvuli 
 and roses, with rubies for the buds, the whole displaying a brilliant 
 and effective array of the precious stones. Mott’s display of pencil- 
 cases is a curiosity in its way, especially as regards arrangement; 
 and the “ Deer Stalking ” of Messrs. Smith and Nicholson, designed 
 by M‘Carthy, is a spirited production. Mr. J. Angell has furnished a 
 
72 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 few effective objects. The group representing “Arabs in the Desert” 
 is a pleasing and poetical conception, and withal artistically treated; 
 while that of “ Sir Roger de Coverley and the Gipsies,” is just as 
 defective, the stunted tree too much heightening the figures in 
 the group, otherwise it would have truthfully depicted the scene. 
 The “ Esop Tea-service ” is an original idea, and admirably carried 
 out, the relievi being minutely and delicately preserved. The intro¬ 
 duction of enamel is somewhat of a novelty ; if that be any claim to 
 approval this manufacturer deserves it. There are, besides these 
 manufacturing exhibitors, several others whose contributions add to 
 the richness of the display, and indicate the plethora of wealth 
 stowed away from the common public gaze by our great silversmith- 
 shopkeepers ; and, as they are now submitted to that ordeal for the 
 first time, we ought to feel grateful for even a sight of them, although 
 we may not minutely examine their respective beauties. 
 
 We now turn to the Electro-Plate and Electro-Type productions, 
 most of which have been expressly made for the Exhibition, and are 
 not an omnium gatherum of the rich old stagers of the shops and show¬ 
 rooms of Birmingham and Sheffield. The baser metal productions, 
 when tried in the furnace of fine artistic taste, if we may be allowed 
 such a mongrel metaphor, come out much purer than their par excel¬ 
 lence pure brethren. Here we escape in some measure that eternal 
 round of grouping as an illustrative medium for almost every sub¬ 
 ject. Our designers for silversmiths seem as limited in their ideas as 
 it is possible to conceive, or, perhaps, the silversmiths limit the ideas 
 of the designer in order to exactly fit the limited ideas of their cus¬ 
 tomers. We believe there is a grain, or half a grain, of truth in our 
 last remark; however, we shall leave them for a moment and refresh 
 our minds a trifle by walking round their smart, spruce, and really 
 more elegant country-cousins. The productions of Messrs. Elkington 
 and Mason demand our attention first, as they illustrate a really high 
 class of art. Look at that vase ; there you have originality of form, 
 and exquisite finish of the subordinate detail. Call it what style you 
 like—Elizabethan, though it is not strictly of that conventional class 
 of art—it is still an object that is self-illustrative. It represents what 
 it purports—the triumph of science and the industrial arts. There 
 you have astronomy in Newton, philosophy in Bacon, poetry in 
 Shaltspeare, and mechanics in Watt; these several statuettes are 
 chased boldly out and form a beautiful relief to the background or body 
 of the vase. Let your eye fall to the base; there you will find an 
 appropriate contrast in the shape of war, rebellion, hatred, and re- 
 
PLATE, SHEFFIELD PLATE, ELECTRO-PLATE. 73 
 
 venge, and these four figures, whose abject expression and position 
 are typical of the predominating influence of art and science, are 
 truthfully finished and poetically conceived. The apex is gracefully 
 crowned with a figure of the Prince, whose name is indissolubly 
 linked with the great world-wonder of the age. This beautiful pro¬ 
 duction measures five feet in height, is elaborately finished through¬ 
 out, and, altogether, it must be denominated one of the most appro¬ 
 priate contributions to the Exhibition. The large centre-piece is a 
 rich design, cleverly worked out. In addition to these really tasteful 
 objects, whose main attraction is not mere heavy weight of metal, 
 like some of their proud and pursy purenesses of the metropolis, there 
 is a singular variety of candelabra, epergnes, flower-stands, and vases, 
 in almost every conceivable shape, and illustrative of every branch of 
 art. Let us diverge for a moment to notice the bronze productions of 
 these manufacturers. The statue of the Earl of Gloucester is the 
 largest ever made by the electro process, and a very effective per¬ 
 formance it is. The panels in the side-board are a new idea, which 
 is capable of extension, under certain restrictions. The “Dial” is 
 not so effective as the design might have been rendered ; there is too 
 much of contrast in the detail, which fritters away, in some measure, 
 the conception of the artist. The wreathed circle of figures is a touch 
 of imagination not often acquired. The copy of the well-known 
 horse’s head from the Greek is a marvel of art, and is worth half-an- 
 hour’s contemplation and study. The bust of “ Peel” is rather heavy; 
 but there is the character and expression of countenance of the la¬ 
 mented statesman. These productions of bronze are by electro-depo¬ 
 sit, a branch of art to which the Messrs. Elkington may lay almost 
 exclusive claim. Returning to silver-work, the next attractive object 
 is in the case of Mr. G. Collis. There you will find the “ Warwick 
 Vase,” the largest, we believe, ever made in the precious metal. It 
 measures on the brim thirty-two inches in diameter, and is propor¬ 
 tionate throughout in dimensions and height. Now turn for a moment 
 to that table-top, and observe the chasing; you will find it uniformly 
 consistent in character, and tasteful in design. It measures fifty- 
 five inches in diameter, and weighs nine hundred ounces; the whole, 
 we believe, pure silver, and is intended for some Turkish pasha. So 
 also, we should think, is that salver close by, or it surely would never 
 have been chased in that style for an English taste ; it is too crescentish , 
 too Asiatic, in the character of the design for our Western ideas; 
 nevertheless, it is exquisitely chased and elegantly shaped. Messrs. 
 Wilkinson of Birmingham have an elegant flower-stand, the outer 
 
74 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 frame of silver, the inner of ruby-glass; the treatment of the design 
 is at once original and tasteful. In the Sheffield plating productions 
 we have some highly creditable contributions; in point of taste, in 
 design, and finish, they are superior to the pure metal metropolitan 
 manufactures. There appears no waste of material, and great atten¬ 
 tion must have been paid to the artistic portions of the productions. 
 The Messrs. Wilkinson exhibit an elegant tray, some fine candelabra, 
 and salvers and covers, which display the unmistakable marks of 
 good workmanship. The same observation will apply to the contri¬ 
 bution of Messrs. Padley and Parker; it is equally tasteful in form 
 and fashion, and equally good in finish. 
 
 In the foreign departments, we have here and there some artistic 
 productions in silver. Perhaps the most striking is in the Russian 
 department, but we have every reason to think that it was designed 
 and executed, or executed if not designed, in England. The fir-tree, 
 heavily laden with snow, is a fine object for frosted silver, the form of 
 the tree affording so much space for effect. Imagine this object on a 
 suitable base, and immediately between the two a group of figures, 
 comprising men and horses, and represented in attitudes suitable for 
 illustrating a subject, and you have in your mind’s eye a very beau¬ 
 tiful composition, both in design and execution. It is also somewhat 
 colossal. In the Austrian department there are two copies of 
 Lebrun’s celebrated pictures illustrative of the campaign of Alexander 
 the Great, one in bronze, the other in silver, hut both in high relief. 
 We scarcely know which is the most effective; they are both fine 
 productions of metalliferous art. 
 
 France displays her exquisite taste in the “ service ” of M. Oudiot. 
 The vase in the centre is remarkably chaste and elegant, and the 
 delineation of the game, fish, lobsters, dead birds, &c. &c., is delicately 
 worked out. Our silversmiths should observe the effect produced by, 
 comparatively, so scanty materials. The epergnes and baskets are 
 equally attractive. The “Fontaine a the” in the mediaeval style of 
 art, is an elaborately wrought piece of silver-work, and well deserving 
 attention. M. Fremont has contributed a creditable specimen of 
 silver-gilt articles ; the toilet-table, the glass, and the whole arrange¬ 
 ment of that bijou du cabinet executed for the Duchess of Parma, 
 which we believe is pure metal, is a beautiful work of art, and 
 most delicately finished. But neither in plate, plated goods, nor 
 in electro-typing, which may be called almost an art of our own, 
 have we anything to apprehend from the Continent, but we may learn 
 a great deal as to taste in design, and economy in execution. There 
 
PLATE, SHEFFIELD PLATE, ELECTRO-PLATE. 75 
 
 is an English coffee-service, standing alone on the south-west side 
 of the building, well deserving of attention, for two reasons— 
 first, it is elegantly designed, and secondly, it is a fine electro¬ 
 deposit on Britannia metal, perhaps as fine as it is possible to con¬ 
 ceive. This contribution reflects great credit upon Messrs. Bippon 
 and Burton. 
 
 In another department of the precious metal industry, we are 
 equally conspicuous—the manufacture of cheap jewellery. Geneva, 
 Paris, and Vienna are alike skilled in the production of elegant but 
 not over-costly articles of jewellery, and each has its specialite in 
 which it may be said to be supreme. "We have also our specialite. 
 London has its high quality of work, excellent in finish, but mostly 
 heavy in appearance ; while Paris, teeming in fancy, can supply the 
 world with her multum in parvo class of metal productions. Nor is 
 Birmingham behind the latter city in many respects; in several she 
 is much in advance of her, and must continue to keep there, so long 
 as she energetically concentrates her capital and labour. At the 
 present time, you will find at Birmingham large concerns almost 
 wholly occupied in making gold chains, and each division of the manu¬ 
 facture is subject to a single directing will; not as formerly, when the 
 chasers, the engravers, the lapidaries, the enamellers, the modellers, 
 the die-sinkers, and the gold-cutters, were working separately and 
 independently of each other, although frequently paid and employed 
 by a single individual. There was no working to a profitable and 
 effective end with such scattered elements; now the principle of 
 concentration is better understood, the adoption of it is gradually 
 gaining ground, and the small man is quietly under the process 
 of being absorbed by his large and capacious contemporary. To 
 produce a single gold chain of ordinary quality, and economical in cost, 
 great power of machinery is required, a minute division of labour, 
 considerable activity, great judgment in the selection of the raw 
 material, and the nicest skill in applying it. In the establishment of 
 Messrs. Goode and Boland, the largest in England, we have seen as 
 many as 400 hands employed, mostly girls, and all engaged, in one 
 stage or other, in the manufacture of a gold chain, In cheapness and 
 quality we have no equals on the Continent; nor, indeed, in any 
 part of the world. We have seen electro-silvered and electro-gold 
 chains sold at Birmingham, the first at 4§d. each, the second at 
 Is. 9d.,—both capable of lasting some time with decent care, being so 
 well coated with the precious metals, and having the appearance of 
 their genuine prototypes, whose value is nearly two thousand per 
 
76 PRODUCTIONS IN METALS. 
 
 cent, higher. The same remark will apply to pencil-cases, and other 
 minute articles for which Birmingham is so famed. 
 
 Directing our attention to the Exhibition, we find that Birmingham 
 has been somewhat liberal in her contributions of this kind. In the 
 case of the manufacturers just alluded to, we find specimens of gold 
 chains of almost every possible make, shape of ring, and quality of 
 material. The variety is truly marvellous, and it simply arises from 
 altering the shape of the ring in the series of which the chain is 
 composed. There are also specimens of other kinds of jewellery, such 
 as broaches, pins, watch-guards, &c. &c., which are deserving of 
 minute attention, from the fact that the Germans are competing with 
 us in neutral, and in some instances in our own markets. In the 
 cutting of stones, for instance, they somewhat excel us, although we 
 have made great improvement in that respect within the last few 
 years. Messrs. Goode and Boland have now a machine which cuts 
 them with comparative facility, perhaps one of the nicest feats of 
 mechanical invention on record. With the exception just mentioned, 
 and one or two others of no great importance, the industry of Bir¬ 
 mingham, as regards jewellery, has little to apprehend from the 
 Continent. 
 
 In the Austrian department there are some fine specimens of glass 
 imitations of the precious stones which greatly excel our own produc¬ 
 tions, and France still maintains her superiority in setting jewellery, 
 and in manufacturing the various paste imitations of the diamond, 
 and other highly-prized ornamental objects. In the manufacture of 
 tin-foil we are equally behind France, both as regards the thinness of 
 the metal and the colours imparted to it; consequently, we are com¬ 
 pelled to import it from her for our best uses. 
 
 The case of Mr. John Sheldon exhibits another branch of cheap 
 jewellery, equally as interesting as the preceding, the articles entering 
 so generally into consumption. Here we have pencil-cases, pen¬ 
 holders, and tooth-picks, in almost every conceivable shape ; tabatiers , 
 or boxes for tobacco-pipes and fusees, admirably arranged; and then 
 succeed compound articles—such as a tooth-pick, a pen, a letter- 
 weigher, and a seal, in one piece, and convenient for the waistcoat- 
 pocket. The letter-balance is ingeniously constructed, being so 
 poised that it can weigh consecutively 500,000 letters without changing 
 its elastic and nicely adjusted properties. Ingenuity, in this instance, 
 seems to display itself in such a variety of forms, that it is difficult to 
 follow it. An escritoire , for instance, containing an inkstand, wax- 
 taper, &c., sufficient to seal from 400 to 500 letters; steel-pens, pen- 
 
TYPOGRAPHY, LITHOGRAPHY, STEREOTYPE. 77 
 
 holder, wafers, coin and letter-balance described above, almanac, 
 blotter-pad, &c. &c.; and all within the space of a small pocket-book. 
 Still further; there is a small instrument called a music-writer, which 
 holds sufficient ink to make as many as 2000 dots, and yet so con¬ 
 structed that only one dot can be made at a time. There are, like¬ 
 wise, several other ingenious and useful articles in this case well 
 deserving attention. The metal of which these articles are composed 
 is nickel of the best quality, containing a large proportion of the pure 
 substance, hence its silvery appearance, and more enduring quality to 
 the general run of articles made of similar material, which seldom 
 contain more than a small proportion of the pure metal. 
 
 While on the subject of electro-plating, we must direct attention 
 to the invention (or rather adaptation, for the discovery was an acci¬ 
 dent rather than a design, by one of the workmen in the employ of 
 Messrs. Elkington and Co.,) of M. Lyons, which he calls “bright 
 electro-plating,” as it differs in its results from other processes, inas¬ 
 much as the articles are produced bright from the operation, whereas, in 
 almost all other instances, they appear dull, and have to undergo the 
 process of burnishing. Any other merit that it may have must be 
 ascertained by experience, the best of all teachers. 
 
 —♦— 
 
 CHAPTER X.—TYPOGRAPHY, LITHOGRAPHY', STEREOTYPE. 
 
 The typographic art of England is, upon the whole, superior to 
 that of the Continent. Type-founding has rapidly improved since 
 William Caxton formed an Arabic alphabet for printing the New Tes¬ 
 tament in this country. Antecedent to that period we were in the 
 habit of importing our type from Holland; and it was not till 1720 
 that Caxton commenced general type-founding in England. 
 
 It is generally acknowledged that English type is made of better 
 metal than that of the Continent, there being a more liberal admixture 
 of antimony with the lead and arsenic than our neighbours are in the 
 habit of using. By this means our letters are harder, and less liable 
 to bend and wear away at the side or foot of the page, which is a 
 great advantage to our printers. For the same reason letter-cutters 
 pay particular attention to the “ lining” of their alphabet—making 
 the small and large letters of an equal height—so that a straight line 
 drawn on the summit or base of the letters will touch them all, with - 
 
 I_ 
 
78 TYPOGRAPHY, LITHOGRAPHY, STEREOTYPE. 
 
 out leaving one above the upper or below the under level. This pre¬ 
 cision of form in the English type is seldom observable by the public, 
 but the experienced eye of a bibliographic connoisseur can detect its 
 absence in foreign publications. 
 
 Nearly all the improvements in typography have been devised and 
 perfected in this country, although the art has never received the 
 slightest support from state patronage, like the Imprimerie Nationale 
 of France, or the Imperial Printing Establishment of Vienna , both of 
 which receive annually large sums for their support and encourage¬ 
 ment. We manage things differently in this country, the State sel¬ 
 dom interfering with private enterprise, and prudently restricting 
 itself to matters of a merely fiscal nature. This circumstance reminds 
 us of an anecdote of Canova, who visited England soon after the peace. 
 Being shown the lion of the day—Waterloo Bridge—and learning 
 that it had been constructed by private enterprise, the enquiring artist 
 desired his Cicerone to show him some object of a public nature that 
 the State had reared and perfected, when the latter immediately 
 directed him to the Pagoda Bridge, then standing in St. James’s Park. 
 “ Good heavens !” exclaimed the astonished stranger, “ is this a speci¬ 
 men of State patronage ? Then leave the encouragement of art to 
 private enterprise.” 
 
 We repeat that the greatest improvements in the art of typography 
 have been effected in this country, and were we desirous of an illus¬ 
 tration or so of this interesting fact, there is no necessity of going far 
 or wide for it. The Times paper will instantly furnish one, as the 
 progressive stages of that journal were accomplished by a series of 
 inventions which have scarcely a parallel even in this country. The 
 new machine, by which the proprietors of that paper are enabled to 
 throw off so many thousands in a few hours, was brought in a great 
 measure to its present perfect state by the unwearied exertions of a single 
 individual, whose judgment, capital, and perseverance were more than a 
 match for every obstacle that presented itself. The late Mr. Walter, 
 to whose singular abilities we have alluded elsewhere, administered a 
 sharp rebuke to those who may be termed the impossibilities of the age, 
 at all times, and in all countries, the great majority. A slight sketch 
 of the labours he left behind him will not only illustrate the progress 
 of printing in this country, but also, incidently, enable us to estimate 
 the differential points, if we may be allowed the term, between us and 
 our Continental neighbours. 
 
 After a series of attempts, many of which proved abortive, Mr. 
 Walter at length succeeded in accomplishing his ends, but sparing 
 
TYPOGRAPHY, LITHOGRAPHY, STEREOTYPE. 79 
 
 neither money nor talent, whether home or foreign, in their accom¬ 
 plishment. The Times was the only paper printed by machinery for 
 nearly two years, but its impressions were comparatively faulty, for 
 the balls then used by printers not only deranged the machinery, hut 
 materially checked its speed. This was in 1812 and 1813. These 
 balls were replaced by rollers, covered with skin, which left the 
 superfluous ink contained in the seam of the cover upon the letters, 
 forming long dark streaks, technically termed “ monks.” Next suc¬ 
 ceeded composition rollers, which obviated the noxious preparation of 
 the skins. There were several claimants for this simple invention, but 
 the honour, we believe, must be accorded to an obscure and dissipated 
 pressman, whose memory should be held in respect by all printers, as 
 a benefactor to his fellow-craftsmen. Out of evil there sometimes 
 comes good, and the progress of the Times is a singular illustration of 
 its truth. It was the irregularity of the workmen that first prompted 
 the late proprietor of that journal to seek security in machinery; and 
 had he been thwarted in his plans the “ broad-sheet” could scarcely 
 have been elaborated to its present magnitude, nor have acquired its 
 present proud appellation. Through the instrumentality in a great 
 measure of a single individual, the Press has becobie the pulse of the 
 world . Let us suppose a Parliamentary debate in both Houses, ter¬ 
 minating late in the morning. Thirty-seven thousand copies, say, of 
 the Times are wanted, many of them sufficiently early for the morning 
 trains, to be distributed east, west, north, and south. To set up the 
 mass of type, before printing the paper, must be a gigantic task ; to 
 print the number of impressions required was all but impossible 
 before the present invention was called into requisition. There are 
 now, we believe, eight thousand copies of that journal printed in an 
 hour, which is about double the number of any other journal printed 
 in Europe * or America. Imagine, reader, if you have not closely 
 examined the machine in the Exhibition, some hundreds of thousands 
 of separate types or letters, each about an inch in length, the letter 
 being at the upper end, encircled round a vertical cylinder, and not on 
 a flat surface, or horizontally, as they were placed before this inven¬ 
 tion. By a simple contrivance this mass of letters are kept in their 
 proper place, the outer edge, or, as it is technically termed, the “ face 
 of the letter,” forming a compact circle of a somewhat larger diameter 
 
 * We must except the Illustrated London News. With a spirit worthy of its 
 success, the proprietors of this singular production have constructed a similar 
 machine in the Exhibition, by the same inventive engineer, which proves one of 
 the most attractive objects in the building. 
 
80 TYPOGRAPHY, LITHOGRAPHY, STEREOTYPE. 
 
 than the cylinder itself, by the projection of the rules which separate 
 the columns, and their outside metal supporters. These are shaped 
 like a wedge, and terminate at the “ foot” in an acute angular point, 
 the top forming the hypothenuse of the angle. By this means 
 a gradual width is given from the bottom of the letters to their top. 
 
 The sheets for printing are placed between sets of vertical rollers 
 and tapes, which convey them to the cylinder containing the type; 
 the “ messenger rollers,” as they are called, receive the ink from the 
 “ doctor rollers,” and convey it to the inking table, and after the paper 
 has passed over it the impression issues from the machine in a com¬ 
 plete form. This ingenious contrivance, in addition to saving time, 
 enables 36,000 individuals to read, almost at the same hour, the news 
 of the world; whereas, scarcely half that number would have enjoyed 
 that privilege by the most efficient means previously in use. 
 
 Nor has even this state of perfection satisfied the ingenious inven¬ 
 tor ; Mr. Applegath is ready to put up what is called technically, a 
 perfecting machine, which shall produce the same number of sheets in 
 an hour printed on both sides. Such a machine warranted to produce 
 the best work, he is now proposing to the Messrs. Chambers, with 
 which to print Chambers' s Edinburgh Journal. 
 
 Nor is the superiority of England in printing confined to the 
 newspaper press, but relates to almost every other branch of the art. 
 
 M. Flachat, describing the state of printing in Paris, in 1844, 
 remarks :— 
 
 “ The progressive improvement of printing is mainly to be attri¬ 
 buted to the employment of mechanical presses. There are at least 
 fifty employed in Paris, which are equal to about five hundred of the 
 common presses ; and this increase has taken place without diminish¬ 
 ing in the slightest degree, the number of printers or of hand labour. 
 The greater portion of these presses have been supplied by English 
 mechanicians, particularly by M. Cowper, of London ; the remainder 
 were made by M. Selligeu, but the palm of superiority must be 
 accorded to the English.” 
 
 Further on the same intelligent writer remarks, in relation to 
 another branch of the art:— 
 
 “ In another branch the English maintain a marked superiority 
 over us—engraving on metal and on wood. It is well known that 
 they have long excelled us in cheap engravings; the Magasin Fitto- 
 resque was frequently a truly English importation ; most of the engrav¬ 
 ings of that and similar publications were purchased, so long as those 
 works were continued, from the Fenny and Saturday Magazines. 
 
TYPOGRAPHY, LITHOGRAPHY, STEREOTYPE. 81 
 
 Several wood-engravers from England have established themselves at 
 Paris, and diffused a knowledge of their art among us.” 
 
 The art of printing has, from the earliest time, been best executed 
 in those establishments where the steadiest and most experienced 
 workmen are secured by good wages. Order is essential in this busi¬ 
 ness; so is the greatest care, and a certain amount of instruction. 
 From the non-observance of these important truths—notorious to all 
 connected with the press—printing is greatly on the decline in Paris. 
 Since ready communication between that capital and the adjacent 
 towns has been supplied by means of railroads, the country offices 
 have obtained, at a reduced price, the great bulk of the metropolitan 
 booksellers’ work ; therefore the Parisian establishments are doing 
 next to nothing in what is termed “the book trade.” Swarms of 
 apprentices are taken by the country masters, the larger portion of 
 whom, when out of their time, cannot possibly procure employment; 
 and in some offices women are employed in considerable numbers, 
 working like men as compositors, and articled for years to receive 
 only half their usual earnings. From forty to fifty of these women 
 are employed in various offices within a circle of ten leagues round 
 Paris ; but, whether they will benefit themselves or their employers, 
 by this unfeminine occupation, may be seriously questioned. In a 
 pursuit demanding the greatest care, and the most perfect order, it 
 must be expected that women and apprentices, however picked and 
 culled, will exhibit work blurred with deformities, and full of lurking 
 errors, when sent hastily to press—such as inequality in the length of 
 pages, whites before and after chapters, too little or too great a space 
 between the words in some of the lines, &c. 
 
 And whence has arisen this declining state of printing among our 
 ingenious neighbours ? Simply from the irregularities of the workmen , 
 either striking on their own account, or energetically assisting the 
 general outbreaks which have so fearfully decimated Paris during the 
 last fifteen years. Capital and industry cannot endure such rude 
 shocks; they naturally take their flight to more peaceful, and therefore 
 more profitable, regions. 
 
 In typography, then, we have no fear of France excelling us, not 
 even with her finest Didot and Dupont samples of type, which are got 
 up principally for the Exposition , and with but slight reference to 
 general use, for the comparatively limited means of the French 
 printers must necessarily preclude them from using so expensive a 
 material. 
 
 That fancy or lithographic printing should excel in France, while 
 
82 TYPOGRAPHY, LITHOGRAPHY, STEREOTYPE. 
 
 its sister branch, typography, should he in the ascendant in England, 
 is dependent upon several causes. First, the instruction of the respec¬ 
 tive nations has materially influenced its condition, both here and 
 abroad. The French have devoted more attention to ornamental art 
 than we have, and for reasons of a purely political nature, which have 
 been already pointed out. Lithography made great progress in France 
 during the last war, whilst in England it was comparatively in its 
 infancy ; this progress must be attributed to the excellent instruction 
 which was extended to the French artisans by the schools of design, 
 established throughout France. Gratuitous instruction in drawing 
 has long been liberally given in Paris, and in all the great centres of 
 industry in France; even the young delinquents in the capital are 
 encouraged to colour porcelains, by the allowance of part of their 
 earnings. At the prison, for instance, for juvenile offenders, Rue de 
 la Roquette, a professor of painting attends seven hours a day : with 
 these advantages, therefore, the humbler classes cannot fail to produce 
 artists capable of executing tolerable designs for most purposes, par¬ 
 ticularly as they are stimulated by the pressure of daily want. 
 
 There is, moreover, a large body of artists whose works are refused 
 at the National Exhibition, and who have little chance of obtaining a 
 livelihood by their professional pursuits, therefore offer their services 
 to lithographers, manufacturers of fancy articles, tailors, milliners, &c., 
 in the hope of turning a penny even in these humble avenues of art. 
 And so great is the competition among these needy practitioners, that 
 when a novel design is to be executed, a rough sketch, accompanied 
 with instructions, is given to half a score of them, with the express 
 proviso that none but the drawing chosen out of the lot shall he en¬ 
 titled to the stipulated reward. By this supply of skilled labour ex¬ 
 ceeding the demand, the capitalist possesses means, known in few 
 cities except Paris, for purchasing a very superior model at a very low 
 price. Need we wonder, then, that the French modiste and coupeur , 
 with such a phalanx of art, should dictate the laws of fashion to the 
 whole civilised world ? 
 
 The lithographic press of Paris supplies an immense quantity of 
 gold, silver, and coloured borders, corners and centres, for boxes of 
 almost every description appertaining to the toilet-table of the fair 
 sex. On paper, on glass, and on every material connected with the 
 delicacies, and even the luxuries of life, the best pictures and devices 
 are imprinted by the lithographer’s art. The French, certainly, have 
 attained an excellence in this branch of industry, far beyond ourselves, 
 and also beyond all Europe, although the materials used by them are 
 
TYPOGRAPHY, LITHOGRAPHY, STEREOTYPE. 83 
 
 cheaper in England than in France. It is the excellence of art, then, 
 that has obtained for the latter so marked a supremacy in lithography; 
 and to such an extent is it practised in Paris, that England alone im¬ 
 ports £40,000 worth of lithographic articles annually, according to 
 the authority of M. Dupin. 
 
 Partly, however, by importing the skilled lithographers of Prussia 
 and France, and partly by an improved native taste, this art has 
 received a decided impulse in this country, improved presses with 
 steam power are also being applied, and on one of our visits to the 
 machine department we observed the press invented by Mr. Maclure, 
 of the firm of Maclure Macdonald and Macgregor, doing its work 
 very satisfactorily. 
 
 Stereotype was invented by Lord Stanhope, though the French 
 printers have set up a claim in favour of the late Mr. Herhan (a 
 German), formerly printer in the Passage Lemoine, Rue St. Denis, 
 Paris. The latter certainly invented a system for stereotyping, which 
 consisted in composing the pages with hollow-faced, instead of project¬ 
 ing types, the result of which must have been a continual change of 
 the materials employed. The method , therefore, which has always 
 been employed by the stereotypers of all countries, remains very 
 nearly the same as it was when presented to society by Lord Stanhope. 
 The art was imported into France by James Ferguson, who had 
 assisted his Lordship for several years in his amateur office; and the 
 first French stereotypie was established in the office of Mr. J. Smith, 
 an English printer, formerly residing in the Rue Montmorency, and 
 afterwards in the Rue Fontaine-au-Roi, where the office still exists, 
 under the direction of his widow and sons. 
 
 Thus, if in fancy or decorative printing our neighbours are superior 
 in practice, invention, and that good taste which can be mastered only 
 by experience, we have a just claim to inventions of the greatest prac¬ 
 tical utility in that branch of the art more generally required. 
 
 On turning to the contributions from the continent, in this inte¬ 
 resting branch of industry, we are particularly struck with the nume¬ 
 rous specimens from the imperial printing establishment at Vienna, 
 and from the typographic establishment of M. Dupont of Paris. They 
 are alike instructive and important, and will receive that careful and 
 minute investigation which the practical minds of this country never 
 fail to bestow upon everything that has an immediate bearing upon 
 their craft. First, as to the contribution of M. Dupont. He claims 
 a new invention of stone-engraving, termed litho-typography, which 
 can be effectually applied to the reproduction of old or new books, 
 
84 TYPOGRAPHY, LITHOGRAPHY, STEREOTYPE. 
 
 manuscripts, tables, stamps, &c. By means of a chemical process he 
 can produce on stone the pages of a book, or the engravings required 
 for new copies, and draws them off by the common lithogi’aphic press. 
 Old and rare editions have already been renewed by this process, 
 which has rendered great service to the arts and sciences, as a larger 
 number of libraries can now possess them. This process, or one nearly 
 resembling it, made some noise a few years ago in this country under 
 the name of Anesthetic Printing, but with us it never made much way. 
 M. Dupont has, likewise, contributed a further novelty, equally deserv¬ 
 ing of attention. He calls it stereotype stone , by which he can produce 
 engravings that will bear comparison with those produced on copper 
 or steel. M. Dupont has applied this invention, as he states, success¬ 
 fully to the production of engravings for insertion, in the text of 
 books. Senefelder, the inventor of lithography, employed acids to 
 produce"reliefs on calcareous stone, but it is known that he was unsuc¬ 
 cessful. M. Paul Dupont has taken up the same idea, and worked it 
 out to the present results. By a strong pressure, with the aid of 
 acids, he can produce reliefs on stone, which are capable of leaving 
 transparent impressions almost equal to water-marks, but at a much 
 more economical rate. The lithographic presses of this ingenious 
 printer are worked by steam. By means of a simple piece of mechan¬ 
 ism the ink is distributed over the rollers, and only the upper part of 
 the press is put in motion, which saves the men a great deal of labour, 
 and enables them to draw off the impressions more cleanly and quickly 
 than by the old process. This invention was patented in 1850. The 
 specimens of printing, of lithographic engraving, and of the produc¬ 
 tions of the preceding inventions, in the contribution of this intelligent 
 foreigner, as we have already remarked, are entitled to peculiar atten¬ 
 tion. They are to be found in the south-east compartment, on the 
 ground-floor, in the French division. 
 
 On the opposite side of the building, and immediately abutting on 
 the great eastern nave, the reader will find the Viennese contribution, 
 with a very intelligent gentleman to explain its contents. The first 
 novelty that strikes the eye are the productious of cliromo-lithograpliy, 
 which transfers a coloured painting to paper by a series of stones, 
 there being a separate stone for each colour. There you will see the 
 impressions in single colour, and the process by which the various 
 colours are combined. The original paintings are hung in juxtaposi¬ 
 tion with the copies, so that you may judge of the excellence of the 
 process which produces a copy fully equal, in appearance, to the 
 original. It is a beautiful invention, and has already been practised 
 
TYPOGRAPHY, LITHOGRAPHY, STEREOTYPE. 85 
 
 in this country to a limited extent by Messrs. Day and Haghe, Mr. 
 Maclure, and other lithographers. Mr. David Roberts’ picture of 
 the Siege of Jerusalem in Lithotint, as the art is denominated in 
 this country, forms a contribution to the Exhibition in the Fine 
 Art section, as a specimen. The next phenomenon in the Vi¬ 
 ennese contribution is the galvano-graphic process. The picture 
 is first painted on a prepared copperplate, which is then placed in 
 a galvanic apparatus, and the result is an engraved plate, which 
 only requires a little touching up. The impressions are printed from 
 this plate, so that the original painter and engraver are one and the 
 same hand, which obviates many difficulties, especially the inferior 
 genius of the engraver, which frequently depreciates the finest efforts 
 of the painter. The next remarkable novelty in the collection are the 
 specimens of chemitypie , a new discovery in the art of engraving. The 
 invention is due to M. Piil of Copenhagen, who has been enabled to 
 perfect it in the imperial establishment at Vienna. By this invention 
 he can obtain copperplate impressions as easily as those of wood, and 
 upon precisely the same principles—from a raised surface. These 
 impressions are produced at a printing-press, which, according to the 
 statement of the imperial authorities, accelerates the production fifty- 
 fold, and proportionately lowers its cost. The process may be thus 
 described :—A zinc-plate is prepared and covered with an etching 
 ground, then etched, after which the surface is covered with an easily 
 fusible and negative metal, which sinks into the hollow parts produced 
 by the etching, the remainder of the ground being scraped away. 
 The surface of the plate is again etched, until the design becomes as 
 strong a relief as is required of a woodcut. The plate is then repro¬ 
 duced by a galvanic process as often as required, so that thousands 
 of copies can be easily printed each equal to the first impression. 
 
 We now turn to the typographical branch of this exposition. 
 Here we have presented us a pedigree of all the known alphabets in the 
 globe, from the most remote known period, up to the present day, 
 stretching hack even to the Phenician characters, and embracing 
 in their living representations, those of Japan and China. From the 
 Chinese and the Koreanic characters on the one hand, and the African 
 hieroglyphics, which are followed by the Phenician characters on the 
 other, the Viennese savans arrive at the conclusion that they have 
 discovered the basis of all alphabets, although there are numerous 
 ramifications of the latter, which may he traced to the characters used 
 at the present day. We shall leave this recondite question to others, 
 and content ourselves with calling attention to “Auer’s” collection of 
 
86 
 
 TYPOGRAPHY, LITHOGRAPHY, STEREOTYPE. 
 
 the Lord’s Prayer, printed in 608 languages and dialects, in Roman 
 type ; the second section containing 206 languages and dialects, all of 
 which are printed in the characters peculiar to each language. We 
 must now direct attention to a series of electro-galvanic objects, which 
 clearly demonstrate the superior power of electro-metallurgy, where 
 the multiplication of numbers is desired, whether the former be flat, 
 raised, or sunk, on the surface. Look at those fossil fishes. The origi¬ 
 nals were incrusted with gutta-percha. After the crust was removed 
 the fossils were prepared, and placed in a galvanic apparatus, by means 
 of which a copy was obtained, without the aid of the draughtsman. 
 The process of typometry , or the method of calculating and measuring 
 the space taken up by each letter, is also deserving attention. By the 
 aid of typometry we can calculate the space of a manuscript when 
 printed ; in addition to which, all tabular matter may be easily 
 arranged, because the space of each column can be estimated to the 
 nicest precision, a matter of great importance to printers. The trans¬ 
 lation of the Japanese novel is a typographic curiosity, which can 
 rarely he equalled; and the gutta-percha moulds may suggest an idea 
 or so to the practical mind of some value. This contribution, perhaps, 
 on the whole, is the most instructive of any that has arrived from the 
 continent, and Austria has paid us a high compliment in so carefully 
 preparing it, and entrusting it to our good keeping. It is somewhat 
 singular that the most illiberal and despotic forms of government, as 
 the Austrian administration is so unjustly called, should cultivate the 
 typographic art, and diffuse that cultivation to a greater extent than 
 any state in Europe, not excepting France, which, par excellence , 
 assumes to take the lead in such matters. Yet, so it is, and it fur¬ 
 nishes one among the many proofs, that mankind are more led away 
 by the show than by the reality of things, especially when their poli¬ 
 tical feelings are concerned. 
 
 We shall now conduct the reader to the typographic specimens of 
 our own countrymen. In the first place, he must be struck, if he 
 have the least practical experience, with the beauty, the finish, and the 
 everyway superior condition of our type. The reasons why we have 
 obtained this superiority have already been given, and it is not very 
 likely, in these competing and spirit-stirring times, that we shall easily 
 lose it. The cases of type contributed by Messrs. Beasley and Co. and 
 the brothers Figgins, differing slightly from each other, cannot possibly 
 be surpassed in quality of metal, or in the form of the letter; to our 
 mind their contributions present one of the most interesting phenomena 
 in the whole exhibition, assuming it to possess the qualities which we 
 
TYPOGRAPHY, LITHOGRAPHY, STEREOTYPE. 87 
 
 have freely, but we believe justly, accorded to it. What can be more 
 interesting tban the finest form of that little instrument which gives 
 wings to our thoughts, and permanent impressions to our ideas ? 
 Apart from any indulgence of this nature, it is really worthy of minute 
 examination. So is that of Duncan Sinclair, which comprises a singu¬ 
 lar variety of typographic objects. The Messrs. Caslon have furnished 
 specimens of caligraphic type, and colours for ornamental printing; 
 so, also, have Ferguson Brothers of Edinburgh, of printing type, both 
 of which are well worthy of attention. Figgins’ specimens of type, in 
 addition to the forms noticed above, of the raw materials, of the mould 
 and matrix, and of stereotpye and polytype, are really a study, and a 
 highly interesting one. Novcllo’s musical types, and his sketch of the 
 method of printing music from moveable types, should not he lost 
 sight of, as it clearly indicates that a still greater improvement may 
 still he effected in that branch of printing. Bradbury and Evans 
 have contributed a fac-simile of their general style of printing, where 
 engravings are introduced, which is highly creditable to their industry, 
 although there is no particular novelty in it. Millar and Richards of 
 Edinburgh have furnished a beautiful specimen of type, the smallest, 
 they say, ever manufactured in this country. They have accompanied 
 their specimen with an impression of Gray’s Elegy, simply to show 
 the clearness and precision of the type. It certainly is a very beau¬ 
 tiful specimen of typography. The whole of the Elegy is contained in 
 two columns, three and three quarter inches deep. G. A. Hughes’ 
 machines for enabling the blind to write, calculate, and copy music 
 are deserving of peculiar attention, as they indicate the humane and 
 benevolent direction which instruction is taking ; and the same 
 remark may be applied to Dr. Foulis’ tangible ink for the blind, pro¬ 
 ducing raised characters on paper. Mr. Gall’s typhlograph is a kindred 
 invention, as it teaches the blind to write ; so, also, are the types by 
 which the sightless are enabled to correspond with each other. The 
 Phonetic Testament may amuse those who take an interest in being 
 eccentric in the forms by which they express themselves, or receive 
 instruction and amusement; to others it will be a mere abracadabra. 
 Arliss and Tucker’s application of printing to tinfoil is a useful intro¬ 
 duction to this country, and is ingeniously illustrated. On the whole 
 we have nothing to apprehend in this branch from our friendly compe¬ 
 titors ; but, on the contrary, we have a great deal to congratulate 
 ourselves upon. 
 
88 
 
 CHAPTER XI.—MACHINERY, &c. 
 
 Upon entering the department of machinery in motion, the casual 
 visitor is in some measure amazed and bewildered by the continued 
 whirring and clatter which surrounds him in every direction. This 
 scene, for the first time presented to his view, will probably appear 
 little better than one of disorder and confusion ; but after the first im¬ 
 pression is worn away, he will quietly and leisurely examine the 
 several operations which are being carried on. There he will be 
 attracted, perchance, by the process of printing, which is carried on 
 by presses as varied in their form and mode of work as it is possible 
 to conceive—from the old hand-press, producing but a few score 
 copies per hour, to Applegath’s last improvement, producing as many 
 thousands in the same space of time. In another direction may be 
 seen the lace machine, with its thousands of little bobbins, carried, as 
 it were, by magic, through the warps; and, in immediate proximity, the 
 manufacture of bobbin-net may be observed, equally marvellous, and 
 equally surprising, to the uninitiated eye. The machinery for the 
 preparation of flax, with all its complicated relations, may next meet 
 his view, and close by a similar series, for the production of cotton 
 yarn and silk warps; varying, it is true, in their structure, and in 
 their principles of action, but still wonderful to the general observer. 
 Then we have the power-loom, for the conversion of yarn into a 
 fabric, and for the transformation of raw wool into cloth ; but, above 
 all, there is the beautiful Jacquard machine, producing its truly won¬ 
 derful results—a monument of man’s intuitive sagacity. And all 
 these machines are working with the greatest precision, and each con¬ 
 tributes its quantum of noise to the general din ; but this scene, which 
 seems confusion to the casual and non-practical observer, is order and 
 regularity to the mechanician, whose practised eye can measure all 
 their movements, and instantly detect their slightest irregularity. 
 While we are looking to the result of a machine’s producing power, 
 he is probably watching with the eye of an anatomist, the operation 
 of the means. 
 
 But the principal source of attraction to the practical mind will be 
 the numerous plans for producing motion by steam, as in this class of 
 machinery the display is singularly varied. Here we have steam- 
 engines of every size, from the locomotive of 1000, or the marine 
 engine of 700 horse-power, to a model standing upon a shilling for a 
 foundation plate, and of every conceivable form. The Oscillating, 
 
MACHINERY. 
 
 89 
 
 the Trunk, the Pendulous, the Beam, the Horizontal, the Vertical, and a 
 whole army of Potatory Engines, confront us in almost every direction. 
 The latter form of engine, indeed, seems working its way into general 
 use, which is much to he desired, seeing that the work of a moderate 
 sized factory can he performed by one of that class, not occupying, 
 perhaps, more space than an ordinary-sized hat-box. The Rotatory 
 Engine has worked its way into general notice of late years, against 
 every possible objection ; and, although it cannot he said to work so 
 economically as its Reciprocating rival, still it has several advantages 
 of a compensating nature. It is not long since that the radial motion, 
 and the consequent unequal wear and tear of the rubbing surfaces, 
 were looked upon as an inherent and irremovable defect in the system 
 of the Rotatory Engine ; these difficulties, however, have been removed, 
 and no longer constitute what is called a common defect. Again, it 
 was shown, to apparent demonstration, that the whole system is radi¬ 
 cally wrong, and consequently that success would be an impossibility; 
 but these prejudices, like others of a similar nature, which are inva¬ 
 riably entertained against all new inventions, are giving way before 
 the palpable truths of experience, and it is now generally acknow¬ 
 ledged that the difficulties to be overcome are simply of a mechanical 
 nature. It is fair to presume, therefore, that the Rotatory Engine will 
 take the place of the Reciprocating Engine, as its advantages are so 
 obvious : in the first place, it occupies less space, consisting of a less 
 quantity of material; and, in the second place, it can be purchased 
 for much less money, a matter of very great consideration as regards 
 the choice of machines. In marine purposes it will he especially 
 advantageous, as the saving of weight is tantamount to increasing the 
 size of the ship; and in some of our large steamers this saving would 
 amount to from 100 to 200 tons, itself a profit upon the whole under¬ 
 taking. Its application to the screw-propeller would be equally 
 effective, and equally advantageous. In fact, the Rotatory prin¬ 
 ciple has been the pet object of speculation for the last 
 eighty or ninety years; for it is clear that Watt, in his 
 first patent, dated 1768, made a provision for its application, 
 although upon subsequent trial it was not found successful. Several 
 plans were patented by Watt for the same purpose, but the difficulties 
 proved too great even for his gigantic mind, although he could devise 
 a Reciprocating Engine, and in so comparatively a perfect state that 
 subsequent engineers were left little to accomplish. The only im¬ 
 provements, since the days of Watt, in the Reciprocating Engine, have 
 been in the construction, but not in the principle, for in cases where 
 
MACHINERY. 
 
 90 
 
 the per centage of work has been brought to the highest point, it has 
 only been by carrying out the principles which he prominently urged. 
 The working of steam expansively, for instance, was provided for by 
 "Watt. His mind saw the saving to he effected by not allowing the 
 steam to enter the cylinder during the whole passage of the piston 
 from one end to the other, hut by stopping it when the latter had 
 completed a certain portion of its passage, the remaining portion 
 being performed by the expansion of the steam already within the 
 cylinder. 
 
 It is acknowledged that the performance of the Cornish engines is 
 more effective than many others; therefore it may he as well to notice 
 their peculiar power, as others have the same means of realising simi¬ 
 lar results. The extra amount of power obtained by the Cornish en¬ 
 gines may he mainly attributed to two causes—first, the comparatively 
 high price of fuel; and secondly, the economical system of mining. 
 We shall leave the first cause, which is dependent upon several con¬ 
 tingencies, equally determinable; the second requires a word or two 
 of explanation. Mining operations being generally speculative, it is 
 essential that the mine owners should proceed upon the most economi¬ 
 cal basis; therefore engineers usually guarantee a certain amount of 
 work for a given consumption of fuel, when they fit up their engines ; 
 and this guarantee necessarily generates a great deal of emulation 
 amongst them, as he who promises and performs most is sure to obtain 
 the largest amount of patronage. A registry of the performance of 
 different engines is also kept, so that each engineer is enabled to know 
 what the other is doing; and, as a consequent result, the expansive 
 principle is carried to its ultimate practical limit. An ordinary engi¬ 
 neer, not accustomed to such restrictions, would not pay so much 
 attention to details, which have a most important hearing upon the 
 economical working of an engine. It cannot, perhaps, be expected 
 that engines in our factories should be worked so economically as they 
 are in Cornwall, since we cannot so well apportion the work to the 
 capabilities of the power ; still, much more might be effected than is 
 at the present time, were we to adopt a similar system of registration. 
 The manufacturers of engines would, most likely, object to such a 
 test, although in the long run they would gain as much as the public 
 by the system. Why should a warranty be given with an engine in 
 one place, and not in another ? Why should horse-power be such a 
 nominal, meaningless term as it is at present ? Engineers may adopt 
 what standard they please, but let it be understood ; so that in pur¬ 
 chasing a steam-engine the purchaser may know precisely what 
 
MACHINERY. 91 
 
 power he is likely to obtain, which certainly is not the case at 
 present. 
 
 The expansive method of using steam cannot, however, he conve¬ 
 niently employed to a great extent in factories, so long as their engines 
 have but a single cylinder, as it would produce great irregularity of 
 motion, and that defect can only be removed by using two cylinders, 
 one large and one small, the steam being allowed to enter the small 
 cylinder from the boiler, and thence passing to the larger one, where 
 it must be left to expand. This plan was adopted by Woolf, towards 
 the latter end of last century, and has been more or less acted upon 
 ever since. The Messrs. Joyce of Greenwich exhibit one of their 
 Pendulous Engines, which works upon this plan ; and, for compactness 
 and simplicity of arrangement, there is little to be desired in its con¬ 
 struction. The Messrs. Penn, of Greenwich, also, exhibit specimens 
 of their superior work in Oscillating Engines, which are now somewhat 
 extensively employed in river and sea-going boats; and the symmetry, 
 the exquisite finish of the different parts, their general arrangement, 
 and the smoothness and regularity with which they perform their 
 work seem to preclude any great advance in the manufacture of that 
 class of engine. The Oscillating Engine, indeed, is rapidly superseding 
 the side-lever engine, and may be regarded as the greatest innovator 
 since the days of Watt. 
 
 There is also another element worth noticing, while estimating 
 the improvements effected in machinery, as it affords a satisfactory 
 proof that no one section of industry can improve without extending 
 a certain degree of improvement to others. All, indeed, proceed pari 
 passu on the path of improvement. The superior workmanship of the 
 present day must not be attributed solely to the improved skill of our 
 workmen, but rather to the improved method of making their tools. 
 The construction of an engine, therefore, is due to the perfection of 
 the tools quite as much as to the skill of the workmen. The accuracy 
 and perfection of tool-making has attained its present state through 
 the intelligence, principally, of the Messrs. Whitworth of Manchester, 
 whose contribution of lathes, boring-machines, dies, taps, &c., will be 
 viewed with the deepest interest. This enterprising firm has also 
 rendered a still more important service to the engineering interests— 
 that is, to the public at large. They have attempted, and partially 
 succeeded in introducing, a general system in the size and form of 
 screw-tools, boring-bits, &c. &c., which must practically prove of 
 great advantage. For instance, each engine-maker, at the present 
 time, has a set of screw-tools of his own peculiar design, or those 
 
MACHINERY. 
 
 92 
 
 which may have been handed down to him, hut differing with the 
 tools of other makers ; whence it follows, that the maker of an engine 
 ought always to repair it, hut as that is frequently impracticable, the 
 expense attendant upon it is increased enormously—for strangers with 
 different tools, however skilful, cannot perform the repairs so econo¬ 
 mically as the original maker. This great evil is being remedied by 
 the enterprising firm in question,—and may they be wholly success¬ 
 ful. 
 
 In the locomotive department, the Great Western and North 
 Western Railway Companies are exhibitors of two fine specimens of 
 their heavy express engines. Still the reflection arises, on looking at 
 these ponderous machines, that there must he something radically 
 wrong in a system in which the engine has to exert more than one 
 third of its power to draw itself; and as the engine weighs with its 
 tender, when in working order, more than fifty tons,* the required 
 speed can only he attained by a fearful expense of wear and tear of 
 the permanent way, and of power expended in drawing the dead 
 weight. It would almost appear that railway companies had raised a 
 monster which eventually must work its own destruction. Messrs. 
 Adams and England, the principal promoters of the light locomotive 
 system, exhibit respectively engines of a peculiar construction, which 
 attract a great deal of attention. Appold’s centrifugal pump is also an 
 object of considerable attraction, simply, we believe, from the enor¬ 
 mous quantity of water which appears to be elevated. There are 
 several pumps in the machinery department of this kind exhibited ; 
 and the simplicity of the means, as compared to the results obtained, 
 are really surprising. The broad principle upon which these pumps 
 operate may be thus described. A series of vanes is fixed upon a 
 spindle, and caused to rotate very rapidly ; water is then allowed to 
 enter at the centre of the vanes, which is instantly thrown off at the 
 periphery by the centrifugal force. But in what position does the 
 common pump stand at the present time, and what is left for us to 
 improve upon in connection with it ? In the first place, there is no 
 means of getting rid of the weight of water to he lifted—that is a 
 constant quantity in any machine. For instance, if a ton of water has 
 to be raised fifty feet, the power required to effect this cannot be 
 expressed by a lower equivalent than 112,000 lbs. raised one foot high. 
 
 * The engine, -when in working order, weighs 35 tons; the tender, with 
 water and coke, weighs 17 tons 13 cwt.; making a total of 52 tons 13 cwt. It is 
 capable of taking a passenger train of 120 tons at an average speed of sixty miles 
 per hour upon easy gradients. 
 
MACHINERY. 
 
 93 
 
 The next point is friction in the machine itself, which is variable. 
 In the common pump, however, it is exceedingly small. Thirdly, its 
 durability. We know, from experience, that the common lift pump 
 will go on working for years with scarcely any attention, and a few 
 shillings for new leathers will generally set it in order again ; there¬ 
 fore it does not appear that we shall be very large gainers by adopting 
 centrifugal pumps, the velocity of which increases the friction to such 
 an extent, that the durability is reduced to the minimum. There is 
 one point, however, worthy of note in raising water—that is, to keep 
 it constantly moving, otherwise the inertia has to be overcome each 
 time it is put in motion. This, certainly, is a defect in the single- 
 barrel pump, but may be partially overcome by the use of three or four 
 barrels, or air-vessels, &c.; and if centrifugal pumps possess any 
 particular advantage in this respect, it will soon be made manifest 
 and adopted. 
 
 The “ Great Hydraulic Press,” used in raising the tubes of the 
 Britannia Bridge, is one of the most marvellous among the phenomena 
 of the machinery department. This machine raised the tubes from 
 the level of the water to their permanent position, a height of 120 
 feet. Imagine two strong cylinders of cast iron, one larger than the 
 other, communicating by a pipe, in which a valve is placed, opening 
 from the small towards the large cylinder. At the top of each cylin¬ 
 der is a water-tight collar, in which is inserted a cylindrical rod, 
 fitting close, and which descends into the cylinder. These rods are a 
 little less in diameter and in length than the cylinders, so that when they 
 are sunk in them a space will remain around and below them. The 
 large rod is called the “ram,” the small one the “plunger.” Suppose 
 the ram let down in the large cylinder, and the plunger raised to the 
 top of the smaller one, both cylinders and the communicating pipe 
 being filled with water, if the plunger be then pressed down in the 
 small cylinder, it will displace a certain body of water, which will 
 force its way through the connecting pipe into the large cylinder, 
 where the ram will naturally rise to give it space. The power exer¬ 
 cised by one rod on the other must therefore depend upon their 
 relative magnitude. Thus, if the ram be ten times greater than the 
 plunger, it follows that the tenth part of the former will fill a space 
 equal to one part of the latter, or, in other terms, to raise the ram 
 through a height of one foot, the plunger should be moved through 
 ten feet. Each time that the plunger is raised to repeat the stroke, 
 water is drawn into the lesser cylinder from a reservoir, on the prin¬ 
 ciple of a common pump, and during this operation the water driven 
 
MACHINERY. 
 
 94 
 
 into the large cylinder cannot return, as the valve in the connecting 
 pipe prevents it. To estimate the force exercised, we have simply to 
 consider that the pressure produced on each square inch of the plunger 
 will produce an equal pressure on each square inch of the ram. This 
 results from the fluidity of the water between the plunger and the 
 ram; and if the ram, upon the preceding supposition, he ten times 
 greater than the plunger, it follows that a pressure of one ton exerted 
 by the latter will produce an upward pressure of ten tons upon the 
 former. Such is the general principle of the hydraulic press, which 
 is now applied in so many ways, and to such useful purposes. The 
 weight and bulk of the above press is as follows :—The great cylinder 
 is 9 feet long, 22 inches internal diameter, 10 inches thick, and 
 weighs 15 tons. It is made of cast-iron, and the aggregate weight of 
 metal required for casting it was upwards of 20 tons. The greatest 
 weight lifted by the press was 1,144 tons, hut it was capable of 
 raising 2,000 tons. The quantity of water injected into the great 
 cylinder, in order to raise the “ram” 1 six feet, was 8If gallons ; and 
 in the operation of the machine each lift of six feet occupied from 30 
 to 45 minutes. This enormous press was made at the Bank Quay 
 Foundry Works, Warrington. 
 
 The Nasmyth steam-hammer, another of the gigantic wonders of 
 mechanism, is close by, and attracts general attention. In all great 
 iron-works this powerful help is to he seen at work. We observed 
 two at work in the foundry of Messrs. Fox and Henderson at Smeth¬ 
 wick, and one at Messrs. Thorny crofts at Wolverhampton, and the 
 power of this effective piece of mechanism must be seen to be appreci¬ 
 ated. The wonder is that a machine subject to such heavy concussions 
 will admit of such nicety of adjustment in action, without apparently 
 the slightest derangement, and be capable of either giving a blow of 
 several tons weight, or of simply and gently cracking a nut. This 
 nicety of movement in so ponderous a body is effected by the combined 
 action of gravity and the pressure of steam. For heavy work this 
 hammer is found almost indispensable, hut when the old tilt-hammer 
 can he used effectually it is generally preferred, the blow of the Nasmyth 
 upon the bloom being too great, for when the metal prepared by it is 
 heat up and submitted to the rollers it is frequently found to contain too 
 much dross. The effective power of this instrument may be inferred 
 when we state that it can give from 70 to 140 blows per minute, the 
 force of the blow depending upon the space described by the hammer. 
 If the hammer be lifted 10 inches, it gives a force of 1000 pounds, if 
 20 inches, the force is 4000 pounds. The principle on which the 
 
MACHINERY. 
 
 95 
 
 hammer works is simply this—a cylinder is placed above the ham¬ 
 mer and a piston-rod is brought in connection with the latter by 
 passing through a stuffing box immediately below the cylinder. The 
 main difficulty was how to prevent the concussions of the hammer from 
 injuring the piston, and this was effected by packing the end of the 
 piston-rod in the hammer between pieces of wood, and keying it 
 down, the wood being sufficiently elastic for that purpose. 
 
 The press used in testing the cast-iron girders of the building here 
 is also worthy of notice. The long girders, supporting the roof over the 
 nave, which are composed of wrought-iron, did not require to he tested 
 so severely as the cast-iron. The pressure on the latter was not 
 applied simply to the middle of the girder, but at two points, each 
 about one-third of its length, which was found sufficiently effective. 
 
 The turn-tables, the cranes, and the models of machinery for 
 heavy work are numerous and singular, and in the aggregation afford 
 a truly instructive coup cC ceil to the spectator. 
 
 Messrs. Hick and Son exhibit a model of their hydraulic press, on 
 a reduced scale, with specimens of its effective power in the shape of 
 punched pieces of cold iron. There are four cylinders in the original 
 machine, each weighing two tons, and their combined action is capable 
 of producing a pressure of 2500 tons. The advantages of the com¬ 
 pound cylinders over a single one of even greater power are these— 
 the four may be either worked together or separately, and that much 
 better castings can be obtained from the small than the larger kind, as 
 a single cylinder of equivalent power would weigh twenty tons, 
 whereas the aggregate weight of the four is only sixteen. The 
 planks of cold iron, punched by this press sufficiently attest its 
 power. For 1| inch thickness, a pressure of 700 tons is requisite; for 
 2 inches, 950 tons; for 2|inches, 1250 tons ; for 3 inches, 1600 tons; 
 for 3f inches, 2050 tons, and, probably, as a maximum of its power, a 
 hole of eight inches in diameter has been punched through a plank of 
 cold wrought iron, of 4 inches in thickness. 
 
 We have already alluded incidentally to the effective tools of 
 Messrs. Whitworth, and their important bearing upon our mechanical 
 excellence ; we shall now simply call attention to the “ Micrometric 
 Apparatus” of this firm, which is one of the most original contributions 
 to the Exhibition. It is the first attempt yet made in the mechanical 
 world to establish a uniform standard of magnitude in machinery, so 
 that that uniformity may be as well understood as the uniformity of 
 language or numeration. Suppose two metallic surfaces, by friction 
 or otherwise, are made so plain and smooth, that when laid upon one 
 
MACHINERY. 
 
 96 
 
 another every part of the surfaces are in equal contact; and then sup¬ 
 pose a stratum, inserted between them, composed of particles of air 
 which act like perfectly smooth rollers, the surfaces will then move in 
 contact with each other in the most easy manner, owing to the lubri¬ 
 city of the air. If the air, however, be excluded by pressure, the 
 contact becomes so complete that it is difficult to overcome. These 
 surfaces are used as tests to other plane surfaces, and with these are 
 tested the ends of a standard measure of metal, which is placed in a 
 horizontal metallic bed, one end bearing against a metallic pin, while 
 against the other end another metallic pin is urged by a screw ; and if 
 this metallic bar suffer a change in its length, amounting to even the 
 millionth part of an inch, by temperature or otherwise, that change is 
 instantly perceptible. And thus—the pin which bears against its ex- 
 1 tremity is moved by a screw, having ten threads to the inch. On the 
 head of this screw is a wheel, consisting of four hundred teeth, worked 
 in a worm by another wheel, the rim of which is divided into two 
 hundred and fifty visible parts. As each thread of the screw corre¬ 
 sponds to one-tenth part of an inch, each tooth of the wheel upon its 
 head will correspond to the four-thousandth part of an inch, and each 
 division of the wheel connected with the worm will correspond to the 
 millionth part of an inch. A change in the position of the wheel 
 attached to the worm through one of the two hundred and fifty divi¬ 
 sions, is therefore rendered sensible at the point of the screw which 
 bears against the standard bar, to the millionth part of an inch. The 
 accuracy of this micrometric apparatus was proved by placing in it a 
 standard yard measure, made of a bar of steel, about three-quarters of 
 an inch square, having both ends perfectly true. One end of the bar 
 was placed in contact with the face of the machine ; at the other end 
 a small piece of flat steel was interposed between it and the machine, 
 whose sides were also made perfectly parallel. This was termed the 
 contact-piece. Each division on the micrometer represented the one- 
 millionth part of an inch, and each time the micrometer was moved 
 only one division forward the experimenter raised the contact-piece, 
 allowing it to descend across the end of the bar simply by its own 
 gravity. This was repeated until the closer approximation of the sur¬ 
 faces prevented the contact-piece from descending, when the measure 
 was completed, and tbe number in the micrometer represented the dead 
 length of the standard bar to the one-millionth part of an inch. Eight 
 repetitions in a quarter of an hour produced the same results, there 
 not being a variation of one-millionth of an inch. This method was 
 termed the “ system of proof by the contact of perfectly true surfaces 
 
MACHINERY. 
 
 97 
 
 and gravity.” By the application of this instrument standard gauges 
 for axles, taps, and other parts of machinery, which it is desirable to 
 maintain uniform, is constructed; and so minute is its operation, that 
 magnitudes can he estimated that do not exceed the one-millionth 
 part of an inch. 
 
 Robinson’s patent steam cane mill is a powerful piece of machinery 
 and of exceedingly simple structure. It consists of a steam-engine 
 and sugar-cane mill, with their connecting gear, and so constructed 
 that they are combined upon one horizontal plate, and form but one 
 machine. There is no particular novelty in any of its parts, hut the 
 combination and simplicity of arrangement of the parts render it an 
 object of attraction to the practical mind. The engine is constructed on 
 the direct-acting principle; the mill on the three-roller horizontal plan, 
 and the connecting gear is on what is called the double-geared plan. 
 The iron base-plate obviates the necessity of masonry or carpentry 
 foundations and structures, usually required, as it rests simply on the 
 ground-floor, andhhe parts of the machinery are easily fitted to their 
 places in the plate, which is a great and economical desideratum. 
 These engineers have kept the right principle in view, if they can only 
 practically carry it out—“ to obtain from a given weight of cane the 
 greatest quantity of juice in the shortest time, and with the lowest 
 consumption of fuel.” 
 
 The Messrs. Sharp have contributed a specimen or two of their 
 gigantic structure of machines which astonish, naturally, the unini¬ 
 tiated spectator, and even surprise those who look a little deeper into 
 such matters. The lathe for turning the tires and bosses of railway 
 wheels is a remarkable piece of machinery; it consists of two face¬ 
 plates, each seven feet in diameter, and capable of being placed at a 
 distance of nearly ten feet apart. A pair of wheels can he mounted 
 in this lathe, provided they do not exceed seven feet in diameter, and 
 rest upon an axle of nine feet six inches in length, one wheel being 
 attached to each face-plate. Self-acting apparatus is provided, by 
 which the two tires can be bored at the same time, or one may be 
 turned while the other is being bored or bossed. A man at this lathe 
 can do as much work as two men at one of ordinary construction. 
 The planing-machine of the same firm is also worthy of attention. 
 By this construction a mass of iron six feet long, and three feet five 
 inches in width and height, is planed by moving along a travelling 
 table, whilst the tool which cuts it is fixed upon a cross slide, and so 
 arranged that the machine itself, being once put in motion, causes the 
 tool to cut either horizontally, vertically, or at any intermediate 
 
 G 
 
MACHINERY. 
 
 98 
 
 angle, without the interference of the attendant. The cotton spinning 
 machine of Messrs. Sharp is, also, deserving of notice, from the sim¬ 
 plicity and economy of its arrangement. 
 
 Messrs. Watkin and Hill’s sectional models are amongst the most 
 instructive apparatus in the Exhibition, and justly elicit a great 
 deal of admiration. These models reveal the internal structure of en¬ 
 gines, and exhibit the modus operandi of their movements. The en¬ 
 gine is represented as cut through by a longitudinal vertical plane, 
 exhibiting on one side its internal form, and on the other its internal 
 mechanism; the pistons, valves, slides, levers, and other moving 
 parts, represent exactly those motions which they have in the real 
 machine. The motion, in this instance, is produced by mechanical 
 contrivance; while in the working machines it is produced by the 
 action of the steam. There are three models; one of them repre¬ 
 sents a marine engine, another a locomotive, and the third a stationary 
 condensing low-pressure engine. Let us describe the mechanical 
 movements of one of these model steam-engines. When the piston 
 begins to descend, the slide which admits steam from the boiler to 
 the top of the piston is open, so also is the passage which communi¬ 
 cates between the bottom of the cylinder and the condenser, hence 
 the piston is urged downwards by the steam against a vacuum. When 
 the piston arrives at the bottom of the cylinder, the slide which go¬ 
 verns the admission and escape of the steam shifts its position, so that 
 the bottom of the cylinder is put in communication with the boiler, 
 and the top with the condenser; the piston being driven upwards by 
 the pressure of the steam under it. By observing the condenser and 
 the passages leading thereto, the spectator will see the working of the 
 air-pump, and its valves opening and closing, by which the water and 
 air are drawn from the condenser and thrown into the hot cistern. 
 The action of the hot and cold water pumps, the parallel motion, the 
 governor, and all the internal arrangements of the engine, may also 
 be seen, which will impart an instructive lesson to the attentive 
 observer. 
 
 But the greatest variety of engines is in that section which is de¬ 
 voted to marine purposes. There the ingenuity of the mind seems 
 stretched almost beyond its natural endurance,—so singular, apposite, 
 and novel, are some of the specimens, and so contrary in all these 
 qualities are others, especially amongst the few foreign contributions. 
 What a revolution has been effected in the construction of machinery, 
 as applied to marine purposes, since the first steam-tug plied on the 
 Thames in 1804, or Fulton traversed the mighty waters of the Hud- 
 
MACHINERY. 
 
 99 
 
 son in 1808! All is changed, but the material and the mode of 
 working it up, and even that has experienced its share of change. 
 The Atlantic is now bridged over by means of the steam-engine, and 
 it scarcely takes any more time to traverse the mass of waters that 
 welters between us and the new world than it did to go from London 
 to Manchester, some sixty or seventy years ago. 
 
