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In days gone by, the painter who served the usual term of apprenticeship was deemed to have done all that was required to qualify him for his trade. He may have learned little or much, but he had “served his time,” and that was all that was expected of him. So far as it went, the training was good, because it was nothing if not practical, and practice is an essential element of skill. But nowadays such a training can only be considered partial; mere practice, without any scientific knowledge of the principles which underlie it, is but half a qualification for the workman who aims at being really a master of his trade.

When competition was unknown, and the low prices of raw material offered no inducement for passing off inferior or fraudulent substitutes, there was less need for a high degree of knowledge. But under modern conditions, the painter who is unable to gauge the qualities of the materials he uses, and who is ignorant of the rules which govern those qualities, and of the principles which determine the use of this and the rejection of that article, cannot long survive in the struggle for supremacy or even livelihood.

Hence the need for a handbook such as this volume aims at being. Granted that our technical schools and colleges are affording a liberal and invaluable education to the workman who will avail himself of the opportunities given him, still a man does not remain for ever at school, and he needs a guide-book, handy of reference and accessible in price, to refresh his memory and supplement the information gained in the class-room and workshop.

To fulfil this useful purpose is the aim and object of this unpretending volume.