“It may be allowable to say, we have exerted our utmost endeavours to produce a work which shall be useful to the mechanic, and serviceable to the gentleman. With this view, after having fixed upon such articles as were necessary to a complete suit of furniture, our judgment was called forth in selecting such patterns as were most likely to be of general use—in choosing such points of view as would show them most distinctly—and in exhibiting such fashions as were necessary to answer the end proposed, and convey a just idea of English taste in furniture for houses. “English taste and workmanship have, of late years, been much sought for by surrounding nations; and the mutability of all things, but more especially of fashions, has rendered the labours of our predecessors in this line of little use: nay, at this day, they can only tend to mislead those Foreigners, who seek a knowledge of the English taste in the various articles of household furniture. [Illustration: PLATE LIV] “The same reason, in favour of this work, will apply also to many of our own Countrymen and Artisans, whose distance from the metropolis makes even an imperfect knowledge of its improvements acquired with much trouble and expense. Our labours will, we hope, tend to remove this difficulty; and as our idea of the useful was such articles as are generally serviceable in genteel life, we flatter ourselves the labour and pains we have bestowed on this work will not be considered as time uselessly spent. “To Residents in London, though our drawings are all new, yet, as we designedly followed the latest or most prevailing fashion only, purposely omitting such articles whose recommendation was mere novelty, and perhaps a violation of all established rule, the production of whim at the instance of caprice, whose appetite must ever suffer disappointment if any similar thing had been previously thought of; we say, having regularly avoided those fancies, and steadily adhered to such articles only as are of general use and service, our principal hope for favour and encouragement will be, in having combined near three hundred different patterns for furniture in so small a space, and at so small a price. In this instance we hope for reward; and though we lay no claim to extraordinary merit in our designs, we flatter ourselves they will be found serviceable to young workmen in general and occasionally to more experienced ones.” From the above quotation, it will be noticed that the firm of Heppelwhite and Company eschews extravagant designs, and aims to represent at the same time what is newest and most fashionable. We see, too, that previous publications sold, such as Chippendale’s, Ince and Mayhew’s, Edwards and Darly’s, and others that we have mentioned, are considered entirely out of date.