Popular Technology Volume II Part 5

1. From what has been said in a preceding article, it is manifest that the art of printing arose from the practice of engraving on wood.

Letters were cut on wood as inscriptions to pictures, and were printed at the same time with them, by means of a hand-roller. The impressions were taken on one side of the paper; and, in order to hide the nakedness of the blank side, two leaves were pasted together. These leaves were put up in pamphlet form, and are now known under the denomination of _block-books_, because they were printed from wooden blocks.

2. Although the art of typographical printing can be clearly traced to wood engraving, yet so much uncertainty rests upon its history, that the honor of its invention is claimed by three cities--Harlem, in Holland, and Strasburg and Mentz, in Germany; and, at the present time, it is difficult to determine satisfactorily the merits of their respective claims. The obscurity on this point has arisen from the desire of the first printers to conceal the process of the art, that their productions might pa.s.s for ma.n.u.scripts, and that they might enjoy the full benefit of their invention.

3. The advocates of the claims of Harlem state, that Laurentius Coster applied wooden types, and some say, even metal types, as early as 1428, and that several persons were employed by him in the business up to the year 1440, when his materials were stolen from him by one of his workmen or servants, named John, while the family were engaged in celebrating the festival of Christmas eve. The thief is said to have fled first to Amsterdam, then to Cologne, and, finally, to have settled in Mentz, where, within a twelvemonth, he published two small works, by means of the types which Laurentius Coster had used.

4. These claims in favor of Harlem, however, were not set forth until 120 years after the death of Coster; and the whole story, as then stated by Hadriamus Junius, was founded altogether upon traditionary testimony. Perhaps wood engravings, with inscriptions, may have been executed there; if so, the account may have originated from that circ.u.mstance.

5. The statements which seem to be the most worthy of credit, bestow the honor of this invention on a citizen of Mentz. Here, it appears, that John Geinsfleisch, or Guttemburg senior, published two small works for schools, in 1442, on wooden types; but, not having the funds necessary to carry on the business, he applied to John Faust, a rich goldsmith, who became a partner, in 1443, and advanced the requisite means. Soon afterwards, J. Meidenbachius and some others were admitted as partners.

6. In the following year, John Guttemburg, the brother of Geinsfleisch, made an addition to the firm. For several years before this union, or from 1436, Guttemburg had been attempting to complete the invention at Strasburg; but it is said that he had never been able to produce a clean printed sheet. The brothers may, or may not, have pursued their experiments without receiving any hints from each other, before their union at Mentz.

7. Soon after the formation of this partnership, the two brothers commenced cutting _metal types_, for the purpose of printing an edition of the Bible, which was published in Latin, about the year 1450. Before this great achievement of the art had been effected, Geinsfleisch appears to have retired from the concern, some say, on account of blindness.

8. The partnership before mentioned, was dissolved, in 1450, and Faust and Guttemburg entered into a new arrangement, the former supplying money, the latter, personal services, for their mutual benefit; but various difficulties having arisen, this partnership was also dissolved, in 1455, after a lawsuit between them, which was decided against Guttemburg.

9. Faust, having obtained possession of the printing materials, entered into partnership with Peter Shoeffer, who had been for a long time a servant, or workman, in the printing establishment. In 1457, they published an edition of the _Psalter_, which was then considered uncommonly elegant. This book was, in a great measure, the work of Guttemburg, since, during the four years in which it was in the press, he was, for two years and a half, the chief operator in the printing-office.

10. Guttemburg, by the pecuniary aid of Conrad Humery and others, established another press in Mentz, and, in 1460, published the "_Catholicon Joannis Januensis_." It was a very handsome work, but not equal in beauty to the Psalter of Faust and Shoeffer. The latter was the first printed book known to have a genuine date. From this time, it has been the practice for printers to claim their own productions, by prefixing to them their names.

