When the clay is quite dry, which
will take some week or more to effect, you can put any further work
into the design with the steel tool, which must be used to scrape the
clay; for if you exert any pressure upon the dry clay it very soon
chips, and it is almost impossible to repair such damage, and for this
reason: that if you stick on a piece of wet clay to the dry clay, the
moisture of the wet clay is soon absorbed by the dry, and the piece
stuck on immediately falls off. The only chance is to keep damping the
part damaged until the clay all round gets quite moist again, and you
must then model another piece on to the broken part. Dry your work very
slowly at first, to prevent it cracking or warping, and when it seems
quite hard put it into a warmer place, for, though clay may appear hard
on the surface, there is sure to be a good deal of moisture inside,
especially if the clay be thick, and should it be put into a kiln before
the moisture is entirely evaporated, the modelled clay will fly into
minute fragments, and cause incalculable damage to other work in the
kiln.
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