New Pictures From Old.
The art of restoring old and damaged pictures is even more delicate than the art of restoring old and injured books. The restorer can take a painting upon a canvas which has become rotten with age, all torn and cracked, and he can actually transfer the film of paint to a new canvas where it appears with the freshness of a new and perfect work of art.
To do this he glues to the face of the old picture a sheet of stout manila paper. Then he carefully scrapes away every particle of the old canvas, leaving upon the paper only the thin layer of paint. Then he takes a new piece of canvas of the size of the old piece, covers it with the strongest fish glue, and presses the paint-covered manila paper very firmly down upon it. After the two are thoroughly united he removes the paper with hot water, cleans the surface of the painting, and behold!—it is as good as new. By this process a painting upon wood can be 'transferred as well as a painting upon canvas.
If a painting can thus be restored, no one need despair of restoring character. To be sure, we are dealing here with matters infinitely more delicate; but also we are dealing with life, which has its own recuperative power, and we have the help of the great Artist who made the original design. He will show us how to remove the worn and stained material. His patience is endless. His skill is invincible. We can become new creatures under His hand. The old can be taken away and all things can be made new. We can be delivered from the body of death that adheres to us. We can be transformed by the renewing of our minds. We can save the only thing worth saving, the image of our Lord which has been imprinted upon us; and we can carry it over into a strong, pure, fresh existence. This is the miracle that is known as regeneration, and it is within the reach of even the most abandoned sinner.