11. Notwithstanding the great advancement which had been made in the art of printing, the invention cannot, by any means, be considered complete, until about the year 1458, when Peter Shoeffer contrived a method of casting types in a matrix, or mould. The first book executed with cast metal types was called "_Durandi Ralionale Divinorum Officiorum_," published in 1459. Only the smaller letters, however, were of this description, all the larger characters which occur, being _cut types_. These continued to be used, more or less, as late as the year 1490.

12. In 1462, Faust carried to Paris a number of Latin Bibles, which he and Shoeffer had printed, and disposed of many of them as ma.n.u.scripts.

At first, he sold them at five or six hundred crowns, the sums usually obtained by the scribes. He afterwards lowered the price to sixty.

This created universal astonishment; but, when he produced them according to the demand, and when he had reduced the price to thirty, all Paris became agitated.

13. The uniformity of the copies increased the wonder of the Parisians, and information was finally given against him to the police as a magician. He was accordingly arrested, and a great number of his Bibles were seized. The red ink with which they were embellished, was supposed to be his blood. It was seriously adjudged, that the prisoner was joined in league with the devil; and had he not disclosed the secret of his art, he would probably have shared the fate of those whom the magistrates of those superst.i.tious times condemned for witchcraft.

14. It may be well to inform the reader, that, although the story of Faust's arrest, as above detailed, is related as a fact by several authors, yet by others it is thought to be unworthy of credit. It is also generally supposed, that the celebrated romance of "Doctor Faustus and the devil" originated in the malice of the monks towards Faust, whose employment of printing deprived them of their gain as copiers. It seems more probable, however, that it arose from the astonishing performances of Doctor John Faust, a dealer in the black art, who lived in Germany in the beginning of the sixteenth century.

15. Faust and Shoeffer continued their printing operations together, at least, until 1486, about which time it is conjectured, that the former died of the plague, at Paris. Geinsfleisch, or, as he is sometimes called, Guttemburg senior, died in 1462; and his brother Guttemburg junior, in 1468, after having enjoyed, for three years, the privileges of n.o.bility, which, together with a pension, had been conferred upon him by Archbishop Adolphus, in consideration of his great services to mankind.

16. More copies of the earliest printed books were impressed on vellum than on paper; but very soon paper was used for a princ.i.p.al part of the edition, while a few only were printed on vellum, as curiosities, to be ornamented by the illuminators, whose ingenious art, though in vogue before and at that time, did not long survive the rapid improvements in printing.

17. We are informed, that the Mentz printers observed the utmost secrecy in their operations; and, that the art might not be divulged by the persons whom they employed, they administered to them an oath of fidelity. This appears to have been strictly adhered to, until the year 1462, when the city was taken and plundered by Archbishop Adolphus. Amid the consternation which had arisen from this event, the workmen spread themselves in different directions; and, considering their oath no longer obligatory, they soon divulged the secret, which was rapidly diffused throughout Europe.

18. Some idea may be formed of the celerity with which a knowledge of printing was extended, from the fact that the art was received in two hundred and three places, prior to the year 1500. It was brought to England, in 1471, by William Caxton, a mercer of the city of London, who had spent many years in Germany and Holland. The place of the first location of his press was Westminster Abbey. The first press in North America was established at Cambridge, Ma.s.sachusetts, in 1639.

19. Printed newspapers had their origin in Germany. They first appeared in Augsburg and Vienna, in 1524. They were originally without date or place of impression; nor were they published at regular periods. The first German paper with numbered sheets was printed, in 1612; and, from this time, must be dated periodical publications in that part of Europe.

20. In England, the first newspaper appeared during the reign of Elizabeth. It originated in a desire to communicate information in regard to the expected invasion by the Spanish armada, and was ent.i.tled the "English Mercury," which, by authority, was printed at London by Christopher Barker, her highness's printer, in 1588.

21. These, however, were extraordinary gazettes, not regularly published. Periodicals seem to have been first extensively used by the English, during the civil wars in the time of the Commonwealth. The number of newspapers in Great Britain and Ireland amounted, in 1829, to 325, and the sums paid to the government for stamps and duties on advertis.e.m.e.nts, amounted to about 678,000 sterling.

