A MAD TEA PARTY
It was amazing to see how the general interest in the _March Hare_
increased as the months went by. So successful was the magazine that
Paul ventured an improvement in the way of a patriotic cover done in
three colors--an eagle and an American flag designed by one of the
juniors and submitted for acceptance in a "cover contest", the prize
offered being a year's subscription to the paper. After this innovation
came the yet more pretentious and far-reaching novelty of the Mad Tea
Party, a supper held in the hall of the school with seventy-five-cent
tickets for admission. The mothers of the pupils contributed the food,
and as Burmingham boasted many an expert cook the meal spread upon the
tables was indeed a royal one.
The edict went forth that no guest would be admitted to the festival
unless arrayed in an "Alice in Wonderland" costume, and for the sake of
witnessing the fun, as well as of helping forward the fete, more than
one dignified resident of the town struggled into an incongruous
garment and mingled in the train of Alice, the White Queen, the Red
Queen, the Duchess, Father William, and the Aged Man. Judge Damon and
Mr. Cameron provoked a storm of mirth by appearing as the Walrus and the
Carpenter, and Paul's mother, who was still a young and pretty woman,
came as the famous Queen of Hearts. As for Mr. Carter, although he
pooh-poohed the idea and made all manner of jokes about the party, he
astonished the entire community by presenting himself at the last moment
as the Dormouse.
[Illustration: More than one dignified resident of the town struggled
into an incongruous garment. _Page 74._]
Such a revel had not taken place in the village for years. In fact,
there had never before been any social function which brought high and
low, rich and poor together in such democratic fashion. The frolic had
in it a Mardi Gras spirit quite foreign to the wonted quiet and dignity
of the place.
"Why, we haven't had such a shaking-up in years!" ejaculated the
postmaster. "Seems like we've all got better acquainted with our
neighbors in this one evening than we ever did in all the rest of our
lives put together. You don't get far at knowing a man if you just bow
to him every day; but when you go making an ape of yourself and he goes
making an ape of himself, each of you finds out how human the other one
is. You've got something in common to talk about."
And it was even as the old postmaster declared. Many a social barrier
was broken down and forgotten as a result of the _March Hare_ carnival.
Parents ceased to remember their differences by talking together about
their children, a topic that never failed to bring them into sympathy.
Thus the movement which had its source in an impulse to aid the
youngsters proved to be of benefit also to many of the elders. Nor was
this the only consequence of the event.
Into the coffers of the class treasury poured undreamed-of wealth which
made possible the gift of two fine pictures to the school,--one of
Washington and one of Lincoln; a large cast of the Winged Victory was
purchased as well, and placed in an empty niche in the assembly hall.
Thus did 1920 leave behind it a memory illustrious and not to be
forgotten.
In the meantime Paul, absorbed in this successful undertaking, was so
busy that he had scarcely leisure to eat. The editing of the paper
demanded more and more time, and as new problems were constantly arising
concerning its publication he did not neglect to glean from every
possible direction all the information he could about printing. The mere
act of preparing copy for the press opened to his alert mind a multitude
of inquiries.
"I read to-day," he announced to his father one evening, "that the
printing press was invented by Lawrence Coster (or Lorenz Koster) of
Haarlem. The book said that he went on a picnic with his family, and
while idly carving his name on the trunk of a beech tree he conceived
the idea that he might in the same way make individual letters of the
alphabet on wooden blocks, ink them over, and thus print words."
Mr. Cameron listened attentively.
"Such is the old legend," he replied. "It is an interesting one and many
persons believe it to this day. History, however, fails to bear out the
tale. Instead, as nearly as we can find out, what Coster is really
conceded to have done was not to invent printing but to be the first to
make movable type, which was one of the greatest factors in the
perfecting of the industry. Holland has done honor, and rightly, to the
inventor by placing a statue of him at Haarlem; but the real inventor of
printing was probably John Gutenburg, a native of Strasbourg, who made a
printing press which, although not so elaborate as that in present use,
was nevertheless a properly constructed one. Simple as it was, the
principle of it is identical with that used to-day."
"That is curious, isn't it?" observed Paul.
