And he who would wish to make wax of another color may easily do so by putting into it red earth or vermilion or red lead; he will thus make it yellowish red or some shade; if he add verdigris, green, and so on with the other colors. But well it is to observe that the colors should be powdered and sifted, and in this condition mixed with the wax afterward and made as soft as possible. The wax is also made white for small things--medals, portraits, minute scenes, and other objects in bas-relief. All this is accomplished by mixing white lead that has already been powdered with the white wax as already explained. I must not neglect to mention that modern artists have discovered the method of working all sorts of colors into the wax so that in taking portraits from life in half-relief they make the flesh tints, the hair, the clothes and all so lifelike that these presentments appear to lack only the power to speak. CHAPTER X HAND-WOVEN COVERLETS The collector who has been fortunate enough to make a pilgrimage through the villages of New England, visiting the antique shops in search of adornments to the shrines of their hobbies, will recall the occasional hand-woven coverlet that chanced to be displayed as the background to the ensemble of odds and ends. But one finds fewer and fewer of these old-time examples of handicraft. There have been eager but quiet collectors industriously seeking them out. Nevertheless the collector has always a chance of coming upon an early woven coverlet, particularly in those remote quarters where local auctions (occasioned by momentous events and not merely foregone conclusions) still disclose the hidden treasures of yesterday and bring them within reach of the moderate purse.