number of years. This also is an expensive process, but the result
cannot be obtained in any other way.


=Spiriting-off.=--Most polishers affirm that if an interval of at least
a couple of hours elapse between the final embodying and the
spiriting-off the brilliancy of the polish will be improved, and remain
harder and more durable. The spirit is applied in exactly the same way
as the polish, and the same rubber can be used, but it should be covered
with more than one fold of the soft linen rag; care should be taken not
to make it very wet, or the gum on the surface of the work will be
redissolved, and a dulness instead of a brilliancy will result. If the
spirit should be very strong, the rubber should be breathed upon before
using, and a little more oil taken up; some, however, prefer to mix a
little polish with the spirit, while others prefer the spirit to be
weakened by exposure to the air for a few hours; experience alone must
be the teacher in this particular; but if the spirit should not "bite,"
as it is termed, all will be well. The last rubber should be worked a
little longer than usual, and a trifle quicker, so as to remove the
slight greasy moisture on the surface.

The finishing touch is given to the work by a soft rag loosely rolled up
and just a few drops of spirit dropped upon it, applied quickly the way
of the grain. This will remove every defect, and leave it clear and
brilliant. If, in a short time after finishing, the polish becomes dull
or rough, it will be owing to too much oil being absorbed in the process
and working through the surface, combined with dust. It should be
cleaned off first with a soft cloth, damped with a little warm water,
and the whole repaired, as at first, with equal parts of polish and
spirits mixed together, using the least possible damp of oil to make it