a lively girl as she found her grandmother, mother, and sister all
hard at the plaques. It is true, this pungent liquid is necessary, and
the china after being painted has to be baked--two very unpleasant
accompaniments. But let us see how it is done.
One needs, first, a porcelain palette; a glass slab about eight inches
square; several small and medium-sized camel’s-hair brushes; several
blenders, large and small; a quart-bottle of spirits of turpentine; a
quart-bottle of alcohol; a small bottle of oil of turpentine; one of
oil of lavender; one of copaiba; a steel palette-knife, also one of
horn or ivory; a rest for the hand while painting, made of a strip of
wood about an inch and a half wide and twelve inches long, supported
at each end by a foot an inch and a half in height. A flat ruler or
thin strip of wood may be used for plates, or any flat piece having a
raised edge, and may be found more convenient than the cumbrous rests.
A fine needle, set in a handle, for removing particles of dust which
may settle in the painting, and a small glass muller, are required.
The china used for decoration must be of the finest quality, and free
from spots. The hard porcelain of French manufacture is the best for
this purpose. The mineral paints bought in tubes (those of Lacroix, of
Paris, being the best) are the colors which stand fire. Brushes, as for
water-color painting, are used. Small camel’s-hair brushes with square
ends may be had, which will do for blending when necessary in fine work.
In tinted surfaces and borders large blenders are necessary. The
brushes used by gilders, and called “trade-gilders’ brushes,” make good
blenders; No. 9 is a very useful size. In placing the color on these
surfaces, a broad, flat camel’s-hair brush, rather more than an inch in
width, should be used. In narrow bands and lines, brushes of suitable
size with very long hair and square ends are employed.
The colors most in use are: dark carmine, flesh-red, capucine-red, dark
red, brown, iron-violet. In _purples_--deep purple, dark golden violet.
_Blues_--sky-blue, dark ultramarine, deep blue. _Greens_--grass-green,
brown green, apple-green. _Yellows_--mixing yellow, ivory-yellow,
jonquil-yellow, orange-yellow. _Browns_--dark brown, yellow brown.
_Black_--ivory-black. Permanent white; pearl-gray; black gray.
Now, in commencing to paint a design on china, the first thing to be
done is to sketch the outline. The best way to do this is to prepare
the china by rubbing the surface with spirits of turpentine, and,
after having left it a few minutes to dry, draw the design upon it
very lightly with a hard lead-pencil. Alcohol may be used for the
same purpose, and has the advantage that it is not so liable to catch
the dust. The surface, however, does not receive the marks of the
lead-pencil so well as when it is prepared with turpentine.
Lithographic crayon may be used, and without any preparation; but the
outline is not so delicate as that drawn with the lead-pencil.
If the subject is a difficult one, as, for instance, a design
containing several figures, time may be saved, and liability to error
avoided, by tracing the design, which insures the correct relative
position of the figures, and tends to produce the object desired--a
correct copy of the original. It is better, however, to sketch simpler
subjects direct on the china. It is commonly supposed that a tracing
is of great assistance to any one unskilled in drawing; but if one
is unable to draw a correct outline, it is hardly possible that the
painting will be good. It is so very easy to lose the outline in
working that, after all, a tracing is but a slight indication, which
has for its principal use the placing of the design in exactly the
right position on the plate or other object to be decorated.
There are various ways of tracing, the simplest and best of which is
the following: Lay a piece of transparent paper over the design to be
copied, and trace the outlines very carefully with a hard lead-pencil.
Then turn the tracing-paper over on any white surface, and go over all
the lines on the reverse side with a soft pencil. You can now lay the
tracing right side up on the china, which has been previously prepared
for the lead-pencil with turpentine, and having placed it in exactly
the right position, secure it by means of bits of modeling-wax or
gummed paper at the corners, and pass over the lines with a hard point,
or rub the entire surface with a rounded instrument; the handle of the
palette-knife may be used for this purpose. This will transfer the
pencil drawing to the surface of the china.
