4. These impressions are placed in juxtaposition, for the purpose of
giving an opportunity of comparing them, and forming a true estimate
of their respective merits.
There have been many attempts in London to obtain an electrotype
copy of a page of types, but hitherto, I believe, without success;
the difficulty arising from the deposition of copper getting under
the projecting parts of the kerned letters, and also penetrating
into the interstices between the letters and the words, and thus
preventing the mould from being disengaged from the types, without
using force and destroying a great number of letters. The following,
No. 6., is an imperfect specimen of a page of diamond types, by Mr.
Robert Branston, an engraver of eminence in wood, and Mr. Warren De
la Rue. There are many difficulties yet to be overcome in the process
of obtaining electrotype copies of types; but it will show what has
already been accomplished, and I have not the least doubt that the
combined skill and perseverance of Mr. Branston and Mr. De la Rue
will in a short time overcome those difficulties, and produce perfect
copies with ease and certainty.
The method adopted to procure this was as follows:--A mould in
plaster of Paris was first obtained, and a stereotype plate was
cast in it; high spaces and quadrats were used, to prevent as much
as possible the inconvenience before spoken of; a mould was then
obtained from the stereotype plate by the polytype process, in type
metal, and from that mould, by the galvanic action, the electrotype
copy from which the specimen No. 6. was printed.
In the first instance, the plan recommended by Mr. Spencer in the
Athenæum of the 4th of July, 1840, of preparing the surface of the
mould with silver, was adopted, but the sulphuric acid acted on the
plaster of Paris of which it was formed, and rendered it useless.
Since the preceding was written and in print, I have been informed
that Mr. Spencer has been more successful than the London
experimenters, for, in a letter to me, dated Glasgow, September 17th,
1840, he says, “Had I been at home I should have sent you a copy
of the first pamphlet, where you would have seen an octavo page of
stereotyping by the Voltaic process.”
In the present early state of electrotyping we find that, as it is
formed by the solution in water of a salt composed of sulphuric acid
and copper, it is of course thinner and the copper more attenuated
than type metal is when in a state of fusion; it will necessarily
penetrate into all the delicately engraved parts of a subject more
completely than melted metal, and must therefore produce a more
perfect facsimile than a casting; I believe this is undeniable,
for copies of copper plate engravings of great fineness have been
produced in the highest state of perfection as facsimiles. Another
point is, that copper is tougher than type metal, and not so liable
to have the letters break off and fail in the process of printing,
and of consequence will be more durable. But it appears to me that
one of its most valuable applications will be to the printing of
Bibles, for by obtaining copper matrices of the pages by this
process new editions may be multiplied to any extent, and when the
plates are much worn they may be renewed at any future time, without
incurring the expense of recomposing the book; which is not the case
with stereotype plates. But the applicability of the discovery is
as yet in its infancy, as these specimens are, I believe, the first
that have been published of impressions of letterpress electrotype
plates, and the ingenuity of man is at work to extend and improve the
discovery.
In giving the foregoing account of experiments that have been made
on this discovery of the application of galvanism to the production
of copies of the works of art, and more particularly with respect
to engravings on wood, as connected with letterpress printing, to
which this work is confined, it is evident that the persons making
these experiments are not availing themselves of the information
which may easily be procured, that is, of ascertaining what are the
requisites to enable a printer to make use of these copies in the
regular way of business; excepting this be done, the discovery will
not be available for general purposes, and will be viewed only as
a curiosity: one point, to which I would particularly draw their
attention, is the difficulty experienced in separating the matrix
from the original, and again of separating the copy from the matrix;
in both these cases they have the deposition of copper too thin, and
in the act of separation both the matrix and the copy are twisted and
distorted; they are then filled in at the back with some soft metal,
which is planed in a rough manner, and delivered in this condition,
unfit for the press, at which it is almost impossible to obtain a
good impression. I would suggest that the deposition of copper should
be continued for a longer time, so as to have the metal thicker, both
in the matrix and the copy; if any irregularity in the surface then
take place in the act of separation, it ought to be reduced before it
is filled in with metal at the back; when that is done it should be
turned in a lathe, as stereotype plates now are; it would thus be of
an equal thickness throughout without any unevenness on the surface
or back, and when mounted type-high might be printed without more
trouble than wood cuts or stereotype plates are; thus enabling the
printer to produce impressions without difficulty that would show the
merits of the discovery in a fair manner, which at present cannot be
done without great trouble and loss of time.
