ART OF WRITING IN THE DARK. 55 



My method con fi ft 8 in fuppofing the thirteen places of each 

 compartment to be numbered, as is done in the annexed figure 

 {fig. 2d.) Now if, in fpeUing a word, the place of the former 

 of two adjacent letters be of a lefs denomination than that of 

 the latter, they may both be put in the fame fquare ; in like 

 manner if the fecond do not exceed the third in value, this laft 

 may alfo be inferted with the other two; and the fame rule 

 will obtain with the fourth, &c. Letters of the fame deno- 

 mination, as o, r, &c. are to be placed in feparate fquares; 

 and every capital muft have a compartment to itfelf; This way 

 of writing obferves no proportion betwixt the length of a word 

 and thefpace occupied by it: the monofyllable (and) fills three 

 Iquares; which is the number taken up by the trjfy liable (in- 

 fpeclion) See Fig. ift. 



The elementary procefles of the art being now explained, 

 we come in the next place to the defcription of the inftruments 

 and their ufes. 



Tiie writing-table is an oblong board, having two parallel The writing 

 brafs plates paffing from bottom to top, and containing a fpace 

 between them, jull fufficient to receive a Iheet of paper : they 

 are an inch in breadth, and | of an inch in thicknefs, being 

 fixed with their flat fides to the table. A row of fliort pins is 

 placed along the middle of either plate: each pin in one row 

 is oppofite to one in the other, and the diftance of two adja^" 

 cent pins in either plate, is exadly equal to the breadth of the 

 writing frame. This inftrument is an oblong piece of brafs. The writing 

 a quarter of an inch thick : it has a bevil at each end, which ^""^^^ 

 parts pafs over the fide plates of the table, and thereby fuffer 

 the intermediate parts of the frame to reft upon the paper. The 

 annexed figure (1ft) fhews the ftruclure of the perforated part 

 and the fize of the fquares. 



The procefs of ftaraping the paper confifts m covering the Operation of 

 underfide of this plate with printer's ink; a fmall hole being P^epadns the 

 made in either bevil for the reception of two oppofite pins in^*^^*^* 

 tbe fide plates ; the operation commences by placing the frame 

 on the higheft pair, it is afterwards fucceflively removed to 

 each inferior pair until the whole page is ftamped and prepared 

 for the pen. 



This inftrument is a fquare brafs rod, four inches long : The pen. 

 each fide of the fquare being nearly half as long, as a fide 



of - 



