t the lines are well filled. Sometimes, in the first inking of
the plate, it is necessary to use the finger to force the ink into the
lines.

In _wiping the plate_ the first operation is to remove all the
superfluous ink from the surface by means of a rag. What follows depends
on the kind of impression you desire to get. If you want a _natural_,
_clean_, or _dry_ proof, as these impressions are variously called (i.
e. an impression which shows only black lines on a perfectly clear white
ground), charge the palm of your hand with a _very little_ whiting or
Spanish white, and with it finish the wiping of the plate. This
operation will leave the surface of the plate perfectly clean and
bright, while the ink remains in the lines. If you desire to have an
even tint left all over the plate, avoid the use of the hand, and wipe
with the rag only. Plate-printers use their rags moist, but for printing
etchings a dry rag is preferable, as it leaves more of a tint on the
plate. Note, also, that the rag must be tolerably well charged with ink
to enable you to wipe a good tint with it.

The margin of the plate, even if a tint is left over it, must always be
wiped clean. This is best accomplished by a bit of cotton cloth charged
with whiting.

For the rest, nothing is left but to experiment according to the hints
given in the text by M. Lalanne.

[23] (p. 59.) If you can, buy your ink of a plate-printer or of a
lithographer. That used by book-printers will _not_ do! The trouble is
that the ink used by ordinary plate-printers is of a disagreeably cold
cast, as it is mixed with blue. Etchings ought to be printed with a warm
black, and sometimes, especially in the case of somewhat over-bitten
plates, with an ink of a decidedly brownish hue. Inks are made of
linseed-oil varnish (i. e. linseed oil that has been boiled down or
burned), and the blacks mentioned in the text. There are various
qualities of varnish according to its consistency, varying from thin
through medium to stiff. If you wish to mix your own ink, you must try
to procure the materials of some plate-printer or lithographer. For
varnish use the medium, for black the Francfort. The burnt Sienna (which
you can buy at any paint-shop) is used only to warm up the black. Lay
some of the dry color on your ink-slab, add a very little of the
varnish, and mix with the muller. Then add more varnish until the ink
forms a tolerably stiff paste. The grinding must be carefully done, so