The Brookhaven leader. [volume] (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1883-1891, 1889-01-17
MAKING RAILROAD MAPS.
A pe.cr,psi.n Of Tie sisthess rs~ In oss
I'm the United ststes

In the United states
The method of making railroad NAB
Is described as follows: Up 10 1870
maps were engraved on stone, copper
or steel The process was slow, to-
dious and expensive. The plates soon
wore out, and maps we're costly
About this time the process OF making
mars on wax was invented. 1t rev0lus
tionized one kind Of map-tnakitig. and
they became almost as cheap as news
papers. The fnap-maker works In
room the temperature of which can
not 90 below g0o. Few men work at
IL longer than four years. though
years of apprenticeship are required
10 make them expert. The heat be-
comes unendurabls In the end. and
they 60 into some other employment.
Preparatory to making the original
plate, melted heeswax and some hard
ening ingredients are poured on q
highly polished metal table. For lne
work the wax is as thin as a piece OF
PAPER, but for the coarser kind the
waxef sheet 10 8n eighth of en- inch
thick. Rough pen and Ink drawings
81 the work to be done are given the
operators, they draw the hair lines
with sharp pointed Instruments by the
aid of straight edges. The dotted lines
Indicating county or township bounda-
ries are it;Hde With little wheels, on
whose narrow edge are Cit The reeu:.
liarly designed lines. All crooked
lines afs made by hand, and require
an artists eye. The Italics 81 tewns,
rivers, countries and the like are I'M
pressed in the wax in type, letter by
letter. Every impression must cut
through the wax to the polished steel
plate beneath, for the map Is made
face down. Nheti eli the lines and
letters are in, the wax is placed under
cooler temperature, which hardens
it. The wax is then covered with
black lead, and the steel plate with its
waxen cast is suspended in an electro
tipping solution. The copper In the
solution covers the black lead and
forms hard plate, which is called the
original. The wax is then pulled of
and the printing surface is then pre-
sented. The tin copper plate Is backed
up with type metal and the plate is
ready foruse. 1t is usually preserved,
however, for the making of stereotype
plates, from which the actual printing
is done.
In the preparation of the etching
great care is required to keep the wax
at the proper temperature, as degree
too low would make it hard to work,
and degree too high would melt and
probably destroy it. Often many hun
dred thousand maps are ordered, and
from twenty to forty plates are made
from the original. II the maps are
small, so many of these plates as can
be conveniently used are placed side
by side on the presses, and sheet OF
maps is printed at each impression.
The ordinary advertising map is fin
ished when it leaves the press, but the
others must 60 through more hands
before they are ready for use. But
this is the smallest part of the map. The
unseen work-the preparation OF the
original draft-represents time, labor
and money expended upon these ar.
ticles. The method Of preparing maps
for places of learning and for the use
of those engaged in selling property is
much more elaborate and costly, and
this fact will be fully realized when it
is stated that map lately finished in
this city measuring sixty-five inches
square, was nearly six years under
wav. and. when finished. cost $4,000