The more delicate the outline the better, provided it is more plainly
visible, as a heavy, dark, or colored outline sullies the colors
used upon it, and causes much annoyance in working. Although it may
disappear in the firing, it is better to avoid it. Faulty lines in the
tracing may be rectified by the use of a sharpened stick of soft wood
moistened with turpentine.
If tube-colors are used, and found difficult to lay, a drop of oil
of turpentine may be added to the turpentine. Care should be taken,
however, to avoid too much oil, as it renders the colors liable to
blister in the fire. The use of clove-oil as a medium is advised by
some. The color can, perhaps, be more easily laid with it than with
spirits of turpentine. It does not dry so quickly, however, and, unless
recourse is had to the process of drying the work with the aid of an
alcohol lamp, its use involves tedious waiting. It is better to use
turpentine and finish the work at one sitting. The drying of colors
is affected by the state of the atmosphere. If, during the progress
of the painting, it is found to be difficult to work over the colors
first laid--which are indeed very liable to come up--the piece of china
may be placed in a moderately warm oven to dry before proceeding. On
being taken out of the oven, the colors will be found to have lost
their gloss, if perfectly dry, and, perhaps, will have changed their
hue. No alarm need be felt at this, as they will return to their former
brilliancy when fired. But here we come to a great trouble.
The chance of a piece “firing” well is one of the great trials of the
china painter, and is beyond her control; but this is always counted
in. It is best to send the piece to a pottery to be burned. A cup
containing turpentine should stand near the working table to wash the
brushes; and after using a color containing iron, the brush should be
carefully washed before it is charged with one which does not contain
iron, or if white is to be used. The brushes ought not to be too small,
and the colors should, as far as possible, be laid in broad washes, and
decided touches placed lightly and quickly, and not overworked. The use
of the blender may be resorted to if necessary, especially in laying
the first washes; although it is better to avoid using it afterward, if
possible.
The same rules may be applied to china painting as to water-colors,
to which it bears a strong resemblance. The greatest art consists in
placing each touch where it should go, and leaving it; not spoiling it
by uncertainty, or degrading the tint by overwork. In fine work, lining
and stippling are necessary in finishing, but should not be carried
to excess or made too apparent. These latter processes are, perhaps,
more indispensable in preparing work for a single firing, as it is very
difficult to lay repeated washes over one another; the under-tint comes
up so readily, especially when it is not thoroughly dry. The same place
must never be passed over by the brush twice in immediate succession,
as the under-tint will certainly come up, and the blot caused in the
painting will be difficult to rectify. It is of no use to attempt it
while it is wet. Work on some other part, and then go over it, or first
dry it in the oven.
Some of the tube-colors may require to be rubbed down after being
taken from the tubes. This will be especially necessary in the case
of the carmines and the whites. A horn or ivory palette-knife should
be used with these colors, as well as with the blues, and all colors
containing no iron. Mixtures of colors on the palette may be rubbed
down occasionally, or mixed with the brush before using, to prevent
them from separating themselves into their component parts.
Too much turpentine should not be taken into the brush when it is to be
charged with color. Dip it into the turpentine, and remove the surplus
moisture by drawing the brush over the edge of the vessel containing
it before taking up the color from the palette. The tint may be tried
first on the edge of the plate. Surplus color or moisture may be
removed by touching the brush upon a muslin rag, which should always be
at hand for the purpose of wiping the brushes.
After using, the brushes should be washed in alcohol. The bottle
containing it should be kept tightly corked, as it evaporates very
quickly when exposed to the air. Care must be taken that no drops of
the alcohol drop upon the painting, as it will immediately remove the
colors from the surface. When the large brushes are cleaned after
being washed in the alcohol, the hairs should be spread apart, and the
fingers passed lightly over them until they are dry; otherwise the
hairs may stick together in drying, and the brush be rendered unfit for
use. Washing in alcohol will prevent the turpentine used in painting
from injuring the brushes, as it would if allowed to remain in them.
The tube-colors should be preserved from heat as far as possible.
We have taken these rules, partly from personal experience, partly
from the best manuals, and the china painter can _begin_ on them. But
a few lessons from a master are very valuable, and the best of all
teachers--patience--will help the young and inexperienced better than
any written directions.
