P' E I E Y R'JITY OP FORNIA '^ ^^^^^^^^^ fXimS UNIVERSIIY OF CALIFORNIA 0^ 'A f.'TK'i^ it.. ilYI t SAN FRANCISCO <^ PRESENTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA ROBERT GORDON SPROUL. PRESIDENT. Mr.andMrs.MILTON S.RAY CECILY, VIRGINIA AND ROSALYN RAY AND THE RAY OIL BURNER COMPANY SAN FRANCISCO. NEV/YORK •^/r'"^ A DICTIONARY OF TERMS USED IN PRINTINa. BY H. MORGAN, OOVZRNMIKT PRINTING ISTABLISHMENT. "■ ■ ^■ n ^"*^**^— ^ ' ,1 Mix&xu: PRINTED AT THE MILITARY MALE ORPHAN ASYLUM PBISS, By WILLIAM THOMAS. 1863. UBRAf?r SCHOOL Gin It has been the endeavour of the compiler of this little volume, to give a great deal of useful information in a small compass. Whether he has succeeded, or not, he must leave others to judge. He does not intend to put himself forward as a rival to " Savage," or any other English writer on the subject ; but he hopes to be of some assistance to the Printers of Madras. «• Under the heads. Apprentice^ Lay up, Disti^hute, Composing, Spacing, Make up, Imposing, Correcting, Clicker, Companionship, Overseer, Reader, Abbreviation, Division, Orthography, Phrases, Punc- tuation, &c., he has endeavoured to give instructions which may help to make good workmen, or enable persons in charge of presses, who are not Printers, to understand better what are the duties of the workmen in their employ. Fine Presswork, Making ready. Rollers, and many minor heads, are intended for the instruction of Pressmen as well as of those who have them in charge. While under Printing, Type-founding, Machines, Paper, Stereotyping, will be found brief notices of the Discovery and progress of Letter Press Printing. Short notices of Engraving on Copper, Steel, and Wood, Electro- graphy, Glgphography, and Lithography have also been inserted, as being peculiarly connected with the Art of Printing, 138 A DICTIONARY OF TERMS USED IN PRINTING. Abbreviations. — Contracted words; or, in old books, marks used to denote them. Tlie following list will be found to contain nearly- all the abbreviations in ordinary use. A. Of the first class. Aid. Alderman. A. Anna, Annas. Alex. Alexander. A.A.G. Assistant Adjutant Ge- Alf. Alfred. neral. Alt. Altitude. A.B. "ArtumBaccalaureus," A.M. " Artium Magister," Bachelor of Arts. Master of Arts. Abp. Archbishop. A.M. " Anno Mundi," in the Abs.sta. Abstract statement year of the world. Abt. About. A.M.ora.m." Ante Meridiem," A.C. '* Ante Christum," be- morning before mid- fore Christ. day. ae. acre, acres. A.N.C. ^' Ante nativitatem a/c Account. Christi," before the Acad. Academy. birth of Christ. Ace. or Act. Account. And- Andrew. A.D. "Anno Domini,*^ in Angl. " Anglice," in English. the year of our Lord. Ann. " Annum," year ; or A.D. Ante Diem. "Annual." Ad. Arbit . "Ad arbitrium," at Anon. Anonymous. pleasure. Ans. or Ansr. Answer. Ad.orAdv . Adverb. Antiq. Antiquities. Adj. Adjective. Ap. Apr. or Apl. ApriL Adjt. Adjutant. Ap. wt. Apothecaries Weight. Ad. lib. "Ad libitum, "at liber- Aq. "Aqua," water. ty, at option. A.Q.M.G. Assistant Quarter Admrs. Administrators. 1 Master General. Ad. val. "Ad valorem," Accord- A. R " Anno Regni," in the ing to value. year of the reign. Aflfy. Aflfectionately. Archb. Archbishop. A.G. Adjutant General. Archd. Archdeacon. A.H. "Anno Hegirae," the Archt Architect. year of the Hegira, ■ Arith. Arithmetic. Albt. Albert. Art. Article. DICTIONARY OF TERMS Asst. Assistant. Astroii. Astronomy, or Astro- nomical. Att. Gen. Attorney General. Atty. Attorney. A.U.C. " Ab. urb. condita," from the building of the city. Aug. or Augt. August. Av. wt. Avoirdupois weight. B.A. {see A.B.) Baclielor of Arts Bart. Baronet. Barth. or Barthol. Bartholomew. B.C. Before Christ. B.C.L. Bachelor of Civil Law. B.D. Bachelor of Divinity. Bd. Bound. Bds. Boards. Ben. or Benj. Benjamin. B.I. British Institution. Bd'sMin Board's Minute. Bd.'sOr. Board's Order. Bib. Irn. " Bibliotheque Impe- rial," Imperial Lib- rary. Biog. Biography. Bk. Book. B.L. Bachelor of Laws. B.M. Bachelor of Medicine. Bnk. Bank. Bot. Bought. Bp. Bishop. Bque. Barque. Br. Bridge. Br. British. Brit. British, Britain, Bri- tannia. Brf. Brief. Bt. Baronet. B.V. Blessed Virgin. B.V.M. Blessed Virgin Mary, Cal. ('alendar. C.A. Chief Accountant. Cal. Horn. " Calendarium Iloma- num," the Roman Calendar. Car. Sec. Carmen Seculare. Cat. Catechism, Catechise. Cat. orCatt. Catalogue. C.B. Companion of theBath C.C. Crown Clerk. Cel. Phen Celestial Phenomena. Ch. orChas. Charles. Ch. CI. Chief Clerk. Ch. Magis . Chief Magistrate. Ch. Off. Chief Office. Chron. Chronology, Chronicle Cit. Citizen. C.J. Chief Justice. Clk. Clerk. CM. ''ChirurgicalMagister" C.M.G. Companion of the Or- der of St. Michael and St. George. CO. Crown Office. Col. Colonel, Colonial. Coll. Collector. Comp. Compare. Compy. Company. Compts. Compliments. Conj. Conjunction. Cons. Consultation. Contd. Continued, contained. C P. Spa. Common Pleas Sub- poena. Cr. Credit, Creditor. Cri. Dept. Criminal Department. C.S. "Cust03Sigilli,"Keep- er of the seal. CS. Ci\T.l Service. Curt. The current month. Cus. Rot. "Gustos Rotulorum," Keeper of the Records. Cwt. A hundred weight. Cor. Mem. CorrespondingMember USED IN PRINTING. 3 1). or d. " Denarius," a penny, D.V. "Deo Volente," God " Denarii," or" De- willing. naria," pence. Dwt. Pennyweight. D.A.A.G. Deputy Assistant Ad- jutant General. Ecc. or Eccles. Ecclesiastical. TXA-C.G. Deputy Assistant Com- Ed. Editor. missary General. Ed. Edward, Edwin, Ed- D.A.O. Deputy xldjutant Ge- mund. neral. Edit. Edition. Dan. Daniel. Edits. Editors, Editions. Dble. Double. E. E. Errors excepted. Dbt. Debit. E. G. " Exemplia Gratia," as D.C.G. Deputy Commissary Edw. or for example. Edwd. Edward. D.C.L. Doctor of Civil (or E.LC. East India Company. Canon) Law. E.LC.S. East India Company's D.D. " Divinitatis Doctor," Service. Doctor of Divinity. Eliz. Elizabeth. Dec. Decrease. E.M. " Equitum Magister," Dec. or Deer. December. Master of the Horse. Deft. Defendant. Emp. Emperor, Empire. Dep. or Dept. Department. E.N.E. East North East. Depy. -W--V X X Deputy. Eng. Entd. English, England. Entered. Dy. D.F. Diary. Dean of Faculty. Ent. Sta. Hall. Entered at Sta- D.G. V " Dei Gratia," by the Grace of God. tioner's Hall. Env. Ex. Envoy Extraordinary. Eph.Term . Epiphany Term. Diet. Dictionary. Eq. Equal, equivalent. Diff. or Diffce. Difference. E.S.E. East South East. Dipl. Diplomacy, Diploma- Esq. or Esqre. Esquire. tic, Diplomatist. Etal. "Et alibi," and in other Dist. District. Et al. freq . " Et alibi frequenter," Div. Division, divide. and in nianv other Divnd. Dividend. passages. D.L.O. Dead Letter Office. Et int. al. " Et inter alia," and Do. " Ditto," the same. amongst others. Doz. Dozen. Etc. Et cetera. D.Q.M.G. Deputy Quarter Mas- Eur. Europe. ter General. Ev. or ICvg . Evening. Dr. Debtor. Ex. Example. Dr. Doctor. Exch. Exchange. Dr. Drachm. Exch.Bds . Exchequer Bonds. DKTIONAKY OF TERMS Exd. L^xa milled. f]xors. Executory. Ext. Extra, Extract. Extr. Extract. Extia. Extraordinary. E. A. Fine Arty, Fac. Factor, Factory. Fall. Fahrenheit. F.A.S. Fellow of the Antiqua- rian Society. Fcp. Foolscap. Feb. or Feby. February. Fern. Feminine. F.G.S. Fellow of the Geogra- phical Society. Fid. Def. " Fidei Defensor," De- fender of the Faith. Fig. FigTU-e. F. M. Field Marshal. Fo. or Fol. Folio. F.R.A.S. Fellow of the Royal Astronomical So- ciety. Fellow of J the Royal College of Surgeons. Fellow of the^ Royal Society. Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries. Foot, or Feet. F.R.C.S. F.R.S. F.S.A. Ft. Gall. Gallon. Gaz. Gazette. G. CB. GrandCross of theBath Gen. Gender, Genitive. Gen. or Genl. General. Gent. Gentleman. Geo. George. Oeog. Geography, geographical. Geol. Geology, geological. Geom. Geometry, geonietricnl G.M.K.F. Grand Master of the Knights of St.Patrick. G.O. General Order. G.O.C.C. General Order by the Commander-in-Chief. G.O.G. General Order by the Governor. Gov. Governor, Govt. G.P.O. General Post Office, Gr. Grains. Gram. Grammar. Hab. Corp. " Habeas Corpus," (a writ. ) H.B.M. Her Britannic Majesty H. H. His (or Her) Highness Hist. History, Historical. H.M. His (or Her) Majesty. H.M .S. His (or Her) Maj esty' s Ship. Hon. Honorable. Hon. or Hony. Honorary. Hon. Sec. Honorary Secretary. i Hor. Horace. H.P. Hor.se Power. H.R.H. His (or Her) Royal Highness. lb. Ibid. (( " Idem" the same. Inspector General. Ibidem," the same as before named, in the same place. I.E. or i. e. that is. Id. I I.G. I I.H.S. " Jesu Hominum Sal- I vator," Jesus the Sa- j viour of Men. j Imp. Imperial. j In. Inch, Inches. i Incog. "Incognito," in dis- Infra dii>-. guise. " Infra dignitatem," beneath one's dignitv. USED IN I'lllNTlNG. Int. al. " inter alia,"' amongst other. In.sp. Inspector. Inst. "Instant," the present (i. e. current) month. Int. Interest. Inv, Invoice. I. O. U. I owe you. Ion. John. Jac. Jacob. J.A.G. Judge Advocate Genl. Jas. James. J.D. "Juris Doctor," Doc- tor of Law. Jno. John. Jos. Joseph. Jr. or Jnr. Junior. J.W.D. " Juris utriusque Doc- tor," Doctor of both Laws. Junr. Junior. K.B. Knight of the Bath. K . C. M . G . Knight Commander of St. Michael and St. George. K.G. Knight of the Garter. K.G.C.B. Knight Grand Cross of the Bath. Knt. Knight. K.P. Knight of St. Patrick. K.T. Knight of the Thistle. Kt. Knight. L. i*, or /. " Libra," or " Librae," pound (20s. ) or pounds. L. Line. Lat. Latitude. Lb. or lbs. Pound (16oz.)or pounds Ld. Lord. Ldp. Lordship. Lib. " Liber," Book. Librn. Librarian. Lieut. Lieutenant. Lin. meas. Lineal measure. Lit. LL.B. LL.D. Lon. Lond. or Mag. Maj. Mar. Mas. or Matt. M.B. Mch. M.D. Mde. Mile. Mem. Memo. Mema. Messrs. Mil. Mily. Min. Mond. M.P. M.RA.S. Literary, literal. * 'Baccalaureus Leguni , ' ' Bachelor of Laws. " Legum Doctor," Doctor of Laws. Long. Longitude. London. M.) Master of Arts. Magazine. Major. March. Masc. Masculine. Matthew. Bachelor of Medicine. March. "Medicinse Doctor," Doctor of Medicine. Madame. Mademoiselle. Memento. Memorandum. Memoranda. " Messieurs," Masters, (plural of Mr.) Military. Minute. Monday. Member of Parliament Member of the Royal Academy of Science Mr. Mister. Mrs. Mistress. M.S. Manuscript. M.SS. Plural of M.? Mnt. Mount. Mtn. Mountain. N. North. N"at. Nathaniel. Nat. Natural. Nat. Hist. Natural Historv. Nav. Navigation, navigable. 6 DICTIONARY OF TERMS N.r>. "Notabeiie," mark well. N.E. North East. Neh. Nehemiah. Nem.coii."Nemiiiecontradiceiite" no one contradicting. Neni. diss. "Nemine disscntiente,' no one dissenting. N . N. E. North North East. N.N.W. North'North West. No. " Nmnero," number. Nom. Nominative. Non.com. " Non compos (mentis,") not of a sound mind. Non. Seq. " Non sequitur," it does not follow. Nos. Plural of No. Nov. November. N.W. North West. Obj. Obs. Obt. or Oct. Oct. Op. O.S. Oz. Objective. Observe, observation. Obdt. Obedient. October. Octavo, (also written 8vo.) " Opus," work ; or " Opera," works. Old Style. Ounce, Ounces. P. Pies, pice, p. page. Part. Participle. Pari. Parliament. Pd. Paid. Ph. D. Doctor of Philosophy. Phil. Trans. Philosophical Trans- actions. 'TostMeridiem," after mid-day. Pages. Pronoun. Preposition. P.M pp. Pr. Pro loc. et Pro tem. Prof. Prox. Prep. P.S. P.T.O. Pt. Q. Q.C. Q.D. Q.E.D. Q.M. Q.M.G. Qrs. <( tem. " Pro loco et tem- pore," for the place and time. For the time. Professor. Proximo," the com- ing month. 'Tost Scriptum," Post- script. Please turn over. Pint. Question, Query. Queen's Council. " Quasi dicat," as if he should say. " Quod \ erat demon- strandum," '^ which was to be demon- strated. Quarter Master. Quarter Master Gene- ral. Quires. R. Rupee, Rupees. R.A. Royal Academy. Rd. Road. Rec. or Rect.Received,receipts Ref. Reference. Regd. Registered. Pro. Proc. Proceedings Regt. Regiment. Rel. Relative. Rept. Report. Reqd. Required. Rev. or Revd. Reverend. Rev. Revenue. Rev. Bd. Revenue Board. R.H. Royal Highness. R.M. Royal Marine. R. M. A. Royal Military Asyl iim Rm. Ream. R.N. Royal Navy. i '^n. Roan. USED IN PRINTING. Roin. Roman. Rt. Riglit. Rt. Hon. Right Honorable. Rt. Rev. Riglit Reverend. s. South. S. or s. " Solidus," a shilling ; " solidi," shillings. Sam. Samuel. Sans. Sanscrit. Sat. Saturday, Sax. Saxon. S.E. South East. Sec. §, Section. Sec. or Secy. Secretary. Sept. September. Seq. " Sequor," following. Serj. or Serjt. Serjeant. Serv. or Servt. Servant. S.l.p. Without lawful issue. Soc. or Socy. Society. Sol. or Soli. Solicitor. 1 Sov. Sovereign. Sovs. Sovereigns. S.RC.K. Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. Sq. or Sqr. Square. St. Saint. Str. Street. S.S.E. South South East. S.S.W. South South West. Sun. Sunday. S.W. South West. Tarn. Tamul. Tel. Telegu. Th. or Thurs. Thursday. Th affixed to numerals marks them ordinal. Tho' Though. Thos. Thomas. 'Tis. It is. Topog. Topography. Trans. Translator, Translated. Trans. Transaction. Treasr. Treasurer. Tu. or Tues.Tuesday. Typ. IVpography, Typogra- pher. Ult. "Ultimo," the last month. Univ. University. U.S. United States. V. " Versus," against. V. Verb. v.a. Verb active. Var. Various. Ven. or Ven'ble Venerable. Vict. Victoria. Verb, et lit/' Verbatim et litera- tim," word for word and letter for letter. Viz. " Videlicet," that is to say ; or, namely. v.n. Verb neuter. Vol. Volume. v.p. Verb passive. V.R. "Victoria Regina," Victoria the Queen. W. West. Wed. or Wednes. Wednesday. Wk. Week. W.L. West Longitude. W.N.W. West North West. Wm. William. W.S. W. West South West. X. or Xt. Christ. Xm. or Xmas. Christmas. Xn. or Xtian. Christian. Xty. Christianity. Yrd., Yd. Yard. Yds. Yards. Yr., Yrs. Year, Years. Yt. That. "Et" and. "Et cetera," k other. 8 DU'TIOyARY OF TERMS A('cent.'<. — Certaiii marks over vowels, to direct the modulation of the voice. In the English Language they are chiefly used in Spelling hooks or Dictionaries, to mark the syllables, and where to lay parti- cular stress in the pronunciation. — Murratj. Albion Press. — An iron press, invented by Mr. R. C. Cope. Jt is of great power, and smooth and easy in working. Alphabet. — Letters, or characters to denote the articulate sounds of a language. Anastatic Printing, or Zincography. — A method of printing from zinc, in the same manner as from stone, in lithography. A printed page, an engraving, or a bank note may be exactly copied by this invention. Moisten the printed paper with dilute phosphoric acid, lay it face downw' ards on a clean sheet of Zinc, and put it in a press for a short time. The acid of the unprinted part etches the zinc beneath, while the printed part sets off on the zinc, and thus produces a reverse copy of the printing. Wash the plate with an acid solution of gum, and it will be ready for use. The plate may now be treated as the stone in Lithographic Printing ; first damped, and then rolled. The affinity of the ink to the letters already " set off" on the plate, and the repulsion of the other parts of the plate, cause the lines of the device to take the ink, but the other parts remain clean, the printing then follows. See Lithography. Anti-penultimate. — The last syllable but two of a word. Antique. — The name of a fancy type, with a thick, black face. Much used for striking lines, or headings in job work. Apostrophe. — An apostrophe, marked thus,' is used to abbreviate or shorten a word ; as ^tis, for it is ; e'en, for even. Its chief use is to show the genitive case of nouns, as a man's bodkin ; a woman's cloth. Apprentice. — A youth bound, articled, or indentured to a master, to learn any given trade or business. An Act, " No. XIX of 1850," concerning the " Binding of Apprentices," was passed by the Governor General of India in Council. Every boy " bound" to learn the business of an English compositor, should be able to read and write the English language ; for if he cannot he will never be a swift workman, as he will be obliged to compare the types letter by letter with his copy, to his great loss of time, and yet will, most likely, pass numerous errors. The most necessary endowments for a lad desirous of becoming a printer are, a considerable portion of bodily strength and activity ; an USED IN PRINTING. 