We think, without wishing to think _too loud_, that house painting was invented by _a bad builder_, in the seventeenth century, because Putty and paint cover a multitude of sins. The process of graining and marbling may be traced back as far at least as the time of James III. of Scotland (1567-1603), during whose reign a room of Hopetown Tower was painted in imitation of marble. Before that period, imitations were done in “stone” colour, “marble” colour, wainscot colour, &c. In 1676, marbling was executed as well as imitations of olive and walnut woods; and in 1688 tortoise-shell was copied on battens and mouldings. Mahogany was imitated in 1815, and maple wood in 1817. But why imitate mahogany, when the grain of the wood differs so much in texture, and in the appearance of the different and beautiful shades, technically termed _roe_, _broken roe_, _bold roe_, _mottle_, _faint mottle_, and _dapple_. The following description will give the reader some idea of ordinary painting. The woodwork having been prepared for fixing, has first to undergo the process of “knotting,” in order to prevent the turpentine in the knots of fir-wood from passing through the several coats of paint. One method for best work is to cut out the knot whilst the work is at the bench to a slight depth, and to fill up the hole with a stiff putty made of white lead, japan, and turpentine. There are many ways of killing the knots: the best and surest is to cover them with gold or silver leaf. Sometimes a lump of fresh slaked lime is laid on for about twenty-four hours, then scraped off, a coating of “size knotting” applied, and if not sufficiently killed, they are coated with red and white lead in linseed oil, and rubbed down when dry. The general method is to cover the parts with size knotting, which is a preparation of red lead, white lead, and whitening, made into a thin paste with size. The most common mode is to paint them with red ochre, which is worth nothing. The next process is that of priming, which consists in giving a coat of white and red lead, and a little dryers in linseed oil. This is the first coat, and upon which the look of the paint on completion depends. This first, or priming coat, is put on before “stopping” the work, should that process be required. It consists in filling up with putty any cracks or other imperfections on the surface of the wood. If the putty used in the process of stopping be introduced before the first coat of colour is laid on, it becomes loose when dry. After this first coat, pumicing is resorted to for removing all irregularities from the surface. It is worth recollecting that _old_ white lead is much superior to new for all painting operations. A smooth surface being thus obtained, the second coat is given, consisting of white lead and oil: about one-fourth part of turpentine is sometimes added for quick work. If four coats are to be laid on, this second one has sometimes a