Paper and its many Uses.--The Egyptian Papyrus.--India
Paper.--China and its Manufactories.--Materials of which Paper is
made.--Annual Consumption of Material.--The “Water Mark.”--Nature’s
Papers.--Wasps and Hornets.--The common Wasp, and the various
Materials of its Nest.--Utilisation of
Material.--Papier-mâché.--Printing.--Nature-printing.--Method and
Results of the Process.--Use of the Electrotype.--“Facing” the
Copper Plates with hard Metal.--The Coal Mine and its
Nature-printing.--Stippling, its Use and Abuse.--The Line and the
Dot.--Modification of the Dot.--Flower-petals.--The
Pelargonium.--Plaster Castings.--Stereotyping and
Electrotyping.--Modern Method of taking Plaster Casts.--The
Principle of Corrugation.--Flower-pot Covers.--Iron Buildings.--The
Polistes and its Corrugated Dwellings.
ART.
We will now touch lightly on the subject of Art.
In the present day one of the most indispensable accessories to art is
Paper.
It is a curious fact that we have no records as to the time when paper
was first invented. The Egyptian papyrus we do not consider, as it was
not paper in our sense of the word, although we have retained the name.
Paper is a vegetable fibre carefully disintegrated, made into a pulp
with water, and then dried in thin sheets. As is the case with many
arts, China seems to have taken the lead in paper manufacture, and we
are even now indebted to that country for the “India Paper” on which the
finest proofs of engravings are taken. This paper is made from the inner
bark of the bamboo. “Rice Paper,” so called, is not paper at all, but
only a kind of pith cut spirally, and flattened by pressure.
There is scarcely any vegetable fibre of which paper cannot be made, and
various plants have been suggested for this purpose, such as the
stinging-nettle, cabbage-stalks, hop-bines, the waste of sugar-cane,
sawdust, &c. Straw has already been successfully used, and so has
Esparto grass.
Some years ago, when there was a scarcity of material for paper-making,
the well-known Grass-wrack of our shores (_Zostera marina_) was brought
into partial use. I believe, however, that the experiment was not a
successful one. The Chinese make their paper of bamboo, macerating and
pounding it until it is reduced to a pulp, and then shaken into fibres
in a mould.
[Illustration:
NEST OF HORNET. PAPER-MAKING.
NEST OF TREE-WASP. PAPER.]
With us, white paper, such as is used by the writer, printer, or artist,
is made almost exclusively of cotton or linen rags. Upwards of a hundred
and twenty thousand tons weight of rags are annually consumed in this
country for the manufacture of paper. After being bleached, they are
torn and ground into a pulp, which is then handed over to the actual
maker.
The illustration represents paper-making by hand, a process which is now
rarely used, except for special kinds of paper. Omitting technical
details, the mode of paper-making by hand is as follows:--The pulp being
prepared, the workman takes a “mould,” _i.e._ a frame with a bottom of
closely woven wire. Having put into the mould a sufficient quantity of
pulp, he shakes the mould so as to spread the pulp evenly over the
surface. The water runs away between the wires, the sheet of pulp is
transferred to a piece of felt, and when it is dry it becomes paper. If
a sheet of ordinary note-paper be held up to the light, the marks of the
wires are plainly perceptible. The so-called “water-mark” is due to
wires twisted into the requisite shape.
The Chinese workman makes his paper exactly on the same principle, but
the bottom of his mould is made of bulrushes instead of wires.
As for machine-made paper, the process seems absolutely magical. Endless
bands of felt and wire are substituted for the hand frames, and, the
pulp being poured in at one end, the finished paper is poured out at the
other, and self-wound on rollers. Without any exaggeration, paper is now
made by the mile, the only limit to its length being the size of the
rolls.
* * * * *
WHEN I mention Paper-making in the world of Nature, many of my readers
will at once know that I am about to refer to the Wasp tribe.
These insects were paper-makers long before even the Chinese had
invented the art, and, so exactly similar is the mode of action, that
man might well have copied from the insect.
The Wasp gnaws a bundle of vegetable fibres, mostly of wood, sound or
decaying, according to the species. It masticates them until it has
reduced them to a pulp, and then, by means of its jaws, spreads the pulp
into sheets of various shapes and sizes.
With some of the pulp it forms hexagonal cells like those of the bee,
and with some it makes the roof-like covering which defends the cells.
Not only that, but it can make a sort of papier-mâché, which it uses for
the flooring, if we may so call it, of the different strata of cells,
and for the pillars which bind them together.
Like our own paper manufacturers, it is economic of material, will
re-masticate any superabundant paper, and is only too glad if it can get
hold of any paper made by man. I have seen a wasps’ nest which was made
entirely from the empty blue and white cartridges that were thrown away
by soldiers.
