166 
THE YOUNG SCIENTIST. 
mould will seem as perfect and compact 
as if made of a single piece. 
When such a mould is filled, a much 
thinner cast may be made then with a 
waste mould. A defect belonging to tlie 
piece-mould is that a little seam will 
show upon the cast wherever two pieces 
meet, and requiie cleaning away. A 
mould of this kind may be left for any 
length of tune and filled repeatedly; but 
the seams will grow wider and more un- 
sightly with use. 
Piece-moulding is a delicate and tedious 
operation, and one that demands botli 
skill and patience ; its practice can 
scarcely be recommended to the amateur 
imtil he has had some practice in the 
worlmig of plaster by the simi)ler 
methods. 
Moiddbig from Marble.— For reproduc- 
ing marble statuary in plaster, piece- 
moulding is usually employed, nor is 
there any material from which a piece- 
mould can be more readily taken. In- 
stead of lard or oil, however, white curd 
fioap only must be used on marble. 
Casting from Nature. — Among the appli- 
<^ations of the art of casting, none is more 
generally interesting than this. It is 
within the reach of the inost indolent 
amateur, and will well repay him for be- 
stowing a few odd hours upon it. To 
model a piece of good ornament, or still 
more, faithfully to portray the form or 
features of a friend, demands study and 
aptitude ; but by means of casting, re- 
sults somewhat similar may be borrowed 
direct from nature by any one. Let us 
begin with the human figure. 
Though of course inferior in those qual- 
ities to the face, the human hand is full 
of character and expression. It is easy to 
recognize the hand of one with whom we 
are familiar. A cast of the hand is a 
pleasant memento, and few things can be 
easier tlum to make sucli a cast. 
The sleeve of the person to be operated 
on shouM b ^ rolled or twisted at the 
point whei-e the cast is intended to be 
terminated. A little oil should be rubbed 
over the skin. As a cast showing one 
side of the hand will generally be all that 
is reqnii-ed, the mouM can be made in a 
single i»iece. A soft \ illow should be pro- 
vided, a towel spread over it, and on that 
an old newspaper. With a little arrange- 
ment the pillow can be so itiade to accom- 
modate itself to the form of the hand, 
' and will so rise it as to leave no openings 
beneath ; for if openings are left, the 
plaster will run into them, and there will 
I then be a difficulty in getting the mould 
I away. The mould can then be made in 
the usual manner. The hand must, of 
course, be kept perfecthj still till the plas- 
ter has set, or the work will be spoiled ; 
I after it has set, it will be still of necessity 
j till the mould has been removed. When 
the mould is finished the hand can be 
lifted from the pillow; the paper will pre- 
vent the plaster from sticking to the 
towel. Any little tongues of plaster which 
may have forced their way under the fin- 
gers can be cut away with the scrai^er, 
and the hand will be released without dif- 
ficulty. When all is finished, and the 
mould clipi)ed away, the operator can 
scarcely fail to be pleased with the re- 
sults of his labors. Every fold of skin, 
and line, and marking, will be seen repro- 
duced with the most microscopic flielity. 
Both sides may be moulded, if desired, 
and the hand reproduced in the round in- 
' stead of in relief, by making a second 
j half to the mould, according to the 
! methods already described, 
j Not so easy is it to mould the face, or 
" mask," as a cast of the face is called, 
though this, wdien taken, is a thing of far 
higher value, for in no other way is so 
faithful a copy of the features obtained. 
The person whose face is to be operated 
upon should lie on his back, or sit with 
his head thrown backwards on a cushion. 
Towels should be placed over the hair 
and round the throat, to prevent the plas- 
ter running where it is not wanted. What- 
ever hair will necessarily come in contact 
with the plaster, as round the forehead, 
the eyebrows, moustache, beard, and 
whiskers, must be well plastered down 
with soap. Casting a mail mask is a mat- 
ter of far greater difficulty in these 
days than it was in those of our fathers 
and grandfathers, wdien men went clean 
shaven. The hair and eyebrows are easily 
disposed of, but the beard and moustache 
are less tractable; and the novice is 
