Q. What is architecture?

A. The art of building or raising all kinds of edifices; as houses, churches, palaces, &c. and it is distinguished into three parts;—civil, military and naval.

Q. In what does civil architecture consist?

A. In external ornaments and internal conveniencies.

Q. What are the orders of civil architecture?

A. They are generally reckoned five: 1. The Tuscan; 2. the Doric; 3. The Ionic; 4. The Corinthian and 5. The Composite. To these may be added the Gothic, which is an old method of building, still preserved in the construction of almost all cathedral churches. These orders take their names from the people who invented them.

Q. In what does military architecture, or fortification, consist?

A. In constructing such works about a town, &c. as will enable a small number of men within to withstand, for a considerable tine, the assaults of a greater number without. A town fortified is called a fortress.

Q. What is naval architecture?

A. The art of constructing vessels, whether for the service of war or commerce. The art has, within the last twenty or thirty years, been carried to a considerable degree of perfection in this country. A society, patronized by the principal characters in the kingdom, has been instituted for the purpose. The architect should be a good draftsman, and well acquainted with the sciences.

Q. What is painting?

A. An art teaching us by drawing, and the application of colours, to represent all sorts of objects. The principal departments in this branch of art are, portrait, landscape, and historical paintings.

Q. How many sorts of paintings are there?

A. Five: 1. In oil; 2. In fresco: 3. In water-colors; 4. On glass; and 5. In enamel; to which may be added, miniature and pastel. Painting in oil was unknown to the ancients. The art has received the greatest advantage from this discovery.

Q. What are the qualifications of an excellent painter?

A. He ought to understand drawing in its highest perfection. He ought to have a complete knowledge of anatomy and geometry. He ought to read a great deal, to have a great judgment, patience, and a highly cultivated taste: he ought to be sober, and fond of his art.

Q. What is sculpture?

A. The art of carving or hewing stone into images. Every thing that is engraved or worked in relievo, makes a part of this art. Its antiquity appears from many places of the holy scripture—from the idols of Laban that Rachael carried off, and from the golden calf set up by the Israelites in the desert.