 The marine engine was usually constructed in the following man¬ 
 ner up to a comparatively recent period. The paddle-shaft, extending 
 across the vessel, was kept revolving by two cranks placed at right 
 angles to each other, so that when either of them was at its dead 
 point the other was in its most efficient position. Under each of 
 these cranks in the hold of the vessel was placed an engine, consisting 
 of a vertical cylinder in which worked a steam piston; the rod of this 
 piston acted upon a parallel motion by which its force was trans¬ 
 mitted to a pair of beams, placed one at each side of the engine in its 
 lower part, the other end of the beams being connected by a rod with 
 the crank. The connecting rod was presented upwards. The two 
 engines were precisely counterparts of each other, and placed one at 
 each side of the vessel under the cranks, a gangway being maintained 
 between them for the convenience of the engineer. Nothing can 
 more strikingly exhibit the total change that has taken place in the 
 structure of marine engines, than the fact that there is not a single 
 engine in the Exhibition constructed like the one just described. The 
 Messrs. Maudslay are the largest and most effective exhibitors in this 
 class of machinery. One of their machines is a double-cylinder en¬ 
 gine, consisting of two steam-cylinders, each of half the area necessary 
 for the intended power. These two cylinders, placed as close to each 
 other as circumstances will allow, form a single engine ; the piston- 
 rods are connected together by the horizontal extremities of what may 
 he called a T shaped cross-head, and move up and down simultaneously 
 with it and with each other, so that the combined action of the pistons 
 is directed upon a single crank on the paddle-shaft. By this arrange¬ 
 ment the simultaneous ascent and descent of the two pistons in the 
 cylinders causes the cross-head to move perpendicularly up and 
 down between the guide-bars, thus raising and depressing a slider 
 with the connecting rod, the latter giving a rotatory motion to the 
 crank and paddleshaft. The steam is admitted to and withdrawn 
 from the cylinder by a single slide valve common to both, through a 
 pipe in the usual way. There is also a narrow passage of communi¬ 
 cation which enables the steam to pass freely from one cylinder to 
 the other, for the purpose of equalizing the pressure. This construe- 
 
MACHINERY. 
 
 100 
 
 tion of engine is more adapted to the larger class of vessels, as it pro¬ 
 duces a greater amount of steam than has been commonly available 
 in a given area on shipboard, and also obtains a greater length of 
 stroke and connecting rod in a given height than is gained in a direct- 
 action engine by other means. The advantages obtained by this 
 structure of engine are more direct action on the crank, economy of 
 space and material, and simplicity of construction. The same firm 
 also exhibit other forms of construction in steam-engines applicable 
 to marine purposes, some of which but slightly vary from the one 
 described; but their double-piston low-pressure engine, which is 
 more particularly applicable to river navigation, is well deserving of 
 notice, as several have been constructed for the shallow waters of 
 the Rhone, the Indus, and the Sutlej, where they have been found 
 highly useful and effective. The screw-propeller of Messrs. Mauds- 
 lay will likewise attract attention, from the ease with which it may 
 be applied as an auxiliary power where steam is required ; and espe¬ 
 cially as the action can be suspended when the vessel is under weigh, 
 and without interfering with her sailing or steering. 
 
 Mr. Atherton, chief engineer of the Royal Dockyard, Devonport, 
 exhibits an engine of an original form, for marine purposes. It is 
 applicable, according to the inventor’s statement, of being either ap¬ 
 plied to the paddle-wheel or the screw-propeller. The intention is to 
 simplify the construction of the marine sway-beam engine, and, as 
 compared with the ordinary construction of side-lever engines, the 
 following advantages are claimed: first, it occupies less width; se¬ 
 cond, being in a central position and connected directly with the 
 piston and cranks, various cross strains are avoided and it is not so 
 liable to breakage, the consequent probable damage being also greatly 
 diminished ; thirdly, the crosshead, crosstail, and various parts are 
 entirely suppressed, and consequently all the parts of the engine are 
 more accessible and more easily cleaned when in operation. In short, 
 the engine is nearly balanced by means of two air-pumps, one on each 
 side of the main centre, and is therefore less liable than marine en¬ 
 gines generally to be brought up in a heavy sea. The steam-slides 
 are so proportioned and adjusted as not to close the exhausting port 
 till after the turn of the stroke, thereby obviating the danger of break¬ 
 age by water in the cylinder, and suppressing the escape-valves. 
 The expansive gear operates with precision, whatever be the speed of 
 the engine, and supplies self-acting means of regulating the expansive 
 working of the machine. The object of the inventor of this engine 
 is to fit vessels of all kinds with engines of different constructions, 
 
MACHINERY. 
 
 101 
 
 and with a classified gradation of sizes, whereby it is calculated that 
 ten different sizes would meet all the requirements of steam-marine 
 service in this country, which now employs upwards of 1000 different 
 sizes and constructions. 
 
 In the Belgian division are two locomotive engines, one or two 
 marine engines, and several paddle-wheels. The Societe Cocker ill 
 exhibit a marine engine of 150 horse power for paddle-wheels, but 
 the principle, though good, has been superseded in this country. It 
 consists of two oscillating cylinders working the same crank; and, 
 whether we look to workmanship or material, it cannot compare very 
 advantageously with those in the English departments. Similar remarks 
 may be applied to the horizontal engine of Derosne and Coil in the 
 French division. It is connected to an air-pump, used for the pur¬ 
 pose of exhausting a boiler, in which the process of extracting sugar 
 from beetroot is carried on. The paper-mill of Middleton and Elwell 
 in the same department, is an English production, made principally by 
 Englishmen, the firm having been long established, in one name or 
 other, in Paris, and employing several of their own countrymen. 
 
 The improved railway carriage exhibited by the Northwestern 
 Company is deserving of a passing remark or so. The principal ob¬ 
 ject in view is to diminish the dead-weight of the vehicle itself, which 
 has been hitherto in so disproportionate a ratio to the profitable 
 weight of the passengers. The first class carriages, in present use, 
 weigh from four to five tons when empty, so that scarcely more 
 than eighteen passengers can be carried, with their accompanying 
 luggage. In America, on the other hand, it is alleged that car¬ 
 riages are so constructed that they can transport as many as eighty 
 passengers, with very little more dead weight than we have with 
 our eighteen. The vehicle in question is so constructed as to have 
 greater durability and safety, by introducing iron instead of wood 
 into the framing and body ; and the sheet-iron used for the panelling 
 is corrugated, which not only increases the strength but gives greater 
 beauty to the carriage. The carriage is supported by six wheels 
 peculiarly constructed, each wheel being formed of wrought-iron in 
 one solid piece, tire included, which gives greater security against 
 fracture than though constructed in parts. The dimensions of the car¬ 
 riage is forty feet long by eight feet wide, and is divided into two 
 first-class bodies, each capable of containing eight passengers, and suffi¬ 
 ciently high for a person of ordinary stature to stand upright in them. 
 There are five compartments, each of which accommodates twelve 
 second-class passengers, besides compartments sufficiently large for 
 
MACHINERY. 
 
 102 
 
 the luggage of the passengers and the accommodation of the guard. 
 This carriage may he regarded, therefore, as a train in itself, capable 
 of conveying seventy-six passengers, with their luggage and guard, 
 —the total weight of the vehicle, without its load, being eight and a 
 half tons. The same number conveyed upon the plan now in use 
 requires a dead weight of from seventeen to eighteen tons. 
 
 This naturally leads us to the “ detonating fog signals ” of Mr. 
 E. A. Cowper, which ought to he carefully examined, as they are in 
 use on several lines of railway, and have been found efficient in all 
 states of the atmosphere. 
 
 Let us now turn to machines of a humbler nature, though equally 
 interesting, both in their structure and in their results. There are 
 several Jacquard looms at work, either by power or by hand, and, as 
 there are one or two improvements upon that beautiful invention, we 
 shall give them the precedence. There is one machine (Messrs. 
 Forster’s) working by power which divides the cards by a simple con¬ 
 trivance, and which not only weaves the figure much easier, but mate¬ 
 rially facilitates the mise en carte , or the fixing the warp in the loom, 
 the tedious, expensive, and preliminary stage of the process. In 
 addition to this marked improvement upon the Jacquard, there is 
 Mackenzie’s patent reader, which enables an ordinary weaver to set up 
 his own warp, a branch of the art hitherto confined to a certain class 
 of workmen, and rarely attained by the many. The construction is 
 simple hut effective, and will materially shorten the preparatory la¬ 
 bour of the weaver, if he have the chance of benefiting by its inge¬ 
 nious instruction. But on the heels of this short cut to knowledge 
 in the weaving art, there appears in another quarter of the Exhibition 
 an invention that will supersede, at one fell swoop, both the card- 
 complication and the instructive reader of the Jacquard loom. In 
 the Belgian department there stands a simple and unobtrusive machine, 
 or rather loom, patented by M. Martin, which guarantees to weave 
 the most complicated figure without the use of cards, and, judging 
 from passing observation, we should say that he has accomplished his 
 purpose. The loom is so constructed that it can stamp the simple 
 substitute for the cards at the rate of 3000 per hour, and it requires 
 no reader. This we consider one of the greatest inventions of the 
 age. 
 
 There are three envelope machines in the Exhibition, two of them 
 proclaiming abroad to the world, by their diurnal click-clack, their 
 peculiar power and ingenuity; the third is silent and unobtrusive, 
 although by no means the least ingenious and effective in its con- 
 
MACHINERY. 
 
 103 
 
 struction. The machine of Messrs. De la Eue attracts the greatest 
 attention, from its position and also from its beautiful construction : it 
 can fold, allowing it to speak for itself, 60 envelopes per minute, or 
 3,600 per hour, with the greatest facility. That of Messrs. Water- 
 low works, we believe, with still greater velocity, and certainly 
 throws off its work in a somewhat more attractive style. The ma¬ 
 chine of M. Eemond, of Birmingham, is not at work ; but, judging 
 by appearance and the statement given of its efficiency, we should 
 conclude that it is equally as effective as either of the two just men¬ 
 tioned. It is somewhat singular to observe the different constructions 
 of the three machines, and by what means their respective inventors 
 arrived at the same results. 
 
 M. Berthelot’s “ Circular Knitting Frame ” is a useful and in¬ 
 genious contribution; it obviates one or two important difficulties in 
 that form of machine. For instance, the sinker wheel is omitted, 
 and its place supplied by a circle or ring which regulates the motion 
 of the sinkers. As soon as the thread enters the loop of the needles 
 it is retained there by the sinkers, until the proper wheel has passed 
 over it, when the mesh is pushed off on to the lower web. The mesh 
 can only be formed regularly in this way. Cotton, flax, wool, silk, 
 or even iron wire can be manufactured by this truly ingenious 
 machine. 
 
 Another instance of machinery being so simplified in construction 
 and power as to administer to the ordinary wants of society in the 
 most economical form, is afforded in Cox’s Patent Aerated Machine. 
 By this invention pure soda, and other mineral waters, can be manu¬ 
 factured without the aid of force-pumps or other mechanical means 
 of pressure, hitherto indispensable ; and so simple and effective is the 
 operation of the machine, that it can produce 596 gallons in ten hours 
 of pure soda-water, or about eight times the quantity that the old 
 process can produce, with the aid of steam-power and air-pumps. 
 The construction of this useful machine is exceedingly simple, and 
 may be described as follows :—There are three vessels of hammered 
 copper, two of them tinned on the inside, and the other lined with 
 sheet lead to resist the action of an acid. The two large or tin- 
 lined vessels are the generator and the purifier ; the smaller or lead- 
 lined vessel attached to the generator is the acid receiver. Each of 
 these vessels is constructed in two parts, and connected in the centre 
 by means of flanches and bolts or screws. A regulated communi¬ 
 cation is preserved between all these vessels, so as to secure the 
 required result. The operation of the apparatus is as follows :— 
 
MACHINERY. 
 
 104 
 
 Suppose the gas-generator to be charged with about four gallons of 
 water, and about two gallons of carbonate of soda, chalk, or other suit¬ 
 able alkali; the acid-receiver to contain about one gallon of sulphuric, 
 hydro-chloric, or other suitable acid; and the purifier to be about half- 
 filled with water, all the apertures being closed. Sufficient acid is then 
 conveyed from the acid vessel to the generator, so as to disengage the 
 carbonic acid gas in the contents of the latter ; and the gas evolved 
 during the neutralization of the acid by the alkali will force the 
 atmospheric air completely out of the generator, by means of an 
 escape tap, and occupy its place. The gas thus generated is passed 
 by means of a pipe into the purifier, and after passing through the 
 water contained in the latter it is then conveyed into the cylinder 
 containing the liquid to be aerated. There is a gauge to indicate 
 that the gas has attained the required pressure, and to regulate the 
 charging of the vessels with the materials ; and such is the power of 
 the vessels properly charged and acting in unison with each other, 
 that eighteen gallons of water in the cylinder can be charged with an 
 excess of carbonic acid gas, at a pressure of from 300 to 400 lbs. per 
 square inch, in the space of about twenty minutes, or even two 
 cylinders of eighteen gallons each. This machine is simple, effective, 
 and economic in its operation, and will prove a great desideratum in 
 the production of all aerated beverages. 
 
 The “Improved Silk-Throwing Machine” of W. Frost is a 
 useful invention ; its advantages are obvious, when compared to the 
 old machines. The winding-engine contains a greater number of 
 “ swifts ” in the same space than could be admitted in the old plan, 
 still leaving the “ swift ” the same breadth. The “ standards ” are 
 half-length, and bracketed simply to contain the “ swift,” which is 
 less liable to “knock,” and the “bobbins” are turned by double 
 wooden rollers, made of one solid piece of wood, which causes them 
 to run truer than others. The rollers are covered with leather, which 
 obviates the use of chalk or resin, the latter frequently soiling the 
 silk. We have not space to enumerate the various improvements in 
 this machine compared to the old, therefore we shall content ourselves 
 by stating that it occupies comparatively little space, is both effective 
 in its operation, and economical in its results. 
 
 The “hydro-extractor” of Manlove, Alliott, and Co., is a valuable 
 contribution to the manufacturing art, and is ingeniously constructed. 
 The articles are placed in a vertical cylinder, which rotates to any 
 given velocity, and, as they are subjected to a strong current of 
 air, generated by the rotation, they soon become quite dry and fit 
 
MACHINERY. 
 
 105 
 
 for any subsequent operation. The goods are not injured by this 
 process, as the only pressure or force to which they are subjected is 
 that of the folds acting upon each other, by virtue of their centrifugal 
 tendency; but even in the finest material this action does not occasion 
 the slightest abrasion in the texture. Every adhesion of fibre after the 
 ordinary mode of wringing is also obviated, and all creases prevented. 
 Another advantage is, that the moisture is uniformly abstracted from 
 the article by this process, and, as little heat is required, the injury 
 frequently occasioned to the colours and the fabric is completely 
 avoided. Again, when a determinate quantity of moisture, starch, 
 or soap is requisite to be left in the article, that quantity can be fixed 
 exactly by the machine’s rotation, as it can perform either 200 or 
 2000 revolutions per minute. In the dyeing process, where a larger 
 quantity of the material is required to be extracted, or in the finishing 
 process, when fancy or fugitive colours are employed on heavy articles, 
 it is equally effective ; but in domestic affairs it might be most use¬ 
 fully applied, as it would obviate the destructive process of wringing 
 the clothes after washing, which is frequently more injurious than 
 the ordinary wear and tear. The machine will hold from 100 to 300 
 pounds of wet goods; and for hospitals, asylums, workhouses, and 
 other large establishments where economy is more particularly prac¬ 
 tised, it must prove a great desideratum. It is used by almost all 
 the large cotton-printers and cotton manufacturers requiring the aid 
 which it so effectually renders. 
 
 Aime Boura’s “ colour extractor ” is another of those useful 
 inventions which our manufacturers instantly avail themselves of in 
 fabricating their articles. This simple machine can extract more 
 colouring matter in two hours than the old system of boiling can in 
 eight hours, and the colour is much brighter. The saving effected 
 has been proved to be ten per cent, in all kinds of dye-wood; in 
 cochineal, Prussian berries, and galls, fifteen per cent.; and in bark, 
 twenty-five per cent. In all the first-class dyeing establishments 
 this instrument is an indispensable requisite. 
 
 Mr. Taylor, of Nottingham, exhibits some beautiful specimens of 
 his lithographic art; and of his engraving, ornamental printing, die¬ 
 sinking, and embossing. Some of his printed papers represent orna¬ 
 mental woods inlaid with metals; others have all the beauty and 
 delicacy of lace fabrics, upon coloured grounds, which are highly 
 effective. There is also a machine for stamping lamp-shades in the 
 same contribution, which is well worthy of a quiet and attentive 
 observation or so. Jarrett’s “ embossing press ” is a small and com- 
 
10(3 MACHINERY. 
 
 pact piece of machinery, which does its work cleanly and effectively ; 
 and the pin-sticking apparatus of Peyton and Elis is another me¬ 
 chanical curiosity which deservedly attracts attention. This little 
 machine has superseded the old method of sticking pins, as it preserves 
 their brightness and prevents the points from receiving injury. J. P. 
 Woodbury’s “planing machine” is a useful contribution to structural 
 purposes. It works most effectually, passing over knots and other 
 peculiar obstructions by a device which is called a “ yielding bar 
 mouth-piece,” which holds the grain of the timber together while 
 being planed. Its capacity may be estimated by its planing boards 
 twenty-four inches wide, at the rate of eighty to ninety feet in length, 
 in a minute; and, also, by planing 6000 feet of board in one hour. 
 Day and Millwood, of Birmingham, have contributed their peculiar 
 excellence in weighing machines; their large beam, from its nicety 
 of balance, attracts general attention. 
 
 Messrs. Cunningham and Carter’s “ new system of propelling car¬ 
 riages on railways ” attracts a great deal of attention in the Exhibi¬ 
 tion, even from practical observers. It assumes to obviate a great 
 many difficulties attendant upon the present system of locomotion. 
 The “improved” carriages run upon lines of rails laid down as usual, 
 but their propulsion is effected by rails attached to their sides, which 
 derive their motive-force from being brought into contact with the 
 peripheries of a succession of revolving, horizontal wheels, placed in 
 sets of three each, at distances of about 300 feet apart—one wheel 
 being placed outside of each line, and the third between the two lines 
 —all these being connected and put in motion by air-engines, which 
 communicate with an atmospheric main, common to all the engines, 
 laid down outside the rails, beneath the surface of the ground. The 
 shafts of the three horizontal wheels revolve in proper bearings, 
 within an iron case, fixed in a trench beneath the rails, and extending 
 transversely into the banks. The propelling wheels are above the 
 ground. The advantages to be gained by this plan are manifold, 
 according to the programme of the inventor; the main one to our 
 mind is the following:—“ Power being always in readiness, trains 
 may follow each other in rapid succession, while their starting may 
 be so regulated, independent of the drivers or guards, that it shall be 
 impossible for one train to overtake, or to come into collision with, 
 another.” 
 
 MfNicoll and Vernon’s “steam travelling crane ” is one of those 
 marvellous acquisitions to simplify and abridge labour, which have 
 enabled us to become so thoroughly practical as we are, in almost all 
 
MACHINERY. 
 
 107 
 
 our pursuits. This crane can be worked either by steam or by hand; 
 by the former, where it has scope for action, it must be amazingly 
 effective. In our dockyards, and in all great undertakings of a 
 structural nature, it will prove singularly efficient as an aid. It may 
 be worked similar to Nasmyth’s hammer, by a youth on a platform; 
 and who, by moving two or three handles, enables it to lift weights 
 varying from one to five tons, to load or unload carriages, to pile the 
 materials, or to convey them from one space to another, a distance of 
 127 feet. The economical beatings of the invention are important. 
 One of these cranes has already displaced two of the ordinary kind, 
 the latter employing four men each—three men on the platform to 
 hoist, and one man below to fasten on the logs—in all, eight men, at 
 16s. per week, each, or £332 16s. per annum. This crane is worked 
 by a youth at 10s. per week, or £26 per annum, thus effecting a 
 saving of £306 16s., and doing its work much more effectually. 
 
 Eyder’s “ drawing metal machine ” is an effective invention, and 
 simply constructed. The plan of elongating tubes or rods is inge¬ 
 nious, and the only surprise is that it has not been adopted long ago. 
 A similarly-constructed machine is used for percussion caps, and 
 for other purposes, at Birmingham, and is found to work to great 
 advantage. Davis’ “ rotatory engine ” appears a very compact and 
 effective invention; its wear and tear and cost of material must be 
 tested before any definite opinion can be given of its value; it has, 
 certainly, one advantage—it occupies but very little space. 
 
 The lithographic machine of Messrs. Maclure, Macdonald, and Co. 
 is a great improvement upon the one in ordinary use, as it not only 
 simplifies the labour, but considerably increases its power. By this 
 invention the principal labour is transferred to the steam-engine. The 
 machine in ordinary use is worked by levers with eccentric points, 
 and the carriage with the stone is carried under the scraper by means 
 of a roller, but the work is frequently found untrue, as the machine 
 becomes more or less used. The scraper, by the improvement, gives 
 the necessary pressure as it passes over the stone, relieving itself 
 when required, and also returning to the point of starting. The 
 stone, likewise, is secured against breaking, which hitherto has been 
 a great difficulty, and the work effected by the present machine is 
 much more regular and perfect. 
 
108 
 
 CHAPTER XII.—AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS. 
 
 The display of agricultural implements is more than ordinarily 
 varied and interesting, there being several new contributors to this 
 branch of mechanical adaptation, and almost all the old ones; the 
 former endeavouring to acquire a reputation, while the latter appear 
 to have exerted their greatest power, in order to sustain that which 
 they have already acquired. The agricultural implement makers 
 have long been accustomed to periodical exhibitions, therefore such an 
 incident was no novelty to them; they had simply to go through a 
 certain routine, which had become familiar through practice, to pro¬ 
 duce the best article in their power, and calmly await the judgment 
 that must ultimately he passed upon their respective productions. 
 They had an additional advantage, too, over other exhibitors, inas¬ 
 much as there was little to apprehend from foreign rivals : therefore 
 they could measure beforehand pretty nearly the relative amount of 
 competition which they would have to endure. We shall therefore 
 content ourselves with briefly enumerating the leading contributions, 
 and pointing out a few of the excellences which they singly present. 
 
 As the plough is the principal instrument in agricultural pursuits, 
 it is natural that any improvement upon its construction should 
 attract a great deal of attention. Ever since science began more im¬ 
 mediately to direct its observation to the condition of agriculture, a 
 series of improvements has been effected in almost every one of its 
 relations, and all aiming at the same end—to facilitate labour, and 
 thereby to augment its value. Farming now is gradually being 
 brought to what it ought to have been some thirty or forty years ago 
 —a manufacture of bread, of cattle, of sheep, and of com, or, in other 
 terms, a given amount of capital applied to land on the same princi¬ 
 ples that capital is applied to a manufactory, both requiring unremit¬ 
 ting attention, unwearied industry, a thorough knowledge of the articles 
 produced, and the markets where they can he disposed of, and, above 
 all, the prompt adoption of each improvement, whether in machinery 
 or otherwise, so as to augment the application of the labour-power 
 and proportionately increase production. As the farmer is now 
 deprived of his parliamentary night-cap, in which he slept and snored 
 so comfortably, having no fear of the keen blasts of competition, the 
 chances are that he will keep wide-awake to the preceding sugges¬ 
 tions, and prove himself as shrewd a calculator as the cotton-factor or 
 the mill-owner: if, on the contrary, the condition of his mind, from 
 
AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS. 
 
 109 
 
 long and inveterate habit, be incapable of such a metamorphose, be 
 will find himself pushed aside, or perhaps crushed down by the Jug- 
 gernaut of necessity, which has no compunctious feelings for its 
 victims. There is little to apprehend, however, on this head, taking 
 the great hulk of the agriculturists into account; so, at least, we 
 presume to think. 
 
 Carefully observing the leading phenomena of the agricultural 
 show, your eye is naturally attracted to the well-shaped and effective 
 ploughs of J. and F. Howard, of Bedford. The agricultural society has 
 fully appreciated the value of these ploughs by awarding their manu¬ 
 facturer so many prizes, and under so many trying and peculiar 
 circumstances. We find in the journal of the Royal Society, in the 
 report of a meeting held at Oxford as early as 1839, the following com¬ 
 mendation:—“A plough by Messrs. Howard, of Bedford, of small size, 
 with a mould-board of excellent form, calculated to give the least 
 resistance in turning over the furrow, was much approved.” After 
 passing through a series of improvements, effected by its originator, and 
 enduring a keen competition at all the agricultural shows, at most of 
 which it gained the prize, we find the confirmation of its superiority 
 in the report of the judges at the York meeting in 1848. 
 
 “The ploughs tried,” say the judges, “were twenty-three in 
 number, the trial took place on a clover ley, of excellent quality for 
 testing the good and bad properties of the ploughs. The plan adopted 
 was, for each to plough a land by himself, not less than five inches 
 deep, and any width of furrow the exhibitors pleased. In conse¬ 
 quence of the improvements which have taken place in these imple¬ 
 ments, and particularly in the furrow turner, it has become a difficult 
 task for judges to come to a decision. With one or two exceptions the 
 ploughs worked exceedingly well; but after very close inspection we 
 decided that Messrs. Howard’s plough (J. A.) was the best. We con¬ 
 sidered the furrow-turner pretty near perfection, and calculated to 
 plough any description of land that a plough can do. We had no 
 hesitation, therefore, even amongst this numerous and excellent class, 
 in deciding in favour of this plough.” 
 
 It is necessary to remark that this justly prized plough slightly 
 varied from that which was commended at Oxford in 1839, although 
 both are constructed upon the same principles, which we shall briefly 
 describe. 
 
 The ploughs in the Exhibition of this manufacturer, are based 
 more or less upon the same principles. The following is the type of 
 them all. The patent iron plough is made principally of wrought 
 
AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS. 
 
 110 
 
 iron, and is constructed to be used either with four or with two 
 horses,—its great merit, we believe, consists in its being- the easiest 
 draught for a pair of horses of any plough yet tested. The improve¬ 
 ments consist in greater elegance of design, more equal proportions, 
 and the cutting and moving parts—the share and furrow turner—being 
 made strictly upon geometrical principles. The coulter is firmly secured 
 by a simple adjustment, which prevents great loss of time, so much 
 complained of in the old method of fastening it by wedges. There 
 is also another improvement in this form of plough—the appli¬ 
 cation of a draught chain, which removes all strains from the beam, 
 and gives a steadiness of movement in hard work which cannot be 
 obtained where the draught comes direct from the end of the beam. 
 The line of draught is, also, much more direct, which necessarily 
 diminishes the power exerted. Again, the hinder part of the draught 
 chain may be removed, and attached to a hole in the centre of the 
 beam, when ploughing stubbles, which are apt to drive up the 
 coulter. The handles and beam are made in a single piece (of wrought 
 iron), which prevents them from shaking loose, and obviates the accu¬ 
 mulation of soil in the hinder part of the plough; in addition to 
 which every part is so arranged that the ploughman can remove, or 
 replace, the irons, in case of accident, without the assistance of a 
 mechanic. This kind of plough can be worked with or without 
 wheels, and is so constructed that a broad share for paring stubbles or 
 turf, a share for subsoiling, and one of a triangular form to plough 
 between the rows of beans or of root-crops, can be applied to it at 
 will. The subsoil plough of this manufacturer has been equally 
 approved of. Extending your view over the same contributions, you 
 will find another invention equally available for agricultural purposes— 
 the patent iron harrow. These harrows are ingeniously constructed, 
 and their teeth so arranged that each one cuts a distinct track, but not 
 parallel to each other, although the result is the same at the end of 
 the ridge; the zig-zag form of the frame giving a diagonal direction 
 to the teeth, which causes them to work cleaner and more effective, 
 especially on wet and foul land. They are also made with projecting 
 corners, which enables them to fall into the hollow parts of the land 
 better than the old square implement. The draught is from the 
 centre, which spreads itself equally over the whole surface of the har¬ 
 rows, and not, as formerly, liable to be frittered away, by one of the 
 horses advancing before the rest of the team, and dragging the imple¬ 
 ment out of its regular track. In fine, for all effective purposes, this 
 harrow has completely superseded the old implement, and has con- 
 
AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS. 
 
 Ill 
 
 sidcrably advanced the progress of agriculture within these last few 
 years. The patent prize horse-rake is also another object of attrac¬ 
 tion at agricultural exhibitions, and is equally conspicuous in the 
 Crystal Palace. The rake is constructed for raking hay, com, stub¬ 
 ble, or twitch grass. The draft-irons are furnished with a joint and 
 quadrant, by which the teeth may readily be altered, so as to rake 
 upon their points, or set more or less off the ground. This method is 
 to prevent the rake collecting the soil and rubbish with the corn, an 
 objection frequently raised against the use of horse-rakes. The bar 
 running under the teeth, and by which they are raised, is so arranged 
 that the teeth do not, as in other rakes, rest upon it, but are allowed 
 to drop into any hollow parts of the land. The frame and teeth are 
 made entirely of wrought iron, and the latter work independently of 
 each other, so as to adapt themselves to the irregularity of the surface. 
 It is worked on high wheels, which are capped, to prevent the hay, 
 &c., working round the axles. By means of a simple pull-down 
 lever, which requires only the strength of a boy to manage, the rake 
 can be instantly emptied of its load without stopping the horse ; in 
 addition to which there are several other advantages to be derived 
 from its use, arising from its peculiar mode of construction, and its 
 adaptability to its designed purposes. The Messrs. Howard fully 
 maintain their preceding reputation. 
 
 The next implement that particularly attracts attention is the 
 Clod-Crushing Roller of Mr. Crosskill. This roller consists of cast-metal 
 disks or roller-parts, placed loosely upon a round axle, so as to revolve 
 independently of each other. The outer surface of each roller part is 
 serrated, and has a series of side way projecting teeth, which act per¬ 
 pendicularly in breaking clods. The size, six feet wide by two and a- 
 half in diameter, consists of twenty-three roller-parts. Each alternate 
 ring is made larger in the eye, and revolves undulatingly along the 
 entire surface of the roller, whereby its power is increased, and the 
 means of self-cleaning is preserved. In addition to the advantage of 
 crushing clods, this implement is successfully applied to rolling com 
 upon light lands immediately after it is sown; and in the spring, 
 after frost, it is found especially effective. It likewise imparts a firm¬ 
 ness and tenacity to the surface of light soils, and obviates the tedious 
 operations of the presser, which was formerly used. For rolling com 
 three or four inches out of the ground, when the land is infested with 
 the wireworm and grub, it is equally useful and effective, having 
 preserved many crops from utter destruction. Mr. Gibson of New¬ 
 castle has also a similar machine, but the prizes have generally been 
 
AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS. 
 
 112 
 
 awarded to the maker precedingly noticed. The “ Patent Two-Horse 
 Thrashing Machine ” of Messrs. Barret, Exall, and Co., is deserving of 
 more than a passing remark, its general utility fully entitling it to a 
 more lengthened notice than we can afford to give. It is a great 
 improvement upon those in ordinary use before its invention. The 
 principal portion of the improvement consists in introducing a wrought - 
 iron concave or breasting, formed of separate bars, with serrated faces, 
 working through slots in the sides of the machine, and brought nearer 
 to, or earned further from, the drum by means of two circles. These 
 work round its centre with a continuous grooved worm cut on their 
 faces by machinery, in which the endings of the breasting bars 
 move. This arrangement allows the breasting bars to separate wider 
 from each other, as well as more distant from the drum, which gives 
 the larger corn (beans, peas, &c.) a wider space to escape through 
 when thrashed. The machine is simple in its construction, easily 
 worked, and is generally found to be most economical, where time and 
 the preservation of the grain are duly considered. The “ hand-thrash¬ 
 ing machine” by the same inventor was once in vogue amongst 
 agriculturists, and therefore equally entitled to notice. Now let 
 us notice the “ Broadshare and Subsoil Plough ” of Mr. E. H. Bentall, 
 which has proved so effective an instrument. This plough pos¬ 
 sesses the recommendation of being a broadshare, scarifier, and subsoil 
 plough, combined in one and the same implement. It is therefore 
 calculated to perform every kind of work that the old broadshare, 
 skim, or surface plough could do ; in addition to which it can effect 
 the same results as a scarifier, a drag, and other instruments, used 
 separately, besides being a subsoil pulverizer of great efficiency. The 
 saving to the farmer who uses this compound implement must be 
 considerable, as the economy of time, and the extent of work, 
 when compared to the old processes, must be obvious, though good 
 judges hold that compound implements seldom or never answer 
 more than one useful purpose. Messrs. Clayton, Shuttleworth, 
 and Co., appear exceedingly fortunate in constructing steam-engines 
 for agricultural purposes. Their Seven-Horse Power Engine attracts 
 considerable notice from its effective strength and general work¬ 
 ing capacity. The inventors have received several prizes for it at 
 the agricultural shows, and there appears nothing to equal it in the 
 present Exhibition. This engine is well adapted for counties where 
 there is a great breadth of corn land, and may be made available 
 for many purposes as well as for thrashing, such as sawing, pumping, 
 or driving the whole of the barn implements upon a farm. They also 
 
AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS. 
 
 113 
 
 exhibit an “ Improved Fixed Steam-Engine,” having an oscillating 
 cylinder, which greatly reduces the number of working parts, thereby 
 less liable to get out of repair, better to be understood, and easier to 
 he managed than the ordinary table or top-beam engine. Another 
 advantage derived from these engines is that they occupy compara¬ 
 tively little space when compared with their power. Nor is the 
 “Patent Portable Engine” of Messrs. Hornsby and Sons less entitled 
 to a remark or two, if a general appreciation of its merits amongst 
 agriculturists be of any account. This engine will thrash quite as 
 much per day as six horses. It is so light in its structure that two 
 horses can easily draw it on average good roads; it can also be applied 
 to thrashing, grinding, sawing, chaff-cutting, and other analogous 
 uses. The engine is mounted upon four strong carriage-wheels, with 
 shafts, complete for travelling, and its important construction consists 
 in having the cylinder and its connecting pipes placed inside the boiler 
 or steam chamber, being thus effectually protected from the weather 
 and frost at all times, besides diminishing the consumption of fuel. 
 Another advantage is derived from this engine—namely, condensation, 
 which so frequently proves injurious with cylinders outside the boiler, 
 and occasions a great loss of time, cannot take place in them. The 
 “ Patent Thrashing and Shaking Machine ” of the same firm is also 
 an object of attraction. The presumed advantage of this machine is, 
 that in addition to thrashing all kinds of grain, it combines a double 
 crank straw-shaker upon a frame, moveable on four wheels upon which 
 it stands to work, for separating the corn from the straw with a reci¬ 
 procating trough beneath, which delivers all that drops through the 
 shaker to a riddle placed on the end of the trough, where all the 
 corn, chaff, short straws, &c., are separated. The “ Portable Steaming 
 Apparatus ” of Messrs Richmond and Chandler is a compact piece of 
 machinery, and has been worked effectually to its designed purpose. 
 The apparatus requires no setting for steaming all kinds of roots, hay, 
 com, cut chaff, &c., used in the feeding of cattle; it is also provided 
 with a self-acting motion to supply the boiler with water, and received 
 the prize at the Shrewsbury Agricultural Show in 1845. There are 
 few instruments applicable to agriculture that have so largely benefited 
 the producer and rearer of live-stock as this apparatus, and it is deser¬ 
 vedly prized by those who have availed themselves of its effective yet 
 economic powers. Nor ought we to pass by the “ Suffolk Corn Drill ” 
 of Messrs. Garrett and Son, whose working qualities have been so 
 amply proved, and so severely tested. The system of drill husbandry 
 is now almost generally adopted throughout the country, not only on 
 
AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS. 
 
 114 
 
 account of the great saying it effects in the quantity of seed and 
 expensive manures, but also in the facility it affords for the use of the 
 horse and hand-hoe, in cleaning and pulverizing the land between the 
 plants. Many improvements, therefore, have been made in drills, 
 which we shall briefly notice, all having one object in view—to econo¬ 
 mize the cultivation of the soil. There are drills for general, and 
 drills for special purposes. 
 
 The “ General Purpose” drill, as it is called, is adapted to deposit 
 corn and seeds, either with or without manure, in any required quan¬ 
 tities, and at any distance apart, each lever, in which the coulter is 
 fixed, being moveable, to allow of its being set easily for the various 
 kinds of crops. A great improvement has been effected upon the mode 
 of drilling, by a simple alteration of the drill. Each conductor has 
 now a separate coulter, so that the manure can be buried two or three 
 inches deeper in the ground than the seed, and ten or twelve inches 
 in advance of it, thus allowing time for the soil to cover the manure 
 before the next coulter deposits the seed, and leaving any portion of 
 mould between the two that may be required. The coulters being 
 pressed into the ground by separate weights, as the levers are self- 
 adjusting, no difficulty is found in depositing both seeds and manure 
 regularly any depth, one below the other, and in all descriptions of land, 
 however hilly or uneven. Another advantage is obtained from these 
 drills—they can distribute the manure exactly where it is required; 
 and such is their construction, that they can deposit from six to a 
 hundi’ed and fifty bushels per acre without stopping the implement, a 
 great desideratum on hilly lands, where some portions are richer than 
 others, and where the better soil has been wmshed off the hills into 
 the valleys, A similar drill is exhibited by Messrs. Hornsby and 
 Sons, although differing in construction; their relative excellence 
 must be appreciated by agriculturists themselves, therefore we shall 
 simply content ourselves with alluding to it. Messrs. Crosskill’s 
 single-horse cart is also an object of attraction, as it realizes what so 
 long has been aimed at in the construction of such vehicles—increase 
 of carrying power with lightness of draught. Here both are effec¬ 
 tually attained. These carts, though comparatively small, are de¬ 
 signed to carry 30 cwt. as an ordinary burden, which is too palpable 
 an improvement upon the old lumbering, material-wasting, and use¬ 
 less structures, to need a moment’s comment. Then there is Mr. 
 Corne’s straw and hay cutting machine, which effects an immense 
 saving in labour, the first consideration in all industrial implements, and 
 is deservedly appreciated by practical and enterprising agriculturists. 
 
AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS. 
 
 115 
 
 We must pass over a multitude of queer-looking machines, with 
 just as queer names, and can only wonder how many of our honest, 
 yet slow-moving, agricultural friends are enabled to appreciate 
 them. But they must he appreciated, or there, it is fair to assume, 
 they would not be ; nevertheless, we shall studiously eschew them, 
 as they are beyond the range of our comprehension. And we shall 
 serve the multitude of churns, racks, mangers, spades, forks, &c., &c., 
 in the same way: go ye that want them, say we, and pick and 
 choose, for there is choice in abundance, and fastidious indeed must 
 they he who cannot please themselves. Machines are now getting 
 so perfect in almost every direction of human labour, that hut a small 
 amount of bodily exertion seems necessary to satisfy our wants, as 
 compared to the preceding condition of things; the only wonder is 
 how we have managed to get on so decently as we have done without 
 them, so essential, so indispensable, do most of them appear to a 
 comfortable existence. We feed our horses and fatten our cattle with 
 the aid of improved machinery, to the greater comfort, no doubt, of 
 the poor beasts, and with greater economy to ourselves; for we are 
 now-a-days literally killing them with kindness, which is true in 
 more senses than one. Look at that iron crib for an ox to feed out of, 
 and that “Archimedean Boot-crusher,” which prepares the food for 
 the delicate creature; how comfortably he must spend his days, 
 although they may be numbered a little more exactly than those of 
 his lordly master. The god of the Egyptians never thrust his nose 
 into so well-shapen an eating-vessel as that, highly-prized and 
 dearly-cherished as he must have been; and as to saying that “the 
 ox knoweth his master’s crib,” according to the old proverb, or some¬ 
 thing like it, we defy a country quadruped, fresh from the straw- 
 yard or his native fields, to “ smell out ” the meaning of one of the 
 newly-invented cribs, in the event of his master placing his food 
 therein. Again, there is the “ Patent Improved Pig Trough,” and 
 the “ Circular Iron Pig Trough,” both of which are ingeniously 
 devised to teach the well-bred grunter to eat his food in a decent 
 manner, and at the same time to economize the cost of his hide. 
 Every thing, in fine, is intended to improve every thing that comes 
 within the sphere of its operations. 
 
 In the American and Austrian departments there are several sin¬ 
 gularly-constructed agricultural implements, which may he effective 
 in that country, under a somewhat normal condition of cultivation; hut 
 here, we apprehend, they would he found comparatively useless. If the 
 “ Churn,” which, by the bye, is in the English department, although 
 
AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS. 
 
 116 
 
 an American invention, can turn milk into butter as easily as it pre¬ 
 tends, it would prove a valuable acquisition to many of our dairies; 
 and the root-crusher, also, might be made available in several of our 
 occupations with great advantage. The reaping-machine, used with 
 four horses, is a curiously-constructed implement, if we may be 
 allowed the phrase: if it can accomplish the feats ascribed to its 
 power by the inventors, such, for instance, as being able to reap 
 from twenty to twenty-five acres per day, with the assistance of five 
 binders, it must be deserving the attention of our agricultural machin¬ 
 ists, and the more especially as Irish emigration is thinning the ranks 
 of our corn-reaping labourers. No doubt it will be turned to account, 
 as well as the mowing-machine, the knife of which is similar to that 
 of the reaping-machine. We shall leave the other implements to more 
 competent judges than we can even pretend to be. 
 
 Since the preceding remarks were in type, the prizes have been 
 awarded to the agricultural exhibitors, and, with one or two excep¬ 
 tions, our opinions upon the relative merits of the implements have 
 been fully confirmed. Every instrument that we have pointed out 
 and described as a type of excellence has received a prize; but as 
 there are several others whose merits we have overlooked, according 
 to the judgment of the jurors, it is necessary that we should indivi¬ 
 dually enumerate them. 
 
 THE GREAT MEDALS. 
 
 Mr. Busby has obtained the great medal for his Two or Four 
 Horse Plough, for his Horse-Hoe on the ridge, for his Ribbing 
 Corn Drill, and for his Cart. The Plough which has been thus 
 honoured is peculiarly adapted for certain descriptions of soils, 
 having a moveable nose-piece, upon which the shares are placed, 
 and which can be set more or less to the land, especially as re¬ 
 gards the pitch. According to the exhibitor of the Plough, this is 
 found to be a great advantage where cast-iron shares are worked; for 
 as the latter wear down, the improvement in question enables the 
 plough to retain its hold upon, or inclination towards, the soil. The 
 Cart is equally deserving of notice. The body is made of planks, upon 
 the simplest and most durable plan, and is laid sufficiently low on the 
 axle to be tipped up with ease. The shafts are placed on the sides 
 of the body, which not only gives greater strength to the vehicle, but 
 also retains the proper line of draught. The naves of the wheels are 
 made of wood and not iron, which render them more durable, and not 
 so difficult to be repaired. Tbe Society’s Journal says, that it is 
 
AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS. 
 
 117 
 
 “ suited for all purposes : easy for the horse, as the wheels are rightly 
 made ; easy for the labourer, as they are much lower than other carts; 
 and wonderfully cheap.” The Horse-Hoe has received several prizes. 
 The construction of this useful implement is somewhat simple, having 
 a triangular sock in the centre and two bent knives behind, followed 
 by two sets of rowels, on the principle of the Norwegian Harrow. The 
 latter clear the soil of the weed-roots, and leave them to rot on the 
 surface, besides steadying the motion of the Hoe. The Ribbing Drill 
 has proved itself of equal utility, and has been justly awarded a prize. 
 
 The Messrs. Garrett & Son have obtained the great medal for their 
 Seed and Manure Drill, whose excellence we have already pointed out; 
 also for their Steam-Engine, their Thrashing-Machine, their Horse- 
 Hoe, their General Purpose Drill, and their Seed-Sowing Engine. Six 
 first-class prizes awarded to one exhibitor would seem to indicate a 
 more than ordinary amount of individual excellence. 
 
 Mr. W. Crosskill has obtained the great medal for his Norwegian 
 Harrow, his Meal-Mill, his Cart, and his Clod-Crusher. The two latter 
 we have already noticed in our preceding remarks ; the Harrow has its 
 peculiar excellence for certain soils, which seems to be justly acknow¬ 
 ledged by the jurors. 
 
 Messrs. Hornsby & Son have obtained the great medal for their 
 Corn and Seed Drill, Drop Drill, Two-row Turnip Drill on the ridge, 
 Oil-cake Bruiser, and Steam-Engine. The Engine we have already 
 described; the other implements are improvements in detail as com¬ 
 pared to others of similar construction, which have been duly appre¬ 
 ciated. 
 
 MEDALS. 
 
 Messrs. Burgess & Key’s Turnip Cutter has received a medal. 
 This implement is so constructed that, with the aid of a boy, it can 
 cut three bushels of turnips in one minute, either into one, two, or 
 three sizes, and can discharge each size separately. It is equally 
 effective in cutting chicory, mangold wurzel, carrots, &c. &c., and for 
 all cattle-feeders it must prove highly useful. 
 
 Messrs. Clayton & Shuttle worth’s Steam-Engine we have already 
 described. 
 
 Mr. H. Clayton’s Tile Machine appears like an effective invention, 
 and has been rewarded accordingly with a medal. 
 
 Anthony’s Double-Acting American Churn has attracted a great 
 deal of attention. The construction of the churn is very simple ; it 
 can produce butter from the cream in twelve minutes, and not only 
 better in quality, but more in quantity than the ordinary churn. By 
 
AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS. 
 
 118 
 
 a simple contrivance, the particles of air are quickly separated from 
 the cream, without the slightest froth being generated on the latter, 
 which is the great desideratum in butter-making. A medal has been 
 justly awarded for this useful invention. 
 
 Mr. William Crowley’s Newport Cart has also received a prize. 
 It is a compact one-horse vehicle, combining strength, lightness, and 
 durability ; and, judging by its appearance, it must be easy of draught. 
 The tipping-apparatus in front is peculiarly effective. 
 
 Mr. W. Williams has gained a medal for his Light and Heavy 
 Harrows, which are good working implements of the kind. 
 
 Mr. W. P. Stanley’s Linseed and Barley Crusher is a beautifully 
 constructed and effective machine. It has gained what it deserved— 
 the medal. 
 
 Mr. B. Samuelson’s Turnip Crusher has also justly obtained its 
 reward in a prize. 
 
 Mr. C. Burrell’s Gorse Bruiser has been properly appreciated; and 
 although his Circular-Saw Bench did not get a prize, it is equally 
 deserving of attention from its effective working powers, as by its aid 
 two men can complete a hurdle in a quarter of an hour. 
 
 Messrs. Smith & Co. have received three prizes : one for their 
 Haymaker, a singularly constructed machine, hut highly useful in its 
 operations; another for their Chaff-Cutter, which is well known ; and 
 a third for their Horse-Bake, which has one or two improvements 
 upon that kind of implement. 
 
 Messrs. J. and F. Howard have received an equal award to the 
 preceding firm. Their Two-Horse X X Plough, their Four-Horse 
 XXX Plough, and their well-known Horse-Bake, have been respec¬ 
 tively adjudged a prize. In a preceding page we have described these 
 useful implements. 
 
 Messrs. Holmes & Son’s Threshing Machine has also received the 
 award of a medal. 
 
 Messrs. Hensman & Son have been awarded three prizes : one for 
 their Four-Horse Plough ; another for their Thrashing Machine; and 
 a third for their Corn Drill. 
 
 Mr. C. H. Bentall’s Cultivator, one of the most useful and origin¬ 
 ally constructed implements in the Exhibition, justly gained the 
 medal. It is described in a preceding page. 
 
 Mr. W. Ball’s Two-Horse Plough appears to have been similarly 
 appreciated. 
 
 Mr. B. Coleman’s Cultivator and Expanding Harrow were equally 
 pronounced entitled to the award of a medal. 
 
GLASS. 119 
 
 Mr. Corne’s Chaff-Cutter almost invariably obtains a prize; its 
 usefulness is unexceptionable. 
 
 Mr. J. Comin’s Horse-IIoe had to sustain a rather severe competi¬ 
 tion ; nevertheless it stood its ground, and carried off a prize. 
 
 Mr. M. Gibson’s Clod-Crusher we have already alluded to, and 
 with Crosskill’s implement to compete with, it must be pronounced a 
 highly creditable production. 
 
 The Cart of Messrs. Gray & Son ; the Meal-Mill of Mr. Harewood; 
 the Top-Dressing Machine of Mr. D. Newington; the Oil-Cake 
 Bruiser of Mr. W. N. Nicholson; the Drop Drill of Messrs. Ransome 
 & May; and the Liquid Manure Distributor of Messrs. Reeves & 
 Bratton, were respectively awarded a medal. The Tile Machines of 
 Messrs. Whitehead and T. Scragg were equally honoured, and 
 deservedly so. A prize was awarded to M. De Claes, a Belgian, for a 
 Corn Drill and a Roller; and a similar compliment was paid to M. 
 Odeurs, of Merlinne, for a Plough. M. Lavoisy, of Paris, received a 
 medal for a Churn; so also did M. Duchene, a Belgian, for a similar 
 invention. Nor ought the Churn of Mr. Wilkinson, which also 
 received a prize, to go unnoticed, as its working qualities were 
 instantly recognized. The Steam-Engine of Messrs. Taxford & Son 
 was equally prized, and justly obtained a medal. 
 
 Messrs. Barrett, Exall, and Co. have received a medal for their 
 “ Steam Engine,” their “Thrashing Machine,” whose excellence we 
 have already pointed out, and their “ Linseed and Corn Crusher.” 
 Mons. P. De Stampe, of Brabant, has also received a medal for his 
 plough, which is highly creditable to his inventive powers; and a 
 similar observation may be applied to the plough of M. Jenkin, of 
 Utrecht, and to that of Messrs. Proutz and Mears, of Boston, United 
 States. The French plough of Messrs. Talbot Brothers, of Bourges, 
 is equally entitled to notice; so also is the “ Seed and Corn Sepa¬ 
 rator of M. Vichon, of Lyons. The “ Draining Plough ” of J. Fowler, 
 of Bristol, was considered as entitled to “ honourable mention.” 
 
 -♦- 
 
 CHAPTER XIII.—GLASS. 
 
 The manufacture of glass is naturally of great interest to the 
 inquiring reader, not only for the beauty of the material produced, 
 but also for the variety of modifications which the ingredients are 
 
GLASS. 
 
 120 
 
 subjected to, and for the manual dexterity shown in the processes. 
 “ Who,” says Dr. Johnson, “when he first saw the sand or ashes by 
 a casual intenseness of heat melted into a metalline form, rugged with 
 excrescences and clouded with impurities, would have imagined that 
 in this shapeless lump lay concealed so many conveniences of life as 
 would, in time, constitute a great part of the happiness of the world ? 
 Yet by some such fortuitous liquefaction was mankind taught to 
 procure a body at once in a high degree solid and transparent; which 
 might admit the light of the sun, and exclude the violence of the wind; 
 which might extend the sight of the philosopher to new ranges of 
 existence, and charm him at one time with the unbounded extent of 
 material creation, and at another with the endless subordination of 
 animal life; and, what is of yet more importance, might supply the 
 decays of nature, and succour old age with subsidiary sight. Thus 
 was the first artificer in glass employed, though without his know¬ 
 ledge or expectation. He was facilitating and prolonging the enjoy¬ 
 ment of light, enlarging the avenues of science, and conferring the 
 highest and most lasting pleasures: he was enabling the student to 
 contemplate nature, and the beauty to behold herself.” 
 
 Since the alteration in the tariff, the manufacture of glass in this 
 country has received an immense extension, and in several branches of 
 the art we have outstripped the foreigner, who a few years since main¬ 
 tained against us a flourishing competition. In the preparation of the 
 raw material, with one or two exceptions, we occupy the highest place, 
 and have acquired this advantage by our large capital, by our im¬ 
 proved chemical knowledge, and by the indomitable energy of our 
 character. Even the foreigner acknowledges our superiority in these 
 respects, and in taste and colouring he also admits that we have made 
 considerable progress. 
 
 “ For a long time,” says M. Stephane Flachat, “ England has 
 excelled us in the manufacture of glass, especially crystal glass. The 
 precise cause is not known ; it does not appear in the mode of fusing 
 the materials—more probably it may be attributed to the purity of 
 the lead which they use. We know how poor France is in this 
 important respect, having imported, for several years past, from 
 fifteen to sixteen millions of kilogrammes of that metal, principally 
 
 from Spain.The French glass is inferior to the 
 
 English in point of colour, and changes much sooner when exposed to 
 the air. Our manufacturers declare that this difference does not arise 
 from an inferiority of workmanship, but from the limited means 
 which we possess of purchasing the article, and which in a great 
 
GLASS. 
 
 121 
 
 measure may be attributed to the minute division of the soil. In order 
 to reduce the price of glass to the condition of the purchaser, our 
 manufacturers have recourse to an extra infusion of alkali, which, 
 being slowly absorbed by the atmosphere, causes the glass to lose its 
 transparency.” 
 
 Glass may be regarded, generally speaking, as an admixture of 
 three kinds of ingredients—silica, alkali, and a metallic oxide. The 
 silica is the vitrifiable ingredient, the alkali is the flux, and the 
 metallic oxide, besides acting as a flux, imparts certain qualities by 
 which one kind of glass is distinguishable from another. If silica be 
 exposed to the strongest heat it will resist fusion, but if it be mixed 
 with an alkali, such as potash or soda, and the mixture be then sub¬ 
 mitted to the same temperature, a combination will ensue which takes 
 the form of a liquid, and when cooled becomes transparent. The 
 quality of glass mainly depends on the proportions in which the silicious 
 matter and the alkali are combined, on the temperature to which they 
 are exposed, and on the skill with which the entire process is per¬ 
 formed. When a perfect combination of the materials is not secured, 
 the glass is covered with dark spots or particles, and other inequali¬ 
 ties, which are called striae. There are three kinds of glass in ordi¬ 
 nary use—crown glass, plate glass, and flint glass. The silicious 
 sand, which forms the base of the manufacture of each, is principally 
 derived from Alum Bay, in the Isle of Wight; from Lynn, in Nor¬ 
 folk ; and from Aylesbury, in Buckinghamshire. The materials for 
 flint glass are nearly as follows :—One part of alkali, two parts of 
 oxide of lead, three of sea-sand, and a small portion of the oxides of 
 manganese and arsenic. The oxide of lead is employed as a powerful 
 flux; it also imparts a great lustre to the metal, and causes it to be 
 more ductile when in a semi-fluid state. The manganese renders the 
 glass perfectly colourless. When these ingredients are mixed, it is 
 called the hatch , and the mixture is generally of a salmon-coloured hue, 
 the red tinge being given by the oxide of lead. 
 
 Among the contributions of Messrs. Pellatt to the Exhibition, 
 there are models of the crucibles used in melting the glass. The 
 crucibles are made of Stourbridge clay, which consists of a mixture 
 of silica and alumina, in the proportion of nearly two to one. The 
 manufacture, drying, and baking of the crucible, is an important 
 process, since one pot, when filled, contains about 1600 weight of 
 glass, the proper melting of which is essential to the subsequent 
 labours of the glass-worker. These crucibles, or pots, are not moulded, 
 but built up piece-meal, each piece being rolled into a cylindrical 
 
GLASS. 
 
 122 
 
 form, and laid in a curve on preceding rolls ; and so closely are they 
 pressed together, to exclude the air between the rolls, that they form, 
 as it were, a thick wall or crust. The weight of clay required for one 
 pot is nearly one thousand pounds; and the dimensions of the finished 
 vessel are about three feet in height, two and three quarters in diame¬ 
 ter, and about three inches thick. The shape is nearly cylindrical, 
 with a round top and flat base, and there is only one opening, about 
 ten inches in diameter, at the upper part of one side. 
 
 Specimens of the glass in its several stages of manufacture are 
 likewise shown. After the first ten or twelve hours, it appears like a 
 honeycombed mass, white and opaque. The next stage it becomes 
 transparent, but is full of air-bubbles ; while the oxygen, supplied by 
 the manganese, produces a light purple tint which supersedes the 
 white colour. As the melting proceeds the purple tint gradually 
 disappears, the air-hubbles are disengaged, and the glass is rendered 
 homogeneous and fit for manipulation. The same party exhibits the 
 various tools used in the process of manufacturing glass—the blowing 
 iron, the workman’s chair, the procellos, the punty, the shears, the 
 battledore, and the pincers. 
 
 Flint glass ware, such as drinking-glasses, decanters, lustres, 
 lamp-shades, and phials, are made by blowing and manual working; 
 and, in a minor degree, by casting in a mould. As an instance of the 
 modus operandi of glass-making, let us take the decanter. A man 
 takes a hollow iron tube, about five feet long and half an inch in dia¬ 
 meter, and dipping one end into the pot, collects a small quantity of 
 the metal on its end. The metal appears like a lump of red-hot iron, 
 and, from its consistence, is just able to he retained on the tube. The 
 workman whirls it twice or thrice round his head to lengthen the 
 mass, then rolls it on a flat iron surface to give it a regular shape, 
 afterwards blowing through the tube to make the glass hollow. After 
 repeating these processes twice or thrice, another workman receives 
 the metal, and sits down in a chair having two flat parallel arms 
 sloping downwards. Then, resting the tube on these arms, he rolls it 
 backwards and forwards to keep the glass from bending; and a boy, 
 stooping down at the other end, blows through the tube, which keeps 
 the glass hollow. By the aid of an elastic instrument, shaped like 
 sugar-tongs, the workman brings the mass into form, rolling the tube 
 continually, and heating the glass frequently, so as to preserve the 
 proper consistence. The “ footer ” then brings a little melted glass 
 on the end of his rod, and applies it to the blown mass, to which it 
 instantly adheres. This is shaped into a foot, and the whole is trans- 
 
GLASS. 
 
 123 
 
 ferred from the tube to a rod called the “ punty,” the latter adhering 
 to the foot of the decanter by a little melted glass, and the tube being 
 detached by a touch with a piece of cold iron at its junction with the 
 glass. Then commences the upper part of the decanter. The work¬ 
 man cuts off a piece of glowing glass with a pair of scissors, so as to 
 allow of a depression for the lip, and the edge is bent and curved for 
 that purpose almost instantaneously. The internal cavity and external 
 surface of the decanter are gradually formed by the workman inserting 
 the tongs into its mouth, and twisting it about as he pleases. The 
 handle is formed by an attendant bringing a small mass of melted 
 glass upon the end of his rod, which soon adheres to the vessel, and 
 by a little dexterity of hand is fashioned to its proper form. These 
 processes are performed with great rapidity, as the glass, being 
 neither solid nor liquid, would drop from the tube if not kept 
 rotating; on the other hand, it is capable, in this condition, of being 
 pulled, twisted, stretched, cut, and pressed in almost every variety of 
 form. The whole is effected by the manual dexterity and accurate 
 eye of the workman, aided by a few of the most simple tools. Now 
 follow the decanter to the “ annealing ” process, the object being to 
 render the glass less brittle, and less liable to fracture from sudden 
 alterations of temperature. If glass were allowed to cool at once in 
 the open air, the external surface would contract more rapidly than 
 the interior, whereby the glass would be in an unequable state of 
 elasticity, and therefore liable to fracture. The slow cooling takes 
 place in an annealing-oven, called a “ leer,” which has a long flat arch 
 sixty feet long, five feet wide, and from one to two feet in height. 
 Close to the door of the oven, on each side, is a furnace which keeps 
 up a high temperature; but as there is no other heating power, the 
 oven becomes less and less hot as the distance from the mouth 
 increases, until, at the extremity, it is scarcely warmer than the sur¬ 
 rounding atmosphere. Along the floor of the oven are tram-lines, 
 upon which the iron trays, called “ leer-pans,” travel with the glass to 
 be annealed. The time for annealing depends upon the thickness of 
 the vessels, varying from twelve to sixty hours. The next process is 
 cutting the decanter. Suppose yourself in a room with several work¬ 
 men, each of whom has a thin wheel, revolving on a horizontal axis, 
 before him; and above some of the wheels are vessels containing a 
 mixture of sand and water, which drops on the edge of the wheel. 
 These wheels are of various sizes, and made of various materials, such 
 as cast-iron, wrought-iron, Derby-stone, and willow-wood, and they 
 are all worked by power, the workman having the means of changing 
 
GLASS. 
 
 124 
 
 his wheel at will. The edge of the wheel effects the grinding, there¬ 
 fore different thicknesses and shapes are given to it, in order to pro¬ 
 duce the required results. The decanter is now in the workman’s 
 hand, who holds it against the edge of the revolving wheel, which 
 grinds down the substance, and produces either a flat or curved sur¬ 
 face, according to the pattern desired. All depends upon the accu¬ 
 racy of his eye, and the dexterity of his hand, in producing the proper 
 form. The iron wheel, with sand and water, is used for grinding 
 away the substance of the glass; the stone wheel, with clean water, 
 for smoothing the surface, and the wooden wheel, with rotten-stone 
 and putty-powder for polishing it. This is simply glass-cutting. The 
 more costly articles are engraved, that is, devices are cut on the surface 
 more delicate than can be produced by the cutting-wheel. Suppose the 
 engraver, with decanter in hand, seated before a small lathe, with 
 several copper wheels at hand, and varying from an eighth of an inch 
 to two inches in diameter. He attaches one of these to his lathe, 
 touches the edge with a little emery moistened in oil, and then holds 
 the decanter against the disk, or wheel, by which very minute inden¬ 
 tations are produced. By dexterity of hand he can so combine the 
 indentations that a beautiful intaglio, or sunken picture, is pro¬ 
 duced. This process requires the most expert and superior class of 
 workmen. 
 
 Here we may remark that each firm adopts its own peculiar views 
 as to the choice and proportion of the ingredients employed in com¬ 
 posing what is called the batch. This is especially observable in the 
 manufacture of glass, as it involves such a singular chemical union of 
 heterogeneous materials, that it may be deemed an experimental art, 
 the experience derived from past trials being made the ground for 
 future ones. It may not, therefore, be uninteresting to describe the 
 varied processes in use on the continent, which we acquired during 
 our “walks through the workshops” of Europe, and which may 
 become not only suggestive of new ideas in the art of glass-making to 
 the practical reader, but also amusing and instructive to those who 
 have no such object in view. The general process of mixing the batch 
 in Bohemia, which likewise obtains in France and Belgium, is as 
 follows ;—One hundred pounds of sand, 60 of red lead, 30 of purified 
 potash, 2 of nitre, and 4 of manganese. Sometimes thus :—4| cwt. of 
 sand, 3 cwt. of red lead, 168 lbs. of pearl ash, 50 lbs. of saltpetre, 1| 
 lbs. borax, 1 lb. of arsenic, and 2| oz. of manganese. For very fine flin t: 
 —120 lbs. sand, 40 purified pearlash, 35 lbs. litharge or minium, 13 
 lbs. nitre, and from 2 to 4 oz. of manganese. "When manganese is used 
 
GLASS. 125 
 
 as a colouring matter arsenic must be omitted, as the arsenite salts of 
 the latter destroy colour. 
 
 Crown Glass —is that with which windows are generally glazed, 
 and which is also used for framed prints and drawings. It is always 
 made in a circular form, rather thicker at the edge than elsewhere, 
 having a knot or bulb in the centre, though the glass is always 
 used in a quadrangular form, which occasions a certain loss on its being 
 cut up for use. The ingredients for crown glass usually comprise 
 the following:—Clean white sand, soda or potash, and lime, the first 
 two constituting the glass, while the lime acts as a flux to enable the 
 others to combine more readily. 
 
 Suppose the “ frit,” or the prepared materials, placed in the melt¬ 
 ing pots, together with a portion of “ cullet,” or broken glass, and 
 both together exposed to an intense heat, whereby they are melted 
 into a liquid glass. The impurities rise to the surface, and are then 
 skimmed off by an instrument. The glass, or “ metal,” is not in a 
 workable state when quite liquid, but by slackening the heat a little, 
 it becomes slightly coagulated, and is in that state fitted to undergo 
 the operations which constitute crown glass making. 
 
 Each “ table,” or circular piece of glass, requires only a few 
 minutes in making, but the services of twelve men are requisite to 
 complete it. The first man, the “ gatherer,” dips his iron tube into 
 the molten liquid, then turns it gently round until he has acumulated 
 a pound or two on the end; this is allowed to cool a little, when 
 the tube is again dipped into the liquid, which increases in quantity, 
 and so on until he has gathered about nine or ten pounds of the glass 
 on the end of the tube, turning the latter constantly to prevent the 
 metal falling off. He holds this mass perpendicularly downwards, to 
 stretch it somewhat beyond the end of the tube, and then rolls it to and 
 fro on a smooth iron plate, called a marver, to give a cylindrical shape 
 to it. His assistant then blows through the tube, which makes the 
 glass hollow within, and causes it to assume the form of a pear. It is 
 then handed to another man called the blower, who heats it at the 
 furnace two or three times, and after each heating blows it and turns 
 it round, until he enlarges it to the size of a globe. The side opposite 
 to the tube is then slightly flattened, by being pressed against an iron 
 plate, and the glass is tranferred quickly to an iron rod, or “ pontil,” 
 by the blower holding the tube horizontally, while another man 
 collects a little melted glass on the former and applies it exactly 
 opposite the tube, which is immediately detached by touching the 
 point of junction with a piece of iron dipped in cold water. This 
 
GLASS. 
 
 126 
 
 globe is next changed into a flat circular sheet. The workman bolds 
 the pontil so that the glass shall he exposed to the heat of a furnace, 
 at one of the mouths called “ nose-holes.” He rests the rod at one 
 particular point on a bar, which may he called a fulcrum, and keeps 
 the glass rotating while exposed to the heat. As the glass becomes 
 hotter and softer it yields more readily to the centrifugal force caused 
 by the rotation, until it becomes broader and broader, and deviates 
 more and more from the shape of a globe. The hole formed by the 
 tube, which at first was only about two inches in diameter, gradually 
 increases until it becomes so large, by the whirling action, that the 
 flattened globe assumes a circular and sheet-like form, about four or 
 five feet in diameter, nearly equable in thickness, and still attached to 
 the rod exactly at the centre. This is always regarded by the unini¬ 
 tiated as one of the most beautiful and interesting operations in the 
 manufacture of glass. The mode of detaching the rod from the glass 
 is equally attractive. The rod is rotated for a few times after the 
 glass has “ flushed,” as the last operation is called, at such a distance 
 from the fire as to give it sufficient coolness to maintain its shape. 
 The man then carries it a short distance, and places it horizontally on 
 a bed of sand, when the rod is instantly detached by another man. 
 The circular piece (having the “ knot ” in the centre) is then lifted up 
 on a wide two-pronged fork, and placed upright in an annealing oven, 
 where it cools gradually, and loses the brittleness it would otherwise 
 have. 
 
 The Messrs. Chance and Co., at whose large establishment * we 
 observed the preceding operations, exhibit several specimens of crown 
 glass in their contribution. And of sheet glass they have a still greater 
 variety, as it enters, we apprehend, more largely into general consump¬ 
 tion. The specimens of the latter are five in number, comprising the 
 different thicknesses to which they are blown, and weighing respec¬ 
 tively 13, 16, 21, 26, and 32 ounces per square foot. The process of 
 making sheet glass is somewhat simpler than the preceding, but equally 
 
 * At Spon Lane, near Birmingham. This firm have erected schools and acces¬ 
 sory buildings at a cost of more than £5000, where upwards of four hundred 
 children, boys and girls, varying from two to seven years of age, are taken care 
 of during the day and educated. The parents have only to pay 3d. per week for 
 each child, the expenses of the establishment, such as books, paper, and tutors, 
 being provided by the beneficent founders. The works form a complete town 
 within themselves, comprising upwards of sixteen hundred hands, with medical 
 attendants, the latter being supplied gratuitously. And this vast fabric is the 
 result of a comparatively few years’ labour; such, however, is the industry of 
 man when directed by the agency of the best attributes of his mind! 
 
