“In addition to the ground colour other colours are used to relieve it, the framework of the body being generally painted black; and in the case of a very dark colour being used for the ground, it becomes necessary to run a fine line of a lighter shade in order to mark the inner edges of the framework. The same process is applied to the carriage parts and under framework for the purpose of making it look lighter to the eye. Were the perch, beds, and wheels painted of one colour they would look exceedingly heavy and clumsy; but the skilful management of the fine lines, or ‘picking out,’ as it is technically called, produces a pleasing optical illusion. The same effect is sought also in the carved work, which would look very bare were it not heightened and brought into relief by the judicious application of black and coloured lines. Heraldic bearings used to be painted very large on the panels; in fact they formed the principal ornament, as they were painted in their proper heraldic colours. With bright grounds, such as yellow, the effect is often very good, but with most other colours it destroys the general harmony, and on this account it has been the custom of late years to paint them very small, and very often of the same colour as the ground, only lightened up to give relief. This is of course the other extreme. “Proportion in carriages applies to both form and colour; as regards form, it regulates the sizes of the various parts so that the whole may harmonise, and dictates the adoption of contrivances for lessening the apparent size of those parts which would otherwise be unseemly. Thus, the total height which is necessary in the body for the comfort of the passengers is too great for the length which it is convenient to give it; therefore the total height is reduced, and to give sufficient leg room a false bottom is affixed by means of convex rockers, and which, being thrown back and painted black, cease to form a portion of the elevation; they are, like a foundation, out of sight, and thus the proportion of the front view (the side is called the _front_ in coach-builder’s parlance) is preserved. In painting the body of a coach or chariot, it is customary to confine the ground colour to the lower panels and to paint the upper ones black, all except some stripes on the upper part of the doors. Now, inasmuch as colour in this case constitutes form by means of outline, and as that outline gives an irregular figure, it is a decidedly defective arrangement, making the upper part of the structure look heavier than the base. But the fact is, this defect has not been caused by intentional bad taste; it is a mere result of imitation, of following up old practices when the motive for them has ceased. It was formerly the custom to cover the roofs and upper panels with greasy leather in order to make them water-tight, the edges of the leather being fastened down with rows of brass nails. This leather was black, and