"Yes. Think how long ago it was; from 1440 to 1460 he toiled at his
invention. He was a versatile man, being not only skilled in polishing
precious stones but also at making mirrors. The making of mirrors was a
new trade in Germany for outside the borders of Venice, where the
monopoly had long been held by Italian workmen, the industry was almost
unknown. It is possible that Gutenburg may have used the presses and
even the lead employed for molding the mirror frames to work out his
metal type. Doubtless his knowledge of melting and pouring lead was
derived from his mirror-making trade. We know, however, little of his
experiments. He worked in secret, spending years in research and wasting
other years in delays, when money to further his invention was not
forthcoming. His first printing was done about 1439 or 1440, and from
that time up to 1460 he was busy printing and struggling to make his
work more perfect."
"What did he print in those early days?" inquired Paul. "Books?"
"Yes. A few pages from them remain and are to be seen at the National
Library at Paris. The letters used are very coarse and uneven and are in
the Latin type employed by the monks in writing their manuscripts. It is
almost a romance to picture Gutenburg shut up in the old ruined
monastery where he worked night and day with one of his faithful
helpers--a goldsmith who had long been in his employ--and two other
tried and trusty apprentices. You can see how necessary it was that he
have men whom he could rely on not to divulge his secret. Probably the
goldsmith's knowledge of metals was of service to his master in the
undertaking; as for the joiner who had previously aided in constructing
mirror frames, he made most of the tools. We don't know much about the
third workman, but we do know that later one of the trio died very
suddenly, and the interruption to Gutenburg's work caused great delay.
Fearful that in the meantime the secret of the invention might leak out,
or that the old servant's heirs might insist on having a share in the
discovery, Gutenburg melted up his forms and abandoned further labor for
a time. This was a great pity, for by destroying what he had done the
inventor had it all to create over again later on. His rash act did,
however, prove one thing which history wanted to know, and that was that
Gutenburg used metal forms and not wood to make his letters."
"How soon did he re-make his metal forms?" asked Paul eagerly.
"Not right away," responded Mr. Cameron. "He was deeply in debt and a
good deal discouraged by the death of his efficient workman on whom he
was very dependent. For six years we hear no more of him. Then he
appeared at Metz where he began borrowing money again, just as he had
done before. He was fortunate in securing the aid needed, and it is from
this period on that his best printing was done. He now branched out into
more ambitious tasks, producing a copy of the Latin Bible in three
volumes. This pretentious undertaking of course required a great many
letters, and he found that to cut them by hand was too slow a process;
moreover, the lead letters were very soft and wore down quickly. He must
cast his letters in brass molds and make them of more durable metal. But
alas, such an innovation was costly and his money had given out.
Therefore, much as he dreaded to part with his secret, he was forced to
take into partnership a rich metal worker by the name of John Faust."
Mr. Cameron paused to think a moment.
"It was thus that Gutenburg procured the brass for his molds; made in
them letters of harder material; and printed his Bible. With the
production of this masterpiece came a strange happening, too. You can
see that by printing from letters cast in molds the text was more
regular than was the handwork done by the priests and monks. Hence when
Charles VII of France saw one of the new Bibles he was enchanted with it
and eagerly bought it because of its uniform text. The next day he
displayed his recently acquired treasure to the Archbishop with no
little pride, and great was his astonishment when the Archbishop
asserted with promptness that he himself owned a newly purchased Bible
that was quite as perfect in execution. The king protested that such a
miracle could not be--that no one could write by hand two such copies.
To settle the dispute the Archbishop's Bible was produced and placed
beside the king's, and there they were, identically the same. The
dignitaries were troubled. It was not humanly possible to pen by hand
two such books. Why, it would take a lifetime--more than a lifetime; nor
could any penman write two manuscripts so exactly alike. To make the
matter worse and more puzzling, other copies were discovered precisely
like the king's and the Archbishop's. Not a line or letter varied. It
was magic!"
Paul laughed with pleasure.
"No wonder the poor king and the stately archbishop were upset!" he
said.
