and hold it lightly. Is it not perfectly balanced? Does not the point respond to the slightest motion of the two fingers? Raise the thumb. If you are holding the pencil correctly, it remains resting against the two fingers and the root of the first finger. The little finger is the pivot of the hand. The hand sweeps round in curves from the tip of the finger with perfect freedom.
Practise various touches with your pencil. For light, feather, gossamer lines hold the pencil lightly and half-way up the shaft; for rich firm effects hold the pencil firmly and lower of the shaft, rubbing the lead to and fro without removing the point from the paper; for minute or detailed drawing it will probably be desirable to hold the pencil lower still.
A medium HB pencil is generally useful. B or BB for textures, rough-coated animals, etc.
A firm-surfaced paper such as cartridge is useful both for pencil and water-colour. A polished card is not advisable, neither is a paper with a rough 'toothed' surface; the latter is apt to lend a tricky effect which is alluring, but dangerous. It is wiser to employ straightforward methods. Then you know exactly the various stages of your progress.
Do not use patent pencils with metal holders or decorated tops. The ordinary plain wooden pencil is the best tool.
Drawing with Black Chalk
Black chalk, in the shape of a pencil, is a pleasant medium, but it has one disadvantage, it is very difficult to erase. Therefore the use of chalk necessitates a certain amount of confidence and experience. In other words, do not begin your studies with chalk in preference to lead, but reserve it for your later work.
Chalk gives a rich velvety tone and never a greasy shine, the drawback of blacklead. It is delightful for quick sketches, for materials of a coarse or rough texture, for the sketching of animals, buildings, trees, and landscapes.
Chalk crumbles and breaks more easily than lead, and it
