The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1872-01-26
mi miscellaneous.
THE ART OF PRINTING.
An Essay Delivered before the William Writ
Literary Society, Of Baltimore.
BY WIN. PINKNEY HAMILTON
Concluded from last weeb.

Concluded from last ueek.
About the year 1850 the hand printing
press was inv ented. Benjamin Franklin S
SIP ecimen is now in the Patent Office at
Washington. The frame is bench some
two feet wide and five feet long. There is
vertical post on each side at distance
OF about fifteen inches. Two posts are
joined at the top by cross beam and
through this beam plays heavy wooden
screw which moves a platen attached to
its lower end. The under surface of the
platen is carefully planed being intended
to press the paper against the type. The
screw is turned by means of long bar or
lever entering the head On each side of
the table or bench from end to end are rails
and on these carriage called the bed.
The type are placed upon the bed and the
latter is moved -nder the platen and from
under it by small axle placed crosswise
under the table and worked with crank
Attached are two counter weights-one to
raise the platen when the pressman lets go
the lever; and the other to turn back the
axle. On one end of the bed is hinged Il
quadrangular frame of wood or iron called
the tympan and on the end of the tympan is
hltched another frame called the frisket
Inc outer edge of the tympan is solid-the
inside is cloth or double parchment with
a wooden blanket between. The frisket
holds the sheet against the tympan, and
the latter carries the sheet and forms soft
surface between the paper and the platen,
mus equallzlng the pressure. The mixing
apparatus accompanying this press consists
OF table with surface and two elastic balls
about eight inches in diameter, covered
with dog and each provided with
short handle. A small quadrangle of ink
was placed on the table and spread in a
thin layer, when it was taken evenly by the
balls and put on the type. The manner
OF working this hand press was as follows
and substantially the same rs that of the
hand presses of the Present day. The form
is placed on the bed and mixed: the frs
is folded on the bed, SO that the frisket is
between the form and tbe tvmnan: the
Deo, ny axle and Crank, is brought under
the platen, which Is pressed down by pull
ing ON the lever. The pressman would
tnen let go the lever and the crank, when
inc counter weight raised the platen and
Drought the bed from under it. The frs
ket ana the tympan are unfolded and on
tne last IS an Impression from the type.
ouch press was worked by two men and
was capable OF printing from 175 to 200
copies OF one side in an hour.
The first Improvement on the hand press
was made by Earl Stanhope in England,
IN the year 1915. 1t consisted of being
made OF iron and substituting for the screw
an obtuse-angled jointed lever, which pro-
duced much greater pressure. The sec
ono improvement was made about the same
time by G. Clymer, of Philadelphia, who
used iron and combination of levers.
Inc third was by M. Gannal, glue man
ufacturer of Paris, who made gelatine roll
ers, compound of glue and molasses, used
IN place of the old dog skin balls. This
KIND OF rollers is in use at the present day.
In 1870 VIM. Nicholson, of England, pat
ented Press to be worked by power, but
falling to attach the type to cylinder, he
gave up his plan.
In 1904 Frederick KONG, ofSaxony, be-
gan to devise improvements in the print
ing press. Finding no encouragement
from Capitalists at home, he went to Lon
don Where he succeeded in associating with
MN two gentlemen of some means. In
1911 he obtained patent for working
common hand press by power, but it fail
ed In practice.
In 1918 Messrs. DonkIn & Bacon, after
long and repeated efforts, succeeded in pro-
ducing machine on Nicholson's principle
for Cambridge University.