[Illustration: _No._ 1. _An Impression from an Engraving on Wood._]
[Illustration: _No._ 2. _An Impression from an Electrotype Copy of
No._ 1.]
[Illustration: _No._ 3. _An Impression from an Engraving on Wood._
_No._ 4. _An Impression from an Electrotype Copy of No._ 3.
_No._ 5. _An Impression from a Polytype Copy of No._ 3.]
[Illustration: _No._ 6. _An Impression from an Electrotype Copy of a
Page of Diamond Types._]
GARTER.
In wooden presses, two flat pieces of iron with a semicircle cut in
one end of each, and a projecting part at the other ends; in the
projecting parts there is a hole at each end, those in the front
piece for a screw to go through, and those in the back piece are
tapped to receive a screw.
The hose has a horizontal mortise through it, exactly at the groove
in the spindle; this mortise is to receive the garter, which, when
driven close up from back and front, clasps the spindle in the groove
by means of its semicircular ends, which are made to fit into this
groove; and the two parts are kept firmly together by the screws that
pass through the projecting ends on two sides of the hose.
Its use is to lift up the platen on the return of the bar, to admit
the carriage to be run in and out.
GATHER BOOKS.
Gathering of books is to take one sheet off every heap, beginning at
the last sheet first, viz. at the left hand end of the range.--_M._
We now reverse the heaps, and place the first signature where they
used to place the last; they then gathered, placing each sheet upon
the other: we now gather under each sheet, which is a much quicker
way. _See_ GATHERING.
GATHER CORRECTIONS. _See_ CORRECTIONS.
GATHERING.
In making the printed sheets of a work up into copies in the
warehouse for delivery, a number of them in orderly succession
are folded together, which is called a gathering; a volume may be
complete in one gathering, or it may consist of two, three, four, or
more.
When there are more than one gathering in a volume, the warehouseman
endeavours to have the number of sheets in each nearly equal; and
he very rarely puts less than ten, or more than fifteen, in one
gathering.
He lays down upon the gathering table a heap of each signature,
commencing with B, or whatever signature the body of the work may
begin with, following each other in regular order, according to the
letters of the alphabet, and as many as he intends to include in the
first gathering, with the first page of each to the front of the
table. If it be a long number, he seldom lays down more than a bundle
of each signature at once, that the top sheets may not be higher than
the boys can conveniently reach.
The first signature is placed at the extreme end of the table to the
left hand, that if there be any space more than is actually wanted
upon the table, it may be at the end where the gathering concludes,
to allow the boys to knock up the sheets without crowding each other.
In commencing gathering it is necessary that the boys should have
clean hands, otherwise they will dirty many sheets with the end of
the right thumb.
A boy wets the end of his right thumb with the tip of his tongue,
and pushes up with it the right hand corner of the first sheet, the
fingers of his left hand being laid upon the sheet to prevent its
slipping away, and he catches it up with the thumb of his left hand
underneath it, and draws it upon the next heap; he does the same by
this, and so continues drawing the accumulating sheets in his left
hand over the successive heaps, and taking one from each, till he
gets to the end; he then knocks this gathering up even at the ends
and sides, and lays it down at the end of the table, which being what
is styled a horse-shoe table, he has only to turn himself round, when
he is again facing the first signature, to recommence the operation,
always knocking up his gathering, and laying it evenly upon the
other, till it accumulates to a pile.
In the regular routine of business, where despatch is necessary,
three or four boys are generally put to one gathering table, who
follow each other regularly, knocking up their gatherings, and piling
them up on the end of the table. Among them there is frequently an
inexperienced boy; to prevent delay, this boy is ordered to lay his
gathering down at the end, and the next boy knocks it up with his
own: if the boy has quickness and spirit, he exerts himself to become
expert, and to equal the others.
If the collation of the book is going on at the same time, it
prevents the pile of gatherings from accumulating too much; if it be
not, the pile must be removed occasionally, to prevent it getting too
high for the boys to deposit their gatherings.
They thus proceed till one, or more, of the heaps is exhausted, when
the remnant of the others is folded in the middle, each signature by
itself, and tied up in a bundle, enclosed in wrappers; but if the
book be collating, the drawn sheets are previously laid down, which
enables them generally to gather off a few more copies.
In the course of gathering, if a boy perceives that the sheets in
any of the heaps are turned the wrong way, he should immediately
announce it, that they may be placed right; he should be likewise
very particular to take one sheet from each heap, as also to avoid
taking two: any of these errors causes a great deal of extra trouble
in collating, and of course a consequent loss of time, in addition to
making the work unpleasant.
