Denver labor bulletin., 1918-11-02


as it is received at the bureau, it is
examined and the sheets counted by
girls. In fact, the bonds are counted
after practically every process, for in
the printing of money and bonds every
scrap of paper has to be accounted
for. Six bonds are printed on a sheet.
To prepare for the printing the paper
is wetted down by placing twenty
sheets between two wet cloths under
weight to force the moisture into the
paper. 1t rests for four days and is
then ready for the first impression.
After this is made, it is again wetted
down and placed under weight for an
other four days, when it is ready for
the second printing.
Backs of bonds are printed first.
then the face. The design of all the
bonds is practically the same, the diff
ference in denomination being told by
the color. Fifty-dollar bonds are
brown; 500 bonds are golden in color;
$500 bonds are dark blue; $1,000
bonds, green; $4,000 bonds, red; S1O,-
600 bonds, purple; s50,000 bonds, ma
room; 100000 bonds, light blue. The
design of the bond is printed from an
engraved plate on power presses and
1t is only possible at this time to print
300 or 400 bonds an hour by this
means.
High Efficiency Required.
The fourth issue of Liberty bonds
represents the finest portraiture
known in steel engraving. No finer
portraits have ever been put on steel
plates. 1nasmuch as the backs and
faces of bonds are printed at differ
ent times, it is necessary to make them
both fit. This requires the highest de-
gree of efficiency and skill on the
part of the girl assistant feeding the
paper to the presses which are of
course in motion. All this work is
done by competent girls. The bonds
come from the press. If the bonds
are not coming out just right, the girl
who is doing the examining presses a
button, the press stops instantaneous
iy, and the pressman makes an inves-
tigation. Great progress on fine steel
engraving has been made in printing
on power presses in this bureau in
the last eight months. Not only is
the work better done and more speed
lily accomplished, but the amount of
spoilage has been very considerably
lessened.
After the face of the bond is fin
ished the sheets are placed on trays
and put in a large dry box Each
NAoy Oh WhASh Wofh Is SpItau Ine
dry box Is devoted to an individual
printer, whose name is attached to
the tray. There are no slips in the
bureau of printing and engraving.
Every individual is responsible for
the task at hand. The work is so
systematized that an error can be i'm
mediately traced to the one response
BILE. At p. m. the dry box is locked
and heat applied until in the morn
ing, when the bonds are removed from
the trays, counted, and examined. The
sheets of bonds are then taken to the
trimming room, where the edges are
cut by a group of girls, each one of
whom trims on an average of $500
sheets a day.
Comforts for Employees.
At lunch time operations cease for
n half hour. and at the cafeteria
stewed chicken, mashed potatoes, tea,
or coffee and pie may be had, all for
25 cents.
The bureau of printing and en-
craving is at Fourteenth and D
streets, not far from the Washington
monument, and about a block from the
Potomac river. There are two large
open air recreation rooms on top of
the building-one for men and one
for women.
WuSH Nut pOuuS enter tne surface
division from the trimming room, they
are again checked and counted. Then
they are ready to be printed with the
numbers, the interest, the title Fourth
Liberty loan. the seal, and the num-
bers on the coupons. Again it is a
girl who feeds the bond sheets to the
press, and another girl who watches
to see that they come out perfectly.
This is numbered in rotation. II the
girl discovers an error, the press is
instantly stopped, and the bonds
guarded until the error is traced and
corrected.
The story of the bond. as the fine
printed reading matter on the face Of
the bond is called, is the final stage
in the printing Of the bond. An ex-
pertinent is being made in printing
the story Of the bond on the Offset
press, and every indication points to
a remarkable success. The bureau ex-
poets before long to be able to take
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