Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-01-28
UNCLE SANS PRINTERY
STAMPING AND GOLD ROOM OF
THE BINDERY.
Albumen and Olive Oil Used - Time
Saving Machines Also Used-New
Gold Collector.

| The stamping and gold room of the
| bindery division is especially inviting today
because its employees have but recently
moved into a bright and commodous room
on the second floor of the annex building on
II street. Here there is ample room for the
machines and employees in the prosecution
of one of the very important industries in
the bindery division and the entire printery.
There are sixty employed in this room.
about IS per cent being women, the latter
working altogether in handling the gold
leaf for stamping and applying the albumen
wash on the cloth covers. All the stamp
ing work is done by machines operated by
men. There are thirteen stamping ma
chimes enclosing presses. They are run
by electric dynamoS, there being dynamo
for each press. This is one of the modern
ConvenienceS of our day, which diSpenSes
with gearing and overhead fixtures. There
is no pulley danger that menaced life and
limb in former years in the big prlntery.
The machines here are all operated by in
divdual dynamos and are hitched to the
dynamo with very little betting. The power
that drives the stamp press also heats the
plate that does the printing on the gold
leaf
Preparation for the Gold Leaf.
But how do you manage the gold leaf
in printing!" asks the novice.
In one corner of the room there are
number of women employees sitting at
tables washing the surface of the cloth
backs for books with white fluid called
albumen. 1t is prepared from granules of
white of eggs. The granuleS look like bits
of glue or gum arabic, from which the
home talent mucilage is made. This al
bumen gives the cloth a lustrous finish, be-
sides preparing it for the application of the
gold leaf by another force of women work.
ers. These backs of books or eases come
down to the stampers from another section
of the bindery which makes exclusively
cloth backs, or what is called by the bind
erS cases"
why does it need albumen wash par
ticularly?" asked the reporter
The albumen preparation is proven to
possess the proper qualities for adhesion,
drying, heating and caring for the gold
leaf when applied. The electro plate con-
tanning the lettering to go on the book
cover is fastened ON the upper platen of
the press either by a bolt or quite often
simply with glue, and is heated by electric
ity. The covers are fed into the machine
by the operator with the gold leaf In those
places where the printing is to be done
These electro plates are made In the foun-
dry of the printing office and last several
weeks constant printing. All plates are
indexed and filed away, so that they can
be easily secured at any time when for
mer order is to be duplicated. stamping
machine will average about thirty impress
sions a minute, and one man will attend
machine.
Handling the Gold Leaf.
What about the gold leaf?'
There Is a force of women who handle
the gold leaf exclusively While there is a
hand machine for applying the gold leaf to
the cover, yet quite an amount of the work
is done by hand with knife and pad. There
are two grades of gold leaf used: dark
gold of % karat and light gold of ~
karat The latter is used for the cheaper
binding. This gold leaf comes to the office
in packages containing about 500 leaves.
There are % leaves of gold to a book. 1t
is estimated that during the days work
about Is packages Of gold leaf are used.
The hand machine for laying on the gold
leaf is a small affair. 1t is made in a
number of sizes for different widths and
lengths of leaf. 1t will hold a roll contain
ing SO feet of leaf, which looks like tape.
The machine disposes of the old method of
cutting the leaf with knife, for the leaf
in the roll is already cut at the factory be-
fore shipment. 1t will easily do twice the
work of the old method.
How do the women get the leaf on the
cloth backs?
New Use for Olive Oil.
One sees here a new use for olive oil.
Here it is rubbed with a pad on the place
where the leaf is to be laid The leaf seems
to know Its place and sticks. The stamper
does the rest in very short order.
This department handles all the big jobs
Of lettering, such as annual reports and
many other public documents Some idea
can be CLEANED from the amount of work
turned out by this department by COMPARE
son of present with old methods. Formerly
one man could finish in day about thirty
eight backs by hand. Today stamper,
with two women, can turn out about 600
backs day.
what is the steamer for?" asked the
reporter, looking at the Uncovered long
table in the center of the room.
"That is no steamer" replied the In
fOrmant. ibid you think you were get
ting up to the lunch counter? That, sir, is