Mountain Home bulletin. (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1888-1889, 1889-05-25
WOOD ENGRAvlNGS.
A Description OF the Process Employed In
the Production of Fine Work.

the Production of Fine Work.
Wood-engravings are made on Turk
ish boxwood, which, on account of its
close and even fiber, answers the pur-
pose better than any other The
blocks are sawed in slabs an inch in
thickness and the top highly polished.
All cutting is done against the grain.
Three tools are employed the graver,
similar to that used on metals; the |
tinter. fine round-pointed instrument
used for drawing delicate lines, and
the routingtool, for cutting away the
whites. The wood-engraver first
sketches upon the block the outline Of
the designs. These lines are then
covered with fake white and the work
OF cutting begins. The block is placed
upon a pedestal, in order to bring it
near the eye OF the artist, and yet
leave his hands free and all parts
which are to appear light in the print
are cut away with the tool. The next
step is the graduation in the darker
| portions. These are produced by
shaving off the higher parts of the
wood, but not sufficiently to leave
them entirely below the surface at
which contact with the paper occurs
/ The deep blocks are left untouched
| When misstroke has been made &
hole Of the requisite size is bored il
the block and u plug OF wood inserted
This is carefully smoothed until it is
| Il mi l. Al
take corrected. OF course. if placed
in the press the soft WOOD
would soon wear out. Here the aiG
of the electrotyper is called in. Tn,
block is placed in a battery and thir
film of metal is deposited by the electric
battery over its surface The print i
taken from this, backed either by tn
original engraving or by type metal
the engraving being taken out an,
molten metal poured into its place
With few exceptions all books ar
illustrated by wood-cuts, and the re
cent wonderful growth in pictoria
advertisements is due to the improve
|, ment in the art of wood-cutting. No
: only are wood-cuts far less eXpensiv
than steel-engravings, but from
purely artistic point OF view they pr,
J. sent many advantages. No design o
metal can compare for sharpness
? ? contrast with well-executed an
: properly printed wood-cut in stron
and sharply defined contrasts, viii
, fine gradations of light and shade al
now possible, which are beyond tl
reach of the worker in steel. Clea
ness of outline the latter still pc
sesses in a superior degree, owing
J the greater hardness of the meta
But since the substitution of the ele
trotype for printing directly from Il
J. block this difference has been great
lessened.
!. The possibility of bringing o
sharply certain portions OF desi.
= after the cut has been made, viii,
y was discovered by the proprietors
~ the Century, has raised the best WOO
cuts almost to the level OF steel e
cravings in respect to sharpness
y outline. This process. technical
v known as ''keying up is very simp
's but exceedingly effective. After t
10 block is put in the press and pre-
u taken the effect is noted, and under su
~ parts as require stronger aecentuati
slips of paper are placed. The lin
can thus be projected upward from
hind without alteration in the cut. a
more delicate alterations made tn
ID it is possible to do by hand. Photo
raphy has also been called to the {
is of the wood engraver. A design
In drawn, photographed. and the nj
g ative reproduced directly on the bio,
rs Where reduction in size is request
Id this plan has entirely superseded
SO drawing. A most important adyi
n tage of wood cuts over steel engravir
er is the rapidity with which they {
90 be printed. After each impression
Up steel plate must be rubbed clean a
up re-inked, a most tedious process,
re the cleansing, to be effective, must
in done with the bare hand, all subs
h; tutes having been found inefficient,
nd wood block, on the other hand, can
1d used in an ordinary press, and can
MI printed from as rapidly rs from typ
ut The art has made many advan'
II during the last few years, but. stran,
mt ly enough. the schools in which it
taught are by no means numero
Of Engravers frequently take a few
ur pills. but the only regular institute
d. for teaching this art established W
er of New York City is the Missouri
I'LL nra wing School Chicapo News.