22. No newspaper appeared in the British colonies of America until 1704, when the "News Letter" was issued at Boston. The first paper published in Philadelphia, was issued in 1719; the first in New-York, in 1733. In 1775, there were 37; and in 1801, there were, in the whole United States, 203; in 1810, 358; at the present time, there are about 1500, and the number is annually increasing.

23. The first periodical paper of France originated with Renaudot, a physician in Paris, who, for a long time, had been in the habit of collecting news, which he communicated verbally to his patients, with the view to their amus.e.m.e.nt. But, in 1631, he commenced the publication of a weekly sheet, called the "Gazette de France," which was continued with very little interruption, until 1827. There are now, probably, in France, about 400 periodical publications most of which have been established since the commencement of the revolution of 1792.

24. Periodicals devoted to different objects have been established in every other kingdom of Europe; but, in many cases, they are trammelled by a strict censorship of the respective governments. This is especially the case with those devoted to politics or religion. But all Europe, with its 200,000,000 of inhabitants, does not support as many regular publications as the United States, with its 17,000,000.

25. The workmen employed in a printing-office are of two kinds: _compositors_, who arrange the types according to the copy delivered to them; and _pressmen_, who apply ink on the types, and take off impressions. In many cases, and especially where the business is carried on upon a small scale, the workmen often practise both branches.

26. Before the types are applied to use, they are placed in the cells or compartments of a wooden receptacle called a _case_, each species of letter, character and s.p.a.ce, by itself. The letters which are required most frequently, are lodged in the largest compartments, which are located nearest to the place where the compositor stands, while arranging the types.

27. The compositor is furnished with a _composing-stick_, which is commonly an iron instrument, surrounded on three sides with ledges about half an inch in height, one of which is moveable, so that it may be adjusted to any length of line. The compositor, in the performance of his work, selects the letters from their several compartments, and arranges them in an inverted order from that in which they are to appear in the printed page.

28. At the end of each word is placed a _quadrat_, to produce a s.p.a.ce between that and the one which follows. The quadrats are of various widths, and being considerably shorter than types, they yield no impression in printing. A thin bra.s.s rule is placed in the stick, on which each successive line of types is arranged. When the composing-stick has been filled, it is _emptied_ into the _galley_, which is a flat board, partly surrounded with a rim.

29. On this galley, the lines are acc.u.mulated in long columns, which are afterwards divided into pages, and tied together with a string, to prevent the types from falling asunder, or into _pi_, as the printers term it. A sufficient number of pages having been completed to const.i.tute a _form_, or, in other words, to fill one side of a sheet of printing-paper, they are arranged on an _imposing-stone_, and strongly locked up, or wedged together, in an iron _chase_.

30. The first impression taken from the types is called the _proof_.

This is carefully read over by the author or proof-reader, or both, and the errors and corrections plainly marked in the margin. These corrections having been made by the compositor, the form is again locked up, and delivered to the pressman.

31. The pressman having dampened his paper with water, and put every part of his press in order, takes impressions in the following manner: he places the sheet upon the _tympan_, and confines it there by turning down upon it the _frisket_; he then brings them both, together with the paper, upon the form, which has been previously inked. He next turns a crank with his left hand, and thereby places the form directly under the _platen_, which is immediately brought, in a perpendicular direction, upon the types, by means of a lever pulled with his right hand.

32. After the impression has been thus communicated, the form is returned to its former position, and the printed sheet is removed. The operation just described, is repeated for each side of every sheet of the edition. In the cut at the head of this article, the pressman is represented as in the act of turning down the frisket upon the tympan.

The business of the boy behind the press is to apply the ink to the types by means of the _rollers_ before him. In offices where much printing is executed, the roller-boy is now dispensed with, simple machinery, attached to the crank of the press, called a _patent roller-boy_, being subst.i.tuted in his place.

