New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1878-04-06

sales were in a dangerous pecunaTy SITUATION just
at this critical time the Hoe rotary press enabled te
| to multiply their editions at rate never oeiore
deemed possible. and at the same time 10 reuuce
their running expenses. The effect was aiinos' III
stantaneons. The circulation of the cheap papers
reached n fcure which would have been unattain-
able with their old mechanical resources; new
class of readers were created and in the provincial
towns ESPECIALLY like Manchester the leading jour
nails took share of prosperity and influence when
they had never ventured to dispute before with the
| great London dailies.
AMERICAN PRESSES IN LONDON.
| The first Hoe press in London built for Ltoyds
| WeekIy Neirspape periodical which corresponds, IN
circulation and character with the most prosperous
| story papers of New-York. The proprietor OF 1he
Times ordered two ten-cylnder presses soon after
ward, but exacted. condition of the barsain-so
great was his national pride-that they should be
built in England. The Hoes. having then no
| manufactory IN London consequently made con-
tract with the firm of Sir Joseph Whitworth to
manufacture the machines; but there were great
DELAYS aud difficulties in getting them done prop
erlv. and the orders which now followed from all
the principal newspapers were executed by Hoe
Co. at their own works.
A TRIBUNE IMPROVEMENT
There was still one thing lacking, however, to
make the invention Of the Lightning press" of full
service TO journalism, and that, after many expert
ments, was al length supplied by THE TRIBUNE SO
long as only one form Of type could be used, the
fastest press was not fast enough for the necessities
of the day. The London Times duplicated every
thing in type and thus able to keep two presses
running simultaneously. But this process, besides
doubling the cost of composition. involved great
many other practical difficulties not the least OF
which was the loss of invaluable tire, and IN the
sharp rivalry of the American metropolitan papers
IT was out of the question. More than twenty
years ago Mr.. Thomas n. Rocker. foreman
of our composing-room. foresaw that the
time was close at hand when no press ever con-
struoted would suffice TO print the daily edition OF
a great and growing newspaper like IHE TRIBUNE,
and the recent application OF the PAPER mache
process to book stereOtyping encouraged him 10 De-
lieve that means might be found of casting the
pages Of n newspaper with the necessary rapidity.
After consultation with MIR. Greeley, who entered
heartily into his schemes, he proposed TO all the
principal book stereotypers of the city to devise
modification of their somewhat cumbrous and
tedious process so that plates could be cast in few
minutes and duplicated for any required number OF
presses The utmost time that a daily paper could
afford for the entire operation OF taking the
matrlx, drying, making the cast cooling, trimming
and finishing was half an hour. 1t was tough
problem and for several years 1t seemed to defy So
Iuton At length two Swiss inventors brothers, Int
upon what was wanted. and applied il to The lon
don Times. The TRIBUNE immediately entered into
correspondence with them and was on the point OF
concluding contract for the use of their INVENTION
| when MIR Charles Craske of this city, reached an
independent solution Of the difficulty. He offered
his plan first TO The Herald which refused 1t, and
then TO THE TRIBUNE, which Immediately made an
| agreement with him. That was in 1861. The
method of Mr. Craske successful from the first;
| and thus lust as the war began to SVEN
the circulation of the leading papers, The TRIBUNE
was enabled to multiply Its forms and run two ana
| even three presses at once. OF course, the other
journals were obliged to follow our example. and at
present almost all the principal morning papers IN
| the United States are printed from stereotype
plates which The TRIBUNE showed them how to
| make. With the impetus given TO sales by the new
facilities for rapid manufacture and the intense pub
lie interest in the events of the war. the circulation
of THE TRIBUNE rose to enormous figures Includ-
ing the weekly and seml-weekly editions our press
men were called upon to turn out 100000 papers
| a week being a daily average of 100000 copies,
| and this enormous task they performed without
| difficulty A weeks issue of THE TRIBUNE, opened
and laid in a row. would reach from here to Chicago.
ana days edition would stretch from Harlem to
| Albany.
/
| now began TO present one Of the most picturesque
and busting scenes imaginable Deep under ground,
| and extending far beyond the line of the sidewalk
generally TO the middle of the stTeet-werc the lofty
vaults occupied by the complicated machines. THE
TRIBt-yE used three of Hoes lightmng-presses. The
| ten-cy lnder machine lowered aloft like hopse.
Eighteen feet in height, tmrty-one feet IN length
and nine feet in width, it required the space
of two entire floors; it was approached by
| stair-cases and galleries; and platforms were
| built around it for the workmen. In the
centre revolved the huge type-cynder. Conyerg-
| ing toward that were ten broad slOping shelves,
! arranged in tiers, above another, five at each
| end of the press; sheets of paper were piled on
these shelves; at each pile stood man feeding the
sheets into the machine and each sheet, as IT was
caught by one of the ten impression cylinders, was
| whirled around against the sereotyped plates,
thence carried on endless tapes over the heads OF
the feeders, and deposited by means OF fly On ore
of the ten receiving tables at the extremtes OF the
| press. Ten feeders, prossman, and two or three
boys were required to run this immense
machine. Beside it stood the eight-cylnder press.
| only little smaller than its companion, and the
| third was press of six cylinders, replacing the
original four-cyindeT machine erected in 1890. Tie
number of hands needed for these three presses was
from 80 to 40 and the united capacity of the three
| was ZtOOO COulpiclo pdpNi9 POI h'"i N''bNN' ~
pressions when they were driven 10 their very high
est speed In ordinary operation IT may be said that
they laid down ten or twelve printed sheets erery
! secOnd.
During the early part of the night the pressmcn
prepared the apparatus with the greatest care The
bearings were oiled; the tapes and blankets were
examined and if necessary, renewed; the proper
consistency of the ink tested the ink-reseryOr
was filled; the nkng-rollers were removed, cleaned
and replaced; every one of the complicated parts
was looked over and put in perfect order. Mean
while huge stacks of paper mad been moistened in
| liz ndin ranlis aud a s1nilv had Leon rlncnh