Rocky Ford enterprise., 1896-01-02
.Errlho TYPE IN JAPAN.
Each Compositor Has Room TO hn'
self and . Number of Assistants.

r.oh Compositor Has . Room to HIM
self and . Number of Assistants.
The composing room Of japanese
printing office would appall an amer
can printer. The ordinary japanese Vo-
cabulary is represented by 4,421 diner
ent characters or ideographs ana lorty-
seven simple characters, known as kalia'
which are used to connect ana com.
nlete them, 1t would require at least
SO 600 varieties of letters to answer u,
possible demands Of japanese published
literature. Think Of a printers case
containing $4,000 compartments.
The government is endeavoring 70
simplify the japanese vocabulary unu
reduce 1t to reasonable limits. a COM
mission of scholars and philologists was
appointed some time ago by the nlnis
ter of education upon the recommends
ton of a national teachers convehtioli'
and they are said to be making soihe
progress, although their task Is a most
difficult one.
A font Of Japanese type occupies
space about eight or ten feet square.
1t is a pen of racks and cases, arrayed
in the form of hollow square, with
narrow passage to afford an entrance
and exit. The chief compositor sits at
n table in the center with n case coll
tanning n supply Of the forty-seven kama
before him and long peculiar-looklns
composing stick in his hand. He cuts
his COPY into small "takes" and gives
one to each of his five or six assistants,
who are usually small boys and girls
with amazing memories. They have
their own composing sticks, and, with
their "takes" held deftly with the COM
posing sticks in their left hands, they
rush around in front OF the cases ana
pick the type that are needed from tho
bewilderlng mass of cases, singing
aloud the name of the character until
they find 1t. The work of composition
is, therefore, n bedlam, which would
drive an American printer out OF his
wits.
When boy has collected all the char
acters In his "take" he places the COM
posing stick with the copy upon the
table before the chief composltor, who
wears big pair Of strong magnifying
glasses, and he arranges them In. his
own stick in their proper order, insert
ing the kama from his own case when
they are needed. Then he dumps them
on galley and turns them over to tho
proper attendant. who pulls proof and
takes 1t with the copy to the proof
reader, who reads it aloud while his as
sistant holds the copy and follows him.
1t Is explained that children are used to
assist the compositor because they have
better memories than adults, and their
little fingers are more deft In picking
the type out of the narrow slips, and
the extraordinary memory Of child
compositor is always amazing to the
stranger In Japan.
A case of type is about three feet
long and two feet wide. divided into
two grand divisions by horizontal par
tltIon. Then each division is subdivid-
ed into equal little narrow slips just
wide enough 20 admit the type, which
are all of the same size, and stand on
end with their faces upward. There
are usually forty slips In each division
and eighty in each case. The case are
usually double. and therefore contain
100 different characters. On each rack
are twelve cases and 1 $50 kinds Of type
on each rack. so that twelve racks will
carry very full font Of type, contain
ing about $1,000 characters, sufficient
to supply almost any demand. The orr
dinary composing room contains about
six racks. or 10000 variety of type,
with plenty of room for sorts.-Chicago
Record.