Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1884-01-24
Tho Printer.

I
"out of sorts" etc, aud If We succeed
we will be the first who have written
about the printer without distorting
several languages to make puns on the
technical terms of his trade. We
would rather write Of the modesty,
diffidence and sobriety of the printer,
and of his unobtrusive piety and his
unostentatious domestic habits, but for
the fact that the printer has none Of
these vices, We would prefer describ.
ing him in the quiet retirement Of the
family circle in bis coy parlor on
winter night-the revered father of
numerous ohspring-teaching his little
ones their catechism or as he sits in
the mellow twilight Of a summers
evening, on the honeysucklecovered
porch of his modest cottage, earnestly
reading, by the fading light of day,
comforting precepts from the inspired
page. We repeat, that is how we
would love to write of him, but alas !
we cannot do such injustice TO our repu
tation for veracity as to describe him
thus, as he is--not.
The printer begins life as devil
and remains in that chrysalis condi.
ton for a period Of several years, dur.
ing which time his duties consist Of
distributing type in wrong cases,
harassing the editor for copy, falling
down stairs with a galley full Of type,
and consuming early and unripe ap.
ples, mammoth watermelon, bottles of
homemade wine, aud such painful
compliments that are presented TO the
editor, and which, not apprcciating
himself, he sends 10 the devil When
be ceases TO be devil he becomes a
compositor, and assumes all the rights
and privileges Of the craft, especially
that Of raising the devil every Satur.
day night when be gets paid OF.
Tho printer is gregarious and con.
viyial in his habits. bat that is no ex.
cuse for people who continually libel
him by representing him to be in
condition OF inebrety from ono years
end to the other These people are
preiudiced, aud they allow their pre-
judices to overshadow their sense Of
justice. We know the printer better
than they DO, and although he has
treated US shamcfully at times in the
matter Of insisting on having bis
wages paid more frequently than once
in a while, and in declining to take
out due bills 10 lieu of cash, yet We
propose to fairly represent him, aud
wc cheerfully bear testimony 10 the
fact that We know more than one
printer who has been sober for one
consecutive week at time. We would
point to one who, We are satisfied, has
not been intoxicated at any time dur.
ing the last two years, and We will an.
swcr for his -obric;y for the next TWO
year to come, If Governor Raberts
doe, not pardon him out before that
time. The printer IS migratory and
impccuniou. a 3 rule, but he is usually
honest, and pays as he goss. he has
been -landered by writers in all ages,
but no one has ever accused him of
building himself n $4,000 homestead
and then compromising with bis crodi.
tors and paying 10 cents on the dollar.
Il has been the habit Of writers to rep
resent the printer as making extraor-
binary bluDders in composition, sub
stilutipg one word .or another and
thus altering the senst 81 4 #hole stii.
Gle. To those who arc familiar Aith
the sort Of manuscript received in
newspaper Offices, the wonder IL that
the printer makes 50 few mistakes. III
he had not more than average intelli.
geuee and patience, he would probably
make 81 many mistakes as he gets
credit for. He does occasionally Try
to improve on what the editor hes
written. He thinks that the editor
certainly could no, have meant il tha,
way, so he drops in & word Of his own
selection Ito make sense" as he ex
presses il, which subsequently, causes
the editor to use harsh and uafeeling
language. Sometimes tho printer really