The rolling table used in the manufacture of rolled plate is essentially a cast-iron slab of sufficient size to accommodate the largest sheet which is to be rolled; over this slab moves a massive iron roller which may be actuated either by hand or by mechanical power--the latter, however, being now almost universal. The thickness of the sheet to be rolled is regulated by means of slips of iron placed at the sides of the table in such a way as to prevent the roller from descending any further towards the surface of the table: so long as the layer of glass is thicker than these slips, the entire weight of the roller comes upon the soft glass and presses it down, but as soon as the required thickness is attained, the weight of the roller is taken by the iron slips and the glass is not further reduced in thickness. The width of the sheet is regulated by means of a pair of iron guides, formed to fit the forward face of the roller and the surface of the table, in the manner indicated in Fig. 9. The roller, as it moves forward, pushes these guides before it, and the glass is confined between them. When the roller has passed over the glass, the sheet is left on the iron table in a red-hot, soft condition, and it must be allowed to cool and harden to a certain extent before it can be safely moved. In this interval, the chilled portion--if any--is partially severed by an incision made in the sheet by means of a long iron implement somewhat like a large knife, and then the sheet is loosened from the bed of the table by passing under it, with a smooth rapid stroke, a flat-bladed iron tool. The sheet is next removed to the annealing kiln or “lear,” being first drawn on to a stone slab and thence pushed into the mouth of the kiln. At this stage the chilled portion of the sheet is completely severed by a blow which causes the glass to break along the incision previously made.