This book is the result of several years teaching of blueprint reading in night schools and several years teaching of drafting preceding used for three years in blueprint and mimeographed tried out. In it. The material was form. In this form it was thoroughly preparing it for book form the drawings have been carefully redrawn and the text improved upon as ex- perience suggested to be desirable. Essentially it is, however, a tried text, one that has been used to teach the reading of drawings to one class of mixed trades, one class of ship carpenters, two classes of house car- penters, and one class of machinists. It has been designed to suit as wide a range of trades as possible. Usually each new principle is illustrated by example. both a machine and an architectural In recognition of the principle that we learn by doing a number of drawings are included to give practise in reading. At the end of each chapter a number of questions are placed, a few for the purpose of re- view, but more to stimulate the study of the drawings. The study of mechanical drawing has long been recognized as a sure method of learning to read draw- ings. The Author knows it to be effective but round about, long and tedious. The Author finds shop sketching just as effective and much quicker. It is essential that students have some method of expression of the principles discussed in the text and shop sketching provides this admirably. When time permits the book can well be supplemented with the study of many blueprints supplied by the teacher or the students and much more sketching than called for herein can also be effectively required. The Author believes the book to be well suited to individual study aside from its use as a class text. When so used he urges that the shop sketching be not neglected, and that the student seek criticism of his drawings by some draftsman. Most of the drawings used herein have been designed especially to illustrate the text.
