New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1877-07-04
THE CAX7ON ANNITERSARY.


servation at the Horticultural Gardens, Ken
singtOn, London, of the fourth Centennial
Anniversary of the introduction of printing INTO
England by William Caxton. The numerous
disputes concerning the earl work OF this typo
graphical pioneer, remain unadusted. Between
1869 and 1471. appeared Cations translation of
ale Fevere's " Recuel DIES 90 Histories de Troye."
"When and where" SAYS Mr.. De Winnie in
his "Invcntion of Printing" 1T was printed
lis a vexcd question "-whether at Bruges in
1872 or at the Monastery of Wcldcnbach IN
I474 The book contains neither the date OF
the printing, nor the name and place OF the
printer; and another theory assigns Cologne as
the locality of its production, and Iell as the
artifcer of the volume. In 1415, Caxton
printed at Bruges, in the Office OF Mansion,
.'The Game and Playc Of the Chesse.' All the
evidence concerning the date of his return to
EnglandiS uncertain-usualy it is fixed at 1171;
but in l477 he was " ia the Abbey of Westmins
"ter. by London" where he printed "The Dictes
"and Savings of Philosophers" He was then an
old man but heproduceda good many books before
bsdeath in 1891. The largest collections of these
are in the British Museum and in Earl Spen-
GERS library at Althorp. II is stated that the
names of "a separate productions are known.
He was a great translator from the French,
and rendered equal services in English literature
and English Typography. He trained many
young printers, and established the art OF
printing upon firm footing in En- gland. He
must have been a man of great energy, OF
good scholarship and of uncommon talents in
public affairs, having been agent of the Lon
don MERGERS Company III the Low Countries
and a Commissioner to conclude treaty be-
tween Edward ", Of England, and Philip, Duke
of Burgundy. The entire product of his press
is estimated by Blades at $4,000 pages, mostly
of folio size.
The fame of CaxtOn an early printer is,
of course, of Il secondary character. No inven
tion connected with the art is ascribed to him,
and he did ~ more than use inteligcntly and
industriously the discoveries of Gutenberg
and the improvements of Faust and SchGtler;
and of these names. the first alone is entitled
to the highest honor. But CaXton will always
be remembered as one of the foremost of the
men, partly artisans, but more properly called
scholars, who, recognizing promptly the unspeak
able usefulness of movable types, employed
them diligently, and under difficulties of which
we, with our wel-appointed printing Offices
can hardly form conception. in the dissent
raton of sound learning. What CaXton knew
of printing he had learned of others. His
early vocation was that of q mercer. He
served his apprenticeship a printer in the
Low Countries; he was sXty-tive years old
when he set up his press at the Almonry, near
Westminster Abbey, and if we may say So
went into business for himself. All the appa
ratus of his craft he brought with him, and
all the knowledge requisite for its profitable
employment he had acquired abroad But such
a pioneer is entitled to fame almost equal to
that of an inventor; and such fame has
been awarded TO CaxtOn.
1t is sometimes with feeling of regret that
we consider how little the first printers COM
pretended the wonderful results which were
to follow the adoption of this new invention.
That books by ITS aid could be more rapidly
produced than by the rens of the swifteSt
transcrbtrs they learned by their first
perence but how rapidly and how econ0mi-
cally they never knew. Ii is doubtful
whether the most enthusiastic of them ever
dreamed of the condition and effective
ness of the art to-day. 1t was enough for
them if they could furnish scholars with the
Greek and Roman classics, and the plouS
with Bibles and books Of devotion. They
builded indeed. better than they knew. When
they began to print, hardly anybody could
read what was printed; and the same general
Ignorance must have continued to the present
hour il the art of printing had not made
books plentiful and cheap, and had not also
produced the newspaper. 1t is curious that
the human intellect should owe its highest
obligation to purely mechanical art. The
pride of printing is that it has made books
part and parcel of all life worthy OF that