State of the Useful Arts. 265 



highly conducive to the intellectual improvement of the work- 

 men. This opinion is fully borne out by a specific examination 

 of the processes. 



Let us lake up the problem " to construct a turning lathe," 

 and follow its general solutions, by hand and by machine. 



The shear or bed of the lathe has first to be formed. By 

 hand, — we must line it as well as we can, and then carefully file 

 to these lines. At first no difficulties present themselves, and 

 the coarsciiles are used freely ; but when the finishing files are 

 in use the difficulties crowd upon the workman, and the more 

 expert he is, the more accurate his ideas of what is needed, he 

 sees the more clearly the utter impossibility of ever making, in 

 this way, satisfactory work. He in fact has recourse to every 

 means of avoiding dependence on the hand and eye, and hence 

 the very objectionable form of shear, with a broad flat face, has 

 come to be preferred, because that face can be ground upon a 

 lap, and then affords a more satisfactory guide in the filing of 

 the edges. To attain eminence in this kind of work, the artist 

 must devote all his attention to the balance and motion of his 

 hand, and must learn to suit it to the curvature of his file. The 

 direct fruits of this attention are indeed in themselves good ; but 

 the collateral results are not always so. On the one hand, see- 

 ing the utter impossibility of removing every defect, the work- 

 man is apt to say it is well enough, and thus to content himself 

 with imperfect execution. That mental satisfaction which arises 

 from the thorough finish of a piece of work is lost, and the 

 standard of excellence is lowered. On the other hand, if, by 

 long and assiduous attention, the workman excel in the difficult 

 art of flat-filing, he exults in the attainment of mere physical 

 prowess, and the sequence is too often extravagance and penury: 

 it is for mental acquisition peculiarly to gratify without over 

 elating the vanity. If ever the idea of filing a body round has 

 been entertained, it has long since been given up in favour of 

 turning; it is time, then, that flat-filing should give place to the 

 planing engine. 



('ontrast this tedious, inexact and disheartening process with 

 the operation of the engine. The best form of the guides can 

 be assumed without a consideration of the difficulty of reaching 

 the parts ; and, if the engine be carefully arranged, there is no 



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