9 eye for symmetry of form ; a willingness to be taught ; and a tone for reading and study. The most necessary acquirements are orderly and attentive habits, a grammatical knowledge of the language on which he is to be employed, and an acquaintance with arithmetic and book- keeping. But there are few branches of learning, or even of science a knowledge of which will not be found occasionally useful to a printer. Having adopted the trade, a lad cannot be too attentive to the proper performance of his duties ; and he should strenuously endeavour to obtain a clear comprehension of the principles of the process in which he is engaged, and of the united results of the details by which he is surrounded. Many, I may say most master-printers, when a lad is first put to the business, give him j^i'e to sort. This may make him well acquainted with the founts in an Office, but I have always found more pie made in the process. In my opinion, it is better to put a beginner to his case at once, to give him a frame, and set him to " learn his cases," that is, to find in what box each distinct letter is kept, capitals, small capitals, accents, and figures, lower case, double letters (ligatures), points, spaces, and quadrats. While learning his cases he should be stationed by the side of a good compositor, willing to act as a teacher, who should point out the uses of the various letters and spaces, and how to distinguish such types as b, d ; p, q ; n, u ; &c. This can be best done orally. As soon as the learner knows where to find any letter required, he should have some copy given him, as plain and simple as possible (if reprint all the better), and should be allowed to comjyose, his teacher watching him, and if he goes to work awkwardly, as most beginners will, showing how to hold the stick conveniently, and how best to pick up the types. He should be instructed, too, to attend carefully to his spacing ; to have, as nearly as possible, the same space between the words throughout the line ; to space all the lines alike, driving out small words if necessary for the purpose, not spacing very closely for two or three lines, and then leaving gaps for two or three lines more. He should be taught, too, not to have a multiplicity of divisions, not to turn over such syllables as ed or an ; and in wide measures he should be shown that all divisions are unnecessary. When he knows the places of all the types, can tell the characters at a glance, can separate the &'s from the (i's, or jo's and g's if mixed in pie, he may be allowed to distribute, but not till then. This, I am aware, is contrary to the general practice, but a moment's thought will show the system I advise to be the best. If a lad begins to distribute before he has a knowledge of his case, or of the metal characters, as a natural con.se- B 10 DICTKONARY OF TERMS quence he puts sorts in tlie wrong boxes, and mixes many of the letters ; that is, to use a teclinical expression, he " puts his case in pie." By teaching him to compose first, much of this is obviated; and, although he may compose very slowly, space badly, and perhaps make two or three " outs" or " doubles," his matter will not be so full of literal errors as if he had, before composing, distributed his letter. Wlien, by composing and distributing plain solid matter, the learner has obtained a perfect knowledge of one fount, he may be set to sort and distribute pie, and so become acquainted with the characteristics and difference in size and appearance of every variety of type in the office. After attaining a tolerable proficiency in solid work, the learner should be allowed, still under the tuition of a thorough printer, to compose statements (or more properly, table work). At first he should be shown how to regulate the measures of his headings, and how to join his rules neatly and in a workman-like manner ; but as soon as possible, he must be left to trust to his own judgment in these things, his tutor carefully pointing out when he is wrong, and invariably giving reasons for any alterations required, so that the learner may not for an instant suppose he has to do his work over again merely to gratify a whim of his teacher, and may know how to avoid similar errors in future. As the Apprentice improves in his workmanship, he should be allowed to set small "jobs," " titles," &c., his tutor explaining to him how to pick the principal lines, when to use light or heavy types, condensed or bold characters, and what may be kept in smaller type, as comparatively unimportant. The teacher, while his pupil is learning to compose, should observe and check the false (or useless) movements which many compositors indulge in. Some tick the letter two or three times against the stick before placing it ; some bow and bend as if they w^ere salaaming to the case or copy ; some jerk the type about every time they pick up a letter ; while others grope and scramble as though it were of the first importance to get at the bottom of the case without using the letter at the top. These movements cause much time to be lost, and also damage the types, and the Apprentice should therefore be careful to avoid therti. (For further instructions, see " Compositor, &c.") I cannot do better than to insert, in this place, an address to young people learning the printing business, extracted from a little book on the " Results of Printing" which was published in England in 1855. USED IN PRINTING. 11 And now, before I conclude, a word or two to those who liave just entered into the profession — an honorable and useful one, and, as I have endeavoured to show not without its reward. You have been admitted within the porch of this literary building. If you have no ambition but to pass your time as hodmen or paddy labourers, are satisfied with being able to follow your copy, without caring to understand whether it is sense or otherwise, like the Chinese tailor, who being employed to make a pair of breeches, and having an old pair given to him as a pattern of size— not only produced a pair of the precise dimensions, but even repeated the botching and patching of the pattern, why in that case there will be no difficulty in satisfy- ing your pitiful ambition. If, on the contrary, — and which I would gladly hope is the case with all — you desire to become worthy members of the literary world, — this can only be accomplished by resolution, perseverance, and industry — ^by usefully employing every hour you can spare from necessary employment — and every one has abundance of time, however early or late he may be engaged, if the will exists for the acquisition of knowledge. " Franklin's example is well worth attention. His success in life was secured by his great industry, frugality, and shrewdness. He spent no time in taverns, games, or frolics, reading was the only amusement he allowed himself. If you properly employ those loose moments which occur to every one, and use them in improving your minds, you raise yourselves one step above your fellows, and acquire information which may contribute essentially to your future pros- perity and advantage." Benjamin Franklin, referred to in one of the paragraphs just quoted, was once a journeyman printer. He was apprenticed and learned the trade in America, but laboured as a journeyman for some time in London ; afterwards he returned to America and commenced business on his own account ; he became proprietor of a newspaper, and when the United Provinces revolted had the appointment of Deputy Post Master General bestowed on him. Whilst the war was progressing he was appointed agent at the court of London for the province of Massachusetts. There are many other examples, besides that of Franklin, of Printers who have risen to distinction by great industry coupled with that tone of knowledge which should peculiarly belong to their art. John M'Creary, was Apprenticed as a pressman, and although when young very poor, by dint of industry and an invincible determination, became a master printer, and amassed a sum sufficient to enable him to retire from business, and enjoy peace and plenty in his old age. Before he w^as out of his time he wrote a poem called 12 DICTIONARY OV TP:RM«5 " I'lie PresM," dt'scriptive of the discovery, advantages, and influence of printing. A Compositor stands in the best situation for obtaining a perfect acquaintance with the details and general management of the Print- ing business, and from this class, therefore, have proceeded most of those who have reached higher employments, as readers, overseers, !Masters, or authors. William Strachan, who became the wealthy kings' printer, entered London a poor journeyman. John Nichols, was apprenticed to Mr. Bowyer, to whom he rendered himself so useful that even while an apprentice he became his assistant, and afterwards partner. David Henry, for some time printer and part proprietor of the Gentleman's Magazine, was a journeyman till he was nearly thirty years of age. John Patterson, a journeyman printer in Albany, has gathered an immense amount^of learning. He is well versed in mathematics, and can read and write Greek, Latin, Hebrew, and Arabic, wdth ease and fluency. Besides this he can converse in every language spoken in Europe. All this he has done with no aid but industry and no higher salary than that bestowed upon a journeyman printer; Let all who learn our art look at these examples. All cannot become great men, but all 77iay try ; and what one man can do, cannot be altogether impossible to another under the same circumstances. Ascending letteis. — Letters which are above the line, including all capitals, and lower case b, d, f, h, k, 1. Asterisk — A small star, which is generally used to direct the reader's attention to some note in the margin or at the foot of the page. Two or three asterisks, thus, N * * *, denote the omission of some letters in a word ; a line, thus, ******** that a sentence or sentences is omitted, or'tliat there is a defect in the MS. Axithor's 'proof. — A clean proof pulled and sent to the author or editor of a work, for him to certify correctness, or make such altera- tions and emendations as he may think proper. USED IN PRINTINO. 13 B. Bctck boxes. — Tliose boxes in an italic upper case, whicli in tlie Roman are occupied by small capitals. Bach of the form. — The under side, or bottom of the types. Bach. — Furniture placed between the pages in a form, the margins of which, when bound, form the back of the book. It is sometimes called the gutter. Bank. — A light table, about three feet high, placed near the foot of the press, upon which the pressman lays his heap. It should have a drawer in front, in which to keep points, revises, thin paper, &c., which otherwise must be on the platten or loose on the table. Baixmowshi's Tichet Machme.- -This is a beautiful little machine, about twelve inches long, nine wide, and eight high, and very complex in its mechanism. The types are arranged on the circumference of small wheels, placed vertically ; and on turning an handle, which presses down the frame which contains the wheels, by a sort of piston, or plug, the types come in contact with paper or paste board placed beneath ; but before doing so, the movement causes a small inking roller to work quickly over the face of the tj'pes, and thus enables them to print in black or any other colored ink. By means of a series of cogs and ratchets some of the type wheels make part of a revolution after each impression, so as to present a new figure for the next movement. A number of blank cards are placed in the upper part of the machine, and every time the handle is turned one of them is displaced, printed on, and pushed out of the machine. 3,000 cards can be printed in an hour. Bashei'ville Machine. — A single cylinder grij^per machine, very useful and easily worked. Batter. — To injure the face of the letter in any way. Beard of the letter. — The edge of the square shoulder of the shank, usually bevelled off by type-founders. Bearer. — A piece of reglet, or other material, used to bear the impression off a blank or light page. Corks cut to fit on the frisket between the folios, by the sides of rules, short pages, or light matter, form excellent bearers, and are very useful to prevent slurring, or a too heavy impression. Bed ofthffranif. — The platform at the bottom. 14 DICTIONARY OF TERMS Bill. — With letter-founders, a specific proportionate number of let- ters, or types. Tlie following estimate is for tlie lower case of a fount of Pica, weighing 800 lbs. a 8,500 8,000 fl 200 u 100 : 600 b 1,600 P 1,700 fii 150 A a 200 • 2,000 c 3,000 q 500 ffl 100 e 200 - 1,000 d 4,400 r 6,200 se 100 A 1 100 1 200 e 12,000 s 8,000 ce 50 A 100 ! 150 f 2,500 t 9,000 a 100 A u 100 J 700 g 1,700 u 3,400 e 250 a 100 Thick spaces 18,000 h 6,400 V 1,200 1 100 e 100 Middle „ 12,000 • 1 8,000 w 2,000 V 100 i 100 Thin „ 8,000 J 400 X 400 11 100 100 Hair „ 3,000 k 800 y 2,000 d 200 U 100 m quadrats, 2,500 1 4,000 z 200 ^ 100 9 100 n „ 5,000 m 3,000 fi 500 i 100 ) 4,500 11 8,000 ff 400 6 100 y 800 Capitals, figures, em and en quadrats, and 2, 3, and 4 em quadrats should be cast to suit the work for which the type is intended. Founts of any other weight may be calculated on these proportions. Binding,— Whm the side or footsticks, or any part of the furniture is too long, and overlaps another part, so as to prevent the quoins wedging the matter tight, it is termed binding. Bite. — When the frisket is not properly cut away, so that a part of the edge of the page, or the folio, does not appear on the paper. Blankets. — Woollen cloth or white baize used to place between the tympans, to make a yielding pad. Blank lines. See White lines. Blank pages. — Pages in which no matter appears. Board-rack. — A case made of strong boards, with ledges nailed on the inside of the two sides, to slide letter-boards in : they are used for USED IN PRINTING. 15 keeping standing pages and jobs more out of the way tlian can be done on galleys, and where more care can be taken of them. Bodkin. — A sharp steel instrument, used to pick wrong letters out pf a page in correcting. Body. — The shank of the letter. The size of the type from back to front — thus, English body — Pica body. Body of a work. — The subject matter of any volume. Bolster. — A piece of wood placed between the ribs of a press, to prevent the table running out too far, and to ease the sudden strain which would be otherwise caused on the girthing. Bolts. — The furniture which forms the margin at the heads of the pages in the off-cut in a form of twelves. Botched. — ^Work badly finished, or in which improper materials are used. Bottom line. — The last line in a page. Bourgeois. — The name of a type a size smaller than Long Primer. There are 102 lines in a foot. Box. — The divisions of a case in which the letters are kept, as the a box, i box, &c. Boxwood. — A firm, fine grained wood, much used for engraving. The best is of a clear yellow colour, and is procured from the Levant. It is generally called Turkey box. Brace. — A character cast thus --^^^^s^-*-^, used to prevent a repetition in writing or printing, or to connect a number of words with one common term. Branching out. — Opening or extending the matter in title pages, headings, or jobs. — {See Whiting out.) Brass Ride. — Pieces of brass, of different thicknesses, type high, and used to print lines between columns of figures or matter, in tabular pages ; to place round pages as an ornament, between the columns of newspapers, and for many other purposes. Brayer. — A round wooden rubber, about 2| inches in diameter, of the shape of an inverted cone, solid, and flat at the bottom. It is used to bray, or rub out ink on the table, to be taken up by the roller. Break. — A short line ; the end of a paragraph. Brevier. — The name of a type, a size larger than Minion, and smaller than Bourgeois. There are 112^ lines to a foot. Bring-up. — To bring up a form is to place overlays on those parts 16 DICTIONAUT OF TKRMS ill which the impression is deficient, and to cut away those portions in which it is too heavy, so as to equalize the pressure and colour over the whole form. Broad. — The technical name for a piece of furniture, equal in width to a broad quotation ; i. e., four ems pica. Broadside.