Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1860-07-05
visit 10 the omc. of ,he london T,m...


ishment, permitted to visit the Mechanical por
ton of the office of the London Times and to spend suf
icent time there to get toleraby good idea of this
immense concern and the in which business is
done in it. The Office, almost everybody knows, is
located 10 Printing House Square,, and probably al
most everybody has imagined that Printing House
Square is large and noisy place in busy tho
roughfare of London and that the Times Office would Of
course be In locality where it could at least be
easily found Such, however is not the case, and with
out map, and constant inquiry it would be almost i'm
possible for stranger to find it, when placed with
In block of the office Striking towards the Thames
from off Ludgate Hill, in the vicinity of BIackfriar's
| Bridge, threaded half dozen narrow streets, and
when near the river and satisfied that | had lost my
way, came upon little triangular space, from one
side OF which rose dngy looking building, the
door OF which little sign, % The Times Office ard
underneath the arms OF England 1t perfect SOL
tude, within three minutes walk of one of the great
terles OF London, Upon entering, | was shown into
| small rOOm called the finishing ROOM" Here upon
presenting ny card introduced to very gentle
manly man. who informed me that he had been come :
ted with the paper for than forty years, and who
offered to show the establishment. In bis
the forms made up, the galleys being brought down
from the composing roou and the adjoining, for that
purpose Here one the galeys OF matter & adver-
tIsements left of the latter OF which my guide inform
ed me there often sixty seventy columns for which
space cannot be found in the immense double sheet
which Is daily published. The day before two thousand
adveIt8e'le ns were taken in at the Office which is
alongside OF this finishing ROOM" aud which is devoted
exclusively to the reception Of advertsempnts-and
about fifteen hundred different go into the paper
daily making up from eIg6t to ten pages OF the sixteen
printed About six columns of these daily adver-
8cmens of servants wanting places These charged
eighteen pence each, and limited to three lines many
OF them being rewritten after coming the Office and
made to conform to the prescribed form No difference
ID price made account OF any additional number OF
Insertions From here, went into adjoining ROOM
where the "day CompOsitUrs at work upon the
second edition of the paper which printed at hapast
twelve O'Clock, and contains, addition to the morning
news The letter OF the Paris correspondent and such
foreign matter arrives in the morning mail There
are nifty conposltors employed in this department. and
"ho' after the evening edition is worked off, 60 to work
upon the advertisements while there are seventy com
posItorS employed upon the night work. making III all |
one hundred and twenty compo2ttrS To correct their
matter there employed tweDty -four proof readers
one half for the day and the other for the night
From this composing we went into the foundry
ne InCrnng edition OF the Times varies from sixty to
seventy thousand copies and liz order to save the time
III printing! and the expense of setting up FORM
duplicate OF the original form is made here to be work
7d upon one press, while the original itself is on the
other This is effected in the following manner The ,
or oelng brought down here, pulp of paper machc
prepared ny some secret process, is spread it, and
beaten INTO 1t with large heavy BRUSH This process
md the hardening Of the mould occupies but minute
ma halt, and when it is taken off the FORM it. OF
curse presents perfect fac smile of the form ITSELF
= IS Vhen placed Iii sort of press and while yet pa-
ne Is shaped IN the circular form which it is necessary
ne forms should have to accommodate themselves to the
ynder presses and then the molten type metal is nOur
In, ana IN two minutes it is cOoed and being n
AIKEN out OF the mould the mperections which have Il
ccued Ill the casting rectied and in half an hour
S FORM Is ready Tor the press 1t would require the
Ork OF seventy hours to effect the same pur tf
ose as tins little piece OF work which is done in thirty
inues. y,
hls paper mache process Of moulding has been in use re-
the lines Office about five yeals The secret OF the
imposition is Known only the dlsCOycrer an Italian N,
med Ddlegan who lives in London and who brings n
prepared pulp to the Times Office every evening" co
mas not been able to procure patent for his inYen an
M IL beng alleged that it is only an Improvement up- lie;
t'5e ancient method OF sereotyping with plaster tn
'"'S' Ihey say they find the composition superior in
cry respect to plaster it being much cleaner and not
uling lhe lace OF the type SO much Six duplicates
y be taken from OF these moulds before is burnt ur
OuSn Inc last page containing the leading article LIST
Ine INES Is sent down to the foundry about four o. SO
ch III te morning, and at quarterpas six the i'm De
9Ssl0n is off. del
rom here we went into the paper ROOM which is nv NJ
Sloe OF the foundry, the basement floor passing P
oush large carpenters shop where half a dozen t1
neat little bath ro1ms conctruotaj g. to ocE' vii
cation OF the workmen The paper room we tound
"a up win paper and here obtained some inter TO-
hs statistics as to the amount of the raw material 0
sumed In the publication of the Times oec
he paper is furnished from four paper mills the De-
perry OF the IroprietOrs of the Times and is made ren
eiy Oh iihen During the Russian war; las great the
ny OF the rags came from Russia, and there being the
nr;otors a1 o supply "iShC De cut short,) the mer
PletoiS onered reward OF one thousand pounds of
ing or LIE discovery OF substitute for linen All Rn(
oi maerIal-Straw, vegetable fbres of 4 great Uni
ni,or+ o n"'tpso, "c.-"ere sent them to lvis
po tho ",o ou' 'hey louEu ho'nlng which would Tay
no e uIose ana Dy some means managed to keep Por
e supply OF rags during the continuance OF the war now
d; ~ 10y :nouS'nu sleets OF THIS paper are Uni
oay, and there is only here to keep three Con
supply on hand. Each sheet costs the pronriptors tn
my and farhing and fraction so that the two hom
Is on winch the paper is printed with the duty the him
informed me- cost fully three pence the price at of =
III e paper alter 1t is printed is sold to the news that
the prohts OF course, then, must be derived en- he ,
ot;on "a ~ 0n'o' anu Tue audl1On 10 the presi
atlon OF the paper is direct pecuniarv adyan Ann
ms circulation has, however, increased consid Unic
within the past ten years. In 85l thirteen mil S
undrdd tbnsaP ~ too'' sixteen millions office
unoeo thousand IN 1898, sixteen millions seven ance
req and eghtyhVe thousand four hundred and ftv n
f ftt,, f,r - n'ee,i nHlohs, or an aver uate
# pnynnhor o :. E0' "oly' were printed The by th
ST nuoer ever printed OF any single edition was on
ay after the funeral of the Duke of wellington har
seventy thousand copies were struck off, occos
the further end of this room is machine whchis which
or Wettng down., the old process of doing this both
~ oeeh oischarged about five years since moroe
~ 0aino ho" III use having been invented by an him 81
20 III tue aPer room The apparatus is very busnt
consStng o "ollen apron, upon which the pa in his
leu' anu "hlcn carries 1t under cylinder and most
W "uue oen9 wet, and the paper, tweny-four duties
"ncn are led at one time coming out thoroucb retarv
lpeueG' IL Is phed away in an adjoining room
Veve hours afterwards is all turned nv hand D.
achne 10000 sheets may be wet down in sonoy 1t il
with the labor of three menthe same amont ~ for VIII
which, under the old process REQUIRED be labor that b.