GLASS. 
 
 127 
 
 amusing and instructive. A quantity of the molten liquid is gathered 
 on the end of an iron tube, and blown into a spherical form by the 
 workman ; it is then heated in the furnace, and the fluid mass is 
 swung round by the latter, who stands on the edge of a pit, until it 
 becomes elongated to the required extent. The cylinder thus formed 
 is then cut off at both ends and down the middle, after which it is 
 placed on a flattening furnace, when it gradually spreads out to the 
 form of a sheet, and only requires annealing to become a perfect pane. 
 The Crystal Palace is glazed with sheet, not crown, glass, weighing 
 sixteen ounces per square foot, and each of the panes is forty-nine 
 inches in length. 
 
 Plate Glass —or, to use a more appropriate term, cast glass , is 
 founded in a liquid state, and is totally different from blown glass. 
 Suppose a large table, upon which is a casting apparatus in the shape 
 of a carefully prepared plate of iron, with various mechanism to place 
 it in any desired position. This iron plate determines the size of the 
 sheet of glass. The ingredients used as a basis are sand, alkali, and 
 lime, hut there are several others which are carefully concealed, 
 although minutely mixed and proportioned, besides those already 
 named. The ingredients being “ fritted ” and mixed with “ cullet,” 
 or broken plate glass, are melted in the furnace to a red heat, and to 
 a liquid state ; and when the “ lava” has arrived at a particular state 
 it undergoes an examination, which requires great care. Three men 
 take a copper ladle, having a long handle, dip the ladle into the molten 
 glass, and convey it to a small flat slab or tray, on which it is poured 
 out. One man holds the handle, while the other two support the 
 bowl of the ladle by cross handles. The red-hot mass is so soon 
 affected by the coolness of the atmosphere, that it assumes a coagu¬ 
 lated consistence when placed on the tray. A man then examines it, 
 to see whether any slight difference of colour indicates defective spots, 
 knowing from experience what are the causes of these spots, and in 
 what way they will affect the purity of the glass when finished, he 
 therefore removes them with the pointed end of a rod, which leaves 
 the mass in a homogeneous state. The mass is returned to the ladle, 
 and the three men carry it back to the furnace. It is now put into 
 different pots from those which before contained it, so that the same 
 pots become filled with the successively examined portions. When the 
 quantity is sufficient for one casting—comprising several hundreds 
 weight—the pots are exposed to a heat sufficient to bring the metal 
 to a liquid state. About thirty or forty hours are required for 
 melting and combining the materials to a proper condition, which is not 
 
GLASS. 
 
 128 
 
 exactly a liquid state ; but after tbe perfect melting has taken place 
 the mass is allowed to cool a little, so as to acquire a slight degree of 
 viscidity. At the proper time the cuvette , or vessel containing the 
 molten metal, is drawn out of the furnace by means of a crane, and 
 quickly conveyed to the casting-table; then, at a given signal, its 
 contents are poured in a stream upon the table beneath, and a heavy 
 polished iron roller passed over its whole surface. This roller rests on 
 two grooves equal in height to the intended thickness of the plate of 
 glass, so as to spread out the ductile mass into an equable sheet over 
 the table. As soon as the plate has become solid, the door of the 
 annealing oven is opened, when it is dextrously thrust in, and the 
 door closes tightly, where it is allowed to cool gradually.’ 
 
 As these plates leave the casting-table they are rough and uneven 
 on the surface, and have to undergo the process of polishing, which is 
 somewhat tedious and lengthened. The most simple process is that 
 adopted by the Messrs. Chance, and which has proved so effective in 
 its application. Imagine a smooth slab of the size of an ordinary 
 sheet of glass, and above it a number of felted polishing rubbers, the 
 slab below moving at a slower rate, and transversely to the rubbers 
 above, and so regulated that the sheet of glass between them should 
 receive a uniform polish or surface ; then further imagine some hun¬ 
 dreds of these slabs in a series of large rooms, kept in constant action 
 by the aid of powerful machinery, and covered over with red oxide of 
 iron, the material in common use for polishing, and you will have a 
 faint idea of the effective nature of the process. For a glass of large 
 dimensions, of course, a different process must be adopted, the prin¬ 
 ciple being nearly the same. 
 
 “ One of the most important points,” * says M. Flachat, “ in the 
 manufacture of glass is the polishing. In England they are more 
 advanced than we are in the operation, it being effected by superior 
 mechanical means. French glass, it is true, is of a whiter tint, but 
 the English has less defects; the first arises from using wood in our 
 furnaces, whereas the English use coal.” 
 
 The silvering of glass, in which we are somewhat behind the 
 French and Belgians, although greatly in advance of them in every 
 other respect, is effected in the following manner :—A sheet of tin- 
 foil is laid on a flat stone or slate table, and on this is poured some 
 mercury or quicksilver, whence probably the term silvering. The 
 plate of glass, being first made perfectly clean, is placed on the liquid 
 mercury in such a way as to expel all air bubbles from between the 
 
 * Tide Rapport de 1844. 
 
GLASS. 
 
 129 
 
 two ; then heavy weights are placed on the glass to force out the sur¬ 
 plus mercury from beneath. The whole is allowed to remain in a 
 slightly-inclined position for some days, after which it is found, on 
 removing the weights, that the mercury has combined with the tin- 
 foil, and that both together have adhered to the glass, forming what 
 is commonly called the “silvered” surface, which causes the reflec¬ 
 tive powers of the mirror glass. 
 
 The method of transfixing patterns upon glass, which we saw prac¬ 
 tised to a considerable extent at Spon Lane, as though it were ground, 
 is exceedingly simple, yet highly effective. A paste, composed of fine 
 ground glass and gum-water, is brushed over the glass until the sur¬ 
 face is perfectly smooth and uniform ; then a strip of thin metal, cut 
 into a pattern, is passed consecutively over the sheet, after being 
 rubbed with a toothbrush over the interstices left by the pattern, 
 which removes the paste to the precise form required. It is simply 
 the reverse way of painting letters, by means of a cut strip of metal, 
 upon a sheet of paper ; in the latter instance the black is impressed 
 upon the material, whereas in the former the paste is removed from 
 the surface of the glass. When this process is gone through the glass 
 is submitted to a certain degree of heat, and the pattern becomes in- 
 effacable. The form of the pattern is effected through the agency of 
 nitric acid and grease, so that there is no engraving required. 
 
 The flashing the glass is also interesting. It consists in giving an 
 object a coloured coating, which, combined with subsequent cutting, 
 produces several of the various and beautiful effects observed in the 
 ornamental articles exhibited. Nothing can be more simple than the 
 process by which these effects are produced. The object being formed 
 first in white transparent and colourless glass, and this being allowed 
 to slightly cool, it is dipped in a pot of coloured metal in a state of 
 fusion, and, being suddenly withdrawn, it carries away upon it a thin 
 coating of coloured glass, which immediately hardens, and becomes 
 encrusted upon, or rather incorporated with, it. The article is then 
 shaped by the processes of the glass-maker, and if it be afterwards 
 cut, those parts which are cut will disclose the transparent glass, the 
 parts not cut remaining coated with the colour. It is evident that an 
 infinite variety of figures may thus be formed, the outlines of which 
 will be defined by the coloured and clear glass. 
 
 One of the most beautiful and interesting departments of the art 
 of glass-making, however, consists in imparting to glass a variety of 
 transparent colours. This is effected by adding to the usual ingre¬ 
 dients of glass the oxides of certain metals, which have the power of 
 
 i 
 
GLASS. 
 
 130 
 
 imparting to the structure of the glass a quality by virtue of which it 
 absorbs certain constituents of the solar light, and reflects others. 
 
 In the highly intelligent volume of Mr. Pellatt,* we learn, accord¬ 
 ing to his practical mode of mixing the metals, which he has also 
 illustrated in his contributions to the Exhibition, that it has been 
 hitherto generally supposed that the oxides of particular metals had 
 the exclusive virtue of producing certain colours upon the glass. 
 Thus cobalt was supposed to have the exclusive property of producing 
 blue and copper green; hut it has been very recently shown that any 
 of the colours may he produced by any of the ordinary metals, the 
 colour varying according to the degree of heat to which the mixture, 
 or the colouring metal, is subjected. Iron, copper, cobalt, manganese, 
 gold, and uranium are the metals chiefly used in imparting colour to 
 glass. The different specimens of Messrs. Pellatt will clearly illus¬ 
 trate our meaning. The green shades of No. 18 are produced by the 
 oxides of iron and copper combined in different proportions, the yellow 
 tints being due to the iron, the blue to the copper, and the green to 
 their combinations. No. 19 is a dim yellow, produced by the carburet 
 of iron. No. 20 is a blue, produced by the oxide of cohalt. No. 21 
 is a purple, the production of the oxide of manganese. No. 22 are the 
 shades of rose and ruby produced by the oxide of gold. No. 23, a fine 
 specimen of the topaz, is produced by the oxide of uranium ; and No. 
 24, a fine emerald, is the result of copper and uranium combined. 
 
 And Mr. Pellatt justly remarks that, “ it would he matter worthy 
 of scientific investigation as to how far the oxides used in giving 
 colour to the ‘ metal’ are effected by the various qualities of fuel. 
 Our flint glass is unrivalled as regards colourless purity of substance. 
 No Continental specimens can, for a moment, stand comparison with 
 the productions of Birmingham and Stourbridge.” The use of lead in 
 our flint glass, while it imparts lustre and ductility to the metal, has 
 a tendency to diminish the depth and brilliancy of colour which other¬ 
 wise could be obtained from the oxides. Our glass is too transparent 
 to receive the rich deep colour which the Bohemians have so long im¬ 
 parted to theirs ; and the use of coal instead of wood is deserving of 
 enquiry, as to its effect upon the colourin'g properties of the oxides. 
 Nevertheless, we fully equal the foreign glass manufacture in almost 
 all these respects; the shade of ruby forming, we believe, the only 
 exception. It may be not only interesting, but highly useful, to 
 append the method of colouring glass, which is in general use through¬ 
 out Bohemia. 
 
 * “ Curiosities of Glass-making.” 
 
GLASS. 
 
 131 
 
 Blue. —The oxide of cobalt imparts to glass a fine deep blue, which 
 will stand the test of heat, and is produced by any flux. Cobalt is 
 also used for the fine blacks, mixed with manganese and iron ; and 
 with the yellow oxide of antimony it makes a fine green. 
 
 Purple .—The regular batch is three lbs. of manganese, and four 
 oz. zaffre to every 100 lbs. 
 
 Copper Ruby. —Copper oxidated and calcined by heat, not ex¬ 
 cluding the air, will produce a carmine colour, or, mixed with iron, a 
 full deep red. When contained in glass, add a quantity of tartar, at 
 the moment of fusion, but it must be worked off immediately, as a 
 long continuance of heat causes it to turn the metal, or mixture, 
 green. 
 
 Gold Red. —One lb. flint glass, powdered fine, three drs. of iron 
 scales, three drs. of yellow orpiment, three drs. Vermillion, and three 
 drs. of gold dust. 
 
 German Copper Red. —Seventy-one parts of sand, fourteen of oxide 
 of lead, seven and a half oxide of copper, one of oxide of iron, two 
 and a half fine clay, and one and a half lime. 
 
 Black. —In the regular batch put eight lbs. of manganese to every 
 100 lbs., and for deep black use a little oxide of copper. 
 
 Green. —520 lbs. of sand, 360 red lead, 160 pearl ash, thirty-five 
 nitre, one soda, six and a half manganese, and three iron filings, three 
 of brass, and eight of arsenic, to every 1000 lbs. 
 
 Yellow. —Four oz. white enamel, two oz. Naples, and a half oz. 
 borax. The oxide of antimony gives a full yellow colour to glass. * 
 
 Having premised these remarks upon the art of making glass,— 
 upon the nature of the raw materials in ordinary use for that pur¬ 
 pose,—upon the progress which we have made during the last few 
 years as compared to our continental competitors, we shall now enter 
 into a somewhat minute analysis of the contents of the Exhibition, 
 which may be presumed to offer a just and unerring test of the rela¬ 
 tive excellence of each, in this department of industry. 
 
 First and foremost we must give precedence to the glass fountain, 
 which, by universal consent, is one of the most beautiful objects in 
 the Exhibition,—therefore ought to be treated “ as a thing apart.” 
 It seems as necessary an appendage to that wondrous structure, as 
 the structure itself does to the great gathering of riches beneath its 
 
 * As the writer received the above details for producing colours in glass, so 
 has he given them to the reader. They are not expressed in the precise for¬ 
 mulae that science requires; nevertheless, they may afford a useful hint to the 
 practical reader. 
 
GLASS. 
 
 132 
 
 roof, and for which it forms such an appropriate receptacle. From 
 that centre of beauty you may radiate to any point of the enchanting 
 circle around you, and feast your eyes upon the fascinating objects 
 that you encounter in almost every direction, yet the mind lingers on 
 the fountain, as though it were the radiant image of a dream and 
 not a sparkling object of reality. But we must descend from the 
 region of enraptured expression to that of sober disquisition, although 
 we might plead an excuse for such indulgence in having watched 
 the progress of that marvellous structure, from the almost rude 
 materials to its present truly attractive form. The practical mind of 
 the age has already classed the fountain amongst the marvels of in¬ 
 dustrial art, not only for the beauty and originality of its conception, 
 but, also, for the novel appliance of such materials in realizing it. 
 Who now will presume to fix the limits of the application of glass, 
 with this beautiful demonstration before his eyes of its almost infi¬ 
 nite uses ? As a material for manipulative skill it has no equal, when 
 measured by the multitude of our social and domestic wants. Thus 
 does genius conduct man to a better existence, by a thousand diffe¬ 
 rent ways, and by putting every day within his reach a multitude 
 of new and unexpected enjoyments and uses. 
 
 As far as the details of the fountain are concerned, we shall con¬ 
 tent ourselves with simply stating that it measures twenty-seven 
 feet in height, and has absorbed four tons of metal—certainly the 
 largest structure of its kind in the whole world. The candelabra 
 made for Her Majesty by Messrs. Osier have the same amount of 
 excellence, and display similar good taste. This firm has carried the 
 art of making flint glass to its present perfection ; it is not merely in 
 transparency of light, in the diaphanous purity of the metal, but in 
 the diamond-like property which it possesses of sending back the 
 rays to the eye in greater brilliancy than it receives them. In these 
 important respects we are far a-head of the whole continent. The 
 large chandelier of Messrs. Pellatt is an equally striking corrobora¬ 
 tion that we have wonderfully progressed in the manufacture of 
 glass, especially as applied to light ornaments and similarly decora¬ 
 tive purposes. So also does that of Messrs. Perry, whose singular 
 construction and arrangement give it the appearance of a beauti¬ 
 fully fractured mass of crystal. The taste, the design, and the execu¬ 
 tion of both these large objects of ornamental use, at once attest the 
 richness and ingenuity we are capable of displaying in this branch 
 of manufacture, and, measured by past productions, conclusively prove 
 how rapid a stride we must have taken. There is little in the co- 
 
GLASS. 133 
 
 loured crystal chandeliers to recommend them, except their novelty; 
 and that too frequently is a doubtful feature for recommendation. 
 
 In the “cutting” branch of the manufacture we exhibit to great 
 advantage. The glasses, decanters, fruit and flowered vases of 
 Messrs. Lloyd and Summerfield, hold a high place, not only for the 
 beauty and purity of the material used, but also for the exquisite 
 nicety of finish which they display. Neither in the Belgian, the 
 French, nor in the Austrian departments, is there a single object ap¬ 
 proachable to them, in either of the respects pointed out. In the 
 contributions of Messrs. Bacchus and Pellatt there are likewise some 
 fine specimens in the same branch. The imitation of the Koh-i-noor, 
 and a dessert service of rare effect, from its simplicity of character, 
 are highly creditable to the latter firm; while the elegant wine¬ 
 glasses, with their delicately devised stems, of the former, attract 
 general admiration. Nor ought we to omit noticing the thistle-pat- 
 tern service of Mr. Green, St. James’s-street, which is beautifully exe¬ 
 cuted. The Brooklyn Flint Glass Company (America) have 
 contributed some creditable specimens of cut glass, but the metal 
 itself is not so pure as ours. 
 
 In fashion, form, beauty of material, and exquisitely finished 
 work, we excel the foreigner in this branch of glass manufacture. 
 
 In the coloured and fancy branches there must be great diversity 
 of opinion. In some things we are slightly in advance of our foreign 
 competitors, in many we are fully equal to them, but in a few they 
 still bear away the palm of excellence. First, as to the form and 
 fancy of design. In some instances the French surpass us, in seve¬ 
 ral the Austrians, and especially is it manifest in the collection of 
 Count Harrach, the most beautiful contribution of glass in the whole 
 Exhibition. Yet many of our decanters, wine-glasses, and general 
 objects of utility, excel the same class of productions, whether 
 French or Austrian; but in the higher regions of taste, where the 
 subdued grandeur of ornamentation is required, let us confess at once 
 that we must be content to follow, at least for a time. Some of the 
 flower-stands and vases in the Austrian collection are strikingly 
 beautiful, not only as regards the originality of design but the chaste¬ 
 ness of ornamentation, yet withal partaking of the richly-decorative 
 qualities of art. The French are much behind the Austrians in this 
 respect, although they have a style of their own, which has its pecu¬ 
 liar excellence, and, in one or two points, is well worthy of notice by 
 our manufacturers. We allude to their peculiar style of enamelling, 
 which is at once chaste and original. 
 
GLASS. 
 
 134 
 
 In the coloured department of our own manufacturers we have 
 some highly creditable contributions. The ehrysoprase objects of 
 Lloyd and Summerfield are singularly fine in colour; so are the ruby 
 and purple of Bice, Harris, and Co.; nor ought we to pass over the 
 exquisite yellows of Bacchus and Son, especially when united with 
 an alabaster material. 
 
 The gilding of glass is an art practised to greater perfection 
 abroad than here. The Bohemians particularly excel in this art, 
 being the first, we believe, to apply it to the ornamentation of glass. 
 The gilding is produced by the brown oxide of gold, which is ground 
 up with a flux, and ultimately with a fat oil. It is worked with a 
 brush, and is then submitted to a heat sufficient to melt the flux. 
 It is then laid to cool, when it presents a dull appearance, after which 
 it is burnished with stone burnishers, which gives it a brilliancy. 
 The enamelling of glass is produced from a metallic oxide in connexion 
 with a flux, which melts and vitrifies at a lower temperature than 
 the object to be enamelled. The enamel is ground upon a glass slab 
 with a glass muller, and some essential oil, and is applied with a 
 brush. A skilful enamellist understands the effect of heat on colours, 
 otherwise he could not practise his art. If the muffler offers too 
 great a temperature, the colour flies, or the object is distorted and 
 becomes worthless. 
 
 The Bohemians are particularly skilful in both these branches of 
 the art, and the French have their peculiar excellence in each, espe¬ 
 cially in gilding. Nor have we been negligent in imitating the 
 foreigner, in both respects, as our specimens at the Exhibition clearly 
 show. The contribution of Greathead and Green, of Stourbridge, is 
 singularly effective as regards the ornamentation by means of colour 
 and enamel. Their jars and vases, in the Egyptian and Etruscan 
 styles, both in gilding and painting, are quite new in their way, and 
 appear to have opened up a fresh avenue for the application of art to 
 glass. Among the curious applications of art and industry to make 
 glass either ornamental or useful, there are several specimens con¬ 
 tributed to the Exhibition. First, perhaps, in importance is the 
 silvering of glass by Mr. Hale Thomson, which has added a richness 
 and beauty of colouring to that material of which few could deem it 
 capable of receiving. The process is simple.* The metal is pre¬ 
 cipitated on the glass by a preparation of grape sugar, which has the 
 property of precipitating silver from its solution. The glass is made 
 with a space between its two sides; this is filled with a neutral 
 
 * Vide Hunt’s Synopsis. 
 
GLASS. 135 
 
 solution of silver, to which some grape sugar has been added, and the 
 beautifully pure coating of that metal is thus produced. The solution 
 being removed, and the interior washed and dried, it is sealed from 
 the effects of air. By this means, under a surface of glass, is obtained 
 the effects of metallic reflection, which cannot change unless the glass 
 is “ broken.” 
 
 The marble glass, or silexalated marble, of Mr. G. Shove, is another 
 example of the almost infinite application of which the material is 
 capable of. Here we have produced the beautiful and diversified 
 graining of marble, as though it were the production of the mine ; 
 indeed, the richness and variety of the veins greatly exceed those of 
 nature, while the polished surface of the material reflects the colours 
 more brightly and distinctly than the stone, whatever amount of art 
 may he bestowed upon it, For useful and for decorative purposes it 
 must prove effective, as its hardness, durability, and easily-cleaned 
 surface must render it of general and of easy appliance. 
 
 Again, there is Mr. Kidd’s discovery of embroidering glass, which 
 imparts so beautiful and chaste an embellishment to that material. 
 The character of the invention renders it capable of varied appli¬ 
 cation. The process consists in cutting some design upon the glass, 
 then silvering it over with a metallic surface, which gives the design 
 a strongly-defined and frost-like relief, although perfectly smooth to 
 the touch, the work being introduced on the underside of the glass 
 When viewed from the front, the designs have the appearance of the 
 purest silver raised from the surface of the glass, as though they had 
 been let into the material; nor can they he tarnished, hut will endure 
 in all their freshness and beauty, as long as the material upon which 
 they are impressed. This beautiful invention will give a strong 
 stimulus to the decorative art, especially where elegance, purity of 
 taste, and neatness of execution, are the leading desiderata. 
 
 In plate-glass we have no equals, as the mirror at the Exhibition 
 clearly proves, although it is somewhat too large to show our skill to 
 perfection. Swinburne, of South Shields, exhibits to us a new speci¬ 
 men of plate-glass, which, if comparatively economical, may he 
 applied in a variety of ornamental and useful ways. It is opaque, 
 and coloured so as to appear like marble, and the veins which inter¬ 
 sect the sheets give it, at first sight, the appearance of that stone ; 
 but the high polish and smooth surface which it has received soon 
 undeceives the eye. It is curious ; it may, by skilful application, 
 become highly useful, as well as ornamental. But the contributions 
 of the Messrs. Chance, to whose establishment we have cursorily 
 
136 
 
 GLASS. 
 
 drawn attention, partake of, perhaps, the deepest interest of any in 
 the glass department of industry. Before they applied their capital 
 and energy to this branch of manufacture, we regularly imported 
 our shades, our crown and flint glass, and the greater portion of our 
 ornamental glass, either from Germany or from France; but now, 
 through the agency of these enterprising manufacturers, we can 
 supply our Continental friends with a superior article, in almost 
 every respect, to what we were formerly glad to receive from them. 
 The shades in the present Exhibition are larger in size than any ever 
 blown before, and the largest amongst them was, we believe, blown 
 by an Englishman. This is a significant fact, seeing that but a few 
 years since this branch of industry, even at Spon Lane, was in the 
 hands of the foreigner. The latter would have laughed at an 
 Englishman attempting to do such a thing; now an Englishman can 
 perform a feat of manual dexterity—and a rare feat it is—superior to 
 the foreigner, be he German, Belgian, or French. We make this 
 observation simply to mark the progress which this branch of in¬ 
 dustry has made, within these last few years especially. The speci¬ 
 mens of window glass, mirror plates, and, above all, of their glass 
 for optical purposes, are highly creditable to the energy and industry 
 which have been exercised in their production. So, also, is their 
 lighthouse, which is so constructed that, while it preserves the light 
 from all the influences of weather, it also imparts it more strongly 
 and to a greater distance than the ordinary structures do; and to that 
 extent it becomes an object of the highest interest, not only to the 
 money calculations of the merchant, but also to the more holy 
 feelings of the philanthropist. 
 
 Glass for Optical Purposes .—The difficulty and uncertainty attendant 
 upon the manufacture of glass for optical purposes are much greater than 
 any one, unacquainted with the subject, could possibly imagine. The 
 repeal of the Excise laws upon glass has materially diminished the dif¬ 
 ficulty which, preceding that event, no person would venture to encoun¬ 
 ter ; still, there are difficulties incidental to the nature of the materials 
 used, which no legislative enactment can in the least control. We may 
 as well, however, adduce an instance or so of the injurious effect of 
 the Excise law upon this branch of manufacture, as it will serve to show 
 the impolicy of all fiscal restrictions upon industry, which is scarcely 
 conceivable until practical experience demonstrates its effect. The 
 Society of Arts offered a large premium, for a series of years, to any 
 one who would produce a piece of flint glass, fit for optical purposes, 
 of not less than one cwt. No manufacturer would venture to accept 
 
GLASS. 
 
 137 
 
 the offer, for the reasons stated; and the private chemists were de¬ 
 barred by the penalties of the Excise laws, which were too onerous 
 to be disregarded. For instance, any one “ convicted of melting 
 glass, for the purpose of any art or manufacture, of the weight of one 
 pound, was liable to the penalty of £100 for the same, with treble 
 costs of action, and a further sum of £100 for annealing or attempt¬ 
 ing to anneal the same.” The Polytechnic Society, however, ven¬ 
 tured to disregard the law, but they were soon called to account, and 
 brought to obey its dread commands. The Society, when first started, 
 thought that they might try the experiment, as no one could possibly 
 think that they desired to injure the revenue, therefore constructed a 
 laboratory for the purpose of experimentalizing, and deciding, if 
 possible, on the ingredients requisite to produce optical glass. The 
 society were proceeding prosperously, when the Excise officials paid 
 them a visit, and insisted upon the immediate demolition of their 
 furnaces, or to abide the results of a prosecution : they were too sa¬ 
 gacious not to listen to the first alternative. The furnaces were at 
 once taken down, and no similar attempt was made in this country 
 for several years. By a singular incident, however, the art of manu¬ 
 facturing optical glass is now known and practised in this country, 
 irrespective of the repeal of the Excise laws. On the fall of Louis 
 Phillippe, the extensive glass-works of Choisy le Roi were broken up, 
 and the choice collection of workmen, the result of many years’ care 
 and discrimination, were scattered here and there in search of a live¬ 
 lihood. M. Bontemps, whose fine practical knowledge was recognized 
 throughout Europe, came to England and offered his services to 
 Messrs. Chance, to whom he had been long and intimately known. 
 This enterprising firm availed themselves of the offer, and mainly, 
 we believe, through the instrumentality of that enlightened French¬ 
 man, have succeeded in the manufacture of optical glass. The speci¬ 
 men of their manufacture in the Exhibition is, we are assured, beyond 
 all precedent both in size and value. Mr. Ross’s Monstre Telescope , 
 in the western nave, has an object-glass measuring 11| inches in 
 diameter; but when compared with that of Messrs. Chance, marked 
 No. 22, class 24, in the collection of object-glasses, it is greatly dimi¬ 
 nished in value. The glass of the latter firm measures 29 inches in 
 diameter, and is stated to be worth £1500. We shall now briefly 
 detail the mode of manufacturing this curious and highly interesting 
 contribution. The preceding pages contain the different processes of 
 making ordinary crown and flint glass, but the process of manufac¬ 
 turing optical glass is essentially different. Instead of “ gathering” it, 
 
GLASS. 
 
 138 
 
 as it is technically called, the mass is left to cool gradually in the pot, 
 and, when perfectly cold, the latter is spilled or broken off like the 
 peeling of an orange. The bulk is then placed under a set of frame¬ 
 saws, the blades of which are made of soft iron, when, by the action 
 of emery and water, it is cut into slices or slabs varying from half to 
 one and a half inches in thickness. At Messrs. Chance’s manufactory 
 the saws are worked by machinery. The slabs are then cut into 
 round discs, care being taken to avoid the air bubbles; they are then 
 taken to the glass-cutter, who scallops a piece out of six or eight 
 equally distant parts on the edge of the disc, and opposite to each 
 other. These parts being polished, the interior of the glass is per¬ 
 fectly visible, though the face of the glass remains as rough as when 
 sawn ; by which means any internal defect may be detected, such as 
 strice , for instance, and remedied by subsequent annealing. The ad¬ 
 vantage of this process of manufacture is apparent, as the glass, being 
 kept for sometime undisturbed in a molten state, causes the impurities 
 either to fall to the bottom or rise to the top as scum, both of which 
 can be cut off with the saw and leave the mass comparatively pure. 
 
 However pure and transparent may be the body of the glass thus 
 prepared, there are still difficulties which are not easily overcome. 
 So much so, indeed, is this the case, that when a disc of large size is 
 produced, perfectly faultless , its value can scarcely be calculated, as 
 the list of Messrs. Chance’s prices for optical glasses clearly proves, 
 for the difference of a few inches in diameter causes a difference of 
 many pounds in price:— 
 
 LIST OF DISC PRICES. 
 
 3 inches diameter . £0 15 6 12 inches diameter . £48 0 0 
 
 6 „ 7 18 0 15 „ . 110 0 0 
 
 9 „ . 24 15 0 
 
 Limited space prevents us pursuing this interesting subject 
 further, therefore must we content ourselves with giving the re¬ 
 spective density of glass best suited for optical purposes:— 
 
 Taking the unit of water as . .1 
 
 Flint-glass should be . . . . 3.54 
 
 Crown glass . , . . .2.7 
 
 Hitherto we have been principally dependent upon France for 
 our optical glasses, but the change we have indicated above has al¬ 
 ready reversed the condition of the manufacture, especially when 
 large objects are required, and our neighbours are already availing 
 themselves of the change to suit their peculiar requirements. 
 
CHAPTER XIV.—SCULPTURE, &c. 
 
 One of the most interesting features of the Exhibition is assuredly 
 the sculpture. At whatever point you chance to enter that singular 
 structure, the attention is instantly drawn to some object of art which 
 forms a centre of attraction for the eye to rest upon, and thence it 
 radiates to other objects which more immediately surround it. And 
 the eye returns with pleasure to these objects of art,—after sating itself 
 upon others of perhaps not inferior interest and beauty,—as to a fami¬ 
 liar and recognized guide; by this means it becomes refreshed, and 
 gathers strength for a new incursion into the surrounding region of 
 marvels, where it wanders with greater gusto than though it were 
 left to gaze upon the monotony of naked naves and unbroken avenues. 
 
 The variety of the sculpture is alike instructive and interesting; 
 in character, in beauty, and originality of conception, it is singularly 
 so ; but in felicity of illustration it is both interesting and instructive 
 in the highest degree. The history of art furnishes no such page as 
 the one we are feebly attempting to illustrate. The variety of the 
 collection alone suggests a theme for speculative enquiry which would 
 lead the mind into an almost interminable labyrinth ; for the collec¬ 
 tion itself is “ as a sign ” to show whither tends the world, and what 
 is the nature of its movement. The question naturally arises, What 
 is the predominant character of the collected variety ? Taken nume¬ 
 rically, no bad test, it evidently leans to the illustration of the humane 
 and generous sentiments of one’s nature ; and this we deem one of the 
 happiest features of its character. The hateful and evil passions of 
 man’s nature are evidently on the decline, as subjects for the chisel of 
 the sculptor; and though a lingering tradition here, or a latent pre¬ 
 judice there, may occasionally renew the image of a Richard Coeur- 
 de-Lion or a Godfrey of Bouillon, the incarnations of an evil age, it 
 is a cheering reflection that such subjects form the exception, and not 
 the rule for genius to illustrate. This fact conveys a beautiful moral. 
 “Show me a man’s companions,” says the Italian proverb, “and I ’ll 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 140 
 
 tell you what he is;” and Voltaire cynically puts an hypothesis— 
 “ What must that people be whose gods are monkies ?” By analogy, 
 what are the prevailing characteristics of a community who are 
 eternally commemorating their warriors and statesmen, and seldom 
 think of their philosophers and men of science ? At length, however, 
 the heaven-gifted genius of our sculptors and painters has received a 
 more appropriate direction, and we can almost exclaim with the great 
 dramatist, that our 
 
 . . . . “ Spirits are not finely touch’d, 
 
 But to fine issues.”. 
 
 Ere we attempt to analyse the collection in question, let us just 
 glance at the state of sculpture, both here and elsewhere ; we shall then 
 perhaps, he enabled to form a more correct notion of its precise character. 
 
 The mind, from the earliest known period, has uniformly mani¬ 
 fested a desire to express immaterial thoughts by material forms. At 
 all times, and under all circumstances, one idea seems to have haunted 
 man—to establish a connection between the workings of his own 
 mind and the outward objects amid which he dwells—to identify his 
 moral being with the natural influences which surround him—and, 
 finally, to impress the records of his affections upon some material less 
 perishable than his own heart. This, we apprehend, was the origin 
 of sculpture, which, more or less, is found under every phase of civi¬ 
 lized life, and even in certain modifications of savage life. Amid the 
 ruins of past magnificence, and the first rude beginnings of social 
 structure—in the old world and in the new—wherever an altar has 
 been raised or a worship embodied—are alike found the traces of this 
 old and imitative art. The South-Sea islander, with his rude con¬ 
 ception of a God, is perhaps the alpha of the fine art of sculpture; 
 while Baily, with his divinely-expressive Eve, may be denominated 
 the omega. The uncouth representative of Deity, by the child of the 
 Pacific Ocean, is certainly a step in advance of the idea of the Indian— 
 
 .“ Whose uututor’d mind 
 
 Sees God in clouds, or hears him in the wind.” 
 
 Just as much so, indeed, as Paxton’s design of the Crystal Palace on 
 blotting-paper, rough and ricketty as it appears in that form, is, when 
 compared to the idea in Paxton’s head. There is, however, a wide 
 gap between the first material embodiment of a thought and its ulti¬ 
 mate and perfect illustration; and the hand that directs the rude 
 implement which cuts “ a grinning god of wood ” must necessarily 
 be directed by a different head to that which animates the cold marble, 
 and clothes it with the divinest attributes of life. A slight sketch of 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 141 
 
 sculpture will more fully explain our meaning; and it is the more 
 necessary, seeing that the art appears to have made little progress 
 from the early period of the Greeks to the present time, and that all 
 the European nations, judging by their contributions to the Exhibi¬ 
 tion, are about upon a par as regards their excellence therein. 
 
 The imitative arts are called poetry, painting, and sculpture, though 
 in fact the painter and sculptor are, and must be poets, according to 
 the general meaning of the term, which signifies a creator or inventor, 
 otherwise the one is only a dauber of colours, and the other is nothing 
 more than a stone-cutter. Nature is the great archetype which they 
 one and all follow—the painter through the medium of colours, the 
 sculptor by his plastic art, and the poet by his imagination. They 
 all take a peep into the great mirror of nature ; and the genius which 
 they respectively display is determined by the accuracy with which 
 they depict her reflections. However, let us confine ourselves to the 
 sculptor. He has neither the words of the poet nor the colours of 
 the painter as a medium for his thoughts. He relies solely upon form. 
 Like the painter, he can only have one moment of time, as it were, 
 to delineate his conceptions; he is obliged to seize hold of a single 
 incident, therefore is precluded from a succession of ideas like the 
 poet; but brief as that instant is, with what abundance of ideas may 
 it be fraught in the hands of a genius like Raphael or Canova! 
 The artist, whether painter or sculptor, naturally endeavours 
 to place his object in the most telling position, so that the 
 conception of his mind may be worked out to the most subordi¬ 
 nate point. In the form, the attitude, and the expression of the 
 figure, will be exhibited the power and genius of the artist, and, if it 
 be ably handled, it will leave more to the imagination than to the 
 observation—it will, in fine, be rather suggestive than descriptive. 
 For instance, Paul Preaching at Athens on Mar’s Hill is a single 
 incident, which Raphael has powerfully illustrated in one of his 
 cartoons, and the uplifted hands and earnest expression of the great 
 apostle imply that he was in the very heat of his discourse—that he 
 had attained the climax of his exhortation to the “ idle Athenians 
 and the Venus of Canova as expressively pour trays the momentary 
 action which mythology attributes to the divine goddess. In both 
 these instances there is something left for the imagination to supply 
 —the true secret of effective art. And this brings us at once to the 
 well-head of the art. 
 
 Greek art appears to have exercised an influence over the sculp¬ 
 ture of every part of Europe, from the earliest period of its existence 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 142 
 
 even down to the present time. Some fanciful critics tell us that 
 art was not indigenous to the soil of Greece ; nevertheless it flourished 
 there with singular luxuriance, and put on an individuality of excel¬ 
 lence of which there was no preceding example. If Egypt was the 
 cradle of art, Greece became its home, and the scene of its consecra¬ 
 tion ; it was in her congenial soil that sculpture adopted shapes and 
 took features which amount almost to a new creation. 
 
 The art grew with the growth of her high and spiritual mytho¬ 
 logy, when the land was full of lofty recollections, and haunted all 
 over with the poetry of beautiful thought—when stream and cavern, 
 mount and plain, sea and shore, were peopled with divinity, in some 
 of its abstract and ideal shapes ; it is here that we trace the perfection 
 of its intellectual character, when it took the form in which it finally 
 and for ever enchanted the world. As we descend the stream of time we 
 see the genius of Greece in almost every sculptured phase, as though 
 she had perfected the art; and even to the present day,—so powerful 
 is the spell of her genius,—the materials of our sculptors are drawn 
 from her mythology, as though it were a belief or a sacred symbol of 
 faith. 
 
 The mind of Greece, in short, was a miracle; it seems to have 
 attained perfection per saltuni , like its own fabled Minerva, w r ho is said 
 to have sprung armed cap-a-pie from the brain of Jove. Its laws, its 
 climate, its institutions—all were favourable to the development of the 
 mental elements ; and poetry, painting, sculpture, and philosophy, ap¬ 
 pears like a sudden creation of brilliant stars upon the horizon of 
 thought, whose undying light is still the prevailing beauty of the intel¬ 
 lectual world. Phidias, for example, brought to the art of sculpture,— 
 already advanced to an excellence far surpassing anything which the 
 ancients had left,—a genius of the highest order, a genius which had 
 been steeped, if the expression may he allowed, in the inspiration of the 
 poets, and disciplined by the wisdom of the philosophers. By com¬ 
 municating his divine spirit to the human form he raised sculpture 
 to the first place in art—aye, on a throne than which there is none 
 higher — and embued it with the power of exciting the imagina¬ 
 tion and of touching the heart. Quintillian remarks of his two great 
 productions—the Minerva and the Olympian Jupiter—“that they 
 seemed to have added something to religion, the majesty of the work 
 was so worthy of the divinity.” In the execution of his works he 
 also imparted a softness to the flesh, and a flow to the drapery, un¬ 
 known before his day. Flaxman observes “ that sculpture, as far as 
 it is a representation of external form, was perfected by the predeces- 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 143 
 
 sors of Phidias, and that they appear to have prepared it for that 
 infusion of spirituality, that fire from heaven, which it was to receive 
 at his hands—the Prometheus of art.” The next phase in Greek 
 sculpture is termed the “ beautiful,” as the one just glanced at is termed 
 the “ grand;” and, as we have slightly sketched the towering genius 
 of Phidias, we shall treat the more refined productions of Praxiteles 
 in a similar way. His compositions were full of a tender and volup¬ 
 tuous grace, subdued and chastened by a spirituality, which redeems 
 them from the charge of the sensual. The best works of Praxiteles 
 are said to have perished; the original of the Venus de Medici is 
 attributed to his graceful chisel. Lysippus may be ranked between 
 the two, as he combined a delicate conception with a somewhat lofty 
 and sublime illustration ; at least such is the character of his works 
 by ancient writers. 
 
 From Greece the arts travelled to Italy, but there they underwent 
 but little change, as the Apollo and the Venus still “enchant the 
 world,” and the Italians have scarcely approached the majestic beauty 
 of the one or the divine grace of the other, in their sculptured pro¬ 
 ductions. The revival of art, as it is called, and the fancied parallel 
 between Italy when Michael Angelo appeared upon the scene, and 
 Greece when Phidias had given his Jupiter to the world, is more 
 ingenious than truthful; and the mind must be strangely desii’ous to 
 accommodate facts to the assumed parallelism, or it would scarcely 
 venture to compare the Moses of the Italian sculptor with the Jupiter 
 of the great Greek. From Italy we may pass to France and Spain, 
 where art began to take root in proportion as the wealth of those 
 countries attracted the cupidity of the Church of Rome— 
 
 “Who spread her conquests o’er a thousand states,” 
 
 and who made everything, within human grasp, subservient to her 
 sinister purpose. Out of evil, however, there sometimes comes 
 good; and to the church we are indebted, in some measure, for the 
 progress and perfection of modern art, though it is too readily 
 assumed that to her alone must be attributed the aid and support 
 which art received. It is, we think, assuming too much to aver that 
 art would never have survived had not the Church extended its 
 patronage towards it; we might with equal propriety assume that the 
 Church would never have been able to extend its power so greatly as 
 it did, had not art lent its aid to fascinate the senses of its votaries 
 and to attract the curiosity of its converts. They were mutually 
 indebted to each other; but art would have sprung up had the Church 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 144 
 
 of Rome never been in existence, for it is a principle inherent and un¬ 
 dying in the mind of man, and the circumstance of its receiving the 
 patronage of the former may be attributed to the accident of the 
 Romish Church being, for a time, the predominant power of the day. 
 In Germany, there were no sculptors before the seventeenth century, 
 and no works deserving of notice. The first name of note is Rach- 
 miiller, of Vienna, whose career is subsequent to the time just men¬ 
 tioned ; and Willich and Barthel of Berlin, occupy similar positions 
 in the school of art. The monument of the Emperor Maximilian, in 
 the Church of St. Anthony, by Alexander Collins of Mechlin, indi¬ 
 cates that the artist must have studied in the best school of Italy, so 
 striking an example does it present of sepulchral sculpture. 
 
 England has some traces of ancient sculpture, but they are of 
 foreign origin. Here, as elsewhere, the invisible hand of Rome may 
 be traced, for she alone absorbed the genius of the age, in order that 
 she might direct it at her will. Our cathedrals and churches, in spite 
 of the Cromwellian Iconoclasts, exhibit several specimens of early 
 sculpture, which denote, more or less, one common origin; and, in 
 the eighteenth century even, nearly all the sculptors who flourished 
 in England were foreigners— Roubiliac, Scheemacher, and Rysbruck, 
 for example. It was only towards the conclusion of last century 
 that a British school of sculpture could be said to exist, and Banks 
 may be considered as its nucleus. There seemed, indeed, at that 
 period a general development of genius throughout Europe, and the 
 elastic property which the mind then exhibited serves to reprove the 
 stereotyped dogmatism by which too frequently it is sought to be 
 governed. Denmark, the cold and ungenial north, produced a Thor- 
 waldsen, one of the most classic minds in the art of sculpture that 
 has appeared for many centuries; Italy delighted in the reputation 
 of her Canova; France gloried in the genial aspect of her Bouchardin 
 and Pigal; and England was enriched by Bacon, Flaxman, and 
 Nollekens. Art was confined to no country, genius was not the 
 offspring of any clime, but both genius and art drew their inspiration 
 from one common source, and fashioned their forms in unison with 
 one common type. 
 
 We have said that the nations of Europe are nearly on a par in 
 point of sculptural excellence. Whatever may be the relative merits 
 of the modern productions of Italy, France, and England, for example, 
 there are three pieces of sculpture which attest clearly that one and 
 all of these countries occupy the highest ground in that art,—the 
 Venus of Canova, the Virgin and Child of Pradier, and the Eve of 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 145 
 
 Baily. The first is a little meritrieious to our taste; nevertheless it is 
 a beautiful conception, and admirably executed. The second is a 
 divine production, but slightly impregnated with modern gallicisms ; 
 it is not according to our notion of the Catholic Virgin, pure, simple, 
 yet full of grace, but rather partakes of what we should term a purely 
 French Catholic Virgin, having, in some degree, the jaunty expression 
 of a Boulevard Mademoiselle, just fit for a pose plastique in the Made- 
 laine, which, however, it beautifully adorns; while the third, to our 
 conception, is beyond all description, at least in such common-place 
 prose as we are obliged to indulge in. But we can easily avail ourselves 
 of another medium to convey a faint resemblance of the original, and 
 written by one who fervently admired, and lovingly appreciated, its 
 refined beauty and expression. 
 
 “ Nay—’tis no sculptur’d art—’tis she—’tis she— 
 
 The fatal fair, whose bright, betraying smile 
 Robbed man of Paradise—but taught him love! 
 
 Oh, more than seraph-beauty !—Even man 
 Is but ‘ a little lower than the angels 
 While woman, lovely woman, all divine, 
 
 Transcends their glittering hierarchy . . . 
 
 Ah! on such 
 
 A face as this our primal sire might well 
 Gaze away Eden ! Who that hung on lips 
 Like those, and listened to the utterings 
 Which made them eloquent, would still desire 
 The presence of angelic visitants, 
 
 Or sigh for cherub-warblings ?—who that felt 
 That soft heart beat to his, while o’er that neck, 
 
 Locked in love’s fond embrace, his fingers twined, 
 
 Like ringdoves nestling round the tree of life, 
 
 Would deem she lured to death ? 
 
 Yet—yet, she smiles ; 
 
 Yet o’er her own sweet image hangs, enamoured, 
 
 While, still and stedfastly as she, we gaze, 
 
 And share her rapturous wonder,—deeming her 
 Scarcely less vital than ourselves, and breathless 
 Only from admiration !—Beautiful! 
 
 ‘ The statue that enchants the world,’ no more 
 Boasts undivided homage. Britain claims 
 The laurel for her son, whose genius bids 
 Its sweet creation start to life and light. 
 
 Lovely as Pallas, when the brain of Jove 
 Teemed with divine imaginings-'’ 
 
 Henry Neale. 
 
 In bust and monumental sculpture the English school ranks high. 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 146 
 
 The national character breathes in our busts and monuments of the 
 highest class of art. The bust of Pitt, for instance, by Nollekens, is 
 a finished illustration of the manly and masculine intellect of the great 
 statesman. The spirit of the original lives in the marble. So also, 
 may- you perceive the mind of Scott, of Horne Tooke, and of Watt in 
 the busts of the former, and in the monument of the latter. Chantrey 
 in these several performances was truly successful; his own English 
 character is thoroughly transfused into those three marvels of art. 
 The delicacy of Baily’s chisel we have already dilated upon ; and that 
 of his master, Flaxman, is unsurpassed either in ancient or modern 
 art. These are the mere random recollections of the productions of 
 the English school of art; there are numbers of others jtbrhaps equally 
 entitled to distinction. The two children in Lichfield Cathedral were 
 designed by Stodhart, and executed by Legee, a Prussian artist, 
 then working in Chantrey’s studio, though the latter enjoyed the 
 credit of that beautiful specimen of art himself. We stated this fact 
 some twenty years ago, which somewhat annoyed the great sculptor, 
 though full of fame and with ample materials to augment it, even if 
 the “Two Children” were deducted from the sum of his performances. 
 The French contributions of sculpture will convey but a slight impres¬ 
 sion of the fine taste and original conception which they occasionally 
 display in their productions^ while the Italian is proportionally richer 
 than might have been expected, and amply illustrates the style and 
 character of its sculptural art. 
 
 With these prefatory remarks upon the style of sculpture, in times 
 past and present, we shall examine with greater interest the collection 
 to which attention is now directed. Pray bear in mind that you have 
 not one school to look at, but the collected productions of all the 
 schools, at least of the modem schools, therefore it will require a little 
 discrimination until you become familiar with their different styles, and 
 their respective modes of treating the same subject. Nevertheless, 
 with a little patience, we shall be enabled to arrive at a calm and cor¬ 
 rect conclusion. 
 
 We have remarked that illustrative and plastic art is now largely 
 devoted to the actions of the great and good among mankind, and 
 great because good, which must be viewed as one of the happiest 
 features of the age; and such devotion can only have arisen from the 
 improved condition of the human mind, and from the wider spread and 
 more generally recognised humanities of man’s best nature. 
 
 Art is truly and essentially catholic in its spirit, and never meets 
 the eye in so touching a form as when it represents an object of unas- 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 147 
 
 sumed virtue, or an incident of unaffected goodness. The poor slave 
 in the market for sale, with the fine instincts of her nature brutally 
 ignored, is a more soul-touching object of attraction than a drunken 
 Bacchante, however lusciously delineated ; and where a single indivi¬ 
 dual is drawn towards the latter, from a feeling of interest or sym¬ 
 pathy, there are hundreds rivetted before the poor naked captive, whose 
 indignant expression conveys a world of genuine and truthful senti¬ 
 ment. And what mind, irradiated with the faintest gleam of intelli¬ 
 gence, is not able to discover a more pleasing instruction from the con¬ 
 templation of a Jenner, for the first time enrolled among the familiar 
 spirits of our growing and rational worship, than from all the mailed 
 warriors, “from Macedonia’s Madman to the Swede,” who ever grasped 
 a sword, or directed their drilled desperadoes to the destruction of their 
 fellow creatures. Not that we wish to infer that warriors have been, 
 or are, a dispensible and obstructive element in the civilizing process 
 to which mankind have been so long subjected; but we view their 
 illustrative diminution as an indication that more temperate and 
 less hurtful instruments are required to effect the same purpose, and 
 we may safely conclude that the general mind of society is greatly 
 improved when humanizing agencies are more largely employed to 
 influence and direct it. 
 
 Wandering amongst statues that almost border upon the sublime, 
 images of men of great virtue and noble deeds, and of delicate and 
 graceful women—many of which display a marvelous knowledge of 
 proportion, and, also, of what is more rare, pleasing and profound ex¬ 
 pression—we are at loss where to begin, and, perhaps, shall be equally 
 puzzled where to end our critical observations. 
 
 As we have incidentally alluded, however, to the “Greek Slave,” 
 by Hiram Power, which attracts so much attention from the waves 
 of human beings that occasionally sweep past it, it may be as well to 
 select that object first. This statue has great beauties and great 
 defects, but the former are of so touching a nature that we are kept 
 away, so to speak, from the observance of the latter. In feeling it is 
 admirable. The subdued and indignant expression at her ignomi¬ 
 nious position is truthfully pourtrayed in every feature, and there 
 hovers round the lip that contemptuous scorn which woman can so 
 well express, when needed, against her unmanly oppressor. The 
 naked figure is an appropriate illustration of the leading sentiment of 
 the statue, and, though not badly conceived, is somewhat indiffer¬ 
 ently executed. The artist’s mind does not appear to have been 
 severely disciplined in the beauty of form, and the nicely-adjusted 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 148 
 
 anatomy of the female figure. The arms hang as though they did not 
 belong to the figure ; the left-hand seems mechanically placed in its 
 present position, and has little affinity with the feeling which seems 
 ready to burst her very heart; and the leg upon which the figure rests 
 has the least development of muscle, though it ought to exhibit 
 a fuller development than the other. Indeed, the whole configuration of 
 the frame, with the exception of the shoulders and the bust, is so still- 
 life, so lay-figure like, that it seems as though it were borrowed 
 simply to support a life-like and animated head. As the “ Greek 
 Slave,” however, is an imaginary form, there is no moral obligation to 
 treat her as the poet treated his living delinquent:— 
 
 “ If to her share some female errors fall, 
 
 Look in her face, and you ’ll forget them all.” 
 
 And we are almost disposed to follow the advice of the poet, looking 
 at the marble-creation of Power ; still, upon second thought we would 
 rather see it with head and shoulders alone, as we then might have 
 the pleasure of contemplating one of the finest productions of modern 
 sculpture. 
 
 Imagine, reader, the “ Startled Nymph ” of Behnes, placed side 
 by side with the “ Slave,” then you would have the very contrast, in 
 every respect, where the beauty of form and the truthfulness of ges¬ 
 ture are displayed. Run your eye down that beautiful nymph and 
 you will experience considerable difficulty in alighting upon the 
 slightest defect, either in attitude or in figure; all is graceful, deli¬ 
 cate, and to the nicest touch of nature. The sentiment, however, 
 embodied in a nymph startled by an adder, is not quite so captivating 
 and exalte as that of a young and innocent girl, who is too bashful 
 and too chary even to 
 
 “-Unmask her beauty to the moon,” 
 
 and yet finds herself naked in the market-place, exposed to the 
 prying eyes of some old “ neutral ” dealer, who is looking more 
 to his sequins, than to the sensibility of so delicate a piece of mer¬ 
 chandise. How every mother must have her feelings excited at the 
 ideal representation of ills which have befallen daughters ere now ; 
 not that a mother or her youthful child runs the remotest chance of 
 experiencing such treatment in these times, but 
 
 “ One touch of kindness makes the whole world kin.” 
 
 And the magic genius of the artist has 
 
 “-Bid their breasts with ancient (?) ardour rise, 
 
 And called forth Grecian drops from British eyes.” 
 
 Now, many a fair daughter of England has been occassionally startled 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 149 
 
 at a reptile or an insect—at a toad in the garden or a black-beetle in 
 the kitchen, for instance, but, as a matter of course, not in a nude 
 state, in either of those localities—so that there is very little of the 
 touching and sentimental in the idea of the “ Startled Nymph,” 
 though the artist has managed to invest it with a considerable 
 amount of interest. The idea has apparently been adopted to enable 
 the sculptor to exhibit his mastery over the delicate aud graceful beau¬ 
 ties of the female form, which is the prevailing feature of the 
 statue; whereas the sentiment appears to predominate in the “Greek 
 Slave,” and in the thrilling effect of the latter, you are disposed to 
 overlook the absence of the former. But, as far as the merit of a work 
 of art is concerned, especially sculpture, whose excellence is mainly 
 dependent upon delicacy of form and beauty of outline, there is little 
 comparison between the “Startled Nymph” and the “Greek Slave.” 
 The first is a perfect specimen of ideal beauty ; the latter is a some¬ 
 what defective representation of a cruel, yet touching, incident. 
 
 Turning to another of the rarot aves of the Exhibition, we find 
 ourselves again at fault, according to the ordinary mode of forming a 
 judgment upon objects of sculpture. The “Veiled Yestal ” of Monti 
 is one of those innovations which keep in abeyance the ordinary can¬ 
 nons of criticism, by departing from the simple and the beautiful, and 
 entrenching upon the artificial and meretricious. This may be called 
 the prettiness of sculpture, which a severe, correct, and highly refined 
 taste would at once discard from the category of the truly classical; 
 nevertheless, it has its admirers, and those by no means of an inferior 
 order of intelligence in such matters, therefore it must be received 
 with courtesy and criticised with caution. When Gerard Douw, as the 
 story runs, was shown a picture which the artist had painted with 
 his feet, that distinguished genius exclaimed: “More fool he; why 
 did n’t he paint it with his hands, he would then have done it much 
 better and much quicker.” Now, as the recognized aim of sculp¬ 
 ture is to produce accuracy of form and beauty of expression, and 
 as Monti, we have a right to assume, aimed at both, would he not 
 more effectually have attained his end by dispensing with the veil 
 upon his vestal ? To be sure the moon, as some poets maintain, looks 
 more beautiful when filmed over with a cloud, as there is something 
 left for the imagination to speculate upon, and for fancy to charm the 
 mind with its indefinite suggestions, than though the “ fair goddess 
 of night” came full flush upon the naked eye of the spectator. 
 In the hands of Monti, even assuming that the “Vestal” is not a 
 departure from the pure and recognized principles of art, as applied to 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 150 
 
 sculpture, this meretricious mode of representing the ‘‘human face 
 divine ” may, perhaps, be tolerated, though that concession is very 
 questionable, seeing that we have a “Veiled Beggar” and a “Veiled 
 Slave” by the same artist; but once give a latitude to that school of 
 art, if we may be allowed the term, by purchasing its productions, 
 and we shall be inundated with “ veiled ” faces, 
 
 “ From saint to sinner, from beggar down to slave.” 
 
 We, therefore, respectfully maintain, clever though it he, that the 
 “Veiled Vestal” is not in unison with the pure principles of art, as 
 practised by the Greeks, who were perfect masters of sculpture, and 
 have handed down to us the finest specimens that it is possible to con¬ 
 ceive, and which we moderns, with one or two rare exceptions, can 
 only humbly follow and feebly imitate. If we except the “Eve” of 
 Baily, perhaps the finest production since the days of Greece, we 
 have little more than distorted copies and spiritless imitations of their 
 beautiful bequests, search where we may throughout Europe. 
 
 The “ Captive Love ” of Fraiken brings us back to the simple and 
 beautiful in sculpture. There we have no tricksy touches, no distorted 
 devices, to improve nature. The artist has learned the secret that she is, 
 “When unadorned, adorned the most,” 
 
 and has judiciously presented his figure in a perfectly nude state. 
 The conception is beautiful, the execution is perfect, and the whole 
 contour of the production is charming, chaste, and delicate. With 
 the exception of Behnes’ “Startled Nymph,” it is, perhaps, the finest 
 piece of sculpture in the Exhibition, as regards female form and 
 delicacy. The idea is entirely original, and is worthy of all imita¬ 
 tion. The “ Odalisque and Butterfly,” in the Sevre room, is a 
 simple and effective illustration. It conveys to the mind, at once, 
 the innocent aspirations of a young captive, and the insect in her 
 hand aptly represents her own condition. The expression of the 
 young girl’s features, eyeing her captive, is so true to nature—she 
 seems to enquire, “ whence have you come, and whither will you 
 go? ” and a dreamy, instinctive feeling comes over her that she would 
 like to accompany it in its flight. Utter captivity to a young girl, 
 just dawning into life, innocent, enquiring, and intellectually inclined, 
 must be the bitterest, the most hopeless, of all conditions in this con¬ 
 ventional world; and we may imagine it to exist in the sculptured 
 production of Lemaire. The “ Drunken Bacchante ” of Glesinger is 
 one of those extravagant freaks of fancy which the extravaganza order 
 of mind in France loves to indulge in. A Bacchus in a drunken state 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 151 
 
 is bad enough for a sculptor or a painter to represent, but no pure- 
 minded artist, with the slightest morale in his nature, would ever 
 dream of desecrating his chisel by representing woman in that revolt¬ 
 ing condition. It is the duty of art, and that duty is strictly allied to 
 the holiest and purest of our nature, to elevate the mind by selecting 
 subjects of a refined and delicate tendency, and not to prostitute the 
 fine gift of the Deity by painting a stew, or by chiselling a fallen 
 angel of society wallowing in grapes, after becoming lusciously ine¬ 
 briated with them. As a work of art it is above mediocrity; but 
 there are several great defects, irrespective of the leading one just 
 mentioned. The prominence of the bosom is too great for a female of 
 the age which the contour of the frame would seem to indicate. The 
 breasts are as large as those of Rubens’ gigantic dames, whom he so 
 prolificly represents on canvas; and there they would be in place, 
 and in unison with the other portions of the figure, but outrageously 
 wrong in the “Bacchante.” Again, the position is somewhat distorted, 
 and were it true to nature under such conditions, the anatomy of the 
 frame does not correspond with it. The projection of the ribs, and 
 the general lankiness of the surrounding parts, are not to be found in 
 the nicely rounded frame of a fine figure, and artists ought to repre¬ 
 sent nature ideally right, though in models they frequently find her 
 really wrong. The expression, however, of the face, the position of 
 the hands, the cup, the grapes, and the general features of the com¬ 
 position, are somewhat powerful, but, as a whole, it is essentially 
 gross, and denotes that the mind of the artist is rather saturated with 
 vice than tinctured with the finer essence of virtue. 
 
 Our old favourite “Eve” is embodied in zinc, by Geiss; surely 
 the artist, that is, the creator of Eve, could have supplied, by some 
 means, a marble representative of her to the Exhibition. Either list¬ 
 ening, or startled at her own shadow in the water—both exquisite 
 productions—she would have been equally acceptable, and certainly 
 entitled to the highest award as a work of art. The “ Eve ” of 
 Baily is the embodied representation of innocence and purity, and 
 the more you contemplate her beautiful expression, the more chaste 
 and refined becomes the feelings of the spectator. Dryden’s allegori¬ 
 cal description of the purity of the Catholic religion may not be 
 inaptly applied to “ Eve at the Fountain.” 
 
 “ A milk-white hind, immortal and unchanged, 
 
 Fed on the lawn, and in the forest ranged : 
 
 Without unspotted, innocent within ; 
 
 She knew no danger, for she knew no sin.” 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 152 
 
 Talking of Eve and the old story of her fall, we ought not to pass 
 by the production of E. B. Stephens. Apart from a defect or so, it 
 is a powerful, original, and cleverly executed piece of sculpture. The 
 expression of Satan is highly suggestive of his once lofty and com¬ 
 manding position; there is the god-like brow, the intellectual eye, 
 and the finely-arched contour of a once superior being; yet there 
 seems a moody spirit to pervade all these fine features, as a cloud 
 sometimes overshadows the rich and glowing sun. There was the 
 great difficulty for the artist to overcome. The Satan of Stephens 
 has a true Miltonic touch ; there is still the remains of a once better 
 state—the fallen gentleman of old. The position, the expression, and 
 the entire conception of Eve is also truly original; and, had it been 
 placed in a better light—for the transept is too trying for sculpture,— 
 it would appear to much greater advantage. 
 
 We prefer Monti’s “Eve” to that of M‘Dowell. Nevertheless, 
 the latter is a fine figure, most gracefully and artfully attitudinised, 
 and bears some resemblance to what we cotild imagine would be the 
 case, were a well-shaped young woman of modern society to find 
 herself accidentally in Kensington Gardens, in just the state in which 
 we have a right to represent the first of the fair ones, the great mother 
 of us all. There is a fine, arch, artful expression in the face of the 
 figure, but it expresses too much for the simplicity and purity which 
 it assumes to represents. In other respects it is an able production, 
 but it ought not to be called Eve. The “ Andromeda” of John Bell 
 is one of those performances which all must approve of, and which 
 some few will largely admire. It is so simple, so chaste, so feminine, 
 so domestic in its character, that innocence instantly recognises its 
 own features, and propriety looks approvingly at its every expression. 
 Nevertheless, to our mind, it is somewhat tame, much as we admire 
 it; but the material is not the best for illustrating the soft and flexible 
 -—after all the great charm in the female figure. In marble, executed 
 by the same artist, in the same spirit, the Andromeda would rank 
 with the choicest productions of modern times. Cuyper’s “ Canadian 
 Mother ” is an affecting incident to embody in marble, but he might 
 as well have omitted the exuding of the milk from the breast; it is 
 an exaggeration that violates the instincts of nature, which never 
 errs. In other respects it is a truly powerful piece of sculpture. 
 “Lcda and the Swan” is another of those subjects which convey an 
 ambiguous moral to the spectator; the artist has evidently a fine 
 executive power, but with a dash of the libidinous in his mind. The 
 “ Dead Mother and Child,” by Lechesne, is, in some respects, a very 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 153 
 
 able production, but in others highly defective. In the first place, 
 the mother is too large, and why is she represented as dead ? The 
 incident of her death is not indicated, and her condition is of too 
 vigorous and pulpy a nature to suppose that she died from inanition. 
 This is a great defect, and renders the story incomplete. The eagle is 
 ably conceived, its wings and body minutely worked out, and its pur¬ 
 pose evident; so also is the infant clinging hopelessly to its dead- 
 alive mother. The figure of the female is much too large ; still, on 
 the whole, it appears effective. The “ Two Girls Fishing” form a beau¬ 
 tiful group ; the expression of the upright figure is, according to our 
 conception, all but divine. The “ Ino and Infant Bacchus,” of J. H. 
 Foley, is so well known that we can be spared a description of it; 
 nevertheless, it is always entitled to recognition, and has but few 
 equals in beauty of form, and originality of conception. The 
 “ Dorothea” of Bell is a charming illustration of innocence, and the 
 “ Sabrina” of Marshall is equally excellent. The latter figure, in¬ 
 deed, ought to be ranked amongst the choicest productions of the 
 room; its creator, Marshall, having the right and true feeling of an 
 artist. The “ Suppliant,” by H. Weeks, is an effective conception ; 
 original, expressive, and classical. It deserves a better place, under a 
 more subdued light; then its telling qualities would appear to due 
 advantage. The same remark will apply to his fine statue of the 
 Marquis of Wellesley, a singularly original, and even eloquent, though 
 mute, representation of that distinguished statesman. Its external 
 appearance is striking from its simplicity ; but the inner man is there, 
 which shows the grasp of character possessed by the artist. 
 
 In single figures the sculpture is somewhat rich, especially in the 
 English contribution. We have already noticed two. The “Ariadne” 
 of Kirk, and the “ Rosamunda” of “John Thomas,” may be added to 
 the list; both of them evincing qualities of a rather distinguished excel¬ 
 lence in art. The “ Venus and Cupid” of Jaquet is a beautiful con¬ 
 ceit, and effectively worked out: and the “ Orphans,” by Miller, is a 
 truth-telling, simple, yet appealingly expressive group. There is a 
 delicate figure of “Glycera,” by R. J. Wyatt, and a “Nymph,” by 
 the same artist, though not so ably executed in its anatomical illus¬ 
 tration ; still it is a pleasing performance. The “ Massacre of the 
 Innocents,” exhibited by the Art Union, is ably executed, and beau¬ 
 tifully conceived, and must be widely diffused, from its simple out¬ 
 line and its adaptible form. M‘Dowell’s “ Girl and Dead Bird” is a 
 poetical conception, and very chastely delineated. The two figures of 
 Baily are after his own style, but somewhat tame in expression; never- 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 154 
 
 theless the “ Tired Hunter” is a graceful performance, and, with the 
 dog, makes up an excellent group. The light is far too strong to give 
 them a fair chance. The figure of “ Whittington,” by Carew, is an 
 original and truthful conception; in marble it would tell its tale ad¬ 
 mirably. “ Cupid in Disguise,” by E. G. Papworth, is a pleasing 
 conceit, full of fancy, and might be applied in many ways to manu¬ 
 facturing ornamentation. The “ Babes in the Wood” is too close an 
 imitation of the well-known group of Chantrey, to say nothing of 
 the surplusage of the wreath over their bodies, which detracts 
 materially from the otherwise simple and expressive outline of their 
 figures. 
 
