In cases where the work for some reason must not stretch, such as the hills on a map, it will be necessary to keep the transfer dry and put it on a wet stone, but a piece of the margin of the paper should be tested to see that it is of a class that will adhere to the stone the first time it is pulled through. Unless the adhesion is very complete it may not be safe to pull it through more than once. For a small number of copies a very moderate "etch" is desirable, but for a long run, where the object is to secure a good edition rather than a few good proofs, the Eberle system may be adopted. This method consists in protecting the work with finely powdered resin and then applying the flame of an ordinary plumber's lamp; this will melt the protecting medium round the base of each grain of work and allow of a very vigorous "etch" being applied. As before stated it is not unusual to secure 2000 to 3000 good copies in the machine after this treatment; but the rollers, the ink and the superintendence must be of the best.
When the artist who is not a professed lithographer desires to make tints to his work, a reversed offset on grained paper should be made for each colour; this is done by pulling an impression in the usual way on a hard piece of paper, and while it is yet wet this should be faced with a piece of grained paper and pulled through again, when the grained paper will be found to have received the greater portion of the ink; this should be immediately dusted with offset powder of a red shade to prevent the grease passing into the paper, and the drawing of the tints should then be proceeded with in the usual way. Another method of transfer work is to pull impressions from copper or steel plates in transfer ink; it is in such way that simple etchings like those of Cruikshank, Phiz and others are produced, and nearly all commercial work such as maps, bill heads, &c., are prepared in the same manner.
Beyond this, much work is done in lithographic ink on what is called writing transfer paper, such as circulars, law writing for abstracts, specifications and plans.
_Machinery._--The chief items are the hand presses and the machines, whether flat bed or rotary, the principal places of manufacture being Leeds, Otley and Edinburgh. Stimulated by American competition, the standard of excellence in the United Kingdom has been very considerably raised of late years. The rotary machines have only been possible since the more frequent use of aluminium and zinc, but these materials are more suitable to receive transfer than for the general use of an office, the chief reason being that corrections on stone are more easily accomplished and more lasting when done. Preliminary work is therefore frequently done on the stone and transferred to plates for the machine.