A moisture‐condensation technique previously described was utilized in a study of the effect of polishing on fracture patterns in glass surfaces. The experiments show that the apparent controversy concerning the polishing out or “bridging over” of surface fractures may be resolved on the basis of crack dimensions. If the fracture width is less than 1/4 λ, it may be sealed over by polishing, even though the depth may be 1 mm. or more. A modified condensation chamber was devised to show in detail the effect of aging and fracture growth in polished su