— A. form of one full page, printed on one side of a sheet of paper. Broadsides vary in size from a sheet of crown to double royal. Of late years broadsides have been struck on as many as thirty sheets of double crown. In such cases the lines are so arranged as to form one large sheet when pasted against a wall or the side of a house. The size in most common use is demy. Broken lettei^s. — Type squabbled or deranged. Pages put in pie. Broken matter. — Same as above. Bronze. — Metallic powders, of various colours, much used in orna- mental printing. The lines which are to be bronzed are printed with a peculiar varnish, and the powder is immediately applied with a little loose cotton. When dry the superfluous dust may be rubbed off with a hare's foot or a camel-hair pencil. For very fine work the bronze should be burnished, either by running through a glazing press, or rubbing with a burnishing tooth. Bulk. — A platform fixed to the end of a frame, on which to place a board to wet matter for distribution. Bundle. — A heap of paper of two perfect reams, or 1,000 sheets. Burr. — A roughness on types which the founder has not removed in dressing. c. Cancel. — To strike out pages in which errors have passed, or which the author, after printing, does not wish to appear. When a leaf is cancelled it should be torn across, so that the binder may see it and turn it out. In reprinting pages which have been cancelled, it is usual to place an asterisk in lieu of the signature, that the binder may know for what the pages are intended. Canon. — A type, one size larger than Trafalgar, the body is equal to four lines of Pica, and there are 18^ lines to the foot. Capitals,— 'LqUqv^ of a form different from lower case. For their use, see head " Punctuation." / -/ The process of printing, yihen compared -witk thett of ^nitrng, Is xmqxifistiDnably a-ete- process; piovL^fid a ^ a'UcJiy 3 coftceJ ff/ ^irfiicieiit iiimii)6r of any particAiktr "booka-re panted, 30 4: -U- ^ Q as to TCJipej* th-fe pw poition of the lixst eapense -upon a s r^ 7o^ sini^gle copy incoiisicieTa'ble. If, for example, it were Tec[iiired, even at the present inomaiLt tme, to print a S'^ single copy; or even three fcopies^r fo\ii\, only of any ^ Jj^y production, th.e cost of piiating would be greater tlian ^^/lAi/n^cmy the cost of transd'iting. ^It is wlien hundreds, and especially thousands, of the //« / samewoik ai'e demanded that the great value of the / ^^y?V printing- press in mainig' knowledge cheap, is par- ticularly shown. [^ is prol)al)le that th.e iiist printei's ^^ ^yy.^, did not taldll become so well acquainted with the appearance of the beard of the type, that he will be able to know what word he has in his fingers, with the very cursory view he may have while lifting it. By attending to these directions — by always proceeding on system, — clean distribution may be depended on ; and clean distribution produces clean composition. What greater disgrace can attach to a compositor, than being denominated a foul or slovenly workmen ? To avoid this stigma should be his earnest endeavour; and one great means to avoid it is to be careful while distributing. Division. — In printing, is the separation of the syllables of a word, the first part at the end of one line, the second part at the beginning USED IN PRINTINO. 29 of the next, to avoid driving out or getting in the whole word. There are peculiarities in dividing in most offices, but the following rules, from Lindly Murray, will generally apply. "1. A single consonant between two vowels must be joined to the latter syllable: as, de-light, bri-dal, re-source: except the letter x; as, ex-ist, ex-amine : and except likewise words compounded ; as up-on, un-even, dis-ease. " 2. Two consonants proper to begin a word, must not be sepa- rated ; as fa-ble, sti-fle. But when they come between two vowels, and are such as cannot begin a word, they must be divided ; as, ut-most, un-der, in-sect, er-ror, cof-fin. "3. When three consonants meet in the middle of a word, if they can begin a word, and the preceding vowel be pronounced long, they are not to be separated; as, de-throne, de-stroy. But when the vowel of the preceding syllable is pronounced short, one of the consonants always belongs to that syllable ; as, dis-tract, dis-prove, dis-train. " 4. When three or four consonants, which are not proper to begin a word, meet between two vowels, the first consonant is always kept with the first syllable in the division: as, ab-stain, com-plete, em-broil, dan-dler, dap-ple, con-strain. " 5. Two vowels not being a diphthong, must be divided into separate syllables; as, cru-el, deni-al, soci-ety. " A diphthong immediately preceding a vowel, is to be separated from it: as, roy-al, pow-er, jew-el. " 6. Compounded words must be traced into the simple words of which they are composed ; as, ice-house, glow-worm, over-power, neverthe-less. " 7. Grammatical, and other particular terminations, are generally separated : as, teach-est, teach-eth, teach-ing, teach-er, contend-est, great-er, wretch-ed, good-ness, free-dom, false-hood. " Two consonants which form but one sound, are never separated : as, e-cho, fa-ther, pro-phet, an-chor, bi-shop. They are to be consi- . dered as a single letter. " 8. In derivative words, the additional syllables are separated : as, sweet-er, sweet-est, sweet-ly ; learn-ed, learn-eth, learn-ing ; dis- like, mis-lead, un-even ; called, roU-er, dress-ing ; gold-en, bolt-ed, believ-er, pleas-ing. " Exceptions,— When the derivative word doubles the single letter ^0 DICTIONARY OF TERMS of the primitive, one of those letters is joined to the termination: as beg, beg-gar; fat, fat-ter; bid, bid-ding. *' When the additional syllable is preceded by c or g soft, the c or g is added to that syllable: as, of -fences, cotta-ges, pro-noun-cer, in-dul- ging; ra-cer, fa-cing, spi-ced; wa-ger, ra-ging, pla-ced, ran-ger, chan- ging, chan-ged. " When the preceding single vowel is long, the consonant, if single, is joined to the termination: as, ba-ker, ba-king; ho-ping, bro-ken; po-ker, bo-ny; wri-ter, sla-vish; nau-sea, sa-ved. The termination y is not to be placed alone: as, san-dy, gras-sy; dir- ty, dus-ty; was-ty, fros-ty; hea-dy, woo-dy; ex-cept dough-y, snow-y, string-y, and a few other words. But even in these exceptions, it would be proper to avoid beginning a line with the terminations y. " Some of the preceding rules may be liable to considerable excep- tions; and therefore it is said by Dr. Lowth, and others, that the best and easiest directions for dividing the syllables in spelling, is to divide them as they are naturally separated in a right pronunciation, with- out regard to the derivation of words, or the possible combination of consonants at the beginning of a syllable." But it is not to be supposed that these divisions are to be made if they can be avoided; and avoided they may be in all works except those in narrow measures, or in large type. Such syllables as ed, al, el, ly, er, &c., should always be got in, except in the two cases just mentioned (the hyphen used to divide the syllables will often occupy as much space as one of the letters) ; and such syllables as em, en, ab, fa, de, er, &c., should be driven over to the next line. In broad measures divisions may always be avoided, for a very slight additional space between the numerous words will suffice to drive out several letters; or if necessary, to get two or three letters in the thick spaces may be changed for middling with very little trouble. Double. — Amongst compositors, is a repetition of words, which have to be deleted, or expunged, in the first proof. Amongst pressmen a sheet pulled twice, and thus slurred, or set off. Double dagger. — A mark used as a reference, %) it is third in order, and follows the dagger, or obelisk. Double letters. — Two letters cast on one shank ; as ff, fi, fl, and the dipthongs. Double narrow. — Furniture, equal in width to two narrow quota- tions, or six ems pica. USED IN PRINTING. 31 Double Pica. — A type one size smaller than Two-line Pica, and larger than Great Primer. It is equal in depth to two lines of small Pica, there being 41^ lines to the foot. The more proper name for this fount would be Tw^o-line Small Pica. Double Flatten, or Flat-surface Machine. This machine, as its name denotes, gives a flat impression, by a platten similar to that of an ordinary press. There are two tables, or carriages, so that forms can be laid on at either end of the machine. As the carriages traverse backward and forward each form is alternately under the platten, which descends and gives the impression to one form, while the sheet is being laid on for the other. The action of these machines is extremely beautiful ; and as they are fitted with friskets and tym- pans, they may be made to execute the finest presswork. The rate of working is about 1,200 copies per hour. Draw. — To pull out letters with the roller, while inking the form, in consequence of lines being badly justified, on the form not properly locked up. Dress a Chase. — To fit the pages with proper furniture and quoins. Drive out. — ^To set widely, or use extra space between words; to turn words over at the ends of paragraphs; to make up openly for the sake of extra pages. Dropping out. — Is generally caused by bad spacing, leads riding, furniture binding, or similar carelessness. When the form is locked up the compositor should raise it slightly from the stone, and shake it a little, to see that nothing is loose before lifting it on the press. Dv^k Bill. — ^A tongue cut in a piece of paper, and pasted on the tympan to support the white paper when working, in Ueu of pins. Duodecimo.— ThQ size of a book, usually written 12mo. It is formed by folding a sheet of paper into twelve portions, or leaves, making 24 pages. E. Ear of the Frisket. — A projecting piece of iron on the near side, by taking hold of which the pressman turns down the frisket ; as it pro- jects a little beyond the tympan, he also raises the sheet off the form by grasping it and the tympan; and by a quick motion as it rises quits hold of the latter, and turns up the frisket by means of the ear. 32 DICTIONARY OF TERMS Electrography. — A method of producing facsimiles of steel or cop- per plates. Suppose a large engraving is about to be copied. The plate is immersed (after having the back covered with a peculiar varnish) in a chemical solution of copper, and a thick film is precipitated on it by electro-deposit. The film may be easily loosened from the plate, and its surface then presents a reverse of the original. The film is in its turn immersed in the solution, and made the basis for a second deposition, w^hich is alloM^ed to continue until a plate as thick as the original is deposited, and this when carefully removed from its parent film, is seen to be an exact counterpart of the engraved plate first operated upon. Emiyty Case. — A case from which no more matter can be composed, in consequence of some of the sorts being exhausted. Empty Press. — A press standing idle from want of work. English. — A type one size smaller than great Primer, and larger than Pica. There are sixty-four lines to a foot. Engraving. — The art of executing designs upon copper, steel, zino or any other material, from which impressions, or " prints," may be taken. It is usual to speak of the discovery of the Art of Engraving, as contemporaneous with that of Printing. The Chinese certainly prac- ticed it before the tenth century, printing being discovered in China about that time by one Foong-taon, who multiplied copies of a book by means of an engraved seal, or stamp. The early Egyptians and Babylonians produced impressions on bricks from engraved pieces of wood or stone. The ancient Romans possessed engraved seals at a very early period of their history. It is not necessary to speak farther of the art as known to the ancients, as that has no connexion with printing, and would therefore be out of place in book which is devoted wholly to the last named subject; I will therefore proceed at once to the discovery as applied to taking impressions on paper, silk, parchment, or some similarly flexible material. The invention seems to have been the result of accident. It is generally ascribed to a Florentine Goldsmith, Tommaso Finniguerra, who excelled in an art then much practised, called Niello-work, It was customary in those times to engrave outlines of Scripture sub- jects on vessels made for the use of the Church ; and when this engraving was completed they filled the lines with a black substance called Niello, composed of lead and silver in solution with borax and USED IN PRINTING. 