Fig. 52.
Fig. 53.
The point from which a circle or arc of a circle is drawn is termed its centre. The line representing the centre of a cylinder is termed its axis; thus, in Figure 53, dot d represents the centre of the circle, and line b b the axial line of the cylinder.
To draw a circle that shall pass through any three given points: Let A B and C in Figure 54 be the points through which the circumference of a circle is to pass. Draw line D connecting A to C, and line E connecting B to C. Bisect D in F and E in G. From F as a centre draw the semicircle O, and from G as a centre draw the semicircle P; these two semicircles meeting the two ends of the respective lines D E. From B as a centre draw arc H, and from C the arc I, bisecting P in J. From A as a centre draw arc K, and from C the arc L, bisecting the semicircle O in M. Draw a line passing through M and F, and a line passing through J and Q, and where these two lines intersect, as at Q, is the centre of a circle R that will pass through all three of the points A B and C.
Fig. 54.