"They were very much upset indeed," agreed his father. "It was, you must
recall, a superstitious age. Everything that could not be fathomed was
attributed to witchcraft. Hence witchcraft was the only explanation of
the present miracle. John Faust, of whom the two royal persons had
bought the books, must have sold himself to the devil. They would have
the unlucky merchant brought, and if he could not satisfactorily tell
how and where he had got the Bibles, he should be burned alive."
"I suppose he went and told!" put in Paul indignantly.
"Yes, he did. He wasn't going to forfeit his life. I fancy any of us
would have done the same, too. He showed the Archbishop his press and
explained how the Bibles had been printed."
"It was a pity he had to."
"It was something of a pity," answered Mr. Cameron. "And yet the secret
must have come out sometime, I suppose, for subsequently Faust quarreled
with Gutenburg and by and by set up a press of his own at Metz, and with
two printing presses in the same town, and the workmen necessary to run
them mingling with the populace, it was impossible to keep such an
invention from the public. Gradually it became common property and it
had become universal when Metz was sacked in the Franco-Prussian War,
its printing rooms destroyed, and the workmen scattered."
"Did that put an end to printing?" questioned Paul.
"No. On the contrary it spread the art over France and Germany. By 1500
there were over fifty presses on the continent. In the meantime William
Caxton, an English merchant, traveled to Holland to buy cloth, and there
became so much interested in the books he saw and the tale of how they
were printed that he purchased some type and, bringing it home, set up a
printing press in London not far from Westminster Abbey. The first
English book to be printed was dated 1474 and was called 'The Game of
Chess.' Then came a Bible which was presented to the king. From this
time on there was practically an end to the handwritten books made by
the monks in cloisters and monasteries. Occasionally such a volume was
made for the very rich because, as I told you, the elegant still
considered paper and the printed book too common and cheap for their
use. But with the steady improvement of ink and paper and the awakening
desire of the masses to read what was printed came the dawn of religious
liberty and the birth of learning."
"It is a wonderful story!" cried Paul, much moved.
"A book in itself, isn't it?" said his father. "It is an interesting
fact, however, that Latin and the Latin text continued to be the
language of the printed book for some time; this was not only because of
an established precedent, but because the Renaissance in Italy revived
an interest in classic literature. But by and by people demanded books
in their native tongue. They wished to read something besides the
classics--literature that was alive and a part of their own era. The
written _novello_, or story, began to take the place of the ballads
which the _trouveurs_, or minstrels who wandered from castle to castle,
had chanted. One was no longer dependent on such a story-teller. The
printed novel had arrived. Its form was still very crude, but it was
nevertheless a story and a broader field for entertainment than was
provided by the threadbare lives of the saints. Science, too, was making
remarkable progress and the public was alert to read of Bacon and
Galileo, as well as of Luther and Shakespeare. Had printing come earlier
it would have been to a passive, indifferent populace; now it appeared
in answer to the craving of a people thirsty to read of travel,
invention, poetry; to consume the Tales of King Arthur, Sir John
Mandeville's Travels, Sidney's 'Arcadia', Chaucer's Canterbury Tales.
The Elizabethans reflected in England the rebirth of literature and
learning which was sweeping all Europe at the time. Printing was not the
herald, nor yet the servant, of this wonderful age; but was rather its
companion, going hand in hand with it and making all the wealth of
thought that it had to give available to us, as well as to those of its
own day."
"Long live Gutenburg!" exclaimed Paul.
"Yes, we owe him a great deal," agreed Mr. Cameron. "But do not become
confused and attribute everything to him. He did invent type molds for
casting type and thereby brought printing to the point of a practical
art. He did not invent engraving on wood, as many enthusiasts acclaim;
nor did he invent impressions of relief surfaces. He was not, moreover,
the first to print on paper, for the makers of playing cards and
image-prints had done that before him. There had also been roughly
printed books before his day and printing presses, too. There had even
been movable type. But Gutenburg was the first to combine these ideas so
that they could be used for practical purposes. In other words, he was
the first practical typographer, not the first printer. Upon the
foundation that other men had built in, he reared a permanent, useful
art without which there could not have been either enlightenment or
education."