Then there is as much difference in the papers made by wasps as in those
made by man. In this country all wasps’ nests are made of very fragile
material, but in South America there are some wasps which make the
external covering of their nests as hard and white as the stiff
cardboard employed by artists.
* * * * *
HAVING now got our paper, we will glance at one or two modes of using it
for Art. Papier-mâché has already been mentioned, and it is worthy of
notice that there are now in existence many decorated ceilings which are
made of this material, on account of its great strength and its
non-liability to fire.
[Illustration: FERNS IN COAL.]
[Illustration: NATURE-PRINTING.]
The first invention which we shall notice is that which is known by the
name of Nature-printing, and which has been so successful in
transferring to paper an exact representation of vegetable foliage.
One simple tolerably efficacious mode of Nature-printing has long been
known. A piece of paper being rubbed with lamp-black and oil, the leaf
was laid upon it and gently rubbed, so as to transfer the lamp-black to
the nervures. It was then laid on a sheet of white paper, and again
rubbed, when an impression of the leaf was left upon the paper.
The present system of Nature-printing is far in advance of this rather
rude method, and amounts to an exact reproduction of the plant, not only
in form and detail, but in colour.
In order to illustrate this beautiful process, I cannot do better than
transfer to these pages the following account of Nature-printing as
given in Ure’s “Dictionary of Arts,” &c. It is an abstract of a lecture
delivered by Mr. H. Bradbury at the Royal Institution.
“Nature-printing is the name given to a technical process for obtaining
printed reproductions of plants and other objects upon paper, in a
manner so truthful, that only a close inspection reveals the fact of
their being copies; and so distinctly sensible even to touch are the
impressions, that it is difficult to persuade those unacquainted with
the manipulation that they are an emanation of the printing-press.
“The distinguishing feature of the process consists, first, in
impressing natural objects--such as plants, mosses, seaweeds, and
feathers--into plates of metal, causing, as it were, the objects to
engrave themselves by pressure; secondly, in being able to take such
casts or copies of the impressed plates as can be printed from at the
ordinary copper-plate press.
“This secures, in the case of a plant, on the one hand, a perfect
representation of its characteristic outline, of some of the other
external marks by which it is known, and even in some measure of its
structure, as in the venation of ferns and the ribs of the leaves of
flowering plants; and, on the other, affords the means of multiplying
copies in a quick and easy manner, at a trifling expense compared with
the result, and to an unlimited extent.
“The great defect of all pictorial representations of botanical figures
has consisted in the inability of art to represent faithfully those
minute peculiarities by which natural objects are often best
distinguished. Nature-printing has therefore come to the aid of this
branch of science in particular, whilst its future development promises
facilities for copying other objects of nature, the reproduction of
which is not within the province of the human hand to execute; and even
if it were possible, it would involve an amount of labour scarcely
commensurate with the results.
“Possessing the advantages of rapid and economic production, the means
of unlimited multiplication, and, above all, unsurpassable resemblance
to the original, nature-printing is calculated to assist much in
facilitating not only the first-sight recognition of many objects in
natural history, but in supplying the detailed evidences of
identification, which must prove of essential value to botanical science
in particular.”
Many plans have been tried with only partial success, but that which is
now in operation produces the most wonderful results. The plants are
laid upon sheets of lead, and then passed through rollers, so as to
leave an impression in the soft metal. The electrotype then comes into
play, exact copies of the impression being taken by it. As the face of
the electrotyped plate is covered with a slight deposit of some hard
metal, usually nickel, a great number of copies can be taken without
damaging the plate.
* * * * *
A WONDERFULLY exact parallel to Nature-printing is seen in almost every
coal bed. In the coal are found impressions of various leaves, mostly
ferns, and so exact are they, that the different species have been
determined and named with as much accuracy as if, instead of mere
impressions, they had been the fern-leaves themselves.
Indeed, if it were needed, it would be perfectly easy to take
electrotype plates from these impressions, and to treat them in exactly
the same manner as those obtained in the way which has already been
described.
STIPPLING.
We now come to another branch of Art, namely, the production of shadow
in an engraving by means of Stippling, i.e. the insertion of dots
instead of lines. At one time the Stipple was in great favour. Then it
was almost wholly abandoned in favour of the line, and now it is much
used in conjunction with the line, especially for the delicate shading
of flesh tints, such as faces, female arms, &c.
In the illustration a little stippling of a cheek is shown, the dots
being purposely exaggerated.
A singularly beautiful modification of the Stipple is now in use. When
the engraver wishes for exceptional softness of shading, he does not
content himself with mere dots, but, with the aid of his
magnifying-glass, converts each dot into a tiny star with three or more
rays. Thus the dots seem to melt into each other, and the requisite
softness is obtained.
