The evening Argus. [volume] (Rock Island, Ill.) 1861-1871, 1866-03-15
4 Wonderful Invocation.
From the New York Citizen, Mars

FROM IHe view 1OIh SlblZen, ndESE ~.
Second only in importance to the original
discovery of printing is the machine ust per-
fected, alter long aud exhaustive trial, known
| as the Alden machine for setting and distrib-
uting type. This invention has new been
under observation of the best practical minds
for several months In a room attached to the
edisorisl department of the Tribune aud the
opinion they have formed Of its value is the
result Of close and protraoteo observation. -
Mr. Greeley pronounees 1t al entire and IN
| qualified success, and Mr.. Sydney I'll. Cav,
his managing editor, shares the same opin-
| ion.
During q series of exhaustive experiments
certain minor imperfections of detail were de-
| yeloped, but these were easy OF remedy, and
are now remedied completely and finally, by
certain changes of movement and the ma
| chimes as they stand to-day are efficient and
durable labor-savers for the use of our great
daily papers. To justify this opinion Let us
cite few dry statistics which will be under.
| stood and appreciated by all who have prsc-
teal acquaintance with the business of set
| ting or composing type.
A good practical printer, such as work on
the great dailies of this city, will set up on
the average about 600 ems per hour He
| may set nearly double this amount for
| brief spell, but cannot keep up any such kill
| ing pace and his average, if he be Il good
| mechanic, through a weeks work, will be
| about $50 ems stated. The Alden ma
| chine, on the contrary, will make Il steady
| average all the year round of over 4. 900 ems
| per hour, or more than six times the aver
| age composition rate of g good compositor.-
| The machine, however, requires two hands to
| work it quickly and efficiently. as is required
| in the office of daily Dewspaper-one oper-
| ator touching the keys and setting the type
| in the galleys; the other a justifer, TO space
| out and properly justify the lines and Para
] graphs OF type In the composing stick. This
shows that one Alden machine with two op-
eratOrs-whO may be either male or female
| at discretion, for the work of setting the
| type is like playing a piano-can perform as
| much labor Of this class as any six average
| good printers, such as work On the daily and
evening press of this and other cities.
| There are yet other advantages to be de-
rived from the employment of the Alden ma
| chine-its simplicity being such that any one
| of ordinary intelligence aud education can
learn its use in few lessons while, with
| anything like average care, it's proofs are far
| cleaner than any that are made by hand
| The motions of the operator which it calls
| for are easy and even graceful the last ex-
| psfimental operator we saw upon it being
| Admiral Farragut. who, to his own surprise
Whs cHdDicO u COIHpOSc his own name anu
| those of several lady friends who were pres
| ent on the same occasion, without moments
difficulty.
In regard to the work OF the iustfer. it
will fully keep pace with the operator en-
| gagged in composing-one justifier having JUS
titled %, 484 ems in four hours and torty-four
minutes AN average of 4. $50 per hour, while
the average composition of the machine is
about 4,034 ems in the same period.
1t is to be remarked that the experiments
in the Tribune ofhcee on which these favora-
BILE results were obtained were conducted un-
der the most unfavorabls auspices, the "spa
oes" used not being of the right or most con-
venisnt size-a defect since remedied and
several minor defects In the details of the ma
chine beng revealsd by this severe practical
test. each of which as il showed itself was in
its turn promptly and permanently obviated
by the slight change requisite in certain
movements-ths master mechanics of the Al
den company, who have carried the inven.
ton to Its present practical success, being
present and careful observers of every def
cheney, and prompt In the fertility of their
mechanical resources to suggest and make
the requisite alterations.
We hail this labor-saving machine as one
of the most important and durable additions
this country will have made to the mechani-
ic6i progress ol ING HUHan Iamlly. lt Will
cheaper lsrgely-we think by at least two
thirds-the cost of putting forth printed
thought, so far as the setting and the distri-
button of the types may be concerned and
will make daily papers blossom into profts-
Bile life In small towns now only able to sup
port weekly. and will give a weekly to ev-
cry village that contains over a hundred
houses. Indeed, so simple is it that we fore
see lite introduction into every business house
requiring to issue frequently any quantity of
circulars or cards; for while two hands
would be required to work it at the speed re-
quisite in daily newspaper, single hand |
would be sufficient In cases of NO urgent
haste.