Evening star., 1940-06-09

a very wealthy man or a prince or
king. There were books, of course,
but these were laboriously penned
by hand by scribes. 1t took a year
to pen book of considerable size
and the cost of these books had
to include years salary, for the
scribe, plus cost of materials, plus
profit. The average Bible took four
years to produce and even few
churches could afford a copy.
With the rise of the interest in
education, fathers sent their sons
to private teachers. In the process
of this education, the boys needed
little Latin grammar called the
Donatus, after the name of its au-
thor. The Donatus was used by
more than 40 generations in learn
ing to speak and write the language
then universal among the educated
people of Europe There was an
insisuent demand for copies of the
Donatus for the ever-increasing
army of schoolboys.
Thus the stage was set for the
invention of printing with movable
types Just prior to the middle of the
18th century. The principle of the
press had been introduced centuries
before in such age-old industries as
the pressing of grapes for the max
ing of wine. Oil paints, which ar
fists were just beginning to use,
could easily be adapted to provide
a heavy ink which would stick to
metal types. But one really serious
problem remained.
That problem was the casting in
quantity of metal types of uniform
and accurate dimensions, so that
the types could be set in lines and
locked in page. The type also
had to be durable enough so that
, individual letters could be used
again and again. The years of pa
tlent experimenting spent in solv-
ing this problem gave the world
the invention of printing.
There is no other historical event
of like importance regarding which
so much misinformation has been
circulated. Legends woven out of
imagination have been repeated
I again and again. But scientific re-
/ search in recent years has resulted
in building up a dependable body
of fact regarding the invention of
printing. Controversy is now re-
placed by statements upon which
the worlds authorities are sub
stantially agreed.
Credit for Invention.
Johann Gutenberg of Mainz and
Strasbourg is shown by documentary
records to have been the inventor
of printing. His claim to that
honor is today not seriously ques-
toned.
Gutenberg was born in Mainz of
an aristocratic family about the
year 1400 In his early manhood an
uprising of the working classes re-
suited in Punishment of his family
from that city 1t was about l43O
that Gutenberg, in exile, took up
residence in Strasbourg, and it was
there that we get the first hint that
he was experimenting with printing.
In 1439 in Strasbourg, we find him
VIGOROUSLY engaged in his first law
suit arising from claim made after
the death of one of his partners.
1t is from the record of this law
suit that we learn of the expert
ments on which he was engaged as
early as 1896.
The earliest specimen of Guten-
bergs printing, known as the "Frag-
ment of the World Judgment" is be-
iieved to have been printed in 1445.
An approximate average of these
dates brings us to 144O as the year
when printing probably became a
practicable process, determining
1910 as the anniversary year. This
checks with precedent, since former
centenaries have been observed in
the 40th year of each century.
About the time the invention was
perfected, Gutenberg returned to
his native city of Mainz. His earli-
est work included II different edi-
tions of the Donatus Latin gram
mar. He also printed an almanac
for the year 1448.
Gutenberg then projected an am
bilious undertaking, the printing
of the Bible. Since such an enter
prise needed large capital, he bor-
rowed 300 gulden, considerable
sum of money in those days, from
Jahann Fust, Mainz capitalist.
Gutenberg gave as security for this
loan the tools and equipment to be
made from its proceeds.
Later Gutenberg needed another
loan and again went to Fust, who
once more advanced 800 gulden, this
time on the stipulation that F'ust be
taken into partnership. In 1854 the
loans were still unpaid and Fust
sued Gutenberg, squeezing him out
of the enterprise. Fust won the
suit, took over the printing estab-
lishment, and completed the great
Bible about. 1455. Fust took into
partnership Peter Schoeffer, who
had been one of Gutenberg's helpers.
Later Fust gave Schoeffer the hand