33. Within the present century, great improvements have been made in the printing business generally, especially in the presses, and in the means of applying the ink. In the old _Ramage_ press, the power was derived from a screw which was moved by a lever; but, in those by several late inventors, from an acc.u.mulation of levers.

34. In 1814, printing by machinery was commenced in London, and rollers became necessary for inking the forms. These were made of mola.s.ses, glue, and tar, in proportions to suit the temperature of the weather. From these originated composition b.a.l.l.s in the following year, and in 1819, hand rollers. Formerly the ink was applied by means of pelt b.a.l.l.s stuffed with wool.

35. The power-press first used in this country, was invented, in 1823, by Mr. Treadwell, a scientific mechanic, of Boston, who was originally a watch-maker by trade. It acts on the same principle with the hand press, and is equal to three of these of the best construction. Daniel Fanshaw, who first applied steam to printing in the United States, introduced several of these presses into New-York, in 1826. Messrs.

Adams and Tufts, of Boston, have each invented a power-press which act on the same principle with Mr. Treadwell's.

36. The presses noticed in the preceding paragraph, are used chiefly in printing books and periodicals requiring moderate speed in their production. But they do not answer the purposes of the daily press in large cities, where from twenty thousand to sixty thousand impressions of a single paper are required every day. To supply this immense demand of the public was the original aim of the inventors of power-presses in England. The first attempt to construct a printing machine was made, in 1790, by William Nicholson, of London; but his machine was never brought into use. The next attempt was made by Mr.

Konig, an ingenious German, who but partially succeeded. The first really useful machine was constructed by Messrs. Applegate and Cowper.

37. The machines used in this country are modifications of that originally invented by Mr. Napier, of England. The paper is brought in contact with the form of types by means of a cylinder, while the form is pa.s.sing underneath it. The press is constructed with one or two cylinders. A double cylinder press will give from 4000 to 6000 impressions an hour. The improvements on this press were made by Robert Hoe & Co., who have permitted Mr. Napier to introduce them into his press in England.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

THE TYPE-FOUNDER.

1. The types cast by the type-founder are oblong square pieces of metal, each having, on one end of it, a letter or character, in relief. The metal of which these important instruments are composed, is commonly an alloy consisting princ.i.p.ally of lead and antimony, in the proportion of about five parts of the former to one of the latter.

This alloy melts at a low temperature, and receives and retains with accuracy the shape of the mould. Several hundred pounds of type-metal are prepared at a time, and cast into bars filled with notches, that they may be easily broken into pieces, when about to be applied to use.

2. In making types, the letter or character is first formed, by means of gravers and other tools, on the end of a steel punch. With this instrument, a _matrix_ is formed, by driving it into a piece of copper of suitable size. A punch and matrix are required for every character used in printing. A metallic mould for the body of the type is also made; and, that the workman may handle it without burning his hands, it is surrounded with a portion of wood. The mould is composed of two parts, which can be closed and separated with the greatest facility.

3. The type-metal is prepared for immediate use by melting it, as fast as it may be needed, in a small crucible, over a coal fire. The caster having placed the matrix in the bottom of the mould, commences the operation of casting by pouring the metal into the mould with a small ladle. This he performs with his right hand, while with the other he throws up the mould with a sudden jerk; then, with both hands he opens it, and throws out the type. All these movements are performed with such rapidity, that an expert hand can cast about fifty types of a common size in a minute. Some machines have been lately introduced, which operate with still greater rapidity.

4. Each type, when thrown from the mould, has attached to it a superfluous portion of metal, called a _jet_, which is afterwards broken off by hand. The jets are again cast into the pot, or crucible, and the types are carried to another room, where the two broad sides are rubbed on a grindstone. They are next arranged on flat sticks about three feet long, and delivered to the _dresser_, who sc.r.a.pes the two sides not before made smooth on the grindstone, cuts a groove on the end opposite the letter, and rejects from the row the types which may be defective.