 In statuary the English are more happy than their continental co¬ 
 adjutors. The fine statue of Sir W. Follett, by Behnes, is a study of 
 itself; the character of the original is stereotyped and purified from 
 its work-a-day taint by the genius of the artist. The lawyer-states¬ 
 man breathes again in the stone. The figure of “ Jenner,” by Mar¬ 
 shall, is a most welcome addition to the art and genius of the country, 
 not altogether for the executive power of the artist, which is consi¬ 
 derable, hut from its being exercised upon so noble and elevating a 
 subject. Jenner ought to have been put into marble long ago ; his 
 services to mankind may he traced on almost every feature that one 
 meets with in the journey through life, not scarred and scarified as 
 of old before he introduced his preventive cure, hut fair, smooth, and 
 comely as though the “ ill which flesh is heir to” had been entirely 
 eradicated by his curative genius. These are deeds worthy of all 
 fame ; yet the public is slow to recognise their true value, though 
 they are daily and hourly receiving the benefits of them. If statues 
 were erected in material, according to the relative value of the cha¬ 
 racters they represent, Dr. Jenner ought to have one in gold, with the 
 Koh-i-Noor fashioned into eyes for his head, and the finest site in the 
 world to place it upon. “ He was not for an age, but for all time.” 
 The whole world have enjoyed the precious fruits of his labour, and 
 nations yet unborn cannot fail to appreciate them. The “ Duke of 
 Rutland” in bronze is a heavy representation of an able-minded man; 
 as a work of art, we must humbly premise, it is totally unworthy of 
 so distinguished a character. The Siamese Lawyers, Lord Eldon 
 and Stowell, look remarkably tame, clean, and heavy, the execution 
 being much better than the conception. They appear like two men 
 in a barber’s shop, just ready to be shaved, so muffled up and robed 
 to the chin has the artist represented them. The statue of the 
 “ Marquis of Bute,” by Evan Thomas, is a well-executed work of 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 155 
 
 art; the attitude is somewhat imposing, and the external parapher¬ 
 nalia is artfully and artistically arranged. Upon the whole, it is the 
 most effective statue, if we except the Marquis of Wellesley, in the 
 whole Exhibition. Flaxman, the great master of his art, is done in 
 marble, and such a do we certainly never beheld. 
 
 Now for the cavalry. Her Majesty in “yellow,” and Her 
 Majesty in “white,” immediately behind, are rank plagiaries from 
 the Twelfth Night artists, who supply the pastry-cooks with models. 
 The “yellow” and the “white” chargers are only full-grown copies 
 of “ paste and sugar” from Gunters. They have all the peculiarities 
 of his breed—full of action without expression ; but there never was, 
 and never will be, cross the breed as you may, a living quadruped like 
 those four-and-sixpenny four legs (that is about the price paid extra 
 when a horse is put upon a cake) that Her Most Gracious Majesty has 
 been so unceremoniously placed upon. Passing from such figure 
 imitations of our noble four-footed friend, we come upon another, 
 which is certainly a great improvement in make, shape, and 
 spirit, and has all the outward and visible appearance of being copied 
 from life. But, however skilful the copy, the original must have 
 been anything but a model to copy from, nor does the artist seem suf¬ 
 ficiently acquainted with anatomy to supply the apparent deficiency. 
 “ Godfrey de Bouillon,” by E. Semonis, is a colossal statue, which 
 perhaps is placed too near the spectator to appear as the artist de¬ 
 signed it, when working it out with his chisel. These allowances 
 must be made, when looked at in the Exhibition; nevertheless, 
 with all due abatement on that head, we consider it as a tame 
 and coarse attempt at the heroic and gigantic class of art. 
 It is wanting, to our mind, in fire of expression, in energy 
 of action, and is especially clumsy in incident. The sword 
 would have been a much more effective weapon to grasp than the 
 standard, if such a term may be applied to the latter. The horse is 
 a copy of a good specimen of the heavy Flemish breed—after all a 
 bad model for sculpture, however chronologically correct it may 
 be to select such a horse for the rider. In the bronze statue of 
 “ Richard Coeur de Lion,” by Marochetti, we have a much more 
 spirited production of the colossal kind. The figure, expression, and 
 attitude of Richard are singularly commanding—the uplifted sword 
 seems grasped with an energy and determination peculiar to the time, 
 and his seat on the horse is easy, light, but withal secure. The horse 
 itself is somewhat a failure. The head is an exact copy of the Greek 
 model in the Museum, a metal cast of which, to the full size, by Elking- 
 
 c 
 
156 SCULPTURE. 
 
 ton’s Electro-process, may be seen in the western nave of the Exhibi¬ 
 tion. Still, though a copy, it is ably done, and all the fore part of the 
 horse seems as animated as the rider, and fully conscious of the 
 important burden it has to bear; but just cast your eye along its 
 flanks, then run it down his hinder legs, and you will there see 
 the defects. The animal is as quiet behind as though he were half- 
 dozing in the stable, with his belly full of hay and corn, and standing 
 with one leg perfectly at ease. But how does this hinder position 
 comport with the outstretched, muscle-strained fore-leg, pawing in 
 the fulness of action, and ready to obey the instant command of its 
 rider ? It does not comport with it at all; it has no apparent con¬ 
 nection with it; the animal is fast asleep behind and wide awake in 
 front, which, quadrupedally considered, is a very grave defect. Re¬ 
 turning to the eastern nave, we have now a fair view of Kiss’s 
 “ Horse and Tiger,” the much talked of and justly admired statue 
 in bronzed zinc. Anatomically speaking, the animal is as near per¬ 
 fection as it is possible to conceive; nevertheless, to our conception, 
 there is one great error in it: why are the ears of the horse thrown 
 back when placed in such a position ? We know the ancients 
 adhered to that form of representing the animal, but had they seen 
 it under extreme terror, with every limb quivering with fear, which 
 is invariably the case whenever a horse is attacked by one of the 
 ferocious tribe of beasts, they would have represented it otherwise. 
 The horse has an instinctive dread of a wild beast, and in ninety- 
 nine cases out of a hundred is completely prostrated under its attack. 
 In what position are his ears when thus terrified ? Not thrown back,— 
 which rather indicates mischief, and denotes a consciousness of power 
 which it is preparing to exercise. Under an apprehension of danger 
 the ears are pricked forward and changed about almost every instant, 
 but scarcely ever dropped as expressed in M. Kiss’s horse. If we be 
 right, which we fully believe, then is it an error, and in a work of so 
 much excellence we may probably be pardoned for presuming to point 
 it out. Again, ranging your eye over the near side of the horse until you 
 reach the tiger, you will find that the vertebra of the latter is bent to 
 a curve, such as nature could not possibly admit of, even in the 
 flexible vertebra of the feline race. And the right shoulder of the 
 beast is almost flattened to the horse’s neck, as though it had the 
 power to diminish its limbs to any extent that might suit the artist’s 
 notion of preserving a graceful outline, and a comparatively unpro¬ 
 jecting surface. These, we conceive, are defects, and are justly open 
 to remark ; however indiscriminate may be the general observations 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 157 
 
 of the public upon its merits. It is, however, to say the least of it, a 
 very able performance, and reflects the highest credit upon the country 
 that produced it. The artist, we believe, is a Hungarian. 
 
 “ Giotto’s First Attempt at Drawing” is a highly interesting inci¬ 
 dent and ably worked out, if we except the hair, which appears 
 cropped too close for sculpture to delineate gracefully. The “ Dog 
 protecting the Child from the Snake” by Duchesne, is an able perform¬ 
 ance, and justly attracts many a sympathizing spectator; and the 
 pendant to it is equally effective. For power of a certain kind, and 
 limited in degree, there is scarcely an object in the Exhibition to 
 equal it, except the “ Unhappy Child,” which has broken its drum. 
 In almost every sense, the latter is a perfect bijou ; the expression of 
 the unfortunate urchin is so true to nature. 
 
 In allegorical subjects there are not many contributors, if we 
 exclude the Fallen Devils and Michaels, which are almost as “ plentiful 
 as blackberries; ” but the latter are simply statuary groups, the alle¬ 
 gories to which we allude are bas-reliefs. Carew has a large one, 
 called the “ Descent from the Cross.” In some respects it is an able 
 performance ; but, on the whole, it appears a much ado about nothing 
 that is very agreeable, and fails to convey a single sentiment likely to 
 interest the general spectator. The head of Christ forms an effective 
 relief to the group, but the different figures evince little sympathy and 
 earnestness of purpose in the work in which they are engaged. Oppo¬ 
 site to this large relief there is one of less ambitious pretensions, and 
 of much more effective merit. The “ Spirit of Science unveiling 
 Ignorance and Prejudice,” by Evan Thomas, is not only apropos 
 to the place, but is highly suggestive of the prevailing sentiment 
 which the Exhibition embodies. Still, to our mind, it has its defects. 
 However strange it may seem, we had rather the figure of science 
 had been altogether omitted, and the genius of science in the form 
 of a winged angel, in bold relief, in its place. A change of this 
 nature would more effectually illustrate the meaning of the fine 
 text, as the figures of prejudice and surprise on the one hand, which 
 are ably conceived, and the youths of the present generation on the 
 other, would appear to much greater advantage. Upon the whole, 
 however, it is by far the ablest allegory in the Exhibition, and, with 
 a slight alteration, would come out as an original and spirited com¬ 
 position. The “ Hunter and Dog ” of Gibson is a fine piece of sculp¬ 
 ture, worthy of the artist who executed it; and the “Allegro” and 
 “ Penseroso” of Durham are two effective heads, somewhat poeti¬ 
 cally conceived, yet heavily worked up, especially the former. 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 158 
 
 There are a few more objects worthy of notice that we recollect, and 
 several that we may have omitted ; amongst the former we must not 
 omit the “ Horse and Dragon” by Wyatt; as it deservedly attracts a 
 great deal of attention, especially from horse-fanciers and others 
 accustomed to the anatomical development of the animal. In many 
 respects it is an effective group, and would be more so were the 
 dragon a little less or the horse a little larger. As it is, the horse 
 is much too small; the poor creature seems literally up to its knees 
 in the convolutions of the dragon, and the only wish we have is, that 
 so spirited a creature would leap right out of its entanglement. 
 The figure of the horse is excellent, with two trifling defects—the 
 nostrils are distorted not distended , a proper distinction, as the former 
 could not possibly occur to any horse, unless the animal possessed 
 the power of turning the nostrils inside out. The other defect, if so 
 it may be called, is that there is too much flesh represented for a 
 perfect development of the muscular power of the animal. In every 
 other respect it is the ablest representation of the horse in the Exhi¬ 
 bition, not excepting that of Professor Kiss. Of the dragon we shall 
 say little, except that we cannot comprehend what is the meaning of 
 the schoolmaster’s baton in its jaws ? Be that as it may, the artist 
 has somewhat cleverly arranged so uncongenial a creature, as a suit¬ 
 able base for his nobler superstructure. The “ Mazeppa” of Pierotti 
 is admired for the representation of rough vigour and truthful 
 expression of the poor victim who was doomed to such an ignominious 
 and cruel death. The men who are binding Mazeppa to the horse 
 are singularly effective, much more so, indeed, than the horse itself, 
 which is rather mediocre. On the whole it is a very spirited per¬ 
 formance. Let us not forget the “ Bust of Monti” by Sangiornis ; it 
 is worthy of note, from the pleasure which may be experienced in 
 contemplating so fine a head, which contains a spirit so finely tuned 
 to the living thoughts of the age. It is ably executed. The 
 “Madonna and Child” by Leholte is a commanding group, and 
 reflects great credit upon the Belgian school of art; but the contri¬ 
 bution of Pradier does not come up to his acquired reputation, nor, 
 indeed, do scarcely one of the French sculptors. 
 
 The two pieces of sculpture in the Roman contribution are pecu¬ 
 liarly interesting. One forms a pendant to the other, each represent¬ 
 ing a “ Child and Dog; ” in one the child is asleep, and the dog is 
 gently patting its clothes; in the other the dog is reciprocally rewarded 
 by the child performing an act of kindness for it; and in both the 
 incident and expression are feelingly maintained. Stepping across 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 159 
 
 the nave, from this point of the Exhibition, you will have an oppor¬ 
 tunity of examining the “Woman and the Lion,” by Geefe, which 
 attracts considerable attention from the oddity of its illustration. A 
 nude female, beautifully chiselled, and seated upon a lion, is coolly 
 cutting his claws ; the beast, apparently fascinated with her beauty, 
 quietly submitting to be deprived of his power. The arch look of the 
 woman, and the silly, love-stricken expression of the lion, are excel¬ 
 lently depicted; indeed, nothing could tell its story better than this 
 group does, and scarcely needed the following conceit to assist it:— 
 
 “Amour, amour, quandtu nous tiens, 
 
 On peut bien dire—adieu prudence.” 
 
 While on the subject of the fine arts, let us not omit the beautiful 
 silver-work of Bologna; it must he seen to he appreciated, any 
 attempt to describe its airy, cobweb-like lightness would fail, how¬ 
 ever felicitously worded. 
 
 Returning to the transept, we recognize “Virginius and his 
 Daughter,” by M‘Dowell. After looking at it again and again, we 
 come to the same conclusion—that Virginius is much too large in 
 proportion to his daughter, whom he holds in his arms. The latter 
 is like an infant compared to the father, which materially detracts 
 from the effectiveness of the group. In other respects it is an able 
 production, although some objection may be made to the expression 
 and attitude of the principal figure. The “Eagle-slayer” of Bell is a 
 spirited production, and is deservedly admired; the only objection that 
 we dare venture to make against it is, that it is a little too strained. 
 The figure does not denote that possession of strength which the artist 
 intended to represent; the effect, as expressed in every limb, is 
 too great to he continuous and sustained. In other respects it 
 equals the best works of sculpture in the Exhibition. There are two 
 noble figures, en face to each other, in the transept, the “Falkland,” by 
 Bell, and the “ Hampden,” by Foley; both spirited representations 
 of the manly and thoroughly English character. The “Youth at a 
 stream,” by the latter, is a classically-conceived idea, and effectively 
 worked out. The “ Statue of Shakspere,” by Bell, is somewhat 
 quaint and tame, so, at least, it appears to us. 
 
 The bas-relief of the “ Mother and Child,” in the western nave, 
 is a sweetly affectionate and domestic representation; the expression 
 of the mother is truly maternal, and that of the child as pleasing as 
 such expressions can possibly be. The “ Mourners,” by Lough, is 
 greatly admired, from its simple and effective illustration. The horse 
 is a little too tame in the hinder parts; there seems little sympathy 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 160 
 
 with its anterior expression. The “Shipwrecked Sailor” thrown 
 upon a rock, grasping the portrait of his mother in his hand, and, 
 apparently, at his last gasp, is out of place in the transept, just close 
 to the “feeding department.” While the crowds are refreshing 
 themselves, it is no great treat to he looking upon a dying man; 
 besides, due effect is not given to a really powerful piece of sculpture. 
 And last, though not least, the noble group of Engel, representing an 
 episode in the conflict of the Argonauts and Amazons. It is ably 
 conceived, and artistically worked out. The expression of the female, 
 who arrests the arm of the intended slayer, is remarkably effective, 
 and embodies the whole spirit of the incident; so, also, is that of the 
 prostrate Argonaut. The group, as a whole, is certainly one of the 
 ablest in the Exhibition. 
 
 The portrait of Her Majesty, on Sevres china, by A. Ducluzeau, 
 after Winterhalter, is a pleasing and artistic production, especially as 
 regards the general arrangement of the colouring, which denotes a 
 refined and highly-disciplined taste. So also is the portrait of Prince 
 Albert, painted on the same material; it is a copy from the painting of 
 Winterhalter, by Bezarget, and exhibits the usually felicitous colouring 
 of the French school. 
 
 Turning to the bronzes in the French department, we are much 
 struck with their artistic taste and originality, especially those of 
 Lechesne, Vittoz, and Susse. The Barbedienne collection, as you 
 enter the Sevre room, are also remarkably fine, both in expressien and 
 execution, representing the antiques to perfection. The “ Dancing 
 Fawn,” in the nave, by Lequesne, is likewise a spirited reproduction 
 of the original. France is, certainly, most excellent in this depart¬ 
 ment of art. 
 
 Examining miscellaneous art, we must call attention to the picture¬ 
 printing of G. Baxter, which has become so generally ornamental 
 to a variety of publications. The specimens of this singular invention 
 are especially interesting. The “Anastatic-printing” of S. H. Cowell 
 is, also, another step in the direction of lessening labour, and aug¬ 
 menting effect, which is deserving of attentive examination; so, 
 likewise, is the “Colour-printing” of Kronheim, which resembles 
 cotton-printing in the progressive serial by which it is effected. The 
 “ Descent from the Cross,” after Rubens, is selected as an illustra¬ 
 tion of the process, and, as each colour requires a separate impression, 
 it may readily be imagined how many will complete a representation 
 of that noble picture. The whole series, however, are shown in the 
 contribution of Mr. Kronheim. Another invention, of considerable 
 
SCULPTURE. 
 
 161 
 
 importance in the illustrative branch of publication, is afforded in the 
 Engraving-process of C. Chabot. There we have specimens of zinc- 
 ographic, medallion, and sculpture engraving by machinery, producing 
 as fine a relief as though they had been produced by the tedious opera¬ 
 tion of the burin, hut at a much less cost, which is a great desideratum 
 in estimating the value of new inventions. Leake’s Basso-Relievo 
 Leather Tapestry presents a beautiful material for ornamental and 
 decorative purposes, and, doubtless, may he applied with considerable 
 effect. 
 
 Ingram’s “ Patent Enamel Painting” is a pleasing addition to 
 the elements of art, and may be applied most effectually for the 
 illustration of certain objects. The Paintings on Ivory by Sir W. 
 Newton must be ranked with the most exquisite contributions to the 
 Exhibition. The “ Homage,” and the “ Marriage,” are both well 
 known, respectively representing two important incidents in the life 
 of Her Majesty ; the “ Marriage” is especially interesting. As works 
 of art they deservedly rank high. “ Printing on Glass,” by Sanders 
 Trotman, is effective, and may be usefully and ornamentally extended, 
 where decoration is required; and a “New Method of Ornamental 
 Engraving by Voltaic Electricity” will attract attention, from its 
 proximity to the most powerful agent of the day. The designs for 
 Table Covers, by C. Hadder and Florence Collins, are artistically 
 conceived, as well as practically worked out; both these artists evi¬ 
 dently have an eye to the uses which their productions will be applied 
 to. “ Shakspeare’s Table,” by Luke Limner, representing the Seven 
 Ages, is a clever production, and would make a very interesting addi¬ 
 tion to any room where the great poet (and where is he not ?) is an 
 especial favourite. Reeves and Sons have contributed specimens of 
 their artistic commodities, such as colours, pencils, &c. ; and so have 
 Rowney and Co. in a more extended form, which attracts considerable 
 attention. But neither of these colour-dealers equals the display of 
 "Winsor and Newton, in the South-West Gallery, one of the finest 
 contributions of its kind in the Exhibition. As to the quality of the 
 materials we can say nothing; artists themselves must be the best 
 judges, after xising them ; we simply point to the spirit and energy 
 exercised in the display, which is highly creditable to the last-men¬ 
 tioned firm. A “ Colour Box,” designed for her Majesty, is a chaste 
 and delicate production, and reflects great credit upon the taste of the 
 Messrs. Ackerman. The specimens of bookbinding by Churton are 
 characteristic of the art in its various ramifications, and will prove 
 interesting to those who take a pleasure in imparting to their favourite 
 
162 WOOD-CARVING. 
 
 volumes an ‘outward and visible’ covering suitable to the internal 
 spirit of each ; and tbe same remark may be applied to the contribu¬ 
 tion of W. S. Orr and Co., which also is in immediate relation to the 
 same purpose, but somewhat more diversified in its nature. The 
 latter firm also exhibit a series of maps, illustrative of the physical 
 phenomena and features of the globe, which are highly interesting. 
 JSor ought we to omit the “ General Atlas ” of “ J. Wyld,” with its 
 sixty-seven illustrative maps, having the same purpose in view—to 
 facilitate instruction and extend the blessings of education. 
 
 -♦- 
 
 CHAPTER XV.—WOOD CARVING. 
 
 An interesting chapter might be written on the art of carving on 
 wood. There are materials for such a chapter in this country alone, 
 irrespective of the rich treasures on the continent, which are as diver¬ 
 sified as they are abundant. In our cathedrals, in our churches, and 
 in the private mansions of the nobility, there are, more or less, so 
 many and such varied specimens of the art, that its progress amongst 
 us may be traced from the rudest efforts up to those of the most refined 
 and delicate order. 
 
 We have already remarked in the chapter on sculpture, that the 
 Church of Rome materially extended the cultivation of the arts, in 
 order to augment her influence, and consolidate her power—that she 
 insinuatingly established her spiritual dominion through the medium 
 of temporal instruments—therefore it is almost unnecessary to repeat 
 that the majority of the stalls, the screens, the pulpits, and other deco¬ 
 rated portions of our ecclesiastical edifices, are the result of her domi¬ 
 nating presence. The Chapel of Henry the Seventh in Westminster 
 Abbey, the cathedral churches of Durham, Exeter, Gloucester, Canter¬ 
 bury, York, &c. &c., and several other buildings of similar antiquity 
 and character were originally decorated with wood sculpture. The 
 figures, sculptured upon the chesnut-roof of Westwinster Hall, show 
 the degree of excellence the art had attained in this country, so early 
 as the reign of Richard the Second. Long afterwards, sculpture in 
 wood continued to increase in excellence and public repute, for we find 
 that productions of rare beauty subsequently increased, and that 
 native and foreign artists of skill were liberally employed. The 
 number and variety of these productions are almost as extraordinary as 
 
WOOD-CARVING. 
 
 163 
 
 their merit and beauty, but, if we except a few lovers of the art, whose 
 prying perseverance has been largely exercised, the whereabouts of 
 these productions is but limitedly known. 
 
 The head of Henry the Third, carved in oak, is one of the most 
 ancient specimens of English carving. Horace Walpole describes this 
 relic with interesting minuteness. An oak chest in the treasury of 
 York Cathedral, upon which is sculptured a series of five bas-reliefs, 
 representing the legend of St. George and the Dragon, and a chair, 
 richly carved in oak, in St. Mary’s Hall, Coventry, are uniformly 
 pointed out, by all lovers of the art, as rare and choice specimens of 
 wood-carving. 
 
 Wood-carving was frequently made subservient to the satirical 
 feelings of the day, when the priests, dependants, and hangers-on of 
 the Church of Home, had become corrupt, flagitious, and debased. It 
 was the favourite medium for the caricaturist to convey his cutting, 
 racy, and killing gibes. There are numerous bas-reliefs, particularly 
 those carved underneath the seats of choirs, that represent grotesque 
 and.even obscene subjects, which are altogether at variance with the 
 sacred character of the building in which they are placed. The prin¬ 
 cipal figures in these sculptured reliefs are priests, or friars, or monks ; 
 and the actions in which they are represented are sometimes profane 
 and disgusting, even in the extreme. The different religious commu¬ 
 nities were frequently at variance with each other, and like the scor¬ 
 pion which is fabled to kill itself with its own sting, they satirized 
 each other’s follies, and mutually gibbeted their vices for the edifica¬ 
 tion, we presume, of their successors. These were the signs and tokens 
 that a great change was coming on—that the atmosphere in which 
 these creatures moved had become foul and foetid, and that nothing 
 short of a violent storm could impart to it “ a sweet and wholesome 
 odour.” The Reformation came—we all know the result; but these 
 carvings on wood are, nevertheless, well worth a passing remark, as 
 they incidentally illustrate the state of the public mind, and the pecu¬ 
 liar condition of art. The Franciscan represented the Carthusian as 
 licentious, ridiculous, and debauched, and the latter, as a matter of 
 course, returned the compliment in similar coin. Here may be traced 
 the origin of those grotesque and offensive designs upon some of our 
 most ancient ecclesiastical edifices, which for a time perplexed both 
 the antiquarian and historian. 
 
 In the reign of Elizabeth, the art of carving on wood appears to 
 have arrived at its zenith. At that period the houses of the nobility 
 were adorned with the choicest workmanship of sculptured wood, 
 
WOOD-CARVING. 
 
 164 
 
 and objects of furniture made of British woods were richly carved, in 
 accordance with the prevailing taste of the age. The finer specimens 
 of this class of art are somewhat scarce, and are therefore in great 
 demand amongst collectors, dealers, and antiquarians. 
 
 Leaping over a large space in the history of the art, we arrive at 
 the time when Grinling Gibbons lent the spirit of his genius to exalt 
 its excellence in this country, Walpole remarks truly—“ That there 
 is no instance of a man before Gibbons who gave to wood the loose 
 and airy lightness of flowers, and chained together the various pro¬ 
 ductions of the elements, with a free disorder, natural to each species.” 
 And so delicate was the workmanship of Gibbons, according to the 
 same authority, that a carved pot of flowers in a room shook as though 
 they were natural, by the mere motion of the coaches in the street. 
 The chapel at Windsor, and the choir of St. Paul’s, contain some 
 foliage by Gibbons, executed in the most artistic manner. His heads 
 of cherubs possess a sweetness of expression and an angelic loveliness, 
 which, as long as they exist, will render them the admiration of all 
 lovers of ideal beauty; and his picture-frames, where dead game, 
 flowers, and foliage almost deceive the eye into a belief of their 
 reality, are equally marvels of the art. The works of that gifted 
 genius, in fine, are scattered over the country, and attest the beauty 
 and perfection to which that branch of art had arrived. There are 
 other wood-sculptors who are also deserving of notice, having enriched 
 and kept alive the art amongst us, had we space to devote to so useful 
 a purpose, but must content ourselves with simply citing one, under 
 whose tuition a rare genius of the present day first began to develope 
 its latent powers. It was Bird, of Bristol, whose carvings on wood 
 are justly appreciated, that first suggested to Baily the idea of model¬ 
 ling figures, and determined the ultimate direction of the sculptor’s 
 mind. 
 
 In France, in Switzerland, in Belgium, in Italy, and in Germany, 
 the art of wood-carving has been more or less sedulously pursued, 
 and much more so, indeed, than in this country, if we except the 
 illustrations of literature, in which we have been more than usually 
 prolific, though it has not been entirely lost sight of here, as the 
 several productions of our artists and artisans clearly prove. 
 
 The contributions of wood-sculpture to the Exhibition are singu¬ 
 larly rich, diversified and artistically ornamental. The Swiss have 
 sent us some specimens of the state of the art amongst them, and the 
 French, on their articles of fui'niture, which we have already noticed, 
 are peculiarly effective; and in the other foreign departments there 
 
WOOD-CARVING. 165 
 
 arc, in one form or other, several contributions deserving of especial 
 notice and study. 
 
 In the Swiss department, to the best of our judgment, may be 
 seen the finest productions of carving on wood, however humble may 
 be the objects upon which the art is displayed. The boxes, baskets, 
 &c., &c., in the eastern nave, are singularly delicate in their orna¬ 
 mentation and finish, and are among the choicest specimens of artistic 
 manipulation. We have already noticed the highly-finished carvings 
 of the French, which, more or less, ornament their furniture contri¬ 
 butions, and shall simply content ourselves with pointing attention to 
 the [specimens scattered over the Zollverein departments, some of 
 which are exceedingly beautiful. 
 
 In the English departments the contributions of wood-carving are 
 numerous and diversified, both in character and quality of art. Rogers 
 is in full feather with his birds, and most effectually does he manage 
 to elaborate their external peculiarities ; but, with all his excellence 
 as a minute elaborator, he seems deficient in the power of design and 
 arrangement. He hangs up the birds in bundles, apparently in utter 
 contempt of their affinities, either as regards seasons or habits ; and 
 you may frequently perceive amongst his groups such an assemblage 
 of the feathered race, as never could occur in nature, nor even in a 
 Whitechapel bird-fancier’s order of association—not the best regulated 
 brain for such matters—though superior to our wood-representer of 
 the feathered tribe. Look, for instance, at that heavy-weighted glass 
 frame, hung round with bunches of birds, winch are so huddled 
 together that it is difficult to discern the distinction of their kinds; 
 yet the only error that we perceive in this style of grouping is, that 
 the artist is too prolific in his materials, and somewhat deficient in the 
 higher quality of arrangement and selection. Mr. Rogers would do 
 well to remember the old Italian proverb, which runs —mio caro amico , 
 troppo e troppo ; and too much is too much in every place, whether it 
 be the choking a dog with pudding, or plastering a looking-glass with 
 clots, and groups of dead birds. 
 
 There is, however, apart from this defect, only one to equal Rogers 
 in the English school of carving. The birds of J. W. Wallis, of 
 Louth, perhaps excel those of the former, in delicacy of touch, in 
 minute and life-like anatomy; and to such an exquisite degree is the 
 art carried that you may almost imagine that the birds have just been 
 shot—they look so life-like. But we ought to observe that the birds 
 in question are carved upon lime tree, w r hich is peculiarly effective 
 for carving, and that the wood is not stained and darkened, which 
 
WOOD-CARVING. 
 
 166 
 
 materially diminishes the minute relief of the objects carved. In this 
 respect, the birds of J. W. Wallis have an advantage over those of 
 Mr. Rogers. 
 
 Touching arrangements of carved frames, the specimens of Messrs. 
 Hanson and Son are deserving of attention, for more reasons than 
 one. Next to the Louth contribution, they are equal in carving to 
 any other in the department, and much beyond them in the disposi¬ 
 tion and character of the design. The objects are not crowded 
 together like bees in a cluster, people crushing into the opera, or 
 swarms of Irish in a lodging-house, hut each one appears appropriately 
 occupied, according to the instincts of its nature. The hen blackbird 
 sitting on its nest, and its mate feeding it with a worm, is one of those 
 natural incidents which a correct taste can touch off in the most feli¬ 
 citous manner. It tells its own tale. The bitterns, too, look as bit¬ 
 terns ought to look, solemn, silent, and isolated, as though they were 
 pursuing their natural avocations ; and the objects around the frame 
 are equally occupied according to their respective instincts and habits. 
 This production realises, to our mind, what carving ought to be as 
 applied ornamentally; and this is what Mr. Rogers fails to accom¬ 
 plish, notwithstanding his marvellous power, especially in delineating 
 single objects. In artistic combination he is certainly defective; after 
 all, the one thing needful in decorative ornamentation. 
 
 The “Kenilworth Sideboard” is worthy of a passing remark or 
 so, as regards its carved work. In some respects it is the ablest 
 production in the Exhibition; in others, it is somewhat defective. 
 Placing the bears in their present prominent position is what we 
 call a great defect; though it was a popular pastime in the reign of 
 Elizabeth, there is no reason why the brutes should be more promi¬ 
 nently represented than the bards—the animal before the spiritual. 
 The first object that leads the eye astray from contemplating the great 
 lights of that age—the greatest lights of the world—Shakespere, 
 Bacon, Raleigh, &c., is Master Bruin, and you can scarcely restrain 
 your indignation that such an artistic and elaborate production should 
 be marred by so insignificant an error. Yet so it is. 
 
 The “ Kestrel-hawk and Butcher-bird,” by J. Batsford, is some¬ 
 what effectively carved, and evinces a good eye for nature; in spirit, 
 character, and design, it is powerfully and truthfully executed. 
 Mr. W. H. Rogers’ design for a Royal Cradle is a beautiful specimen 
 of wood carving, and deservedly attracts attention; but there 
 is an “ Allegorical Yase,” standing near it, by W. Perry, 
 which is a beautiful specimen of wood carving, and may be ranked 
 
DESIGNS AND DECORATIONS. 
 
 167 
 
 amongst the most exquisite productions in the Exhibition. On the 
 group it is stated that the sculptor carved the principal portion of the 
 “ Royal Cradle,” which bears the name of Rogers, so that it is diffi¬ 
 cult to assign to each artist his proper and legitimate share, wherever 
 there is a joint production. These objects comprise the choicest 
 specimens of English carving, though there are several others of great 
 merit, and perhaps equally deserving of notice. 
 
 -♦- 
 
 CHAPTER XVI.—DESIGNS AND DECORATIONS. 
 
 The ancients were well aware that the perfection of art consisted 
 in combining, with the greatest possible effect, the useful with the 
 pleasing— 
 
 “ Omne tulit punctum qui miscuit dulci 
 
 and the studies of our artists and artisans should, therefore, he directed 
 to imparting a useful purpose to articles of ornament, and an orna¬ 
 mental character, to articles of use. The Exhibition cannot fail to 
 prove highly suggestive to them on this important subject. Whatever 
 is new to them in the category of the beautiful will at once attract their 
 attention ; and on studying the peculiar characteristics of the work, in 
 order to detect the secret by which the effect has been produced, they 
 will, after a series of such observations, easily arrive at the conclusion, 
 that the qualities required in a work which the artist aspires to have 
 ranked in the order of the beautiful, are very simple and few, namely, 
 unity of design, symmetry of parts, and harmonious colouring of the 
 whole. Here he will become master of the entire theory of the science 
 of his art, just as the mathematician becomes master of the entire 
 theory of the science of mechanics, as soon as he becomes thoroughly 
 acquainted with the few and simple laws by which nature controls 
 matter and motion. The progress which either of them, from this 
 point, make in practical knowledge, will depend upon their studying 
 all that has been achieved or found out in their respective walks, and 
 upon their capacity for improving upon the ideas, or enlarging the 
 discoveries of others. 
 
 Without an intimate acquaintance with the sciences of perspective 
 and of the five orders, every design will be obscure in execution. 
 They are the basis and the spirit of the art, and must be carefully 
 studied by every one who would excel in it. The beauty of outline, 
 
DESIGNS AND DECORATIONS. 
 
 168 
 
 which consists in correctness and congruity, is the acme of perfection 
 in any drawing of an article of taste. But this is too frequently over¬ 
 looked from an ambition to display a luxuriance of taste by a super¬ 
 fluity of ornament, which, while it is detrimental to the effect of the 
 work, also renders it more costly than is advantageous even for the 
 artists themselves. 
 
 Practice and perseverance are necessary to make a designer, but, 
 after all, designing is a natural gift, in the same way as painters, 
 poets, and composers are gifted. A youth may be taught to draw, and 
 copy the designs of his instructor, to perfection, but it is a different 
 thing for him to produce an original design. 
 
 The mistake of English designers is, that they do not follow out the 
 order or style of design upon which they start. When once they have 
 commenced they do not know when to leave off, but, after having made 
 a good design, persist in encumbering it with fancied improvements, 
 until the first and best idea is completely overlaid. Another misfor¬ 
 tune is, that where the combined talents of two artists of different 
 classes are required, they do not study, either by conspiring together 
 to produce an harmonious design of the whole, or by the one adapting 
 his ideas to those of the other, how to produce a tout-ensemble which 
 shall at once strike the eye of taste as being perfect for its consistency, 
 without which, though you may produce a stupendous effect, you 
 never can produce a grand one. For instance, the internal appoint¬ 
 ments and fittings of an apartment should harmonize with its style of 
 decoration ; but in this country the upholsterer violates the design of 
 the decorator, who has himself violated the design of the architect. 
 The architect may have erected a mansion in the Gothic style, the 
 decorator gives to the interior an air of the Saracenic, and then the 
 upholsterer fits it up perhaps in the quaint style of the Elizabethan era. 
 And to make the matter worse, perhaps neither of the three has strictly 
 followed his own design, but has been prompted by a meritricious 
 ambition of blending together as many of the leading features of the 
 several styles in his art as possible. Hence foreigners justly say that 
 true elegance is rarely to be met with in this country. 
 
 The chief elements of design are correctness and purity of style. 
 To attain correctness each object must have the proper proportion 
 assigned to it in the design which its uses and its nature suggests; 
 and everything deserving the title of beautiful must be invested with 
 an outline of definite character; and lastly, whatever style of orna¬ 
 ment is commenced upon, that should be strictly adhered to. For 
 instance, the styles of the Renaissance and Louis XIV. are both very 
 
DESIGNS AND DECORATIONS. 
 
 169 
 
 chaste and beautiful, if religiously adhered to. In these cases the 
 ornaments should be kept light, and symmetrically placed ; hut this is 
 scarcely ever done correctly in this country, through a desire to do 
 more than the styles will admit of, and thus overloading them with 
 ornaments which are out of place. Besides what we have said of the 
 harmony which should be preserved between the architecture, decora¬ 
 tion, and furniture of a mansion, the harmony of colour should also he 
 remembered. But this is frequently not the case, for you will find an 
 extravagantly luxurious carpet destroying the whole effect of the other 
 decorations, the pattern being much too large for it, the colours not 
 corresponding in tints with the wall, the chairs quite lost upon it, and 
 the curtains made to look insignificant. All this arises from a want of 
 taste, either in the party who gives the order or in the man of busi¬ 
 ness. Both are culpable in this matter. Monopolists, whose only 
 object is to get business, have made great innovations upon all trades 
 of taste; and the passion of our higher classes for foreign productions 
 of former ages, buhls, tapestries, &c.. have set every manufacturer to 
 work to corrupt what taste we have, whilst the artist must administer 
 to whatever may be the penchant of the employer. Hence the introduc¬ 
 tion of the Arabesque into ordinary rooms, which is quite out of charac¬ 
 ter, and destroys the effect of everything which is placed in connection 
 with it. It is adapted, as was originally intended, for no other purpose 
 than entrance-halls, vestibules, staircases, &c.; and to apply it to other 
 purposes, merely because it is a foreign style, is ridiculous. 
 
 In one branch of art—graining on wood—as a rare exception, we 
 almost stand alone. Our perfection in this branch of art has done 
 much to diminish the demand for marqueterie work, in which our 
 neighbours excel. But this kind of work partakes too much of minute 
 prettiness, which rather indicates a trifling with good taste than a 
 thorough relish of its broad, elevated, and richest affinities. Moreover, 
 when we know that the magic application of colours will produce the 
 same effect as the minute operations of the.hand; nay, still greater 
 effect, the cultivated mind then begins to admire what before it was 
 half-disposed to treat with a species of patronising contempt. We 
 are indebted in some measure to Messrs. Moxon and Kershaw for 
 thus stepping beyond the ordinary range of decorative art, whose 
 grained imitations have created a new field of ornamentation. Nor 
 ought we to omit Mr. C. Smith, whose efforts, in the same direction, are 
 equally creditable, and, in some respects, even superior to those just 
 mentioned. The productions of these artisan-artists, to coin an ap¬ 
 propriate phrase, sufficiently prove that genius, applied with a right 
 
DESIGNS AND DECORATIONS. 
 
 170 
 
 spirit, even in a comparatively humble walk, can achieve an excellence 
 which has a tendency to open a new path for industry. The contri¬ 
 butions of these several decorators to the Exhibition, which combine 
 all the requisites of refined art, furnish sufficient proof that we are by 
 no means deficient in the essential elements to arrive at a high degree 
 of perfection. 
 
 Nor ought we to pass by another branch of art, which is assuming 
 a certain kind of importance, namely, sculptured ornament. In the 
 Fine Arts Eeport of 1836 it was acknowledged that, “designs are as 
 well drawn in this country as on the Continent, but that the French 
 workmen are better educated than the English workmen, of the same 
 class, consequently the French artist has a better chance of getting 
 his designs well executed than the English artist has.” Granting this 
 view of the relative condition of ornamental art to have been correct, 
 it has but little application to the present time, the sculptured decora¬ 
 tions of the New Houses of Parliament clearly indicating that an im¬ 
 portant change has taken place in that respect. The labours of Mr. 
 Thomas, acting under Mr. Barry, are fully corroborative of the excel¬ 
 lence we have attained. 
 
 And here let us do justice to a foreign artist, whose genius and 
 enterprise have been greatly instrumental in diffusing a taste for 
 decorative art amongst us. We allude to Mr. Sang, whose works are 
 an honour to the age, as they mark a new era in the application of 
 the arts to multiplying the comforts and luxuries of social life, and 
 have placed him deservedly amongst the first of the decorative artists 
 of the day. Mr. Sang was a pupil of the celebrated Gaertner, the 
 director of the Boyal Academy at Munich, whose knowledge and 
 practice of art, in its highest walks, were universally acknowledged, 
 and from whom, doubtless, he acquired the secret mastery of it which 
 he has made peculiarly his own. The introduction of the Saracenic, 
 or Arabesque, style of decorative art into our clubs, the mansions of 
 our nobility, and other appropriate buildings, marks an improvement 
 in the taste and refinement of the public mind, and will soon remove 
 the too-much-taken-for-granted stigma of our being comparatively 
 indifferent to works of art, and to the diffusion of those works among 
 the mass of the community. It does more—it shows, to use the language 
 of Mr. Sang himself, “ that the English have comparatively divested 
 themselves of their Puritan prejudices, and prefer noble forms and glow¬ 
 ing colours to unadorned halls, and the Quaker’s drab and whitewash.” 
 
 The Conservative, the Carlton, and the United Service Club¬ 
 houses ; the mansions of the Duke of Hamilton and the Marquis of 
 
DESIGNS AND DECORATIONS. 
 
 171 
 
 Salisbury ; all these structures contain some highly-treasured evidence 
 of the beauty, originality, and richly-diffusive style of art which Mr. 
 Sang has naturalised amongst us, and which admits of such extended 
 application in the decorative branch of industry. Let us honour 
 genius whencesoever it comes, especially when its power is applied to 
 the improvement either of our mental or physical condition; whether 
 it manifests itself in the heaven-toned strains of an opera, or the 
 magic combinations of colour and design in the decorative arts, it 
 alike improves our social and our moral existence. 
 
 Extending our view to more general decorative art, especially in 
 relation to its combining the useful with the beautiful, we are natu¬ 
 rally attracted to the works of the first English decorators. In this 
 class we may safely assume that Crace holds the highest position; 
 though there are others, eminent in their peculiar styles, whose taste 
 is equally conspicuous. Messrs. Crace were the first, we believe, who 
 elevated decoration to a branch of the fine arts; for they alone, on 
 an extended scale, have introduced order, harmony, and uniformity of 
 character in their works. 
 
 Nor ought we to omit the decorative capacity of Morant, whose 
 name must be familiar to every reader of even ordinary acquaintance 
 with objects of taste, and whose contributions to the Exhibition 
 reflect great credit upon English decorative art. Trollope and Son 
 have, likewise, displayed a more than average ability in their speci¬ 
 mens of ornamentation of interiors; so also has Jackson, whose 
 carton-pier re fittings-up are at once rich, chaste, and refined in taste. 
 
 We shall now direct attention to the several contributions in 
 the Exhibition which have an immediate bearing upon the preceding 
 remarks. The grained panels of Moxon are, perhaps, deserving of 
 the first place. The walnut grain is beautifully and truthfully de¬ 
 picted; the others, though not so effective, from the nature of the 
 grains not admitting of such depth of colour, are equally worthy of 
 examination. The imitation of in-laid marble is as perfect as it is 
 possible to conceive, but looking at the whole arrangement of the 
 “ Drawing-room Decoration”—the panels, the grate, the sculpture of 
 the mantelpiece—we consider it as partaking too much of the pretty 
 and commonplace. The minuteness of the work no one can question, 
 but there is little congruity in it; the great defect is the want of a 
 single and reigning idea, worked out in all its subordinate parts, to an 
 effective whole. The sculpture is but so-so; the grate and its appen¬ 
 dages are an excellent specimen of metalliferous workmanship. This 
 contribution occupies a very prominent place; is much noticed and 
 
 
172 DESIGNS AND DECORATIONS. 
 
 severely criticised, and, in onr humble opinion, is the production of 
 minds limited in their range,—a kind of good journeyman’s work, 
 minutely copied to order. In other terms, it is a well-finished speci¬ 
 men of mediocrity. 
 
 T. Kershaw has some fine specimens of wood-graining, the first 
 we have seen to equal Moxon’s ; the oak grain is even finer than that 
 of the latter, and the walnut almost comes up to it. This is a highly 
 pleasing contribution. C. Smith’s imitations of marble are fully 
 equal to those just noticed, and when we compare the Arabesque de¬ 
 coration for drawing-rooms, boudoirs, &c., with the preceding, 
 though totally distinct in its features and character, yet it displays 
 what the other is wofully deficient in—originality of conception, 
 unity of purpose, and tastefulness of effect. There is also a panel, 
 painted after the Italian style, by the same contributor, well worthy 
 of notice. M. Sang’s specimens of his peculiar art are a study of 
 themselves, especially the interior of Hatfield House, where the true 
 principles of tasteful decoration are displayed to advantage. And a 
 few grained specimens exhibited by W. Holland are highly creditable 
 productions. Bielefeld’s ceiling decorations are also deserving of minute 
 examination, from the lightness, and the ornamental character which 
 they display. Mr. Digby Wyatt has several contributions well 
 worthy the study of the rising, and of the experience of the practical, 
 decorator ; some of the designs are peculiarly appropriate and effective 
 for their respective purposes. 
 
 We must now enter the mediaeval-room; let us, gentle 
 reader, tread softly, for we are upon delicate ground. Is not 
 the term mediaeval, as applied to that secluded room, a slight 
 misnomer? It is strange that there are almost as many objects 
 out of the room as in it, that are strictly mediaeval in their cha¬ 
 racter, and several of them much superior to those within. Traverse 
 the foreign departments, where your eye, ever and anon, is encoun¬ 
 tering some object or other whose style and character bespeak it to 
 belong exclusively to the middle age, as it is conventionally called, 
 still it is not in its appropriate place. And the same remark will 
 apply to several of the English contributions ; they, too, ought to 
 have been placed among the select few. Is it that the objects in the 
 Medioeval-room were selected from the mass of that class in the Ex¬ 
 hibition simply to illustrate a particular school, or age, of art ? If 
 so, we could reconcile ourselves to the exceptional nature of the 
 room ; but finding that there are only four exhibitors there, and that 
 all their objects—good, bad, and indifferent, for there is great diver- 
 
DESIGNS AND DECORATIONS. 
 
 173 
 
 sity in quality as -well as character—are exclusively arranged there, 
 we can only conclude that the term medieval is a misnomer, as applied 
 to that room, and that it would be much more appropriate to call it 
 the Mediequal room. Why mediequal ? Simply because it furnishes 
 equal medii for the quartetto of exhibitors to display their respec¬ 
 tive objects to the exclusion of a multitude of others, equally enti¬ 
 tled to such a distinction. These four exhibitors have not even the 
 modesty of the Pharisees of old, for the latter were content to 
 occupy the front seats in the synagogue ; whereas, these men of brass, 
 of stone, of clay, and of cloth, have monopolised the whole room to 
 themselves, and each has emblazoned his phylactery on its brow, if 
 we may be allowed the metaphor. What must our foreign friends 
 think, after examining the objects in the room, which they have done 
 most minutely ? What ? That modesty is not to be found in every 
 part of the palace, and that the saucy opponent of the fair goddess, 
 is in rather too showy and prominent a condition in the quarter to 
 which we allude. 
 
 The room is too crowded to exhibit to advantage the several 
 objects literally crammed into it. Several of them are exquisite 
 specimens of industrial art, especially those of Hardman, whose 
 peculiar excellence we have described elsewhere. The cups, chalices, 
 and other paraphernalia of the altar, according to the sumptuary 
 arrangement of the Catholic Church, are deserving of minute exami¬ 
 nation, from the choice and delicate manipulation which they respec¬ 
 tively display. The decorative portion of Crace is, in many respects, 
 the happiest we have yet seen of that peculiar class; it unites the 
 essential elements of ecclesiastical ornamentation, aptness of design 
 in form and character, and truthfulness of illustration, as regards time 
 and colour. The stone-work of Myers, and the encaustic tile-work of 
 Minton, however ineffective there, are deserving of careful attention, 
 as they are capable of being applied in so many ways, where architec¬ 
 tural decorative art is especially aimed at. We quit this room with¬ 
 out the slightest regret. 
 
 “ Priests, tapers, temples, swim before one's sight.” 
 
 It appears to us better calculated for a junta of Roman ecclesias¬ 
 tics, than for the calm-eyed contemplation of intellectual and refined 
 observers of art. 
 
 In the French department there is a beautiful specimen of white 
 and gold panelling in the eastern nave, and on the ground-floor of the 
 south-east section of the palace, there are a great variety of designs, 
 both for manufacturing and for decorative purposes. There you may 
 
174 PAINTING ON GLASS. 
 
 wander in a region rich in the conceptions of fancy, guided by a re¬ 
 fined taste, and an excellent eye for colour, where 
 
 “ All are but parts of one harmonious whole.” 
 
 The French have furnished us with ample materials even to found 
 a school for decorative purposes. 
 
 —♦— 
 
 CHAPTER XVII.—PAINTING ON GLASS. 
 
 The art of painting on glass has hitherto been practised on the 
 continent to a much greater extent than here. In France, in Ger¬ 
 many, and in Italy, the painting on glass has been elevated to the first 
 rank of art, and has given employment to the highest order of genius 
 in each of those countries. In this country, on the contrary, with one 
 or two rare exceptions, it has been confined to mere mechanical daubers, 
 destitute of almost every requisite to produce an artistic result. 
 
 But within these last few years we have pursued the art with con¬ 
 siderable success, and several of our productions at the present time 
 attest the great progress which we have made. It is somewhat singu¬ 
 lar that the art of painting on glass, which was supposed to have been 
 lost, was partially revived in France by an Englishman; and as this 
 fact is clearly established by our neighbours themselves, it would seem 
 to rebuke the too hasty assumption that our countrymen are deficient 
 in artistic genius and capacity. 
 
 “ There is a prejudice too readily entertained,” says M. Flachat, 
 “ that the secret of painting upon glass has been lost for many ages ; 
 therefore we admire the painted windows of our churches, not so much 
 for the beauty and harmony of their colouring, as for the supposed 
 secret of the art which is enveloped in so much mystery. This is an 
 error; the art of painting upon glass, it is true, was not practised in 
 France after the seventeenth century, hut it was known and practised 
 in Germany, and especially in England, some time after that period. 
 Some years ago Sevres exhibited, at one of the Royal Exhibitions, 
 some painted glass, which elicited general admiration ; in many 
 respects it was superior to the ancient productions, and certainly infe¬ 
 rior to them in no one point. An English artist , Mr. Edward Thom, 
 who had been invited to France by M. de Noe, gave a new impulse to 
 this branch of art, and materially established it amongst us. The first 
 experiment of painting on glass by M. Thom was made upon the 
 
PAINTING ON GLASS. 175 
 
 windows of the church of Saint Elizabeth : since that period he has 
 been attached to the establishment at Choisy-le-Roi, and has given 
 great extension to the art.” 
 
 The contributions of stained glass, as it is technically called, are 
 rich, varied, and numerous. Such an exhibition was never made at 
 one time in any age, and from it materials may be gathered to form 
 an opinion of its present condition throughout Europe. Like other 
 branches of art it is undergoing certain changes, and those who prac¬ 
 tise it are animated with the same feelings and influenced by the same 
 motives that generally obtain, wherever settled forms are recognised 
 and settled interests are threatened. Listening to the different opinions 
 expressed by adepts in the art, and respectfully acknowledging each 
 according to its intrinsic weight, at the same time wedded to no pre¬ 
 conceived views on the subject, we are enabled, as we think, to 
 express a fair, unbiased, and independent judgment upon every class 
 of production, whatever may be the peculiar character of its composi¬ 
 tion. One would imagine that the old spirit of the Aristotelian and 
 Baconian controversy, the question of the “Unities” in dramatic 
 composition, or the style of the Classicists and Romanticists, which 
 caused so violent a controversy in France some twenty years since, had 
 been revived in the present age, to hear the sticklers for the statu-quo 
 of things pronounce their anathemas upon this age, and upon that 
 style of painting upon glass. The “classical” school, as they some¬ 
 what presumingly designate themselves, denounce every departure 
 from a certain fixed form and style of art, as though they had arrived 
 at perfection, or that the character of the art they so slavishly follow 
 could not be improved. Hence, they insist upon the figures being 
 painted now as they were several centuries ago, simply because they 
 find them in such and such a form on the windows perchance of York 
 Minster, Cologne Cathedral, or some other ecclesiastical structure ; 
 and, if a modern artist presumes to imitate the beautiful art of Greece 
 by robing his figures to the very feet, and by representing the latter 
 in a comely shape, he is immediately decried, and his productions 
 pooh-poohed as not being executed according to the true principles of 
 art. The “ classical ” (?) school insist upon having the feet of their 
 saints sprawling down, simply because they were originally executed 
 so by incompetent artists, upon the same principle that the China-por¬ 
 celain manufacturer imitated the crack in the sample cup simply 
 because it was there. This pitiful slavery to paltry trifles denotes 
 one of two things, either that there is incompetency to strike out new 
 ideas, the advancing pabulum of the world, or that self-interest is the 
 
176 PAINTING ON GLASS. 
 
 main consideration, which may he secured more effectually by first 
 practising a certain thing, and then assuming, asserting, and dogmati¬ 
 cally maintaining that it is the only true thing, and that those who 
 deviate from it are ignorant of what they are doing. Let us dispense 
 with dogmatism on a question of this nature, which is in a mere tran¬ 
 sitory state, and examine fairly and impartially each of the produc¬ 
 tions before us. 
 
 But first, we must premise a few remarks upon the modus ope¬ 
 rands of glass-staining. In ancient, or mediaeval figure painting, the 
 effect of light and shade was produced simply by covering the sur¬ 
 face of the glass with a coat of brown, after which the high lights 
 were etched out, then the darker shades were painted in; such parts 
 as were required to be yellow were stained on the back, also the flesh 
 tints, and for this purpose one burning was generally sufficient. 
 This may be termed the primitive mode of glass-staining, to which, 
 it is insisted, we ought rigidly to adhere. The enamelling process is a 
 great advance upon the preceding mode, and produces a much more 
 vivid effect, hut it can only be attained by a greater amount of time 
 and labour. Nevertheless, the result is well worth the labour and 
 time bestowed upon it, if perfection of painting on glass is to be at¬ 
 tained, like painting on other materials. Enamelling requires a 
 greater number of colours, and differs essentially from the process 
 just explained. Orange, red, blue, rose colour, &c., are used to pro¬ 
 duce the life-like effects of a portrait; these colours being vitrified 
 until they become a portion of the glass on which they are laid, some 
 of them requiring to be burnt four or five times before the painting 
 is complete. The Italians have carried this art a step further, by 
 occasionally substituting portions of opaque instead of translucent 
 glass; and the effect attained is equal, if not superior, to an oil- 
 painting. In all this we see matter of gratulation, as it is in perfect 
 unison with the progressive movement of all artistic pursuits. 
 Change is an inherent law in every thing appertaining to human 
 affairs, however immutable may be the principles by which it is 
 effected. Certain glass-staining savans , however, have laid it down 
 as a rule that the art must only be pursued upon one plan; for in¬ 
 stance, a stained window ought to be composed of translucent mate¬ 
 rials, and those of an opaque nature must never be used, not even 
 partially. So that a slight—the slightest—portion of an opaque sub¬ 
 stance, be it glass, in a stained painting would be a desecration of 
 art and a violation of its fundamental rules. Now, what is the object 
 of painting a glass-window ? Simply, we apprehend, to pourtray 
 
PAINTING ON GLASS. 177 
 
 some sacred person or scene for the sake of edification. Then, if 
 this can be accomplished by enamelling, as it is technically called, or 
 by opaquing , if we may he allowed the term, in a more brilliant and 
 effective manner than by the old process, surely it is nothing less 
 than folly, or something worse, to make so silly an outcry against it. 
 “ There is nothing new under the sun,” said one of the wisest men, 
 and the glass-stainers of this day seem determined to furnish another 
 instance of its truth. Heaven protect an innovator, for he is safe to 
 become the victim of persecution, in one form or other ! It always 
 has been so ; and, reasoning from the past to the future, we must 
 conclude it always will he. From Demetrius the silver-worker at 
 Ephesus, who thought his u craft” was in danger while Paul 
 preached the truths of Christianity to his countrymen, down to the 
 glass-stainers of the present day, the same note has been uppermost, 
 “ what we do is right, what you are attempting to do must be 
 wrong.” We might fill a volume by noting down the incidents 
 which have an immediate hearing upon this arrogant dogma. The 
 great and good in all ages have come under its denunciation—the 
 men of large views, of far-piercing intellect, the mental watch-towers 
 of the world—these generally have been its victims. It is the same 
 animus , only on a homeopathic scale, that rebuked Columbus, that 
 imprisoned Galileo, that persecuted Pascal, and that prompted Vol¬ 
 taire to designate the immortal Shakespeare a “ literary savage,” 
 simply because the sublime productions of the latter were not in 
 unison with his conventional standard. And have not your Gains¬ 
 boroughs, your Byrons, your Turners, your Etty’s, all innovators in 
 the sense the pseudo-classical glass-stainers interpret improvements, 
 passed through precisely the same phases, of first being sneered at, 
 and of ultimately triumphing over all difficulties which prejudice, 
 ignorance, and self-interest, the most powerful of all feelings, placed 
 in their way ? And so it will be with the progressive glass-stainers. 
 
 With the exception of two or three productions the French have, 
 certainly, the finest specimens of glass-staining in the Exhibition. 
 Here may be studied the different phases through which the art has 
 passed from the thirteenth century down to our own time. The 
 primitive artist must have struggled hard to overcome the clumsy 
 leaden frames, which reduced him to so scanty a surface of illustra¬ 
 tion ; while, in the present day, more ample and effective means are 
 supplied, by the inventive resources of industry, for the exercise of 
 the art. The science of blending in harmony a few primaries was 
 comparatively easy, but the difficulty now is how to neutralize one 
 
178 PAINTING ON GLASS. 
 
 colour, or shade of colour, by another; and to effect this the artist is 
 necessarily compelled to sacrifice the conventional treatment which 
 formerly might he highly useful and advantageous to perfecting the 
 art. The models of this or that century, therefore, are compara¬ 
 tively valueless, and it only raises a smile of pity or contempt when 
 we hear this or that production censured simply because it may chance 
 to differ from this or that assumed standard. 
 
 The productions of M. Lusson are, perhaps, entitled to the first 
 notice, from the merit which they display. His imitation of a lan¬ 
 cet window of the thirteenth century, in the Sainte Chapelle , is an ef¬ 
 fective illustration of the art of that period. The figure of St. 
 Symphorosa, in the Renaissance style, is equally effective; but we 
 prefer the secular subjects of this artist. The two lovers telling their 
 tale to an old shepherd is after the pastoral scenery of Louis the 
 Fourteenth’s time, when the country swains were dressed out in the 
 style of the court, and simply acted their parts as though it were a 
 genteel comedy. Still, the effect of the scenery, the character of the 
 figures, and the variety of the shades of colour have an artistic ap¬ 
 pearance on glass. In another illustration of the same artist we 
 perceive the gradual departure from the old stereotyped form of glass- 
 staining ; here we have all the beauty of the vineyard depicted, 
 which, with the foliage, birds, and flowers, and the variety of colour 
 required to work these objects out, presents a most charming effect. 
 M. Lusson has, also, attempted the enamel, hut it will not compare 
 with that of Baillie, which we shall shortly notice. M. Thibaud 
 has given us a vigorous representation of an old friar, with a skull in 
 his hand, which, though coarse in some respects, is by no means 
 deficient in the true quality of art. The “ Last Supper,” by the 
 same artist, has a little too much of the French class of sentiment to 
 suit our taste ; nevertheless it will bear inspection as a work of art. 
 The enamel of “Judith and Holofernes” is another exemplification 
 that our neighbours are in arrear of us in this branch of the art. 
 The figures and surrounding objects appear immersed in a sort of 
 murky, brick-dust flame, which materially detracts from the other¬ 
 wise correct imitation of the original. M. Thevenot has a “ St. Ber¬ 
 nard” and the “Virgin and Child,” which are somewhat effectively 
 designed, though unequal in colouring; and the “Scene of the First 
 Paschal Sacrifice” is a bold composition, and very truthfully worked 
 out. The “ Burgomaster ” of Marechal and Guynon is one of the 
 most effective paintings on glass we ever saw, though a little too 
 much brought forward, which imparts to it an intrusive air. In 
 
PAINTING ON GLASS. 179 
 
 every other respect it is an able performance. The large subject by 
 the same artist is a valuable contribution : it is in the cartoon style 
 of drawing, and depicts an affecting incident recorded in history of 
 Charles Borromeo during the plague in Milan. That good priest and 
 excellent citizen is administering the sacrament to a plague-stricken 
 and dying man, while some of his attendants around are shrinking, 
 apparently with dismay, from the poor miserable victim. The position 
 of the leading figure and the expression of the dying man are power¬ 
 fully worked out, as far as the drawing is concerned, but we cannot 
 say quite so much for the colouring. Lafaye has an effective window 
 filled with medallions; and M. Fouque’s embossed glass, illustrative 
 of modern art, has a soft and pleasing effect. M. Capronniere of 
 Brussels has a number of cartoons, which fairly represent the state 
 of glass-staining in Belgium. They are mostly effective perform¬ 
 ances. M. Geyling, of Vienna, has some picturesque and graceful 
 landscapes and buildings in the enamel style of the art; but the 
 heroine of II promessi sposi , looking out of windo w, is the most effec¬ 
 tive painting in the whole gallery of its class. The colours are 
 singularly well laid in, and shaded off, even to the minutest portion 
 of the dress. As a specimen of portraiture on glass it is striking and 
 artistic. Descending to the octagon-room, we are charmed with 
 some exquisite paintings on glass; that of M. Kellner of Nuremberg 
 being especially attractive. Wetsell’s productions will also amply 
 repay a careful study of their character and execution; and Hodder 
 of Wurtemberg, in his enamel contribution, will also receive due 
 commendation. 
 
 We now arrive at what we deem the masterpiece in the Exhibi¬ 
 tion—the “ Dante Window,” by Bertini of Milan. The style, the 
 character, the exquisite mode of colouring, the subject chosen for 
 illustration, and the masterly manner in which it is executed, point it 
 out as an isolated, highly intellectual, and original performance. We 
 have already referred to this painting in our preliminary remarks, and 
 have endeavoured to point out the weakness or folly, or both combined, 
 in attempting to ignore such a production, simply because it has not 
 been executed upon what are technically called recognized principles. 
 When Edmund Kean first appeared on the stage, the old habitues of 
 the Kemble school were utterly dismayed; the originality, the fire, 
 and the unrestrained ebullitions of the youthful tragedian, sorely dis¬ 
 concerted their settled habits of thought, and the then recognized 
 mode of acting ; and many of the inveterate sticklers for set forms and 
 stereotyped usages would never acknowledge that Kean could act at 
 
180 PAINTING ON GLASS. 
 
 all. The world, however, thought otherwise, and applauded him to 
 the top of his bent, even in his declining days. Signor Bertini must 
 expect to meet with similar treatment; hut he has stuff within him 
 that will triumph over a whole host of such objectors. The figure of 
 Dante, in the middle of the window, is poetically conceived, and 
 effectively worked out; the colour of his dress forming a brilliant 
 centre, which irradiates the whole picture. The expression and atti¬ 
 tudes of the females, on either side of the central figure, are in perfect 
 unison with the character of the conception, and effectually illustrate 
 its subordinate parts. The shades of green, and richly-toned yellow 
 of their garments, contrast most exquisitely with the ruby and purple 
 which predominate in the dress of the poet, and the colouring of the 
 minor portions of the painting are in perfect harmony with the gene¬ 
 ral design. To those who are conversant with the great poem of 
 Dante it will prove a high treat, irrespective of their love of art, and 
 its felicitous illustration; and even upon the ordinary spectator, it 
 cannot fail to have a pleasing and highly instructive effect. 
 
 Returning to the English contributions, which are numerous, and 
 in some few instances effective, we must confess that we are inferior 
 to the French in this branch of art. The Messrs. Pugin and Hard¬ 
 man’s productions evince a careful handling, but a somewhat slavish 
 adherence to the prescribed formulae of art, which we have just 
 denounced. In colour, composition, and accuracy of detail, they 
 may be said to occupy the first place amongst the English school, 
 and, apart from the objections stated, are a highly creditable contri¬ 
 bution to the Exhibition. 
 
 Here we may as well remark, that France stands upon more 
 advantageous ground than we do, inasmuch that she has only sent 
 the picked and carefully-culled productions of her artists, the con¬ 
 tribution having been decided by several committees of selection who 
 exercised the utmost vigilance, in order that the reputation of her 
 art should not suffer any diminution; while in this country, on the 
 contrary, there has been a regular omnium-gatherum without order, 
 taste, or selection, and the only surprise is that we appear so advan¬ 
 tageous as we do. 
 
 The next exhibitor in quantity, if not in quality, is Mr. Wailes of 
 Newcastle; but we cannot discover in any one of his productions 
 anything beyond the mere copyism of the ordinary school, even to its 
 very worst defects. The Saviour or five-light window is, perhaps, 
 the most effective amongst his productions; in colour it is not so 
 bad, but in drawing it is out of proportion, whether we look at the 
 
PAINTING ON GLASS. 181 
 
 principal figure or the four subordinate ones. The Messrs. O’Con¬ 
 nor’s productions are not quite on a par with those just noticed ; in 
 drawing, and especially in colouring, they are generally but common¬ 
 place both in tone and character. The Messrs. Chance occupy some¬ 
 what high ground. In colour, in composition, and in finish, they 
 are assuredly the best productions of the general class of stained 
 glass; in addition to which they do not evince those trammelled 
 features which so peculiarly characterise almost all the others, still 
 there is a careful attention to the precedents of art, whenever they 
 are found practicable. The ruby diaper pattern, covered with a 
 trellis of vines, has a beautiful effect; and the figures of St. Paul and 
 St. Peter will bear comparison with the best drawings in Messrs. 
 Pugin’s collection. The lace-work decorative glass of these spirited 
 manufacturers is also singularly attractive, and may be applied to 
 numerous purposes of an ornamental nature. The group of flowers 
 by Messrs. Hetley is a spirited composition, and deservedly attracts 
 attention ; and Messrs. Hall and Son, of -Bristol, exhibit some rich 
 specimens of cut glass, which show that we have made, and are 
 making, great progress in the art. We had almost forgotten the 
 window of J. Gibson, of Newcastle, which, apart from a defect or 
 so, is one of the ablest productions in the space : we allude to the 
 representation of the Agnus Dei. Had the drawing been more per¬ 
 fect, it would have proved an effective performance. 
 