33 sulphur. Finniguerra, it is said, was one day taking an impression of some of his work, in wax ; and he found, on examining the impres- sion, that he had taken all the Niello which remained in the bottoms of the lines, in such a way that he had the whole pattern in black before him, and it at once struck him that he might also take off hia patterns on paper. This first step was followed by a second, and that again by others, and thus the beautiful art was invented. The first " prints" were obtained from wood blocks, engraved in relief, and the earliest impression known is dated 1423 {see Engrav- ing on Wood) ; but no impression from an engraved metal plate has been found of a date anterior to 1461. Finniguerra is said to have first engraved on metal plates for the purpose of printing about the year 1460 ; but, as soon as established, the new art was eagerly taken up in Italy by Baldini, Botticelli, Pollajuoli, and Andrea Mantegna ; and in Germany by Martin Schcen, Israel van Mecheln, Leydenwurf, and Wolgemut. The first book printed in Eome, was also illustratedhy twenty-seven maps, executed by two Germans, Sweynheym and Buckinck. This work is dated 1478. Another early work was published at Florence in 1481, Dante's Inferno, embellished with engravings by Baoccio Baldini, after the designs of Botticelli. At the commencement of the 16th century, Albert Durer appeared in Germany, a man of vast talent, who carried every description of art to a degree of perfection hitherto unknown in that country. He had great command of the graver, and his plates were finished to a higher degree than those of his Italian contemporaries. Lucus van Leyden was the father of the Flemish schools, and a friend of Albert Durer. Nearly all the eminent painters in these schools have been engravers. In France engraving has been practised with pre-eminent success, in the departments of history and portraiture, since the time of Louis XIV. The English school of engraving dates only from about the middle of the 18th century, previous to which those who practised the art in England were chiefly foreigners. This art attained great perfection in the 15th and 16th centuries, as is proved by the works of the engravers of that period. Since that time the old processes have been merely modified ; though 34 nCTIOXARY OF TERMS fanwe of the best and most artistic engravers tlie world lias yet pro- duced are now living. There are several kinds of engraving practised, each effected in a different manner. Line engraving is the principal as well as most ancient species. Sometimes this is executed entirely with the graver and dry point, finished with the scraper and burnisher ; at others it is commenced by a chemical process called " etching." For etching the plate is first cleaned on its polished surface, heated, and then rubbed with a com- position of asphalte and Burgundy pitch, called etching ground. The plate is then held up to receive the smoke of a wax taper, until it is rendered black and glossy. These preparations being made, and the plate cooled, the etching ground is found to be of a hard consistence, and ready to receive the tracing of any subject to be etched. The previous preparation of the subject is a very important part of the process. It is drawn upon transparent paper with a black lead pencil, and being laid face downwards on the etching ground, is pressed on it so forcibly that all the lines and marks of the drawing are left on removing the paper. This is called transferring. The drawing being transferred, the engraver applies his etching needle to the lines, care- fully removing the ground and scratching slightly into the copper. When any error is made, the objectionable lines may be stopped out by working a little of the ground over them with a hair pencil dipped in turpentine. A wall of wax is now placed round the plate, and aquafortis poured on it, to the depth of an inch. This decomposes, or biteji into the copper where the ground has been removed. During the process globules of air arise, and these must be carefully removed with a feather. The length of time employed is regulated by the depth required ; but in ordinary cases, the operation may be per- formed in an hour. When the plate has been properly acted on, the aquafortis is poured joff, the wall of wax removed, and the ground cleared from thej plate by spirits of turpentine. The plate is now etched, and when printed from in this state exhibits the appearance of a pen and ink sketch. Different gradations of power are given by the aquafortis, and parts are re-bitten to the depth required, after Avhich the light parts are put in with a needle. Other parts are cut with gravers suited to the lines which will best express the respective objects. ^Vhilc finishing his work, the engraver rests the plate on a small cushion, holding it with his left hand, while his right is using the graver. Landscape and architecture are generally executed with VISED IN nUNTING. 35 the needle and aquafortis ; portraits and historical subjects with the graver or burin. Etching with the dry point, as it is called, is per- formed entirely with the graver ; the burr raised being taken off by a three-sided instrument with sharp edges called a scraper. Stipj)ling is a kind of engraving Lu which dots of various sizes and depths are used instead of lines. They are first made in the etching ground with the needle, or a toothed wheel called a roulette, and then bitten with more or less strength, as may be required ; when it is cleaned, dotted by the needle, stippled wAih. the graver, or re-bitten, until the necessary gradations of shade are communicated. Mezzotinto is produced by grounding or puncturing the plate with an open-faced tool called a cradle, on which are a number of points ; this instrument, being rocked regularly over the copper, covers it so completely with marks, that if it were printed from, the impression would be black. On this ground the subject is traced, and the vari- ous gradations of light and shade scraped and burnished out until the proper effect is produced. This style of engraving is chiefly used for portraits, and is very soft in appearance. Aquatint engraving is an exceedingly complicated style of produc- ing pictorial effect, but can be executed at a lower cost than the kinds previously mentioned ; — it has therefore been much used for embellish- ing books of travels or works of a like kind. It was invented by a Frenchman in 1662, but has been practised more successfully in England than elsewhere. The process has latterly been superseded by litho- graphy. Engraving on Steely which is now common for all plates of which large numbers are required, is executed much in the same way as engraving on copper. The plate is bedded on glazier's putty, and a ground of Brunswick black is laid on, through which the needle scratches. The biting menstruum is poured on, and managed as detail- ed already. An engraving on a steel plate may be transferred in relief to a softened steel roller, by pressure, and this roller, after being hardened, may again transfer the design to a fresh steel plate, and the design may thus be multiplied at pleasure. Engraving on Wood. — This art, which is intimately connected with letter-press printing, was first practised at a very early date by the Chinese, who have, for ages, printed books by carving letters or figures in relief on a piece of wood, and then stamping the block, blackened with ink. on paper, silk, or some other light fabric. 36 DICTIONARY OF TERMS In Germany, the first attempts at printing with a press, were effect- ed by wooden blocks (see Printing), which, however, were soon abandoned, in consequence of the invention of printing from move- able types. The subjects of the blocks in general use before the intro- duction of printing proper, were chiefly of a devotionalkind, such as representations of saints, or scenes from their times, and were distri- buted by the clergy, as tracts are now-a-days, as aids to devotion. The earliest print from a wood block for which we have any certain date, is in the library of Earl Spencer, and bears the date of 1423. Tlie picture is meant to represent St. Christopher carrying the infant Saviour across the sea. It was discovered in one of the most ancient convents in Germany, the Chartreuse of Buxheim, pasted witliin one of the covers of aliatin MS. of the year 1417. About this time, too, wood blocks were used to print the figures on playing cards ; and very little improvement has been made on the rude figures of those times, even to the present day. Immediately before, and for some little time after the invention of printing, small books, composed entirely of wood-cuts, were common in continental countries. These prints were at first entirely without any text, or as it is now termed letter-press ; but after the groundwork of the art had been laid, its rise towards perfection was unparalleled in rapidity. Historical subjects were composed, with a text, or expla- nation subjoined. The pages were placed in pairs, facing each other; and, as only one side of the leaf was impressed, the blanks were also opposite each other, and, being pasted together, gave the whole the appearance of a book printed in the modern fashion. Remarkable in- cidents in the books of Moses, in the Gospels, and in the Apocalypse, were thus made known to the uninstructed classes, but generally in connection with superstitious legends of the middle ages. One work of this class was known as the " Biblia Pauperam," or poor man's book; copies of it are now extremely rare. The work consists of forty leaves, of a small folio size, each leaf containing a cut in wood, with extracts and sentences descriptive of the subject of the cut. To those unacquainted with the estimation in which such ancient speci- mens of printing are held, it may be amusing to learn that fair copies have brought upwards of 2,500 Rupees, and the worst have rarely sold for less than 500 Rupees. Other works of a similar description might be mentioned, executed between 1430 and 1450, but they all present the same characteristics. Caxton, in 1474, attempted to ornament his work, " the Game and Play of Chess," with some few engravings, but the figures are rude and grotesque. USED IN PRINTING. 37 Wood engraving, to illustrate the Scriptures, was brought to great perfection by Albert Durer, at the end of the 15th century. Dur- ing the 16th century the art flourished in Holland, Germany, and Italy, and had many eminent professors ; but, as printing advanced, the art of engraving on wood declined, till, at the end of the 17th century, it had fallen into great neglect. In the 18th century, it again revived in France and England, but did not arrive at any great bril- liancy till the time of Thomas Bewick, of Newcastle-on-Tyne, a self- taught enthusiast in the art. His illustrations to a history of quad- rupeds issued in 1790, attracted much attention. From this time wood engraving was raised to the rank of a regular profession in England; and Nesbit, Harvey, Branston, Thomson, Williams, Dal- ziel, Linton, and many others, have greatly advanced the art, both in elegance of design and delicacy of execution. Many ladies have excelled in wood engraving ; indeed, from the ease with which it is practised it is peculiarly adapted to them. I only mention here the Misses Williams, Mary Byfield, Eliza Thomson, and Mary and Eliza- beth Clint, who have all risen to some eminence in the profession ; but there are many others, not likely to be dependent on their own exertions for support, who have wisely, by learning this art, acquired both an accomplishment and a profession. During the present century the increase of works containing wood engra\ing3 has been enormous. Less delicate, usually, than copper or steel, wood-cute possess a peculiar value from the ease with which they can be printed. While impressions from plates are taken by a process so tedious, that at most 250 copies per day can be produced, wood-cuts may be printed with the greatest rapidity at a machine. The chief value of the wood-cut however, consists in its being adapted for printing with the letter press it is intended to illustrate. Within the last few years, gift-books, and other illustrated works, have been ornamented with wood engravings wonderful for their fulness and delicacy, and hardly second, in point of softness and finish, to copper plate. In Europe, boxwood is generally employed for engraving. To obtain the blocks the tree is cut across in slices, and, after being planed smooth, these slices are cut to the required size. The blocks must be one inch in depth, that being the height of the type with which they are printed. When a block is required of more than six or eight inches square, two or more pieces must be joined together, by screws running across the whole width, and the surfaces planed to an 38 DICTIONARY OF TERMS equality. Pear-tree wood is sometimes used for large, coarse cuta. In this country sandalwood is the general substitute for box. The following is a list of tools required by an engraver on wood: — 1. A round, flattish, leather pad^ filled with sand, on which to rest the block while engraving. 2. Gravers. — A graver is a tool about four inches long, of steel, with a small head, or handle, of wood : six or eight, of the different degrees of fineness, are necessary ; the finest for the most delicate lines, the broader pointed for cutting broad, bold lines. Two of them should be slightly bent in the blades, to excavate hollow parts. 3. Tint tools of various sizes, suitable to the fineness or coarse- ness of the tint to be cut. They are chiefly employed to cut parallel lines, close together, representing the tints of the sky. 4. A Gauge tool for cutting away edges, and trimming the cut. 5. A hone to sharpen the tools upon. 6. A steel hurnisJier. 7. An inking slab, a dabber, and a small quantity of fine printing ink, 8. Ind'ui pajyeriov^xooh; and two or three fine hard black lead 2je noils. It is first necessary to draw the design on the wood ; and therefore the ability to draw with neatness and precision, and a knowledge of light and shade, are indispensable to any one desirous of rising in the profession. Besides drawing, another branch has been added to this art, called loivering. The surface of the block being perfectly level, it is obvious that when printed at a press properly level, every line on the cut receives an equal degree of pressure. Now this should not be ; the finer lines should receive a light impression, the dark ones be print- ed heavily. To procure this effect, the pressman {see Fine PrintingN lays on patches of paper below his sheet, where he requires shade, and cuts out paper where he wishes to lighten the impression, but this mode fails to a considerable degree in making fine work; and the surer plan consists in lowering some parts of the surface of the block. After sketching the design, those parts which are to be printed lightly, are scraped away with the scooper, in various degrees, according to the degree of lightness required. Of course the designs have to be re-sketched before engraving. Before making a drawing on the block the surface is slightly rough- USED m PRTNTING. 39 cned and delicately whitened all over with a mixture of powdered bath brick and flake white, slightly moistened, and the palm of the hand is drawn over the block to remove any gritty particles. When dry it is ready to receive the design. As pe^icil drawing is easily blurred or rubbed out, the block must be covered while working on it. A slip of hard smooth writing paper should be folded across the picture, and be secured by a thread. On beginning to cut, a piece may be off, and the whole removed as the work proceeds. The engraver should sit at a table or bench of a convenient height placed in a good light ( not too glaring ). He must hold the block on the pad in his left hand, and use the tool with his right. Steadiness of hand is of the utmost importance ; for, as the picture is formed by the parts left in relief, and the white part and lights only cut away, the least slip in the wrong direction may ruin the effect intended to be produced. Envelope Machine. — This little machine, as its name denotes, is intended to fold envelopes, and do away with the tedious process of cutting and folding them by hand. One, the joint invention of Mr. Edwin Hill and Mr. Warren De la Rue, is an exceedingly beau- tiful contrivance, and performs many successive operations with unerring accuracy. A boy places a diamond-shaped piece of paper on a little platform ; a sort of plunger descends, and forces the centre of the paper into an oblong quadrangular cavity ; the four corners now stand erect ; an artificial arm takes a supply of gum from an endless blanket, and applies it to the proper place on the edges of the envelope; four fingers, or levers, press down and flatten the sides, and the envelope is made. Two India rubber fingers now lightly touch the envelope, draw it aside to make w^ay for another, and place it on an inclined plane, on which it slides up into a box prepared for its reception. This machine makes about sixty enve- lopes in a minute. Another, invented by M. Renaud, has a singular contrivance for feeding itself with paper. The diamond-shaped pieces are placed in a heap by the side of the machine ; a hollow tube thrusts itself forward and rests upon the topmost paper, a tiny air pump draws the air from the tube, and the paper clings by atmospheric pressure to the two minute holes in the lower surface of it. The tube now withdraws itself, drops the paper exactly on the spot where it is to be folded 40 DICTIONARY OF TERMS and gummed, and goes in search of another. This machine requires the aid of an attendant to remove the envelope. Errata. — A list of errors that have escaped both the author and the printer. It is'generally^printed in small type at the end of the work, and should never be brought out in a prominent manner. Even Lines. — When printing has to be executed in great haste, a number of compositors are employed, and the copy is cut into small pieces for each. If the copy should be in long paragraphs, the com- positors have each to begin a line and make their copy end a line, frequently with great irregularity of spacing. This is termed making even. In Newspapers it is of constant occurrence. Even Page.