Since the appearance of the original volume of “Workshop Receipts,” the Publishers have been continually receiving inquiries for books or articles on a variety of subjects not possessing in themselves sufficient importance to warrant their being described in special treatises, yet interesting to a great number of readers, and collectively worthy of publication in book form.

The result of these inquiries was a determination to issue a series of volumes bearing the same title “Workshop Receipts” devoting each series to a special class of subjects.

Thus the Second Series dealt with operations and industries having a more or less Chemical basis; while the Third Series embraced Metallurgical and Electrical matters. Both attracted much attention, and have been in every way successful.

There still remained a number of subjects of equal utility and of every-day application, connected with Handicrafts and Mechanical trades, coming within the scope of all intelligent persons, and certainly not less interesting than the contents of previous volumes.

These have been gathered into the Present (Fourth) Series. While each Series possesses its own special value, the utility of the four volumes has been completed by furnishing the fourth with a General Index to the whole set.

From the great range of subjects dealt with and the facility thus afforded for reference, the four series of “Workshop Receipts” may be said to constitute in themselves a well-stored library of technical information such as no other publication affords.

The descriptions and instructions are given in plain language, aided by diagrams where necessary; technicalities are explained, and every care has been taken to check the quantities, and to make the index a real guide to the contents.

C. G. Warnford Lock