into negotiations with a company of Eastern gentlemen, and sold the factory to them shortly after. In 1837 the factory was leased to Thomas Tucker, who continued the manufacture of fine porcelain for about one year, when it was permanently closed. Under the direction of Judge Hemphill, who had become interested in the subject while abroad, great improvements were made in the body of the ware as well as in the glazing and ornamentation. French porcelain was selected as the model after which the Tucker & Hemphill china was patterned, and skilled artists were brought from France to decorate the ware. Pitchers and vases were sometimes decorated with painted portraits of Revolutionary heroes; two of the former, with likenesses of Washington and Wayne, are still preserved. The later productions of this factory were greatly superior to anything produced in the United States before. They were characterized by smoothness of paste,