A very good example of this star-stipple is seen in the well-known print
called “Coming of Age.” If the face and neck of the girl in the
foreground be examined with a magnifying-glass, the apparent dots will
be seen to be stars, so beautifully arranged that the projecting rays of
one fuse themselves, so to speak, with, those of the surrounding stars,
as is shown in the illustration.
* * * * *
WHETHER the engraver who hit upon this singularly effective plan took it
from Nature, I cannot say, but he well might have done so, had he
examined the petal of a flower through a good microscope. We all know
the peculiar rich softness of a petal, and how our very best floral
artists feel the impossibility of transferring it to paper.
[Illustration: STIPPLING.]
[Illustration: PETAL OF GERANIUM.]
The real reason for this special beauty lies in the star-stippling of
the petal. The whole surface of the petal is covered with multitudinous
projections, which are, in fact, undeveloped hairs. These projections
are wrinkled down the sides, and so, when viewed from above, they
present the curious star-like appearance shown on the right hand of the
illustration.
The drawing is taken from a petal of Pelargonium prepared by myself.
There is yet one point in the petal which the star-stipple has not
touched, and probably cannot touch. I mean the slight projection of the
stipple-hairs, which give an effect of light and shade as well as mere
flat softness.
PLASTER CASTS.
We have already mentioned the electrotype, and may now come to a branch
of art which is much associated with it, namely, the Stereotype.
As many of my readers may know, types are very valuable articles, and
must not be wasted. If, therefore, a book should be thought likely to
have a steady sale, much of its value would be lost if the types were
kept standing, inasmuch as they could not be used for any other work.
In such cases the Stereotype is employed. Omitting minute details, the
process is as follows:--
[Illustration: SHELL-CAST IN CHALK.]
[Illustration: CAST IN PLASTER OF PARIS.]
The type, ready set up, is carefully oiled. Plaster of Paris mixed with
water is then poured into a shallow trough, and the type pressed into
it. In a short time the plaster hardens, and the type is withdrawn. The
plaster mould is then baked, to drive off all moisture, and type metal
is poured into it. Thus a solid mass is procured, instead of a number of
separate pieces, so that there is no danger of disturbance, and the
whole block can be multiplied _ad libitum_ if needed. This process sets
free the types, which can be broken up and used again.
The ordinary method of taking plaster casts is nearly the same as that
which has been described. The object to be cast is oiled, and plaster of
Paris carefully applied to it. When it is “set,” the plaster “mould” is
removed and dried. The process is then reversed, the interior of the
mould being oiled, and plaster poured into it, so as to produce an exact
reproduction of the original.
* * * * *
IN Nature we have almost exactly the same process, although it is
necessarily conducted in a much slower manner.
All who have tried their hand at practical geology must be aware of the
multitudinous casts of perished beings which are found in various
strata. Sometimes the casts are those of vegetables, the original
material having been decomposed, and stony matter taken its place.
Sometimes there are casts of fishes or echini, while shells, and even
insects, are found to have been cast almost as perfectly as could be
done with plaster of Paris at the present day.
As might be anticipated, the chalk deposits are peculiarly rich in these
casts, the fine particles of the chalk taking the place of the plaster
of Paris.
In the illustrations are shown examples of casting in Art and Nature. On
the right hand is a cast of fruit and leaves, which may afterwards be
reproduced in plaster, wax, papier-mâché, or electrotype. On the left is
shown one of the shells so common in the chalk, the upper figure
representing the shell itself, and the lower the mould that has been
formed around it.
CORRUGATED IRON.
We have already seen that the Wasps are paper-makers. We may now see how
some of the Wasps have anticipated a valuable invention of man, namely,
the principle of corrugation, whereby a thin plate gains strength.
[Illustration: NESTS OF POLISTES.]
[Illustration: CORRUGATED IRON.]
Even a sheet of paper gains great strength by corrugation, as is seen in
those paper covers which are so much in use for the decoration, or
rather the concealment, of flower-pots. But the best example that can be
given of this principle is the Corrugated Iron, which has come so much
into use for temporary buildings, such as schools, places of worship,
reading-rooms, &c. It is very light and very strong, and can be used
either for roof or walls with equal success.
* * * * *
BY means of certain wasps belonging to the genus Polistes, Nature
produces corrugated dwellings, which are made of very thin materials,
but which are marvellously strong in proportion to their weight.
The insects belonging to this genus are all exotic, but are spread over
a very large surface of the earth.
So strong are the nests made by some of these species, that they need no
external covering, the corrugated paper supplying at the same time
strength and warmth, the latter element being furnished by the air which
is entangled between the corrugations.
There are many species of Polistes, mostly belonging to Australasia and
tropical America, the latter displaying the greatest variety of form and
structure in the nest.
USEFUL ARTS.