 The enamelled production of E. Baillie we consider to stand in 
 the same relation to the English contributions, as the “ Dante 
 Window” does to the foreign; it far surpasses them all. This con¬ 
 tributor has carried the art of decorating, or staining, glass to the 
 highest point yet attained in this country, or, if we make one single 
 exception, even on the Continent. Compared with surrounding pro¬ 
 ductions, the “Shakspeare and Queen Elizabeth” appears like a bril¬ 
 liant amongst diamonds, it is so far beyond them in depth and rich¬ 
 ness of colouring. The objection to this painting is, that the light is 
 made to appear as though it were thrown upon the glass from within, 
 in lieu of coming from without; or, in other terms, that the back¬ 
 ground is a reflecting or opaque surface, and not one capable of trans¬ 
 mitting light. Another objection made to it is in this form—that if it 
 chance to be broken, there is no possibility of restoring it; as though 
 it were in large pieces, unlike other productions, and were subject to 
 more contingencies of a destructive tendency than other windows. 
 These objections, it is evident, rather spring from a disappointed 
 than from a critical and fastidious source ; and the first may be dis- 
 
182 PAINTING ON GLASS. 
 
 posed of, according to our notion of the subject, by the fact that 
 what is lost by departure from the assumed rules of glass-staining— 
 translucency, is gained four-fold in effect, which is infinitely more to 
 the purpose, as regards the quality and purport of the art. Again, as 
 regards the fragility of the production. This objection is easily re¬ 
 moved, and could only be assumed to introduce a disparaging remark 
 or so; the painting, as we are instructed, is composed of eighty 
 separate pieces of glass, in an area of thirty-four superficial square 
 feet, and that the largest piece in the composition does not exceed 
 two feet superficial, and that is of stout sheet glass, twenty-six 
 ounces to the foot. In this respect, then, it is absolutely superior to 
 most other productions: that objection, therefore, must fall to the 
 ground. Besides, the purport of selecting a somewhat larger piece 
 of glass for one part of the picture was to obviate the joining of the 
 copper frame, which would have interfered with the effect, when it was 
 peculiarly desirable that it should not. The evil effect of the lead- 
 joinings is hut too visible in the Milan production, and mars mate¬ 
 rially its fine effect, in more than one instance. Having removed, 
 as we believe, the objections to the painting, we shall devote a few 
 remarks to the detail of its composition, which we unbiasedly 
 admire. 
 
 Our immortal dramatist is reading one of his works to Queen 
 Elizabeth, who is seated in a chair of state, attended by certain ladies 
 of her court, dressed in the costume of the age. Besides Shakspeare, 
 there is Sir W. Baleigh and the Earl of Southampton, “ fit audience 
 and few ” for such an occasion. The grouping of the figures is ex¬ 
 ceedingly well managed. The Queen is attired in a dress of white 
 satin, with a crimson stomacher, studded with pearls; and she wears 
 her usual head-dress. Sir W. Raleigh and Shakspeare wear the 
 slashed doublet and hose of the day, and the latter has also a small 
 cloak of crimson velvet. Considerable effect is given to the draperies 
 of the most prominent figures, every fold being painted with obvious 
 accuracy; but the great beauty in this part of the painting is, that 
 the different materials are represented so faithfully, the velvet and 
 satin textures appearing as though you coxild distinguish them by 
 touch. The general effect is indeed irresistible, and of itself is suffi¬ 
 cient to characterise the art as one of the utmost utility of application. 
 Every part of the picture is distinguished more or less for the 
 purity of the colouring, and great judgment has been exercised in 
 making it harmonise with the general distribution of light and shade. 
 Some of the colours are put in at once with glass of the required 
 
PAPER-STAINING AND PAFER-HANGINGS. 183 
 
 colour, but where a variety or combination occurs, these have been 
 painted on the glass first, and then burnt in. The pattern of the 
 drapery is managed by the use of fluoric acid, which etches away 
 the coloured surface, leaving it either blank for the reception of 
 another colour, or else a lighter tint of the original. By painting 
 partly in front and partly at the back of the glass, the shadows can 
 be represented with the greatest facility and precision. The trans¬ 
 mission of the light, and the effect of the thickness of the glass, con¬ 
 tributes much to modulate the intensity of the colouring. This is, 
 doubtless, the cause of the wonderfully correct imitations of the satin 
 and the velvet, both of which appear to great effect. Two medals, 
 according to a notice attached to the painting, were given to this 
 artist by the Society of Arts for enamelling on glass, one as early as 
 1833, the other in 1837. We repeat, with all respectful deference to 
 pseudo-judges in these matters, that the “Shakspeare reading to Queen 
 Elizabeth ” is the most effective production by far in the English 
 collection, and will bear in many respects a severe comparison with 
 that of Signor Bertini, which must be acknowledged as a work of 
 original conception, and of masterly execution. 
 
 -♦- 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII.—PAPER-STAINING AND PAPER-HANGINGS. 
 
 The art of paper-staining and paper-hanging has now become one 
 of the most interesting and useful branches of industry, whether 
 viewed in relation to the amount of skilled labour and capital em¬ 
 ployed, or the elegance, refinement, and convenience which it supplies 
 to our social wants. Paper-hangings are of comparatively modern 
 date, being originally manufactured as a cheap imitation of the rich 
 stuffs and tapestries used by the wealthy and great in the coverings of 
 the walls and wainscotings of their apartments. The French, we 
 believe, were the first to bring them into general use. 
 
 Paper-hangings may be divided, for convenience sake, into three 
 branches—the flock, the metal, and the coloured. Each of these 
 appears to have been invented at different times, in imitatation of a 
 material then much in vogue, as, for instance, the flock to imitate the 
 tapestries, the coloured to imitate the gilt leather which the Spaniard’s 
 brought into general use, and, lastly, the metal, which was intended 
 as an economical substitute for painted decorations. Beckman in his 
 
184 PAPER-STAINING AND PAPER-HANGINGS. 
 
 history of inventions, states that flock paper was first manufactured 
 in England by one Jerome Lanyer, in the reign of Charles I.; the 
 Dictionary of Commerce , of 1723, under the head of dominoterie , or mar¬ 
 ble-paper, such as is used by the old bookbinders, gives a minute des¬ 
 cription of the mode of printing the latter, and cites statutes to regulate 
 the industry, dated 1586, in which rides are given as to what kind of 
 presses are to be used by the dominotiers , and prohibiting them, under 
 heavy penalties, from printing with types. Here we catch a glimpse 
 of the keen-eyed vigilance of the Romish church, which dreaded the 
 progress of the Reformation, then spreading fast and far into every 
 region of human thought. From the preceding relation, it is fair to 
 infer that block-printing was first practiced in France. 
 
 It is evident that the art of paper-staining and paper-hanging was 
 carried on in this country to a considerable extent, from the time of 
 Charles I. down to Queen Anne; and its subsequent history may be 
 traced, with comparative accuracy, by the decorations adopted by the 
 nobility and gentry, several of which are still preserved, either on the 
 walls of their apartments, or in the works devoted to the illustration 
 of their mansions. In the year 1712, the tenth of Anne, a duty of 
 lfd. per square yard was imposed on the manufacture of stained- 
 paper ; and some of the flock-paper, one hundred years old, resembles 
 in every respect, the modern material. The art of flocking, in fact, 
 was disused, and almost lost, during a period of twenty years, and 
 revived only about sixty years ago. 
 
 There were formerly three modes in which paper-hangings were 
 manufactured—by printing the outline with blocks and then colour¬ 
 ing by hand, by stenciling, and by blocks alone. The first of these 
 methods is that adopted by the dominotiers. The second, stenciling, 
 is performed by cutting out either on paper, leather, or other mate¬ 
 rials, the pattern to be represented, and then placing this on the 
 proposed ground and brushing it over with the proper colour. This 
 mode gives an imperfect outline, and is seldom used, except by plas¬ 
 terers, to ornament coloured walls. The third is the mode now 
 almost universally adopted, whereby every colour is applied by a 
 separate block, according to the tints and shadows intended to be 
 represented: but within the last two years a great improvement has 
 been effected in this mode of paper-staining, by using several colours 
 on one block, which is a great saving both in labour and cost, besides 
 producing a more effective article at the same price. The Messrs. 
 Hinchliffe, we believe, were the first to introduce this improvement, 
 and so successfully have they followed it up, that, on some occasions, 
 
PAPER-STAINING AND PAPER-HANGINGS. 185 
 
 they use as many as twenty-five colours on a single block, the effect 
 of which, upon the labour-cost of the article, may easily he con¬ 
 ceived. 
 
 We shall pass over the minutiae of working practically the modes 
 in vogue at the present day, as it would occupy too much of our 
 space, however interesting it might prove in detail. Suffice it, for 
 our purpose, to observe that the French have long excelled us in this 
 branch of industry, through the agency of their highly cultivated 
 taste and practical knowledge of chemistry ; and it is only since the 
 tariff of the lamented statesman whose name it bears, that their pro¬ 
 ductions were admitted to this country. A duty is now imposed upon 
 foreign stained paper, as it is technically called ; yet, in spite of that 
 impost, it continues to find its way into our markets, notwithstand¬ 
 ing one or two disadvantages, such as the lengths, widths, and the 
 difficulty of repeating the pattern, if required, which are incidental to 
 its importation. France is indebted to her fine taste and her prac¬ 
 tical knowledge of art, for the supremacy which she maintains in this 
 department of industry, as our manufacturers know well to their cost, 
 for there is scarcely a single English designer that can devise a 
 pattern fit for working order, if it happen to involve a slight compli¬ 
 cation of colour and figure. The reason is obvious; our artists 
 have never been brought up to the pursuit, and seem almost 
 out of their place, when their fancy and imagination is “ cribbed, 
 cabined, and confined ” within the circumscribed limits of a manu¬ 
 factory or a workshop. There is no want of talent or genius amongst 
 us; but there is a great and lamentable want of a healthy discipline 
 to give that genius and talent a practical direction. Hence our manu¬ 
 facturers are compelled to employ foreign artists, and are dependent 
 for success upon the productions of those who might, otherwise, be 
 simply borrowers from us, as we are borrowers from them. This 
 mutual indebtedness, were our practical artists on a par with those of 
 France, would materially enrich the productions of each, and not 
 leave us the humble imitators of a style that, in many instances, is 
 anything but congenial with our tastes and desires. 
 
 The contributions to the Exhibition, in this branch of industry, 
 are peculiarly rich and diversified; and, as was to be expected, 
 France, if we may be allowed such a metaphor, is the radiant star on 
 the horizon. The specimens of M. Delicourt, Mader Frere, and 
 Genoux, leave our manufacturers at a considerable distance, as 
 regards the highest class of paper-staining. The large panel, illus¬ 
 trating a stag-hunt, is really a fine work of art, both as to colour and 
 
186 PAPER-STAINING AND PAPER-HANGINGS. 
 
 design ; and the beautiful panels on each side of it, with their exqui¬ 
 site borderings, present those rare feats in block-printing that it is 
 scarcely possible to conceive. If richness of fancy, and glowing har¬ 
 monious colours be your delight, just walk up to the gallery above 
 these performances, and you will there find a vivid illustration of 
 both, in the large pannel pattern, representing the several quarters 
 of the civilized globe, as though the fancy of the artist had blended 
 them imperceptibly together, similar to a series of dissolving views. 
 The practised eye, even, could scarcely anticipate such an effect. And 
 the red flocks of Mader Frere, to descend to the ordinary and useful, 
 which derives its best spirit from the productions just mentioned, will 
 naturally attract attention, their colour is so singularly bright, deep, 
 and vivid; so also will the delicate fawn shades of Genoux, which are 
 remarkable for their quiet and simple beauty. While on designs and 
 designers, take care to inspect the specimens of Juret and Laroche, 
 where you will find a new world of art, in which the imagination 
 may wander with almost infinite and inexhaustible delight, yet every¬ 
 thing, apparently, is under the most subdued and disciplined direc¬ 
 tion. Therein lies the perfection of art. 
 
 The papers in the Russian contribution are more curious than 
 effective in style and execution; in almost every respect they are infe¬ 
 rior to those from Austria, and much below those of Belgium, France, 
 and England. America, we think, is about upon a par with Russia in 
 this respect. The specimens of Spoerlin and Co., of Vienna, clearly 
 show that we have nothing to apprehend from that quarter; these 
 productions are poor in quality, narrow in width, and inferior in the 
 character of their colouring. Nor is Belgium so effective as she was 
 wont to be some ten or twelve years ago, in paper-staining; the 
 majority of her productions are heavy imitations of the French. 
 Zuber and Co., of Rixheim, have sent an excellent panel specimen in 
 the finest style of the French; and a series of papers ranged below it, 
 of the same manufacture, are well worthy of attention, especially the 
 blue and white. The only objection to these specimens is the width 
 of the paper; they are so very narrow, as compared to the general 
 class of productions. 
 
 There are, likewise, some good specimens of ordinary papers from 
 France, which are deserving of notice, but they are principally to be 
 found in the contributions of our first-class decorators, who have 
 stimulated the former in order to rival the productions of them own 
 countrymen. This, of course, is a legitimate trick of trade, though 
 mildly designated as fair competition; to this there can be little 
 
PAPEll-STAINING AND PAPER-HANGINGS. 187 
 
 objection, as it must naturally stimulate the productive energies of 
 our manufacturers. The latter, however, must endeavour to equal, 
 or to beat, the foreigner, then they will find the orders transferred 
 to themselves, instead of being sent abroad, which involves many 
 inconvenient contingencies. Besides, the bona fide producer will 
 find that the public will not depend so implicitly upon the capi¬ 
 talist, or decorator, as he is technically called, and that the lion’s 
 share of the profit, which the latter has somehow or other contrived 
 to appropriate to himself, must naturally revert to its legitimate 
 claimant. A decorator, under the present conventional state of things, 
 has the manufacturer completely under his thumb, and as a conse¬ 
 quence he is screwed down in price, his energies become relaxed, and 
 he is obliged to content himself with a mere hand-to-mouth existence, 
 for he feels that he is almost daily crucified, by the decorator playing 
 off the foreigner against him. The only way to emancipate himself 
 from this uncomfortable and unprofitable thraldom, is to improve in 
 his productive power, and his present annoying depressor will then be 
 converted into a useful and profitable adjunct. 
 
 We now turn to the English contributions, which may be desig¬ 
 nated as excellent, embracing, as they do, the intermediate and lower 
 qualities of paper-staining, both of which enter largely into general 
 consumption. But it is the intermediate quality, which involves a 
 considerable amount of artistic skill, expert manipulation, and a cer¬ 
 tain cultivated taste, that demands a more attentive notice ; the 
 lower quality depending in some measure upon mechanical power, 
 which may be brought into play, without any great attention to the 
 qualities just enumerated. And here we have considerable difficulty. 
 The several manufacturers of stained paper are pretty nearly on a 
 par in point of excellence, as regards the highest class of printing. 
 There is but little more than a shade of difference between them, and 
 that shade is not permanently in one place, but shifts about, according 
 as one or other happens to make a lucky hit, either in the design 
 or colouring of a new production. Nevertheless, each has a distinct 
 character of production, which requires to be minutely examined 
 before we can safely determine their relative merits. Belying 
 upon their contributions to the Exhibition, we should unhesitatingly 
 say that Messrs. Hinchliff and Co. bear away the palm of excellence, 
 though Messrs. Turner, Woollams, and Townshend, respectively run 
 them, and each other also, most desperately hard. Could we reduce 
 our description of the relative merits of these paper-stainers to that 
 of a race on the Derby-day, we should say that the three last-men- 
 
188 PAPER-STAINING AND PAPER-HANGINGS. 
 
 tioned firms had left the ruck of competitors, had come right up to 
 Messrs. Hinchliff, and were running them awfully hard, hut that the 
 latter would win by a distance at the post. But to individualize as well 
 as we are able. Messrs. Turner and William’s specimens are charac¬ 
 teristic of their general productions—good work, correct taste, and 
 purely English ideas. Messrs. Townshend and Parker present the 
 opposite contrast, as their rich and somewhat gaudy, gold-mixtured 
 patterns, though effective, are wanting in that peculiar quality of 
 subdued refinement which good taste imparts, even to gorgeous com¬ 
 binations of colour. Messrs. Woollams are somewhat betwixt the 
 two, occasionally reminding us of the correct feeling of the one, and 
 the gushing and somewhat redundant taste of the other. In all of 
 these manufacturers there is good work, excellent material, and, on 
 the whole, a rather superiorly-conditioned taste and fancy, but not one 
 to equal the French in the latter respect. The Messrs. Hinchliff 
 appear to come the nearest to our neighbours in the general run of 
 their productions, and display a little more diversity in their fancy and 
 taste than the trio just mentioned. The three panels, copied from the 
 French, which, by the bye, need not have been stated, seeing that 
 almost every other specimen in the Exhibition is either a copy, or 
 modification of a copy, from that source, are a favourable specimen 
 of that class of work, although there are better in the Exhibition, 
 which we shall duly notice. And here let us remark upon the 
 bad light for a fair exposition of paper-staining, which more 
 or less prevails throughout those parts of the palace appropriated 
 to their reception. These contributions are so scattered over 
 the building that it is difficult to catch the precise character of 
 each, however minutely you examine them; and the difficulty 
 is fearfully augmented when you have to walk a quarter of a 
 mile from one specimen to another, with a thousand interesting objects 
 between, every moment arresting your attention, and confusing the 
 comparative powers of your brain. Imagine, gentle reader, a walk from 
 the centre of the south gallery, at the starting point from the extreme 
 back, to the north-east gallery at the extreme end, and then you will 
 have an idea of the space to be traversed, irrespective of the countless 
 obstructions which materially lengthen it, before you are enabled to 
 critically compare one panel of paper-staining with another. This 
 is too much to expect from poor human nature. It would require 
 the velocity of movement which Napoleon ascribed to the eagle when 
 he was typifying his marvellous return from Elba to Paris. “ The 
 Imperial eagle,” said that singular being, “ flew from steeple to steeple, 
 
PAPER-STAINING AND PAPER-HANGINGS. 189 
 
 until it alighted on the towers of Notre-Dame.” We want a similar 
 power to this; we can’t obtain it,—so the less said about it the better. 
 Necessitas non habet legem; and if necessity really has no legs, she 
 must stump along as well as she possibly can. Well, now you are 
 fairly before the best show of English papers in the Exhibition. Let 
 us examine them minutely. Here you have specimens of the highest 
 order of decoration, both as to design and execution. Observe that 
 white damask ground with its Italian pilasters and border; the for¬ 
 mer is an effective base to the latter. Minutely inspect the drawing, 
 the colouring, and the general character of the design ; all is in good 
 keeping, and indicates that the designer’s eye must have been nicely 
 attuned to the finest elements of his art. The border and pilasters of 
 that panel have no equal in the English contributions, and are not 
 surpassed by the French. The pearly-grey ground of the pilasters 
 affords a beautiful relief to the high-toned yet subdued illustrations, 
 which are strictly after the Italian school of art; and the medallions 
 representing the seasons are tasteful additions which render the va¬ 
 riety at once harmonious and effective. The division of the panel 
 into three compartments has broken the monotony of the centre, and 
 displays to greater advantage the exquisite ornamentation of the base 
 and pilasters. This, we repeat, is the chef d'oeuvre of English paper- 
 staining in the Exhibition. The panel with the richly coloured bor¬ 
 der, is also a good specimen of the best condition of the art in this 
 country. The border itself is a study, where the colourist may luxu¬ 
 riate in the finest combinations of his art. The rose, the dahlia, the 
 China aster, with other finely-tinted fragments of Flora’s garland, 
 are there blended in harmonious and wreathed beauty, as it were to 
 show the rich variety which nature affords for the artistic industry 
 of man. These panels are the contribution of Messrs. Hinchliff and 
 Co. Let us extend our view to the panels of the same firm, hanging 
 in the north-east division. Here again we have specimens of the 
 different styles of decoration; the further one is called Italian, and 
 there is great scope, you will perceive, from the strong contrast of the 
 colours, either for good or for bad taste. A really good taste delights 
 in this class of decoration, a doubtful one eschews it, and a really bad 
 one has an utter horror of it. The reason is simple enough—there is 
 no chance of concealing the deformity of an imperfect and incorrect 
 taste in the same way as though it were employed on an undefined, 
 meltaway, bizarre kind of design, where the ideas are in a similar con¬ 
 dition to the zig-zag dance of a Hottentot, in which every measured 
 movement is set at utter defiance. How, the artist who designed that 
 
190 PAPER-STAINING AND PAPER-HANGINGS. 
 
 panel had a fine eye for colouring, or in other terms, his mind was 
 nicely attuned to that kind of work. The next is a neat centre, 
 intended, doubtless, to exhibit the rich border which surrounds it; 
 and the exhibition is effective, for there is no violation, to our 
 minds at least, of the harmony of colouring, neither in the de¬ 
 tail of the border nor the centre. Pass your eye on to the 
 other, and if you have a delicate taste you will admire that silvery 
 centre. The only fault we can possibly find with it is, that the 
 room with which it is decorated should be treated something like 
 Dr. Kitchner’s cucumber. “First pepper it, then salt it, after that 
 
 oil and vinegar it, and then-throw it away,” that worthy was in 
 
 the habit of observing, whenever the dainty vegetable was brought 
 under his notice. And we may say, humble imitators as we are, 
 touching that delicate paper, first decorate your walls with it, furnish 
 the room with corresponding objects, take one long look at it, and 
 then—lock up the door, exclude the common air, for nothing ought to 
 come “ between the wind and its nobility.” These three panels are 
 equally creditable to Messrs. Hinchliff. 
 
 Farther on we have another order of decoration in an Arabesque 
 panel, the very antipodes of the preceding; it is rich, it is gaudy, and 
 just calculated to kill every object in the room upon whose walls it 
 may chance to appear. Nevertheless, that kind of decoration is suit¬ 
 able for certain situations, and where it suits, it is most effective. 
 The quality of the panel in question appears excellently finished. 
 Next to this is a very fine and rich green flock centre, with a border, 
 although itself an excellent production, totally out of place. A more 
 outrageous perpetration of mischief we have seldom seen, for both are 
 good, but not exactly suitable for each other’s company. The same 
 contributor has another panel after the delicate order of decoration, 
 which is good in parts, but not nicely arranged as a whole. There 
 are the materials, but they are not in their right places ; a little more 
 discipline of mind, and that matter would soon be arranged. Look at 
 the combination of blue, drab, and pearl-white in the panel of Ilinch- 
 liff; there all is harmony of tone, which adds a beauty to the deli¬ 
 cacy of the design. These three panels bear the name of Woollams 
 and Co., who rank high, and deservedly so, as paper-stainers. In 
 another direction, and at some distance off, there are three fine speci¬ 
 mens of decorative papers; two are flock, one of them brown and 
 green admirably blended in shade, and would appear most effective in 
 a room—rich, but subdued to the tone of the furniture, assuming the 
 latter to be a dark-grained wood. The red flock is an excellent spe- 
 
PAPER-STAINING AND PAPER-HANGINGS. 191 
 
 cimen of English manufacture, and only inferior to one in the French 
 department, already described. There is also a rich and tasteful bor¬ 
 der round the third panel, which is a study of itself. These panels 
 are good, neat, and substantial specimens of the English taste, but 
 deficient in the fancy and fine touch of the French. They are the 
 productions of Mr. H. Turner, of Pimlico. Descending to the base¬ 
 ment-floor you will find the contribution of Messrs. Townshend and 
 Parker, which, upon examination, will justify our preceding remark 
 upon their class of productions—rich, gaudy, and redundant in gold 
 and colour; still, they are effective, and come very near, if not quite, 
 to the recognised standard of correct taste. Returning to the gallery, 
 and carefully inspecting the isolated contributions, your eye is at¬ 
 tracted by a large surface of oak statuary panelling, if such an epithet 
 will convey a description of Mr. C. Norwood’s specimen. For certain 
 kinds of decoration this style will be found effective ; the durability 
 of the paper, in this instance, must be looked to, before its artistic 
 merits, which are by no means below par. The oak panelling produc¬ 
 tions of R. Horne are the best we have yet seen of that class of paper- 
 staining ; and the marble imitations of W. Cooze are equally entitled 
 to notice. While in this department let us state that we miss Mr. 
 Archer, whose productions were originally in the Exhibition, and 
 some of which were more than ordinarily effective. 
 
 We now approach the machine section of paper-staining, in which 
 we have no Continental rivals; our superiority, in this respect, must 
 be acknowledged at once. But there is a great diversity of qualities 
 amongst our own manufacturers. Potter has a great variety in his 
 contribution, as regards colours, but not so much so as regards quality. 
 This class of paper combines two opposite sections—one aiming at 
 cheapness and showiness, the other at quality and effective colouring. 
 The first is naturally ragged in texture when exposed to the slightest 
 wear and tear, the colours almost crumbling off, and the whole pro¬ 
 duction scarcely worth the labour expended upon its decorative appli¬ 
 cation. The second is almost equal to block-printing, the colours are 
 more carefully mixed, and the quality of the paper studiously attended 
 to: hence it becomes a highly useful paper for certain purposes, its 
 economy, and its effective appearance, being its great recommendation. 
 Messrs. Potter, judging by their specimens, may be placed at the head 
 of the first-class, and their merit, if merit it be, consists in printing 
 paper by millions of yards, and dabbing on colours that are almost off 
 before they are on. Like our friend, the Jew, they appear to look too 
 exclusively to the sale of the article; but, to ensure continuance, a 
 
192 CABINET-WORK. 
 
 little attention ought to be paid to the quality also. Heyward and 
 Higginbottom, on the contrary, seem to observe the essential condi¬ 
 tions, for their specimens have more the appearance of block, than 
 machine printing. Run your eye along those varied specimens in 
 the upper gallery, and touch them with the tip of your finger, moist¬ 
 ened with your tongue, you will soon find that the colours are not of 
 such a fleeting, non-adhesive nature as those on the papers down stairs, 
 of the same class of manufacture. Look again at the quality of the 
 paper itself, at the depth and shade of colour, at the character of the 
 designs, and you will, with your practical perception, at once conclude 
 that there is a very distinct difference between them. The Messrs. 
 Heywood are now enabled to print fourteen colours, with fourteen 
 • different cylinders, on the same paper; the utmost hitherto attained 
 has been ten colours with as many separate cylinders. The superiority 
 of this firm, which stands alone in machine paper-printing, arises, in 
 some measure, from paying great attention to mixing their colours, to 
 the quality of the paper used, and to the careful process of cooling the 
 paper when printed, a point of considerable importance in machine 
 work, as the colour is apt to become non -adhesive when too sudden a 
 change is effected on the surface which receives it. These paper- 
 stainers, then, stand as high in machine work as Messrs. Hinchliff do 
 in the highest class of block-printing. 
 
 While on the subject of decorative papers, let us not omit to direct 
 attention to Clarke’s “ Seamless Cloth Flock Decoration,” which is 
 manufactured from the woollen flocks obtained in the cloth finishing 
 process. The effect of this new application is novel and striking; its 
 convenience and economy have yet to be tested. It can be manufac¬ 
 tured on the wall of the apartment, and extended over any given 
 space without seam, joining, or repetition, which are unavoidable in 
 stained papers. We point it out because we consider it one of those 
 efforts to effect a change, which, although not ultimately successful, 
 yet are the means to direct the way to attain success. 
 
 -*- 
 
 CHATTER XIX.—CABINET-WORK. 
 
 The contributions, both from the continent and from our own 
 manufacturers, are singularly rich and diversified in this branch of 
 industry. France, Austria, Spain, Germany, Belgium, and the United 
 
CABINET-WORK. 193 
 
 States, have furnished us with the finest specimens of their several 
 excellence in cabinet-making, in each of which may be traced the 
 mechanical skill and prevailing taste of the present time. France is 
 light, elegant, yet convenient, in the forms of her objects; Austria is 
 heavy, lugubrious, and colossal, with one or two exceptions ; America 
 is smart, original, and adaptive; while Spain has sent us a table, the 
 wonder of the world of inlayers and marqueterie-workers. Nor ought 
 we to omit the equally surprising contributions from the Eternal City, 
 whose mosaic work is one of the marvels of the Exhibition. But before 
 we go into details, let us indulge in a few preliminary observations, 
 which will supply the means of judging of our own position and that of 
 our continental competitors. 
 
 It must be considered that we possess an important advantage over 
 the foreigner in the command of the raw material. 
 
 “ One important fact,” says M. Flachat, speaking of France and 
 her articles of cabinet-work in the Exposition of 1844, “must he 
 noticed—the great inferiority of our indigenous woods. We see this 
 in many objects of furniture, while mahogany and other tropical 
 woods, which are more largely used this year than we ever before 
 observed, clearly proves the fact. If we except the walnut-tree, with 
 its beautiful grains, our wood is deficient in that vivacity of colours, 
 that variety of texture, that richness of fibre, which the woods of a hot 
 climate present; and time, instead of improving its condition, only 
 gives it a dull, cold, grey, and leaden appearance. Moreover, exotic 
 woods improve by keeping; ours, on the contrary, lose their beauty. 
 Here, then, we have a branch of industry in which the foreigner is 
 decidedly superior to us—in the command of the raw material; and, 
 being compelled by the inferiority of our own produce to import three 
 millions of kilograms of exotic wood to supply our industry, the ques¬ 
 tion naturally arises, can we do so upon the same terms as the 
 foreigner ? . . . A comparison, therefore, may he made between 
 
 the relative extent and importance of the English and French cabinet¬ 
 work, by estimating the respective imports of mahogany into the two 
 countries. In a single commercial establishment, the West India 
 Docks, we have seen fifteen thousand logs of mahogany at the same 
 time, which is about double the importation of France in a single 
 year. These logs generally are much larger in dimension than those 
 which are transported to Paris by the navigation of the Seine, some of 
 them measuring even 2m. 50c. in diameter. In England, moreover, 
 they have powerful machinery for disembarking the mahogany and 
 placing it under shelter; by this means they obtain two advantages of 
 
CABINET-WORK. 
 
 194 
 
 which we are deficient, first, the wood is not exposed to the atmo¬ 
 sphere for a long period, which materially deteriorates its surface and 
 produces a loss, and, secondly, there is a great economy in the con¬ 
 veyance, which is a considerable per-centage upon the consumption.” 
 
 There is likewise a peculiarity in the relative condition of French 
 and English cabinet-workers, which is deserving of notice, as it mate¬ 
 rially effects the interests of both. We allude to the small cabinet¬ 
 makers of Paris, whose number is disproportionately large, in relation 
 to the whole body employed. Of four thousand cabinet-workers in 
 Paris there are upwards of fifteen hundred working on their own 
 account, with the occasional help of a single apprentice, who frequently 
 follows the same example. These petty manufacturers buy their 
 materials at a great disadvantage, and inundate the market with dear, 
 ill-made, and showy objects of furniture, which are knocked up for a 
 mere hand-to-mouth existence. Such a segregation of labour has, 
 in some measure, its origin in political causes, and may be traced to that 
 love of pseudo-independence, the blind day-dream of so large a portion 
 of the French working classes. The latter imagine that the capitalist, 
 as they term the master-employer, is their enemy ; that he is always 
 devising plans to rob them of their hard earnings ; that, in short, he 
 is, and must naturally be, their antagonist. This fatal delusion has 
 been widely spread amongst the working classes, and has given rise to 
 many of those frightful outbreaks which invariably terminate in their 
 especial disadvantage. But let us hear what M. Flachat says on the 
 effects of this fatal delusion :— 
 
 “ The larger portion of these petty makers,” he observes, “ are ill- 
 provided with tools, and purchase their materials in detail; or, in 
 other terms, pay dearly for everything they use. They make a piece 
 of furniture, then run with it to a cheap dealer, who generally beats 
 down the price, and gets it at his own valuation. It is quite common 
 to see these workmen trotting about the Faubourg St. Antoine, and 
 elsewhere, with their weekly work, first to one shop, then to another, 
 in order to dispose of it to the best advantage, and if they fail in meet¬ 
 ing with a purchaser, there is no alternative but the Mont-de-Piete. 
 What progress, therefore, can our working-men make under such a 
 system ?” 
 
 The same evil obtains in this country, but only to a limited extent, 
 as compared to France. The workman who pursues such an unprofit¬ 
 able labour here, is either a drunkard, or a lazy and worthless fellow, 
 whom no master will employ at regular work ; while, on the contrary, 
 the French workmen are led astray by a political delusion rather than 
 
CABINET-WORK. 195 
 
 by bad habits, though the latter are by no means infrequent amongst 
 them. 
 
 The truthfulness of English work, which more or less characterizes 
 our several branches of industry, is particularly manifested in cabinet¬ 
 work ; and not only the truthfulness of execution, but, in some 
 instances, the beauty of design, and the excellent quality of the mate¬ 
 rial, are equally predominant, when compared with foreign produc¬ 
 tions. In order to manufacture first-class furniture, it is necessary to 
 use the best quality of wood, which can only be secured by purchasing 
 largely, and allowing sufficient time for its becoming thoroughly 
 seasoned. There is one thing especially to be observed by first-rate 
 cabinet-makers, namely, to eschew all steaming and other artificial 
 processes, to produce a premature and supposed natural effect in the 
 wood, which are sure to tell their tale in the long run. And here 
 again we are brought to the main consideration in all industrial pur¬ 
 suits, the command of capital and the raw material, which we pre¬ 
 eminently possess over the foreigner, and which enable us to produce 
 objects whose quality improves with age, while those of the foreigner 
 are too generally subject to the reverse condition. 
 
 Wandering through the several sections of the Exhibition, con¬ 
 taining cabinet-work, we are at once struck with the lightness, the 
 elegance, and the high finish, of the French productions. They seem 
 to have acquired the art of making the best appearance at the smallest 
 possible expense, in a higher degree than any other section of cabinet- 
 workers. Their sideboards, their buffets, their escritoires, are so ex¬ 
 quisitely arranged, irrespective of the quality of the material and the 
 nice finish of the work, that they seem to anticipate not only your 
 present wants, but to suggest others which you are really not cogni¬ 
 zant of. What can be more apropos than that “Fancy Writing 
 Desk” of MM. Daubert and Co., every part of which flies open by turn¬ 
 ing a single key, yet each part can be isolated from the rest, and secured 
 when required. It contains a secret case, which conceals or exhibits 
 its contents at pleasure. The lock, say those ingenious manufac¬ 
 turers, cannot be picked any more than that of Chubb (?) But to 
 resume the somewhat glowing description of the fabricators; “ the 
 exterior is of rosewood, violet-ebony, and inlaid with brass and 
 diamond pegs. The interior is lined with green scoles and britannia 
 metal. This writing desk is the only one that has been made.” It 
 deserves all that can be said of it, and is a credit to the ingenuity of 
 its manufacturer. Now turn to that book-case of Kreigler and Co., 
 of Paris ; it is certainly the most beautifully-carved production that 
 
CABINET-WORK. 
 
 196 
 
 we ever beheld. To be sure the wood is light in the grain, which 
 shows carved and relief surfaces to better etfect than though it were 
 dark; nevertheless, there is such a life-like, delicate, and nicely- 
 touched precision about the objects represented, that you involuntarily 
 recognise its exquisite beauty. This piece of cabinet-work is, perhaps, 
 with the exception of a similar object in carton-pierre, which stands in 
 the eastern nave, and presents the choicest modelling that it is possible 
 to conceive, the most finished production in the Exhibition, of its 
 class. Now cross the nave, and make your way to the Gobelin 
 Tapestry and Sevres China-room; but before you enter just examine 
 that sideboard on your right. You cannot possibly miss it, the cha¬ 
 racter, the simplicity, yet the telling etfect, not only of its detail, but 
 of the tout-ensemble , must completely rivet your attention. How 
 many sportsmen would long to have such a sideboard as that in their 
 dining-room! The dogs, the game, the truthful delineation of both, 
 and the artistic attitude of the former especially, comprise a study 
 from which a’considerable benefit might be derived, whether byacabinet- 
 maker or otherwise. This article of furniture is considered, by num¬ 
 bers, the masterpiece of the Exhibition; we shall content ourselves 
 with simply repeating that opinion, and with admiring the object of 
 it. Returning to the bulk of the French cabinet-work, you will not 
 be disappointed in examining M. Mercier’s cabinet , at least if you be 
 desirous of securing convenience of structure, with elegance of ex¬ 
 terior, in both of which it is singularly happy. Now extend your 
 view a little further round the department, and you will observe a 
 curiosity in its way, and such a one as will amuse you at least. 
 That work-box of M. Marcelin, of Paris, contains 80,000 pieces of 
 wood, and the table near at hand upwards of 100,000, all inlaid with 
 the nicest precision. To lovers of this kind of work, these objects 
 must prove a source of considerable attraction. Yolker’s buffet is 
 also a beautiful idea, and exquisitely carried out; these French 
 cabinet-makers are really first-rate artists, both in design and execu¬ 
 tion, as the cabinet of Tahan alone is sufficient to prove. Now take 
 a skimming view of the other articles around you, or you will exhaust 
 all your descriptive space, after which we will hie to the Austrian 
 rooms. 
 
 At the first glance your eye is captivated with the rich mass of 
 material before you; but as you leisurely examine the objects, and 
 compare them with the French productions, you are at once struck 
 with the heavy waste of material which they one and all exhibit. 
 Look at that bed, with its redundant columns of wood, its clumsy 
 
CABINET-WORK. 197 
 
 back and front, and its superfluous material in several other respects, 
 and say whether it combines the requisites of a first-rate piece of 
 furniture—namely, lightness, elegance, and durability. Or, in other 
 terms, whether a far more effective object could not have been made 
 with a great deal less material; certainly a Parisian Ebeniste would 
 have almost furnished a whole apartment with it, and elegantly and 
 effectually too. The bed appears to us just fit for a rich and royster- 
 ing millionaire, who has more money than taste, and looks upon 
 quantity as a more valuable item than quality in the course of his 
 indulgence. The same remark may be applied to the tables, with 
 some slight diminution; besides, the wood itself is, perhaps, the most 
 repulsive for carving purposes, containing so many streaks and 
 straight lines. The book-cases, in the same department, are light 
 and elegant constructions; but the inlaid floors, upon which all this 
 massive furniture is placed, appears to us to be the happiest effort of 
 Viennese workmanship. Before we leave this quarter, let us not omit 
 to examine the external appearance of that singular clock; it purports 
 to represent the time at different great cities, widely distant from each 
 other, by the Viennese calculation. For instance, the clock marks, 
 say half-past three at Vienna, it would then be half-past five at Jeru¬ 
 salem; and at New York, Canton, or London, the corresponding diffe¬ 
 rence, according to the relative longitude of each place, is marked on 
 separate small dials on the same face. It may, with truth, be called 
 a universal dial. 
 
 The American furniture is more characterised for its novelty than 
 for its beauty or convenience, according to our habits. Uninitiated in 
 the customs of our over-the-water brethren, we are somewhat puzzled 
 to descry the peculiar excellence which many of their productions are 
 said to display ; it must consist in its adaptability to the peculiarities 
 which custom has reconciled on the other side of the Atlantic, and not 
 in its quality, either as regards finish or design. Whenever they 
 imitate the old world objects of furniture, it almost invariably results 
 that the production is at once clumsy and uncouth ; but whenever our 
 friends have to gratify one of their own spick-and-span-new-born 
 ideas, there you will find their productions as apropos to the purpose 
 as though they had passed through the best workshops of Europe, 
 and indeed, much better. 
 
 You will agree with me, after minutely examining the English 
 contributions of furniture, that they exhibit a ponderous appearance 
 in the main. There are exceptions, of course, to this charge, but 
 they are rare. Turning out of the western nave, and entering the 
 
CABINET-WORK. 
 
 198 
 
 lateral avenue which leads to the furniture department, your eye is 
 arrested by the productions of Messrs. Gillow, a name eminent for the 
 manufacture of cabinet-work. First, the sideboard in mahogany. 
 In material there can be no questioning its quality ; in workmanship 
 it will of course pass muster; but in design, the essential character 
 of first-rate furniture, there will be a diversity of opinion. A side¬ 
 board, with a couple of eagles attempting to fly away with it, is no 
 very felicitous idea, and were it so, the eagles are out of proportion 
 to the true anatomy of the bird, being too long and wiry in the body, 
 as even an ordinary ornithologist would immediately discover. The 
 library table, by the same contributors, is a massive piece of work, on 
 which a great deal too much material is wasted ; nevertheless, it has 
 a rich and effective appearance. The sofa is heavy ; so is the library 
 chair, whatever other qualities it may exhibit. The table, certainly, 
 is a beautiful piece of furniture, more than sufficient to redeem the 
 defects in the other objects,—if defects we may presume to call them. 
 Hunter’s sideboard is elaborate, but clumsy ; while that of Johnstone 
 and Jeanes exhibits the opposite qualities, being elegant in form and 
 finely carved. It is a good idea, and well carried out. 
 
 We scarcely know which to prefer of the two beds of Darley and 
 Co., and Rogers and Dear. If we except the satin-wood bed of Trol¬ 
 lope and Son—perhaps the most recherche, object of the kind in the 
 Exhibition, as it unites all the requisites of a finished piece of furni¬ 
 ture, lightness, elegance, and effectiveness for its purpose, so rarely 
 met with in the productions of our cabinet-workers—they are certainly 
 the most attractive articles in the whole department. The “ Renais¬ 
 sance” of Rogers is a beautiful shape, but the execution is not so 
 first-rate as the design; and the “ Elizabethan” of Darley and Co. 
 is equally striking and effective. In our opinion the silk would have 
 been better omitted at the foot-board; all wood must have had a more 
 simple and striking effect. Sm.ee’s maple bed is a striking production, 
 which many will admire, and justly so; while J. M. Levien’s side¬ 
 board is of doubtful excellence, parts of it being most beautifully 
 finished, and others just the reverse. For instance, the carvings let 
 in the back bespeak a high quality of art, but those on different parts 
 of the exterior, intended to correspond with them, are below par. 
 We should infer that the back was an extraneous work of art, simply 
 let in, and the other portions worked up to it by far inferior hands. 
 The design is not bad, nor is the colour of the Zealand wood objection¬ 
 able ; and had it been carved throughout in the same spirit, it would 
 have proved a very effective contribution. The “ Cinque Cento Book- 
 
CABINET-WORK. 
 
 199 
 
 case,” of Messrs. Holland and Son, is not to our taste ; it is an elabo¬ 
 rate specimen of a great deal of work for very little effect; neverthe¬ 
 less, it has its admirers. But we feel a pleasure in directing attention 
 to the console-glass and table by the same exhibitors ; they are really 
 effective works of art, and deserve especial notice. The alternation of 
 the shades of gilding have a good effect; the design is truthful and 
 poetical; besides, it is exquisitely carried out, a rare feature in Eng¬ 
 lish productions. It is, to our view, one of the most striking and 
 original contributions in the room. Dowbiggin’s buffet is an elegant 
 piece of furniture ; the carvings and the china corresponding with the 
 other portions admirably, the whole being in good taste. Snell has 
 an elegant contribution in the shape of a “ Chimney Glassthe 
 frame being composed of carved walnut-tree. The sideboard is 
 equally attractive; and the satin-wood wardrobe is a delicate and 
 beautiful composition. Jackson and Graham have furnished a side¬ 
 board of English oak in the Renaissance style, which, in our opinion, 
 is the happiest contribution of the kind in the English department. 
 The carving is elaborate, yet in good keeping ; the design is somewhat 
 rich, yet minutely carried out. The glass at the back is the only 
 doubtful portion, to our views, of this otherwise really splendid pro¬ 
 duction. The inlaid loo table of Watson is an elaborate and minutely- 
 worked production, perhaps more curious than interesting. Morant’s 
 table, suggested, as stated, by the Duchess of Sutherland, is an 
 elegant production. By-the-bye, this is about the sixth instance of 
 leading tradesmen proclaiming to the world that her Grace the 
 Duchess of Sutherland is designer-general, or something like it, to 
 their establishment. If true, it is certainly very gracious on the part 
 of her Grace to enrich their impoverished ideas with a design or so, 
 but the best-natured people cannot help thinking, that these astute 
 dealers are simply availing themselves of the known kindness of that 
 excellent gentlewoman, and in a manner, too, that savours more of 
 craft than of grateful acknowledgment for favours received. The 
 specimen of wall decoration, by the same contributor, is one of the 
 most chaste, classical, and refined productions in the Exhibition. A 
 cabinet, by W. A. King, of Whitehaven, is an object of considerable 
 attraction, from the ingenious manner in which the different shades 
 of wood are placed so as to produce a desired result. It is intended 
 to illustrate the well-known episode in Scott’s “Antiquary,” in which 
 Aldobrand Oldenbuck is a somewhat prominent character. The 
 cabinet is made from three varieties of British oak, grown in Cum¬ 
 berland, and, taken as a whole, is a striking, original, and cleverly- 
 
PIANOFORTES. 
 
 200 
 
 executed production. The beautiful carton-pierre buffet in the nave, 
 to which we have already called attention, is by Cruchet, of Paris, 
 and the walnut sideboard resting on dogs, considered the masterpiece 
 of cabinet-work, described elsewhere, is by Fourdinois. The large 
 glass of M‘Lean is a splendid ornament to the Exhibition, as it dis¬ 
 plays the progress we have made in this branch of decorative art. It 
 also presents an excellent study, from its finely-proportioned architec¬ 
 tural frame, irrespective of the minute ornamentation which is always 
 in keeping with, and effectually carries out, the main design. Pon- 
 sonby’s large antique girandolle, and his chimney-glass, are equally 
 entitled to examination, from the effective beauty which they respec¬ 
 tively display. The Thames Plate Glass Company have furnished a 
 couple of sheets of their handy-work, which, though slightly defec¬ 
 tive here and there, have no equal from abroad, nor anything approxi¬ 
 mating to it, either in quality of material, or reflective purity. In 
 size, we are now almost unapproachable; neither the Belgians nor the 
 French attempting to compete with us in that respect. 
 
 Before we close this chapter, we ought not to pass by the interest¬ 
 ing contribution of Messrs. Harrison and Sinclair, of Leeds, which 
 consists of specimens of wood, in almost every kind and description, 
 and which is amply deserving of attentive examination. 
 
 -♦- 
 
 CHAPTER XX.—PIANOFORTES. 
 
 Perhaps there is no branch of industrial art that has experienced 
 greater changes, in a given period of time, than the manufacture of 
 pianofortes. From the first crude idea to the ultimate realization of 
 any great invention, it must necessarily pass through many phases, 
 and require many and successive improvements. Experience alone 
 enables us, in carrying it out and reducing it to its simplest form, to 
 detect many errors, and correct many misconceptions. Amedie 
 Schroeter, the organist of Nordhausen, when he first conceived the idea 
 of an instrument which he named a pianoforte , could never have 
 dreamed of the rich harmony of tone, and the wonderfully-diversified 
 power, which an instrument from the hands of a Broadwood, a Col- 
 lard, or an Erard, can produce at the present day. From the first 
 application of the hammer to strike the cords of a keyed instrument, 
 down to the last improvement of a “ grand” or a “ semi-grand,” with 
 
PIANOFORTES. 
 
 201 
 
 their exquisite mechanical arrangements, there were many, and almost 
 untold gradations, through which the ingenuity of the head must 
 have dimly and slowly directed the cunning of the hand. And it is 
 so in every branch of science, and in every walk of art; for it is wisely 
 ordained that we shall not be blinded by excessive brightness, but 
 that, in order to preserve and strengthen our vision, light shall dawn 
 upon us by degrees, and that, before we arrive at perfection, we shall 
 do something ourselves towards its achievement. Pianofortes, there¬ 
 fore, like all other human inventions, have but slowly advanced to 
 their present comparatively perfect state; and that advance has kept 
 pace, and been regulated, by the intelligence and taste of those who 
 have called them into requisition. 
 
 It is, we believe, generally acknowledged that we excel the 
 foreigner in the manufacture of this instrument, with one or two 
 exceptional points, which shall be shortly noticed. In all the essen¬ 
 tial requisites of a pianoforte—in touch, in tone, and in excellence 
 of work —we excel the foreigner ; in a larger quantity of tone,—not 
 requisite, in the opinion of many, in a pianoforte, and generally 
 attained by a sacrifice of quality,—one Continental manufacturer may 
 possibly excel us. In a certain kind of ornamentation, and in deli¬ 
 cacy of touch, a claim is equally made for superiority; the first we 
 may be disposed to concede in certain cases; but the delicate, or 
 repetition-touch , as it is designated, in this instance is acquired by too 
 much complication of movement, which has a tendency to become 
 noisy. 
 
 We shall now briefly enumerate the various improvements that 
 have been made in the structure of the instrument, and carefully 
 detail the respective merits of those who have effected them. Broad- 
 wood, Collard, and Erard, are the three firms which stand confes¬ 
 sedly at the head of the manufacturers of pianofortes; but which 
 has been the largest contributor to the improved processes alluded 
 to, it will be somewhat difficult to state. Broadwood, we believe, 
 was the first to apply metal tension bars above the strings, in order 
 to lessen their strain upon the wooden frame, and transfer it to 
 parallel metallic bars ; but this improvement was greatly extended by 
 Erard, who gave the bars a longitudinal direction. Another applica¬ 
 tion of the same principle was patented by Stodart before Erard 
 effected an improvement upon that of Broadwood, which was intended 
 to produce the same result. A few years subsequent to the date of 
 these improvements, the Messrs. Broadwood patented another, which 
 consists in combining the solid metal bars with a fixed metal string- 
 
PIANOFORTES. 
 
 202 
 
 plate, thereby improving the tone of the instrument. The repeti¬ 
 tion-action is due, we believe, to the invention of Erard—though the 
 claim is disputed by M. Pape, a French manufacturer of acknowledged 
 merit, and to whom many of the improvements effected in the piano¬ 
 forte may be attributed—whatever may be its peculiar qualities; but 
 the metallic studs, which give an upward hearing to the strings, 
 thereby improving their powers of tension, were too close an imita¬ 
 tion of the principle involved in Stodart’s “harmonic bridge” to 
 justify the Messrs. Erard claiming it as their own. The metal plate 
 was first applied by the Messrs. Broadwood to one of their square 
 pianofortes, as early as 1821. We now come to the improvements 
 effected by the Messrs. Collard, which are by no means less important 
 than those already detailed. The present method of stringing the 
 instrument, which superseded the old system of using the loop or eye, 
 was patented by this firm in 1827. It is now universally adopted. 
 Another improvement, of equal value, was effected by them in the 
 same year, and also became the subject of a patent, namely, the 
 elongated damper-head, whmh completely obviated the jarring effect 
 produced by the old method. The Messrs. Collard are also enti¬ 
 tled to the first application of the repeating-action to vertical in¬ 
 struments; and to the same enterprising firm must be attributed 
 the origin, or invention, of the grand-square, perhaps the most 
 important addition ever made towards the perfection of the manufac¬ 
 ture of square pianofortes. They also originated and patented an 
 improved action for the “ grand ” instruments, whose simplicity and 
 effectiveness is universally recognised; and, lastly, as regards large 
 and striking improvements, the “ symmetrical-grand square ” is the 
 production of their somewhat prolific invention. These, we believe, 
 are the various and respective improvements effected in the manufac¬ 
 ture of the pianoforte. We shall now proceed to estimate the contents 
 of the Exhibition, as regards this section of musical instruments. 
 
 For quality of tone, the Messrs. Broadwood and Collard are about 
 upon a par, and much superior to Erard, who has obtained it in larger 
 quantity, perhaps; but what is gained in quantity is lost in quality. 
 The harsh loud tone of many of Erard’s instruments is more fitted 
 for a large assembly-room than a drawing-room ; and almost all good 
 pianists remark that such a tone is out of place in an instrument like 
 the piano. For durability, there cannot he a moment’s question as 
 to the superiority ; the two English firms just cited being unequalled, 
 in that respect, throughout the world. As regards touch, the Messrs. 
 Collard, it is generally acknowledged, have attained the greatest per- 
 
PIANOFORTES. 
 
 203 
 
 fection; while that of Messrs. Erard’s, being more heavy, is deficient 
 in the nicer qualities of lightness and elasticity. The touch of Messrs. 
 Broadwood’s assimilates, if it does not equal, that of Messrs. Col- 
 lard’s, and is sufficiently delicate for almost every conceivable purpose; 
 at the same time, being produced by simpler means than Erard’s, a 
 more satisfactory result is attained. 
 
 We prefer the piano in the gallery to that in the nave, writing of 
 Messrs. Broadwood’s contribution; in design, in workmanship, in the 
 beauty of the wood, it is all that can be desired. In tone it is fully 
 equal to anything yet produced by that firm, and that is saying much 
 for its quality. The one in the nave is a grand production; rich, hut 
 not gorgeous, the artist having observed the line which separates a 
 refined from a partially defective taste. Nothing can be simpler, in 
 contrast, than the black grain of the highly-polished wood, and the 
 gold ornamental mouldings. In tone, also, it sustains the reputation 
 of its fabricators ; hut in design we consider it defective in parts. 
 The artist has aimed at simplicity, hut does not distinguish suffici¬ 
 ently between plainness and simplicity, as the separate parts of the 
 instrument clearly prove, the case being tastefully conceived, yet 
 made to rest upon mere props of the most primitive order of construc¬ 
 tion. 
 
 The grand of Messrs. Collard in the nave is an elegant and highly- 
 finished instrument, characteristic of the beauty and perfection of 
 English workmanship, in the highest departments of industry. It is 
 all that can be desired in an instrument of that nature ; not overladen 
 with richness of ornament, nor so exceptional in its external appear¬ 
 ance that it ought to stand apart in a place specially appropriated to 
 it. The cabinet piano of the same firm, up stairs, is also a beautiful 
 instrument; the finish of the work, the grain of the wood, and the 
 style of the lower part, which is singularly original, being all and 
 equally attractive. The square semi-grand, also, appears to us to 
 realize the desired perfection in that class of instruments, and, to our 
 judgment, is unrivalled. Of the people’s piano the people must judge 
 for themselves. Messrs. Erard are especially effective in their pro¬ 
 ductions. Their grand is a study of itself. The gothic design is also 
 beautiful, both in style and character ; so is the inlaid cottage, espe¬ 
 cially as regards elegance. In harps these manufacturers have no 
 rivals, worthy of the name at least; the Prince of Wales’ harp, as it 
 is called, is well worthy of minute examination, for the exquisite 
 beauty and high finish of its work. Southwell has a grand piano, 
 after Broad wood, which is excellent in tone, hut clumsy in construe- 
 
PIANOFORTES. 
 
 204 
 
 tion, the large gold mouldings being somewhat inappropriate. Kirk- 
 man has sent three instruments, which appear in excellent condition, 
 both as to quality and finish of work; his “ Tom Thumb ” is really a 
 curiosity, well worth a passing notice or so. Cadby has a grand and 
 two cottages, constructed upon a new principle; upon which there 
 seems a great diversity of opinion as regards tone, though the cases 
 look remarkably effective. Hopkinson has a grand, which is copied 
 from Erard, the lower part pretty good in tone, but not so the 
 upper notes; and Mott’s grand instrument, with its panorque at¬ 
 tachment, in some professors’ hands, would be most effective. A cot¬ 
 tage by the same manufacturer is a simple yet useful instrument. 
 Towns and Packer have a valuable contribution in their transposing, 
 two-stringed, short grand instrument; its tone is excellent, and the 
 construction is copied from Broadwood. A “ cottage-economic ” is 
 also an instrument deserving of especial notice, as it comes within the 
 range of the larger and somewhat humbler class than are generally 
 wont to indulge in pianos; it is a simple, economical, yet effective 
 production. Ennever and Steedman have sent a beautifully-designed 
 cottage, hut the tone is about the average, and does not equal the 
 promise of the external appearance of the instrument; and Ralph 
 Allison is also equally happy in his cottage-design, and equally so-so 
 in the tone, the carviDg making up for the deficient quality of the 
 latter. Stoddart has contributed a small grand-piano quite in the 
 English style ; in quality of tone very good, and its durability will 
 not he questioned for a moment. The patent-square by Grainer, also 
 manufactured by Stoddart, is equally attractive, from the peculiar 
 construction of the action; it is simple, and well worth the attention 
 of piano-manufacturers, as it may be applied to every form of instru¬ 
 ment. Messrs. Jenkins and Sons have two instruments deserving of 
 notice—a carved cabinet of walnut, and a cottage, which can be so 
 arranged that it may be used on hoard ship, having a “ collapsing ” 
 arrangement, as it is called. The first is a well-executed instrument, 
 and the latter is singularly useful for the purpose mentioned, and, 
 therefore, deserves to he made known. Lambert’s contribution must 
 attract notice, if it be simply to examine the keys of the instrument, 
 not to omit the work of the case, which is somewhat effective and 
 peculiar; and Hotsman and Plumb’s inlaid marqueterie case presents 
 a beautiful surface to the eye, and is excellent in workmanship, though 
 the tone and touch are of the ordinary quality. The general run of 
 the contributions from the provinces are inferior in the quality of tone 
 and delicacy of touch, though several of them are really excellent in 
 
PIANOFORTES. 205 
 
 their external qualities, and display occasionally a very creditable 
 amount of artistic workmanship. 
 
 There are several veiy beautiful instruments in the French 
 department, especially in their external ornamentation; some of them, 
 indeed, in this respect, presenting models for the study of our own 
 manufacturers. But in tone and touch they are, as a class, inferior 
 to the English; and in truthfulness of work they are equally behind 
 us. In simplicity of design and beauty of ornamentation, with some 
 rare exceptions, they are rather before us. In this department, as in 
 several others, our neighbours have learned the art of producing a 
 great effect with comparatively limited means ; and you will seldom 
 discern any waste of material in cumbrous design or ornamentation, 
 which too frequently characterize our own productions. The instru¬ 
 ments of Messrs. Erard appeared to our judgment the finest in tone 
 and touch of any in the French department, and approached the near¬ 
 est our own in those qualities; and our remarks on their English 
 productions may he applied with equal propriety here, seeing that the 
 same peculiarities distinguish them in almost every respect. M. Bord’s 
 grand piano also calls for a favourable notice, judging it by the quali¬ 
 ties just enumerated; there is likewise an important novelty in the 
 internal construction of the upright instruments of this manufacturer, 
 well deserving the careful examination of our own piano-makers, 
 especially in the improved style of bracing. In the other foreign 
 departments there are some fine squares, remarkably well got up; hut, 
 more or less, as far as we could test them in such a trying place, as 
 regards sound, inferior to the English both in tone and touch, either as 
 to the volume and mellowness of the one, or the delicacy of the other. 
 
 In the American department there are, considering all things, some 
 very remarkable productions. Chickering of Boston has the best show. 
 His grand piano is really a well got up instrument, highly creditable to 
 the taste and workmanship of our transatlantic cousins. The tone and 
 touch are not quite so free as ours; nevertheless, they are very near to 
 us. His plan of putting in a cast-metal frame is a good idea, as it 
 gives stability to the instrument, although it slightly affects the sound. 
 The square piano on the same principle is also a fine instrument. The 
 double grand with cast-iron frame answers no useful end; it may he 
 called a musical marplot, as one part is continually jarring against the 
 harmony of the other. Nunn and Clark’s square is in a heavy style of 
 construction, somewhat badly got up, and simply ludicrous in its 
 internal arrangement. There are others of a decent exterior, hut 
 much inferior to the English in their general and essential qualities. 
 
206 
 
 CHAPTER XXI.—PAPIER-MACHE. 
 
 Among the many inventions of modern times for diffusing the 
 luxuries, and even the conveniences of life, there are few which have 
 greater claims to our admiration than papier-mache. "Whether it 
 meets the eye in the shape of furniture, or in articles of general 
 domestic utility, its beauty and agreeahleness are equally striking and 
 effective. Nor is it less so when applied to ornamental purposes. The 
 nature of the material admits of almost infinite application, from its 
 ductility, its lightness, and its comparative economy. Admitting a 
 polish almost equal to that of glass, and receiving colours nearly as 
 bright as those transferred upon the canvas, it alike presents an attrac¬ 
 tive surface to the industrial skill of the humble artizan, and to the 
 entrancing genius of his intellectual compeer. 
 
 Assuming that our neighbours in France are entitled to the credit 
 of inventing this beautiful and highly useful material, it is clear, by 
 their own acknowledgment (vide Encyclopedic Methodique ; article 
 Moulage ), that we were the first to apply it to ornamental purposes. 
 “ Les Anglais,” says the writer of the article, “ font en carton les 
 ornemens des plafonds que nous faisons en platre,” enlarging further 
 on the durability of this kind of ornament as compared to plaster 
 compositions, and also upon the difficulty of detaching them from the 
 surface upon which they may chance to be laid. Nor does the com¬ 
 parative economy of this article for ornamental purposes escape the 
 notice of the writer. 
 
 The seat of the manufacture of papier-mache is principally at Bir¬ 
 mingham, and one or two adjacent places, except that portion devoted 
 to architectural ornamentation, which is almost exclusively confined 
 to the metropolis. There are three kinds of papier-mache in ordinary 
 use, or rather three modes of preparing the raw material, which it is 
 necessary to point out. The first and most important is that which 
 forms the basis of the highly ornamental objects of furniture, and the 
 better qualities of general objects of domestic utility ; the second is 
 confined to the commonest articles manufactured ; and the third is the 
 preparation for ornamental and architectural purposes. 
 
 The first process is as follows :—Several sheets of paper are care¬ 
 fully pressed together by means of paste, upon a mould, which is the 
 exact form of the object to be produced. The paper is of a grey, 
 spongy nature, and great care is taken to make it even on the surface. 
 Formerly it was produced by hand, when the manufacture was in a 
 comparatively rude state ; now it is made by machinery, somewhat 
 
PAPIER-MACHE. 
 
 207 
 
 skilfully constructed, so that it may receive the most delicate manipula¬ 
 tion. When the stratum of paper is sufficiently thick, it is placed in 
 a stove and dried, which converts it into a dense, light, yet strong 
 body, capable of sustaining weight and form; it is then planed and 
 roughly smoothed down to its intended shape in the same manner as 
 wood. The article may now be called in its grey state. The next 
 step is to dip it in spirits of tar, which renders it impervious to the 
 atmosphere; it is then subjected to a heat varying from 120 to 130 
 degrees, of from 12 to 14 hours’ duration, which makes it so hard that 
 it can he filed, chiselled, and planed, to the nicest relief, like the 
 hardest wood. When the cabinet-worker has finished his part, the 
 article is japanned, and pumice-stoned as smoothly as possible ; the 
 next process is inlaying the pearl, after which it is varnished and 
 polished, to receive the last ornamentation—gilding or painting. 
 
 The second process may be summarily described. It consists in 
 reducing numerous sheets of paper to a pulpy state, and then compres¬ 
 sing them to the form required by means of a press and die. The 
 adhesion of the several portions of the paper is very imperfect, and 
 exposure to the heat of the stove has a tendency to weaken, rather 
 than strengthen, the bulk, so that it becomes brittle, liable to fracture, 
 and not so durable as though it underwent the preceding preparation. 
 This process is only adopted in the manufacture of inferior kinds of 
 goods, and was formerly the subject of a patent. Brindley was the 
 name of the patentee, but he lived to see his patent die, and the right 
 has now become common property. Clay, we believe, was the inven¬ 
 tor of the first and best process, which in his time was only applied to 
 the making of tea-trays and the smaller class of goods. Its more 
 general application is the result of experiments made within the last 
 fifteen or twenty years, and which are principally due to Messrs. 
 Jennens and Bettridge. 
 
 The third process consists in reducing the substance to a pure and 
 homogeneous paste, which is capable of receiving almost every variety 
 of plastic form, and can he moulded or modelled like the finest clay. 
 This forms the basis of that new and beautiful style of architectural 
 ornamentation which has become of such extended utility, both in 
 public and private edifices. The invention of this new process is, we 
 believe, due to Mr. Bielefeld, whose works, in this style of ornamen¬ 
 tation, at the British Museum, and elsewhere, are publicly known. 
 The Messrs. Haselden, of Wardour Street, are also equally entitled 
 to the credit of applying the process to ornamental purposes. 
 
 Reverting to the primary branch of the manufacture, the most 
 
PAPIER-MACHE. 
 
 208 
 
 singular feature in regard to it, perhaps, is the variety of styles of 
 ornamentation which have successively taken the place of each other. 
 The simple gilt lines round the tray, the first application of art to such 
 objects, were superseded by floral and landscape decoration, which 
 gave employment to a rather superior class of artists. The Japan or 
 Chinese style of ornamentation never obtained a permanent hold upon 
 the trade, as the impasto , or raised style of decoration, could not 
 endure the wear and tear of a tea-table service, which is sufficiently 
 trying even to an even surface. Then came the inlaying of pearl, 
 which marks an era in the manufacture of papier-mache, as its 
 brilliant effect in ornamentation was at once so novel and striking. 
 This mode of ornamentation was originally introduced by Messrs. 
 Jennens and Bettridge, who patented the process about fifteen years 
 ago. From the beautiful surface of the material, and its somewhat 
 ready reception of colours, we have now, independent of papier-mache 
 objects, a series of copies of the finest productions of the modem 
 school of art; and those who are too limited in their means to purchase 
 a Landseer or a Redgrave, may procure a most excellent copy of either 
 at a very little expense, and have it placed before them on the surface 
 of a work-box, or on any other object of elegance and utility. 
 
 The usually adopted modes of ornamentation, however, are the 
 arabesque and the floral, as both admit of great scope in decorative 
 originality and taste. However, as more subdued and refined ideas 
 prevail in regard to the internal arrangement of dwelling-houses, the 
 ornamentation of articles of papier-mache will become of great and 
 increasing interest, the lightness and elegance of their nature render¬ 
 ing them agreeable objects of use as well as ornament. Our manu¬ 
 facturers are aware of this circumstance, and, in several instances, 
 have given practical proofs of its influencing their productions. 
 
 Confining the application of papier-mache even to articles of 
 general utility and ornament, although it has absorbed a wider range 
 of ornamentation, the panels of our first-rate steamers being now deco¬ 
 rated with it, we cannot refrain from congratulating our manufacturers, 
 who have imparted to this material so much beauty and elegance, and 
 such a large amount of really artistic taste. In these respects we are 
 far in advance, not only of France, but of the entire continent. In¬ 
 deed, it may be called an industrial art of our own, for in papier-mache 
 Birmingham and Wolverhampton, not forgetting the manufacturing 
 establishment of Messrs. Jennens and Bettridge in London, have no 
 rivals, nor anything approximating to an equality. 
 
 In Paris the papier-mache manufacture is pursued with consider- 
 
PAPIER-MACHE. 209 
 
 able success, a few skilful English workmen having migrated to that 
 city, but it is decidedly inferior, in almost every respect, to that of this 
 country. We now keenly compete with France in her own markets, 
 though a heavy duty, in some instances amounting to a prohibition, 
 is imposed upon our productions. For example, upon a set of tea- 
 trays, weighing eight pounds, and worth about twelve shillings, a 
 duty of eight francs is imposed; while upon a set worth about ten 
 pounds, the same amount is paid, the duty being levied by weight not 
 value. This heavy duty completely excludes the lower-priced articles 
 from the markets of France, for which there would be a great demand, 
 while upon the better kinds of goods it bears comparatively light, for 
 which there is but a limited demand. 
 
