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64 THE TREATMENT OF TEETH
A four-sided instruiiient that is tapered down to a
point is a useful form, and many of the older
operators were in the habit of keeping the point
and side angles as sharp as possible by rubbing
them on an oil-stone. They often used' the sides
for packing and condensing the gold laterally,
then the point for further lateral condensation,
and finally the point for making holes in the fill-
ing and for complete consolidation of surface.
Mallets.—It is probable that no better work has
ever been acomplished than that which is done by
means of the old-fashioned hand mallet. No other
percussive instrument enables the dentist to feel so
exactly what he is doing, and to vary the force so
accurately and delicately. In order to use the hand
mallet with ease and precision the operator must be
completely ambidextrous, or else be dependent on
a skilled assistant. Very few dentists are ambi-
dextrous, and even if the operator is equally skilled
in the use of both hands, an assistant is often neces-
sary in order to hold back the cheeks of a patient,
and to throw light into the cavity with the mouth
mirror. The hand mallet will, therefore, never be
generally adopted, more especially as some very
efficient substitutes have been invented. The steel
hand mallet gives a sharp, ringing blow, and appears
to condense the gold more quickly than the lead