Morning journal and courier., 1881-06-20
Wholesale Printing.
An Account of the Largest Printing Ghic
 in the World.

An Account of the Largest Printing sJhfce i'm the World.
 It is we'll known that America exceeds all the rest of the world in the magnitude of her rivers, lakes, cataracts caves and codfsh. It has also generated the hero par excellence of ! modern times and Private Dalzell and Eli Perkins, each incomparable in their respect i've spheres. But it is not generally known
 that at Washington this nation is running the ] largest and most perfect, and, ,withal the most costly printing office in the world. And yet as the Cincinnati IImes-Stdr ob- serves
 Within the memory of many men who still lag not ssuperfuous on the stage" the whole printing for govermm ental use done on single hand press, run by a stalwart press man and two or three ink begrimed boys. In fact, most of this great enterprise has been developed within the past twenty years. The
 building erected for the business is situated near the capitol, covers nearly two acres of ground and, with it's four stories, gives about eight acres >of storage and working room.
 Sixty three steam power presses, some of them the finest ever constructed, constantly at
 work upon the first floor. By saying ''con-
 stantly at work" we mean during business
 hours, for nobody works in Washington out side of business hours, and not much then.
 But these sixty presses are kept pretty
 busy, especially during and immediately after session of Congress, and they are
 marvels of ingenuity costing from $1o,OOO to $25, ,OOO each single 9Bullock'' press prints fully half million volumes year.
 it takes two hundred and thirty-seven people -foremen pressmen, laborers and female
 feeders-to keep these book multipliers go- ing. Aside from the press rooms the balance of the first floor is occupied for paper ware rooms, carpenters shops, boiler rooms, etc.
 On the second floors are located the offices of the public printer and his clerks telephone and telegraph operators, and all those whose business brings them under the immediate supervision of the head of this vast literary caravansary. The proof rooms close at hand, with from twenty-five to thirty of the most experienced proof readers in the world.
 Most of these are practical printers, and among them are men versed in every language and familiar with almost every branch of the arts and sciences. Of late as a consequence, point of almost absolute correctness has been reached in the publication of the gov ernment records. Over an acre of this floor is occupied as the main composing room An average of two hundred and fifty compositors. representing every State in the Union, are em- ployed in this room. Among these are a few young ladies, who take rank with the best on the force. Something over $1.OOO,OOO ems are set daily, costing the government from
 S150,O0O to $160,00O per annum. One hun dred tons of-type, two hundred and two double stands two thousand three hundred pairs of cases, one hundred and fifty fonts of type for title pages, six proof presses and a vast amount of other printers paraphernalia
 which only printers could understand the use of compose the furniture of this one de- partment. single order for 75, 900 pounds of type has been given at one time to New York typ foundry. The bindery occupies large portion of the third and fourth doors in which five hundred and if teen people are employed; while attached to this are several subsidiary departments, n WI a har of hands. Some of the jobs that pass through this department are enormous, as, for instance, the Agricultural report, which averages 3OO- GOO copies annually, containing H. 400, GOO sheets, which would take an average hand folder sixteen years.
 Now for few of the results and word or two as to the cost of this tremendous estab- ishment as space will not permit of minor details. During the year ending June 30, 1880, there were printed 131, 267, ,472 blanks, 30, 139 miscellaneous bindings, 329, 900 mem orandum books-a total of 149, 11O, S54 pieces. In census years from F, ,OoO, 1000 to 15, GOO, GOO extra blanks required It must be borne in mind that every government office in the land, in every department, grom the smallestA postoffice at the cross roads to the New York custom house is furnished with blanks printed at the government printing office. As to the cost of this great work, which, returning no profit, may be considered under the head of the contingent expenses of the government; in a single year the expenditures for the paper have been over $1, ,285, ,O00. The printing for the War department alone increased from $2l ,0OO in 1860 to $355, ,7SO in 1863. In all the other departments there has been steady increase from the former date In 1865 the office cost the government S2, 227, ,O99. The lessened cost of material since that period has brought the average expense for the past few years down to about B, GOO OO0 per annum.
 The largest work ever published by this of- ice is in progress It is the ''Rebelion Record" which, it is estimated will make 9G octave volumes of 800 pages each, or total of 76, 800. Ten thousand copies of this work are to be printed for the members of Congress. How many of these will ever r, ach their con stituents, and how many will fall into the hands of second hand book dealers have other public documents of value in former years? Echo answers at some future date.
 Some remarkably quick work is done occa- sionally. A volume of United States Revised Statutes, of 1,533 pages, was recently printed and bound in three days, and a Senate docu- ment of forty pages was printed and deliv- cred in thirty-six hours. Altogether the man. moth printing office of the world may be something to be proud Of, although it has been more than once tharged that good deal of jobbery and peculation goes on within it's walls.