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culty that attends its execution, we cannot but confess, that on allthese accounts it merits a distinguished rank among the polite arts.By this art the cabinets of the curious are adorned with the por-traits of the greatest men of all ages and nations; and their memo-ries, their most remarkable and most glorious actions, are trans-mitted to the latest posterity. By this art also, the paintings ofthe greatest masters are multiplied to a boundless number; and;the lovers of the polite arts, however widely diffused, are enabled ito enjoy those beauties, from which their distant situations wouldotherwise have for ever debarred them. Persons of moderate lortunes are hereby enabled to become possessed of all the spirit, andall the poetry, contained in those miracles of art, which seemed tohave been reserved for the temples of Italy , or the cabinets ofprinces. When we reflect, that the engraver, beside the beautiesof poetic composition, and the artful ordinance of design, is >o ex-press, merely by the means of light and shade, all the various tintsof colours and clair-ohscure; to give a relief to each tigure, and atruth to each object; that he is now to paint a sky serene andbright, and then loaded with dark clouds; now the pure tranquilstream, and then the foaming, raging sea; that here lie is to ex-press the character of the man, strongly marked in his counte-nance, and there the minutest ornament of his dress; in a word,that he is to represent all, even the most difficult objects in nature;we cannot sufficiently admire the vast improvements in this art,and that degree of perfection to which it is at this day arrived.There are several methods of engraving on copper, viz. 1. Instrokes cut through a thin w ax, laid upon the copper, with a point,and these strokes bitten or corroded into the copper with aqua-fortis. See Etching. 2. In strokes with the graver alone, un-assisted by aquafortis. lii this instance, the design is-traced with asharp tool, called a dry point, upon the plate; and the strokes arecut or ploughed upon the copper, with an instrument distinguishedby the name of a graver. 3. In strokes iirst etched, and after-wards finished with the graver: by this expedient the two formermethods are united. 4. In dots without strokes, which arc exe-cuted with the point upon the wax or ground, bittui in w ith theaquafortis, and afterwards harmonized with the graver, by whichinstrument small dots are made; or with the graver alone, as inthe tle-li and liner parts, unassisted with the point. 5. In dots firstetched and afterwards harmonized with the dry point, performedby a little hammer, called opus mallei, or the work of the ham•iner, as practised by Lutma and others. 6. in Mezzotimo. 7.In Aquatinla. See these articles. The principal instrumentsused in engraving with the tool are, gravers, scrapers, a burnisher,an oil-stone, and a cushion for bearing, the plates. Gravers arc-made square, for cutting broad and deep, and lozenge tor moredelicate and fine strokes and batches. La Bosse recommends, asthe most generally useful, such as are of a form betwixt the squareand lozenge : and he advises, that they should be of a good length,small towards the point, but stronger upwards. The burnisher isused to a- sist in the engraving on some occasions, a^well as to po-lish the plates. It is seven inches long, and made of line steel;well polished. The burnisher is formed at one end, and a scraperon the other, each about an inch and a half long from tiie point:betwixt them, about four inches of the instrument is made round,and serves as a handle. The principal application of it in engrav-ing, besides its use in polishing the plates, is to take out anyscratches, or accidental defneings, that ma\ happen to the platesduring the engraving; or to lessen (lie effect of any parts that may-be too strongly marked in the work, and require to be takendown. A cushion, as it is called, is generally used for supportingthe plate in such a manner, that it may be turned every way withease. It is a bag of leather tilled with sand, which should be of thesize that will best suit the plates it is intended to bear. The dry-point. or needle, which has been of late much used in engraving, is■a tool like an etching point, which being draw n hard on the copper,cuts a stroke, and raises a burr; the burr is scraped off, and there re-mains a stroke more soil and delicate than can he produced in anyother way. The cushion being laid on the table, the plate imutbe put upon it; and the graver being held in the hand in a propermanner, the point must he applied to the plate, and moved in theproper direction for producing the figures of the lines intended:observing, in forming straight lines, to hold the plate steady on thecushion; and where they are to he finer, to press more lightlv,using greater force where they are to be broader and deeper. In