— The 2d, 4th, 6th, 8th, or any even numbered page. F. Face of the Letter. — The surface of the letter extremity of the type. Face of the Page.— The upper side of the page, from which the impression is taken. Falling out.— A term generally applied to a page, quarter, or whole form, which drops away from the chase, through the shrinking of the wooden furniture and quoins. This accident can hardly occur with- out gross carelessness, if metal furniture is made use of. Fanning out. — A term used in the warehouse in counting work. By taking hold of the right hand lower corner of the paper between the forefinger and thumb, and by a peculiar turn of the wrist spread- ing out the upper part of the paper somewhat in the resemblance of a fan, the sheets can be counted with the greatest facility. i^a^— With compositors, is light open matter, and short, or blank pages. With pressmen, light forms. Fat face Letter. — Letter with a broad, black face, and thick stem. It is seldom used now. Feet of a Press. — That part of a press upon which it stands. Fine Presswork. — The technical name for work of a superior quality. The art of printing perfect impressions from a form of types, or from the surface of engravings in relief. To do fine work, the press must be in good working condition. The joints of the tympan must have no play, or they will affect the register and cause slurring. Tlie parchments must be thin and even, and stretched USED IN PRINTING. 41 perfectly tight on the tympans, so as not to be baggy or flaccid. The printers in France sometimes use silk for their tympans, for their finest work, on account of its smoothness and uniform thickness. The face of the platten must be a true plane, and parallel to the surface of the table, or the impression will be heavier at one side, or at one end, than at the other. The rollers must be smooth and even, with a good face, and neither too hard nor too soft. In India, the presswork is of a very low standard, but it may be improved with care and patience. Pressmen do not understand making ready a form, but endeavour to bring up inequalities by dint of extra blankets and heavy pulls, to the great detriment of the type. It is evident that this cannot give the sharp, clear impression required in fine work, for the elastic blankets cause the paper to partly fill up the blanks of the types, and makes the best and newest appear round and worn at the edges. To obtain good impressions in fine work, the blankets must be nearly or quite discarded, and paper used in the tympans, and of this, not too much. I have seen a milled board put at the back next to the outer tympan, to make the impression hard and sharp, but I do not recommend this generally. After laying on the form and justifying it firmly in the centre of the press, the pressman should pull a sheet of dry paper, without ink, and examine the back to see if the impression is the same throughout. This is rarely the case ; and he must therefore overlay the faint, or light places, and cut away the heads, folios, edges, or any other part in which the impression may be heavy, so as to equalize the colour and impression over the whole sheet. This sheet is placed i7i the tympans, that is, between the inner and outer, exactly over the corresponding pages of the form, and a few sheets of thin soft paper, or a very fine light blanket (only one,) is laid on it. The pressman now pulls a second sheet, and examines the effect of his overlays, and if not yet correct, adds to the overlays, or vice versa, till he is quite sure the pressure of the platten is equal on every part. When short pages occur in a form, the bottoms of them, and the edges of the neighbouring pages will print too hard, and not prove a clear impression ; in these cases bearers are necessary to protect them (set Bearer.) 42 DICTIONARY OF TKRMS 111 working the white paper when very tliick, it is JK'tter to use a card duck-bill to prevent the paper slipping, as it is not so likely as pins to bruise the paper. After laying on a form in which wood-cuts (or wood-engravings) are inserted, a gentle, careful pull must be used for the first impression, for fear of crushing some of the fine lines ; after the first pull the workmen will know what impression is required, and regulate it accordingly. It will generally be found in a first impression that the appearance of an engraving is flat, rough, and indistinct ; too hard and black in some parts, too soft and pale in others, and with no middle tint. To produce the desired eftect, and give the picture the appearance the artist intended, is the business of the pressman, and he accordingly proceeds to bring up his wood-cut to the standard of the proof rubbed off by the engraver. To do this properly requires great nicety and attention, and an artistic knowledge of the properties of light and shade would be most useful. Where the impression is too strong, the parts must be cut away, and where too weak, overlays be added. Tlie overlays are always best made with thin soft paper, and the edges should be scraped down, or in many cases the impression will be too sharp. A few copies of the cut should be pulled, and the over- lays taken from them, as they may then be cut to the exact shape required, from the impressions taken. The light parts require but little pressure, and they should be cut out from as many thicknesses as are necessary ; but the shadows must have a full, firm impression, which is secured by the overlays causing the impression on the sheet to be so heavy on those parts as to take off all the ink. If a block is too low it must be underlaid ; and if worked with type it should be raised about one-tenth of a pica above it, because the letter press requires much less impression than the engraving, and if the pressure on both is the same the type will look thick and worn, and so spoil the appearance of the work. The edges of engravings always require toning down, for if the same pressure is left as on the body, they will come out thick and muddy. Wood-engravings must never be washed with lye, as it will cause them to warp, but if necessary a soft brush and a little turpentine may be used to clean them. In all fine work, whether letter press or cuts, it is of the first neces- sity to have a good roller, as a bad one will only turn out bad work. U8ED IN riilNTlNG. 43 The person who is rolling must look at the impressions every two or three sheets, to see that he is keeping his colour uniform ; as nothing looks worse in a book, than to see one page or sheet black and heavy, and the next gray and hardly readable. First Form. — The form the white paper is printed upon. First Page. — The commencement of a book, or the first page of a sheet or signature. First Proof. — A proof pulled immediately after matter is composed, for the purpose of comparing it with the copy. It may either be pulled in galleys, or after it is made up into pages and imposed. Floivers. — Ornaments for making borders to jobs, cards, pages, and wrappers, and for embellishing chapter pages, or as tail-pieces to books. Fly.— A. man or boy who takes the sheet from the tympan as the pressman turns it up. This is seldom done now, as when great expedition is required, work is usually laid on a machine. Fly the frisket. — To turn down the frisket and tympan by the same motion. This should always be done, as it saves time, on ordinary work ; but not when very superior heavy paper is used. Folding, — Doubling the printed sheets so that the pages fall consecutively, and exactly opposite to each other, preparatory to binding. Folding Machine. — An instrument invented by Mr. James Black, and first exhibited in 1851, when it obtained a prize medal. By this machine all kinds of sheets may be folded which are multiples of four, as 8vo., 12mo., 24mo., 32mo., (fee. A diagram would be neces- sary to make the construction clear, but the following description may serve to give a general idea of it. A main shaft is driven by steam, manual labour, or other motive power ; attached to this are two cams or wipers, which lift up two vertical knives or folders. United to the end of the horizontal shaft by bevelled wheels is a vertical shaft and cam, wliich moves an horizontal knife. Each knife moves on a centre ; and when a printed sheet is laid on the machine to the proper registering points, the first vertical knife moves rapidly down, folding the sheet in the middle, and carrying it to the horizontal knife, which seizes the sheet at right angles to the first, produces another fold, and carries on it to the second vertical knife, which again takes it at right angles to the last, and delivers it a folded octavo sheet between two rollers in front of the machine. The knife, after having performed its peculiar ofl&ccs, is brought 44 DICTIONARY OF TERMS back to its former position by baLuico weights. The knives, or folders, are finely serrated on the edges, to prevent the sheets from slipping, and so spoiling the register. This is a most useful instrument, and is so simple in its working that a boy of ten or twelve years of age is all that is necessarj'" to attend to it. It may be made to fold any size of page by merely altering the registering points, and will fold 2,000 sheets per hour. Folio. — The running number of the pages of a work. When there is no running title, or head line, the folio is placed in the centre of the page, when there is a running title, at the outside corner. The preface, contents, index, and all introductory matter, usually have separate folios inserted in roman lower case numerals. i^oZ^o.— The size of a page, when the paper on which it is printed is folded in two only ; as post folio, foolscap folio, demy folio. Foot of the letter.— The bottom of the type. Foot of a 2ycige. — The bottom of a page. Folloiv. — That is, see if it follows. This term is used by readers, compositors, and pressmen. By the reader or compositor when he ascertains that the first line of a page or sheet agrees with the last line immediately preceding it, and how the folios numerically succeed each other. The pressman merely ascertains that the first page of the inner form follows the first page of the outer, or whether, in half sheets, he has turned his heap correctly. Foot-stick. — A piece of furniture, sloped or bevelled from one end to the other, placed against the foot of the pao:e. The slope allows the wedge-shaped quoins to be driven hard in between the footstick and chase, and so secures or locks up the form or page. Fore-edge. — That part of a sheet of paper which, folded to the pro- per size of a book, makes its outer edge. Form. — Any number of pages imposed and locked up in a chase, whether a card, broadside, or book-work. Form dances. — When the lines are not properly justified, when letters have slipped at the ends of lines so as to prevent the pages being properly locked up, or when a letter, space, or quadrat of a deeper body is by accident made use of, causing the types to fall lower than they should do without entirely dropping out, the form is said to dance. USED IN PRINTING. 45 Form lifts. — Wlien on being raised from the stone, nothing falls from it. Fortij-eiglit mo. — A sheet of paper folded into forty-eight leaves, or ninety-six pages. Fotil proof. —A dirty proof, a proof with many errors or corrections marked in it. Ford stone. — An imposing stone or table which the compositor has not cleared after working at it. Fount. — A certain weight of letter cast at one time, of the same face and body, and when complete containing due proportions of capitals, small capitals, lower case, figures, points, four kinds of spaces, en, em, two, three and four em quadrats, and accents. Fount Cases. — Very large cases, to hold the surplus sorts of a fount. Fractions. — A fraction is a part of a unit, written with tw^o figures, with a line between them, thus ; — ^, j, \, \, f , f , f , kc. The upper figure is called the numerator, the lower the denominator. The fractions cast in one piece are ^ i, J, \, i, f , f , f , f , f , |, |, |, r Fractions are also cast in two pieces, called split fractions, by which the denominators may be extended to any amount. The separatrix, or rule between the figures, was formerly joined to the foot of the first, but is now attached to the head of the denominators. Fragments. — Any pages left after the last sheet of a work, and imposed with the title, contents, or any other odd pages, to save press and warehouse work. . Frame. — A platform made of some light wood, on which cases are placed in a sloping position to be composed from. The upper case should be placed at a greater angle than the lower, to bring the upper boxes nearer to the compositor. French Furniture. — Pieces of metal cast to pica ems in length and width, used to make margins for books, to fill up blanks and short pages, and for all other purposes to which wooden furniture can be applied. From the great care and nicety shown in casting the various sizes, it is invaluable for making up blank forms. French Rules. — Ornamental brass rules, swelling in the centre, of different lengths, and generally used to separate chapters in a book. Also called swell rules. Friars. — Light patches caused by the roller not taking ink properly, or by the ink being imperfectly distributed. 46 DICTIOMAUY OF TEUMS Frisket. — A thin iron frame, covered with paper, and attached to the head of the tympan by a joint. The parts of a form that are to be printed on are cut out of the paper covering, and the frisket being turned down upon the sheet on the tympan, keeps it flat, prevents the margins being dirtied, and raises it from the form after being printed. Frisket- 2yins. — Iron pins passing through the frisket joints, and connecting it with the tympan. Frisket stay. — A slight piece of wood fastened to the ceiling of the l>i'e3S-room, or some other convenient place, to support the frisket when turned up. It is sometimes called a gallows. Fudge. — To execute work without the proper materials. Full Case. — A case full of letters, wanting no sorts. Full Form. — A form without blanks or short pages. Full Page. — A page containing its full complement of lines, or with few or no breaks in it. Full Press. — A press at which the two workmen are continually employed. Furniture. — Pieces of wood or metal used in whiting out pages or jobs, for margins to books, and for imposing and locking up forms. It is generally classed as reglet, furniture, side-sticks, foot-sticks, and quoins. It is made of quadrat height, about |ths of an inch. Reglet is of various type depths, from pearl to great primer ; furniture from three to eight pica ems in width, and of any required length. Foot and side sticks are described under their respective heads. G. Galley. — A thin moveable frame or plane of wood, brass, or zinc, on which to empty matter from the composing sticks as it is set up, and to aflford a level surface for making up pages. Galleys are made of various sizes and widths, from the long narrow news or slip galley, to folios, to suit the different sizes of pages. Gathering. — A term used in the warehouse department for collect- ing the sheets of a v/ork in orderly succession for delivery to the binders. Gathering-table.