Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-02-25
THE PRINTED PAGE.
--latest Fads in the Art Preservative
of All Arts.
CUTS ARE MADE,
The Stereotyping Process ~ Used by The
Star-Msthods Of Reproducing Pictures.

Society on Wednesday last we're highly enter
tanned well a. instructed by listening to a
carefully prepared address from Mr.. W. Y.
Stevens on some Of the modern methods used
in printing and in the reproduction Of pic
lures as we'll as the printed page. Mr. Stevens
said in part: There are three general classes
Of printing. The relief type. in which the
characters to be printed stand out from the
surrounding blank space; intaglio, in which the
characters are depressed or cut below the gen.
eral surface Of the plate a. In copper and steel
plate engravings. and TYPOGRAPHY, which de-
ponds on chemical af6uities and repulsions for
its peculiarly.
have here common rubber stamp Of kind
familiar to all Now, though stamps Of a SINH
lar kind have existed for 1000 years. II is within
thirty years that they came into general use
and why? For two reasons fret; because the
stamps were formerly Of rigid material and it
was difficult to use Thorn so squarely as to print
q fair impression; and, secondly. because the
printer 3 ink would dry up, become sticky and
fill the type, SO that such stamps were only used
by postmasters and others who could give them
daily attention. The discovery Of India rubber
overcame the first trouble oy making the type
SO elastic that one part Of the face will yield
until all the face touches the paper, thus pro-
ducing fair imprint in the hands Of any one.
hHu tuc AuiilLO ayes OF Inks OVerCafne tne Otnef
objection bv their property Of remaining in-
definitely without evaporation or drying up.
Movable types for printing have an interest
ing history. but let us look At them as we find
them today. They are ncked on the underside
SO that the printer can feel which side up the
letters go without stopping to look at them.
They are 6rst set up in lines in an instrument
called stick, which is fixed at the exact width
Of the column, and quads and spaces, which
are short blanks of different thicknesses, are
used to fill the stick SO as to squeeze the type
all in tightly and that is called iustifying
Line after line Is thus set up until the stick is
full and then the compositor deftly takes out
the whole bunch Of type and places them on an
imposing stone. where they are. arranged in
columns to be surrounded by an iron frame and
be tightly wedged. 30 that the whole form, rep
resenting a side OF a newspaper or a number of
pages of a book, may be placed upon the press
where ink is mechanically rolled upon the faces
Of the type. Then sheet of paper is pressed on
them and the result you all know.
PRINTING MACHINE.
suppose that most Of you are familiar with
these details, but have touched upon them in
order that YOU may appreciate the merits OF
wonderful machine the Alden typesetting
machine which l had the pleasure of seeing in
the New York Tribune Office in 1878. 1t is
about as large as a common dining table when
reduced to a circular form. Radial grooves or
boxes. each about a foot long, are located
around three-quarters OF the table to hold the
type standidg face up; the as in groove,
the 8 in another and SO on, each groove hav
ing spring which presses all the types in it
toward the common center. Within the circle
OF these type boxes Is a smaller table mounted
on a vertical shaft and about two feet across,
having sets Of nippers or fingers all around it
adapted to catch the tyre while the table re-
wolves rapidly. The type for this machine
must be peculiarly nicked one side. az. for
example. an "a may have one nick, ''b'' two
hicks, &C. three nicks I'd" a. space and
nick, &c. Now you see that with five hicks 100
different arrangements may be made. according
to the rule Of Formulation. SO that 120 different
sorts. or about three different cases OF type.
could be indexed. The STATIONARY table in front
Is prepared to receive in one place column of
yesterdays type for distribution ard to receive
in another place the type now to be set.
The machine may be started and 1t will dis
tribite a column Of type to their own boxes and
the quads and spaces to q single box without
any attention. The operator may go away and
leave 1t at work and it will distribute line after
line until the column is gone. At any time,
whether the machine is distributing or not, the
operator may proceed to strike the keys and
! the typo called for will be set up in the new
column. The operator may strike sixty KEYS
before the FIST letter arrives. If he ia a rapid
| worker he may stop awhile, and when he begins
| again the types will come along in order as
4 VI,
| most wonderful of all, the machine will both
| distribute an old column and set u new one at
| the same time. II any letter be called for that
is In the revolving fingers to be distributed that
letter will pass its box and come back to the ne "
| column. Alden. the inventor of this machine.
| spent many years upon it and was ca led in>a
After his deaeh his brother spent over a million
| dollars in efforts to perfect it.
| The Alden machine was superseded by a ma
chine working on a simpler principle and it is
now before the public, called the linotype. 1t
makes the type on the spot when required. The
| operator works at a keyboard and every type
called for is instantly cast from u pot OF melted
| type metal and set up in column. and after the
| type has been used the whole may be melted
over and be cast again by this machine cheaper
| than it can be distributed. SO the types when
\ made are not worth saving. Each little type ia
| II most exquisite piece of exact workmanship,
| with sides perfectly parallel, otherwise they
| could not be held together in the FORMS and
the full form presents an exactly fat or plane
| surface.
THE srEREorYPINa PROCESS.
Well, after all the trouble has been taken I'd
set mp the type they are not used for printing
with ink at oil. Let me explain. After the type
| for page are set up in the usual manner mat.
| rix il forced upon 1t by q powerful press; the
matrix being thick paper in a soft pulpy con-
dition receives every impression to the very
lart detail OF punctuation, and il then quickly
dried. Then this matrix 10 laid into a hollow
iron half cylinder and frame about as thick as
my finger is placed upon its edge; then this
frame is covered in with an iron cylinder
exactly the size Of the press cylinder. Then
melted type metal ls poured onto the matriz
until the space is entirely filled between it and
the cylinder, thus casting every letter and en-.
| craving all in one stereotype, ready to be fss.
| tened upon the press cylinder for service. This
exhibit is a portion Of such a stereotype which