ETCHING}. 427 



tides of dust or dirt of any kind settle upon it, as 

 that would be found very troublesome in etching ; 

 the room, therefore, in which it is laid should be 

 as still as possible, and free from dust* 



The ground being now laid) and suffered to 

 cool, the next operation is to transfer the design to 

 the plate. 



For this purpose a tracing on oiled paper must 

 now be made, from the design to be etched, with 

 pen and ink, having a very small quantity of ox's 

 gall mixed with it, to make the oiled paper take it; 

 also a piece of thin paper, of the same size, must 

 be rubbed over with red chalk, powdered, by 

 means of som.e cotton i Tlien laying the red 

 chalked paper, with its chalked side next the 

 ground, on the plate, put the tracing over it, and 

 fasten them both together, and to the plate, by a 

 little bit of the bordering wax. 



When all this is prepared, take a blunt etching 

 needle, and go gently all over the lines in the 

 tracing ; by which means the chalked paper will 

 be pressed against the ground, and the lines of 

 the tracing will be transferred to it : on taking 

 off the papers, they will be seen distinctly. 



The plate is now prepared for drawing through 

 the lines which have been marked upon the 

 ground. For this, the etching-points or needles 

 are employed, leaning hard or lightly, according 

 to the degree of strength required in the lines. 

 Points of different sizes and forms are also usedj 

 for making lines of different thickness, though 

 commonly this is effected by the biting-in with the 

 aqua fbrtis. 



A margin or border of wax must now be formed 

 all round the plate, to hold the aqua fortis when it 

 is poured on. To do this, the bordering wax 