We would like to say a few words more on the all-important subject of
firing. “The Amateur’s Miniature Kiln,” now sold by the Decorative Art
Society, and by the patentee, Miss N. M. Ford, Port Richmond, New York,
enables the amateur to fire small articles of decorated china with
perfect success. If near a large city, it is better to send the plaques
to a large establishment where they are in the habit of baking them.
The amateur has to make up her mind to a great many failures at
first, but after the accomplishment is somewhat conquered, it is an
inexpensive and delightful addition to Home Amusements.
No one should, however, attempt to paint upon china who does not know
first how to draw. The hand should be skillful on paper before it
touches the flat brush; for the outlines, while seemingly coarse, must
be very expressive, and very certain.
XVII.
ARCHERY.
Fashion has again brought round as one of the Home Amusements this
pretty and romantic pastime, which has filled the early ballads with
many a picturesque figure. Now on many a lawn may be seen the target
and the group in Lincoln green. Indeed, it looks as if Archery were to
prove a very formidable rival to Lawn Tennis.
The requirements of Archery are these: First, a bow; secondly, arrows;
thirdly, a quiver, pouch, and belt; fourthly, a grease-pot, an
arm-guard or brace, a shooting glove, a target, and a scoring card.
The bow is the most important article in archery, and also the most
expensive. It is usually from five to six feet in length, made of a
single piece of yew, or of lance-wood and hickory glued together back
to back. The former is best for gentlemen, the latter for ladies, as
it is better adapted for the short, sharp pull of the feminine arm.
The wood is gradually tapered, and at each end is a tip of horn, the
one from the upper end being longer than the other or lower one. The
strength of bows is marked in pounds, varying from twenty-five to
thirty pounds. Ladies’ bows are from twenty-five to forty pounds in
strength, and those of gentlemen from fifty to eighty pounds. One side
of the bow is flat, called its “back”; the other is rounded, called
the “belly.” Nearly in the middle, where the hand should take hold, it
is lapped round with velvet, and that part is called the “handle.” In
each of the tips of horns is a notch for the string, called the “nock.”
Bow-strings are made of hemp or flax--the former being the better
material; for though at first they stretch more, yet they wear longer
and stand a harder pull, as well as being more elastic in the shooting.
In applying a fresh string to a bow, be careful in opening it not to
break the composition that is on it. Cut the tie, take hold of the eye,
which will be found ready worked at one end, let the other part hang
down, and pass the eye over the upper end of the bow. If for a lady, it
may be held from two to two and a half inches below the nock; if for a
gentleman, half an inch lower, varying it according to the length and
strength of the bow. Then run your hand along the side of the bow and
string to the bottom nock. Turn it round that, and fix it by the noose,
called the “timber noose,” taking care not to untwist the string in
making it. This noose is simply a turn-back and twist without a knot.
When strung, a lady’s bow will have the string about five inches from
the belly, and a gentleman’s about half an inch more. The part opposite
the handle is bound round with waxed silk, in order to prevent its
being frayed by the arrow. As soon as a string becomes too soft and
the fibers too straight, rub it with beeswax, and give it a few turns
in the proper direction, so as to shorten it, and twist its strands a
little tighter. A spare string should always be provided by the shooter.
The arrows are differently shaped by various makers, some being of
uniform thickness throughout, while others are protuberant in the
middle; some, again, are larger at the point than at the feather-end.
They are generally made of white deal, with points of iron or brass
riveted on; but generally having a piece of heavy wood spliced on to
the deal between it and the point, by which their flight is improved.
At the other end a piece of horn is inserted in which is a notch for
the string. They are armed with three feathers, glued on, one of which
is of a different color from the others, and is intended to mark the
proper position of the arrow when placed on the string, this one always
pointing from the bow. These feathers properly applied give a rotary
motion to the arrow which causes its flight to be straight. They are
generally from the wing of the turkey or the goose. The length and
weight of the arrows vary, the latter (in England) being marked in
sterling silver coin, and stamped on the arrow in plain figures. It is
usual to paint a crest or a monogram or distinguishing rings on the
arrow just below the feathers, by which they may be known in shooting
at the target.
