We will now resume our consideration of the handiwork of the Cremonese master as regards other details. We left him steadily working through his so-called "Grand epoch" or, more strictly speaking, his period of finely settled designs in outline and modelling. He had arrived at the goal of his ambition and produced works of excellence which--taking them as a whole--it seemed impossible to improve upon. He was henceforth content to put into them such slight modifications as would prevent too great similarity. Thus we find some were flatter in the arching, others a little shorter, being a trifle under the usual fourteen inches, others again were over it, but there was the same general contour, his now well-known accentuated design, complete as possible in all its details. From the great number of finished works that were turned out one after another, it is quite reasonable to assume that there would be occasionally some little evidence of extra pressure of business and consequently less time spent over minor details. That this actually occurred at times there is no doubt and can be perceived clearly when looked for. One instance occurs to me in which the purfling had been cut off a trifle short at the corners and did not quite fill up and make a good mitreing, otherwise all along the border the easy, swift, yet powerful stroke was maintained up to his usual standard of accuracy. In other instances the point or "bee-sting," as it is sometimes called, is not so sharply defined perhaps in two corners, while the others were the perfection of minute finish. It seems fairly certain that the great Cremonese was not at the time thinking of the almost microscopical scrutiny of critics certain to occur one hundred and eighty or so years in the future. These little differences in accuracy of unimportant detail or accidents of work may be taken as evidence that Stradivari was labouring day by day to meet the requirements of patrons different in disposition and perhaps patience. When at the same period he has been allowed to put his full time and attention to his work, then we find the four corners of equal unsurpassable finish, and other minute details over the whole structure so intently studied that nothing could possibly go beyond. These should really and appropriately be termed his "grand pattern." There is present in those instances the combined excellences in the highest degree of mechanical precision, beautiful proportion and drawing, such as no master designer of the Renaissance could surpass, the choicest materials, including splendid varnish, the whole united and capped with that essential, a beautiful tone.