The Opelousas courier., 1904-01-16

M-s@ world have been wrestling
a-0 with the problem of set.
ting type by machinery,
and as a result some wonderful mech
anical c~ontrivances were produced
from time to time. Twenty years be-
fore Howe invented the sewing ma
chine an E~nglishman named w. Church
Invented. machine to set type, which
seemed destined to supersede hand
composition, and created at that time
a great furore in the printing world,
but it proved a failure. Since then
over 100 like inventions have gone the
way of Church's. Some Of these ma
chimes were extraordinary mechanical
productions, but there was always one
stumbling block to their complete sue
cess-that is, to justify into lines the
type set half as fast as it vas COM
posed by the operator. 1t took two
men to one machine Ghe operator
and the justifier), and sometimes a
third, to look after the distributor. The
one who justified the type into lines
could not begin to keep pace with the
one who would set the type in one
continuous line. Some Of the machines
set and distributed simultaneously, but
no inventor had yet produced a ma
chine that could justify satisfactorily.
1t was not until Mergenthaler in
vented his great machine that the
problem was solved. He departed en-
tirely from the methods employed by
other inventors-that is, setting ordi-
nary hand type. He used matrices,
which are set first into lines, and from
this line Of matrices a solid block, or
line, of type, is almost instantaneously
cast; but this would not have accom-
plished the aim sought had he not in
vented. too, the wedge space. These
| spaces are wedge-shaped. very thin at
the top, and are set along with the
types. When the line is set 1t is made
flush by driving those wedges upward
between the words. Distribution OF
the matrices is carried on automatic
ally while the machine is in operation.
The sBrown" composing, iustifying
and distributing machine, which was
worked with some success on the other
side of the Atlantic, had a series OF
grooves or channels ranged side by
side, in which the type stood on their
feet. The type slid downward by their
own gravity and rested on q bar at the
lower end of the groove. In front OF
the case. sliding backward and for
ward at the will of the operator, was
a mechanical hand" which took the
letters from the case. On a shield in
front of the case the letters were lnd1-
Gated. The operator held q handle be-
tween finger and thumb and ran it OPP
posite to the letter to be taken. This
handle had a follower attached which
pushed the type sufficiently down the
channel for the next one to be taken.
Then there was the w. H. Mitchell"
the @F. w. Gilmer," and the ID. b.
Ray" the latter being a very ingenious
attempt. It's tubes were so constructed
that the type when discharged into the
hoppers by hand were made to arrange
themselves through the tubes Win
the hicks all the same way.
In 1882, "Porter's" type composing
machine was introduced. It was sim
pie and consisted of a collection or
troughs in which the type to be COM
posed stood upright, with the hicks all
one way. 1t raj intended to facilitate
hand composition. When the operator
required a letter he placed his foot on
a lever near the ground. and this &C
ton caused the letter to move slightly
forward. and was picked outas in ordi-
nary composition. with the exception
that a whole word could be set before
bringing the hand to tie stick.
AS an illustration of the herculean
task the invention Of a typesetting ma
chine was, may be mentioned thai OF
the alden" The inventor OF this ma
chine spent twenty years on It, q
IL cost him $4,000. It contained L.
62B pieces and weighed 1920 pounds.
1t could set 5000 m per hour, and
once set 1000 ems in ten minutes. a
Alden consisted of a round table, en-
closing O lrizontal revolving Wneel.
Between the table and the wheel was
a space about an eighth OF an 1ncn
broad. Between this and the outside
Of the table were arranged the type
cases. or holders. In front, where
the operator stood, was the distributor.
There were $50 alleys radiatng from
the central carrying wheel, and 1t held
100 different characters. On the re-
yolying wheel were thirty-six hands.
made as like human hands as possible.
These were placed alternately, one dis
tributing and another composing. me
tyDes were arranged around the wheel,
and the fingers OF the hand Were
pushed out and the type set by the
pressing of keys when opposite the re-
quired type.
There il no record Of any attempt 70
invent a typesetting machine 9
Church,s time until 1857, when the
aHatterslys made its debut. 1t con-
sisted Of d horizontal top gauge. On
which was placed d partitioned tray,
each partition containing a row or let
ters. Descending vertically along the
front Of this tray was q series MI wires
with pistons, and the pistons were
depressed by the keys acting By bell
eranks. which were brought back to
their first position By springs. A pro
heller KENT In d state of tension by q
spring. was placed in the rear Of each
row and drew them forward to the
niston. When d key was depressed #
nnlIed down with it 4 type, which vas