Evening star., 1912-09-15
!: PRINTING THE POSTAL CARDS|

i w i MI VANUU
the cost of a postal and stamp for .
letter, while the amount Of time thus
saved is beyond computation.
All told. the average output OF the
government printing ONCE each year is
about SSo.00O,o00 postal
Suggestive cards. that number in
c+.%;.4;.. cluding all the different
SsssASsiSs' kinds printed. Taking
that figure as q basis It IL seen that the
distance these cards would cover. II
laid end to end, taking the average
length as 1--WE inches, would be 400. .OOo.0 .0es0
inches. or more than 3SS.000.0o0 feet. or
over 21,212 miles, a distance sumcient
to encircle the globe nearly three times.
The weight Of q years production is
enormous, being more than 10000 tons.
1t is estimated that 1000 postal cards
weigh more than FIVE pounds; the reply
cards. of course. weighing just double
If these cards were all taken fSom the
government printing office at the same
time 142 freight cars would be required
IL tney were TO De stored away ~ Suc
printing Office practically 23e. .0e0 cubic
feet of space would be required. II
they were made to form a wall. 1t
! would be possible to make ono ESQ feet
long. 100 feet high and ten feet thick
The paper from which postal cards are
made costs each year moro than $751;
! 500. This expense is the greatest in
connection with their production. as
with working force OF less than forty
and need Of few other materials. aside
frouo ipk tho renafnfN~ coat ia com.
paratfvely slight
The two machines which turn out
these postal cards and their equipment
h an on 9Hay aa9 OF At sss nsnt
ing Office Is seven and a half hours
With each machine making sixty revoiu-
tions a minute. and ninety-six impress
sions each revolution. the maximum out
5. 600, 600 postal cards. The speed at
which these machines are run. however.
is set according to tho size Of the days
orders. The stock on hand is kept
amount is necessary each day in excess
!Of that determines the output for that
day. An average days work is about
3. 3.5o0, ,000. roll Of cardboard weighs
oeo Impressions. The number Of rolls
of cardboard used in year varies. but
is in the neighborhood of 5000.
One interesting feature in connection
with the production Of postal cards
is the way in which these
Handling huge rolls Of PAPER are ham
died The room in which the
1aPe1. postal cards are printed is On
the basement floor at the end OF the III
street side of what is called the ED
building, or that on the corner OF North
Capitol and II streets. while the paper IS
taken in at the North Capitol street en-
trance, several hundred feet distant. A
platform has been constructed from the
entrance to the printing room. and by the
use Of pulleys the paper is rolled down
with comparatively little trouble. The
platform will hold $50 rolls, or 2S6.0O0
pounds, at one time. Once in the print
ing room the same pulley device is used
to swing the rolls into position to be
put on the presses.
In printing postal cards there Is less
danger than in printing postage
stamps-that is. from the standpoint
of money losses. The output for an
entire year being about $50 .0o0.0 .00e.
their face value Is S8.a00.O00. That Is
a sufficient amount to tempt any ron
into consideration. about 100000
pounds, the danger is placed almost
below that Of possibility. let alone
probab bility. Consequently. postal cards
can be said to be their own protection
as by taking away all he could pos
sibly carry a man would have but
comparatively few dollars worth-an
amount far too small when compared
with the risk.
Just as with stamps, the postal cards
are distributed to about 10000 post
Offices all over the United States and
her possessions. In preparing pack
ages for shipment wooden boxes are
used only in the case OF cards Eoins
Cards are sometimes sent by water to
Jacksonville, Fla. and San Francisco
as well as other coast cities About
50 per cent of those shipped. how
ever, go in the Ordinary S, r.saeSt ssrm-
Both the cartons and the wooden boxes
are made at the printing ONCE, the
cartons In connection with the vast
amount of cardboard work done there
and the wooden boxes from the wood
ments in boxes and other material
This is merely one instance OF the
economy which is practiced IN All
branches OF the printing ONCE and by
saved annually.
W nlle the pOStdi SdA NS oAo eNS .-'
things printed at the government print
ing Office which have an
Valuable actual face value upon
their completion. there are
Products. other things which are
na,-artheless valuable and have to be
nrinted with the utmost care, such as
the money order blanks for the Post
Office Department. These. when they
have been filled out by a clerk at
the post Office. can be turned into cash
for whatever amount is specified on the
blank. and are therefore valuable. These
are printed by the hundred thousand each
wear and sent direct from the printing
office to their destination by registered
mail.
Money orders are made into books OF
o. so. 100 and 100 blanks each. The
total number Of books made In an aver
age wear is about 10000. Two presses
are used in printing these forms, though
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