The genuine old Irish drops (so far as my personal observation and experience goes) were always round or _almond_ shaped. The most characteristic distinction between them and those made in other countries is that they are very flat when viewed sideways (see illustration No. 3, page 8), whereas the English and French come to a point in the centre--sometimes on one side, more often on both--not a sharp point, of course, but still a point (see illustration No. 4, page 8, which will make the difference quite clear). No. 1 (page 6) is a very rare specimen. [Illustration: No. 3.--FACE. No. 3.--SIDE VIEW. No. 4.--FACE. No. 4.--SIDE VIEW. No. 5. No: 6. No. 7. ORNAMENTAL DROPS.] _All the chandeliers and lights made for my family had in every case these Irish drops, being, of course, special orders._ When seen on a chandelier it is remarkable how much more graceful the Irish drops look; they are softer, more richly facetted, smoother, and, of course, deeper in colour. The large pendants (see illustrations Nos. 2, 5, 6, 7) for ornaments and stars for chandeliers were manufactured in an interesting way. They were made in _ladles_, designed to the required outline and size, with a long handle (see illustration below). The ladle was dipped in the pot of molten glass, withdrawn full, and after being allowed to cool slightly until the glass had set, tipped out into a "dry" furnace (known as a lehr) for some hours; by that time the glass was hard and fit to be facetted by hand. In Italy and Spain I have watched the glass-makers at much the same work, but in these instances the glass was made in cut moulds, so that the glass was _pressed_ into a pattern while hot, and not cut afterwards. The illustrations are of Irish ornaments in my possession on family chandeliers, and vary in length from 5 in. to 8-1/2 in. [Illustration: BLOW-PIPE AND LADLES (one shown side view). USED IN MAKING STARS AND ORNAMENTAL PENDANTS.] =THE CHARACTERISTICS OF IRISH GLASS= Irish glass, more especially Waterford, of the typical period, may be distinguished from contemporary English glass and foreign and modern fakes of all nationalities by a number of characteristics which may be grouped under the headings of Weight, Colour, Resilience, Feeling to the Touch, and Ring. Let me take these one by one. WEIGHT.