a4:S Memoir on a Method ofHoufe Painting; 



. My paint fmellecT neither of fize nor of oil. It is a mifcrable watery compofition, fai^ 

 the painter. He feemed to do me a favour in eondefcending to ufe it. I had taken care, 

 not to (hew him the experience of the day before. He began with the cieling ; I prefented. 

 him with another pot of yellow colour for the floor. While the floor was painting the 

 cieling became dry, and gave him an opportunity of judging of the folidity of this kind of 

 painting. He immediately faw and admitted its fuperiority over the method in diftemper ;. 

 a fingle coat, or even feveral of which will not (land the trial of being rubbed with a coarfc. 

 woolen cloth, without coming off. He was ftruck with aftonifhment, made his apology^ 

 and concluded by alking for my fecret, which I immediately gave. him», and which he has. 

 fince turned to good account. 



At the prefent moment I am about to paint it again, or rather I am defirous of making 

 another trial to fix the procefs of this method, more efpecially that of fubftituting it in the 

 place of oil paintings 

 ■ iiCt us now proceed to the method itfelf .- 



Take of flcimmed milk a pint, which makes two pints of Paris, or nearly two quarts. 

 Englifli; fre(h flaked lime, fix. ounces, (about 6^ oz. avoirdupois) ; oil of caraways, or lin- 

 feed, or nut, four ounces; Spanifli white, (whiting) three pounds : put the lime into a' 

 flrone ware veflel, and pour upon it a fuIHcient quantity of milk to make a mixture refem* 

 bling thin cream; then add the oil a little at a time, tlirring it with a fmall fpatula; the 

 remainder of the milk is then to be added, and laftly, the Spanifh white. Skimmed milk in 

 fummer is often clotted, but this is a circumftance of no confequence to our objeft, be- 

 caufe the contaft with the lime foon reftores its fluidity. But it mufl on no account be 

 four, becaufe in that cafe it would form with the lime a kind of calcareous acetite,,capabl3 

 of attra£ting moifture. 



The lime is flaked by dipping it in water, out of which it is to be immediately takerti 

 and left to fall in pieces in the air. 



The choice of either of tliefe oils is indifl'erent ; neverthelefs for white paint the oil 

 lof caraways is to be preferred, becaufe colourlefs. The commoneft oils maybe ufed for 

 paitlting with the ocres. 



The oil when mixed in with the milk and lime difappears, and is totally diUblved by the 

 lime, with which it forms a calcareous fope. 



The Spanifh white is to be crumbled, or greatly fpread on the furface of the fliiid, which i 

 it gradually imbibes, and at laft finks ; at this period it mud be well flirred in. This paint 

 may be coloured like diftemper (or fize colour) with levigated charcoal, yellow ochre, &c. 

 And it is ufed in the fame manner : 



The quantity here prefcribed is fufficient' for the- firft coat of fix toife% or a/fquare- 

 yards Englilh. 



- The price of this quantify amounts to nine folsj wKkh- redttccs the price of the fqaare 

 tolfe to one fol, fix deniers, prime coft«. 



