Des Arc citizen., 1866-10-06
THE INVISIBLE GENTLEMAN.

THE INVISIBLE GENTLEMAN.
 Unseen he sittoth at your freside-- ,, Pursues you closely in your daily walks;
 And with q nice ear, keen eye and accute
 mind, Observes and solves your overy word and not, From time to time he roughly seribblcs these For his memento and for your comment.
 The Printer, and the general charac- teristics of his craft, will be the subject of the present number ofthese sketches.
 The Printer-thcrc he stands at his case, his eyes arc fixed on his copy, while his fingers, obedient, to his will, collects the letters from the various boxes, and place them together so as to form words, cntences-completc arti- clcs ofnews, politics or literature. The musician at the piano can hardly con- pete with tho printer, in the rapidity and precision of his digital notion like the pianist who plays with his mu- sic book and instrument before him, the printer sees and comprehends at q glance the ever varying results his fin gers must produce; and does hesitate Q tion, with the rapidity of lightning. Like notes from the instrument, every letter, every pause, every stop, is called forth, in its proper place, till complete ensemble is formed, which the memory can treasure up, and which the mind can conceive and digest. Buthow diff ferent arc the final effects produced in these two instancesl The musician creates series of melodious and har- monious sounds, which please tho car for moment and die away--the feel ings, gay or sad, desponding or enthu- siastic, mild or violent, arc excited for the moment, but the charm soon ccas- es, and nought but the rccollcctions of past pleasure or pain remain upon the mind. But the printers labor bears everlasting fruit-hc spreads before mankind the arena of knowledge, and works with the sages in the laboratory of reason-he sends messengers to cve- " one of the human family, he invokcs all men to behold the beauties of truth, and seeks to make the mass of mankind conscious of those immutable rights, with which man is invested, at his birth, by nature and natures God. The prin- ter has been, since the fifteenth century, the faithful and most active auxiliary of learning. That day the printer first struck off sheet from arongh block of types-from that day we may date the universal spread of knowledge, and the gradual disfranchiscmcnt of mankind from the bonds of ignorance, supcrsti- tion and oppression. From that day has man gradually advanced to the gen. eral enjoyment of free, enlightened, and republican institutions-from that day royalty and its concomitants began to decay, and fair liberty to grow ill their place.
 l might continue to show. in detail, the correctness of the general outline I have drawn, but the immense benefits which the art of printing has conferred upon mankind have been described by ablcr and more eloquent pens than mine. Let mo present q single hyppth- sis-supposc that the great protective ness, and the teacher of all arts and scienccs-sllpposc that the art of print ing had never been discovered; 1; at what q stage of progress would we now find natural philosophy, astronomy, me- chanics, navigation, and thc many arts which conducc so effcctually to the comfort and preservation of mankind {? where would now be those liberties we hold so dear? Yet ill the womb of futnrity. The discoveries of a Newton would have been the treasure of an OK elusive few. Watt and Fulton would perhaps have never learned the first principles of mechanics-and Franklin might never read q book, or published q single principle tending to the indc- pcndencc of his country.
 7 TLt. unctanfc f,f (yronno anI To,x~o certainly numbered some great and which these learned men moved, how few received glimpse of science how few ever learned to read-and how difficult it was to obtain instruction or books. Now, through the agency of printing, our means ofacquiring know ledge are unlimited, and its dissemina- tion is universal. The consequence is, that greater number labor to unravel and make useful the secrets of nature, and the progress of mankind towards perfection is thousand times moro rapid.
 The printer, as an individual, comes directly under the constant influences of the instructive and liberal art he profcsses. The printer reads more, and possesses more varied and general in- formation than the theologian, lawyer, or avowed philosopher. It is the prin- tcr's trade to read constantly, day after day, during his whole life--hc earns his daily bread by reading, aye, and reading slowly and carefully, for he must follow and put the works we read into type, letter by letter--hc must awhile upon every sentence. Does the merchant know the prices of cotton and other goods in distant countries the intelligence is perused by printer before merchant touches it. Does a politician discuss the affairs of nations he owes his knowledge to the printer, who is always ahead of him in point of information. Does the physician study the work of some profound Esculapius let him look at the title page, and he will see that he owes the work to q 1 printer, who has read it over and over again to see that not letter is wanted, | not comma out of place. The same may be said of the lawyer, the minister, and the scientific mechanic. The prin- ter stands at the door of all their learn ing, and holds the keys which open it.
 The printer is great travellcr.-l There are few printers in the United States who have not visited every State in the Union They arc sllre of findinC