Solid blue steel mountings are a decided improvement, and are invaluable for persons who constantly require spectacles. They are wrought from a plate of steel, and shaped as light and uniform as any other town-made elastic blue-steel spectacles, with the advantage of being more durable, and eventually less expensive; for as they have no soldering in their composition, it is scarcely possible to break them, and therefore they rarely want repairing. Blue steel spectacles, in consequence of their being so much in request, are coarsely imitated, and vast numbers are sold by the pretended cheap shops, at apparently low prices which the wearer will find to be immensely beyond their real value. There are thirteen different qualities of the spectacles termed blue steel. The chief part are country made, and roughly put together, some being all iron, others having iron fronts and steel sides; others again bear a tolerably close resemblance to the best town-made articles, and unless the two are compared together, are likely to deceive a casual observer.[5] The fine elastic blue steel, of the best quality, are exceedingly light, highly polished, and beautifully enamelled. They will retain their appearance for two or three years, when carefully used; and they can be restored to their original appearance at any time for a few shillings’ expense. The anti-pressure spectacles are made of gold, silver, or the elastic steel. They are not adapted for ladies’ use, but for gentlemen have been much in demand, as they obviate the necessity of opening and closing a second joint or lengthening piece, and do not press or annoy the nose or temples, but by an equal tenacity preserve their proper position before the eyes. Single eye-glasses, though very convenient for occasional use, are not to be compared with spectacles for the agreeable and natural assistance they give to vision. The eye should not be dependent on them for continuous assistance. Those who persist in using them should do so as little as possible; but the wiser course is to discard them entirely, and adopt the double eye-glasses where it would be tedious to apply spectacles of the usual kind.