 The application of papier-mache to ornamental and decorative 
 purposes is equally deserving of notice, not only for the amount of 
 capital and labour employed upon it, but also for its beauty, its variety, 
 and its general utility. Nearly equal to wood in durability and orna¬ 
 mentation, and admitting of much easier application, it is far less 
 expensive, and economy is a great point to observe in every industrial 
 application of art, as the whole and entire aim of human ingenuity, in 
 all matters appertaining to progressive improvement, is —to obtain the 
 utmost possible effect at the smallest possible expense. Hence the widely- 
 diffused taste for embellishment avails itself of this material in prefer¬ 
 ence to those of a more durable, but more costly, nature; and had 
 not the qualities of papier-mache, for ornamental purposes, been 
 thoroughly proved, the art of decoration could scarcely have enlarged 
 its preceding limits. In every direction, where ornament is requisite, 
 our eye encounters scrolls, foliage, cornices, mouldings, and other 
 internal objects composed of that material; and the same bold relief, 
 the same exquisite finish of touch, and the same variegated beauty is 
 as manifest as though the more costly, and less pliable, material of 
 wood had been called into requisition. And not only upon flat sur¬ 
 faces is papier-mache used, it is now applied to frames of almost 
 every kind, with this advantage over wood—it is lighter, does not warp, 
 admits of greater ornament, and is much more economical in its cost. 
 
 With these prefatory remarks upon the rise and progress of papier- 
 mache in our recollection, we shall better appreciate its present con¬ 
 dition, as shown in the contributions to the Exhibition. 
 
 The first object that attracts the attention is a pianoforte-case of 
 Jennens and Bettridge, which is remarkable for the classic beauty of 
 its form, and for its chaste yet effective ornamentation. This, we 
 believe, is the first application of papier-mache to the structure of 
 
PAPIER-MACHE. 
 
 210 
 
 pianofortes; and, judging by the present example, we should infer that 
 it will by no means be the last. The case is elegantly shaped, after 
 the Italian school of design, and its curved ends enable the makers to 
 exhibit to advantage their mastery over the material. The pearl 
 presents an effective contrast to the deep, jet black ground upon 
 which it is somewhat profusely, yet delicately, laid; and the whole 
 appearance of the instrument bespeaks good taste, both in design and 
 the finish of the work. The next attractive object is the “ Victoria 
 Eegia Cot,” in which the designer has imitated the magnificent lily 
 of that name. The design and ornamentation of this artistic curi¬ 
 osity are striking and original, and the idea is tastefully carried 
 out. There are, likewise, one or two objects of great ingenuity—a 
 multum in uno loo-table, constructed on a new principle, and com¬ 
 bining bagatelle-board, chess, draughts, &c., whose mechanical arrange¬ 
 ment is exceedingly curious, besides being effective. A Lotus Work- 
 table is equally attractive, from the novelty of its construction; and 
 a Lady’s Work-table, suggested by the well-known vase of Cellini, 
 richly inlaid with pearl and gilt, singularly illustrates the value of art 
 as an aid to manual industry. The “Day-dreamer Chair” is a flight 
 of fancy materialized, if we may be allowed the term, most beauti¬ 
 fully ; and the “ legere chair,” inlaid with pearl, is remarkable for 
 its light elegance, combined with strength. The “ Eedgrave Tray ” 
 has become almost proverbial for beauty and utility combined. It 
 derives its name from the artist who designed it, and must have amply 
 repaid the manufacturer for his first outlay, thereby encouraging a 
 still further employment to the highest branch of art. We as natu¬ 
 rally look for it in a papier-mache collection of the first class, as we 
 would for a Turner or a Landseer in the higher regions of collective 
 art. By the bye, this contribution is peculiarly rich in trays, of one 
 kind or another. Besides the one just mentioned, with its beautiful 
 decoration of the royal arms, we have the “Pasha’s Tray,” richly 
 ornamented in gold and colours, and measuring fifty-eight inches in 
 diameter; a tea-tray, ornamented with the tea and coffee plants in 
 gold and colour, quite new in shape; and, also, the “Sutherland Tea- 
 urn Tray,” which is characteristic of the taste of that noble lady, who 
 adds a grace to her name. We must pass over the minor articles, 
 though well deserving of study and notice, in order that we may 
 introduce to the reader a series of objects equally deserving his atten¬ 
 tion, perhaps more so, as they belong rather to the useful, though 
 they have great merit even in their ornamental character. 
 
 A cabinet, in style partly Elizabethan and partly Italian, of rare 
 
PAPIER-MACHE. 
 
 211 
 
 beauty, both, in character and ornamentation, is exhibited in the group 
 of M‘Callum and Hodgson, who may be classed among the highest in 
 the useful category of this branch of manufacturing art. The front 
 panels of the cabinet contain well-executed portraits of the Queen and 
 Prince Albert, and on the sides are portraits of the royal children, 
 disposed in groups. It is also remarkable for its exquisite finish, and 
 for its brilliant, yet, withal, chaste style of ornamentation. It is rich, 
 not gaudy, and the distinction is nicely and delicately preserved. The 
 facilities afforded by the material and the adaptibility of pearl almost 
 tempts to over elaboration, but in this instance that fault has evi¬ 
 dently been avoided. A large table, inlaid with flowers, in pearl, is 
 also judiciously treated, as regards the over-attractive qualities of the 
 material just mentioned, and forms a striking object in the Exhibi¬ 
 tion. A bracket-glass, with lights, is an elegant appendage for the 
 boudoir; and a tray, called “new,” fully deserves its designation. The 
 music-stands, fire-screens, work-tables, and flower-stands, are a series 
 of objects which not only gratify, but absolutely inspire, good taste, 
 whenever they chance to meet the eye, and, to a certain degree, are 
 instrumental in promoting the elegant enjoyments of life. The same 
 observation may be extended to the writing-desks, the dressing-cases, 
 and other minor objects of almost hourly necessity, which are so antici- 
 pative of the multitude of little wants, more or less constantly assailing 
 us in our social relations, that they cannot fail to be appreciated. The 
 finish of the work, also, appears in the best manner, and not run up 
 for mere sale, in a showy and taking style, as too many articles of 
 this class of manufacture are apt to be. It is evident, from their 
 contribution to the Exhibition, that these manufacturers aim at diffu¬ 
 sing their productions amongst the well-to-do many of this world, 
 and not manipulate them exclusively for the refined and fastidious 
 few, excellent in their way, but necessarily limited in their number. 
 
 Passing from the essentially useful, taking the latter term in its 
 highest sense, we must turn for a moment to the ornamental, but not 
 in its purest and most severe taste. The patent pearl-glass papier- 
 mache productions of Mr. Lane are of this class. There is a tendency 
 to out-Herod Herod in the blaze, not brilliancy, of this class of pro¬ 
 ductions. Troppo e troppo , mio caro amico , as the Italians familiarly 
 phrase an over-done thing; and there is something “ too much of 
 this” in the glassy glitter which almost every instant “glints” upon 
 the eye, when directed to such objects. Nevertheless, it cannot, as 
 we think, be avoided, nor even greatly diminished, as the nature of 
 the materials, irrespective of the mode of treating them, must naturally 
 
212 PAPIER-MACHE. 
 
 “wear” such an appearance. The principle of Mr. Lane is the 
 application of pearl under glass, upon which the design is painted, 
 and the effect is as we have feebly attempted to describe. The diffi¬ 
 culty, hitherto, has been to subdue the pearl, its semi-translucent 
 nature alone, irrespective of colour brought in contact with it, ren¬ 
 dering it almost unmanageable for ornamentation, when the require¬ 
 ments of a refined and cultivated taste are to be consulted. Apart 
 from this drawback, the work-tables, ink-stands, desks, and panels 
 for ships’ cabins, are highly creditable to the taste and workmanship 
 of the contributor. The panels are especially rich, and must have 
 required a great amount of labour to complete them. Another pro¬ 
 cess, of the glittering order, is employed by Mr. Lane, called “ gem 
 painting on glass.” Miss E. Tonge, of Boston, appears the inventor 
 of this process. It is gorgeous in the extreme, to say the least of it. 
 The principle involved is similar to the patent pearl, and the effect is 
 like a number of precious stones set together, on a dark ground, and 
 covered with a thick glass. The application of this kind of decoration 
 appears the most effective upon panels, and, from its novelty, will 
 naturally attract the attention of a large, if not over judicious, class, 
 in matters of taste and ornamental decoration. 
 
 A large folding screen, by Mr. It. Turley, deservedly solicits a 
 remark or so. His style of ornamentation bespeaks a definite pur¬ 
 pose, as though there was mind, however limited, engaged upon it. 
 The leaves of the screen are divided into compartments, containing a 
 landscape, a group of flowers, or a basket of fruit, the whole being 
 encircled by gilt borders. The paintings are rather remarkable for 
 the power exhibited, both in design and in execution. There are 
 other objects in this collection of peculiar and marked excellence, but 
 strikingly similar to some that we have already noticed. 
 
 Glancing at the useful, we find a great disparity in the mode of 
 ornamenting and executing the material; in some productions there 
 is both elegance of design, and a subdued tone of tasteful execution. 
 On the other hand, we occasionally detect a coarseness and clumsi¬ 
 ness in both respects, or, in other terms, an unthrifty mutilation of 
 materials. As an example of the former quality, we may direct atten¬ 
 tion to the trays of Shoolbred and Loveridge, of Wolverhampton, who 
 appear to combine the essential and the ornamental, with the view of 
 securing the economical, in this class of productions. There is nothing 
 in the Birmingham contribution to equal them, of the same kind and 
 standard of goods, they evince the quiet taste, the calculating adapti- 
 bility, and even the subdued richness, that we have already described 
 
PAPIER-MACHE. 
 
 213 
 
 as the attributes generally of the highest class of productions. And 
 these remarks are equally applicable to the contribution of Mr. F. 
 Walton, of the same place. “ The seasons,” a series of trays, will 
 fully illustrate our meaning; so also will the Alhambric set. Among 
 this contribution there is also a high style of art adopted. The 
 bouquet of flowers, adorning the top of the table, is at once natural, 
 luxuriant, and graceful. There is no little amount of taste displayed 
 in that combination of colours ; a nice eye, a delicate perception, and 
 a poetic discrimination, have all been brought into play, while culling 
 and collating those scattered hues of nature. Retchz’s outlines of 
 Goethe’s over-praised Faust, form the subject of another set, but we 
 cannot speak so highly of the effect of these productions. Still, they 
 are ably executed; the subject itself being anything but attractive, 
 except to the muffled and mystic morals of a German mind. Is there 
 not “ pith ” enough in Shakspeare for the illustrative power of our 
 artists, without running so eagerly after\ his fifth-rate imitators ? It 
 can only be the result of a morbid, muddle-headed vanity ; a hanker¬ 
 ing after the eccentric and exceptional in the intellectual world, while 
 the truthful and the beautiful are passed by, though right in your 
 path,—a mental disease, let the aesthetically learned say what they 
 will. Back to Birmingham for a few minutes. Mr. J. Sutcliffe 
 exhibits a large number of trays deserving of notice, if it be merely 
 to mark the progress which has been generally made in the manufac¬ 
 ture of papier-mache. They are, for the most part, highly excellent 
 in their way, and seem intended for a definite class of purchasers. 
 There is one piece of merely ornamental work from the great practical 
 workshop of the world—the panel of heraldic painting, by Mr. J. 
 Clarke. It contains upwards of seventy-four coats of arms, the centre 
 being graced by the royal arms; and, on the whole, is a very credit¬ 
 able performance. 
 
 The contributions of Mr. Mechi, scattered over the Exhibition, 
 are highly characteristic of the taste and ornamentation which he has 
 so long encouraged in articles of papier-mache, and cannot fail to 
 attract the attention even of the most careless passer-by, whatever 
 may be their relative merit as compared to other productions. 
 
 Turning to another class of productions, our attention is naturally 
 arrested by the display of Mr. Bielefeld. We have already remarked 
 that he has made the ornamentation branch almost his own, if we 
 except Jackson, whom we shall shortly notice. The scrolls, bas- 
 reliefs, frames, capitals, and cornices contributed, are marvellous spe¬ 
 cimens of the effective ornamentation which the material is capable 
 
214 POTTERY AND PORCELAIN. 
 
 of, under the hands of a dextrous manipulator. The bust of Flax- 
 man is a favourable production, considering the nature of the mate¬ 
 rial, and so is the bracket angel, which has all the sharpness of outline 
 and the softness of expression it would have were it marble. On the 
 whole, these specimens of ornamental art are interesting in more ways 
 than one; first, as denoting that a more refined taste is spreading 
 amongst the community, and that the means to gratify that taste 
 keeps pace with its expansion. The Carton-pierre specimens of Jack- 
 son are chaste, elegant, and carefully-prepared contributions; their 
 fitting-up presenting them, certainly, in the best possible light. 
 Nevertheless, they are deserving of all judicious commendation. 
 
 —♦- 
 
 CHAPTER XXII.—POTTERY AND PORCELAIN. 
 
 In the manufacture of pottery and porcelain we have no equals, 
 taking beauty, economy, and utility into consideration. All the Con¬ 
 tinental states are far in arrear of us in this branch of industry, and 
 have little chance of competing with us, while they are comparatively 
 deficient in the raw material and the capital to turn it to good account. 
 
 “ The positive imperfection,” says M. Flachat, in his interesting 
 report, “ of our pottery, discloses a gap in our industry which ought 
 to be filled up—a vice in our tariff which must be removed. France is 
 deficient in the raw material for a good and cheap manufacture of 
 pottery; she pays too much for fuel, as compared to England. The 
 latter country combines all the essentials for the manufacture of cheap 
 and good pottery.” And the merchants of Bourdeaux, Lyons, and Havre, 
 who petitioned the Chamber of Deputies, in 1834 and 1839, to alter the 
 tariff, bear indirect evidence of the truth of M. Flachat’s observa¬ 
 tions :— 
 
 “¥e cannot too frequently call your attention,” they say, “ to our 
 pottery and china-ware. A duty of eleven to sixteen francs is im¬ 
 posed upon foreign common pottery; the finer qualities being altogether 
 prohibited. These articles, were they subject to a moderate duty, 
 would afford us a large exchange with England, and, from their bulk, 
 give considerable employment to our shipping. "We implore you to 
 give them admission, not only as articles of commerce, but as articles 
 of the first necessity, of which thousands of families in France are 
 now deprived. In fine, a dozen common plates in England is worth 
 
POTTERY AND PORCELAIN. 215 
 
 about sixty centimes (say sixpence), while in France the price varies 
 from two to three francs.” 
 
 There is also another point of equal importance respecting pottery, 
 which throws a somewhat singular light upon the inferior condition 
 of the French manufacture. We all know that vessels for holding 
 meat and drink are almost as indispensable as the meat and drink 
 themselves ; and the two requisite qualities are, that they shall be 
 cheap and easily cleaned. Pottery, as it is now produced in England, 
 possesses both these qualities in the veiy highest degree. A white 
 basin, for instance, having all the useful properties of the most costly 
 vessels, may be purchased for twopence at the door of the humblest 
 cottager. There are few substances used in human food that have 
 any effect upon these vessels; they simply require rinsing in hot 
 water and wiping with a cloth, and they are clean and fit for imme¬ 
 diate use. Let us see how the French are circumstanced in this 
 respect. “ If we recall,” says M. Flachat, “ the observations of M. 
 Brogniart, a most competent authority, it is simply to strengthen the 
 prayer of our merchants. He says, the unhealthiness of the pottery in 
 common use in the country is notorious. There are certain qualities so 
 badly made, that the slightest acid employed for domestic purposes is 
 sufficient to decompose the glaze, containing a certain portion of lead, 
 which immediately mixes with the food in the process of cooking. 
 None of our pottery can resist the contact of sulphuric gas; and the 
 greater portion, if exposed to the air a few days, becomes covered 
 with a surface, which indicates that the oxygen has combined with 
 the lead in the glaze, and that the latter is decomposed. The fact is, 
 the glaze is too little burnt, being principally composed of lead, which 
 requires but little fusibility, so that the atmosphere soon affects it. 
 Lead is used to make the article cheap; other and better materials 
 being too expensive with us.” 
 
 Another intelligent foreigner, from a different part of the Conti¬ 
 nent, also bears testimony to the excellence of our pottery:—“ If we 
 compare,” says M. Kohl, “ the common earthenware of England with 
 that of the French and Germans, or of any other nation, it appears 
 not only excellent in quality, but also highly ornamented and unsur- 
 passingly beautiful. The common French and German is compara¬ 
 tively ugly, coarse and misshapen.” 
 
 Let us rather direct attention, then, to the manufacture of porce¬ 
 lain, which requires a higher class of art, and involves a greater 
 amount of skilled labour—seeing that we are acknowledged, even by 
 our foreign competitors, to be unequalled in common pottery. Be- 
 
POTTERY AND PORCELAIN. 
 
 216 
 
 sides, it is only in the comparatively higher branches of industry that 
 we are called upon to put forth our strength in the Exhibition ; our 
 rivals tacitly acknowledging that we surpass them in the lower 
 branches by sending, in a majority of cases, their choicest and most 
 refined objects. In porcelain this is especially manifest. 
 
 We shall abstain, for want of space, from minutely describing the 
 different processes of the manufacture, though reluctantly, and shall con¬ 
 tent ourselves with briefly sketching them, in order more particularly 
 to note the great improvements that have been effected by our manu¬ 
 facturers, within the last few years even. We shall pass over the 
 building in which the crude materials are reduced to a plastic or 
 working state with its ponderous stone, whose crushing weight is 
 many tons; the mixing-room, where the pounded ingredients are 
 worked up into a smooth kind of clay ; the 11 throwing” room, where 
 the process of giving a circular shape to vessels is effected; the various 
 kilns which are used for the progressive stages of the manufacture; 
 the modelling department; and, lastly, the decorative rooms, where 
 the final touch and ornamentation is imparted to the object. Nor shall 
 we bestow hut a passing notice or so upon the rude ingredients used 
 in the manufacture, which consist principally of common flint, flint 
 in the calcined state, Cornish stone, Cornish clay, and calcined bone, 
 all ground together and mixed with water, so as to form a beautifully 
 fin e and plastic clay. The chemical researches into the nature of the 
 materials in common use have been varied and numerous, and the 
 “ mixing-room ” now could disclose many secrets which each manu¬ 
 facturer endeavours to keep to himself; for that is the stage where 
 the experience and judgment of the latter are brought into play,—the 
 quality of the porcelain depending principally upon the number of 
 ingredients used, and the proportions in which they are combined. 
 Within a century, the strangest views were entertained in Europe 
 respecting the composition and nature of Chinese porcelain; and it 
 was only after several experiments that Reaumur discovered that the 
 China clays, called pe-tun-tse and Jcao-lin , produced porcelain. It then 
 became an object of importance to ascertain whether any clays or 
 earths similar to these existed in Europe, and, about seventy years 
 ago, there were discovered in Cornwall two kinds of earth which 
 nearly answered in the desired qualities. Since that period, various 
 improvements have been introduced, in order to procure a porcelain 
 possessing hardness, strength, firmness of texture, whiteness of colour, 
 and a capacity of receiving and retaining colours and gilding on its 
 surface ; hut the Cornish clay, as a basis, is still indispensable in the 
 
POTTERY AND PORCELAIN. 
 
 217 
 
 manufacture of the finer porcelain. The respective qualities of the 
 ingredients used may be thus arranged :—the clay gives the plastic 
 quality, the flint imparts the vitreous or strengthening quality, and 
 the bone aids in producing the semi-transparency, for which porcelain 
 is so much admired. A plate, accidentally broken in the contribution 
 of Alderman Copeland, exhibits these various phenomena to advantage, 
 especially the homogeneity of the material in its compound state. 
 
 Before we proceed to point out the relative excellence of home and 
 foreign made porcelain, it may not be uninstructive to glance at its 
 condition in France, our principal rival in the highest branch of the 
 art. In the article of porcelain, the latter country has long enjoyed a 
 deserved reputation. The quality of the material which she uses, her ex¬ 
 quisite manipulation of that material, the beauty of design, and fine taste 
 of painting, all of which she imparts to this branch of industry, have 
 given her hitherto a marked pre-eminence in the markets of Europe. 
 
 “ France,” says the excellent authority quoted before, “ has a 
 fundamental advantage in the manufacture of porcelain, in the excel¬ 
 lence of the raw material. The 'kaolin of Saint-Yrieux is the purest 
 in quality ever known ; and this cause, added to our taste in the arts, 
 explains the progress of this beautiful industry. The hard porcelain- 
 paste in the manufactures of Paris and Limousin is composed of four 
 parts of unwashed kaolin and one of felspar. The paste, called the 
 service , in the Sevres manufacture, contains sixty-four parts of washed 
 kaolin , six of Bougival chalk, ten of pure sand, and twenty from the 
 washing of kaolin , in one hundred parts. The washing of kaolin at 
 Sevres completely separates the sand from it, and imparts to the paste 
 a more argillaceous texture than that used at Paris, which, according 
 to Brogniart, renders it more susceptible of undulations in the burning, 
 and more capable of being shaped on a large scale. Here then is a 
 branch of industry truly French, in every part of which we are supe¬ 
 rior to our neighbours. Excellent raw material, skilled hand-labour, 
 and priority in the art of designing.” 
 
 Notwithstanding these manifest advantages,—which, by the skill 
 and capital of our manufacturers, and the fine class of art which they 
 now avail themselves of, are daily diminishing,—the porcelain manu¬ 
 facture applies itself but rarely to the wants of the many, whose tastes 
 and means are of too humble and limited a nature in France, and 
 indeed elsewhere, to indulge in such costly objects. This fact is 
 confirmed by the judicious writer just quoted:— 
 
 “ The manufacturers of porcelain,” he says, “ have neglected to 
 exhibit a class of objects that would come within the range of the 
 
POTTERY AND PORCELAIN. 
 
 218 
 
 ordinary purchaser, and seem to think that little interest would be 
 taken in such productions. They are mistaken. Whenever produc¬ 
 tions for ordinary use exhibit any improvement in their manufacture, 
 the public not only admire, but eagerly purchase them ; and it would 
 be the same with porcelain, were any sensible diminution to take place 
 in its price. Surely here is a motive sufficient to imitate the beau¬ 
 tiful pottery of England, so universally diffused in that country, as 
 compared to France; but here we are met by an awkward objection— 
 that we are comparatively deficient in the mechanical means, and 
 that our manufacturers do not possess the capital for manufacturing 
 cheaply. Our excellence in this branch of industry is mainly depen¬ 
 dent upon our skilled labour, the productions of which are necessarily 
 limited in their scale.” 
 
 Regarding the patronage of art by the State, which has been so 
 frequently enlarged upon in this country, as one of the causes of 
 French excellence in certain branches of industry, there are several 
 opinions entertained, even in France, on that head. Take the royal 
 manufacture of Sevres as an example in point. That establishment 
 has not injured the general industry of France so much by coming 
 into collision with private enterprise, as by artificially stimulating its 
 productive power. A healthy state of industry must depend upon 
 individual enterprise, and not upon State patronage, as the instincts 
 of private interest are more powerful stimuli to success, than the mere 
 dictates of a cold sense of duty. Hence the material improvements 
 in the manufacture of porcelain have not emanated from Sevres, for 
 economy is the last lesson to be expected from that quarter, without 
 which there are no means of giving an extended development to any 
 branch of industry. 
 
 “ It must be allowed,” remarks M. Flachat, “that the manufac¬ 
 ture of Sevres is animated with a desire to extend its knowledge 
 and skill for the benefit of industry; but experience proves that its 
 services are but of a secondary nature, and that the money absorbed 
 annually in that temple-fabric of luxury, might be more usefully em¬ 
 ployed in schools of design, of chemistry, mechanics, and metallurgy.” 
 
 We fully agree with this intelligent writer. True excellence, 
 that is, excellence of an enduring and healthy nature, must spring 
 from the moral and intellectual feelings of the mass of the commu¬ 
 nity—and especially industrial excellence, as it almost invariably 
 wanes and withers when petted and pampered by artificial means. 
 The manufacture of porcelain in this country, on the contrary, is 
 characterised more by its simple beauty and utility, than by the cost- 
 
POTTERY AND PORCELAIN. 
 
 219 
 
 liness and refined luxury of its productions. This branch of industry, 
 like most others in England, is based upon sound and healthy prin¬ 
 ciples ; it is, so to speak, creeping up the pyramid of perfection by its 
 own innate excellence, and, as it rises towards the apex, it manages 
 to keep a firm hold upon the strata below, in order that it may sus¬ 
 tain itself surely in its upward movements. And this, after all, is 
 the true test of its vitality. France, if we may be allowed the figure, 
 has inverted the pyramid in almost all her industrial pursuits. She 
 produces the richest silks, the finest printed cottons, the most costly 
 porcelains, and, in a few instances, the most minute and skilful 
 machinery; but these productions are not only limited in quantity, 
 but are necessarily confined to the few; while for the many—as¬ 
 suredly the most useful class of customers, and without which no 
 industry can long sustain itself in a healthy state—she provides infe¬ 
 rior low-priced silks,' dear cottons, villanous crockery-ware, and 
 execrable cutlery. 
 
 A glance at the contents of the Exhibition, in the porcelain depart¬ 
 ment, will fully sustain the preceding remarks, and convey to the 
 reader the precise condition of our manufacture, as compared with 
 that of the Continent. 
 
 The largest contributor is Alderman Copeland, both in quantity 
 and variety. Here we have almost every imaginable article of 
 domestic use and luxury, and all specially aiming at one result— 
 beauty of appearance with utility of purpose. It is in this combination 
 that we are far in advance of the foreigner; and, above all, in the 
 truthfulness of our work. The uses to which porcelain is now applied 
 have opened a wide field for the skill and ingenuity of the manufac¬ 
 turer, of which Alderman Copeland seems largely to have availed 
 himself. The tiles, panels, and table tops, carefully prepared, are 
 not the least attractive objects in the contribution, seeing that this 
 fine material, in several instances, has superseded marble for decorative 
 purposes, and far excels it in point of beauty, variety, and economy. 
 In this respect we are much in advance of our continental rivals, 
 both in the quality of the material and the beauty of the illustration. 
 
 The porcelain statuary is entitled to equal commendation. The 
 cold, blue-white, and cheerless bisquet work will bear no comparison 
 with the former, either in conveying beauty, feeling, or expression ; 
 the warm, genial, and flesh-like quality of the Parian has had the 
 effect of disseminating some of the finest productions of statuary; 
 and, what is a material point, at a comparatively moderate price. A 
 happier medium could scarcely be devised for extending a true and 
 
 G 
 
POTTERY AND PORCELAIN. 
 
 220 
 
 beautiful knowledge of the arts, as it is unequalled for its almost 
 thinking and speaking appearance. The “ Ino and Bacchus,” and the 
 “Sappho,” are examples in point; and the figure of “Susannah,” 
 the largest and finest that we have yet seen in this material, presents 
 a singular specimen of its effect. It has the beauty and softness of 
 marble, with all the graceful undulations which hitherto have been so 
 difficult to preserve in porcelain. There are several other objects de¬ 
 serving of notice, especially where a fine relief is represented on the 
 surface. The Dubarri Vase is highly creditable to the taste and artis¬ 
 tic quality of the contributor, and reminds us of some of the most 
 recherche objects of a similar kind in the Sevres department. The 
 colour is laid in with great delicacy, and the quality of the porcelain, 
 to receive it so richly, is not one of its least remarkable features. Nor 
 are we indebted to foreign art for the beauty and delicacy of designs 
 on porcelain objects. The reproduction of the Etrurian style by Mr. 
 Battam is highly creditable to the genius and character of English art 
 as applied to industrial objects. The “Sutherland Bose-cup” is an 
 elegant specimen of minute and skilled workmanship, both in painting 
 and in chasing. In fact, the varied vases, cups, dishes, and other 
 articles in this contribution are characterised, generally, by great 
 beauty of ornamentation and a fine quality of material. 
 
 The next contributor of importance, and, perhaps, of a more 
 delicate nature, is Mr. John Bose. First, let us dispose of his 
 Parian group of the “ Pleiades adorning Night;” it is a fanciful, 
 and somewhat highly poetical, conception. The grouping of the 
 figures evinces a correct idea of form, and of the exquisite out¬ 
 lines which may be produced by a skilful treatment of it. On the 
 whole, we consider this group a pleasing and attractive performance. 
 “Puck” is a merry conceit in the same material. There is nothing 
 in china, in our opinion, in the whole Exhibition, to equal the “ Bose 
 Dubarry” style in this contribution. The colours are exquisitely 
 laid on; the character of the art employed is equal to the materials 
 used. This colour and the tourquoise are difficult to produce of an 
 equal depth and beauty to the Sevres, though numerous attempts 
 have been made in this country, therefore it becomes a matter of con¬ 
 siderable interest whenever the manufacturers succeed so happily as 
 they have done in this instance. The “Bose Dubarry” and gold 
 vases, and the blues to correspond, are both novel in shape and bril¬ 
 liant in ornamentation. A coffee service, beautifully and delicately 
 painted, is equally deserving of notice, besides other objects in the same 
 case; but the difficulty of gaining anything beyond a simple glance 
 
POTTERY AND PORCELAIN. 
 
 221 
 
 precluded us from inspecting them, as we otherwise should have felt a 
 sincere pleasure in doing. The “Dessert Service” of Minton has natu¬ 
 rally attracted great attention, especially since the Queen has purchased 
 it for presentation to the Emperor of Austria. The marked peculiarity 
 in it is the somewhat abundant use of the Parian with the ordinary 
 porcelain, otherwise it would not have particularly struck us, being 
 tame, and not superlatively tasty, either in the character of the 
 design or the colouring. The variety of this service is in some 
 measure its especial recommendation. Chamberlins exhibit a singular 
 style of porcelain, which is at least original, if not over-pleasing. 
 It somewhat resembles a honeycomb in pattern, and the colouring is 
 rather rich, although not of the most subdued kind. Alcock has a 
 beautiful specimen or so of bisquet work, some of them exquisitely 
 designed by Alfred Crowquill; and Ridgway is particularly happy in 
 the shape of one or two of his plates, to say nothing of their fine 
 ornamentation. A chaste and beautiful white and gold service by 
 Daniel and Co., is deserving of especial notice; it bears the cypher 
 sans changer on it,—the device, we apprehend, of its owner. Edward 
 and Son have a large imitation of the Warwick Yase, executed with 
 great fidelity and rare beauty ; a minute examination of the bas- 
 reliefs will amply repay the trouble. The contribution of Wedge- 
 wood is rather singular than beautiful, exhibiting, as it were, the 
 nominis umbra of the past age; but the fine vases of Mason in iron¬ 
 stone compensate, in some measure, for this deficiency. Meigher and 
 Sons have also a couple of vases, with the portraits of the Queen and 
 Prince Albert, which attract notice from the novelty of illustration, 
 and the boldness of design, which they display. 
 
 In the foreign departments we have several rich specimens, espe¬ 
 cially Sevres, one or two of which we remember, some years ago, in 
 that establishment. They are, perhaps, the finest productions of the 
 kind in Europe: with these we have no pretensions to compete, 
 though we have made considerable progress in painting on porcelain, 
 and in some instances are fully equal to our neighbours. 
 
 In the Austrian department there are some beautiful specimens of 
 Bohemian porcelain, which are well deserving of attention. In form, 
 in colouring, and in the quality of the material, the manufacture is 
 equally excellent, and furnishes a fine study for our countrymen. 
 The vases and jars of Elbogen are novel in shape, and are exquisitely 
 ornamented. A set of dessert plates, each containing a ruin of the 
 cities of the Holy Land and the adjacent country, are likewise en¬ 
 titled to a passing remark, if it were only to point out the charming 
 
SILKS. 
 
 222 
 
 style of colouring which the artist has adopted. Some tea cups, with 
 gold grounds and coloured reliefs, are equally striking objects. 
 
 In the higher branches of porcelain art we must, therefore, yield 
 to the Continent; in the intermediate and useful we have no equals, 
 especially as regards the quality of the material. 
 
 —t— 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII.—SILKS. 
 
 In the department of silk we occupy highly creditable ground, 
 especially if viewed with an eye to economy. Nor are we much lower 
 in the richest class of productions, where taste, texture, and design 
 are indispensable, for in all these qualities of manufacturing art we 
 have made, within these few years, an unmistakable advance. At the 
 present time we have one rival to overtake, upon whom we are quietly 
 yet surely creeping, and the distance between us gradually lessens as 
 we keep steadily and doggedly on our course. A single glance at the 
 Exhibition, however, will satisfy even a Spitalfields weaver, and 
 others who are blessed with a similar disposition, that we are yet in 
 the rear, though we are right in the wake of our ingenious and 
 talented teacher. 
 
 To the credit, be it said, of our merchants and manufacturers, 
 whose enterprise is mutually enriching, we have placed in the Exhi¬ 
 bition the finest specimens of the raw material, in their several 
 qualities and conditions, which furnish at least an indirect proof of 
 our great progress, whatever may be the real secret of our extraordi¬ 
 nary success. The manufacture speaks for itself; it requires but 
 little practical experience to recognize its present excellence, which 
 may be distinctly traced in every article, from the narrowest ribbon 
 to the broadest brocade for garments. In each and all of these stages, 
 the mechanical and manipulative skill of our artizans, though but 
 recently acquired, is severally exhibited. It is only within the last 
 ten or fifteen years that we have attained the knowledge of making 
 the richest class of goods, either in the ribbon or in the broad depart¬ 
 ment of silks ; and it would now require a nicely-tutored eye to dis¬ 
 tinguish with accuracy a rich brocade manufactured in Spitalfields 
 from one that is just fresh from a loom of Lyons. The same remark 
 may be applied to ribbons, but perhaps with greater force, as there are 
 specimens to which we shall shortly refer, which clearly prove that 
 
silks. 223 
 
 we have largely gained upon our neighbours in more than one direc¬ 
 tion. In shawls, handkerchiefs, and other minor articles of female 
 attire, we are fully equal, and in some respects superior to our Conti¬ 
 nental competitors, if a slight deduction be made in what is called 
 taste and design; and even in several of these respects, we are nearly 
 equal to them. While, as regards quality, truthfulness of work, and 
 economy of cost, in almost every instance we are greatly in advance 
 of them. Indeed, our only competitor of importance, as we have 
 already remarked, is France; neither Switzerland, our former rival 
 in narrow ribbons, nor the Rhenish towns, if we except low-priced 
 narrow and broad velvets, can even approach us, either in the beauty, 
 finish, or general utility of the articles enumerated. 
 
 In the supply of the raw material we have a decided advantage 
 over the Continent; and, if we except a certain portion of the finest 
 quality of French grown silk, an almost unlimited command over the 
 productive resources of the world. In one instance, indeed, we have 
 the supreme control. We procure the silks of China in abundance, 
 partly as balance in return for exports to her markets, and partly 
 through the speculative spirit of our merchants. In short, we are the 
 great entrepot for the raw materials of the Celestial empire, and there¬ 
 fore have a decided advantage over others, as far as the consumption 
 of those materials is concerned. The silks of Brusa and of Italy are 
 governed by the same circumstances, and find their way here on nearly 
 the same grounds. And even the silks of France, which are generally 
 forestalled by her own manufacturers, have recently been largely 
 imported here, as the only market where they could be disposed of to 
 advantage, though that may be attributed in some measure to the 
 disturbed state of the country. In peaceful and prosperous times, 
 however, she generally consumes her own produce; still, we are 
 enabled, by the growing demand of our manufacture, to consume any 
 surplus that she may have to dispose of. But the production of India, 
 which is somewhat extensive, is comparatively under our own control. 
 For these advantages we are indebted to our vast industry, to the 
 amount of capital at our command, to our mechanical skill, and to our 
 superb means of transport, which may be said to embrace every point 
 of the trading and civilized globe. There is, also, another advantage 
 arising from our mechanical skill especially deserving of notice, which 
 we have acquired within the last fifteen or twenty years, viz., the 
 power of throwing the raw material to great perfection, as compared 
 to either France or Italy. We are indebted to Royle of Manchester 
 for this improvement. His machine for throwing silks, which may 
 
224 silks. 
 
 be seen in the machinery department, has materially advanced the 
 manufacture of this country, and rendered us comparatively inde¬ 
 pendent of the Continent. Before that invention was practically 
 worked, we drew our principal supply of thrown silk from abroad; 
 and, as a high duty was imposed upon its importation to protect the 
 throwster, whose clumsy and expensive mode of throwing was a 
 premium in favour of the foreigner, we could only procure the finer 
 qualities of silk at a comparatively high price. Not only were we 
 rendered independent of France and Italy for the bulk of our supplies 
 by the improved machinery alluded to, but it enabled us to enlarge 
 the field whence we drew them, by bringing the inferior-priced silks 
 into more general use, and to that extent reversed our manufacturing 
 condition. Immediately that machinery of skilful construction was 
 applied to the general qualities of raw silk, a great stimulus was given 
 to the manufacture, both here and abroad, but especially in this 
 country. It was a great advantage to the English manufacturer when 
 we had mastered the difficulty of preparing the raw material, for the 
 invention to which we have alluded could turn out the coarse and 
 less-carefully cultivated silks of China, India, and Brusa, in almost as 
 good condition as those that had passed through the mills of Vauconson 
 and Turin. Indeed the latter could not have thrown the silks of 
 India, with their soft and flabby texture, to any marketable advantage, 
 nor those of China and Brusa, in their ordinarily matted condition, 
 with the same facility and effect as they could manage the clean and 
 healthy production of the worm of France and Italy. Nothing less 
 than the invention just mentioned could have removed the impurities 
 which too frequently deteriorate the raw material of eastern growth— 
 the fluff, for instance, which in several instances tenaciously adheres 
 to the silk throughout the subsequent stages of manufacture, and 
 which formerly precluded it from the better class of goods. Machinery, 
 in this instance, gained us an immense step—and in this direction, 
 instead of using the French or Italian silks exclusively for our warps, 
 in the general and higher branches of the manufacture, we were 
 enabled to run a thread of China or Bengal with a thread of the 
 former ; and in its organized state it would sometimes prove superior, 
 especially when a thread of the fine-nerved China was run with the 
 best Italian; while in the lower qualities it was manifestly of the 
 first advantage, as the high price of the former silks almost entirely 
 excluded them from general use. Let the reader imagine a warp of 
 silk weighing, for example, six pounds, and worth thirty shillings per 
 pound, which it would be were it all Italian or French, estimating 
 
SILKS. 
 
 225 
 
 the latter at the lowest price; hut if we are enabled to throw a thread 
 of Bengal silk worth about nine shillings, and another of China worth 
 about fourteen shillings, with one of Italian, so as to organize the 
 warp of three different qualities, then the price of the manufactured 
 article would be reduced almost one half, as far as the raw material is 
 concerned. Herein lies the advantage which we have acquired by 
 the improved process of throwing ; and to such an extent has it been 
 carried of late years, that our Continental neighbours are obliged to 
 draw their supplies of thrown silk, for the more economical branches 
 of their manufacture, from this country. At this time, even the waste 
 silk is bought xip in France, sent over to England, and returned in a 
 thrown state ; and although a duty of two francs the kilogramme is 
 imposed upon its re-introduction there, it is cheaper and better than 
 any thi'own in the best establishments of our neighbours. We have 
 said that we have only one rival of importance in this branch of manu¬ 
 facture, and a few words upon the causes that have operated to 
 produce this superiority will render our subsequent observations upon 
 the several articles exhibited more intelligible. 
 
 The silk manufacture of France has always ranked amongst the 
 most perfect branches of modern industry, and has given her hitherto 
 a commanding influence over the markets of the world, as regards the 
 consumption of that beautiful fabric. The quality of the raw material 
 which has been obtained by the minute attention paid to the cultiva¬ 
 tion of the worm, may be cited as one of the principal causes of her 
 present excellence in this branch of manufacture, and the application 
 of her highly-cultivated taste, both in the combination of colours and 
 the beauty of design, in all its detail, may be cited as another; yet, 
 in spite of these advantages, the superiority of France is gradually 
 diminishing, and may be said to consist in taste alone, confining the 
 meaning of that term to the arbitrary prestige of the day. Of this 
 fact the French themselves are sensitively cognizant. 
 
 “ The time is not far distant,” says the intelligent writer of an 
 article in the Annales de VIndustrie de la Soie en France , a publication 
 of acknowledged merit, “when France had the monopoly of the 
 manufacture of silk. People came from all parts of the world to 
 purchase the productions of Lyons, St. Etienne, Nismes, and St. 
 Chamond, both figured and plain, whether of the most sumptuous or 
 of the simplest quality. Unfortunately the field of industry requires 
 constant and vigilant attention, and, with all our energy, we have 
 competitors as it were upon our own ground, for England, Switzer¬ 
 land, Belgium, Prussia, and Austria even, have entered the arena 
 
SILKS. 
 
 226 
 
 against us. But it is f rom, England that we have most to dread , for she 
 draws from her vast colonial possessions the raw material in such 
 abundance, and at so much cheaper a rate than we can command, that 
 the most fatal rivalry is to be expected from her. There are different 
 means, it is true, of producing an article cheaply—the perfection of 
 machinery and the excellence of our workmen; hut the most import¬ 
 ant of all is the abundance and cheapness of the raw material, and it 
 is impossible to sustain, in the long run, the struggle for supremacy, 
 or even equality; and the moment we cease to be supreme, or, in 
 other terms, lose the prestige of fashion, which exercises so powerful 
 an influence over demand and supply, we instantly become inferior, 
 unless we are placed upon a par with our competitors in this respect. 
 But in France the supply of raw silk has not kept pace with our 
 manufacturing demands, and almost every year we are obliged to 
 import from fifty to sixty millions of kilogrammes from our rivals; 
 it is therefore impossible to maintain our ground unless we adopt a 
 different course, by producing a supply from our own soil equal to 
 the demand of our manufacturers.” 
 
 Vain and fruitless effort! The cultivation of silk in France is 
 limited, and must necessarily be so from the insufficiency of capital, 
 and from the repulsive and unhealthy condition of her landed pro¬ 
 perty. So long as that country is afflicted with the law of a com¬ 
 pulsory bequest of property—the greatest curse ever inflicted upon 
 an agricultural people, as it leads to a continuous morcellement of the 
 soil—there is no hope of a profitable and healthy cultivation of any 
 kind whatever. And, even supposing capital were abundant in 
 France, and the soil in the most healthy and vigorous condition for 
 the growth of silk, still it would not be policy to stimulate the 
 growth of the latter beyond the point when it would yield the 
 minimum of profit for the maximum of outlay ; for the silks of France, 
 from their fineness of texture and their comparatively high price, can 
 never equal for general purposes those of China, nor even the best 
 qualities of Bengal and Brusa. In point of quality there can be no 
 question of the superiority of the raw silks of France; but that 
 superiority has been considerably diminished by the improved pro¬ 
 cess of throwing, to which we have alluded, and which has con¬ 
 siderably increased the demand for the inferior qualities of the raw 
 material. France herself is fully alive to the importance of using 
 the inferior silks in her manufacture, and has latterly become a large 
 importer of Chinas and Bengals, which she draws principally from 
 the stores of this country. 
 
SILKS. 
 
 227 
 
 In order to estimate the progress of the silk manufacture of Eng¬ 
 land, and its chances of competing with its skilful and ingenious 
 rival, both at home and abroad, we must take a cursory glance at 
 the nature of our imports, both in a raw and manufactured condition. 
 Since the duty upon the importation of the raw material has been 
 abolished, the manufacture has taken a surprising start, and numerous 
 factories have sprung up in various parts of England and Scotland, 
 whereas formerly it was almost exclusively confined to Spitalfields. 
 The official value of raw and thrown silk imported into Great Britain, 
 in 1826, was one million and a quarter odd pounds weight , which 
 equalled about one-third the consumption of France; hut in 1847, 
 the year preceding the Revolution, which greatly disturbed the whole 
 manufacturing industry of the latter, the relative consumption stands 
 thus:— 
 
 France, 1847. England, 1847. 
 
 Home Produce . 2,100,000 Imported . . 5,106,200 
 
 Imported . . 2,230,000 
 
 4,330,000 
 
 Relying upon these returns, which are derived from official 
 sources, it appears that our manufacture of silk has increased nearly 
 four-fold within the short space of twenty years, while the increase of 
 our neighbours has scarcely exceeded one-third. There is also another 
 feature of importance in these returns, namely, that the consumption 
 of France exceeds her own production by more than one-half: she is 
 therefore dependent upon the general markets of the world for the 
 surplus. These figures speak volumes. If we refer to the imports 
 from France, there is a change of an equally striking nature as regards 
 the manufactured article. Formerly, a large quantity of plain goods 
 were imported by us; at the present time there are but compara¬ 
 tively few, and those principally of the richest and most exclusive class. 
 The reason of the change is obvious. W e have made great improve¬ 
 ments in the manufacture of silk, at one time through the medium 
 of more skilled processes of preparing the raw material, combined 
 with the use of steam as a motive power ; at another through the in¬ 
 genious device of altering our reeds for the warps (this, we believe, 
 is confined to Manchester); in short, our manufacturers have left no 
 stone unturned to accomplish their ends, and the result proves the 
 foresight and accuracy of their aim. There is, perhaps, no branch of 
 manufacturing industry which exhibits more striking proofs of the 
 power of capital, when energetically and judiciously directed, than 
 that of silk. By these means we are enabled to supply neutral 
 
SILKS. 
 
 228 
 
 markets to the great disadvantage of our former rival, for within the 
 last few years our exports of plain silks to America have considerably 
 exceeded those of France, and are gradually encroaching upon her 
 even in the rich and fancy departments. And even to France herself 
 we are enabled to export manufactured silks, which she receives 
 with some reluctance, as it clearly demonstrates the marvellous 
 power of our manufacturing machinery, and how little chance she 
 has of competing with it. The ordinary linings used for her hats, for 
 her dresses, and for other common purposes—such as Persians, sars- 
 nets, &c.—are the produce of the power-looms of Macclesfield and its 
 adjacent neighbourhood; and the greater portion of her peasantry, 
 and even the women of her Halles , decorate their heads with the 
 corahs of India, after the latter have gone through the process of our 
 cheap printing. And, relying upon the evidence of an intelligent 
 witness on the Patent Law Report, alluded to elsewhere, the shop¬ 
 keepers of Lyons are even importing our plain Gros-de-naples. 
 Still, it must be allowed that, however sharply we may contest 
 with France this queen of her industries, in all matters apper¬ 
 taining to taste, in its most refined condition, she still keeps in 
 advance of us. We must bow the head to her in this respect, as she 
 amply deserves the recognition of superiority. Where is her equal in 
 beauty of design, in arrangement of colours, and in the high finish 
 of workmanship ? No loom in England, nor on the Continent, can 
 come up to her in these important respects. True, we imitate her 
 closely, more closely indeed, on the whole, than any other nation; 
 yet, it must be confessed, we are behind her. The shuttle must re¬ 
 sound for some time to come in the busy hive of Manchester before 
 it can silence that on the banks of the Rhone, were it, indeed, a 
 necessity that the one should silence the other ; but it is not, and this 
 metaphor is simply indulged in to measure with comparative accuracy 
 their relative distance. 
 
 A quiet walk through the Exhibition, and a careful examination 
 of the respective contributions of France and ourselves, will fully 
 illustrate the meaning of the preceding observations. Let us glance 
 at the richer portion of the respective contributions first. What can 
 possibly surpass the beauty and finish of the Alhambra Robe, marked 
 with the name of Charles Candy, who has done, perhaps, more than 
 any other man of the present day to stimulate the genius of the 
 French manufacturer, by his own prolific yet practical taste ? There 
 you may observe the chaste harmony of colouring, and the felicity of 
 design, which generally characterise the highest class of French silk 
 
silks. 229 
 
 productions. With comparatively limited means the richest effect is 
 produced, which is the greatest triumph of industrial skill. The 
 shades of yellow are so admirably dispersed over the figure, and so 
 ingeniously arranged, that the surface seems like a stream of golden 
 light, which may be occasionally seen on the horizon, at the going 
 down of the sun. The watered ground is also an effective relief 
 to the brocaded surface, much more so than though it had been 
 plain. This, to our mind, is the chef <Toeuvre of skilful weaving. 
 There are others of a similar class dispersed through the Lyon- 
 nese contribution, more or less partaking of the same qualities, but 
 with no peculiar feature entitling them to a separate notice. The 
 productions of Leleu Freres are deserving of remark, as they exhibit 
 weaving to imitate embroidery, which may be termed a new feature. 
 If it can be effected with comparative facility and economy of cost, 
 it will be esteemed as a valuable contribution to the decorative branch 
 of the art. The colours are exquisitely blended in the design, and 
 the surface of the silk is much smoother, and less liable to soil from 
 friction, than the raised surface of embroidery must necessarily be. 
 In scarfs, handkerchiefs, and the ornamental portions of garments, it 
 may be introduced with great effect; so also in ribbons with similar if 
 not greater success. The embroidered silks of Mire Freres fully sustain 
 the reputation of Lyons. In the coloured moire-antique silks France 
 still displays her refined taste ; so also in her delicate pearl-whites, 
 and in the richer portion of her coloured satins. Her clean, fine, and 
 nicely-prepared raw material, combined with her exquisite dyes, still 
 secure for her this delicate pre-eminence. Her rich shot ducapes, 
 glittering like the corruscation of a sun-heam on the waters, are still 
 the beau ideal of refined taste; and her Genoese velvets, as she tech¬ 
 nically calls the productions of her own looms, are as rich and 
 flexible as it is possible to suppose such fabrics can really be. Nor 
 ought we to omit her clouded silks, both in ribbons and in the broad 
 department, as she has so effectively applied this style for some years 
 past; and she has every right so to do, for it is her own invention, 
 having first applied colours to, or rather printed, the warp before it 
 was woven. Altogether a novel invention, characteristic of her pro¬ 
 lific genius. 
 
 Apropos to clouded warps, a curious controversy has recently 
 taken place in the Parisian journals on the subject of clouded warps, 
 or chine silks. M. Blanqui, the well-known political economist, in 
 the course of a series of letters on the Exhibition, indulges in the 
 following remarks: — “In the Lyonnese contribution there is an 
 
SILKS. 
 
 230 
 
 article which it would he well to suppress—the plain silks with printed 
 warps, called climes. It is only within these few years that this kind 
 of silk has become fashionable, and it really does not deserve it. This 
 bastard silk, so largely used in robes, &c., exhibits a vague and con¬ 
 fused design, which is contrary to the fame of Lyonnese manufacture, 
 so justly prized for the clearness and beauty of its colours. I hope 
 the chine silks will perish; but Messrs. Perrequax and Co., of Bour- 
 goin, and M. Revilliod, of Yizille, both in the department of the 
 Isere, have exhibited such beautiful specimens that this kind of silk 
 will be sustained, though the design on the warp is clouded by the 
 shoot, and only meets the eye through a misty medium and a sickly 
 aspect.” 
 
 M. Revilliod, somewhat indignant at a member of the Institute 
 going out of his way to decry a peculiar kind of manufacture, replies 
 to M. Blanqui, and as the reply contains an important historical fact 
 or so, we shall cite them here, as they will serve to elucidate the 
 progress and condition of this branch of the manufacture. M. Revil¬ 
 liod remarks after pointing attention to the beautiful robe in the 
 Exhibition which bears the name of Charles Candy and Co.—the Vic¬ 
 toria Robe:—“In 1823-4, when I was printing at Vizille (in the 
 works of Messrs. A. Perier), my first attempt to print chine silks 
 commenced; I presented some patterns for the curtains of the VIn¬ 
 tendance du Garde-Meuble , and an excellent friend, the Inspector-in- 
 Chief, was surprised at the result, and predicted that it would be highly 
 advantageous to manufacturing industry. Since that period I have 
 witnessed four or five periods of success for chine silks, but the most 
 important is the present time, as it has arrived almost at perfection; 
 and I shall not exaggerate when I state that this branch of industry 
 gives employment to from 15 to 20,000 hands, as draftsmen, printers, 
 weavers, &c., &c., therefore, if M. Blanqui cannot prove that these 
 workmen would have been better employed, he has done a serious 
 injury to one of the great interests of the country.” 
 
 Such is the spirit of M. Revilliod’s reply, if not the precise words, 
 and we fully agree with him that the condemnation of any particular 
 section of industry is more hypercritical than soundly economical, and 
 from a man of M. Blanqui’s standing in society, it is somewhat 
 deplorable to witness the expression of it. 
 
 The “Victoria Robe,” to which allusion is made in the preceding 
 remarks, is what the French call a tour de force in silk printing, and 
 it amply deserves the name. The design is peculiarly effective, 
 representing the three kingdoms with their appropriate emblems—the 
 
SILKS. 
 
 231 
 
 rose, the thistle, and the shamrock, and what appears to he the hap¬ 
 piest thought is the garter , with its Honi soit qui mal y pense promi¬ 
 nently woven, uniting the group into one harmonious whole. The 
 robe was designed by Charles Candy, and hears the name of Messrs. 
 Hitchcock, as its proprietor. 
 
 In the furniture department France is especially rich and 
 varied—the damasks and the tahorettes of Tourneau clearly proving 
 that Tours has not lost the “ cunning ” of the weaver’s art. In 
 short, in almost all the higher branches of silk clothing, France 
 may be said to hold the palm of excellence. One word more upon 
 the Genoese velvets. Extending our view to other portions of the 
 Exhibition, and minutely examining the several contributions, we acci¬ 
 dentally stumbled upon one that is likely to dispute the supremacy 
 which she has hitherto maintained in the markets of the world. The 
 Genoese velvets, made at Genoa, not at Lyons, in the Sardinian con¬ 
 tribution, have made quite an impression on our English manufac¬ 
 turers, so little was such excellence expected from that quarter. The 
 coloured velvets of Chichizola, especially the ponceau or ingrained 
 colour, are remarkable for the beauty of finish, the exquisite shades 
 of colour, and the silkiness of pile, which they respectively display. 
 The raw material used in their manufacture appears to have been of 
 the finest and most glossy nature, so clean and clear is the surface 
 uniformly preserved; and the art of dyeing must have reached an 
 excellence unknown even in France, to have produced such beautiful 
 shades of ponceau and blue, which are naturally repellant to a piled 
 or opaque surface. This contribution will be examined with great 
 interest. There are likewise in the same department some fine 
 samples of taborets, which will compare with the best French pro¬ 
 ductions, and in one or two respects excel them. In the combination 
 of colours suitable for a peculiar class of furniture, they present an 
 exceedingly happy effect, the tone and shade being more subdued 
 than those of France. The same remark will nearly apply to the 
 furniture ornamentation of Moritz Schopper, of Vienna, though it 
 is not quite so effective. In the Belgian department there is scarcely 
 an article of silk, if we except one or two decent specimens of printed 
 bandannas, but is an inferior representation of the French style of 
 weaving, both in the character, the colours, and the designs. The 
 Zollverein is equally deficient, contributing samples that have long 
 become passe in this country, and very inferior in quality, both as 
 regards colour and design. Elberfield and Crefield have put forth 
 their respective strengths; but, if we except the narrow ribbon velvets 
 
232 silks, 
 
 and those of a broader nature, generally used for common millinery 
 purposes, they must rest content to rank after England and Sardinia, 
 at least in the manufacture of silk. 
 
 Let us now turn to the foreign ribbon departments. France, as 
 usual, has put forth her best skill, although at first her contribution 
 was rather meagre, and wholly unworthy of her superb taste. We 
 shall direct our attention to the highest class of productions. The 
 specimens of gauze, clouded, and landscape-figured ribbons, are 
 beyond anything that have yet been produced in other countries. St. 
 Etienne is remarkably effective. The ribbons woven by order of Messrs. 
 Pawson, Bradbury and Greatorex, and Leaf, are deserving of studious 
 attention. The artistic effect of the landscapes is marvellous, con¬ 
 sidering the materials upon which they are wrought, and the fidelity 
 of execution, even to the minutest object, must excite the wonder of 
 the spectator, even though he be initiated in the mysteries of the craft. 
 One ribbon, designed for Messrs. Leaf, is peculiarly rich ; the ground 
 is green, and the figure is a golden sheaf of wheat, both of which are 
 truthfully and richly depicted. The portraits of the Queen and Prince 
 Albert are more curious than interesting, as regards weaving; but the 
 laced and clouded ribbon of Tuvee, of Paris, excels anything of the 
 kind that we ever saw. In short, in the richer and more artistic class 
 of goods, France is singularly prolific, although she does not appear to 
 have exerted her utmost skill, as we miss one or two first-rate manu¬ 
 facturers of St. Chamond from the list of contributors. There is, also, 
 a contribution from Carl Moering, of Vienna, consisting of clouded 
 and gauze ribbons, which is deserving of attention for the style and 
 the character of the goods. Let us call attention, likewise, to some 
 printed bandannas of Nourry and Meynard, of Lyons ; they are sin¬ 
 gularly effective, though simple in style, consisting of but two 
 colours, the ground and the flowers. 
 
 We now turn to the productions of our own country, and first, 
 those of Spitalfields. The specimens of Stone and Kemp are deserving 
 of attentive notice, not only from the fact of Mr. Kemp being 
 chosen one of the Jurors in the Silk Section, but, also, as they present 
 that intermediate fancy class of goods for which England is so cele¬ 
 brated. These goods are not to be ranked with the French either in 
 taste, style, or quality, as the latter are only adapted for the more re¬ 
 fined and recherche portion of the community; but they are admirably 
 suited for that larger section, which more or less prevails in every 
 civilised country, whose tastes are of a somewhat humbler and more 
 homely nature, yet by no means deficient in the higher qualities of the 
 
SILKS. 
 
 233 
 
 former. Messrs. Campbell and Harrison have furnished several beau¬ 
 tiful specimens of brocaded moire-antique and Jacquard figures, which 
 show that the looms of Spitalfields, under able direction, are capable 
 of contesting for the prize of supremacy with those of the Continent 
 even in the highest department, where taste, design, and complication 
 of colour and figure are involved. The brocaded figure in the contri¬ 
 bution of Messrs. Lewis & Allenby is, in our opinion, the richest 
 specimen of manufacture in the Exhibition, not even excepting the 
 Lyonnese. As a work of manufacturing art it stands unequalled. 
 The loom in which this rich silk was woven is now working in the 
 Exhibition, and is well worthy of attentive examination, as it is 
 considered by practical judges the best constructed Jacquard of the 
 day. From eighty to a hundred shuttles were employed in making 
 the silk, to which attention ought to be drawn, and nearly thirty 
 thousand cards, the greatest number yet employed in the production 
 of a single piece of silk. The brocaded flower comprises fifteen sepa¬ 
 rate colours, whereas in chintz patterns no more than five or six 
 are ordinarily used. The design is also worthy of more than a pass¬ 
 ing remark; it is a study of itself. For beauty of colouring, for 
 harmonious combination of shades, and a good knowledge of botany, 
 there are few more effective specimens, if any, in the Exhibition; 
 and the general result, to an experienced eye, is at once striking and 
 artistic in the highest degree. This chef d' oeuvre of English manu¬ 
 factured silk was designed by Mr. S. Lewis, one of the firm, we 
 believe, who have so energetically responded to the appeal made to 
 our manufacturing excellence. It is, also, somewhat singular that 
 this is the only firm who are the designers of their own contributions, 
 which include objects in silks, shawl-printing, and ribbons. 
 
 The maize-coloured brocade, by the same manufacturers, is also 
 a highly finished and elaborate piece of manufacturing art; the ground 
 forming a chaste relief to the red, blue, and lilac flowers, which are 
 tastefully and effectively blended. This contribution is also a study 
 for the observer who may be desirous of appreciating the refined pro¬ 
 ductions of the loom. The blue moire-antique , or watered silk, sur¬ 
 passes the same article in the French department, both in quality, in 
 brightness of colour, and in the beauty of the impression. As regards 
 price, we are now enabled to undersell the French in this article, by 
 at least two shillings per yard, quality against quality, a fact of great 
 importance to the consumer. This interesting contribution bears the 
 name of Messrs. Sewell and Co. Graham’s black satins, and watered 
 silk, are the richest we have yet seen, and place that branch of silk 
 
SILKS. 
 
 234 
 
 industry fully on a par with the French ; the black watered silk is 
 especially effective, from the wavy impression of the water, and the 
 glossy surface, which denotes that it is made of the best materials. This 
 article has hitherto been largely imported from France, but from the 
 method pursued there, in too many instances, of cramming the warp 
 with heavily-dyed shoot, in order to give the silk a rich and weighty 
 appearance, it is apt to crack and slit in all directions, when made into 
 garments, to the evident loss and mortification of its fair owner. Not 
 so the best English make of silk—of which this appears an excellent 
 specimen—the shoot being nearly as fine as the warp, and not weighted 
 with dye, to give the fabric a rich appearance, which is but temporary, 
 as the wearer too soon finds out. In fact, this kind of silk ought to 
 be faithfully made, or it will be incapable of enduring the friction of 
 the folds, and the wear and tear of ordinary use. We have minutely 
 particularised this article, as it enters largely into general consump¬ 
 tion, and may be termed a stock fabric for both manufacturer and 
 consumer. The next contribution of importance is that of Harrop 
 Taylor & Co., whose plain goods are a credit to the manufacturing enter¬ 
 prise of the age. It is the shuttle of Manchester that provides the home 
 and foreign market with the great bulk of plain and useful silks ; and 
 here we have the finest specimens of that class of goods, which have had 
 the effect of diminishing the supply of the French, both here and in 
 America. In colour, in beauty of finish, in truthfulness of work, they 
 are equal to the French; in texture alone, which is easily imparted to 
 the fabric, are they inferior. These silks are mostly made by power, 
 and there must have been great pains taken in selecting and preparing 
 the raw material, for the surface appears as even, and almost as 
 smooth, as a mirror. In this branch we have no competitors; indeed 
 we have no equals. Brocklehurst has furnished a fair sample of the 
 peculiar industry of Macclesfield; so have Crichley and Wardle 
 that of Manchester, in the economical branch. This class of 
 goods is suitable for the million, and their merit depends upon the 
 amount of quality and taste they combine with due regard to cheap¬ 
 ness. The embroidered apron of Crichley is an exception to this 
 remark, and is deserving of especial notice, as it is the first attempt 
 that we have seen to bring the elegance and refinement of cultivated 
 taste within the range of the humbler class of consumers. In the 
 Taboret and Damask Department there is a highly creditable show, 
 which fully equals the continental contributions, and, in one or two 
 respects, far sui-passes them. The trophy of Keith and Co. presents a 
 series of patterns for furniture ornamention which clearly denotes that 
 
SILKS. 
 
 235 
 
 we have little to fear from the foreign manufacturer, either as regards 
 quality or taste ; but the productions of Houldsworth, in our opinion, 
 are deserving of the highest place, not only for novelty of design, hut also 
 for the exquisitely subdued tone of colouring which they present. 
 The red and white, and the green and brown damask melanthus 
 patterns are singularly effective; the first is the finest shade of ingrain 
 that we ever saw, and the second is so admirably blended in tint that 
 it almost appears to light up, or rather as though it were only a 
 brighter portion of, the surrounding furniture. The border to 
 correspond with the centre, is also an original idea, and imparts to 
 the damask a breadth and richness which is highly effective. There 
 is no similar fabric in the foreign departments to approach these produc¬ 
 tions, either in originality of design, or tasteful beauty of colouring. 
 Grosvenor, of Kidderminster, has a variety of taborets, damasks, and 
 brocatelles, all of which are creditable to the taste of the producer, 
 but presenting no peculiar feature beyond what we have already 
 pointed out. It will be a somewhat difficult matter to decide upon 
 the finest specimen of silk furniture in the Exhibition, seeing that 
 there are so many competitors; nevertheless, we would humbly pre¬ 
 mise that there is an English and Sardinian specimen, either of which 
 ought to bear away the prize. 
 
 We shall close our notice of the broad department with a few 
 remarks upon the outlying branches, which have no immediate con¬ 
 nection with the manufacture of silk, yet are not wholly separated 
 from it. For instance, there are some excellent specimens of Irish 
 poplins and damasks, from the looms of Fry and Co., and a Jacquard 
 loom, in beautiful order, and in full play, weaving a complicated figure 
 upon a poplin ground, which is an exceedingly attractive object. 
 Again, there are some fine specimens of clouded warp printing, which 
 is a most important branch of the manufacture, by Thomson, Son, and 
 Co., who printed, we believe, the first warp in this country. Brad¬ 
 bury and Greatorex have made an allegorical contribution, in the form 
 of a handkerchief, printed on four sides, with the following pithy 
 quotation:— 
 
 “ Quosdem dispersit fastus fratrumque per orbem, 
 
 Augusti liic jungit principis auspicium.” 
 
 which may he appropriately applied to the Prince-Projector of the 
 modern Temple of Peace. 
 
 Andrews, of Manchester, has furnished the Exhibition with a 
 fine assortment of coloured dyes, so have Howe and Hands, of 
 Coventry, which may be compared advantageously with the contri- 
 
236 silks. 
 
 bution of Guinons, of Lyons ; the last-mentioned firms have embo¬ 
 died their dyeing skill in hanks of silk, so that it is by no means 
 difficult to judge of the merits of each, however nicely-adjusted an eye 
 to colour is required to pick out the finest shades, when the latter are 
 placed in juxtaposition with each other. There is one thing, how¬ 
 ever, sufficiently clear, that we are mainly indebted to France for the 
 improved processes of dyeing, and that the art of mixing colours is 
 principally due to her practical chemistry. We ought, perhaps, to 
 except the substitution of safflower for cochineal in dyeing ingrains, 
 which is our own discovery; and the purples, in which we are pecu¬ 
 liarly successful, especially on cotton fabrics. Even within these last 
 few years, France has made an additional claim for originality in the 
 art of mixing colours, by the application of crocus of antimony, which 
 produces, either on silk or cotton fabrics, the most beautiful and 
 highly-tinted rose colour. Messrs. Durant have supplied an interest¬ 
 ing specimen of the raw silk in its several conditions, which is 
 characteristic of the power and extent of the manufacture. Here we 
 have specimens from east, west, north, and south: from Spain and 
 Italy, from Greece and Asia Minor, from China and Bengal, and, 
 indeed, from every quarter in which the worm may chance to 
 spin it. 
 
 Let us revert for a moment to the manufacture. In the parasol 
 section there are some excellent specimens, principally contributed by 
 Mr. Soper, of Spitalfields, and, as this has become a somewhat impor¬ 
 tant branch of the trade, our peculiar excellence in this respect ought 
 to be pointed out. The black and green specimen is remarkably rich 
 and effective, and ought to have been placed in a better light, so that 
 its real merits might be properly appreciated. 
 
 Amongst the novelties which the inventive power of the age has 
 brought to light, and which, through the medium of the Exhibition, 
 are placed before the public, may be named a boot, made entirely of 
 silk, and which requires no lacing. To the fair sex this must be a 
 desideratum, for it combines the comfort of a boot, with the elegance 
 of a shoe. In appearance it is like a rich black silk stocking, and the 
 only portion of leather that we could discern was at the end of the 
 toe and heel, and, as a matter of course, the soles. This original 
 production seemed to attract more than ordinary attention, especially 
 after royalty had minutely examined its properties. If it become 
 general, it will give a considerable impulse to a certain quality of raw 
 silk, as it appeared to be made of that kind which is generally appro¬ 
 priated to what is technically called “ sewings.” The name of the 
 
SILKS. 
 
