New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1878-04-09
WONDERS OF THE PRESS.
n1FrrRrNT CLASSES OF MACHINES.


to the sudden and marvellous change which almost
in a night transformed the newspaper press-room
from Babel of confused noises, hurrylng muitF
tudes and the ponderous working OF colossal Gu
zines 70 n 0met underground vault where colh-
pact little machine did all the labor of the Oh steam
giants and one watchful man stood with MS manu-
on a lever to superntend the automatic eAecu''On
of tasks for which fifty men hardly sullced oiiS
Yesterday This astonishing revolution was ho'
effected by the adoption of a new pHnciP'c
III the construction of machines. III was tue
result of persistence in one same line OF improve
ment. Inventors had gone on for years giving To-
tary motion to past of the press after another
and at each change the size and complexity OF tho
machine were increased, though not III proportion
to the increase in speed and capacity At last by
the perfection of curved stereotype plates, further
development of the rotary principle was made pos
sibe and tho metamOrphoSis was complete. we
now purpose describing the two styles OF press
which successfully followed this important lnYeh-
ton and as an introduction to our detailed account
of them we present the following memorandum
prepared for our use by Messrs. r. Hoe Co, when
cypains in clear and brief manner the principle OF
each of the FIVE families into which printing presses
are properly divided:
CLASSES OF PRESSES.
All printing presses from the invention OF printing
defined classes which successfully into existence
each being IN point OF rapid working greatly In advance
Of its predecessors.
l. The first class uscdhy all the early masters ofthc ART
from Gutenberg and CIx,On down to Our own Franklin
whose simple press to bs seen in the Centcnnla
Exhibition. had fat "type-bcd, and, suspended above
the bed plaon" Impression plate, also aat and OF
corresponding size. The type being placed upon the
bed properly linked and the sheet of paper spread over
it. the impression" is given by pressing down the
platen fOrciby upon IT, This was ut hrst accomplished
by means OF a screw, afterwards by combination OF
levers The best OF work be done with these
presses which exist doubtless in millions, and which
are yet manufactured probably large quantities ~
over. An excellent steam press on This principle IN
vented in NewEngland generation ago. Is still made In
this city and almost all books throughout the United
States are printed on IL.
Q In the second class o. printing presses which also
originated In Germany, the type bed Is st alt but in
stead OF receiving the impression from patcn passes
backward and forward under "a revolving cylinder which
rolls i'm contact with H. This press h,-t became widely
known hy its adoption nlsIl by The LOHd0R Times, and,
with many improvements and notifications, II now doe,
the great bulk of IN" printing Of the world Presses oil
this class rucfcd for newspaper printing have us
ally small cylinders which rcyove continuously, rising
IN their bearings after each impression 70 allow the bed
70 run back without touching; those for ordinary job
priutuy nav, large cYuGcrs which also rcyoyc Coutn-
uousy but without rising IN their bearings, having ole
side lower oof less radius, than the Other 20 let The
hed pass back those for the finest woolcut work hayc
USUALLY small cylinders which stand stl without rising
during he return OF the bed side being fat to avoid
contact with the type: many have Two cylinders either
so arranged print two sheets al each run Of the bed
or so a. 10 print each sheet on both sdcs but all ara In
principle ike the first made, having Hat bed NOV
Ing backward, aud forwards, carrying the form OF
type first under rollers which ink H. and then under the
impression cylinder which, at every revolution, brings
e Ella. s.Ff .FIN dolly
the same printed at the Of the pross The press on
which THE SEW-YoRR TKrnUNE was first printed was
ono Of this second class Just dsuibed-n doublecyn-
der and considered at the time the ne plus ultra OF the
art.
The printing Of n sheet Of paper requires nvedisnct
operations each accomplished by separate mechanism;
they are: FIRST the hiking Of the forins second. the
"fcediug" In OF the paper; third, the impression;
fourth the delivery OF the printed sheet ana hnny'
the percctug" printing Of the second side in'1v-
ing OF course the repetition OF the whole process In
the bed and placn press" which cOmpp-es the first
of the classes mentioned, al the movements. without OK
ccpiion are OF the kind called hy mechanics rccprp
eating" that is, going and cop'iHg-a construction
which requires AZ every impression the stopping and
starting again OF each and every set OF mechanism III
the press and q will be seen, ms We proceed that each
great advance in the printing art has been made by The
abandonment Of the rcciprOcatng principle ~ one or
more Of the mechanism. The operations mentioned,
and the substitution OF n rotary movement.
g. IL Is evident that the necessity OF throwing
backward and forward, Ike shuttle, the heavy
iron bed, with its equally heavy form OF
type sets very narrow limits 60 speed. and IN
1916 the third class OF prntng-Prcss was intro
duced By he construction Of the so-cnIcd Rotary
press In which the formS placed upon cylinder ro-
yo!yng continuously and printing, AZ every turn, n
many sheets impression cylinders can be- clustered
around H. This American invention forms. perhaps, the
greatest step over made I'm The printing art and It was
80 characterized by the lords Of the PrVy Council Of
England at the time that they granted au extension OF
the patent IN that county. By 1t the maximum produc-
ton Of single press aud single form Of type rose in
stanty from 700 TO 10000 per hour; and then fol
lowed without delay that astonishing development OF
American journalism which has long since become
matter OF course TO Us all THE IhIBuNE was
one OF the first to adopt the new Lightning Press
as IT was popularity designated. and for more than
twenty years was regularly printed upon II. All the
papers OF any note in the country eventually followed
subtitle smaller offices absorbing the habed presses
thrown out IN this process Ia 1913 the first Rotary
Press was sent out Of this city TO Paris ana put up III
the Office OF La Tare hut the revolution which drove
out Louis Philippe, delayed for time the general IN
PRODUCTION Of these machines into France while In Eng
land the same result was produced by the prejudice
against foreign inventions that 1t not until 1886
that two we're sent out from NowYork and put up IN
London for the proprietor Of Loyds Weekly Newspaper
who had happened 20 the P0fre press In operation
isa curious instance OF the British belief In the
prrioty OF everything British That II was after the Ro-
ary Press had actually been daily printing the chief
papers OF Ncw-YorL and Philadelphia for more than
two years. that The London Times put up the much
talked OF Applegath presses-nosy, slow and cumber-
some combinations OF vertical revolving prsms, requr-
ing more than twice the space, twice tie motive power
and twice the attendants Of the Rotary Press While
running at half the speed and In constant dan
ger of throwing of the type. These however, were
now discarded, aud the example OF The Times ana the
other great London Journals In introducing the Amer
can invention was quickly followed by all papers Of