George G. André

“ Great care must be taken in filling in the zones formed by the contour lines, that the drawing when finished do not present the appearance of separate layers or bands; for such an appearance is not only quite opposed to artistic effect, but it conveys a false notion of the character of the ground. The successive zones are not separate portions of the surface, but each is a continuation of the one adjoining it. The great principle to be observed in this, as in all matters of hill shading, is that changes of slope are gradual. ”

“ The difficulty of achieving this effect of imparting a clear, regular, unbroken appearance to these lines of light seems very formidable, and, indeed, almost insuperable. The hand of the colourist may be as steady and confident as a hand can be, and yet fail to guide the brush, at an almost inappreciable distance from a straight or a circular line, with that precision and sharpness so requisite for the production of this beautiful effect. ”

“ Hedges are represented by green dots, varied in size for bushes; stone or brick walls, by a line ruled in red; and wooden fences by lines of neutral tint, either ruled or drawn in by hand, according as the line is to be straight or otherwise. In every case the shadow must be put in.
In determining the intensity of the various tints employed on a topographical drawing, care must be taken that everything be “in keeping.” A cardinal rule of art is that nothing shall unduly obtrude itself; and in a coloured plan, spottiness, as it is called, should be studiously avoided. ”

“ Sections are represented either by lines of the colour drawn with the pen or the point of the brush, or by a darker shade of the colour. In mechanical drawings, sections are frequently shown by ink lines drawn over the colour.
In plans and maps, as we have said, some attempt is made to give the true appearance of things. As this—which may be called the natural mode of representation—allows more scope for artistic skill than the conventional, a great deal must be left to the judgment and the taste of the draughtsman. ”

“ When two or more veins of mineral are being worked one above the other, and are placed upon the same plan, they are distinguished by means of colour. It matters not what colours are employed for the several separate workings so long as they are distinct from each other. Also the mode of applying the colour, whether with the brush or with the pen, is entirely a question of taste. It may, however, be observed that as mining plans are constantly being added to, it is very difficult to avoid a patchy appearance when the colour is laid on with the brush. ”

“ The advantages of the system of squares in sketch books completely overbalance the one disadvantage, which is, that the diagonal bearings will not make exact distances upon the squares, while the vertical and horizontal ones will. It will be remembered that the surveying book is designed to be exact only in its record and the general features of the ground, and that a slight change of scale is not material, as it can be made exact when the survey is protracted upon the map. ”

“ An important matter demanding careful attention is to survey, plot, and number all fields and other enclosures, houses and other buildings situate within the limits of deviation, that is, the boundaries of the space beyond which it is not proposed to deviate the line of railway. The object of numbering every separate enclosure, road, building, or other object on the plan, is that they may be the more readily described in a book prepared for that purpose and called the Reference Book. ”

“ In architectural and mechanical drawings, it is used to distinguish hidden parts, and to mark the path of a moving piece in a machine. In plans, it is used to show the position of proposed works, to denote the walks through pleasure grounds and gardens, to indicate lines chained over in surveying, and frequently for other purposes, at the pleasure of the draughtsman. The long dotted line is employed to mark the boundaries of a township, the navigable channel of a river or creek, and in large-scale maps to show farm and bridle roads, footpaths, and the divisions of land among different tenants. ”

“ Every dimension which an engineer is likely to require to know should, therefore, be plainly written. Nor is it sufficient to give a dimension once only, as on the plan, for example, and to omit it on the elevation or on the section. It should never be necessary to refer to another drawing to find a dimension. The lettering should be clearly executed, and the direction of the lettering should be the same as that of the figuring, an example of which has been given ”

“ The ability to draw a number of parallel lines at equal distances apart without measuring requires considerable training of the eye, and this training can be obtained from practice alone. This ability must be acquired before anything further is attempted, and the student who spends a good deal of time in its acquisition may have the satisfaction of knowing that while he is going through this somewhat monotonous practice, besides exercising himself in drawing accurate lines, he is acquiring a correctness of eye and a power of hand that will be of incalculable service to him later. ”

“ A still more expeditious way of colouring such [124] surfaces is to draw a second line of colour along and in contact with the opposite edge of the lever or other object, and to fill in the intermediate space between the two wet lines with the brush. In this way a clear, uniform outline to the tint is obtained. The blades of the drawing pen must not be sharp, and care must be taken not to press heavily upon it, as otherwise the blades will leave their course visible—an unsightly betrayal of mechanical means to obtain such regularity in the colouring. ”

“ A scale of shade may at once be constructed from this Table, by assuming the thickness of the shading line for the medium slope of 221⁄2°, which thickness must be suited to the scale, and to the degree of fineness and finish it is intended to give the drawing. Generally, [60] if the lines have such a relation to the scale of the drawing as to present a well-connected appearance, it will be found that fewer shading lines and a rather coarse texture will conduce more to clearness of expression than a finer texture, which tends to produce a dryness of style. ”

“ Pantographs have been made in many shapes unnecessary to describe, as they are all of one principle—that of a parallelogram jointed at the four corners; the principal difference being in the position of the points and fulcrum in relation to the parallelogram. One thing is essential in every construction,—that is, that the fulcrum, tracer, and pencil should always be in a true line when the instrument is set for use. ”

