Bradford reporter. [volume] (Towanda, Pa.) 1844-1884, 1857-04-16
5f(1sttIlantOus.
How Printing Type are EIade.

in the manufacturing o f printing type various
processes are gone through, all requiring very
great accuracy and care Many improvements
have been made, nor is it improbable that
more will be effected. We shall give a brief,
and We hope a clear description Of the mod
ern manufacture Of type, as We have observed
it in large establishment of this city. Each
establishment has pecu!iariticS Of its own, but
the general principles are the same.
The letters etc. are first cut upon a steel
punch. This requires great skill The char
actcys are Ofteutimes extremely minute, and
every pains is taken to procure not only ndi-
yidual beauty, but general uniformity. Not
only letters, but figures, signs and ornaments
in endless varieties, are thus cut There are
also spaces used to separate words Quad
rats, which are larger than spaces, separate
sentences, and in general occupy that posi-
ton among type that is represented by the I'M
printed parts, both the spaces and quadrats
being shorter than type. In full font of
type thrc are about three hundred different
characters. The cost Of the separate punches
varies from two to fifty dollars. After the
punch has been cut, it is ndented to a certain
depth into a block Of copper this is called
the matriX. ElectFotypiug has of late years
been used for the purpose of obtaining matri-
ccs from the type itself, by which means type
founders have been enabled to avail them
selves Of each others labor Business moraIi-
ty is a most elastic quality, and it would be a
nseIcS expenditure Of time to question the pro
pFlety Of the practice.
An apparatus denominatcd the mold, is used
ior forming the body Of the type, and to this
mold, which answers for all the tvpeS of a
iont, the different matrices are adjusted as re-
qlTed. He who adjusts the matrices to the
mold is called justiIer or more commonly a
hitter. All the types of font are of the
same length and depth, though the letters up
On them vary in their dimensions. The mold
is so constructed as to admit Of the width be-
ing altered to suit the letters TO be cast thus
the letter |, which is very narrow, is upon the
body Of a type, the perpendicular face of
which is exactly the same as that of the letter
W. which is several times as wide 1t is nee
essary that the bodies Of types should also
have their lines at exact right angles with
out this they would not stand in line, and CON
>equently would be useless IF the types va
FED in height, they would not give a perfect
Impression, in cndeayoring to obtain which,
some would be subjected to an injurious pres
ure. A few types have a portion of the face
Of the letter projecting over the body, as in
The letter f; this projection is called the kern,
and in combination with other letters the pro-
ecting part generally extends over the next
etter as in fe In these combinations, where
"a the kern would come in contact with ano-
Tier letter, compound types are cast, as in the
Ease Of If, fl, fl, fiji and FIJI. Some years ago
,lese combinations were much more numerous,
eat many have been dispensed with by alter
ing the form of the letter.
-, The next operation is that of casting -
lne old method, which is even to the present
.lne generally used in England, may be thus
EscH3ed. The matriX having been adjusted
% the mold, is taken by the caster in his left
-tad At his right, upon a furnace, is pot
molten metal. This metal he dips ont in
@'a0lc quantities with small ladle, and
olf5 into the mold, at the same time giving
41'ck upward jerk, for the purpose of fore
~! The metal well into the matrix, to give the
.le good face. a spring which holds the
''rG in its proper position, is then moved !;
.e m2triX pried ont from the type, the mold
...I 2y3ed and the type thrown out BY this
-.'"oa an average of about 1000 type day