Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1873-02-20
How Magazines are Made

L determined to crafty my Gu
riosity, and on casting my eyes
about me, l soon fixed upo1
Woods Household Magazine, as the
object of my visit.
This popular monthly, as per.
haps our readers are aware, /.
published in the beautiful hill.
side city of Newburgh, on the
Hudson. Could natures sur
rounding beauties in any way
affect a magazine, then Wood,
indeed, would be the grandest
in the world.
But it is of my first visit more
especially that | intend at this
time to speak. 1t was on the
last day Of the old year that ]
presented myself to the editor
al Sanctum Sdnctorum Of this no
ted monthly. The omens were
propitiOus, and presently I was
enjoying a social chat with the
editor ofthe magazine. Amore
pleasant and retiriugman it has
never been my good fortune to
meet, and l could scarcely cred
it that the modest, unpretending
gentleman seated in the chair
bore me had, unaided by either
friends or money. and under cir
cumstances most discouraging,
in less than ten years establish
ed on a firm foundation one of
the mostpopular ''Dollar Month
lies" our day.
Having stated the object of
my visit, Mr.. Wood very kind
ly volunteered to initiate me into
the mysteries Of the art, if so we
may call it, andforthwith procee-
ded to do, by saying that the first
thing in order was the gathering
ofmateriah l was no little sur
prised when he quietly inform
ed me that his matter" for the
past year cost him no less than
six thousand dollars. Said he,
Il paid Gail Hamilton three
thousand dollars Il year; l have
given Harriet Beecher Stowe
two hundred dollars per article;
James Parton fifty; Tilton the
same; T. S. Arthur, one hum
dred; Horace Greeley, one hun
dped joel Headley, fifty AXE
ly, thirty T. X. Beecher, thirty
six; Virginia Townsend, thirty;
Harriet P. Spoford, seventy
five, ,and Rebecca HardingDayis,
one hundred and twenty-five
dollars, etc. All these articles
vary in length from one and a
half to six pages. OF course
selected matter does not cost
anything.
The material being now all
obtained, it is sent to the COM
positor's department, which, be-
ing in another street, and not
in his main building we did not
visit. The ''matter" being ''set
up" the forms are stereotyyed
and theplates are returned to the
press room, situatedgon the first
floor of the main building. In
this department we found four
large book presses, valued at
from three thousand to three
thousand five hundred dollars
apiece. These presses print
sixteen pages with every impress
sion.
The paper being now printed,
it is placed upon an elevator in
the corner Of the room, and with
tive ascendedto thefoul tn floor,
where these sheets of sixteen
pages were quickly folded by
means of large folding machines
attended by girls; these sheets
are then taken where they are
gathered, stabbed, and stitched.
And now it remains only to
paste on the cover, and the mag
azine is ready for mailing, and
of course it is no little work to-
post over three hundred thou
sand magazines. The mailing
department alone gives constant
employment to six female mail
ers. Mr.. Wood informed us
that he mailed thirty bags in
day. , a .-1
+ In all, the establishment gives
employment toaboutfifty hands.
The running expenses of the
house must be immense, and yet
a very large subscription list
enables the managers to send
forth a Dollar Monthly, that is
read and enjoyed, no doubt, in
thousands of homes from Maine
to California. frsI[ lg.a
Should any of our readers ev-
er chance to come to Newburgh,
take our advice andsee foryour-
self what we have tried to des-