442 



WOOD-CUTTING. 



Wood-cutting or engraving oh Wood is a pro- 

 cess exactly the reverse to engraving on copper. 

 In the latter, the strokes to be printed are sunk, 

 or cut into the copper* and a rolling-press is used 

 for printing it ; but in engraving on wood, all the 

 wood is cut away, except the lines to be printed, 

 which are left standing up like types, and the 

 mode of printing is the same as that used in letter- 

 press* 



The wood used for this purpose is box-wood, 

 which is planed qiiite smooth* The design is then 

 drawn upon the wood itself with black-lead, and 

 all the wood is cut away with gravers and other 

 proper tools, except the lines that are drawn. Or 

 sometimes the design is drawn upon paper, and 

 pasted upon the wood* which is cut as before; 

 This art is of considerable difficulty, and there are 

 few who practise it. It is, however, useful for 

 books, as the printing of it is cheaper than that 

 of copper-plates^ It ciannot be applied equally 

 well to all the purposes to which copper-plate en- 

 graving is applicable. 



ETCHING ON GLASS. 



Glass resists the action of all the acids, except 

 the fluoric acid. By this, however, it is corroded 

 in the same manner as copper is by aqua fortis ; 

 and plates of glass may be engraved in the same 

 manner as copper. 



There are several methods of performing this. 

 We shall first describe the mode of etching by 



