Inscriptions
in Stone

Temper and Sharpness.—Above all things the
chisels must be of the right temper, and sharp.1

(c?

Dummy

Mallet or Meli

Hammer

Fie. 213.

They are tempered by a smith or tool-maker—
if the craftsman can do it for himself, so much the

1 Really sharp, i.e. sharp enough to cut a piece of paper
without tearing it,

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better. They are sharpened on a piece of Grit-stone Inscription?

(hard York stone, for instance) with water. The in Stone

Temper of a chisel may be seen by the colour

(blue shows a soft or low temper, straw colour a

hard or high temper), and felt by the way it rubs

on the Grit-stone (a hard tool will slide easily over

the stone, while a soft one will seem to stick or

cling).

Mallets.—A wooden mallet or Meli, a Zinc
mallet or Dummy, and an iron or steel hammer are
required (fig. 213).

The Meli is made wholly of wood, and should, for
letter cutting, be about 5| inches in diameter.

The Dummy has a head of zinc and a wooden
handle. It should be about inches in diameter.

The hammer should be about the same size and
weight as the Dummy.

A RIGHT USE OF THE CHISEL

The workman must find out, for himself, how
best to use his tools. In the ordinary way, it is best
to hold the chisel at an angle of about 450 with the
surface of the stone—in the manner shown in fig.
214—in cutting both straight stems and curves.
The chisel is held firmly (usually in the left hand,
with the little finger about an inch from the cutting
end of the chisel), tapped rather than banged, and
lightly rather than heavily.

The best way to cut an ordinary letter is to start
at the left-hand side at the bottom, and, working
upwards, to cut the left side of the stem first. Simi¬
larly cut the right side of the stem, and then cut the
serifs (see fig. 218).

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