The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1891-03-18
ghe adlithita aiy eagle: asdnesds orug arfh 1851
! ABOUT STRRDeFYpING.
RI HAS REvOluTiONIZED THE AIT
OF NEWSPAPER PRINTING.

he Process Was First Invented In PariA.
A Great Advances Has Been A.ds -
Rapid Prsssvork N the Last Twsasy-frs
Years-Many Plates ussA Nsw Daily.
OF the thousands Of people who glance
over the pages of newspaper few have
any idea Of the work necessary to be dane
70 make the paper what it - The old say
in that half the world doesn't know how
the other half lives" applies perhaps with
more force TO the readers and the makers
Of a newspaper than to any one else. This
Is especially true in these days of modern
improvements, when the newspaper man
has called to bis aid so many of the devices
of science, and Is constantly absorbing the
followers Of other callings, besides bring,
ing into being arts that were before nm
known
Among these latter the art OF stereotyp-
ing. though perhaps little known, Is most
important and, indeed, essential in the
lightning rapidity Of today. Every per
fecting" press absolutely requires the use
of either stereotype or electrotype plates
and rs the latter are much more costly, be-
sides requiring more time, stereotyping is
used almost without exception The type
itself could not be used on these presses,
mainly because the curves Of the cylinders
on which the plates are placed arc too
small They are made thus small In order
to admit Of greater speed.
Besides this, If type were used on these
presses the forms would have TO te reset as
many times rs there were single presses,
and here again the increased time and cost
compel the modern newspaper man 70
look in some direction for relief.
The forms, therefore. must be duplicated
by some process or another without caus-
ing any serious loss of time or any great
expenditure Of money. Stereotyping full
fills these requirements.
INVENTION AND GROWTH.
The papier mache process of stereotyping
was invented about the year 1SA5 In Paris.
The credit OF the invention lies between a
Frenchman and two Swiss, James Dele
gani and Louis Quanchi, all Of whom
worked in the same establishment in Paris.
Not much Roadway was made for long
time, partly because of tina opposition OF
printers, whom it was thought the inven-
ton would throw out. of work. So great
was this opposition that in the revolution
of '4S the only establishment. in Paris was
wrecked by the mob. and the proprietor.
Quanchi, was forced to fee for his life
back to Switzerland. He afterward re-
turned, and on one occasion was paid 500
francs by man from London for the priv
ilsge of looking on at the operation. His
son is now foreman of The New York
Herald.
Delegani went to London, established a
shop, and soon after, in 1854 or 1855. began
stereotyping the first paper in the world to
use the process, The London Times At
first the plates were cast in single columns,
and part Of the paper was printed from
type and part from plates. After time
they began to stereotype whole pages, and
made such progress that on the receipt Of
the news Of Mncoln's assassination in 1895
plate was completed in thirty-five min
utes, then remarkably good time.
The process was introduced in this coun-
try by John Duncan in partnership with
Charles Craske. For long time they met
with no encouragement, and after five
years, being 500 behind, Duncan retired
from the partnership In disgnst and left
the business entirely to Craske. A singu-
lar commentary on the slrewdneB of sue
the fact that Hoe g. Co.. the press build
process. 1t Is safe to say that no single
firm in the world has profitcd more by the
invention than this one, which thirty years
ago fought so strongly against it,
PLATES FOR BIO DAILIEs-
In the latter part of lS60 suit able press
was completed for The Tribune, and that
paper was the first one to be stereot5ped in
this country Mr.. Craske owned Elephant,
took the work by contract, and employed
James Steele, Frank Ferris and others,
who bad learned tho secrets Of the bust
ness.
In short time all the other big dailies
took up the new art and for number OF
years Craske held the contracts for nine
papers in this city. and had in fact a
monopoly. At the present time there are
upward Of thirty papers stereotyped IN this
city, employing 40 men. To the uniniti-
ated the number of plates required on our
big dailies is astonishing. The sun, for in
stance, uses every day no less than 80 10
200; The Herald requires over go, and The
World. morning and evening, from 300 70
400.
On Saturdays these figures are doubled,
and The World alone Consumes" to use
q fitting expression, about 75s plates. every
one, of course, being the size of page
and never usedbu once After osce using
the plates this eighteen tons OF metal.
more or less, IL remeited, and nothing II
lost except what goes up In smoke
IL 'the height of art is TO conceal art !"
then the stereotyper must bs awarded "ths
cake" It requires an expert TO tell. from
It's appearance, whether paper is s.ereo-
typed or not. II seems a characteristic Of
the trade to work quietly and efiectualiy.
They have a model trade organization and
have few quarreis with employers, and
why should theYs' Possibly. the poet man
aged paper and had the stereotypers In
his mind when be- said they have
Made q solitude and called II Peace
Edwin Arlington In Journalist