The boy travellers in the Far East : adventures of two youths ... - Library

246
THE BOY TRAVELLERS.
it is very beautiful and is of great antiquity ; it is capable of a great
many variations, and, although it has been in use for centuries, hardly
a year passes without some improvements in it. In making the metal
enamels the strips of brass are soldered to the surface and the cavities are
filled u}) with the liquid coloring. The whole is then baked as in the
porcelain process, and the surface of the work is carefully polished until
all the lines are fully developed and the completed article sliines like
glass.
" I shall send you,'' Fi'ank added, " several specimens of this kind of
work, and I am sure that all of you M'ill be delighted with them. In
addition to the Japanese enamel, I have been able to pick up a few from
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^^^m
CHINESE METAL VASE.
China by the help of a gentleman
who has been a long time
in the country, and knows where
to get the best things. And as
I can't get all I want, I shall
send you some pictures of very
rare specimens, and j'ou can
judge by tliem of the quality of
what you have. It is very dif-
ficult to find some of the vari-
eties, as there have been a good
many men out here making
purchases for the New York
and London markets, and they
gather up everything that is
curious. The demand is so
great that the Japanese makers
have all the}^ can do to supply
it ; but I suppose that in a few
years the taste of the public
will change, and then you can
buy all you want. But 3'ou
can't get tired all at once of
the pretty things that I liave
found ; and I tliink that the more you look at the pictures on the bowls
and plates, tlie more you will admire them. You are fond of birds
and flowers, and you will find them on the porcelain ; and there is one
piece that has a river and some mountains on it, as well defined as if it
were a painting on a sheet of paper. Look at the bridge over the river,