 237 
 
 inventor is Mrs. C. Smith, Bedford, and the exhibitor, Messrs. Gundry 
 and Co.; and, as compared with the French productions, of which 
 there is a considerable quantity, it seemed the most original and useful 
 thing of the kind in the Exhibition. Another invention, almost as 
 ingenious, in relation to silk, by Messrs. Rogers and Son, of Birming¬ 
 ham, is deserving of attention, as it involves a point of great import¬ 
 ance in manufactures—namely, an abridgement of labour. The 
 invention simply consists in weaving silk and beads, at the same time, 
 into a purse, which saves the tedious process of sewing on each 
 separate bead. The saving of time is not the only advantage gained 
 by this invention ; there is also a great saving of material, which, 
 perhaps, is still more important. 
 
 We now turn to the ribbon department of English manufacture. 
 To speak in the most subdued tone in favour of the foreigner, it must 
 be confessed that the contribution of Coventry, with one or two rare 
 exceptions, which shall be duly noticed, is not equal to other manu¬ 
 facturing centres of the silk trade. We look in vain for the fine 
 gauzes of St. Chamond, and the neat, tasty, yet highly ornamental, 
 fancy satins of St. Etienne. How is this? Did she hang back until 
 the eleventh hour? Nevertheless, she has furnished a few specimens 
 of the strength that is within her, which only requires exertion to 
 manifest itself still more diffusedly. First and foremost, in point of 
 merit, must be classed the productions of Messrs. Cornell, Lyell, and 
 Webster. Their wide clouded ribbon is a phenomenon in manufac¬ 
 turing art, both as regards the blending the colours, the delicacy of 
 design, and the extraordinary width, which must excite the attention, 
 if not the admiration, of our neighbours, who have hitherto contrived 
 to maintain a supremacy in this branch of manufacture. The brocaded 
 ribbons of these manufacturers are equally deserving of notice, espe¬ 
 cially the water-lily pattern, which has not been equalled in France, 
 either for beauty of design or delicacy of execution. There is also a 
 chintz ribbon with sixteen colours in the shoot, which is nearly about 
 double the number used by the French—a rare specimen of weaving 
 excellence. These productions reflect great credit upon the manu¬ 
 facturing skill of the country, and somewhat redeem the laggard 
 disposition of Coventry, which is too clearly shown in the scantiness 
 of her contributions. The Coventry ribbon, as it is called, is a highly 
 creditable specimen of weaving and designing skill, and almost equals 
 the finest productions of France. The flowers are woven to the 
 colours of nature with a minute, yet exquisite, truthfulness, and the 
 design is one of the most beautiful that can possibly be conceived. There 
 
238 silks. 
 
 is no want of art in this country, when fittingly evoked, as the pro¬ 
 duction of this beautiful ribbon clearly proves. There is likewise 
 another ribbon of Coventry production of a rare and choice beauty ; 
 it is designed by Mr. A. Lewis, whose artistic merits, as far as we 
 can judge by this performance, are of the most promising order. 
 There is not only a richness of fancy, but there is a judicious keeping 
 of character in the design which is rarely attained by English 
 designers. The Messrs. Cox have preserved their characteristic 
 excellence, both in the variety and in the beauty of their produc¬ 
 tions; so, perhaps, have Cope and Hammerton, whose Jacquard 
 figures, produced by power, must be classed with the most important 
 phenomena in the Exhibition. The contribution of Messrs. Caldicolt 
 is equally creditable as a specimen of a neat and well-finished style of 
 manufacture. 
 
 But there is one manufacturer whom we especially miss from the 
 Exhibition, and, whatever may be the cause, it is to be regretted, to 
 say the least of it. Thirty years ago the Messrs. Ames & Atkinson 
 commenced making ribbons by power, long before any one in this 
 country ever dreamt of such a thing. Their factory at Battersea still 
 stands as a monument of the perseverance of the English character. 
 How many thousands were sunk in that undertaking before it even 
 promised to succeed ! and thousands more before it paid the common 
 interest of the capital invested ; at length it began to promise better 
 things, and for these last few years its productive powers have been 
 considerable. Having watched the progress of the manufactures, in 
 several branches, for some years past, we naturally took an interest 
 in so bold an experiment as that establishment involved, and fully 
 expected to have witnessed the fruits of its success in the present 
 Exhibition. When we cast our eye over the scanty contribution from 
 Coventry, we are the more chagrined, because there are some respec¬ 
 table contributions of plain goods in more departments than one; and 
 had the present owners of that establishment but sent a few samples 
 of their manufacturing power, it would materially have given weight 
 and character to English manufactures. The plain goods, and the 
 simple figures which are capable of being made in the power-looms 
 at Battersea, are unequalled, either in the English or Foreign depart¬ 
 ment, as regards quality and price. Coventry can show nothing to 
 compare with this class of goods, hence the greater necessity of their 
 appearing in the Exhibition. We have also to record another 
 omission—the silk and glass patented damask of Messrs. Williams 
 and Sowerby, one of the most singular and interesting applications 
 
SILKS. 
 
 239 
 
 of silk in the whole range of the manufacture. The silk forms the warp, 
 and the glass the shoot; and with simple contrasts, such as green and 
 white, blue and white, primrose and white, or green and gold, &c., 
 for the glass can be used either in a white or yellow condition, the 
 effect is most brilliant, and, in some instances, gorgeous and luxuriant. 
 For furniture purposes we can conceive nothing to equal it. Her 
 Majesty has a room fitted up with this brilliant fabric ; so also have 
 the Duke of Wellington and the Duchess of Sutherland, and, with 
 suitable furniture, the effect produced is rich and effective in the 
 extreme. 
 
 The omission of this beautiful fabric was, we believe, the result of 
 a slight misunderstanding between the Committee of the Exhibition 
 and Messrs. Williams; otherwise, the public would have had the 
 benefit of viewing one of the most singular fabrics manufactured in 
 this country. 
 
 The contribution of velvets is highly deserving of notice, as 
 it clearly shows that the distance is daily narrowing between our 
 manufacturers and those of the continent. In all that constitutes the 
 quality of the velvet—colour, closeness of pile, and flexibility—we 
 believe we are fully equal to the foreigner : perhaps we ought to 
 exclude flexibility, as the Sardinian contribution presents this fea¬ 
 ture—one of the most important—in the most effective manner we 
 have yet seen. Examine the backs of these velvets and you will find 
 them as close, as fine, and as flexible as it is possible to conceive; 
 when converted into garments, this quality of velvet seldom creases, 
 generally preserves its rigidity of pile, and presents a peculiar rich¬ 
 ness even to the last. Now, the English manufacturer has not yet 
 attained this excellence, though some specimens hanging in the silk 
 trophy, marked with the name of Sewell and Co., are very near, if not 
 quite equal to them in this important respect. The specimens presented 
 to the Exhibition by Messrs. Campbell, Harrison, and Lloyd, approach 
 the nearest to the character of those just mentioned, but we cannot 
 meet the foreigner on the ground of price, for the Lyonese, the Sar¬ 
 dinian, and the Crefield velvets have to endure a duty of fifteen per 
 cent, upon importation, and yet meet with a considerable sale 
 in our market. Upon minute examination and inquiry we find 
 that the Sardinian velvet marks a difference still wider between 
 the English and continental manufacturer, than the Lyonese or 
 the Crefield, so that we must not relax in our energies, seeing 
 that the former possesses no greater advantage than ourselves as 
 regards the raw material, nor indeed so great. In crapes, gauzes, 
 
PRINTED FABRICS. 
 
 240 
 
 gauze lisses, and other light fabrics of a kindred nature, we occupy 
 highly creditable ground The crapes of Grout and Courtauld have 
 long superseded the foreigner in this market; and the lower priced 
 gauzes and gauze lisses have performed a similar operation. In the 
 choicer qualities of crape—aerophanes—where firmness of texture 
 and delicacy of colour are required, France still maintains her supe¬ 
 riority, notwithstanding the strenuous efforts we have made in this 
 country to deprive her of it. 
 
 Nor ought we to omit noticing, among the novelties in the raw 
 department, the contributions from Austria Proper, Syria, and Hun¬ 
 gary, of fine silks, we believe the first imported into this country. 
 Upon examination they will be found to equal the general qualities 
 of Piedmont, both as regards the nerve, the colour of the silk, and the 
 price. In many parts of Hungary the climate is especially adapted 
 for the cultivation of the worm, much more so, indeed, than that of 
 several parts of Italy, for the fine warm breezes in which the insect 
 lives healthily, and the white mulberry which furnishes it with the 
 best food, are more prevalent in the former than in the latter country. 
 It only requires a slight acquaintance with the habits of the worm, its 
 requisite food, and the readiest method of treating it profitably, all 
 of which are easily acquired,—then Hungary would soon become a 
 large exporter of raw silk, which would materially add to her internal 
 resources. 
 
 It will readily be inferred, from the preceding remarks, that France 
 excels in the higher branches of silk manufacture, though we are 
 gradually creeping up to her, and that in the intermediate and 
 cheaper departments, with rare exceptions, we have no equals. 
 Where fancy, taste, and elegance are required, there France is, at pre¬ 
 sent, supreme; where utility, combined with beauty are the desiderata , 
 we are equally elevated. 
 
 —♦— 
 
 CHAP. XXIV.—PRINTED FABRICS. 
 
 The art of calico-printing, or the printing of woven fabrics, has 
 now become of more than ordinary importance, from the singular 
 requirements to perfect it. Taste, chemistry, and mechanism, are all 
 brought into play, in their choicest forms, to perfect the printing of a 
 piece of cotton or woollen. There is perhaps no one branch of industry 
 
PRINTED FABRICS. 
 
 241 
 
 that has given a greater impulse to the ingenuity of man, that has 
 quickened his intelligence in a more remarkable degree, than the art 
 of imprinting colours upon woven fabrics. The secrets of nature have 
 been explored, the mysteries of science revealed, the mighty power of 
 machinery developed, and all the ends of the earth literally brought 
 together in a piece of printed cotton. From the pod in its raw state, 
 to the rag-bag in its used-up condition, a really interesting chapter 
 might be written upon a piece of print. 
 
 It does not, however, fall within the scope of this volume to detail 
 the processes of industry ; nevertheless, we shall occasionally give a 
 cursory sketch of those which are peculiarly interesting, especially 
 when it is the result of our own practical observation. 
 
 We have said that the requirements to perfect a piece of cotton- 
 print have imparted to this branch of industry a more than ordinary 
 interest. The following sketch will corroborate the remark:—A large 
 print-work consists of a mechanical, a chemical, a designing, and a 
 printing department. The chemical is, perhaps, the most important 
 of all the departments, as it requires a good practical knowledge of 
 chemistry to become a first-rate calico-printer. Not only must he 
 study the nature of drugs, and their effects when combined, but also 
 the nature of the vegetable fibres of the cloth, and the degree to which 
 they will retain, or combine with those drugs. The difficulty, in a 
 great measure, lies in selecting the colouring-agents which will impart 
 to cloth the same tints as the design exhibits. Another difficulty 
 consists in combining the agents so as to make a “fast” colour, 
 which is considered of great importance in the best establishments. 
 There is therefore attached to all the great print-works, a good 
 practical chemist, having a laboratory fitted up with the required 
 apparatus for making chemical experiments. Every thing is at hand, 
 from the drug in its raw state to the last new work on chemistry, 
 descriptive of the most recent inventions ; and it requires a mind of 
 constant application, and of remarkable aptitude, to keep pace with 
 the ever-accumulating knowledge of the times. The colour-house, 
 with its boxes, jars, bottles, &c., can easily be imagined; but the 
 vessels heated by steam, the mixing-barrels, the crushing and grind¬ 
 ing apparatus, all of which are indispensable to cotton-printing on a 
 successful scale, must be seen to be appreciated. 
 
 The mode of printing cottons combines the methods employed in 
 paper-staining, press-work, machine-printing, and colour-printing. 
 Every fabric receives its pattern from either a piece of metal or a piece 
 of wood; each substance having on its surface a copy from the coloured 
 
PRINTED FABRICS. 
 
 242 
 
 drawing on paper. The wood blocks measure about twelve inches by 
 seven. The face of the block, upon which the design is sketched, is a 
 thin stratum of sycamore, upon a commoner wood, the surface being 
 smoothed to the finest state, and the parts left prominent which are 
 to print the pattern. When very fine lines are required in a pattern, 
 little slips of copper are let in, being placed at an equal height, and 
 forming the printing surface, as the wood is soon liable to wear away. 
 Pieces of felt are occasionally introduced to fill up the interstices 
 between the coppers, whenever a broad patch of colour is required. 
 One block can only print one colour; and, if there be five or six 
 colours on a "design, it requires the same number of separate blocks to 
 complete the pattern, with this condition, that the raised parts in each 
 block must correspond with the depressed parts of all the others. 
 
 The block method was partially superseded by the copper rollers, 
 which came into use about 1785. The device, or design, is engraved 
 upon a copper roller, or hollow cylinder, from thirty to forty inches 
 long, five inches in diameter, and half an inch thick. These rollers 
 are carefully smoothed on their surface, in order to receive the most 
 delicate impressions of the design. The exact circumference of the 
 cylinder is taken by a piece of paper, and on this paper is copied the 
 design, so adjusted that exactly one repetition, or a number of repeti¬ 
 tions, of the design may occupy the entire width of the paper, and 
 consequently the entire circumference of the cylinder. There is a 
 separate cylinder for each colour, so that the paper receives only that 
 part of the design which is to be printed in one colour. The device 
 is slightly marked on the surface of the copper, by being transferred 
 from a waxed paper ; and the cylinder then passes into the hands of 
 the engraver, who completes the impression with his tools. But this 
 method, like the preceding, has been improved upon by one which is 
 now in general use. Mr. Lockett introduced, in 1808, the principle 
 of multiplying steel plates. A small soft cylinder is provided, about 
 three inches long by one thick, and this cylinder is engraved with so 
 much of the design as its surface will contain. It is then hardened, 
 and made to give an impress to a softer cylinder, the device being 
 raised on the second cylinder instead of sunk; the second cylinder is 
 then hardened, and becomes the instrument for impressing on the 
 surface of the large copper cylinder the whole of its device. The 
 advantage gained by this process is very great, as the surface of the 
 steel cylinder is not more than one fifth as large as that of the copper 
 cylinder, consequently there is a considerable diminution of the 
 engraver’s labour. 
 
PRINTED FABRICS. 
 
 243 
 
 There is likewise a mode of printing fabrics, not extensively in 
 use, analogous to stereotype-printing; and, for some patterns, the 
 rollers are engraved by a kind of aquatint, the electrotype process 
 being also occasionally used for the same purpose. 
 
 We shall not enter upon the art of dyeing, or the process of mixing 
 the colours, as the secrets of the laboratory alone would fill a volume; 
 but a few remarks upon designs may not be uninteresting, especially 
 as it is now an improving branch, upon the excellence of which the 
 success of cotton-printing in a great measure depends. The art of 
 designing in this country had retrograded, until the passing of the 
 copyright act in 1840, which gave a fresh stimulus to it, by employing 
 a higher class of art, and giving it a better remuneration. Formerly 
 we had quite a school of art devoted to that useful occupation, and 
 the designs of several distinguished artists are still remembered with 
 admiration. Raymond, Wagner, Kilburn, and Edwards, may be 
 regarded as the old masters of the English school of calico-printing, 
 when pattern-drawing was elevated to the dignity of a fine art; and, 
 though the art of printing, since that period, has made gigantic 
 strides, and is now one of the most beautiful and refined of the che¬ 
 mical arts, the art of designing retrograded until the period just 
 mentioned. France has studiously cultivated the arts of design, and 
 advanced its professors to the rank of gentlemen; here, on the con¬ 
 trary, with some exceptions, it has been degraded to a mechanical 
 employment, and rated at weekly wages. France has a species of 
 industry, in consequence, to which we have no claim—the production 
 of designs for exportation. The demand for the latter is considerable, 
 and has been rapidly increasing. Many of the principal houses in this 
 country are regularly supplied with patterns from Paris, and some have 
 designers there wholly employed in their service. Small as is the 
 print trade of France compared with that of England, there were in 
 Paris ten times the number of public pattern-drawers that were to be 
 found in London or in Manchester. Some of these establishments 
 are considerable, and employ from ten to fifteen designers each ; 
 and a talented designer there receives from eight to ten thousand 
 francs a year, more than twice the sum paid to similar talent in this 
 country. 
 
 The art of calico-printing was introduced into this country towards 
 the close of the seventeenth century, and increased considerably during 
 the succeeding eighty years, when several small but successful esta¬ 
 blishments were in and around London. At this period the manufac¬ 
 ture was transplanted to Lancashire, where it received, in common 
 
PRINTED FABRICS. 
 
 244 
 
 with other branches of industry, an amazing impulse from the inven¬ 
 tions of Arkwright and of Watt. The productions of the London 
 printers were copied in Lancashire, and poured hack in the market of 
 the metropolis in such abundance, that the former were driven to seek 
 for protection against their provincial pirates; and the act of 1794, 
 which gave them three months’ protection, was passed by the legis¬ 
 lature. The town printer, by this law, was protected in his own 
 market, during three months of the principal demand in spring, and a 
 corresponding period of autumn ; hut the favourable locality of Lanca¬ 
 shire, furnishing cheap labour, cheap fuel, ample water-power, and 
 conveyance to every part of the globe, in spite of the protection 
 granted, finally absorbed the whole of the London trade, except one 
 small remnant, which still exists, sheltered in a great measure by its 
 superior taste and fancy. 
 
 At that period, it is questionable whether France was superior to 
 us in the art of imprinting colours upon fabrics; but the isolated 
 condition of that country, as regards transmarine communication, 
 threw her upon her own resources, and consequently rooted that 
 fine chemical knowledge which she has since cultivated with the most 
 sedulous care. On the return of peace, she therefore found herself in 
 advance of all Europe in the art of cotton-printing, and has managed, 
 by dint of her industry, and by the strength of her genius, still to 
 keep a-head of it. The refinement of her taste, the elegance of her 
 designs, and the results of her skilled education in the arts and 
 sciences, have secured for her this advantage. Nevertheless, we 
 perceive the symptoms of decline manifesting themselves in a similar 
 ratio to the silk branch of manufacture, and from precisely the 
 same cause—namely, the impossibility of maintaining a superiority 
 in the highest branch of an industry while the lower branches 
 are not in a corresponding condition. Although France still excels 
 us in the highest branch of cotton-printing, and her productions 
 maintain their supremacy in our market, still, during the last eight or 
 ten years, she has been comparatively stationary, when measured by 
 the progress which we have made in the same period of time. Neither 
 Rouen nor Mulhausen can compare with Manchester or Primrose, 
 either as regards power of production or the order and arrangement of 
 their respective establishments ; in one thing only do they excel the 
 latter—in beauty of design and charm of colouring; in almost every 
 other respect they are inferior to them. The establishments of Eng¬ 
 land indicate power and progress ; those of France, on the contrary, 
 denote perfection and approaching decline. 
 
PRINTED FABRICS. 
 
 245 
 
 In a work of small compass, but of great value,* by an old and 
 valued friend, whose practical experience was almost unequalled 
 during his day, we find some remarks so apropos to calico-printing, 
 both here and in France, that we cannot refrain from quoting them :— 
 
 “ It appears that the whole production of Alsace, in 1827, amounted 
 to 527,935 pieces, of thirty ells each, which is equal to 800,000 pieces 
 of English lengths and widths. This production employed 11,248 
 hands, not including the manufacture of the cloth, hut simply printing 
 it. This gives the result of 71 pieces per head, which, compared with 
 first-class English printers, is rather singular, as the latter produce 
 upwards of 200 per head of the same kind of goods. This limited 
 production, in proportion to the hands employed, is to be found in the 
 character and habits of the people, which cannot be changed or moulded 
 at the will of a taskmaster ; nor can an English day’s work he had in 
 France for an English day’s wages.” 
 
 Again, as regards the industrial pluck, if we may he allowed the 
 term, of the English and foreign workman :—■ 
 
 “ In 1814, I saw France before she had time to profit by the 
 industrial skill and improvements of England; again, in 1817 and 
 1824, when I examined with anxious care the grounds of the prevailing 
 apprehension that our manufacturing greatness was declining, and 
 that the cheap labour of France would more than compensate her 
 many disadvantages. I returned home with the conviction, since 
 and again confirmed, that the labour of Alsace, the best and cheapest in 
 France, is dearer than the labour of Lancashire. I would not aver that 
 an English workman would perform twice the work of one of the 
 same class in France; but of this I feel assured, from frequent per¬ 
 sonal observation of their habits, and from long and confidential 
 intercourse with their intelligent manufacturers, that the advantage is 
 more than twofold on the side of England. Twenty years ago, the cry 
 was 1 France will beat and undersell us.’ That delusion has passed 
 away, and twenty years’ experience has shown ( Vide I! Fnquete sur les 
 Prohibitions, 1835) that she cannot spin a cotton thread as cheap as 
 we can, with all the advantages of our improvements, and the assist¬ 
 ance of English workmen. Of our ability to compete with them on 
 their own soil, their absolute prohibition of our goods is the most 
 convincing proof; so also is the free admission here of theirs, on a 
 duty nominally of ten per cent., but practically of not more than five. 
 How can they compete with us in neutral markets, when they are 
 unable to do so in their own ? ” 
 
 * “Notes on Calico-Printing.” By James Thomson, Esq., F.R.S. 
 
PRINTED FABRICS. 
 
 246 
 
 And no man could speak with greater weight and authority than 
 the late Mr. Thomson, having raised a large concern principally by 
 his own energy and ability, which at the present time employs upwards 
 of 900 hands, whose average wages—men, women, and children— 
 are 12s. 5§d. each per week, or £30,129 per annum. 
 
 The chances, therefore, of France competing with us in cotton¬ 
 printing are reduced to two—elegance of design and beauty of colour¬ 
 ing ; in both of which she at present excels us, though not unapproach¬ 
 ably. In every other respect we are a-head of her; and how long it 
 will be before we realize the anticipation of Mr. Thomson affords a 
 subject for practical speculation to determine. 
 
 “ What the foreign merchant wants,” says that intelligent writer, 
 “ in a good print, is good taste and good work, for little money ; that 
 is, French taste , with English cost and execution —that cost and execu¬ 
 tion which, hitherto, have enabled us successfully to compete with, 
 and to excel all the world. We have long possessed the latter; the 
 former—that is, the taste —we are somewhat rapidly acquiring.” 
 
 Let us see how far the contents of the Exhibition agree with the 
 preceding remarks, and whether the line of demarcation between home 
 and foreign productions is clearly and precisely marked. Running 
 your eye along the collection of French printed fabrics, which are 
 remarkably well arranged for exposition, and, in this respect, forming 
 a striking contrast to the somewhat smugged-up and isolated contri¬ 
 butions of our English exhibitors, you are at once struck with the 
 rich, playful, yet delicately-subdued fancy which prevails, not only 
 in their mode of colouring, but also in their designs. Minutely 
 examine those fabrics, and the practised eye will discover, that what 
 appears the result of accident, or the combination of shades, is fre¬ 
 quently produced by the nicely-balanced sense of beauty alone. The 
 art is to conceal the art, and the French desinateur seems to have 
 acquired that art to perfection. Here you will have a dash of blue close 
 to a shade of lilac, perhaps, a priori , the most repulsive of all possible 
 combinations; yet the Frenchman has learned the knack of harmo¬ 
 nizing them, as though he took a delight in disconcerting all your 
 preconceived notions of combining colours. This, however, is the 
 result of a long, careful, and minute attention to the philosophy 
 of the art, which naturally developes phases of beauty unknown 
 to the comparatively superficial observer. There is no royal road 
 to cotton-printing, nor to the beauty of designing, nor to the harmony 
 of colouring, no more than there is to the science of music, painting, 
 or geometry. All these things must you acquire by the exercise of 
 
PRINTED FABRICS. 
 
 247 
 
 your mind, if you wish to keep up with the fleet and fast ones of 
 the earth, ye cotton-printers of England and Scotland. The race now 
 is to the swift, and the battle to the strong, and for the first time, too, 
 on the great industrial course. 
 
 The Freres Koechlin, of Mulhausen, seem to sustain their reputa¬ 
 tion in the muslins, jaconets, &c. There are, in their contributions, 
 some beautiful specimens of printing, which have been executed for 
 the several large London dealers, and to particularise them would 
 appear invidious, seeing that their general excellence is about the 
 same. The colours seem more subdued than ours are, and to compare 
 the designs, when, in the majority of cases, we copy them, almost 
 servilely, would be bordering upon the ridiculous. The same remarks 
 will apply to Gros, Odier and Co., whose productions are of a simi¬ 
 larly refined and delicate class. The bold style of Schlumberger con¬ 
 trasts effectively with those just pointed out, yet the harmony of 
 colour with the character of the designs, is carefully preserved. And 
 Hartman Fils is entitled to similar commendation. 
 
 The Mousselaine de Laines of Adolphus Mieg are equally charac¬ 
 teristic of the artistic skill displayed in the highest class of goods of 
 that nature, and afford some fine specimens of rich and varied colour¬ 
 ing for the study of our own printers on woollen fabrics. Turning to 
 another section of the contributions of France, we were equally 
 bewildered with the luxuriant fancy of design and colouring. En¬ 
 closed in a glass-case are a series of scarfs, shawls, and robes, several 
 of them marked with the name of Charles Candy as the designer, 
 stating that they were made to his order. These productions are a 
 perfect marvel in the art of printing. The shades of colour appear as 
 though they had been showered upon the fabric with almost artless 
 profusion, and the film-like texture of the latter conveys the idea of a 
 gossamer-web just dipped in the glittering tints of the rainbow. 
 There are likewise some choice robes from the different London shop¬ 
 keepers, which appear quite fresh from the looms and printing-houses 
 of Lyons and St. Denys. They are what may be termed Paris pro¬ 
 ductions, having the last new touch, and displaying the most refined 
 taste of the day. These articles have been recently placed in the 
 Exhibition ; how far that may be compatible with fair dealing to the 
 English contributors is another question, which we shall refrain from 
 discussing. It is fair to assume that they were placed there prior to 
 the jury having formed their opinions upon the relative excellence of 
 the different productions. 
 
 But we must not overlook perhaps the finest specimen of all in 
 
PRINTED FABRICS. 
 
 248 
 
 the printed fabric department—the long Barege Satinee Shawl, which 
 hears the name of C. Tealde. It is the contribution of M. Godefroy, 
 of Puteaux, near Paris, the finest fabric printer in France. The great 
 novelty of the shawl consists in the border and body being one con¬ 
 tinuous pattern, so that there are no cross lines to intercept the free¬ 
 dom and beauty of the design. The colouring is chaste, and truth¬ 
 fully delicate ; the design is highly artistic, and the general character 
 of the printing comprises two styles—the cashmere and the chine, 
 which are seldom seen in combination. 
 
 Minutely examining another section of fabric printing, we were 
 particularly struck with the progress made by France within the last 
 few years. The English have hitherto been thought superior to the 
 French in chintz-printing, the latter generally preferring our produc¬ 
 tions to their own, up to a recent period. In the quality of the cloth 
 we still excel them; but, judging by the specimens in the present 
 Exhibition, it would he wanting in fairness to say that they are not 
 equal to us in printing. Indeed, their colours and designs, like their 
 cotton fabrics, partake of a higher class of art than ours do ; witness 
 the productions of Lapuis et Fils, and Schwatz, the latter, especially, 
 glowing in richness of shade and depth of colouring. There, again, 
 the French have brought their exquisite knowledge of chemistry to 
 bear, which in the large character and deep patches of colour required 
 in chintz printing, affords an excellent medium for its display. Nor 
 ought we to pass by the Turkey reds of M. Steiner, in the same de¬ 
 partment, which are remarkably fine and bright in tone. 
 
 We shall now turn to the productions of our own printers, which 
 decidedly rank next to those of France in the higher class of goods, 
 and before the latter in the middling and cheaper kind. And, as 
 regards the other foreign contributors, neither the Belgians, the Ham- 
 burghers, nor even the productions of Elberfeld and the whole Zollve- 
 rein, will bear a comparison with us, in scarcely any one respect— 
 Turkey reds probably excepted, the Bhine towns having been long 
 famous for that peculiar dye. First, then, in the contributions of 
 Manchester must he ranked those of Messrs. Lidiard, though the 
 general productions of Thomson, Son, and Brothers are fully equal to 
 them. The first appears got up expressly for the Exhibition, there 
 being a single piece of lilac-striped barege, and a single piece of chintz, 
 both beautiful in their way, unquestionably, especially the chintz, 
 which surpasses, for ingenuity in laying on a number of colours, any¬ 
 thing yet produced abroad. Both these styles of printing are distinct 
 from those of France, and reflect great credit upon English taste and 
 
PRINTED FABRICS. 
 
 249 
 
 execution. The general character of Thomson’s printed de laines are 
 equally creditable, so are their printed warps of silks, which we have 
 already pointed out. Hoyles have produced the greatest novelty ; 
 their specimen of damask printing is a marvel, having been effected 
 by one roller, which, to produce the same result, heretofore, required 
 two or three. This is a most valuable move in cotton-printing, as it 
 is a great saving both in time -and material. The productions of 
 Black, of Glasgow, are also highly creditable, both for the variety 
 and the beauty of the designs and colours. His diagram of cotton-print¬ 
 ing is perused by thousands, and is exceedingly interesting; so, also, 
 is the panorama contributed by Manchester. Stein’s Turkey reds sur¬ 
 pass even the foreign production already noticed in the French sec¬ 
 tion, both in colour and purity. Potter’s useful class of prints are 
 deserving of notice for their style and character, especially as they 
 enter so largely into general consumption; and M‘Morland’s specimens 
 attract attention, from the neatness of taste, and primness of colour, 
 preserved in them. The house of Monteith, the introducers, we 
 believe, of the Turkey-red into England, maintain their reputation in 
 the variety and character of their productions; and J. Medlett and 
 Co. have furnished some well-finished specimens of chintzes. Nor 
 ought we to pass over the rare invention of J. Mercer, which has 
 effected a partial revolution in cotton-printing, and, judging by the 
 specimens exhibited, must prove a considerable saving, both in mate¬ 
 rial and in labour. 
 
 In the shawl department Messrs. Swainson are peculiarly effective; 
 in one or two designs they have made a near approach to the French, 
 both in colouring and outline. The shawl printed for Messrs. Lewis 
 and Allenby is a beautifully-designed production, and certainly has 
 no equal amongst the English printed fabrics. In some respects, it 
 even surpasses the French. The pattern is a pine, of the most beau¬ 
 tiful cashmere style of art, and in colours and arrangement it is highly 
 creditable to the designer. This shawl exhibits the same features that 
 we have already noticed in those of M. Godefroy—having no break 
 in the border, and the body of the design being continuous, an 
 important and effective novelty in printing fabrics. This beautiful 
 design is the production of Mr. Lewis, and the shawl is printed 
 by Messrs. Swaisland, whose skill is deservedly known. There 
 is a fine yet subdued tone of colouring, which prevails through¬ 
 out, and the character of the design is highly artistic and original. 
 Nor ought the printed productions of Messrs. Keith to pass without 
 a remark or so, as they equally exhibit the progressive steps which 
 
250 ' CARPETS. 
 
 we have recently made in this beautiful branch of industrial art. 
 The printed shawls of this firm, with the exception just named, are the 
 finest English productions in the Exhibition. The Messrs. Littler have 
 some bold and stylish specimens of bandanna printing, which will com¬ 
 pare with the three patterns in the French department already noticed, 
 and even surpass them in the depth and quality of the colouring. 
 
 In the chintz section Swainson and Dennys occupy somewhat high 
 ground, their rose and tulip pattern being particularly effective. So, 
 also, do Hindley and Son, who have a remarkably striking specimen 
 of chintz, uniting boldness and simplicity in design, with good taste 
 in colouring. Nor ought M‘Alpin’s productions to be passed over, 
 especially the reds, which are creditable to his chemical skill, to say 
 the least of them. 
 
 In the Paisley department there are some excellent specimens of 
 shawl and scarf printing, but not to equal the French, by many 
 degrees, either in colour or design. 
 
 Upon the whole, then, the French excel us in the highest depart¬ 
 ment of printing on fabrics, and we greatly excel them in the middle 
 and lower class of goods; the other continental manufacturers being 
 in arrear of both in almost every respect. 
 
 -«- 
 
 CHAPTER XXV— CARPETS. 
 
 The manufacture of carpets has made a very sensible progress in 
 this country, even during the last ten or twelve years. It is now 
 carried on in Scotland, and several parts of England, with singular 
 success, and is not confined to any particular spot, as regards the 
 style and character of the manufacture. The Kidderminster carpets 
 as they are called, are more extensively made at Kilmarnock than in 
 the town from whence they derive their name, and the “ Brussels” 
 is spreading in all directions, wherever ingenuity and enterprise can 
 turn its manufacture to a profitable account. There is scarcely a 
 house whose inmates aim at ordinary comfort, but is supplied with a 
 carpet of some kind or other at the present day ; whereas, about half 
 a century ago, there were scarcely any but the highest and wealthiest 
 classes that could afford to indulge in such a luxury. But so true is 
 this feature in the progress of mankind, that the luxury of one age 
 becomes the indispensable necessary in the next; and, instead of the 
 
CARPETS. 
 
 251 
 
 affairs of state being exclusively discussed sur le tapis ,—as the French 
 phrase runs, which simply indicates that a carpet formerly was of too 
 costly a price for any human beings but ministers of state and 
 princes to tread upon,—the common affairs of life are now daily trans¬ 
 acted upon it, the article being within the reach of the great mass of 
 the decent and well-to-do in society. 
 
 We have nothing as yet, it is true, to equal the magnificence of 
 the Gobelins and Aubusson carpets, but we manufacture a humbler 
 kind, which comes within the range of the larger portion of society, 
 and is equally welcomed by the select and wealthy few, for its general 
 beauty and utility. The Brussels, tapestry, and velvet carpets of 
 England are unequalled by any manufacture on the continent both as 
 regards quality and price, and would command a ready sale in France, 
 were a moderate duty imposed upon their importation ; but so long as 
 the latter persists in levying a duty by weight, amounting to about 
 sixty per cent, upon the value of the article, the French people must 
 content themselves with their inferior moquettes, which are a humble 
 imitation of our velvet piles, and, from their comparatively high 
 price, necessarily limited to the few. 
 
 The carpets of the Gobelins and the Savonnerie are seldom valued 
 lower than from two to three hundred pounds each, some of them 
 ranging as high as five thousand pounds; one, for instance, in the 
 eastern space of the Sevres department is valued at that amount, which 
 necessarily confines the use of such articles to a very limited circle. 
 This class of goods may be termed the hot-bed produce of the state, 
 being forced, for some purpose not expressly defined, at an enormous 
 cost of labour and capital, but assuredly not for the improvement and 
 extension of the general carpet trade of France,—the style, the charac¬ 
 ter of the designs, and the tout-ensemble of the work, placing them far 
 beyond the reach of imitation by tbe humbler and more useful 
 branches of the manufacture. The next in richness to the Gobelins are 
 the productions of Sallandrouse and Bogier, called the Aubusson and 
 Felletin carpets; they are manufactured in the department of La 
 Creuse, and are both long and short nap. The Messrs. Rogier also 
 produce the velvet-nap carpets, which present an exceedingly rich 
 appearance, though their ordinary price is about one-fifth of those 
 manufactured by the state. 
 
 “ Unfortunately,” says M. Flachat, writing of the French manu¬ 
 facture, “ the general arrangement of our habitations has precluded us 
 from the use of carpets. In this respect we are much behind the 
 English, and even the Dutch. A progress of this kind is necessarily 
 
 i 
 
CARPETS. 
 
 252 
 
 dependent upon that of other conveniences, and our first step to ensure 
 it must be the suppression of the duty upon foreign wools, in order 
 that our manufacturers may'produce cheaply, as well as superbly, this 
 useful article.” 
 
 It requires hut little observation and deduction to arrive at the 
 conclusion that we have little to fear from the competition of our 
 neighbours, hut that we have a great deal to learn—namely, the fine 
 and practical taste which they pre-eminently possess. Examine their 
 carpets, wherever there is no limit to taste and fancy, and you will find 
 such a charming combination of colours, and so subdued a tone, that it 
 is scarcely possible for the eye to be disconcerted, however grotesque 
 and bizarre maybe the furniture of which they form the natural back¬ 
 ground. It is comparatively easy to blend the bright and prominent 
 shades of wool, as colour is so largely absorbed by the latter, but to 
 harmonize the pale and subdued tints, so as to form a pleasing contrast 
 to almost any conceivable combination of furniture, is the result of a 
 long-studied attention to the laws which regulate and influence taste. 
 
 In this particular, it must be acknowledged, the French are 
 greatly a-head of us, which simply results from their long and 
 careful study of the fine arts, the latter manifesting itself in every 
 branch of industry where taste and fancy are the leading desiderata. 
 
 Glancing cursorily at the Exhibition, which contains a singular 
 variety of carpets woven whole, or partly so,—much more, indeed, than 
 it does of piece goods, which, we would premise, should be the especial 
 aim of our manufacturers, we were particularly struck with the 
 improved tone which has been adopted in blending the colours, as it 
 it seems now to be understood that a carpet should be a subordinate 
 and not a leading object of furniture, as it forms the base, or starting 
 point, whence we estimate the character and taste of the surrounding 
 objects. Viewed in this light the carpets of Jackson and Graham are 
 entitled to preeminence, as they unite the essentials which we have 
 endeavoured to point out as the indispensable elements of furniture 
 ornamentation, and the chastest style of household decoration. What 
 they call the “ London carpet,” and the “ Moresque design,” have all 
 the characteristics of French designing, without their elaborate costli¬ 
 ness, and they are the first attempt that we have yet seen to bring the 
 highest class of carpet manufacture within the ordinary range of con¬ 
 sumption. The large carpet of Sewell and Co. is, however, equally 
 entitled to notice, and is in remarkably good keeping, both as regards 
 design and colour. The ground with the subdued shades upon it, are 
 peculiarly effective, the artist having a shrewd eye to furniture decora- 
 
CARPETS. 
 
 253 
 
 tion of a superior order. The bouquets of flowers are equally well 
 arranged, especially as regards colour, the first desideratum in objects 
 of that kind, and the border is also in exquisite keeping with the centre. 
 Nor ought we to omit the elegant display of Messrs. Lapworth ; nor the 
 elaborate contribution of Messrs. Crossley and Son, whose tapestry, 
 carpets, rugs, and table-covers form a prominent and attractive object 
 in the Exhibition. Here, again, we remark an improved character of 
 taste, both in colour and design; and, as regards finish, these productions 
 are highly creditable to the skill of the manufacturer whose name they 
 bear. The Felt Carpet Company have likewise some fine specimens of 
 tablecloths. Bright’s patent, as it is commonly called, is a novelty in 
 the manufacture of carpets, weaving by power, and printing by a 
 new process, which may possibly open a new path for further adven¬ 
 turers ; but that must depend, in some measure, upon its “ wear and 
 tear” qualities. Watson, Bell, & Co., have furnished some good speci¬ 
 mens of their Axminster make; and Templeton, not behind his co¬ 
 manufacturers, has displayed a richness and variety of colour in his 
 productions which leaves them all behind. The “ Descent from the 
 Cross” is a creditable imitation of the rich Gobelins, and the East Indian 
 contribution by Watson and Bell is curious and characteristic, to say 
 the least of it. The blue-ground carpet of Messrs. White and Co. is an 
 effective production ; so also is the velvet pile of Messrs. J. K. Harvey, 
 and Messrs. Henderson and Co., are not less happy in the general 
 combination and arrangement of the colours in their contribution. 
 
 The three carpets contributed by Her Majesty are interesting 
 specimens of art and industry, especially those designed by Gruner. 
 Of the lady’s performance we forbear saying anything; suffice it to 
 remark that the design is highly creditable to Mr. J. W. Papworth. 
 
 The Belgians have contributed a fine specimen or so of their 
 manufacture from the establishment at Tournay; the character and 
 quality of the productions hold a kind of middle position between 
 France and England, but much nearer to the latter than the former, 
 especially in design. 
 
 While on this subject, we ought not to omit the manufacture of 
 floor-cloths, in which we are particularly successful. J. Rolls & Sons 
 exhibit the largest single piece of cloth that, we believe, ever was 
 manufactured. It measures seventy-five feet by twenty-four, and 
 is without a seam or joining. Smith and Barber have a similar con¬ 
 tribution, (alike as to dimensions, quality, and style. Each of these con¬ 
 tributions Reflects the highest credit upon the ingenuity and energy of 
 its producer. 
 
254 
 
 CHAP. XXVI.—THE ETCETERAS OF THE EXHIBITION. 
 
 After a somewhat careful and minute examination of each depart¬ 
 ment of the Exhibition, and arranging our observations under distinct 
 and appropriate heads, we found, upon a series of cursory surveys, 
 that there were several objects of great interest that we should have 
 noticed had they fallen in our way in the first instance. We shall 
 now collect these objects into a kind of Miscellanea , and give each the 
 notice we intended, irrespective of the order and sequence which 
 would otherwise have been preserved. 
 
 The first object of importance is a “Jewel Case in the Cinque 
 Cento style, designed by L. Gruner,” and executed by Elkington, the 
 well-known electro-plater. The material is bronze, gilt and silvered 
 by electro-type process. There are copies of Thorburn’s miniatures 
 of Her Majesty, Prince Albert, and the Prince of Wales, painted on 
 china and let in the case, besides medallions of the royal children 
 modelled by L. Wyon. The execution, the filling-up, and the general 
 arrangement of the case, irrespective of the external appearance, 
 which is highly artistic and novel, display a nicety and finish of work 
 which excite peculiar attention. This case may he classed with the 
 choicest objects in the Exhibition. 
 
 There is another object of great attraction by the same ingenious 
 manufacturers, or manufacturing-artists, as the Messrs. Elkington 
 really deserve to be named, so energetic do they appear in breaking 
 down the harrier which has too long separated the studio of the artist 
 from the workshop of the artizan. We allude to the electro-gold and 
 silver table. The top of the table is an elegant and instructive work 
 of art, designed by Chevalier de Schlick, as the artist is named in the 
 catalogue, and reproduced by the electro-process. There are eight 
 bas-reliefs, illustrating Minerva, Astrology, Geometry, Arithmetic, 
 Music, and Rhetoric ; in the centre of these reliefs is a figure of Tem¬ 
 perance surrounded by the four elements, and the bottom of the plate 
 contains an inscription which speaks for itself. As a work of art it is 
 an able conception, and, irrespective of the point just alluded to, 
 reflects great credit upon the mind that conceived it, and upon the 
 working skill of those that practically carried it out. The table itself 
 was designed by G. Stanton, a young student in the Birmingham 
 School of Design ; and we notice it with pleasure, as it clearly shows 
 that there only requires a facility for the development of artistic 
 ability, and it will readily appear. 
 
 A candelabrum in the Cinque Cento style, in scagliola, is a fine 
 
THE ETCETERAS OF THE EXHIBITION. 2u5 
 
 work of art. It was designed by Gruner, modelled by Trentanove, 
 and executed by Remoli. To tbe curious and fanciful in art it will 
 prove, not only a curiosity, but a great treat. Talking of Roman 
 artists, let us direct attention to tbe magnificent mosaics from tbe 
 Eternal city ; they are, in their way, truly prodigies of art. The 
 “ Ruins of Paestum,” in the eastern nave, is as beautiful as the finest 
 landscape on canvas, and in detail much more minutely worked out. 
 In this class of art the Italians of the present day are unequalled. 
 There are also productions of a similar kind from Florence, which are 
 equally deserving of attention,—particularly a table, which contains 
 the principal cities of Italy in mosaics on the top, the execution of 
 which, we were informed, occupied the artist twenty years. Reverting 
 to a humbler branch of art-decoration, we cannot but draw attention 
 to C. Smith’s excellent imitations of marble, and the graining speci¬ 
 mens of C. and F. Sewell, both of which are excellent in their way, 
 especially that of the former. The large panel of Jones & Co. is a 
 novelty, as far as material is concerned; the flock-raised colours are 
 somewhat gaudy, when joined and fitted together with gilded frame¬ 
 work ; nevertheless, for certain decorative purposes, we have no 
 doubt that it will prove highly effective. M. Morceau’s table-covers 
 in the eastern nave are peculiarly rich, many of them being recent 
 importations; in design, in colouring, and in the combination of mate¬ 
 rial, they are alike deserving of minute attention. 
 
 The Fire Escape of Mr. C. Baker attracts considerable notice from 
 the simplicity of its arrangement, and its promised effectiveness. A 
 metal frame, forming half a circle, to which is attached a wheel about 
 three feet in diameter, is fixed into the window sill, and, if the latter 
 be not strong enough, a similar frame is fixed with clasps or hooks to 
 the inside of the window, with a bearing to act as a lever against the 
 front of the house. A rope, double in length to the height of the 
 house, is placed over the wheel, one end being let down to the street, 
 and the other fastened with a belt round the waist of the party waiting 
 to escape from the fire, by which means several can be lowered in the 
 space of a few minutes. There is also a hook, to which a cradle can 
 be attached, for children or females; and, should the flames issue from 
 the lower apartments, or a projecting balcony prevent the gradual 
 descent of the cradle, the latter can be drawn across the street, while 
 descending, by means of a cord attached to the rope near the belt. 
 Firemen and policemen can be easily drawn up to any apartment of 
 a burning house, either to direct the hose on an effective part, or to 
 assist the inmates in making their escape. 
 
256 
 
 THE ETCETERAS OF 
 
 The same ingenious individual exhibits a safeguard for servants 
 while cleaning the outside of windows. The same frame as the fire 
 escape can he fixed on the sill; hut, instead of the wheel, a frame 
 composed of basket work, canvas, wood, or any other suitable mate¬ 
 rial, is attached to it by means of hooks, and will be found, it is fair to 
 presume, effective for obviating the terrible dangers to which domestic 
 servants are so frequently exposed. 
 
 “ A Model of Fire Escape, Scaling Ladder, and Portable Scaffold¬ 
 ing,” by Mr. Osmond Oliver, is deserving of notice, as it may be 
 both economically aud humanely applied to several purposes. The 
 novelty consists in its simplicity of action; it can be raised and 
 lowered in an instant of time, so as to establish an immediate com¬ 
 munication with all parts of the house, in the event of fire. The 
 inmates of a dwelling might easily escape, were they threatened 
 with extreme danger, by means of this simple and ingenious con¬ 
 trivance ; nor would it be less effective for ordinary building and 
 house-repairing purposes, as it obviates the necessity of ladders, and 
 affords great facilities for workmen, whereby a material saving might 
 be effected. The whole arrangement of the “ Fire Escape” is simple 
 and compact, and it occupies but little space, though its powers are 
 very great. 
 
 Messrs. Dakin’s “Coffee Boaster” is a simple but useful inven¬ 
 tion, and so ingeniously constructed that the injurious effluvium of 
 the berry is allowed to escape, while, at the same time, the fine aroma 
 can be retained. By a simple contrivance the attendant can regulate 
 the heat and test the condition of the coffee at any stage of roasting, 
 which is a great improvement upon the ordinary method. Napier 
 and Sons’ “ Automatic Balance” for weighing sovereigns is a compact 
 piece of machinery, and attracts general attention. According to the 
 statement of the inventors, five of these machines can weigh 50,000 
 sovereigns in a day, with the most unerring accuracy. The “ Balance” 
 belongs to the Bank of England. The “ Becoil Breakwater,” close to 
 the latter, in the western nave, is well deserving of minute examina¬ 
 tion, as it shows by what simple contrivances man may make the 
 rude elements subservient to his purposes. If this “ Becoil” effects 
 but a tithe of what it promises, it will be a most provident and 
 beneficial invention. The two beautifully constructed specimens of 
 “Improved Lighthouses” attract great attention. One is by the 
 Messrs. Chance, the other by Mr. Wilkins, a name long identified 
 with such structures. In their construction, by a combination of 
 lenses, nearly the whole of the light emitted from the burner in the 
 
THE EXHIBITION. 257 
 
 centre, both upwards and downwards, is thrown forwards in a hori¬ 
 zontal flame. 
 
 Field and Son of Birmingham, have furnished some fine specimens 
 of their peculiar excellence in the manufacture of achromatic micro¬ 
 scopes, and of lenses for photographic purposes; and the illustrations 
 which accompany them are fully attestive of their practical power. 
 Kissel’s “ Bed for Invalids” is an ingenious and humane invention; 
 and Leblond’s figures for artists are cleverly constructed, as, in a 
 single piece, you have embodied the whole series of the Academy 
 models. Montanari’s Mexican models in wax are interesting ; they 
 afford an instructive illustration of a people but imperfectly known, 
 though a great deal has been written and said about them. 
 
 One of the manufacturing novelties which denote more than ordi¬ 
 nary ingenuity and taste, is the Shawl-cloak of Messrs. Holmes and Co., 
 which has attracted considerable attention. It consists of a shawl being 
 made in a circular form, and then divided into two semicircles, each 
 of which, with a hood joined on, makes a distinct cloak. The result 
 of this invention is, that the pattern is completely preserved all round 
 the shawl, there being no seams; in addition to which, the cloak 
 preserves a more elegant form than one made in the ordinary way, 
 and from materials whose patterns are woven square. The circular 
 shawl of the contributor is a novelty—to which, indeed, there is 
 nothing to compare, either in the French or Zollverein departments. 
 
 J. Clarke’s “ Seamless Cloth Flock” is a novelty among materials 
 for decorative purposes. Its effect is somewhat imposing; and it 
 presents one great advantage—it can be manufactured on the wall of 
 an apartment, without any joins, and the pattern can be diversified 
 to any extent. Its expense is about equal to the first-class paper- 
 hangings ; and, according to its inventor, it can be cleaned, re-coated, 
 and re-dyed to any colour, if required. These are manifest advan¬ 
 tages, if they can be realized; but practical experience must determine 
 that point. The “ Sine Manubrium Brush ” is another of those useful 
 inventions which add materially to the common stock of enjoyment in 
 life, and, from its simplicity and effectiveness, must attract attention. 
 But the most effective object, as regards the comfort of the better 
 portion of the creation, is the simple invention of Mrs. J. Smith, of 
 Bedford—“ the Symmetrical Corset.” Numbers of patents and inven¬ 
 tions have been called into requisition for this indispensable article of 
 female attire, and their very number shows their general insufficiency 
 to supply all the requirements of the case. Simplicity of form, faci¬ 
 lity in use, and effective support, are the three essential points in a 
 
258 THE ETCETERAS OF 
 
 stay. These have been attained in the corset in question, which has 
 a fastening in front, and can be done and undone easily, as no lacing 
 is required. There is also another advantage connected with this 
 corset—it improves the figure while it gives it support, and obviates 
 the inconvenience and evil of tight-lacing. As there is great compe¬ 
 tition between France and ourselves in the manufacture of stays, and 
 as it is an article of great importance in its commercial, as well as in 
 its sanatory hearings, we have thus minutely detailed the article that 
 seems to attract the most general attention of its class in the Exhibi¬ 
 tion. 
 
 And last, though not least, in the contributions of this class, we 
 must call attention to the Irish embroidery in the case of Messrs. 
 Salomons and Sons, which is deserving of notice for more reasons than 
 one. First, it indicates that industry rightly directed, in the sister 
 country, may be made both profitable and useful; and, secondly, that 
 we are quietly attaining an industrial excellence in which one or two 
 of our continental competitors have been long supreme. In Switzer¬ 
 land especially, and also in France, the embroidered excellence of the 
 materials for dress are exceedingly beautiful; while in Scotland we 
 are only just acquiring that excellence ; and the contribution in ques¬ 
 tion, besides others from the same quarter, clearly shows that Ireland 
 will not be far behind in its acquisition. 
 
 There are two contributions to the Exhibition which do not meet 
 with the attention to which they are so justly entitled—the gates of 
 the Coalbrook Dale Company, at the northern extremity of the 
 transept, and those of Messrs. Cottam and Hallam, at the southern or 
 main entrance. In style they are essentially different; in execution 
 they appear to be upon a par. There is a fine easy flow in the outline 
 and arrangement of the Coalbrook Dale Company’s gates ; in those of 
 Messrs. Cottam and Hallam the opposite qualities of art prevail— 
 being angular, and somewhat formal, though highly classical in their 
 general structure. 
 
 Amongst the singular variety of boats, ships, wherries, oars, and 
 every conceivable variety of marine and fresh-water structures for use 
 and for pleasure, there are several beautifully-modelled productions in 
 almost every department, and some of them entirely new. The 
 Admiralty have contributed a fine model of a frigate, which is placed 
 in the transept, besides others in the appropriate space for such objects. 
 An eighty-gun ship, however, by a Mr. W. M‘Laren, seems to attract 
 considerable attention, from its minute and excellent workmanship, 
 and from the fine outline of its general structure. It seems to have 
 
THE EXHIBITION. 259 
 
 been a work of love, rather than of labour, as there appears so many 
 indications to that effect here and there, in the finish of particular 
 parts. This vessel attracted the attention of her Majesty and the 
 Prince, since which every spectator, as a matter of course, has exa¬ 
 mined its peculiar excellence. 
 
 The contribution of Messrs. Mollady and Co. is highly characteristic 
 of the enterprise and ingenuity of portions of our manufacturing 
 interest in meeting the demands of public taste. The hats which this 
 firm exhibit furnish specimens of the finest quality, and of the greatest 
 variety of shape that we have yet seen ; and, as there is great compe¬ 
 tition with the foreigner in this article, it is doubly interesting to 
 observe that we are fully equal to sustain it. Here may be seen the 
 “ Ventilated Cork Hat,” so light in its structure that we are scarcely 
 conscious of its pressure on the head; together with the “ Zephyr,” the 
 “ Drab Simbrino,” the “ Felt Rustic;” and, to crown all, there are 
 specimens of the different stages through which the hat passes, from 
 the first rude form up to its most finished state. Not only in this 
 case, but in that also of Messrs. Eveleigh and Son, may be perceived 
 the advance which we have made in this important and highly useful 
 branch of manufacture. 
 
260 
 
 PATENTS.-PATENT LAWS. 
 
 —♦— 
 
 If any stranger had arrived on our coast with the express view 
 of studying the nature and structure of our mechanical excellence, 
 which forms the basis of our national greatness, he would naturally 
 conclude that we preserved that excellence with the greatest care, 
 that we nurtured it with a parental tenderness, and that every indi¬ 
 vidual effort to augment its strength would be hailed with delight, 
 and specially protected from injury or aggression. “ The improver 
 of mechanical excellence,” he would naturally say, “ must be an 
 especial favourite, the laws for his protection must he especially 
 framed, for improvement or invention is civilization. The inventor 
 is the author of all the combinations that God has not made—he is 
 the continuer of His work, the promoter of all advancement. The 
 inventor is the first man in the world, for he makes something out of 
 nothing, gives a value to what was valueless, motion to inert masses, 
 power to weakness. "Watt, in imprisoning steam in a cylinder, has 
 given to England fifty millions of hands; Nature had not furnished 
 her with this immense appliance. All which exists on this side 
 brute creation is invention. Inventors seek out and find new pro¬ 
 cesses, simplify mechanism, diminish bodily labour, shorten dis¬ 
 tances, explain phenomena, subdue the elements, and transmit them 
 tractable and powerful into the hands of their fellow-men. They 
 are the head and soul of a nation; without them there can be 
 neither progress, nor riches, nor power. The country which pos¬ 
 sesses the most of them renders its neighbours tributary and subser¬ 
 vient to itself. Other nations will buy its books, its pictures, its 
 designs, its colours, and its stuffs; they will also require its laws, its 
 regulations, its plans; they will visit its monuments, its deposi¬ 
 tories, its schools—for all this is so much invention. Mind works 
 equally in the arrangement of a chart or a poem, a picture or an art; 
 while one genius combines parts of machinery, another arranges 
 hemistichs and rhymes, lines and colours, black and white. The 
 people who have no conti’iving powers are savages, and remain so 
 until the inventor civilises them. An idea is the property of him 
 who first possesses it. The people in the enjoyment of all these 
 powerful elements must have good laws, otherwise individual enter- 
 
PATENT LAWS. 261 
 
 prise and individual genius would not be so largely displayed, there¬ 
 fore I shall studiously examine those laws.” 
 
 Were our friend to soliloquise in this manner, he would commit 
 an eggregious blunder, for our laws relating to Patents appear to 
 have been so framed that inventions should be specially discouraged, 
 as though they were the evil genii of society, instead of being its 
 creative and alimentary agents. Our law-framers seem to have 
 treated inventions as objects to be dreaded, but not wholly avoided ; 
 and divining their thoughts by the spirit of their handyworks, or, in 
 other terms, measuring the motive by the action, there would appear 
 to have run some such idea as this through their heads—“ Inventions 
 are abominable, detestable things ; we cannot possibly prevent them 
 from’appearing, but we will do all we can to ‘ crib, cabin, and confine ’ 
 them in the meshes of the law, so that they may be discouraged as 
 much as possible.” The spirit of the law has had precisely the effect 
 here implied, whatever may have been the intentions of the makers 
 of the law. Let us cite the latter, with a few prefatory remarks 
 upon the “Lights” who have diffused its radiance among us, and 
 see how far their views have been in accordance with its virtual 
 operation. 
 
 Patents for inventions have been defined as “ Monopolies granted 
 to inventors or introducers of new and useful improvements in the 
 arts and manufactures,” * securing to the patentee, for a certain term, 
 the advantages derivable from his invention, in consideration of his 
 giving it up to the public at the expiration of the period guaranteed 
 by the patent. Hawkins defines a monopoly (Pleas of the Crown) to 
 be “ an allowance by the Sovereign to any person for the sole making, 
 selling, &c., anything, so that no person be restrained in what he had 
 before, or in using his lawful trade;” and Lord Coke states that 
 “ the reason why such a privilege is good in law is, because the inven¬ 
 tor bringeth to and for the commonwealth a new manufacture , by his 
 invention , cost, and charges; and therefore it is reasonable that he should 
 have a privilege for his reward for a convenient time.” (3 Inst. 184). 
 The statute 21 of James I., cap. 3, s. 6, limited the period for which 
 patents should be granted in England to fourteen years ; “ and upon 
 that statute,” says Godson (Treat, on Patents, p. 6,) “is founded all 
 the law upon patents for inventions.” An act, however, was passed 
 during the reign of William IY. (5 and 6, c. 83,) to enable patentees 
 to amend their specifications, and obtain an extension of their patents 
 
 * Vide some able Observations on the New French Law relative to Patents 
 for Inventions. By Charles Egan, Esq., Barrister-at-Law. 
 
262 PATENT LAWS. 
 
 
 
 
 
 for seven years; and another act (7 and 8 Viet., c. 69,) empowers the 
 
 Sovereign, on the report of the Judicial Committee 
 
 of the Privy 
 
 Council, to grant an extension of patents for fourteen years beyond 
 
 the term originally granted. 
 
 
 
 
 
 The following is a statement of expenses 
 
 which an inventor must 
 
 incur, if, according to Coke, “he bringeth 
 
 to and for the common- 
 
 wealth a new manufacture , because it is reasonable that he should have 
 
 a privilege for his reward ,” &c. Yes, the glorious privilege of 
 
 paying 
 
 
 
 
 
 EXPENSES OF A PATENT FOR ENGLAND. 
 
 
 
 Extracted from Parliamentary 
 
 Report. 
 
 
 
 
 Secretary of State's 
 
 £ s. 
 
 d. 
 
 £ 
 
 s. d. 
 
 Reference . 
 
 2 2 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 Warrant 
 
 7 13 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 BUI 
 
 7 13 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 17 
 
 9 6 
 
 £ s. d. 
 
 
 
 
 
 Stamps , 6 0 0 Attorney-General's 
 
 
 
 
 
 „ Report 
 
 4 4 
 
 0 
 
 
 
 Bill 
 
 15 16 
 
 0 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 20 
 
 0 0 
 
 Signet Office 
 
 
 
 
 
 Fees 
 
 3 1 
 
 0 
 
 
 
 Gratuity 
 
 1 1 
 
 0 
 
 
 
 Office Keeper 
 
 0 5 
 
 0 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 4 
 
 7 0 
 
 Privy Seal 
 
 
 
 
 
 Fees 
 
 2 16 
 
 0 
 
 
 
 Gratuity 
 
 1 1 
 
 0 
 
 
 
 Office Keeper 
 
 0 5 
 
 0 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 4 
 
 2 0 
 
 Great Seal Office 
 
 
 
 
 
 Fees 
 
 5 17 
 
 8 
 
 
 
 30 2 0 Stamps 
 
 30 2 
 
 0 
 
 
 
 Boxes 
 
 0 9 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 Gratuity 
 
 2 2 
 
 0 
 
 
 
 Hanaper 
 
 7 13 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 Deputy 
 
 0 10 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 Recipe . 
 
 1 11 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 Sealers 
 
 0 10 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 5 0 0 Office Keepers 
 
 0 5 
 
 0 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 49 
 
 2 2 
 
 Stamps . £41 2 0 Passing the Patent 
 
 
 
 10 
 
 10 0 
 
 Letters, &e. 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 1 0 
 
 
 
 £106 11 8 
 
PATENT LAWS. 
 
 263 
 
 
 
 
 
 £ s. 
 
 d. 
 
 
 Brought over, 
 
 
 106 11 
 
 8 
 
 
 
 
 £ s. 
 
 d. 
 
 
 Expense for Scotland 
 
 • • 
 
 • 
 
 79 10 
 
 5 
 
 
 Specification Stamps 
 
 • • 
 
 • 
 
 5 0 
 
 0 
 
 84 10 
 
 5 
 
 Expenses for Ireland 
 
 • • 
 
 • 
 
 
 128 5 
 
 11 
 
 
 
 Total, 
 
 
 £319 8 
 
 0 
 
 So that a patent for the United Kingdom costs £319 8s., irrespec¬ 
 tive of other expenses. 
 
 The true solution of the enigma, however, is contained in the fol¬ 
 lowing remarks of Professor Amos :— 
 
 “ It would he remarkable that patent rights, so infinitely impor¬ 
 tant in a country the most distinguished for its manufactures of any 
 in the habitable globe, should be governed in the present day by a 
 statute upwards of two centuries old, couched in very obscure terms, 
 and conceived in an age when the mechanical arts had scarcely 
 emerged into existence or estimation. It would he remarkable, hut 
 that we know, that legal reforms have kept so unequal a pace with 
 national improvements, that we can scarcely turn on any side in our 
 legal enquiries, but that we find ourselves cramped, and laced, and 
 impeded by the swaddling clothes of an infantile jurisdiction.”— Lec¬ 
 ture Lon. JJniv. 
 
 Let us glance, for a moment, at foreign legislation on this impor¬ 
 tant subject. 
 
 In America, patents are usually granted for a term of fourteen 
 years, the tax being, to an American citizen, thirty dollars; to a Bri¬ 
 tish citizen or to any other foreigner, three hundred dollars. 
 
 In Holland, patents are granted for five, ten, or fifteen years, at 
 the option of the inventor. The charge depends upon the nature of 
 the invention ; but if the fees be not paid within three months, the 
 patent becomes forfeited. 
 
 In Belgium, a recent law fixes the utmost grant of a patent at ten 
 years, unless in some particular cases. On applying for a patent, the 
 Belgian government usually requires the deposit of a small sum, 
 varying from ten to one hundred francs; the remaining portion of the 
 tax is not required for two years. The invention, however, must 
 be carried into effect in Belgium within the period specified in the 
 patent; and the cost, we believe, varies from six to twelve pounds. 
 
 In Spain, the cost of a patent varies from ten to sixty pounds ; in 
 ustria, it is six pounds, with 11s. 8d. a year additional, and in the 
 German states the cost is about the same as in Austria. 
 
264 
 
 PATENT LAWS. 
 
 By a recent law (1845) in France, a patent is granted for five, 
 ten, or fifteen years, according to the desire of the patentee. The 
 application must embrace a correct description of the invention, ac¬ 
 companied with two copies of the requisite drawings, and the appli¬ 
 cant must strictly comply with all the other regulations of the law. 
 Moreover, unless the patent he carried into execution within two 
 years from the date of the grant, it is liable to he cancelled; or, if 
 the invention is suffered to remain inoperative for two successive 
 years during the existence of the patent, the privilege likewise be¬ 
 comes jeopardized. 
 
 The amount of the fees payable for a patent in France depends 
 upon the duration of the grant, viz.: 
 
 For five years, ..... 500 francs. 
 
 For ten years ..... 1000 „ 
 
 For fifteen years .... 1500 „ 
 
 And these premiums are to he paid by annual instalments of 100 
 francs, under penalty of forfeiting the grant if the patentee allows one 
 year to elapse without discharging the same. 
 
 Hence the number of patents taken out in France greatly exceed 
 those in England, to which, in some measure, may he attributed her 
 inventive power; while, on the contrary, the expenses attendant 
 upon taking out a patent in England operate fearfully against hers— 
 for who will plough and sow to reap hut a tithe, or perhaps the glean¬ 
 ings of his field ? Who will plant a tree if another is to carry off the 
 fruit ? These questions are answered in the words of an able writer 
 upon the subject of patents:—“ It is to be feared that many valuable 
 inventions never see the light, owing to the influence of the present 
 patent laws. The most inventive men are not always the most opu¬ 
 lent. It is no uncommon thing for a person to spend many years, 
 and perhaps his all, in maturing an invention which may fully answer 
 his expectations ; and, after he has brought it thus far, he must make 
 up his mind either to publish it and let others reap the benefit, or to 
 cancel and probably consign it to oblivion. There is no alternative if 
 he be unable to raise £500 or £600, which go principally into the 
 pockets of officials, who do nothing for it and who do not need it. 
 Thus it is a lamentable fact, that the very laws intended for the pro¬ 
 tection of inventions have, in too many instances, quite the contrary 
 effect.” 
 
 Were the patent laws of this country assimilated to those on the 
 continent, the inventor could make better terms with the capitalist, 
 who too frequently mulcts him of his invention. It is the sense of 
 
PATENT LAWS. 
 
 265 
 
 injustice that constitutes the sting in the patent law. It leaves the 
 poor man unprotected, and gives weight and power to his rich oppo¬ 
 nent. The inventor, it is true, must be more or less at the mercy of 
 the capitalist, but not so grievously as he is at present; for no inven¬ 
 tion can he successfully carried out without the aid of capital, but it 
 may be disposed of on more equitable terms than the present law per¬ 
 mits. There is the real grievance. In our first edition we suggested 
 the policy of establishing a Museum of Patents, which could easily 
 be effected were models and specifications of all inventions deposited 
 there, and what would be more instructive than a series of inventions, 
 showing practically the progressive stages of art, of manufactures, of 
 agriculture, and of every species of industry, of the present age ? We 
 can imagine the more intelligent class of mechanics paying periodical 
 visits to such a museum, and pointing out to their fellow-workmen 
 the share they took in such and such a work, and how they had heard 
 that some one somewhere else had greatly improved upon it, and more¬ 
 over, that they were anxiously looking out to see it in the museum. 
 Such a repertory of inventions, as we have suggested, would become 
 a seed-plot for a more prolific production, as inventors need not then 
 work in the dark, isolated and ignorant of what each other was rack¬ 
 ing his brains about, but would be mutually assisting and stimulating 
 the respective genius of their minds. 
 