“ In sketching hills endeavour to project as many horizontal curves as possible, which should be lightly put in, and then the shading lines may be drawn over them. The degree of slope should be frequently written down in numbers upon the sketch. The names of localities, streams, hills, farms, &c., should also be entered.
Thus far we have supposed a measured line upon the ground, to which the situation and dimensions of objects might be referred. It is much more difficult to embody the relative positions and dimensions, where all is left to the eye. ”

“ But should he have failed to reach the high mark at which he has aimed, he hopes, with some degree of confidence, that he has at least succeeded in producing a book which the experienced draughtsman will find valuable as a book of reference, and which the pupil may constantly consult with profit. A want has long been felt by draughtsmen for some work of this kind to which they might refer their pupils in the office, and it may not be presumptive to suppose that the present work has supplied that want. ”

“ The following additional remarks on colour shading are taken from Worthen’s ‘Cyclopædia of Drawing.’
A means of adding considerably to the definiteness of a coloured mechanical drawing, and of promoting, in a remarkable degree, its effective appearance, is obtained by leaving a very narrow margin of light on the edges of all surfaces, no matter what may be the angles they form with the surfaces that join them. This should be done invariably; we do not even except those edges which happen to have shadows falling upon them. ”

“ Photography is also frequently resorted to for the purpose of reducing and enlarging drawings. The results are satisfactory within certain limits of size; for it is obvious that when the drawing is large, the parallel lines will converge in the photograph, for reasons which will be understood from the laws of perspective. For enlarging small and intricate drawings, photography is very useful. In preparing drawings for reduction by this process, all lines and shadows should be put in in Indian ink only. ”

“ The form of the shadow was described in the last Section. To produce the shadow, the same tint is used as for the ground, two or three successive applications being sufficient to increase the intensity to the requisite degree; or a neutral tint may be used, composed of indigo, burnt sienna, and a little lake. After [47] the shadow has been put in, the outlines on that side should be strengthened by going over them again with the pen. By drawing the trees in elevation, an opportunity is afforded for the display of artistic skill far greater than the foregoing method admits of. ”

“ The student who has made himself familiar with the methods of laying down angles, and plotting reference lines and points, will find no difficulty in laying down contour traces. When the contour points have been surveyed with the chain, the contour is obtained by drawing a free line of feature through the plotted points. But when the contour points have been surveyed by measuring magnetic angles to known points, such angles must be laid down at these points, and produced to meet in the contour point. ”

“ Trees are usually shown in elevation for the sake of artistic effect; but care must be taken to give them such dimensions as will accord with the scale of the drawing. Houses and other buildings are shown in plan of the correct form, and washed for distinction in light red for dwelling-houses, dark grey for outhouses, and light grey for public buildings. Dark grey is also used for all wooden and iron buildings to distinguish them from those constructed of the ordinary materials, brick and stone. ”

“ It is essential to the good appearance of a drawing that the paper be preserved perfectly clean. The hands especially should be kept as much as possible from resting on it, as the perspiration makes it greasy, and when once it has acquired this defect, clear, sharp lines become impossible. A sheet of clean paper should be constantly interposed between the draughtsman’s hands and the drawing upon which he is working. ”

“ The art of laying on a flat-tint consists in allowing the coloured water to flow equally over the paper, which thus becomes uniformly tinged. To facilitate this, the surface of the drawing should be inclined towards the draughtsman at an angle of about five degrees during the process of laying on the colour. Having taken as much colour on the brush as it will safely carry without dropping, the operation of applying it should be begun in the upper left-hand corner, the brush being carried along towards the right, so as to make the colour lie neatly along the upper outline. ”

“ In shading hills, the paper along the crest of the slope should be first moistened with the water-brush, and before it dries, the laying on of the colour should be begun on the moistened part, and proceeded with down the slope. The effect of representing hills by this method, which is a very expeditious one, is much improved by adding light shading lines with the pen, either in pale ink, or a mixture of indigo and burnt sienna. The ground is always covered with its appropriate sign before the shading tint is laid on. ”

“ In copying the buildings which frequently occur in plans of estates, &c., a straight slip of transparent horn will be found very convenient to guide the tracing point. Some draughtsmen have the horn cut with an internal angle, by which one side and one end of a building may be traced without shifting the horn.
“Architects and mechanical engineers seldom use the pantograph; however, it may perhaps be sometimes used with advantage for tracing in the most difficult and tedious parts of a drawing with a precision impossible by hand. ”

“ The Drawing Office. —The first essentials of a room for drawing in are—that it shall be quite free from damp and be well lighted. The position of the windows is a matter of some importance, and though persons have largely to accommodate themselves to circumstances in this respect, it is desirable to know what are the most suitable conditions, in order that they may be complied with as far as circumstances permit. Skylights are unsuitable, because the light entering from above is liable to be intercepted by the body, and especially by the hands of the draughtsman ”

“ When a line has been drawn a little beyond the point at which it should terminate, it will generally be found better to avoid erasure by laying a little Chinese white over the line with a fine sable-brush. Sometimes, when erasures are unavoidable upon a drawing that is to be coloured, it will be found expedient to take the surface off the whole of the paper with glass-paper, the colour will then flow equally. ”

“ The most accurate method of plotting a traverse is by rectangular co-ordinates, or, as it is usually termed, Northings, Southings, Eastings, and Westings, because the position of each station is plotted independently, and is not affected by the errors committed in plotting previous stations. This method consists in assuming two fixed lines or axes crossing each other at right angles at a fixed point, computing the perpendicular distances or co-ordinates of each station from those two axes, and plotting the position of each station by means of the T and set squares and a linear scale. ”