The Sumter banner. [volume] (Sumterville, S.C.) 1846-1855, 1848-08-23
AuGIsI 81, Is4ss
Fosn OK, ssts iisbba,S q asro,I,a. lSSI
'oMET THIN 81 gARo oUTs FRI rsTiNG !.

.sss live in age and sin a country n hare.
insf would be eonsid dered altlosts d sSp pfcof
pflunncy, OF; graat ternerit sat leasfs Ia
soy that printing is not, one $of The ra,osts
Siisel arta. Tliat the ART OF priiIti iiIlrs rs
like salt--t'it IL tie prcser rvattve sof aSI
arts'-seerns; to be d position {; conceded bv
oil civilized Communities whereiits beei,e ].
hts have been diffhsed with either an uf,.
sParing orstinted hand. That Ii has H..
cilitatsd the ffiarch ofimprqsements sprcads
abroad sl md Hprppug lied correct principles,
heral1ed forth the ipseeeh chEistiati.5
ty, carried civil josis shR afss and know.
ledge into foreign deE fIsat hs Il slandss
anRthat it has ma owm him
Whit ne isS and Yhai lie ough D bs, Be-.
sides comforting numerous dtiief if,ynIua.
bic advantages, no one 4. n,
to its operations will for d nioment doubt.
But he!intention in commencing this ar.
1ticie was not to !eulogize this art forsthe
bcncfactions it has conferred on man, but
for. entirely another. purpose.
Common or letter press printing, such as
books, newspapers, &C., lis carried on by
&asI6fges number Of tools or types, every
one 81 sshich cost .!!:cney, lske: and ;ase.
sI9itYto fltit fbr use. Atype &c buraeoise
SAizes Isnch as our editorials. eaithough,i
istbut eleven twelfihs of'an incl, long, OF,
an average, still costs something. Il is
said atthere are but two or three men
in tlesU. State who con make The matri,
Gee In which types are cast, so peculiar,
complete, proportioned, uniform and ex-.
act the work to be done. The letters ure
made principally Of lead, mixedwi,h 9th.
er metals in order tc harden it sufficient
ly when cool, while at tile same time these
other ingredients cause the fused connpo.
sition to fill the most tenuous crcvice of the
Sniatrix completely. For every sized type
and every different shape type-and there
are moro than 500 shapes and sizes of
each letter in our alphabet in use-new
matrices have to be made, and ench with
the same exactness, or the fount is defec.
tive. In roman each letter must be made
three times-large and small capitals,
lower cuse, saying nothing Of points, fig.
ures and other Indispensable characters
To give some idea Of the number of char
acters and letters which form asfont OF
types, it may answer to state that there
y - S"'Ss'S 10 sssO
iteslo,rer case containing all tho common.
or small letters, with the figures and points
for rpunctuution, double letters, quadrates,
this cuse has commonly "a boxes, and
every one il occupied. The upper cass
containing the lurge and small capitals,
'sssids numerous marks and characters
which are in common use, has 90 boxes,
and but 2 or 8 3ofthem nre unoccupied.
Thus it seems the type founder in order
to supply common fount OF roman letter
has t1have CONSTRUCTED about $50 matri-
ces; and the Italics are not included here
which will make over hundred moro
just to manufacture letters &C., Of one
size and corresponding faces. Here,
thenJ there must be about too hundred
ai,d Gfy chdrdeiers tiiade; and some of
them good many thousand times over,
just to print the plain natter ofa common
newspaper. To give the initiated Of,
idea sof.hc numbers and pfoportions Of
typesMsed-fot printers have no secrets
that / know Oft may answer TO state
we USE soy for n common ayara1e E,nt