 Thanks to a noble lord*, whose legislative exertions to place the 
 inventor upon a fair and equitable footing is worthy of all praise, we 
 shall soon see the statute book purged of the deformity against which 
 we have so often contended. 
 
 While these sheets are passing through the press, the Report of 
 the Lords on the Patent Laws has appeared. The evidence contains 
 a mass of facts which may serve as data upon which to ground fu¬ 
 ture legislative endeavours to set this complicated question at rest. 
 It is clear from the conflicting evidence given that the question of the 
 Patent Law is not yet ripe for final decision ; and we agree with the 
 Examiner f that we must take “ the Amendment Act now passing as 
 a temporary measure, which removes a great wrong and takes a large 
 step in a right direction.” 
 
 We shall note down, as briefly as possible, the different opinions 
 
 * Earl Granville, whose speeches on the Patent Laws are replete with the 
 practical views of the question. 
 
 + Vide Examiner, Aug. 2, 1851. In a short, hut pithy article, on the “Patent 
 Laws.” 
 
PATENT LAWS. 
 
 266 
 
 of the several eminent and practical authorities who were examined 
 before the Committee, as they afford an amusing and instructive 
 example of the opposite conclusions to which the mind sometimes 
 arrives from the same premises :— 
 
 THE ABOLITIONISTS. 
 
 Mr. John Fairrie : Q. 924. Do not you think, from your experi¬ 
 ence, that the improvements which are going on in your own pro¬ 
 cesses, are affected more by a continual series of small steps than by 
 occasional great advances ?—Undoubtedly. 
 
 925. Do not you think that if all those small steps were clothed 
 with patent rights, the effect would he rather to obstruct that contin¬ 
 uous daily course of improvement than to forward it ?—I think so. 
 
 926. Do you think the evil likely to arise, and which within your 
 experience has arisen, in that form is sufficient to overbalance the 
 good to be obtained from granting patent rights to great and valu¬ 
 able inventions ?—I think it is in a very great measure. 
 
 927. Then, according to your opinion, patents are injurious alto¬ 
 gether ?—My opinion is rather on that side than the other. 
 
 933. In a general way, do you think it difficult to define what 
 is or what ought to be considered a discovery ?—In a great many 
 cases it is very difficult indeed. 
 
 934. In most cases is it not the application in a new manner of 
 discoveries previously made ?—It is ; I can give you an illustration 
 of that. People took out a patent for a machine called the centrifugal 
 machine, for drying cloth ; a gentleman in Liverpool said this would 
 be applicable to sugar-refining; he went and took out a patent for 
 that, though he had made no discovery, simply because the idea oc¬ 
 curred to him, and without ever having tried it; and so had the means 
 of excluding all the world from using it , though it was not his own in¬ 
 vention at all. 
 
 935. Do you think that a person should he equally protected by a 
 patent who merely applies already made discoveries in a novel way, 
 and is not himself the discoverer of the original principle ?—Certainly 
 not; I think the cases quite distinct. 
 
 940. It has been stated to the Committee that patents operate as a 
 great encouragement to inventors and to invention; is not it your 
 opinion that in the event of there being no patent to protect an inven¬ 
 tor, he might still count, in most cases of useful inventions, upon re¬ 
 muneration for the communication of his improvements to the trade ? 
 —I think so, to a very large extent, if the invention is important. 
 
PATENT LAWS. 
 
 267 
 
 949. Do you think that the want of power to take out patents in 
 your case, in consequence of the cost of them, has in any degree 
 tended to check the application of your ingenuity to the discovery of 
 further improvements ?—Not in the least. 
 
 950. All patents involve the principle of monopoly ?—Yes, and on 
 that account the inclination of my mind is that it would be better to 
 have no patents at all; the progress of improvement, I believe, 
 would be as rapid, if it were not obstructed at every turn by patents. 
 
 Mr. Macfie, another large sugar refiner, gives similar evidence, 
 and for precisely the same reasons. 
 
 Mr. William Cubitt : 1517. Will you state generally your 
 objections to the present system ?—The objections to the present 
 system are, the advanced state of scientific and practical knowledge, 
 which renders it difficult to secure anything. The principles being 
 very well known, and very well understood, inventions involving 
 exactly the same principle, and to effect the same object, may be 
 practically and apparently so different, that patents may be taken out 
 for what is only a difference in form, intended to produce the same 
 effect, without there being any difference in principle. 
 
 1547. You think the patent laws are an artificial contrivance for 
 the purpose of stimulating inventions, more applicable to the early 
 stages of mechanical invention than to the more advanced develop¬ 
 ment of it ?—Yes ; upon the whole, I think they do rather more harm 
 than good; if they were altogether done away with, I think nobody 
 
 would suffer, but many persons would gain.In the 
 
 present state of intercourse between nations, I think there is less need of 
 patents than there ever was, and greater difficulty in supporting them; 
 it is more difficult to be original; that is the principle of the thing. 
 
 Mr. J. K. Brunei: 1773. Can you state generally what is the 
 result of your experience ?—One result has been, that I have neither 
 taken out a patent myself nor ever thought of taking one, nor, I hope, 
 ever shall take one ; and certainly, from the experience I have had, 
 and all that I have seen of the operation of patents, I believe them to 
 be productive of almost unmixed evil with respect to every party con¬ 
 nected with them, whether those for the benefit of whom they are 
 apparently made, or the public. 
 
 1774. Does not the present law encourage inventions to be made ? 
 —I believe that it practically discourages them, for that, while it 
 appears to offer protection, and ultimate gain, to parties who are 
 inventors, it leads to a considerably smaller number of inventions 
 than would otherwise be brought out for the benefit of the public ; 
 
268 PATENT LAWS. 
 
 and I believe that, practically, it involves great loss upon the class of 
 inventors as a body—a loss which I think they would not sustain if 
 there were no patents, nor no exclusive privileges at all granted to them. 
 
 1835. The result of your evidence is, that you are very decidedly 
 of opinion that the whole patent system should be abolished ?—Yes, I 
 think it would be an immense benefit to the country, and a great 
 benefit to that unfortunate class of men whom we call inventors, who 
 are at present ruined, and their families ruined, and who are, I 
 believe, a great injury to society. 
 
 Mr. J. L. Prevost, Consul-General for Switzerland : 2104. From 
 your knowledge of Geneva, do you think there would be any risk in 
 abolishing the patent law altogether, leaving this country in the same 
 position as the canton of Geneva ?—As a matter of opinion, I think 
 that abolishing the patent laws would be the best course. 
 
 Lieut.-Col. Reid : 2289. Do not you think that the principal 
 mechanical improvements now being made, in the present state of 
 mechanical invention, consist rather in minute details than in large 
 new inventions ?—I believe that is the case; a great number of men, 
 particularly power mechanics, occupy themselves over what they 
 conceive to be new inventions, which have been tried many times 
 before ; they lose their time upon them in the hope of coming to great 
 gain. At present the hope of a patent gives them a false stimulus, 
 and excites them to spend their time in seeking to make inventions, 
 but I do not think the country benefits by it. I think that by throw¬ 
 ing the whole free, the general result to the country would be benefit 
 rather than otherwise. 
 
 Mr. John Horatio Lloyd, the barrister, arrives at the conclusion, 
 from his practical experience, somewhat unwillingly, that “ the patent 
 laws are objectionable in principle, practically useless, and even 
 injurious.” The reason assigned for these objections to the law alto¬ 
 gether are, that he looks upon it as a system of bounty, by which 
 attention and ingenuity are artificially directed to subjects of inven¬ 
 tion, and thinks that that direction of the human intellect to those 
 subjects is, in the present advanced state of mental activity, unneces¬ 
 sary, and is found practically, in many cases, pernicious to the parties 
 concerned as well as to the public. “ I find,” says this intelligent 
 witness, “ that for one inventor, or supposed inventor, who succeeds, 
 there are fifty, or perhaps one hundred, who fail; and although the 
 history of invention may be a record of progress and of triumph, I 
 suspect the biography of inventors would be a very tragic story 
 indeed. My experience, and I have had a pretty large acquaintance 
 
PATENT LAWS. 
 
 269 
 
 with inventors as a class, leads me to the conclusion that this incite¬ 
 ment operates injuriously upon them; it is like seeking a prize in a 
 lottery : the man is continually putting down his stake in the hope of 
 getting a prize, and, of course, in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred, 
 he gets a blank.” 
 
 The following answer is highly significant, and must have a 
 weighty effect upon the wavering mind:— 
 
 2700. How do you imagine an inventor would obtain a reward for 
 his ingenuity, and a compensation for the loss of time he has incurred, 
 if he did not obtain the monopoly which is supposed to reward him in 
 a pecuniary sense ?—I think there are many considerations which 
 must enter into the question. In the first place, the class of meritori¬ 
 ous inventors is a much narrower one than people suppose. Of the 
 few whom I have ever known who were really meritorious inventors, 
 I do not think I have known one who has derived material benefit 
 merely from the monopoly given to him by the patent. They have 
 derived benefit, but they have got it in other ways, quite independently 
 of letters patent. In this country, and in this state of society in 
 which we are now (I am not speaking of an early state of society, 
 where it may be necessary to stimulate and encourage, but of an 
 advanced state, like the present), there is no kind of talent, practically 
 useful, which does not command its market value. I know practi¬ 
 cally, that persons who have the inventive faculty do turn it to good 
 account; that they do, without letters patent, receive sufficient 
 encouragement from those whose interest it is to reward and encour¬ 
 age them. Of the larger establishments in the manufacturing districts 
 of Lancashire, there is scarcely one in which mechanics, known to be 
 of inventive talent, are not regularly kept; these men are continually 
 observing and continually suggesting; they are valuable to their 
 employers, and they are remunerated accordingly. If you take a man 
 out of that category, and propose to encourage him by giving him a 
 monopoly for every improvement which he may strike out, in the 
 first place, you prevent his mind from following the bent and direc¬ 
 tion which it has received; you stop him suddenly; you fix and 
 stereotype him in an idea; and thus you not only deprive the public 
 of the advantage which it would have from his following out that train 
 of thought, and working upon it till he brought it to perfection, but 
 you injure the man himself; you divert him from that which is his 
 legitimate occupation, and the legitimate exercise of his faculty, and 
 you set him dreaming about making a fortune. I speak, of course, 
 with diffidence ; but, so far as my observation goes, there is no man 
 
270 PATENT LAWS, 
 
 who has a practical talent that will not find his reward for it. It is 
 not monopolies which make Watts, and Stephensons, and Brunels; 
 and, to come down lower, it is not by letters patent that you can 
 best reward the humble mechanic who makes and communicates 
 valuable improvements. 
 
 The following is equally pertinent to the question of abolition of 
 patents —“ There is a little misunderstanding in the public mind 
 generally as to what an invention is. An invention I take to be a 
 different thing from a discovery ; it is, for the most part, the applica¬ 
 tion of some known law, or some principle, to a new subject, so as to 
 produce a novel result. Take Appold’s centrifugal pump, for example : 
 there is nothing whatever novel in the principle; the centrifugal 
 force is a thing practically known to every boy who has hurled a stone 
 from a sling; it is the application of that law to the lifting of water 
 in which the novelty consists. Now, this is a good illustration of what 
 I consider the irremediable defects of the patent system. Suppose 
 Appold had thought fit to patent that invention, what could he have 
 patented ? Not the principle—not only because such a patent would 
 not be good in law, but because it is clear that you could not make 
 a principle the subject of a monopoly; not the result produced, for 
 that is not a manufacture: he could only patent Appold’s pump— 
 that is to say, a particular machine by which, in a particular mode, 
 water is lifted up. That is a meritorious invention, no doubt, because 
 the idea of applying the centrifugal force to driving water into a con¬ 
 fined reservoir, and so up a vertical pipe till it reaches a certain level, 
 is a very pretty and novel idea ; but, if he came to patent it, he would 
 be attacked on all sides, and the more useful and valuable the inven¬ 
 tion, the more it would be attacked, and the more infringed; and how 
 could he protect himself ? There is scarcely a part of that machine, 
 if there be any part, which is not perfectly well known and familiar; 
 even the idea itself is not novel; the fan-blower to a furnace is the 
 same thing, the only difference being that there it is air which is 
 collected at the centre, and forced out at the circumference of the 
 wheel, instead of water. The common rotatory bellows is the same 
 thing; therefore he could not protect that. The steam-engine, or 
 wheel turned by hand, which gives the rotatory motion, and so gene¬ 
 rates the centrifugal force, clearly could not be patented. The forcing 
 of power by pressure, or a power of any sort, up a tube to a higher 
 elevation, is not a matter that could be patented; it is perfectly well 
 known. So that, if you take the invention to pieces and analyse it, 
 there is scarcely a thing in it which is novel. I doubt whether even 
 
PATENT LAWS. 
 
 271 
 
 the combination itself could be made the subject of a patent; yet 
 here is clearly a meritorious invention. Now, supposing the inventor 
 had been a poor man, and bad desired to protect his invention, see 
 what be would have been subject to : first be must have gone to tbo 
 capitalist for means to construct the machine and bring it before the 
 public; be must have incurred a considerable outlay in order to obtain 
 the patent; that is the first outlay, and by no means a trifling one. 
 But when speaking of amending the patent laws by reducing the cost, 
 people forget that there is a vast deal beyond that which the inventor 
 has to contend with before he can secure to himself the exclusive 
 privilege. 
 
 PROTECTIONISTS OF PATENTS. 
 
 Mr. T. Webster: 61. Is it not fair to consider that those inven¬ 
 tions would, in all probability, have been made without any reference 
 to the direct pecuniary reward which the patent affords ?—That may 
 be the case with a large number of them (small improvements), but 
 the hope of a pecuniary reward is a stimulus. And the question 
 occurs, is it just, when a man has brought out such an invention, that 
 he should not have some reward ? I have no doubt that a great num¬ 
 ber of inventions would not be introduced but for the hope of rewards. 
 The certainty of reward induces people to take to invention as a 
 business. A workman knows that if he effects an improvement of a 
 machine, if he has a liberal master, he will get well rewarded for it, 
 and therefore, in those cases, improvements might be made; but in 
 the majority of cases the inventor would be in uncertainty, and he 
 would know that, while the reward he would get might be exceed¬ 
 ingly inadequate, the advantage his master would get would be very 
 great, and he would leave things to their course. . . . Exceptions 
 
 occur; but a workman has not generally the means of making terms 
 with his master, as to inventions; he has no protection without a patent, 
 and a communication of the invention may defeat the right of a patent. 
 
 Mr. Wm. Carpmael: 150. You state that you think that a patent 
 ought not to be made too cheap or too easily obtainable ; are you of 
 opinion that the present patent law might be safely repealed alto¬ 
 gether, and inventions deprived of all privilege and protection ?—I 
 can only say that I can see no inducement to an inventor to come 
 forward to benefit the manufacturers of this country, unless you give 
 him some reward. Looking through the history of the whole of the 
 manufactures of this country, you will find that all the steps have 
 been founded upon patents, from the earliest date up to the present 
 time; take any one branch, whether it be the cotton manufacture, 
 
272 PATENT LAWS. 
 
 the steam-engine, the manufacture of flax, or wool,—in the case of 
 every one, if we trace the history of it through, it will he seen that 
 the whole system is built upon patents. 
 
 204. Can you, without difficulty, point out a certain number of 
 very important inventions, which were preceded by such costly expe¬ 
 riments that they could not have been carried out without the patent 
 law ?—Watt, in the case of the steam-engine, was seven years before 
 he got the first engine to work efficiently. In the case of Arkwright’s 
 machine for spinning cotton, he was several years before he got it 
 efficiently to work. In the case of Crompton, the same; in the case 
 of Hargreaves, the same. Then, in regard to combing wool by 
 machinery, and the first power-loom by Cartwright, he did not 
 succeed in getting it practically to work for many years, and he was 
 rewarded by Parliament for what he had done, because he had not 
 been remunerated in the working of his patent. The paper-machine 
 was worked out by a series of costly experiments which never would 
 have been entered on but for the patent laws of this country. 
 
 205. Can you give the committee any idea of the cost which was 
 incurred before Boulton and Watt’s invention was brought successfully 
 into practice ?—I believe, in the case of Boulton and Watt’s engine, at 
 least from 10 to £20,000 was expended before anything like a large 
 practical result was brought about. I have known, in the case of 
 many inventions, hundreds, and in other cases, thousands of pounds 
 to be spent before any practical operation took place. In the 
 case of the printing machinery there is a striking instance of it. 
 Cowper and Applegath’s printing machinery succeeded Koenig’s, and 
 they expended a large sum of money before they attained partial 
 success. Cowper and Applegath joined togther; they were joint 
 inventors of the most important machine which ever existed up to 
 the last, which is the Times machinery, invented by Mr. Applegath. 
 They had spent a large sum of money, I think some thousands, in 
 bringing the machine to bear. They met positively to break up the 
 machinery, in consequence of the want of success. They could not get 
 good inking; whenever there was an insufficiency of ink, there was a 
 repetition of a light line upon every page. They met with the view of 
 destroying the whole of that machinery, when a happy thought struck 
 one of the inventors—I think it was Mr. Cowper, but I am not quite 
 sure,* and he suggested, that if they would allow him a little time, 
 
 * Vide chapter on typography, &c., in which we have described the progres¬ 
 sive stages of the printing-machine in question. It was a pressman, and not 
 Mr. Cowper, who obviated the difficulty. 
 
PATENT LAWS. 
 
 273 
 
 he thought he should he able to remedy the defect. It was remedied, 
 and the consequence was that it became a most efficient machine. 
 Had there been no patent laws, I am perfectly certain that that 
 machinery never would have existed. When the Times paper came 
 out, and they announced that they were then actually printing 4000 
 an hour from a surface type, by one of these machines, they made as 
 much of that number in those days as they have since made of 
 printing double that number by Mr. Applegath’s present machine. 
 I unhesitatingly say that Mr. Applegath’s machine never would have 
 existed b\it for the protection, and the hope of reward, which is the 
 result of the patent law. 
 
 Mr. Paul Eupsey Hodge : 518. Have you ever heard any com¬ 
 plaints made of the number of patents existing in America ?—Never; 
 the patents there are very numerous, but they are generelly for useful 
 inventions. My reason for recommending cheap patents is my expe¬ 
 rience in that country; the real inventors are generally operatives, 
 practical men. I can cite an instance of a spinning-machine which 
 has been bought for £6000, which was invented by a journeyman 
 who worked under me for ten years. We used to laugh at this man’s 
 assertion that he would make a better spinning-machine than Mr. 
 Danforth’s, with whom he served his time; and this improved machine 
 is now in the Exhibition. My experience in America goes to prove 
 that practical men, and operatives themselves, if they are encouraged, 
 are the very men to invent, and not the employers. 
 
 522. You think the most valuable inventions are made by persons 
 who discover them in the exercise of their own employment ?—Yes. 
 
 523. Do you think that patent protection is necessary to create an 
 inventive tendency in labours ?—Decidedly. 
 
 524. You think they will not invent if they have not the prospect 
 of patent protection ?—You must give them some stimulus, and that 
 is derived from the monopoly which the patent creates. 
 
 525. Have not the workmen been frequently the inventors of im¬ 
 provements in the manufactures of this country ? —Very often we 
 find it to be the case; but, though the workman has been the inven¬ 
 tor, the employer is the only one benefited by it. Sometimes the 
 workman meets with a liberal employer; I can cite an instance of 
 Messrs. Sharp, of Manchester, who gave Mr. Hill, at the head of their 
 loom department, £2000 or £3000, for an improvement in a carpet 
 loom. This Mr. Hill found a liberal employer, and he was liberally 
 paid, but it is not the case generally. 
 
 542. Is it not a fact that that which we perceive at recurring 
 
274 PATENT LAWS. 
 
 periods to be a great improvement in the great processes of this 
 country, is an improvement effected not so much hy any separate, 
 distinct, and great steps of improvement, as it is hy a continuous 
 application and new modification of improvements, each very minute 
 and inconsiderable in itself, hut in the aggregate producing an im¬ 
 portant result ?—Most of the great improvements in our country arose 
 from small matters, the whole together making a great whole; par¬ 
 ticularly in the production of our fabrics; it is very rarely that we 
 find any large or great improvement at once. The present spinning 
 machinery which we now use, is supposed to he a compound of about 
 800 inventions. The present carding machinery is a compound of 
 about sixty patents. 
 
 543. Was not the card the result of one invention of Mr. Dyer ?— 
 The card originally was invented by an American, and patented by 
 Mr. Dyer ; but we have had many improvements upon the machine. 
 In the case of the card, likewise, a little addition has recently come 
 out by an American, a Mr. Calvert, who used to be a journeyman in 
 the establishment which I superintended in the United States. He 
 has recently brought out an invention which does away altogether 
 with the card, leather, and wire; he inserts the carding-wire with its 
 teeth into a cast-iron cylinder ; that invention secures truth, perma 
 nonce, and sharpness, and lays the fibre with greater evenness and 
 uniformity. 
 
 544. Is that the machine which is now at work in the Exhibition ? 
 —There is one of those machines in the Exhibition. I think that the 
 application of his idea to the ginning of cotton will do a vast deal of 
 good in India. The present cotton-gin, what is termed the saw-gin, is 
 not so effective as the machine of Mr. Calvert; he came here with the 
 invention, and has sold it for between £8000 and £9000. The first 
 year he was here he gained little or nothing at all. This is another 
 instance showing that the best and most valuable inventions do ema¬ 
 nate from practical men, and this does not produce any bad effects in 
 our manufactures ; it docs not throw aside the old cards, but it only 
 requires the manufacturer to take out the old carding cylinders and 
 put in the new ones. 
 
 545. In your opinion, would the improvements, which you say 
 have been the subjects of eight hundred patents, have been discovered 
 without the stimulus of the patent laws ?—No. 
 
 546. If as many as eight hundred small inventions combine to pro¬ 
 duce that which we may call one great machine, do you think it 
 desirable that there should be a patent for every one of those small 
 
PATENT LAWS. 
 
 275 
 
 suggestions?—Decidedly; I will give you another instance of it: there 
 is an invention now brought to this country from America, which 
 hangs up in the American department of the Exhibition; it is a flyer 
 for an ordinary throstle-frame; the present flyer being made of solid 
 steel, having a great deal of spring with it, the law of centrifugal force, 
 by driving it at a great velocity, expands the flyer ; but this inventor 
 has made the steel flyer a hollow tube of less weight, and not so liable 
 to spring, hence he is able to increase the velocity nearly one-third; 
 every spindle does, therefore, one-third more work. In one mill at 
 Manchester, that of Messrs. Burley, they have seventy thousand 
 spindles, so that if you add one-third to the work they do, it will be 
 seen to be of great national importance ; every spindle is producing so 
 many yards per minute ; multiply that by the number of spindles in 
 the mill, and add one-third to that, and the advantage obtained by the 
 invention will be evident. 
 
 The following question and answer will be read with somewhat 
 painful interest. The typefounders, like many other monopolists who 
 have gone before them, are simply making a rod for their own backs. 
 The Spittalfields-Book drove the weaving into the country; the scheme 
 of the type-monopolists will end in the same result, if it be pertinaci¬ 
 ously maintained. 
 
 593. Is there any advantage in the present system of requiring 
 three patents to be taken out for England, Ireland, and Scotland ?— 
 No advantage at all; but, on the contrary,'very great disadvantage; I 
 can give you an instance of that. The machine for making type was 
 imported from the United States; it was patented in England; the 
 cost of the patent was very considerable ; it cost a large sum of money 
 to get the machines here, and to make experiments. But there is a 
 peculiar monopoly among the typefounders of London, who not only 
 keep the price of type up at a very high rate, but prevent any improve¬ 
 ments in the making of type. They offered a certain sum of money 
 for this invention here ; the parties, thinking they could get more, 
 and not knowing the peculiar monopoly which existed, refused it. The 
 typefounders then had a meeting, and said, “We will not buy your 
 machine at all.” The machine, therefore, is locked up to this hour; 
 I have it in my possession; but the machine is worked in Glasgow, 
 without a Scotch patent, and the types are sent to this country : and 
 so, again, in Ireland, they are just commencing the manufacture of 
 type there. 
 
 Mr. It. A. Macfie : 1007. Do not you think the patent laws offer 
 an incentive to discoveries and to inventions ?—I think they must do 
 
PATENT LAWS. 
 
 276 
 
 so in certain cases, so far as pecuniary inducements operate upon the 
 minds of clever men they have that inducement, to a considerable 
 extent, under the present law. 
 
 Mr. A. V. Newton: 1049. Having once made the invention, and 
 having disclosed the invention to the public in England, is not all the 
 advantage required by the public already obtained ?—I will instance 
 a case where it will be seen that it required the intervention of a party 
 who should have a considerable interest in the invention to make it of 
 use at all. There is a machine well known in the United States as the 
 Excavator ; it has been nicknamed in this country the Yankee Geolo¬ 
 gist ; that is, or has been, in operation all over the United States for 
 the construction of railways. It has been introduced into this coun¬ 
 try ; and owing to the patent right being divided among several 
 parties, and no one being able to act exclusively as an agent for the 
 general interest, it has been so mismanaged, that it has been found 
 impossible, by a most persevering gentleman, who is pecuniarly inte¬ 
 rested in the invention, to carry it into use. 
 
 1052. Will you state more in detail what are the difficulties which 
 have prevented the copartners from introducing that invention suc¬ 
 cessfully into this country ?—There was no one party who had a suffi¬ 
 cient interest in it to make it worth his while to push it well; there 
 was no question about the value of the invention. I think that all 
 inventions which are of great interest like that, and all complicated 
 machines and elaborate processes, would never get here at all, unless 
 they were introduced by a party who should have either the sole right 
 to them, or have a large interest in them. I have seen the Excavator 
 operating upon the Eastern Counties Eailway, and I believe it has 
 been employed by Mr. Brassey. 
 
 We saw this machine at work on the Orleans and Tours Railway 
 in 1844. The English navvies employed in the construction of the line 
 were as much opposed to the machine as the French workmen, and 
 both combined to prevent its working. Our countrymen dubbed it the 
 Starvator. At one time the emeute assumed a very serious aspect, so 
 much so, indeed, that the authorities were compelled to call out the 
 troops, and take the ringleaders into custody, several of whom were 
 subsequently condemned to different periods of imprisonment. This 
 circumstance called forth the pamphlet referred to in the Introduction, 
 which had the desired effect amongst the better class of working men, 
 who soon silenced the others. 
 
 The following extract from the Committee of Managers of the 
 Annual Fair of the American Institute of New York, especially 
 
PATENT LAWS. 277 
 
 appointed to examine and report upon the Excavator, will give an idea 
 of its practical power :—• 
 
 “ The Excavator has been employed during the last three years upon 
 the Western Eailroad, and has saved a great deal of expense. It will 
 do the work of 150 men. It was timed, and cut 900 yards per day of 
 earth, which is equal to the work of 150 men. It fills its cars with the 
 greatest ease. The cost of the machine, with the men attending it, 
 amounted to 13 dollars 50 cents per day ; but, to cover all contingen¬ 
 cies, we give it at 20 dollars, which shows a saving of 130 men. The 
 steam-engine is 14 horse power, and is easily managed by two men. 
 It works well in clay, sand, gravel, and soils, and with perfect facility. 
 Your committee found the machine at work, and not set up for exhi¬ 
 bition. It pierced the hill about 60 yards, with a perpendicular hank 
 of gravel, sand, and boulders, 25 feet high. The great value of the 
 machine will he the digging of canals, levelling grounds for railroads, 
 cleaning docks, slips, and mouths of rivers.” The machine, certainly, 
 at work, appeared to have the power of a giant with the docility of an 
 infant, and could lift a stone of several tons weight, as easily as though 
 it were only a few pounds. The Americans, however, had properly 
 appreciated its peculiar power, it was simply effective in clearing 
 away, but had little effect where any obstruction presented itself, which 
 required the manual labour of the pickaxe and the spade. 
 
 Mr. William Fairbairn: 1138. Is there not also a desire to increase 
 the working or productive power of your machinery ?—Yes ; but I 
 believe what is a much more powerful stimulus is, the interest arising 
 from having the benefit of these inventions which subsequently become 
 advantageous to the public. 
 
 Mr. E. Eoberts : 1277, Do you think invention has been stimu¬ 
 lated by the patent laws ?—It has been stimulated, I have no doubt, 
 but do not know to what extent. A man expecting to gain something 
 handsome from his invention, would exert himself more than he would 
 otherwise do. 
 
 Mr. M. D. Hill: 1989. You think doing away altogether with 
 patents would be injurious to the country ?—Yes, injurious in this way 
 and to this extent; I think it very probable that almost every inven¬ 
 tion which is made with the stimulus of patents would be made with¬ 
 out that stimulus eventually ; but I think the patent law gives this 
 advantage to the country, that it anticipates what I might call the 
 natural period of an invention, so that you have for the benefit of the 
 public an invention some ten or twenty years, or perhaps, in some cases, 
 fifty years before you would have it without the stimulus of a patent. 
 
278 PATENT LAWS. 
 
 Similar evidence is given in favour of rewarding invention, through 
 the medium of a patent law, by Messrs. Cubitt, Woodcroft, Cole, 
 Mercer, Rendal, Westhead, and May. 
 
 After reading attentively the evidence in the report, we certainly 
 cannot make up our minds to sweep away all protection from the 
 patentee, as we consider the weight of argument is about equal on both 
 sides of the question. We have endeavoured to state the question 
 fairly, and have placed the pros and cons before the reader, so that he 
 may be enabled to judge for himself. The Examiner has put the 
 question in such a clear light, and with its usual terseness, that we 
 cannot do better than close with its remarks, merely premising that 
 they were written while the amended law was under discussion, and 
 not under the impression that it would be thrown out by the legisla¬ 
 ture :— 
 
 “ There is a social problem involved in a discussion of the patent 
 laws which must be argued out hereafter. For the present we believe 
 all parties are agreed that the passing of the Patent Law Amendment 
 Act is a deed not to be long postponed. The social question is whether 
 an adapter or inventor of machinery or other articles be really benefited 
 by a patent law ; and, if the law be beneficial, then arises the next 
 problem of the quale and the quantum , what sort of protection, and 
 how much of it, consists with the respective rights of the inventor and 
 of the community.” After citing the opinions of Mr. Cubitt, Mr. 
 Brunei, and Lord Granville, the active and able promoter of the pre¬ 
 sent measure, all of whom are for withholding protection, it continues : 
 —“ We are not, for our own parts, disposed yet to adopt this extreme 
 opinion. The patentee, in return for his protection, specifies minutely 
 to the public all the secrets of his art, which become public property 
 after the expiration of the term of his privilege. Were patent laws 
 abolished many branches of trade might lapse into their old forms of 
 arts and mysteries ; and to a certain extent this would be an evil. We 
 think, too, that protection under patent laws, ruinous enough now, 
 might, under improved legislation, be enlarged into a wholesome privi¬ 
 lege, a fair reward of zeal and application.An inventor 
 
 under the old law has to take out separate patents for each of the three 
 kingdoms, paying down upwards of £300 before he can enter upon 
 the enjoyment (or misfortune) of his right. This money being paid, 
 99 inventors in 100 find their hopes fallacious, and regret the cash 
 that has gone out of their pockets. Last year there were taken 520 
 patents for England, 221 for Scotland, and 62 for Ireland; the pro¬ 
 portion of patentees being,—for the English patents, 444 Englishmen, 27 
 
PATENT LAWS. 
 
 279 
 
 Scotchmen, and 3 Irishmen; for the Scotch patents, 173 Englishmen, 
 26 Scotchmen, and 5 Irishmen ; and for the Irish patents, 44 English¬ 
 men, 6 Scotchmen, and 4 Irishmen; or a proportion, upon the whole 
 returns, of some 500 Englishmen to 25 Scotchmen and 4 Irishmen. 
 Now, under the amended law, one patent will be granted for the three 
 kingdoms, at a total cost of £175, judiciously arranged after the follow¬ 
 ing manner :—The inventor specifies his patent, and eDjoys protection 
 for six months gratuitously to all intents and purposes. If he see reason 
 to forfeit his privilege then, he may. After this his invention is exa¬ 
 mined, and, if new, he receives a patent for the first three years at a 
 cost of £25, including the stamp. If, at the end of three years, he 
 should find his patent satisfying expectation, he pays £50 for four 
 years longer privilege. Having enjoyed his right for seven years, if 
 he still find it valuable, he will be glad to pay the last instalment of 
 £100 for the remainder of the period. Vexatious little patents in this 
 way die out in their infancy, and only those which really prove of value 
 are protected for a length of time, or pay a large tax to the crown.” 
 
 CURIOUS FACTS. 
 
 Mr. John Fairrie states that only two important discoveries have 
 occurred in sugar-refining within forty years. The first was Howard’s 
 patent for boiling sugar in vacuo. When first tried it was a complete 
 failure. The invention was put into the hands of a sugar-refiner, a 
 Mr. Hodgson, who, in attempting to carry it out, was said to have 
 spent his whole fortune. At length a German workman suggested a 
 slight improvement, which brought the thing to perfection, and 
 enabled the patentee to realize from £40,000 to £50,000 a-year. 
 
 The only other great improvement is the use of animal charcoal, 
 in small grains like gunpowder, through which the sugar is filtered, 
 which has the curious property of removing all colour from the 
 sugar. This discovery has had the effect of reducing the price of fine 
 sugar twenty shillings a hundred weight. “ I tried it; but it never 
 occurred to me that it should be patented, because it was only an 
 application of a known power. To my surprise, I found I was fore¬ 
 stalled ; that a patent had been taken out, though I had known the 
 principle, and applied it, two years before.” 
 
 Mr. William Cubitt remarks, “that there is less room for inven¬ 
 tions than persons imagine. There is little chance of a workman 
 inventing things which will he very useful, which are not known at 
 present, because they do not know what has been done. Cases fre¬ 
 quently come under my knowledge of that kind :—one did the other 
 
PATENT LAWS. 
 
 280 
 
 day, in which a person had an invention for which he did not take 
 out a patent, hut he made it, like a sensible man, for his own purposes, 
 as an article of sale; the article which he made was for filtering 
 water ; he had a patent for a peculiar artificial stone, through which 
 the water filtered, and he could make it of different degrees of fine¬ 
 ness ; he took out a patent for that, and he made a filter, in which a 
 stone vessel, hollow, like a bomb-shell or a cylinder, with closed ends, 
 was inclosed in a larger cylinder of iron, into which it would fit loosely, 
 leaving a space all round ; the outer cylinder was connected with the 
 water-main, or water-pipe or cistern, and filled by it; and the water 
 then percolated through the inner vessel, from which inner vessel a 
 stop-cock went to the outside to draw the water—that was filtered 
 water. Or you could reverse the operation : the foul water could be 
 put into the inside of the stone filter, and be drawn from the outside 
 vessel, or iron case, as filtered water. That was made and sold by 
 him, and answered the purpose very well indeed; he sold a great 
 many, to some advantage. Now came the operation of the patent 
 laws upon it. Shortly after he began to supply his customers, he 
 received notice from a house in Liverpool that he would be prose¬ 
 cuted; he received intimation of legal proceedings against him for 
 interfering with his, the Liverpool man’s patent. The manufacturer 
 of these things, who had no patent, came to me to consult me upon 
 the subject; I at once saw how the case stood, having regard to the 
 specification of the Liverpool patentee, that he had taken out a patent 
 for that which another man had before done, so exactly that the 
 words of the specification and the drawings fitted the first man’s 
 invention, which was without a patent, therefore his patent would 
 have been null and void. I advised my friend to write to the paten¬ 
 tee, to inform him of the fact that he had taken up a case which he 
 could not support, and that he himself was infringing upon the inven¬ 
 tion of the first man, who had no patent; that brought the Liver¬ 
 pool man to me, I having been referred to as having one of these 
 filters in use. I explained to him that I had had the patent filter of 
 the other man for two or three years. Then, what was to be done ? 
 I advised my friend to tell the Liverpool patentee, if he did not come 
 to some arrangement of a business-like nature, he himself would have 
 to become the prosecutor, and to sue out a scire facias to make him 
 prove his patent right, which is an expensive legal proceeding, and 
 very troublesome to a patentee. I believe they have since made 
 some business arrangements.” 
 
 Mr. John Lewis Prevost, Consul-General for Switzerland, stated 
 
PATENT LAWS. 
 
 281 
 
 that there is no law in the canton of Geneva for the protection of 
 inventions, and, he believed, in no part of Switzerland. The process 
 of manufacturing soda-water was invented at Geneva by Mr. Paul. 
 Switzerland labours under many disadvantages as an exporting- 
 country ; being a mountainous country, her means of communication 
 are difficult, and she is about 4000 feet above the level of the sea. In 
 addition, her water communication is very incomplete, as she is 1000 
 miles distant from the sea. In 1840, Professor de la Reve published 
 his invention of gilding by galvanism. He took no patent out any¬ 
 where. Later, Professor Schonbein, of Basle, invented gim-cotton, 
 and took out a patent. 
 
 Mr. Lloyd remarks:—“There will always he persons who will 
 invent; and an inventor will always communicate his inventions. It 
 is a necessity of his nature that he should do so ; and, even if he did 
 not, inasmuch as invention is not a creation but a growth, and gradual 
 development, there will always be found some other mind, about the 
 same time, which will have hit upon the same idea, and the public 
 will not be long deprived of the benefit. You rather check the dis¬ 
 position to communicate than encourage it by a patent.” 
 
 Such is the continuous improvement, we believe, which takes 
 place in machinery, that it becomes more economical and advantage¬ 
 ous to substitute new machinery every seven years than to continue 
 the old machinery. Mr. "Webster states that a large proportion of 
 these improvements are patented; and that, if the history of the 
 important trades of this country were carefully examined, it would 
 be found they had been built upon a multiplied system of patents. In 
 support of this view of the question he states:—“We had, for 
 instance, a litigation only the other day at Liverpool for an improve¬ 
 ment in looms ; the invention consisting in an improved means of 
 stopping the loom, whereby they could drive the loom from 1 to 120 
 picks a minute, instead of 60 or 80 picks. That might appear a 
 trifling thing in itself, but I know it made a great change to many 
 establishments. Another instance of a patent being litigated, where 
 the improvement consisted in giving a sort of eccentric motion to the 
 can in which the cotton sliver was received or laid on leaving the 
 drawing-rollers, whereby no two slivers were laid parallel one with 
 the other, but each of them was laid at a very small angle—an infini¬ 
 tesimally small angle—with the other, so that you have every sliver 
 laid in an eccentric coil, and, there being no parallelism between 
 them, they come off from each other without difficulty. A prior 
 invention does not interfere with a subsequent invention. In the 
 
 I 
 
 - --- - - - — ---( 
 
PATENT LAWS. 
 
 282 
 
 case of the loom, the inventor had been at work at it for years; it was a 
 great desideratum. The stopping the loom instanter when the shuttle 
 traps, or is stopped in its course, or when the weft thread breaks, had 
 been the subject of many patents; but this man, by a very simple 
 contrivance, accomplished the purpose perfectly. The shuttle passes 
 through with the weft; if it happens to stop in its course, and the 
 sley comes against it, there is a danger of destroying the fabric already 
 woven. Therefore it became essential that some means should be 
 devised of stopping the progress of the loom when the shuttle stops in 
 its course. This man conceived the idea of transferring the momentum 
 of the sley to the break on the fly-wheel, and the stoppage was 
 instantaneous. The result was, that the manufacturer paid him five 
 shillings a loom for it; but he had some difficulty in establishing his 
 claim. 
 
 The number of inventions brought out by purely scientific people 
 I believe to be very few, and for this reason; purely scientific 
 people want practical knowledge to enable them to carry out their 
 ideas ; the mass of inventions are made by workmen, or persons of 
 skill and science engaged in some actual manufacture. Perhaps the 
 best illustration of that would be to take the screw propeller; that is 
 a distinct thing from an established trade ; each of the persons who 
 embarked in that was in advance of the age, so to speak; he had to 
 do something, the like of which had not been done before. That 
 species of invention must necessarily fall into the hands of scien¬ 
 tific men. Watt’s first patent bears date 1775. The majority of 
 improvements made in the steam-engine have been made by work¬ 
 men, that is, persons engaged in the actual working of them. In an 
 established manufacture, improvement must consist in small details; 
 the workman is better educated as to, or has more experience of, the 
 wants of the machine than any other person. 
 
 There were ninety patents taken out in 1850 for improvements in 
 the cotton manufacture. Practically small changes lead sometimes to 
 large results. The original steam-engine of Newcomen, in which 
 the piston worked up and down in the cylinder, and the vacuum 
 was obtained by condensing the steam in the cylinder, was improved 
 by Watt by simply causing the vacuity to be obtained in a vessel 
 extra the one in which the piston worked, which was a large change 
 in the result, but practically small in the quantity of the machinery. 
 
 Duration of Patents .—There have been cases in which the prac¬ 
 tical monopoly of an invention has existed for the term of twenty- 
 eight years. Bolton and Watt’s was granted for thirty years. In 
 
PATENT LAWS. 
 
 283 
 
 two instances of recent times the same period was granted. Lord 
 Dundonald’s patent, and the blind gentleman (Mr. Mitchell), who in¬ 
 vented the system of pile-driving on which the lighthouses are now 
 constructed on sands, was the other. 
 
 Mr. R. Hodge remarks, that if you take a man from Leeds, where 
 they are making flax and woollen machinery, and put him into a cot¬ 
 ton-mill, he will know little or nothing about it. There are many 
 little niceties connected with inventions which are all-important. 
 Many machines I have known to be nearly completed, and to be 
 waiting only for some small thing; and, after waiting two or three 
 years, the introduction of that little thing may make the whole of 
 use. I will cite as an instance of that, Mr. Robert’s loom for pro¬ 
 ducing plain silk fabrics ; they were for years working upon the 
 loom, hut they wanted something to give the delicate effect that the 
 hand gives in throwing up the work. At length the introduction of 
 a very trifling matter, as a piece of vulcanized rubber, effected what 
 they wanted; hut they were years waiting for it. Such an invention 
 is of great importance to the manufacturers of the country. I have 
 paid considerable attention to the silk manufacture. I have, during 
 the last five years, spent a great deal of time in France, and I find 
 that the plain silks of Manchester are now sent to Lyons. It is 
 nothing but the improvement which we have made in the looms for 
 weaving plain silks in Manchester, that gives us that advantage over 
 the French. I say it is therefore a matter of great national import¬ 
 ance ; and, although that little addition to the loom might look 
 trivial, we see the result of it, and feel it nationally ; and I think a 
 man is entitled to a patent for what may appear a small thing, as 
 well as for a large one : everything depends on the result. 
 
 Pins are at present made by American machines in this country. 
 The first solid-headed pin that was made here was made by an Ame¬ 
 rican machine. Five patents have been sold for pin machines in this 
 country which have been invented in America. In my works in the 
 United States, there were two men who hired part of the establish¬ 
 ment, and had a room fitted up for them to make this pin-machine ; 
 it is called the Pokipsey pin-machine. They afterwards carried on 
 their manufacture up the Hudson, at a place called Pokipsey; those 
 were two journeymen machinists whom I knew well; they produced 
 the first machine for making a solid -headed pin. We know the 
 vast sums of money which have been spent in this country for pro¬ 
 ducing pins. 
 
 The following is significant:— 
 
PATENT LAWS. 
 
 284 
 
 There is a mill now exhibited at the Great Exhibition, under the 
 name of Crosskill’s mill, which is the invention of Mr. Bocaduys, of 
 the United States. This is an eccentric mill; it is based upon a 
 very simple principle; the bottom disk of the mill is eccentric to the 
 top one; it is a very ingenious machine. The party who brought 
 out that patent sold it to Sharp, Brothers, & Co., in Manchester. I 
 think they paid £3000 for it; but, having so much business to do in 
 other matters, the locomotive business at that time coming in fast 
 upon them, they neglected it: the patent has run out. Now Mr. 
 Crosskill is beginning to introduce it. I know the inventor came to 
 this country, hoping to reap some benefit from the invention, and he 
 found that the invention had been pirated and stolen by the father of 
 his own apprentice; and he would not have had a shilling to take 
 him back to America again, but that he invented the penny post¬ 
 stamp, for which he received a large sum from Government. 
 
 The Kaleidoscope .—Sir D. Brewster, the inventor of this beautiful 
 instrument, states—“ that there were cart-loads of those instruments 
 shipped for foreign countries. I dare say I might have made a couple 
 of hundred thousand pounds by it if the patent had been protected. 
 There were millions of them sold in London at that time. 
 
 The Electric Telegraph .—Sir David is asked whether Mr. Wheat¬ 
 stone was the undoubted inventor of the electric telegraph. He 
 replies—“Undoubtedly he is. Oersted, a Swede, was the discoverer 
 of electro-magnetism ; but, had that not been discovered at all, ordi¬ 
 nary magnetism is quite capable of being the moving power in the 
 electric telegraph, and there are some inventions just now of that 
 description.” 
 
 / 
 
 THE END. 
 
Sllttstrntrii uni ntjjtr Slurb. 
 
 PUBLISHED BT Wm. S. ORE & Co., LONDON. 
 
 - i - 
 
 HISTORICAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL. 
 
 In royal 8vo, cloth, Price 18s., and morocco, 31s. 6d. 
 
 ly/TILNER’S GALLERY OF NATURE. A Pictorial and De- 
 
 i.TJ_ scriptive Tour through Creation, illustrative of the Wonders of Astronomy, 
 Physical Geography, and Geology. With Sixteen Engravings on Steel, and 
 Many Hundred Vignettes and Diagrams. 
 
 In 2 vols. royal 8vo, cloth, Price 21s.; or, with Forty-five Portraits on Steel, 
 
 £2 10s. 
 
 B ishop burnet s history of the reformation 
 
 OF THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND. Carefully Collated with the best 
 Editions, and with Historical and Biographical Notes. 
 
 In royal 8vo, cloth, Price 10s. 6d.; or in 2 vols., with Fifty-one Portraits, 
 
 2s 
 
 B ishop bhrnet*s history of his own times-, from 
 
 the Restoration of Charles II. to the reign of Queen Anne ; with copious 
 Historical and Biographical Notes. 
 
 In imperial 4to, cloth, Price 31s. 6d.; half-bound russia, or morocco, 35s. 
 
 rpHE ATLAS OF POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY. Fifty-three 
 
 L Maps. Revised by A. Petermann, F.R.G.S.; with Descriptive Letterpress, 
 by the Rev. T. Milner, M.A. 
 
 In imperial 4to, cloth, Price 21s.; half-bound russia, or morocco, 25s. 
 rPHE ATLAS OF PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY. Comprised in 
 J- Sixteen Maps. Constructed by A. Petermann ; F.R.G.S.; with Descriptive 
 Letterpress, embracing a General View of the Physical Phenomena of the Globe, 
 by the Rev. T. Milner, M.A. 
 
 In royal 4to, cloth, Price 31s. 6d.; half-bound russia, or morocco, 35s. 
 
 A DESCRIPTIVE ATLAS OF ASTRONOMY, AND OF PHY¬ 
 SICAL AND POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY. Comprised in Seventy-five 
 Maps; with Letterpress Descriptive of the Physical Features and Statistics of the 
 several Countries, by the Rev. T. Milner, M.A., Author of the “ Gallery of 
 Nature,” &c. 
 
 In 2 vols. 8vo, Price 25s. cloth. 
 
 C HINA AND THE CHINESE: their Religion, Character, Cus¬ 
 toms, and Manufactures. By Henry Charles Sirr, M.A., of Lincoln’s 
 Inn, Barrister-at-Law. 
 
 In the Press, in Imperial 8vo., with Illuminated Initials, Borders in Gold, 
 and many new Illustrations, Plans of Grecian Cities, Coins, &c. 
 
 (GREECE; PICTORIAL, DESCRIPTIVE, AND HISTORICAL. 
 
 vJT By Christopher Wordsworth, D.D., Canon of Westminster, Author of 
 “ Athens and Attica.” Third Edition, carefully revised by the Author. 
 
 In 1 vol., Imperial 4to., Price 31s. 6d., Lithographed in three Tints, and 
 
 slightly Coloured, 
 
 TV/I OOLTAN (CITY AND SIEGE OF): A Series of Sketches 
 
 Lt-L taken before, during, and after the Siege. By John Dunlop, M.D., 
 Assistant Surgeon to H. M.’s 32nd Regiment. With Letterpress Descriptions, 
 giving a complete History of the Siege. 
 
WORKS ON NATURAL SCIENCE. 
 
 By W. B. CARPENTER, M.D., F.R.S., F.G.S. 
 
 Author of “ Principles of Human Physiology,” &c. 
 
 A NIMAL PHYSIOLOGY; including a Comprehensive Sketch of 
 the Principal Forms of Animal Structure. Post 8vo, cloth, Price 6s. 
 
 Z OOLOGY AND INSTINCT IN ANIMALS; a Systematic View 
 
 of the Structure, Habits, Instincts, and Uses of the principal Families in 
 the Animal Kingdom, and the chief Forms of Fossil Remains. 2 vols. post 8vo, 
 cloth, Price 12s. 
 
 TTEGETABLE PHYSIOLOGY AND BOTANY ; including the 
 
 ▼ Structure and Organs of Plants, their Characters, Uses, Geographical Dis¬ 
 tribution, and Classification, according to the Natural System of Botany. Post 
 8vo, cloth, Price 6s. 
 
 lyTECHANICAL PHILOSOPHY, ASTRONOMY, AND HORO- 
 
 -I-'X LOGY. An Exposition of the Properties of Matter ; a Description of the 
 Heavenly Bodies; and the Construction of Instruments for the Measurement of 
 Time. Post 8vo, cloth, Price 6s. 
 
 “ These works display a fullness of knowledge, with great powers of popularly conveying 
 it, and a clear and methodical general arrangement, as well as a,judicious selection of parti¬ 
 cular facts for the purpose of illustrating general principles.”— Spectator. 
 
 WORKS ORIGINALLY ISSUED BY MESSRS. CHARLES KNIGHT & CO., 
 
 NO W OFFERED AT GREATLY REDUCED PRICES. 
 
 In 16 vols. imperial 8vo (Supplement included), cloth lettered, Price £912s. 
 
 T HE PENNY CYCLOPAEDIA of the Society for the Diffusion of 
 Useful Knowledge. Edited by George Long, A.M. 
 
 In 8 vols. imperial 8vo, cloth lettered, Price £5 12s, 
 
 T HE PICTORIAL HISTORY OF ENGLAND ; being a History 
 
 of the People as well as of the Kingdom. Illustrated with many Hundred 
 Woodcuts, and one hundred and four Portraits Engraved on Steel. By George 
 L. Craik and Charles Macfarlane. 
 
 *** AN INDEX TO THE WORK, by H. C. Hamilton, Esq., State Paper 
 Office, has just been published, Price 10s. cloth. 
 
 In 2 vols. imperial 8vo, cloth lettered, Price £2 2s. 
 
 rPHE HISTORY OF ENGLAND DURING THE THIRTY 
 
 J- YEARS’ PEACE ; 1816—1816. By Harriet Martineau. With Portraits 
 engraved on steel. 
 
 In 4 vols. imperial 8vo, cloth lettered, Price £2 10s. 
 
 HHIIE PICTORIAL BIBLE; illustrated with Steel Engravings 
 JL after celebrated Pictures, and many hundred Woodcuts- With Original 
 Notes. By John Kitto, D.D. 
 
 In small 8vo, Price 5s. 6d., cloth, Illustrated by 24 Engravings, and a Map. 
 
 1 > IDES ON RAILWAYS,leading to the Lakes andMountain Districts 
 A/ of Cumberland, North Wales, and the Dales of Derbyshire. By Samuel 
 Sidney, Author of “ Railways and Agriculture,” &c. 
 
 In small 8vo, Price 5s. 6d., cloth, Illustrated by Forty Engravings, and a Map. 
 
 W ANDERINGS IN NORTH WALES. A Road and Railway 
 Guide Book. By W. Cathrali,, Author of “ History of North Wales.” 
 
BOTANY AND GARDENING. 
 
 Id Monthy Parts, Price Half-a-Crown, each Part containing Four Plates, coloured 
 after Nature, and a Plate of Ferns, with numerous Wood-cuts. 
 
 rTHE MAGAZINE OF BOTANY, HORTICULTURE, FLORI- 
 
 -L CULTURE, AND NATURAL SCIENCE. Conducted by T. Moore, F.L.S., 
 and W. P. Ayres, C.M.H.S. Botany: A. Henfrey, Esq., F.L.S., &c. The 
 Literary Department contributed by the best Practical Gardeners in the Country. 
 
 *,* The Volume for each year forms an independent and complete Book. The two 
 Volumes for 1851, Price 18s. each, cloth, gilt edges. 
 
 In Weekly Numbers, Price Three-halfpence ; and in Monthly Parts, Price 7d. 
 
 HP HE COTTAGE GARDENER’S DICTIONARY. Edited by 
 
 J- G. W. Johnson, Esq., Conductor of the “ Cottage Gardener,” &c.; aided by 
 Messrs. Beaton, Errington, Fish, Appleby, Barnes, and Weaver. 
 
 In 5 vols., super-royal 8vo., Price 7s. each, in cloth. 
 rpHE COTTAGE GARDENER ; or, A Practical Guide in 
 
 Every Department of Horticulture, and Rural and Domestic Economy. 
 Conducted by George W. Johnson, Esq., Editor of the “Gardener’s Almanac;” 
 assisted by a staff of able Contributors. 
 
 In imperial 8vo, cloth, gilt, Price 8s. 6d. 
 
 rPHE FLORISTS’ GUIDE, AND GARDENERS’ AND NATU- 
 
 L RALISTS’ CALENDAR. Twelve Coloured Plates and numerous Wood 
 Engravings. 
 
 In royal 8vo, Price 12s., cloth, 
 
 'THE VILLA GARDENER. Comprising the choice of a Suburban 
 L Villa Residence ; the Laying-out, Planting, and Culture of the Grounds, 
 &c. By J. C. Loudon, F.L.S., H.S., &c. Second Edition, edited by Mrs. 
 Loudon. 
 
 In royal 8vo, Price 15s., cloth. 
 
 ^THE HORTICULTURIST. The Culture and Management of the 
 -L Kitchen, Fruit, and Forcing Garden explained to those having no previous 
 knowledge in those departments. By J. C. Loudon, F.L.S., H.S., &c. 
 
 In post 8vo, Price 10s. 6d., cloth gilt. 
 
 T HE FLOWER GARDEN; its Cultivation and General Manage¬ 
 ment. Coloured Plates. 
 
 In post 8vo, Price 10s. 6d., cloth, gilt edges. 
 
 'THE ORCHARD AND FRUIT GARDEN. Including Forcing 
 
 J- Houses for all kinds of Fruit; with selected Lists of the best Varieties, with 
 their Synonymes. By Charles M‘Intosh, C.F.C.H.S. With Eighteen Plates, 
 coloured after Nature. 
 
 In a neat pocket volume, Price Two Shillings, cloth gilt. 
 
 E VERY LADY HER OWN FLOWER GARDENER; a Manual 
 
 for Ladies Managing their own Gardens. By Louisa Johnson. Tenth 
 Edition. Coloured Vignette and Frontispiece. 
 
 In small 4to, Price Two Shillings, cloth gilt. 
 
 E very lady’s guide to her greenhouse, hot¬ 
 house, AND CONSERVATORY. Instructions for Cultivating Plants 
 which require Protection, w ith Lists of the most desirable Plants for the Green¬ 
 house. By a Lady. Coloured Vignette and Frontispiece. 
 
 In 16 vols., half-morocco, cloth sides, Price £28, 15s. 
 
 P AXTON’S MAGAZINE OF 
 
 most beautiful Flowering Plants 
 
 BOTANY; and Register of the 
 
 which have been added to our Gardens 
 
 during the last Sixteen Years. With upwards of 700 Engravings, carefully co¬ 
 loured from nature. 
 
WORKS ON ZOOLOGY 
 
 In royal Svo, cloth, Price 21s.; with Coloured Plates, 31s. 6d. 
 
 pUVIER’S ANIMAL KINGDOM. A New Edition. With Ad- 
 
 ditions by Dr. Carpenter and Mr. Westwood. Illustrated by very nume¬ 
 rous Engravings on Wood, and Thirty-four on Steel, by Landseer, and others. 
 In 3 vols. 8vo, cloth, reduced to 18s. 
 
 A HISTORY OF BRITISH LAND BIRDS, Indigenous and 
 Migratory; including their Organization, Habits, &c. Illustrated with 
 numerous Engravings. By William Macgillivrat, A.M. 
 
 Preparing for publication, in 2 vols. 
 
 A HISTORY OF BRITISH WATER BIRDS. Being the Fourth 
 
 and Fifth Volumes, and completing the Work. By William Macgilliv- 
 ray, A.M., Professor of Natural History, Marischal College, Aberdeen. 
 
 As the chief object of the Publishers is to perfect the stock remaining in their hands, they 
 can only pledge themselves, therefore, to complete sets in the hands of subscribers whose 
 orders are received on or before September 30th, of the present year. Booksellers who have 
 supplied sets of the first divisions of the work are requested to bring this notice to the know¬ 
 ledge of their customers. 
 
 In post 8vo, Price 5s., cloth, gilt. 
 
 W HITE’S NATURAL HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF 
 
 SELBORNE. With copious Notes by Mr. Blyth ; a Map of the Locality; 
 and numerous Illustrations of the Animals and Scenery described. A New 
 Edition. 
 
 In post 8vo, Price 5s., cloth, gilt. 
 
 B ECHSTEIN’S CHAMBER BIRDS; their Natural History and 
 Management. With very numerous Woodcuts of Birds, Cages, &c. 
 
 RICHARDSON’S RBRAL HANDBOOKS. 
 
 Price One Shilling each, with numerous Illustrations. 
 
 D OMESTIC FOWL; their Natural History, Breeding, Rearing, 
 
 and General Management. New edition , revised and enlarged. 
 
 P IGS; their Origin and Varieties, Management with a View to 
 Profit, and Treatment under Disease. Also, Plain Directions relative to 
 the most approved modes of Curing and Preserving their Flesh. New Edition , 
 improved. 
 
 B EES.— The Hive and the Honey Bee ; with plain Directions 
 for obtaining a considerable Annual Income from this branch of Rural 
 Economy. New Edition , revised. 
 
 D OGS; their Origin and Varieties, Directions as to their General 
 Management, and simple Instructions as to their Treatment under 
 Disease. A new Edition , revised and much enlarged. 
 
 H ORSES; their Varieties, Breeding, and Management in Health 
 and Disease. 
 
 P ESTS OF THE FARM; with Instructions for their extirpation: 
 
 being a Manual of Plain Directions for the certain Destruction of every 
 description of Vermin. 
 
 L and drainage, embankment, and irrigation. 
 
 By James Donald, Civil Engineer, Derby. 
 
 OOILS AND MANURES, with Instructions for their Improve- 
 O ment. By John Donaldson, Government Land Drainage Surveyor. 
 /^OWS; and DAIRY HUSBANDRY.—Cattle Breeding and Fat- 
 tening; their Varieties, Management, and General Treatment. By M. M. 
 Milburn, Land Agent. Author of Prize Essays of the Royal Agricultural Society 
 of England, &c. 
 
MRS. LOUDON'S WORKS ON BOTANY AND GARDENING. 
 
 NEW EDITIONS, REVISED AND IMPROVED. 
 
 These Volumes contain beautifully Coloured Drawings of above Seventeen Hun¬ 
 dred of the choicest species of Garden and Greenhouse Plants and Wild 
 Flowers: with Descriptions and full Directions for Cultivation. 
 
 rPHE LADIES’ FLOWER-GARDEN OF ORNAMENTAL AN- 
 
 J- NUALS. Forty-eight coloured Plates, containing upwards of Three Hun¬ 
 dred Figures of the most showy and interesting Annual Flowers. Medium 4to, 
 cloth, £1 15s.; half-bound, morocco, £2 2s. 
 
 rFHE LADIES’ FLOWER-GARDEN OF ORNAMENTAL 
 
 -A- BULBOUS PLANTS. In Fifty-eight coloured Plates, containing above 
 Three Hundred Figures of the most desirable Bulbous Flowers. Medium 4to, 
 cloth £2 2s.; half-bound, morocco, £2 10s. 
 
 HPHE LADIES’ FLOWER-GARDEN OF ORNAMENTAL 
 
 -A PERENNIALS. In Ninety coloured Plates, containing Five Hundred 
 Plates of Hardy Perennial Flowers. Medium 4to, cloth, £3; half-bound, 
 morocco, £3 8s. 
 
 rPHE LADIES’ FLOWER-GARDEN OF ORNAMENTAL 
 
 L GREENHOUSE PLANTS. In Forty-two coloured Plates, and containing 
 about Three Hundred Figures of the most desirable Greenhouse Plants. Medium 
 4to, cloth, £1 11s. 6d.; half-bound, morocco, £2. 
 
 B RITISH WILD FLOWERS. In Sixty Plates, containing Three 
 Hundred and Fifty Species, beautifully coloured. Medium 4to, cloth, 
 £2 2s.; half-bound, morocco, £2 10s. 
 
 DOWER’S GENERAL AND SCHOOL ATLASES. 
 
 The attention of Teachers is especially called to the following Atlases, which will 
 be found, in fulness of detail, correctness, and neatness of execution, to sur¬ 
 pass, while in prices they are much below, any similar publications. The 
 whole of the Maps have been carefully revised and corrected to the present 
 time, by A. Petermann, Esq., F.R.G.S. 
 
 Price £1 Is., half-bound, 
 
 D OWER’S GENERAL ATLAS of MODERN GEOGRAPHY. 
 
 Fifty-three Maps. Compiled from the latest and best authorities. With a 
 copious Consulting Index, with the latitude and longitude. 
 
 *,* A Library Edition, Price 25s., neatly half-bound Russia. 
 
 Price 12s., coloured, half-bound, 
 
 D OWER’S SCHOOL ATLAS of MODERN GEOGRAPHY. 
 
 Containing Forty Maps, and a copious Consulting Index. 
 
 Price 7s. 6d. coloured, half-bound. 
 
 D OWER’S MINOR ATLAS. Containing Twenty-six Maps. 
 
 lected as giving the best general view of the Universe. 
 
 Index. 
 
 Se- 
 
 With an extensive 
 
 Price 5s. coloured; or 4s. plain, half-bound. 
 
 OWER’S SHORT ATLAS. Containing a Series of Maps, cal¬ 
 culated for the use of younger pupils, with a Consulting Index. 
 
 Selected by the National Board of Education for Ireland, and extensively used 
 in the schools established by the Board. 
 
WESTWOOD’S BRITISH INSECTS. 
 
 In demy 4to, cloth, lettered, Price £1 11s. 6d.; haL-hound, morocco, £2. 
 
 B ritish butterflies and their transforma¬ 
 tions. Exhibited in a Series of Forty-two Co.o'ui ed Plates. By H. N. 
 Humphreys, Esq.; with Descriptions by J. 0. Westwo.'D, Esq., F.L. S., &c. 
 This work contains upwards of Four Hundred and FTfvy Figures, carefully 
 Coloured from N ature. 
 
 In 2 vols. 4to, cloth, lettered, Price £4 4s.; half-bourn, morocco, £5. 
 
 B ritish moths and their transformations. Ex¬ 
 hibited in a Series of One Hundred and l'wenty-foui Coloured Designs. 
 By H. N. Humphreys, Esq.; with Descriptions by J. 0. Westwood, Esq., F.L.S., 
 &c. Upwards of Two Thousand Three Hundred Figures, of the Natural size, 
 are given in this work, carefully Coloured. 
 
 miscellaneous. 
 
 In imperial folio, Price £3 3s., cloth. 
 
 rPHE ART OF MANUFACTURING AND REFINING SUGAR. 
 
 J- Comprising the Manufacture and the Revivification of Animal Char¬ 
 coal. With an Atlas illustrative of the Machinery and Buildings. Dedicated 
 to His Royal Highness Prince Albert, K. G., &c. By John A. Leon. 
 
 In super royal 8vo, Price 10s. 6d. cloth. 
 
 P ALEY’S (ARCHDEACON) COMPLETE WORKS. This Edi¬ 
 tion contains all the published labours of Paley ; with Illustrative Notes, 
 and a Life and Portrait of the Author. 
 
 In small 4to, Price 8s. 6d. cloth, gilt. 
 
 pL ARK’S DRAWING & PAINTING IN WATER-COLOURS; 
 
 v-7 containing examples of Drawing in Landscape, Flower Painting, Miniature 
 and Historical Painting, in various stages of finish, with directions for imitating 
 them. - 
 
 SANCTIONED BY THE MARINE DEPARTMENT OF THE BOARD OF TRADE. 
 
 In fcap. 8vo, Price 3s. 6d., cloth lettered. 
 
 'T'HE SCALE OF MEDICINES with which Merchant Vessels are 
 
 L to be furnished, by command of the Privy Council for Trade, with Obser¬ 
 vations on the means of preserving the Health and increasing the comforts of 
 Merchant Seamen: also, Directions for the use of the Medicines, and for the 
 Treatment of various Accidents and Diseases. By Spencer Wells, F.R.C.S., 
 Surgeon, Royal Navy. 
 
 In post 8vo, Price 6s. 6d. cloth, gilt. 
 
 W ALKER’S MANLY EXERCISES. Instructions in Riding, 
 
 Him ting, Shooting, Walking, Running, Leaping, Vaulting, Swimming, 
 Rowing, Sailing, and Driving. Edited and enlarged by Craven. With nume¬ 
 rous Illustrations. 
 
 In fcap. 8vo, Price 5s. cloth. 
 
 E MERSON’S ESSAYS, LECTURES, AND ORATIONS ; includ¬ 
 ing the First and Second Series of Essays, Nature, Representative Men, 
 and Orations and Addresses; with Introductory Essay on Emerson and his 
 Writings. 
 
 In fcap. 8vo, Price 3s. 6d. cloth. 
 
 CAFETY IN PERIL. By the Authoress of “My Flowers,” in 
 
 the Cottage Gardener. 
 

 * 
 
 I _. ; * _ ■ 
 
 specific 95 - 5 
 
 J S'795 
 
 -/ 
 
 6 t n» CLNItK UdRAR'