The Preface, which is very explanatory, is as follows:--“The progressive improvements in the manufacture of Porcelain and Earthenware, during the last thirty years, have raised this art to an eminence which it never reached before in the British Empire; and, perhaps, in no department of art has scientific research and experiment been so productive of wealth and fame as in this, and it is no undue encomium on the industry of the manufacturer to state, that the consumption at home and the demands from abroad have kept pace with the improvements which have increased both. The important station which this art holds amongst our manufactures renders every attempt at improvement worthy of consideration and attention. It has been said, the man who causes one ear of corn to grow where one never grew before, deserves the thanks of his country; but what does that man merit who, by indefatigable industry, contributes materially to the advancement of the interests of his country, in the improvement of its manufactures? It was in this class that the late MR. THOMAS LAKIN held a situation much above mediocrity, for, in Staffordshire, it is well known that few men have contributed more to the improvement of an art so useful and so much admired. The following work is the result of upwards of thirty years of labour, study, and repeated experiment, and no pains have been spared in arranging the various Receipts in such a chain of connection as to render them easy of comprehension to an intelligent operator. The Subscribers may rest assured, that the whole of the following Receipts may be individually depended upon as genuine, each having been repeatedly tried in the course of the author’s long experience. Mr. Lakin had also extensive practice in the admired art of Staining and Painting Glass; several windows of exquisite workmanship were executed by him during the time he was engaged with John Davenport, Esq., for some of the first noblemen in the kingdom. The Receipts, together with the method of using them, are therefore laid down from actual experiment, and it is hoped will be found extremely valuable. In presenting the following work to the subscribers, Mrs. Lakin is anxious to express her gratitude for the liberal encouragement she has met with, and for the highly gratifying tribute they have paid to the abilities of her departed husband; but to the kindness of those gentlemen who had before purchased some of the Receipts at a price far beyond the whole charge of this work, and yet have become subscribers, she feels herself particularly indebted. Mrs. L. respectfully solicits of the subscribers not to permit persons who are not purchasers to copy any of the Receipts, as it might not only injure her as proprietor of the copyright, but also other subscribers; on her