After the gatherings are collated, they are knocked up carefully at
the ends and sides, and folded evenly in the middle; folios, quartos,
and octavos, in the regular fold of the paper, and twelves the long
way in the back; for a gathering is never folded in a page, neither
lengthways nor crossways. They are then put into a press, a moderate
quantity being placed between each two boards, and the press wrung
well down; after having lain in the press a sufficient time, they are
taken out, and piled away till the work is completed, and they are
wanted for Booking.
If copies of a work are required to be delivered as soon as the last
sheet is put to press, which at the present day is commonly the
case, the warehouseman should be prepared to meet the wishes of his
employer’s customers, by having the book gathered close up to the
last gathering; having them all pressed and booked; and as fast as
the last sheet is worked off, keep hanging it up very thin in the
most favourable part of his poling for drying, and even dry a few by
the fire to commence with. He will thus have the last gathering only
to put together, and in some cases he may have part of that done; so
that if he put his boys to gather, himself to collate, another to
fold the gatherings and put them into the press, he may in less than
two hours, in a case of emergency, deliver fifty or a hundred copies
of a work without difficulty, and obtain credit to the house and
to himself for despatch and attention, both of which cannot but be
gratifying to him. _See_ BOOKING. COLLATING. LAY DOWN.
GATHERING TABLE.
A table in the warehouse on which the printed sheets are arranged in
the order of their signatures, in order to their being gathered into
books. It is usually a horse-shoe table, and the boys gather on the
inside, so that when they have completed one gathering they have only
to turn round and commence again. Where there is space enough in the
warehouse it ought to be sufficiently large to hold at least fifteen
sheets, with room at the end for the heap and for the knocking up of
each gathering.
GAUGE.
A Gauge, to regulate the margin, is used both by compositors and
pressmen, in their respective departments.
When a compositor commences a work, or joins a companionship, it is
necessary that he cut a gauge to the length of a regular page of
his work; to do this he should take a page without any chapter head
lines, of the regular number of lines, and cut his gauge to the exact
length, including the head and the direction line; a piece of great
primer reglet is a convenient thickness, and marking the name of
the work on it may prevent errors. Many compositors mark the length
of the page upon a piece of furniture, and make it answer for two,
three, or four works; but I have known mistakes occur in making-up,
from adopting this method, that have caused a great deal of trouble
in remaking up the succeeding pages.
In works that are printed with large letter, and have many head lines
in the pages, and much white between the lines, I would advise a
gauge to be cut on which the situation of each line should be marked;
this will enable the compositor to make up his pages, so that, when
the sheet is worked off, line shall fall upon line, which will add a
beauty to his work, and save a great deal of trouble, by rendering
unnecessary any alteration of the whites.
After the first sheet of a work has been imposed, and the margin made
right by the person who has the superintendence of this department,
a gauge should be cut to the exact width of the back, and another to
that of the head; a piece of thin reglet being used for each, marked
with the name of the work, and with the words, “back,” and “head;” a
hole may be made in each piece that they may be tied together, so as
to hang them upon a nail driven into some part of the frame; and a
fresh sheet should never be imposed without trying the margin before
it is locked-up. I am aware this is being more particular than is the
general custom; but, if a compositor adopt the method, he will find
that it will not take more than a minute of additional time, and will
eventually be a saving by preventing mistakes, and he will thus send
each sheet to press in a workmanlike manner.
The pressmen require a gauge in all folio works, in order to keep the
head lines of the pages of each sheet precisely at the same distance
from the edge of the paper. This head margin is determined by the
overseer, or master printer, when the first sheet goes to press; the
pressman should then cut his gauge, mark it with the name of the
work, and keep it in some secure place, to lay the succeeding sheets
on by, so that the work may have a uniform head margin, which, as the
bookbinder always makes the head lines range, will prevent the book
being reduced in size by cutting, an object of serious consideration
in a library.
GEOMETRICAL CHARACTERS.
+ _plus_, or _more_, the sign of addition; signifying that the
numbers or quantities between which it is placed are to be added
together.
- _minus_, or _less_, the sign of subtraction; signifying that the
latter of the two quantities between which it is placed is to be
taken from the former.
~ denotes the difference of two quantities when it is not known which
is the greater.
× _into_, the sign of multiplication; signifying that the quantities
between which it is placed are to be multiplied together.