— A table on which printed sheets are laid in the order of their signature, to be gathered into books. USKD IN PKlxXTING. 47 Q'ff^ige.—A piece of reglet uii Avhicli the length of a page is marked, for the compositor to make np by. Also a card, on which is marked the width of the heads, backs, and gutters of the furniture used in the first sheet of a v>^ork, so that tlie margins of all succeeding sheets may be made the same. Gelatine Paper.— X material invented by the late Mons. Grinet, of Rouen. It is commonly manufactured in sheets measuring 22 inches by 16, but may be made of any size or thickness required. It can be obtained as transparent as the best glass, and more free from colour, or may be of all colours or shades. It is exceedingly light, and can be bent or rolled without injury. , It is often used in Europe for fancy or ornamental printing. Gets in. — A term used when more is got into a line, page, or form, tlian is in the printed copy a compositor sets from ; or when M.S. copy does not make so much as it was calculated to. Girths. — Thongs of leather, or bands of stout webbing, attached to the rounce, and used to run the carriage of a press in or out. Giving out paper. — Delivering paper for any job or sheet of a work to the pressmen or paper dampers. Glazing Machine. — A machine used for putting a polished] surface on printed papers, or for burnishing gold and colour work. It consists of two massive iron cylinders, turned by a cog and fly-wheel, with power top-gear to increase the pressure. The sheets to be glazed are placed between polished copper plates, and so passed through the cylinders. Glyphography.—Yvom two Greek words, glypho, I engrave, and graphein, to draw ; a method of producing engravings, or pictures, invented and patented by Mr. Palmer. The description of this art will be best given in the words of the patentee. " The term signifies that art by which an engraving is produced by the simple mode of drawing; or in other words, drawing and engraving, which have hitherto been two distinct operations, are here combined in one. By its aid the artist becomes the engraver of his own work, as much as by the practise of etching ; but with this difference, that here his effect is as immediately conspicuous as though he were using a black lead pencil on paper." *' A piece of ordi- nary copper plate, such as is used for engraving, is stained black on one side, over which is spread a thin layer of a white, opaque compo- sition, resembling white wax in its nature and appearance : this done, the plate is ready for use. In order to diaw properly on these plates, 48 DICTIONARY OF TKP.MS various sorts of points are used, wliicli remove, wherever they are passed, a portion of the white composition, wliereby the bhickened surface of the plate is exposed, forming a striking contrast with the white ground, so that the artist sees his effect at Once. The drawing being completed is inspected very carefully and minutely, to see that no part of the work has been damaged, or filled in with dirt or dust. The plate is then brought into contact with a substance having a che- mical attraction or affinity to the composition thereon, whereby the remaining portions are heightened ad libit h7?i. Thus, the heights of the drawing become thickened all over the plate equally, and one great difficulty is overcome. But as the depth of theselights, or non- printing parts of the block, must be in some degree proportioned to their width, the larger breadths of light must be thickened on the plates to a much greater extent. It is indis])ensably necessary that the printing surfaces of a block prepared for the press shall project in such relief as shall prevent the inking roller touching the interstices while passing over them. In wood engraving this is accomplished by cutting out the parts jwhich form the lights of the print to a suffi- cient depth, but in glyphography the depth is formed by heightening the remaining portions of the white composition on the plate. If the composition was spread on the plate as thickly as required for this purpose, it would be impossible for the artist to put either close, fine, or free work thereon ; consequently, the thinnest possible coat is put on previous to the drawing being made, and the required thickness is obtained ultimately as described. The plate thus prepared is again carefully inspected through a powerful lens, and closely scrutinized to see that it is ready for the next stage of the process, which is to place it in a trough, and submit it to the action of a galvanic battery, by means of which copper is deposited in the indentations caused by the drawing, and filling them up it gradually spreads itself over the sur- face of the composition, till a plate of copper is obtained, which, on being separated, will be found to be a perfect cast of the drawing which formed the matrix. This plate is soldered to a piece of white metal to strengthen it, and it is then mounted on wood to bring it to the height of type, and it is now ready for printing. If any parts of the block still require to be lowered, it can be done with the greatest facility when mounted." The blocks are printed from precisely as wood-cuts. Some very beautiful specimens have been printed in the Art Journal; but, gene- rally, glyphography has not been able to compete with ordinary wood-cuts. It has some advantages, one of which is the great durabi- USED IN PRINTING. 49 lity of tlie blocks, upwards of 70,000 impressions having been taken from one without deterioration ; another, and not the least, is its cheapness. Good Colour. — When a sheet is printed neither too white nor too black. Good Copy. — Printed copy, or M.S. written in a clear, legible hand. Good Work. — Light, easy copy, well paid ; or work turned out cleanly and correctly by the printers. Gothic, — The name of a fancy fount used for Job Work. Great Primer. — A type, a size smaller than Paragon, and larger than English. There are 51 j lines to the foot. Groove. — An indention on the upper surface of the short cross of a chase, to receive the spurs of the points, and allow them to make holes in the paper without being themselves injured. Guillotine Pcqjer-cutting Machine. — This machine, the invention of Mr. Wilson, is of iron, with a mahogany table on which to place the paper to be cut. A moveable gauge is attached to a slide which runs in a graduated scale, by which the size to be cut can be regulated to the sixteenth of an inch. When the paper is in its place it is held immovably by a platten and screw ; a cog wheel which moves in a rachet attached to a large knife, is turned, and the knife descends, cutting through the paper with great rapidity. The wheel is now reversed in its motion, and the knife ascends preparatory to afresh cut, In a book-binding establishment one of these machines will do the work of six men. Gull. — ^To tear the point-holes in a sheet of paper while printing. This is generally caused by the end of the spur being turned, and may be remedied by fihng it to a tapering point. At times a gull is caused by the points not falling fairly in the centre of the groove. Gutters. — The furniture separating two adjoining pages in a chase ; as between folios 1 and 8 in a half sheet of 8vo. H. Half Press. — When one man only is working at a press. Hang up, — In warehouse work, is to place printed sheets upon the drying poles. To do this the warehouseman should take the peel in his left hand, and lay it flat upon the heap to be hung up ; he should G 50 DICTIONARY OF TERMS then turn over on it from six to a dozen sheets, according to the thickness of the paper, taking care to have the fold in the centre of the short cross, as, if it falls across any of the newly printed pages they will most likely smear and set off. Having folded these sheets down he must lift the peel two or three inches to the left, take another fold, then shift it, and so on till he has as many folds as he can con- veniently lift. Then raising the sheets above the poles on which the ^vork is to be hung, and sloping the handle of the peel, the folds will open at the under side, and they may be lowered and hung on the poles. The peel must now be withdrawn from the centre, and be inserted between the first and second folds, or lifts, which are to be shifted on, letting the second overhang the first, and so on till all are spread out ; when the process is repeated till the whole heap is hung up. Hard impy^ession. — When there is too much pull on the press, and lines which should be soft and delicate, come up heavy and strong. Head-hand.— K thin bar of iron, connecting the two sides of tympans at the top; it is made thin, to allow it to run under the platten without impediment. Head-line. — The top line of a page containing the running title and folio. When there is no running title the folio is styled the head line. Chapter lines are also head lines. Head of a page: — The top, or upper end. Head-2Mge.'—The first page of a work, or any page on which a division or chapter commences. Head-2nece. — An ornament placed over the commencement or other division of a work. It may be an engraving or composition of type ornaments. Head-pieces are now going out of fashion. Heads. — The pieces of furniture placed at the tops of pages to make the margin. Heap. — As many reams or quires of paper as are given out by the warehouseman to be wetted for any particular work. Also the quan- tity of paper a pressman has on his bank for striking off a form. Home. — A term used by pressmen to denote that the bar of the press is pulled down till it touches the near cheek. Horse. — An inclined platform on which the heap to be wrought off is placed by the pressman. Hydraidic j^ress. — This machine, which is of very general use, is highly necessary to printers to smooth or take out the marks of the USED IN PRINTING. 51 impression from sheets which have been printed on. The following description of its action is from Nicholson's Journal of Natural Pliilosophy. " When the lever, or pump handle is raised, it brings up the piston, which would leave a vacuum beneath if the pressure of the atmosphere did not force the water in through a side valve. The lever is then to be pressed down, which causes the side valve to shut, and forces the water through a valve at the bottom, whence it passes through a pipe into the cavity of the great cylinder, and raises the piston, or ram. A repetition of the process forces more water in, and the pressure may in this manner be carried to a great extent. The hydraulic press was invented by Mr. Joseph Braraah, of Piccadilly." When it is used by printers the dry sheets are placed between milled or glazed boards, first a sheet and then a board. These boards are put in the press, and between every hundred or hundred and fifty a thick wooden board is inserted, to make the whole pile solid. As soon as the whole space between the table of the press and the head is filled, the press is pumped up, as described above. When sufficiently tight it is left standing for a few hours, and on letting it down and taking the sheets from between the boards, they are found to be perfectly smooth and glossy. Hyphen. — A mark (-) used when a word is divided, and the first part written or printed at the end of one line, while the latter part is at the commencement of the next. It is also employed in connecting compound words, as, mother-in-law, pre-ordained. Imperfections. — In the warehouse, are dirty, spoiled, or incomplete copies of a work. In the composing room, or with typefounders, when one or two sorts run out, leaving the rest useless, they are called imperfections. Imperial Press. — A press invented by Messrs. Sherwin and Cope, which is thus described by Dr. Lardner. " In this beautiful and com- pact machine the works upon which the power depends are almost concealed within the head of the press. The leverage connected with the bar is similar in principle to that of the Stanhope press ; and its distinguishing pecuUarity consists in the manner in which the lever, called the chill, is made to act upon the piston. This lever, or chill, terminates in a sort of polished toe, or point. The last mentioned projection of the lever is made to act on a cup, or knuckle, acting upon .the head of a stout iron ball, which simply drops down the per- foration of the piston, so as to rest upon the uppermost of two steel wedges, one of which, connected with a screw in front, is used to regulate the pressure of the platten on the types." 52 DICTIONARY OF TERMS Imposing. — Arranging the pages of a sheet or form in their proper order on the stone, and locking (or wedging) them up in a chase, with a view to their being printed. Attention to the following remarks is essential to any one wishing to become a good workman. We will suppose the compositor has made up sufficient matter to impose a sheet. The pages being laid upon the stone in their proper order, and as near the required distance from each other as can be determined by the eye, the compositor should take his chase in both hands and lay the offside in 8vo., the end in folio or 16mo., on the stone, at the outer side of his page, and lower the near side gradually till it lies flat on the stone, taking care that the edges or heads of the pages are not touched in its descent, or the soft metal types will be injured. Before proceeding any further he should look over all the pages to see if they are laid down correctly, and also observe whether the groove side of the short cross is uppermost. He should now place the furniture round the pages. French furniture, which is of metal, cast to pica ems, and can be made up to any size required, is the best to use ; but if not in the office, wooden furniture must be cut to the proper length. Before cutting up furniture the margin should be measured by a sheet of the paper on which the work is to be printed. Having dressed the chase, that is, put the proper furniture between the pages, and side and footsticks all round, the compositor should proceed to untie his pages, beginning with the page in the angle next the two crosses. Pushing the furniture close ujd, and holding it firmly with his left hand, he must take hold of the end of the page-cord with his right, and gently draw it up, gradually unwinding it from around the pages. Now, in 8vo., untie the outer page, but in 12 or 16mo., the page under the first, next to the long cross; and when the whole quarter is untied put one or two quoins in to secure it while untying the rest. When all the cords are off he should examine the margin carefully, to see that it is quite correct, inserting one or two scale- boards or leads in the backs, short cross, or heads, to enable the press- man to make register, if there is any inequality in the crosses, by either changing their situation or taking them away. Before quoin- ing up, the compositor should place his thumbs against the footstick, and raising it a little, he will see if his pages are of equal length. If the bottom lines lift up with it, he may be certain they are right ; if the corner of either of the pages drops, it is equally certain that one of them must be wrong, either long or short. In this case he must take his page-gauge, rectify the error, and then quoin up. USED IN PRINTING. 