ole of his bellies. The bellies made from
this wood have a singular stain, running parallel with the
finger-board on either side, and unmistakable, though frequently seen
but faintly. If we may judge from the constant use he made of this
material, it would seem that he regarded it as a mine of wealth. The
care he bestowed, when working it, that none should be lost, affords
clear evidence of the value that he set upon this precious piece of
wood. I have met with three Violins by Carlo Bergonzi, having bellies
evidently cut from the same piece of pine, and these instruments
passed as the work of Guarneri for a long period. The sycamore that he
used was varied both in appearance and quality; it is chiefly of a
broad description of grain, the whole-backs being impressively marked
like a tiger's skin. There are a few instances where, in his
jointed-backs, the markings of the wood are turned upwards.

Upon examining the works of Guarneri with respect to their graduation,
it is found that he varied very much as to the quantity of wood left
in the several instruments. Notwithstanding these differences,
however, it will be found, upon closer comparison of the thickness,
that there is every reason to be sure that he had a guiding principle
in their management. They vary with the quality of the wood; and hard
material was treated as needing a slighter solidity than wood of a
softer nature.

His workmanship in numerous instances is, without doubt, careless;
but, even in the instruments where this negligence is most observed,
there is an appearance which at once excites the admiration of the
beholder, and forces from the most exacting the admission that, after
every deduction on account of want of finish, there remains a style
defying all imitation. Who can fail to recognise the quaint head, into
which he seems to have thrown such singular character by the mere turn
of his chisel, and which, when imitated, always partakes of the
ludicrous, and betrays the unhappy copyist who is unable to compass
that necessary turn! In matters of the highest art it is always so;
the possessor of genius is constantly showing some last resort, as it
were, impregnable to imitation.

The sound-hole, also, of Guarneri always preserves its distinctive
character, and a grotesque humour which at once pleases the eye,
though it is found to vary considerably with the three periods of his
life. Again, the button--that portion of the back against which the