The quiver is merely a tin case painted green, intended for the
security of the arrows when not in use. The pouch and belt are worn
round the waist, the latter containing those arrows which are actually
being shot. A pot to hold grease for touching the glove and string,
and a tassel to wipe the arrows, are hung at the belt. The grease is
composed of beef-suet and wax melted together. The arm is protected
from the blow of the string by the brace, a broad guard of strong
leather buckled on by two straps. A shooting glove, also of thin tubes
of leather, is attached to the wrist by three flat pieces ending in a
circular strap buckled round it. This glove prevents that soreness of
the fingers which soon comes on after using the bow without it.
The target consists of a circular mat of straw, covered with canvas
painted in a series of circles. It is usually from three feet six
inches to four feet in diameter. The middle is about six or eight
inches in diameter, gilt, and called the “gold”; the next is called
the “red,” after which comes the “inner white,” then the “black,” and
finally the “outer white.” These targets are mounted on triangular
stands at distances apart of from fifty to a hundred yards--sixty being
the usual shooting distance.
A scoring card is provided with columns for each color, which are
marked with a pin. The usual score for a gold hit or the bull’s-eye is
9; the red, 7; inner white, 6; black, 3; and outer white, 1.
To bend the bow properly the bow should be taken by the handle in the
right hand. Place one end on the ground, resting in the hollow of the
right foot, keeping the flat side of the bow, called the back, toward
your person. The left foot should be advanced a little, and the right
placed so that the bow can not slip sideways. Place the heel of the
left hand upon the upper limb of the bow, below the eye of the string.
Now, while the fingers and thumb of the left hand slide this eye toward
the notch in the horn, and the heel pushes the limb away from the body,
the right hand pulls the handle toward the person, and thus resists
the action of the left, by which the bow is bent; and at the same time
the string is slipped into the nock, as the notch is termed. Take care
to keep the three outer fingers free from the string, for if the bow
should slip from the hand, and the string catch them, they will be
severely pinched. If shooting in frosty weather, warm the bow before
the fire, or by friction with a woolen cloth. If the bow has been lying
by for a long time, it should be well rubbed with boiled linseed-oil
before using it.
To unstring the bow, hold it as in stringing, then press down the upper
limb exactly as before, and as if you wished to place the eye of the
string in a higher notch. This will loosen the string and liberate the
eye, when it must be lifted out of the nock by the forefinger, and
suffered to slip down the limb.
Before using the bow, hold it in a perpendicular direction with the
string toward you, and see if the line of the string cuts the middle of
the bow. If not, shift the eye and noose of the string to either side,
so as to make the two lines coincide. This precaution prevents a very
common cause of defective shooting, which is the result of an uneven
string throwing the arrow on one side. After using it, unstring it; and
at a large shooting party, unloose your bow after every round. Some
bows get bent into very unmanageable shapes.
The general management of the bow should be on the principle that
damp injures it, and that any loose floating ends interfere with
its shooting. It should, therefore, be kept well varnished, and in
a waterproof case, and it should be carefully dried after shooting
in damp weather. If there are any ends hanging from the string, cut
them off close, and see that the whipping in the middle of the string
is close and well fitting. The case should be hung up against a dry
internal wall, not too near the fire. In selecting your bow, be careful
that it is not too strong for your power, and that you can draw the
arrow to its head without any trembling of the hand. If this can not be
done after a little practice, the bow should be changed for a weaker
one. For no arrow will go true if it is discharged by a trembling hand.
If an arrow has been shot into the target or the ground, be particularly
careful to withdraw it by laying hold close to its head, and by
twisting it round as it is withdrawn in the direction of its axis.
Without this precaution it may be easily bent or broken.
In shooting at the target, the first thing is to nock the arrow; that
is, to place it properly on the string. In order to effect this; take
the bow in the left hand, with the string toward you, the upper limb
being toward the right. Hold it horizontally while you take the arrow
by the middle, pass it on the under side of the string and the upper
side of the bow, till the head reaches two or three inches past the
left hand. Hold it there with the forefinger or thumb while you remove
the right hand down to the nock. Turn the arrow till the cock-feather
comes uppermost, then pass it down the bow, and fix it on the nocking
part of the string. In doing this, all contact with the feathers should
be avoided, unless they are rubbed out of place, when they may be
smoothed down by passing them through the hand.
