Carving and Serving

"Do you teach your pupils how to carve?"
"Please give us a lecture on carving; my husband says he will come if you will."
I have been so frequently addressed in this way that I have decided to publish a manual on the Art of Carving. Instruction in this art cannot be given at a lecture with any profit to my pupils or satisfaction to myself. One cannot learn by simply seeing a person carve a few times. As much as any other art, it requires study; and success is not attainable without much practice. There are certain rules which should be thoroughly understood; if followed faithfully in daily practice, they will help more than mere observation.