3. _If of a creamy consistency, free from heavy particles:_ mix well; spread out evenly on a glazed tile. Take up equal portions at equal distances. Mix and assay. 4. _If a mud of coarse and fine particles, or of particles of unequal density:_ weigh and transfer to a porcelain dish, or weigh in the dish. Dry at 100° C., weigh. Treat the residue as a solid capable of being powdered. 5. _If a solid capable of being powdered, or already powdered:_ heap up into a cone; flatten with a spatula; divide along two diameters at right angles, and carefully reject the whole of two alternate quarters, brushing away any fine powder. Mix the other quarters, and repeat (if necessary). For small quantities a fine state of division is essential. 6. _If a solid with metallic particles:_ powder and pass through a sieve; the metallic particles will not pass through. Weigh both portions and assay separately. _Sifting should be followed by a very thorough mixing._ 7. _If a metal or alloy in bar or ingot:_ clean the upper surface of the bar, and bore through the bar. Use the borings. If the ingot or bar is small, cut it through and file the section. Filings must be freed from fragments of the file by means of a magnet; and from oil, if any be present, by washing with a suitable solvent.[1] Where practicable, metals and alloys are best sampled by melting and granulating. The student must carefully avoid any chance of mixing dirt or particles of other samples with the particular sample which he is preparing. One ore should be done at a time, and when finished, it should be labelled and wrapped up, or bottled, before starting on a fresh sample. When an ore requires to be very finely ground in an agate mortar, it is often advisable to mix with a little pure alcohol and rub until free from grit; dry at 100° C. and mix well before weighing. When an assay is required of a quantity of ore made up of parcels of different weight and quality, each parcel should be separately sampled and parts of each sample, bearing to each other the same proportion by weight as the original parcels, should be taken and mixed. For example, a lot of ore is made up of one parcel of A, 570 tons, one of B, 180 tons, and another of C, 50 tons; a sample representing the whole may be got by mixing 57 parts of a sample of A with 18 parts of a sample of B, and 5 parts of a sample of C. [Illustration: FIG. 2.] A bruising plate, like that in fig. 2, is convenient for general office work. The slab is of cast iron, about an inch thick. It is firmly supported on a solid block of wood, and pivoted for convenience in emptying. The bruising-hammer is steel-faced, about 4 inches square, and 1-1/2 inch thick. The block is firmly fixed to a small table or tressel, so that the slab is about 2 feet 6 inches from the ground. The slab is cleaned, and the sample collected with the help of a stiff-haired brush.