The body should be at right angles with the target, but the face must
be turned over the left shoulder, so as to be opposed to it. The feet
are to be flat on the ground, with the heels a little apart, the left
foot turned toward the mark. The head and chest inclined a little
forward, so as to present a full bust, but not bent at all below the
waist.
Draw the arrow to the full length of the arm till the hand touches the
shoulder, then take aim. The loosing should be quick, and the string
must leave the fingers smartly and steadily. The bow-hand must be as
firm as a vice--no trembling allowed.
The rules of an Archery Club are usually these:
That a “Lady Paramount” be annually elected.
That there be a President, Secretary, and Treasurer.
That all members intending to shoot shall appear in the uniform of the
club. That a fine shall be imposed for non-attendance.
That the Secretary shall send out cards at least a month before each
day of meeting, acquainting the members with place and hour of meeting.
That there shall be four prizes for each meeting--two for each sex; the
first for numbers, the second for hits; and that no person shall be
allowed to have both on the same day. A certain sum of money is voted
to the Lady Paramount for prizes for each meeting.
That in case of a tie for hits, numbers shall decide; and in case of a
tie for numbers, hits shall decide.
That the decision of the Lady Paramount shall be final.
That there shall be a challenge prize of the value of ---- dollars, and
that a commemorative ornament be presented to winners of the challenge
prize.
That the distance for shooting be sixty or one hundred yards, and that
five-feet targets be used.
The dress of the club to be decided by the Lady Paramount.
The expenses of archery are not great--about the same as lawn
tennis--although a great many arrows are lost in the course of the
season. Bows and other paraphernalia last a long time. Sides are chosen
as at lawn tennis, and the game grows on one. The lady archers are apt
to feel a little lame after the first two or three essays, but they
should practice a short time every morning, and always in a loose waist
or jacket. It will be found a very healthy and strengthening pastime.
We must not judge of the merits of ancient bowmen from the practice of
archery in the present day. There are no such distances now assigned
for the marks as we find mentioned in old histories or poetic legends,
nor such precision, even at short lengths, in the direction of the
arrow.
“The stranger he made no mickle ado,
But he bent a right good bow,
And the fattest of all the herd he slew,
Forty good yards him fro;
_‘Well shot, well shot,’ quoth Robin Hood_.”
Few, if any, modern archers in long shooting reach four hundred yards,
or in shooting at a mark exceed eighty or a hundred. But archery has
been since the invention of gunpowder only followed for pastime. It
is decidedly the most graceful game which can be practiced, and the
legends of Sherwood Forest, of Robin Hood, Maid Marian, Little John,
Friar Tuck, and the Abbot carry us into the fragrant heart of the
forest, and bring back memories which are agreeable to all people who
have in them a drop of Saxon blood.
XVIII.
AMUSEMENTS FOR THE MIDDLE-AGED AND THE AGED.
We can not but notice, as people go on in life--when, as Lord Mansfield
said, “The absence of pain is pleasure, just as in youth the absence of
pleasure is pain”--that the quiet corner by the fire, or the seat at
the library-table with the shaded lamp, and a quiet game or two when
reading has fatigued the eyes, becomes almost necessary.
Of all the means of cheating a succession of dull evenings of their
tedium, perhaps that little invention called a “Solitaire” board--which
is simply a board pierced with thirty-seven holes, which are nearly
filled with thirty-six pegs--has proved itself the most eminently
successful. It was invented, it is said, by a French Jesuit, in Canada,
to help him through the long Canadian winter evenings, and it has
proved to be a boon to mankind.
One peg takes another when it can leap over into an empty hole. To get
all off but one peg is nearly impossible, but it can be done.
Then comes “Merelles,” or “Nine Men’s Morris,” which can be played on
a board, or on the ground, but which finds itself reduced even to a
parlor game. This, however, takes two players.