ON THE ART OF PRINTING FROM STONE, 31C( 



XV. 



On the Art of Printing from Stone. Communicated by a 

 Correspondent. 



JLN your last number you inserted from the " Annales de Art of pr'ntijjg 

 Chimie" an account of the method of printing from stone. ii tt i e known 

 It is certainly an ingenious, and mpst probably a useful art; here. ' 

 though I believe very little known in England. There are 

 one or two circumstances respecting it, with which some of 

 your readers may like to be acquainted, that Mr. de Serres 

 has passed by. A close texture, as he observes, is advan- 

 tageous, and indeed necessary to its giving a clean impres- 

 sion. 



I made the ink according to his direction, (which was Ink for it. 

 considered so great a secret) but prefer to it coloured tur- 

 pentine, copal, or lac varnish. Muriatic acid is cheaper Muriatic acid 

 than nitric acid, and has the advantage of not acting upon jj[t r £ ral> et ° 

 the resin or wax, which forms the base of the varnish used. 



After purchasing some pieces of marble, I was much Choice of the 

 vexed to find that both the muriatic and nitric acid left sto " e * 

 some of the veins untouched, and only partially dissolved 

 others; this must be attended to in selecting the blocks. 

 I find some pieces of the limestone from Clifton near Bris- 

 tol take a tolerable polish, and dissolve readily. 



But the easiest and cheapest way for those who wish to Rest method 

 fcave a card, ciphers, &c, is Chauvron's on stone or even on c °e S Sma * am ~ 

 lead. A little piece may be executed in a quarter of an 

 hour; and if wetting is not sufficient to prevent the ink 

 from adhering to the block, it will bear sponging, and yet 

 leave enough of the ink upon the figures. 



The insertion of these hints in your valuable Journal 

 will oblige your constant reader. 



G. O. 

 £ ■'■ , — . _^ ! - 



SCIENTIFIC NEWS. 



Werner ian Natural History Society. 



J\T a meeting of this Society, on the 19th of May last, Rareanimals 

 |he Rev. John Fleming, of Bressay, read an account of fa Shelland - 



several 



