Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-09-16
UTILIZATION OF WASTE
LARGE aEvENuE THUS DERIVED
AT g. p. o.


every department of the commercial world,
and the evidence Of activity in this direc-
ton displayed by the government printing
Office is said to compare favorably with
Commercial methods, Each Of the man
ufacturing divisions Of the big plant adds
it's quota to the total Of wastes" paper,
Of course, forming the largest Item
Waste gold leaf, leather scraps, stereotype
dross, old boxes, condemned machinery,
WORKOUT type and other minor items add
approximately $4,000 year to the reve-
nue. Of Uncle Sans printing house.
After the paper covers have been placed
on pamphlets and before the bookbinders
place the finishing touches on more elabo-
rate publications it is necessary to trim
the rough margins. and in plant the size
of the government printing office this IS
productive of tons of waste paper A
special chute carries this refuse to the
powerful compressors on the first moor OF
the new building, where it Is baled reaoy
for the contractor. All scraps and waste
sheets from the press room and plndery
GO the same way and even the old proof
sheets and the contents of the waste pas
kets are added. Over $4,000 a year Is de-
rived from this source.
Gold Leaf Savings.
The saving of gold leaf is an interesting
process, both on account of the value ana
the character of the material. Gold leal
is received in packs" or books somewhat
similar to the stamp books issued by the
post office. The films of gold lear are sep
arated from one another, the goldworker
using enough to cover the surface oh
which it is desired to impress lettering Oh
a design After coming from the power
press the portions of the leaf not I'M
pressed into the cover are brushed on onto
a table the center of which is depfesseu
A current of compressed alr draws 'i ne
gold film through tubes from more III
the ia BILE and deposits it in large recep-
tacle which is opened fortnightly FOR d one
removal of the contents. Nearly Sl'oo'
worth of gold leaf is taken from the re-
ceptacles each month, the material pe'is
of light feathery nature. ..,,,,,,
Leather is purchased for the estaplisL u
meat in quantities, and is estimated at 81
many skins or feet according 10 ane
kind required. The tanned skin or sheep
or cowhide Is delivered to the expert cut
ters whose skill depends on the ingenuity
displayed in SO cutting the leaIher ..idI
there is practically no waste. me ne snn,e
shreds of leather are valuable for so me
p,rpose the office receiving ABOUT St'oV'
a year from the refuse.
Revenue From Dross.
stereotvpe dross disposed of by the ofi1ce
brings in a revenue of about $500 per year.
The foundry utilizes old metal from every
department Of the plant In the making OF
mates. and has a special arrangement FOR
providing clean material in the regular
work. Several employees start the furnaces
after the whistle has blown in the evening
and the old metal, broken type ana what
not of the big manufactory are Turned lnio
bright new "pigS for the next days work,
eliminating the odors and gases from the
workroom while the large body Of employees
are at work. .
Condemned machinery also adds a consid-
ora n
while the amount received from the sale OF
old boxes in which printing paper has been
delivered is expected to be nearly twice
that Of last year, owing to an arrangement
with a box company for the entire supply
at over double the previous price
The demand for tablets and cards for in
dexing has grown enormously In the last
few years, and several employees are con-
stantly engaged on this work. A great
many printed slips are made into tablets
ra Their than bound in the book form COM
purposes are turned out by the office by the
million. Various cutting and punching ma
chimes are in use to suit the requirements Of
the different filing schemes.
A Good Patron.
The Department of Agriculture has a his
torical sketch Of the beginning and growth
of the department going through the big
mill which will prove of exceptional in
terest when published. The department is
one Of the best patrons of the government
printing office, its orders for last year ap-
proximating 100000 copies of the differ
ent publications.
The breaking in of beginners on the Lans-
ton typesetting machine has begun and will
continue until sufficient number have mas
tered the mechanism to constitute a day
and night force. The following compositors
have been detailed as beginners In the fifth
division: H. s. Sutton. John Hogan. Ed
ward Hall! j. w. Fritz, George Montgom-
cry, Charles Yater, George Sylvester and
John Sheridan.
To prevent confusion In the COMPOSING
divisions 1t has been necessary for the COPY
editors to designate "old spelling or new
spelling on the copy. Many jobs are in a
state OF preparation for months, the first
part being put into type and held for or
ders and additions must conform to old re-
quirements All new jobs coming In will
conform to the requirements Of the simpl-
fed spelling rules.