making circular, or other curve lines, hold your hand and graversteadily; .ml as you work, turn your plate upon the cushionagainst your graver, otherwise it will be impossible for you tomake any circular or curved line with that neatness and commandot hand you by this means nuy. Alter part of the w ork is en- .graved, it is necessary to scrape it with the scraper or grav er, pass-ed m the most level direction over the plate, to take off the rough-ness formed by the cutting of the graver; but great care must betaken not to incline the edge of the scraper or tool used, in such amanner that it may take the least hold of the copper, as it wouldotherwise produce false strokes, or scratches, in the engraving;and that the engraved work may be rendered more visible, it mayafterwards be rubbed over with a roll of felt dipped in oil. Inusing the graver, it is necessary to carry it as level as possible withthe surface ot the plate; for otherwise, if the fingers slip betwixtthem, the line that will be produced, whether curve or straight,will become deeper and deeper in the progress of its formation;which entirely prevents strokes being made at one cut, that willbe line at tln-ir extremities, and larger in the middle; and occa-sions the necessity of retouching to bring them to that state. Forthis reason, it is very necessary for those who would learn to en-grave in perfection, to endeavour, by frequent trials, to acquirethe habit of making such strokes both straight and curving, bylightening or sinking the graver with the band, according to theoccasion. If, after finishing the design, any scratches apjiear, orany part of the engraving be falsely executed, such scratches, erj faulty parts, must be taken out by the burnisher, and further po-j libhed, if necessary, by the above-mentioned roll. The plate In-! ing thus engraved, it is proper to round oti the edges, by usingfirst a rough file, and afterwards a smoother; raid to blunt the cor-ners a little by the same liv-ans: alter which, the burnisher shouldbe passed over the edges to give it a farther polish. In the con-duct of the graver and dry point consists all the art; for whichthere are no rules to be given; all depending on the habitude,disposition, and genius, of the artist. However, besides the ex-I pianafions already given, some general observations and directionsmay not be improper. As the principles of engraving are tliosame with those ot painting, a person cannot expect to attain anyconsiderable degree of perfection in this art, who is not a goodmaster of design ; and theretore he ought to be weil acquaintedboth with perspective and architecture: tor the funner, try theproper gradations of strong and faint colours, will enable him totiirow backwards the figures, and other objects of the picture ordesign which he purposes to imitate: and the hitter wdl teach himto preserve the due proportion of its several orders, which thepainter otten entrusts to the discretion ot the engraver. In orderto pre-rrve equality and union in his works, the engraver shouldI always sketch out the principal objec ts ot his piece In-lore he tin-! dertakes to finish them. In working, the stroke; o. the graverj should never be cro-sed too much in a lozenge manner, parlieu-larlv in the representation ot llesh, becau-e sharp angles producethe impleasing elleet of lattice-work, and take from the eye therepose which is to it agreeable in all kinds of pietuiesque designs:we should except the case of cloud-, tempests, waves of the sea,the skins of hairy animals, or the leaves ot tries, where this me-thod of crossing may be admitted. But in avoiding the lozenge,it is not proper to get entirely into the sqtu.ro, winch would givetoo much of the hardness of stone, in conducting the strokes, theaction ot the figures, and of all their parts, should tie considered ;and it should be observed bow they advance towards, or recedefrom the eye; and the graver should be guided according to therisings or cavities ot the muscles or folds, making the strokes widerand fainter in the light, and clo-cr and tinner in the shades. Thusthe figures will not appear jagged; and the hand should be light-ened in such a manner, that the outlines may be formed and ter-i initiated without being cut too hard; however, though the strokesi break off where the muscle begins, yet they ought always to havea certain connection with each other, so that the first stroke mayoften serve by its return to make tiie second, which will shew thefreedom of the engraver. In engraving the flesh, the effect mayhe produced in the lighter parts and middle tints by longpecks-of the graver, rather than by light lines; or by rounddots; or by dots a little lengthened by the graver: or,best of all, by a judicious mixture of these together. In engrav-ing the hair and the beard, the engraver should begin his work by«J laying