,
round sticks of lead, and these are by far the best for a learner. They
are easier to sharpen, and will slip in the holder, giving warning when
the draftsman is pressing them too hard on the paper, as he is apt to
do. The best method of trimming these leads, as also lead pencils after
they have been roughly shaped, is with a small fine file, holding the
file still and moving the pencil; or a good piece of emery paper or sand
paper is good, moving the pencil as before.

All lines in pencilling as in inking in should begin at the left hand
and be drawn towards the right, or when triangles are used the lines are
begun at the bottom and drawn towards the top or away from the
operator. The rubber used should not be of a harsh grade, since that
will roughen the face of the paper and probably cause the ink to run.
The less rubbing out the better the learner will progress, and the more
satisfaction he will receive from the results. If it becomes necessary
to scratch out it is best done with a penknife well sharpened, and not
applied too forcibly to the paper but somewhat lightly, and moved in
different and not all in one direction. After the penknife the rubber
may sometimes be used to advantage, since it will, if of a smooth grade,
leave the paper smoother than the knife. Finally, before inking in, the
surface that has been scraped should be condensed again by rubbing some
clean, hard substance over it which will prevent the ink from spreading.
The end of a paper-cutter or the end of a rounded ivory handled drawing
instrument is excellent for this purpose.

[Illustration: Fig. 9.]

[Illustration: Fig. 10.]

It is well to use the rubber for general purposes in such a way as to
fit it for special purposes; thus, in cleaning the sheet of paper, the
rubber may be applied first, as in Figure 9, as at A, and then as at B,
and if it be moved sideways at the same time it will wear to the form
shown in Figure 10, which will enable it to be applied along a line that
may require to be rubbed out without removing other and neighboring
lines. If the rubber is in the form of a square stick one end may be
bevelled, as in Figure 11, which is an excellent form, or it may be made
to have a point, as in Figure 12. The object is in each case to enable
the rubber action to be confined to the desired location on the paper,
so as to destroy its smooth surface as little as possible.

[Illustration: Fig. 11.]

[Illustration: Fig 12.]

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