53 After pushing the quoins up tightly with his fingers all round the form, he should plane the pages down, tapping the back of the planer gently with the handle of the mallet ; if any letters stand up they will be driven down by this, unless dirt, or a splinter of furniture happens to be underneath. It is now necessary to look round the pages to see that no letters or folios have slipped, which often is the case in leaded matter, and if all is right the form may be locked up. This should be done gently all round at first, to avoid bending the crosses ; but afterwards, the form may be locked up as tightly as necessary, and again be planed down, with sharp, clear blows, as if the planer shifts it may batter the types. If any thing is under any one of the pages, care must be taken not to plane that down, but after locking up, the form must be lifted, the substance under the types be picked out, the form laid down again, and the quarter unlocked, the page or quarter be planed down, and then be again locked up. The form should now be drawn to the edge of the stone, and lifted slightly, to ascertain that all the letters are secure ; if any of them dance the cause must be discovered, and if it is owing to bad spacing or a wrong founted letter in, the compositor in whose matter it occurs should be called to remedy it, but if the letters will not lift owing to slips at the ends of the lines, the imposer himself must correct it. In imposing from forms which have been worked off, it is necessary if the work is in sheets, to use the furniture as it has been used before ; that is, to impose the outer form with the furniture which has been previously used for the outer form, and the inner with that used for the inner form. This is because the pressman has made register in the outer form, and it will most likely save him much time in laying on again. The chases for a sheet must always be in pairs, as otherwise it will be nearly impossible to register correctly, at least, there will be much trouble in doing so. Neither the sidestick nor the footstick should project beyond the other, as it will prevent the quoins from passing, and in unlocking wiU give a great deal of trouble. It often happens that the project- ing stick is spoiled in such a case; and the pages are likely to be either squabbled or broken. If there is room in the chase, when either side or footstick is too long, it will be best to put furniture at the sides or feet of the outside pages, as that will obviate cutting, and help to fill up the space. 54 DICTIONARY OF TERMS The following are the Schemes of Imposition most useful in this country : Schemes of Imposition. Sheets of Folio. Outer form. Inner form. 14 3 2 A Ttvo sheets in Folio, Quired. Outer Form of Inner Form of outer sheet. outer sheet. 1 8 7 2 A Outer form of Inner form of inner sheet. inner sheet. 3 6 5 4 A . JIalf sheet of 1 ! Qua rto. S S 1 4 « A Sheet of Quarto. Outer form. Inner form. V5 f Q 9 S 1 8 7 2 A USED IN PRINTING. 55 Half sheet, Octavo. Two Quarters, Octavo, ' a V Q 9 8 S 3 ^ 1 1 8 7 2 1 4 3 2 A A /S'/iee^ o/ Octavo. Outer form. Inner form. 8 6 51 Q 1 16 13 4 A 9 II 14 01 15 L 3 2 _A2_ - Sheet of Octavo ivith two Signatures. Twelve 2Mges of a work, and four of other matter. Outer form. Inner form. z z S 8 Q 9 L f T 1 12 9 4 3 10 11 2 A a2 Half sheet of Tw dves. The same witi hout cutting. V 5 8 7 6 9 L 8 Q " f 6 01 8 f » 6 OT 8 1 12 11 2 1 12 11 2 A A J 56 DICTIONARY OF TERMS 13 Sheet of Twelves. Outer form. Inner form. V 51 SI 91 6 01 QI t'l II 8 ^I 05 ' 9 9 61 81 L 1 24 21 4 3 22 23 2 A A2 Half sheet of Sixteens. 5V z QI fl 8 7 10 11 6 8 1 A 6 16 51 13 4 ^A^e^ o/ SixteenSj tvith one signature. Outer form. Inner form 5V 65 85 Q 9 — ■ LZ 08 S 20 21 12 11 22 19 14 91 ZI 1-5 6 01 85 81 QI 1 32 ' 25 8 7 26 31 2 A USED IN PRINTING. Half sheet of Eighteens, ivithout transpositiorL 57 SV 9 L 81 ZI 8 S f' 6 91 QI 01 s 1 12 13 14 11 2 Jl 6 'Sheet of Eighti 1 1 lens, Out* ivi 2r th three form. 1 sign ut ures. 9 L 81 61 08 IS f 6 91 IS 8S S8 1 12 13 24 25 36 1. B C Inner form. 30 Sa '<;▼ €S 6S OS LI 1 8 s ^8 Z5 ss' 91 01 s 35 2« 23 14 11 2 T3 <2 ^ O K H O Imposing Stone.— The table on which the compositor irmposes and correct his forms. All " correcting tables" were originally formed of stone slabs, fitted on a wooden frame ; but lately iron surfaces have .been pretty generally introduced, but still retaining the old designa- H ^S DICTIONARY OF TERMS tion. Imposing stones are made of various sizes, to suit their situation, and are mounted on frames containing drawers for holding quoins, furniture, and mallet, shootingstick and planer. Impression sheet. — A sheet of stout even paper, that exactly fits the inside of the outer tympan. Imprint. — The name and place of residence of the printer of any newspaper, book, or job. In the former it is placed at the foot of the last column ; in books on the back of the title or at the foot of the last page. Also the name of publisher and place of publication at the foot of the title page. Indestructible jyrinting. — By this process, whicli is the invention of Messrs. Adams and Gee, printers, of Cloth Fair, London, metal plates, of the thickness of ordinary sheet tin, may be printed on with ordinary type, the plates being first coated with a whitish composition. The sheets thus printed upon are afterwards subjected to a japanning process, and an even lustrous surface is produced, which can only be acted upon by a sharp instrument. Index, or hand ^^, used to direct the reader's attention to some particular passage. India papter. — A peculiar paper, made in China, which is used to obtain fine, or " proof" impressions of engravings. There is a smooth and rough sideto this paper, which is made on the smooth surface of a stone, by applying the pulp with a brush, the rough side having the appearance of paint applied by an unskilful hand. Ink. — The composition used to obtain printed copies from a form of types or engravings, either black or coloured. Ink table. — A table for distributing ink equally over the rollers, made either of wood or iron. Tables as described below are in use in the Government Press, and were made in this country. A wooden frame is covered with sheet iron, to form the distributing surface. The ink trough is placed at the fore edge, and is composed of an iron roller, or ductor, turned triie, and a plate of steel. The edge of the steel presses against the roller by means of weights and levers, and prevents the ink, which is placed between the plate and roller, from escaping, except when the roller is turned by the pressman. When the roller is turned round it becomes covered with a thin film of ink, the inking roller is dabbed against this, rolled backwards and forwards over the distributing table several times to spread it evenly all over, and is then passed two or three times over the form. A cover is fixed by hinges over the ink duct, to prevent dust and dirt from settling in the ink. USED IN PRINTING. 59 Inner form. — In working slieets, is the form that has the second page in it. Inner tympan, — A frame covered with parchment, which fits into the outer tympan. Two fiat points slip under the head board of the outer tympan, and secure that end in its place, and the sides are kept down by hooks on each side of the outer tympan, which turn round studs fixed in the inner frame. Inside Quires. — Perfect quires of paper, of twenty-four good sheets each, thus designated to distinguish them from outside, or corded quires. Its oum paper. — A term used by pressmen when two or three proofs are to be pulled on the paper used for printing the same work. Job. — Any thing printed (with the exception of neAVspapers) which does not exceed a sheet in quantity Cards, Blank Forms, Circulars, Bills, Posting Bills, Cheques, or Receipts, but OMdng to some differences between them, they separated in 1439, before its expiration. In 1450, Gutenburg was associated with John Fust, or Faust ; and it was about this time, as shown by all known authorities, that metal types were first made. The Abbot Trithemius^ in Ms " Chronicon Spanheimense," says, " about thi& time (1450) the art of printing and working single types was found out anew, instead of hy the 2)7^evioits wooden types, in the City of Mentz, by one John Gutenburg, who having s^^ent his whole estate in this difficult discovery, by the assistance and advice of others, brought his under- taking at length to perfection/' USED IN PRINTING. 101 With Giitenburg and Faust was associator Peter Sclioeffer, who had been the servant of the latter. He was the inventor of punches of steel, by which matrices were struck, from which the metal types (which were originally cut singly) were cast. This produced uniformity in the length and form of letters. The first work which issued from the press of these three men, is generally supposed to be a Latin Bible, without date, but which most probably was finished about the year 1455. After this Gutenburg and Faust's partnership terminated, and in 1457 Faust and Schceffer published the Psalter. Another Psalter was printed by them in 1459, and in the same year Durandi Rationale, a treatise on the liturgical offices of the Church. In 1460 Gutenburg printed the great Latin Dictionary called "Catho- licse Johannis de Balbis," and the " Constitutions of Clement V." In 1460-62 another Bible, withoiit a date, was issued by one Pfister, who had set up a press at Bamberg. In 1465 Faust produced the *' Offices of Cicero," and in the following year a second edition of the same work ; shortly after this he went to Paris, where he is supposed to have died of the plague. In 1462 the Archbishop Adolphus sacked the City of Mentz ; the printing trade of the place was ruined, and the workmen spread themselves amongst various cities, and set up on their own account, Bamberg, Cologne, Strasbourg, Augsburg, and other cities, had their presses ; yet between 1461 and 1470 only 24 different works appeared. In 1465 a printing office was established at Subiaco in the Koman state. In 1470, two of Faust's workmen commenced printings in Paris, and Ulric Gering and his partners set up a press in the same year. Cumini, a Goldsmith, established one at Florence, and John Spire one at Venice. The first book printed in Spain, appeared at Valencia, in 1474. In 1475 printing was commenced at Barcelona; at Saragossa and Seville in 1477 ; and at Salamanca in 1485. In 1488, Aldus, a learned printer at Venice, invented Italic letters, and the Aldine printing in after years became famous for its beauty. Aldus printed the works of nearly all the Greek authors in their own language, in rapid succession, and with great beauty. Learned men became printers, others took a pride in correcting for the press ; and the printers published the names of their eminent assistants on the title pages, as the names of editors and authors are now used, to invest the work with a higher guarantee of character and ability. 102 DICTIONARY OF TEIlMS Printing now began to spreadall over the continent with great rapi- dity. Presses were established in tlie Low Countries, at Daventer, Utrecht, Louvain, Basle, and at Buda, in Hungary; in 1490 the art reached Turkey, and in 1560 penetrated into what was then semi- barbarous Pvussia. In France many women have distinguished themselves in the art, amongst others, Charlotte Guillard (1490-1540), the widow of Berthold Rambolt, who kept several presses at work, and printed a great number of large and very correct editions both in Latin and Greek. Amongst her best works are the Bible, the Fathers, and the works of St. Gregory, in two volumes, which are so accurate as to contain only thxee faults ! Let us now turn to the introduction of the art into England. William Caxton, the father of the English Press, was apprenticed to a London merchant in 1412, went to the low countries in 1442, and resided by turns in Brabant, Flanders, Holland, and Zealand, for near thirty years, during which time he made himself master of the art of printing. While at Cologne he translated his "Recueil de I'Histoire de Troye," and published it ; soon after this he removed his apparatus to England, and settled at Westminster under the patronage of the Abbot. In 1474 he produced the first specimen of English typography, *' the Book of Chess." In 1477 he published " Dictes and sayinges." Caxton's first types were of a kind called Secretary, but not what is known as secretary now. In 1482 he added another sort, which was a great improvement on the first ; and in 1490 a sort which was still better. He died about 1491 ; but in the ten years in which he carried on the business of a printer, he published 64 different works, though in a literary point of view they indicate but a low state of knowledge in England. During Caxton's time one John Lettase also set up a Press in London, in which he printed two works alone ; he was afterwards in partnership with William Machlinia. They were the first printers of law, and only produced about eleven works. Caxton was succeeded in his business by Wynkyn de Worde and Richard Pynsent. The first, who had accompanied Caxton from Cologne, was a very accomplished man, and even excelled his master in the art. He introduced the Roman letter, and the shape of his types was retained for two centuries. These two printers flourished between the years 1491 and 1534, and between them issued 618 works. Julian Notary also had a press from 1499 to 1515, but did not issue many works. USED IN PRINTING. 103 Ln 1480 a press was set up in the Benedictine monastery at St. Albans. Printing was introduced at Oxford between 1480 and 1485, by Tlieodore Roode and John Hunt ; the former a native of Cologne, the latter an Englishman. In 1507 Walter Chapman opened a printing office in Edinburgh. In 1509 printing was introduced into the City of York by Hew Goes. John Sibert introduced the art to Cambridge, and printed there in Latin, Greek, and English. His books bear date 1521 to 1522. Since that time printing presses have been established in almost every town of any importance throughout Europe, America, Australia, and indeed everywhere where white men have settled. The missionaries were the first to introduce printing in this country, and the people have not been slow in availing themselves of the art. Letter or Lithographic Presses have been established in all parts, and doubtless will ultimately do much towards educating the people. Proof. — An impression of a galley of matter, sheet of a job, or work, to be examined to see if it is correct. Proof Paper. — A cheap, thin paper, used to pull proofs, or to strike off common work. Proof Press. — A Press kept to pull proofs at. Pull. — To take an impression of a form at the Press. Punctuation — Is the art of dividing a written composition into sentences, and parts of sentences, by points or stops, for the purpose of combining those words together that are united in construction and separating those which are distinct. The following explanation of some of the terms which occur in the Rules is intended to assist the learner in determining the proper application of the points. A SENTENCE is an assemblage of words forming complete sense. A SIMPLE SENTENCE coutaius but One member, which consists of one subject, and one finite verb; as, "temperance preserves health." A COMPOUND SENTENCE coutaius more than one member, and more than one subject, or one finite verb, either expressed or understood ; or, it consists of two or more simple sentences connected together • as " good nature mends and beautifies all objects." " Virtue refines the affections ; but vice debases them." A CLAUSE, or MEMBER, is ouc of the simple sentences of which a compound member is formed ; as, " he was told to clear the stone • but he went to his frame." Here there are two clauses. 