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Many old Italian violins bear indications of the haste of the maker to get the purfling done, and so without the delay of any intermediary process the purfling has been pressed in with great risk and sometimes an inevitable result of fracture.

Leaving you with this caution, I shall imagine all done as was the work on the back up to cutting the groove after purfling, plate 6, and resume there, for the purpose of warning you that the gouges for this same work on the soft pine, as opposed to the sycamore, must be exceptionally sharp, and you must cut, and very clean, too, or you will tear the wood, and go below your level, as I before cautioned you.

The best spot, and therefore the right one, may be fixed upon by finding the centre between the two inner edges of the purfling on the upper table at the lower part, the same between that of the upper, and drawing a faint line through the points with a piece of soft white chalk cut to a point, and guided by a flexible rule or straight edge down to the nut.

From this stage you will have to repeat what was done to the back, until you reach the cutting out of the groove preparatory to insertion of the purfling; and I only stop you here to direct your special attention to one feature of that groove, or, rather, four of the same character, viz., the corners.

After trying this without glue, the pieces are removed, glue of good strength is put on the surfaces to be joined and the whole put in position again. The lower end of the joint near the purfling will require a little additional cramping together. It is then as usual laid by to dry.

Taking the two ends with the fingers of each hand he passes it backward and forward near the flame of the candle, using a gentle pressure to make it assume a crescent or bow shape. The heat causes the damp to evaporate and steam the materials, and the purfling will gradually assume the required curve. When this latter happens to be short or sudden, another dip and heating may be necessary.

But I ask you, is it not vexatious when all your efforts have been used to work up your surfaces and to round off and finish your edges, you must in a sense undo much of it, temporarily, by using a tool, or tools, to cut the narrow channel for the ornament, and using glue to finally fix it, when some of the superfluous purfling has either to be cut away by a gouge or scraper?

Many gems from the old masters that would otherwise have been matchless, are disfigured by an array of semi-circular dents or bruises near the border. This is particularly noticeable when the arching springs rather abruptly from a narrow channel and near the purfling, or the rise commences from the border without channelling.

If the original work is sharply defined and a distinctly shaped border is present, then the work must be proceeded with as in the instance of making a new copy of a violin. Some little difficulty may appear when the question of matching the purfling arises.

Another sniff from James, who doesn't believe in born anything, but that good work comes with good tools and a reasonable prospect ahead of good remuneration for extra trouble. "Don't see, sir, why we can't put a bit of purfling round as clean as that! some of those French copies are as cleanly purfled as any part of this!"