÷ _by_, the sign of division; signifying that the former of the two
quantities between which it is placed is to be divided by the latter.
: _as_, or _to_, :: _so is_, the sign of an equality of ratios;
signifying that the quantities between which they are placed are
proportional to each other.
= _equal to_, the sign of equality; signifying that the quantities
between which it is placed are equal to each other.
√ the _radical sign_; signifying that the quantity before which it is
placed is to have some root of it extracted.--_Bonnycastle’s Geometry._
12_mo._ 1823.
[#] Formerly used to denote _equal to_, but is become obsolete.
△ Triangle; as △ABC = △ADC.
∠ An angle.
⟂ Perpendicular.
▭ Rectangled parallelogram.
⊏ or >, greater than.
⊐ or <, lesser than.
∹ The differences, or excess.
GERMAN.
“It is generally admitted, that the ancient Germans had not the use
of letters, before their intercourse with the Romans; the testimony
of Tacitus is decisive on this subject. ‘_Literarum secreta viri
pariter ac fœminæ ignorant._’ Hence we conclude, that the Teutons,
who anciently inhabited the neighbouring coast, and islands of the
Baltic Sea, had no letters, till their descendants, who settled in
Belgic Gaul, obtained them from the Romans. The Teutonic alphabet
is evidently deduced from the Roman, and is nothing more than the
Roman varied by the Germans, which, having been much deformed, was
improved by _Charlemagne_ in the ninth century, and continued till
the twelfth, when this kind of writing was succeeded by the modern
Gothic, which prevails in Germany, and in several of the northern
countries of Europe at this time.”--_Astle._
[Illustration: The German Alphabet]
_German Alphabet._
+---------------+----------------+-------------+
| Character. | Signification. | Name. |
+---------------+----------------+-------------+
| ~A a~ | A a | Au |
| ~B b~ | B b | Bey |
| ~C c~ | C c | Tsey |
| ~D d~ | D d | Dey |
| ~E e~ | E e | Ey |
| ~F f~ | F f | Ef |
| ~G g~ | G g | Gey, or Gay |
| ~H h~ | H h | Hau |
| ~I i~ | I i | E |
| ~J j~ | J j | Yot |
| ~K k~ | K k | Kau |
| ~L l~ | L l | El |
| ~M m~ | M m | Em |
| ~N n~ | N n | En |
| ~O o~ | O o | O |
| ~P p~ | P p | Pey |
| ~Q q~ | Q q | Koo |
| ~R r~ | R r | Err |
| ~S ſ s~ | S ſ s | Ess |
| ~T t~ | T t | Tey |
| ~U u~ | U u | Oo |
| ~V v~ | V v | Fou |
| ~W w~ | W w | Vey |
| ~X x~ | X x | Iks |
| ~Y y~ | Y y | Ypsilon |
| ~Z z~ | Z z | Tset |
+---------------+----------------+-------------+
In addition to the characters of the preceding alphabet, the Germans
make use of three, which are vowels: ~Ae, ä~ or ~á~, expressed by the
Roman character ä, and having the sound of _e_ in _where_. ~Oe, ö~
or ~ó~, and in the Roman character ö, which has the sound of _eu_ in
the French _heure_. ~Ue, ü~ or ~ú~, having its representative in the
Roman ü, and its expression in the thin _u_ of the French in _vertu_.
The Germans also make use of the following double letters in printing:
~ch~ ch
~ck~ ck
~ff~ ff
~fi~ fi
~ffi~ ffl
~fl~ fl
~ll~ ll
~si~ si
~ss~ ss
~ssi~ ssi
~st~ st
~sz~ sz
~tz~ tz
“In the printed alphabet some letters are apt to be mistaken and
confounded one with another. To facilitate the discrimination the
difference is here pointed out.
“B and V. The latter is open in the middle, the former joined across.
“C and E. ~C~ has a little horizontal stroke in the middle,
projecting to the right, which ~E~ has not.
“G and S. These letters, being both of a round form, are sometimes
taken for one another, particularly the ~G~ for the ~S~. But ~S~ has
an opening above, ~G~ is closed, and has besides a perpendicular
stroke within.
“K, N, R. K is rounded at the top, N is open in the middle, R is
united about the middle.
“M and W. M is open at the bottom, W is closed.
“b and h. b is perfectly closed below, h is somewhat open, and ends
at the bottom, on one side, with a hair stroke.
