James having met with this kind of thing before, knows more than one way of meeting the difficulty. As is often found, a rough and ready way is good for a small amount of work such as he has before him.
He takes a candle and lights it. He has always at hand a jar of water ready for any damping required in the number of little odd jobs constantly occurring. Placing the jar of water within easy reach, he dips the purfling into it once and then wipes it with his handy cloth.
Taking the two ends with the fingers of each hand he passes it backward and forward near the flame of the candle, using a gentle pressure to make it assume a crescent or bow shape. The heat causes the damp to evaporate and steam the materials, and the purfling will gradually assume the required curve.
When this latter happens to be short or sudden, another dip and heating may be necessary.
This being successfully accomplished, recourse is now had to the glue pot, a pointed piece of wood is dipped into it, and a small streak of glue is laid in the groove. The purfling is now carefully inserted along the course, pressed in and left to dry.
After a sufficient time has elapsed, James looks over it, and finding all things ripe for finishing, takes a gouge of a size that will suit the channelling of the particular model adopted by the maker.
Great care is necessary to shave off but a small portion as the gouge is passed along. The latter has a very keen edge, or it will tear instead of cut. It is used here and there in contrary direction, as the grain of the several parts of the purfling does not run quite level. A curved file, and finally a little glasspapering, will complete the matter so far. There will be for the finishing of the whole of the fresh wood a further process to go through, that is, a slight damping.
This can be done with a small fine grained sponge or a moderately wet camel hair brush. This is for the purpose of slightly raising the grain. If this is not done at this time the soft part of the grain may show its automatic tendency to swell after the final process of varnishing has been gone through. When quite dry, fine glasspaper is used to reduce the surface to an almost polished level, after which some clear oil, having good drying qualities, is brushed lightly but completely over all portions of the fresh work.
It will not be absolutely necessary that this should be quite dry and hard before proceeding with the varnishing down to the tint of the old and surrounding work.
This being a separate and independent branch of the art of restoration, will be treated apart hereafter.