rve
to express the design. It should never be a mere diagram.

[Illustration: Plate VI. Reproduction of an impression (reduced) of the
key-block of a Japanese print showing admirable variety in the means
used to suggest form.

(_To face page 33._)]

The actual cutting proceeds as follows: Starting at some point where the
surface of the key-block design has been oiled and made distinct, a
shallow cut is made along one side of any form in the design, with the
knife held slanting so that the cut slants away from the edge of the
form. A second outer parallel cut is then made with the knife held
slanting in the opposite direction from the first, so that the two cuts
together make a V-shaped trench all along the line of the form. The
little strip of wood cut out should detach itself as the second cut is
made, and should not need any picking out or further cutting if the
first two cuts are cleanly made. This shallow V-shaped trench is
continued all round the masses and along both sides of all the lines of
the design. No clearing of the intervening spaces should be attempted
until this is done. It will be seen at once that the V-shaped cuts give
great strength to the printing lines, so that a quite fine line between
two cuts may have a strong, broad base (fig. 9). The depth of the cut
would be slightly shallower than that shown in this diagram. In cutting
fine line work a cut is first made a little beyond the line, then the
cut is made on the line itself (fig. 10).

[Illustration: FIG. 9.--Knife cuts in section.]

[Illustration: FIG. 10.--Diagram of knife cuts.]

Where a very fine line is to be cut, especially if it is on a curve, the
outer cut of the V trench should be made first, and then that which
touches the line: there is thus less disturbance of the wood, and less
danger of injuring the edge of the line.

When the V cut has been made outside all the lines, one proceeds to
clear the intervening spaces between the lines of the design by taking
tool No. 1 (fig. 5). The large spaces should be cleared first. The
safest and quickest way is to make a small gouge cut with No. 1 round
all the large spaces close up to the first cut, then, with one of the
shallower chisels, Nos. 5, 6, or 7 (fig. 5), and the mallet, clear out
the wood between the gouge cuts.

For all shallow cuts where the mallet is not needed, the Japanese hold
the chisels as shown in fig. 11. With practice this will be found a very
convenient and steady