“f and ſ. f has a horizontal line above.
“m and w. m is entirely open at the bottom, w is partly closed.
“r and x. x has a little hair stroke below on the left.
“v and y. v is closed, y is somewhat open below, and ends with a hair
stroke.”--_Noehden’s German Grammar_, 2_d edit._ 12_mo. Lond._ 1807.
_German Types in the British Founderies._
_Two-line English._--Thorowgood and Besley.
_Great Primer._--Thorowgood and Besley.
_Pica._--Caslon and Livermore.
_Long Primer._--Caslon and Livermore. Thorowgood and Besley.
_Brevier._--Caslon and Livermore. Thorowgood and Besley.
_Brevier on Minion body._--Thorowgood and Besley.
_Nonpareil._--Thorowgood and Besley.
_German Text, ornamented._--V. and J. Figgins.
Great Primer, Brevier on Minion body, and Nonpareil. These
matrices are from the foundery of Brestkopff and Hartel, of
Leipsig.
[Illustration: Layout of the German case]
German Upper and Lower Case, Roman Character. They are made in one
Case.
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+
| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | K |
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+
| | | | | |
| A | B | C | D | E |
| | | | | |
+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+
| | | | | |
| L | M | N | O | P |
| | | | | |
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+
| à | è | ì | ò | ù | á | é | í | ó | ú |
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 0 |
+---++--++--+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+
| | U | Æ | S | | |
+----+---+------+---+ t | u |
| | W | Π| s | | |
+----+---+------+---+-------+-----------+
| | X | Æ | h | | |
| | | | | | |
+----+---+------+---+ m | i |
| | Y | k | l | | |
| | | | | | |
+----+---+------+---+-------+-----------+
| | Z | Π| c | | _en |
+----+---+------+---+ a | quadrats._|
| & | ç | & | b | | |
+----+---+------+---+-------+-----------+
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+--------+--------+
| L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | V |
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+--------+--------+
| | | | | |
| F | G | H | I | K |
| | | | | |
+-------+-------+-------+-------+-----------------+
| | | | | |
| Q | R | S | T | V |
| | | | | |
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+--------+--------+
| â | ê | î | ô | û | ä | ë | ï | ö | ü |
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+--------+--------+
| | | | | | U | W | X | Y | Z |
+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+--------+--------+
| | x | y | z | j | * | ; | ! | ? |
| r +---+---+---+---+---+---+--------+--------+
| | w | v | — | : | ( ) |
+-------+-------+-------+-------+--------+--------+
| | | q | , | _Hair | _Thick |
| | | | | Sp._ | Sp._ |
| n | o +-------+-------+--------+--------+
| | | p | . | _em |
| | | | | quadrats._ |
+-------+-------+---+---+---+---+-----------------+
| | | fi | fl | ffi | ffl | |
| e | d +---+---+---+---+ _Quadrats._ |
| | | f | ff | g | |
+-------+-------+---+---+-------+-----------------+
GET IN.
Matter is got in in a line, page, sheet, or book, if letter be
thinner cast than the printed copy the compositor sets by. Or matter
is got in if the compositor sets closer: or if he widens his measure;
or puts more lines in a page.--_M._ Also if copy makes less than it
was calculated to do, they say, it gets in. _See_ DRIVE OUT.
GIRTHS.
Are thongs of leather, cut out of the back of an horse hide, or a
bull’s hide, sometimes an hog’s hide. They are about an inch and
an half, or an inch and three quarters broad. Two of them are used
to carry the carriage out and in.--_M._ They are sometimes made of
Girthweb.
Mr. T. C. Hansard, in his patent for the improvement of presses, &c.,
enumerates “Girths,” of which he says,--“The girths I form of lines
made of any close-formed strong material or substance, but round
or narrow, and I particularly prefer cat-gut of about one inch in
circumference. Such lines I arrange in pairs, one pair to run the
table in, the other pair to run it out; applying them to the wheel
after the manner of leather or web girths; except that such lines I
place with a small degree of obliquity from either end of the table
to the wheel, so that in winding round no one coil shall touch or
interfere with the other, but take a spiral direction, one pair
giving place by being wound off the wheel as the table is run in or
out, to the other pair, which by being then wound round the wheel,
causes the table to traverse in the given direction. By these means
the rounce or handle will be, in every position or turn of the wheel,
equally tight, and no friction or adhesion of the lines can ever take
place.”
GIRTH WHEEL, or DRUM. _See_ WHEEL.