104 DICTIONARY OF TERMS A COMPOUND MEMBER is made up of two or more clauses or simple members; as, "the ox knowetli his owner, and the ass his master's crib ; but Israel doth not know, my people do not consider." Here will be found four clauses, or simple members : the first two forming one compound member ; and the latter two another compound member. . A PHRASE means sometimes part of a sentence, and sometimes a whole one. The Comma [,] is used to denote the shortest pause in punctuation, and the smallest division in composition. Rule I. — Of the nominative. — A simple sentence admits of no marked pause, except a full stop at the end of it ; as, " The Secretary stood alone. Modern degeneracy had not reached him." No comma ought to be inserted after the subject (1) or nominative, unless it be accompanied by adjuncts which are put in a parenthe- tical (2) form ; as, (1) "Inattention to business in hand is a sign of a frivolous mind.'' (2) " Inattention to business in hand, let it be what it will, is a sign of a frivolous mind." Rule II. — Words in the same construction. — Words of the same part of speech, occurring in the same construction, are separated from each other by commas ; as, " The turbulence, the insincerity, the convulsions to which the extension of knowledge amongst the lower orders has given rise, will in time be for- gotten." " Success depends upon acting prudently, steadily, and vigorously, in what we undertake." To this rule there are two exceptio7is. 1st. When two adjectives are joined together without a conjunction, and the first of which qualifies not only the noun but the other adjective, no commas are used ; as, " Locke was a famous modern philosopher." 2nd.— When only two words of the same part of speech are closely connected by the conjunction and, the comma is omitted ; and the same remark is applicable to or ; as, " Truth is uniform and consistent " '* Ts it right or wrong ?" USED IN PRINTING. 105 If, however, tlie parts connected are not short, a comma may be inserted; as, " The traditions and local attachments of the clans were lost by the dispersion of their members, and general adoption of new names and dis- tinctions." " Is acting in this way right, or is it wrong ?" Rule III. — Of a direct address. —Expressions in a direct address are separated from the context by commas ; as, " Therefore, good Brutus, be prepared to hear." " Boast not, my friends of to-morrow." Rule IV. — Members of sentences depending on each other. — When a member of a sentence is followed by another immediately depending on it, a comma is inserted between them ; as, '* Those who only look at a building as a fine feature in a landscape, rarely think of the art with which such a fabric is raised." " jNIuch of the durability of a building dei3ends on the propriety of the design, but much also depends upon the nature of the materials." " It is the fiiult of some writers, that they pursue their thoughts to their last ramifications." Rule V.— Words explanatory, incidental, and conditional. — Explanatory, incidental, and conditional words or phrases, whether introduced at the beginning or the end, or in the middle of sentences — must be separated from the context by commas ; as, " The Government, approving the plan, put it in execution." " We started early, and, before the close of the day, arrived at Poo- doovail." " The people, whose constitutional rights had been materially impaired, were ever ready to defend themselves." " Every sensible person knows full well that war is a calamity, and views it with aversion ; but at the same time, in the present state of the world, we are bound to admit that frequently it cannot be avoided." " Formerly, his work was, in many respects, imperfect ; it was, there- fore, not much approved." " Truth, when it is reduced to practice, easily becomes subject to caprice and imagination." Many of the foregoing examples may, with propriety, be applied to Rule IV. lOf) DICTIONARY OF TERMS The following words and phrases may be separated from the context by commas : Nay, so, hence, tlien, therefore, again, first, secondly, formerly, now, lastly, once, more, above all, on the contrary, in the next place, in short, in truth, (fee. When, however, these expressions are very closely connected with the sense, the comma is better omitted. Rule VI.— Observations and short Quotations. — A short quo- tation, or any remarkable expression or observation that resembles a quotation, may be properly preceded by a comma ; as, " Such seems to be the disposition of man, Avhatever makes a distinction produces rivalry." " He said to the maistry, proceed immediately with the work." " Religion is so w^ell adapted to the nature of man, that, without her assistance, we should hve and die like the lower creation," " Plutarch calls lying, the vice of slaves." " It hurts a man's pride to say, I do not know." But if the members succeeding each other are very closely con- nected, the comma is superfluous ; as, " He told me to do so." " He says it is not finished." " I doubt not that mind is immortal." " He bade me go home." Rule VII. — Of comparatives. — Simple members of sentences, connected by comparatives, are distinguished by a comma ; as, " As the hart panteth after the waterbrooks, so doth my soul pant after thee." " AVill bind the whole together on the surest principles of construction, as the separate staves of a vessel are united by the hoops." " The liberal reward of labour, as it encourages the propagation, so it increases the industry of the common people." " Charity, like the sun, brightens all objects." If the members in comparative sentences are short, the comma may be omitted ; as, " Mankind act more often from caprice than reason." " It is better to get wisdom than gold." When the members of comparative sentences are compound, they may be set off by a semicolon. USED IN PRINTING. 107 Rule VIII. — Of the conclusion op a sentence p.efereing to TWO preceding members. — When the concluding part of a sentence refers to two preceding members, it is separated from the last mem- ber, and the members from each other, by commas ; as, " Good men arc often found not only in union with, but in opposition to, the views and conduct of one another." " He was composed both under the threatening, and at the approach, of a cruel and lingering death." But when the concluding part of a sentence is short, it is better to omit the comma before it ; as, " Alfred was not only the king, but the father of his people." Rule IX. — Relative Pronouns. — Relative pronouns, expressed or understood, admit a comma before them ; as, " He preaches sublimely, who lives a sober, righteous, and pious life." " The book of Job is a poem, full of the noblest and most majestic figures." This may also be applied to cases in which a relative pronoun is preceded by a preposition ; as, " No thought can be just, of which good sense is not the ground work." When two jDhrases are closely connected by a relative, limiting the general notion of the antecedent to a particular sense ; the comma should be omitted ; as, " A man who is of a detracting spirit will misconstrue the most inno- cent words that can be put together." Rule X. — Transposition of adjuncts, — When the natural order of adjuncts or circumstances is inverted, they may be set off by com- mas ; as, " Virtue must be formed and supported, not by unfrequent acts, but by daily and repeated exertions." Wlien such sentences are put in the natural order the comma may be omitted ; as, " Virtue must be formed by daily and repeated exertions, not by unfre- quent acts." Rule XI. — Words in opposition.— When words are placed in opposition to each other, or with some marked variety, they generally require to be distinguished by a comma ; as, " The wood is hard, yet easily worked." *' This stone is very soft, but ^durable." 108 DICTIONARY OF TERMS Rule X[I. — ^Vliere a word is understood, a comma may be properly introduced ; as, " From law arises security, from security curiosity, from curiosity knowledge." In this example tlie verb caises is understood before curiosity and knowledge. Tlie Semicolon [ ; ] is used for dividing a compound sentence into parts, not so closely connected as those which are separated by a comma only, nor so little dependent on each other as those which are distinguished by a colon. Rule I. — When a sentence can be divided into two or more mem- bers, which members are again divided into members more simple, tlie former are to be separated from the latter by a semicolon, thus ; " Towns without number sprang up in the place of the ancient congre- gation of huts ; and necessities were gradually created, which were incompati- ble with the old modes of life." " In his buildings he coveted three things, beauty, usefulness, and durability ; his taste secured the first, his acquaintance with the wants of man obtained the second, &c." " It will be seen how, in two important dependencies of the crown, wrong Avas followed by just retribution ; how imprudence and obstinacy broke the ties which bound all the North American colonics to the parent state ; how Ireland remained, indeed, a member of the empire, but a withered and distorted member." " As we perceive the shadow to have moved, but did not perceive it moving ; so our advances in learning, as tliey consist of such minute steps, are only perceivable by the distances." *' There are men wliose powers operate at leisure and in retirement, and whose intellectual vigour desert them in conversation ; whom merriment con- fuses, and objection disconcerts ; whose bashfulncss restrains their exertion, and suffers them not to speak till the time of speaking is past ; or whose attention to their own character makes them unwilling to utter, at hazard, what has not been considered, and cannot be recalled." *' Such is the refuge of our youth and age, The first from hope, the last from vacancy ; And this worn feeling peoples many a page. And, may be, that which grows beneath mine eye ; Yet there are things whose strong reality Outshines our fairy land ; in shape and hues More beautiful than our fantastic sky. And the strnngc coDStellulioiis which the muse <)'er her wild univer-e is skilful to diffuse." USED IN PRINTING. 109 Semicolons may be inserted between the parts of many conipouncl sentences that do not admit of being subdivided ; as, " Stones grow ; vegetables grow and live ; animals grow, live, and feel." Rule II. — When the members of a compound sentence are con- nected by a particle denoting a modification of the former clause, or giving a new turn to its meaning, a semicolon may with propriety be inserted; as, " Genius breaks from the fetters of criticism ; but its wanderings arc sanctioned by its majesty and wisdom." " Do not think yourself perfect ; for imperfection is natural to man." The Colon [ : ] is used to divide a sentence into two or more parts, less connected than those which are separated by a semicolon, but not so independent as separate, distinct sentences. Rule I. — When a sentence can be divided into two parts, either of which parts is again divisable by a semicolon, the former parts are to be separated from the latter by a colon ; thus, •• If any man think it convenient to seem good, let him be so in reality ; and then his goodness will appear to every one's satisfaction ; for truth is convincing, and carries its own light and evidence along with it ; and will not only commend us to every man's conscience, but which is much more, to God, who searcheth our hearts." " Without this diffusion of wealth among the lower orders, the important effects resulting from the invention of printing would be extremely limited ; for a certain degree of ease and independence is necessary to ins{)ire men with the desire of knowledge, and afford them the leisure Avhich is requisite for acquiring it : and it is by the rewards which such a state of society holds up to industry and ambition, that the selfish passions of the multitude can be interested in the intellectual improvement of their children." The propriety of using or omitting a colon or semicolon, is some- times determined by the introduction or the omission of a conjunc- tion; as, " Do not flatter yourselves with the hope of perfect happiness : there is no such thing in the world." " Do not flatter yourselves with the hope of perfect happiness; for there is no such thing in the world." Rule II. — A colon is used, when the preceding part of a compound sentence is complete in sense and construction ; and that which fol- lows is some remark, naturally arising from it, which adds to the sense without modifying ; as, " Study to acquire the habit of thinking : no study is more important." 110 DICTIONARY OF TERMS Rule III. — When, in a compound sentence, two objects are com- pared or contrasted with one another, without the use of connecting particles, a colon may be inserted between the members ; as, *' A friend exaggerates a nian's virtues : an enemy magnifies bis crimes." Rule IV. — A colon may be placed before an example, a quotation, or a speech, which is formally introduced, and composed of members divided by other points ; as, " The air was sweet and plaintive ; and the words, literally translated, were these : ' The winds roared and the rain fell ; when the poor white man, faint and weary, came and sat under our tree.' " When the quotation includes several sentences, it is usual to com- mence a new paragraph. A Period l . ], or Full Point, is used to terminate a sentence which is so complete and independent as not to be connected in construc- tion with the following sentence ; as, " Fear God. Honour the King." " The art of constructing a sound wall was a favourite study with him. To convert an unseemly pile of stones, a stack of unsquared timber, and some tons of rusty iron, into a magnificent palace, requires something more than mere animal exertion," *' The Secretary stood alone. Modern degeneracy had not reached him. Original and unaccommodating, the features of his character had the hardi- hood of antiquity." The period, besides its use at the end of a sentence, is employed after an abbreviation, to denote that letters are wanting to complete the word. A note of Interrogation [ ? ] denotes that a question is asked ; as, "What day of the month is this ?" " Where is the peon ?" " Who made up signature K of Report on District Roads?" '* Has that sheet been read for press yet ?" Where it is only said that a question has been asked, a note of interrogation should not be used ; as, " The Cyprians inquired of me why I wept." " The engineer asked him who turned the arch." *' When the inspector saw how badly the work was executed, lie asked who was the contractor." USED IN PRINTING. Ill It is a very common error to make one interrogative mark represent several questions belonging to the same sentence ; and to substitute semicolons or dashes for notes of interrogation. This should be carefully avoided. In the following passage each question should be marked with its proper points : " What is civilization — where is it — what does it consist in — where does it commence — where does it end — how is it known — in short, what does it mean ?" An Admiration, or Exclamation [ ! ], is used after words or sentences expressing a sudden emotion or ardent wish, or denoting admiration or sorrow ; and after an address to a person, when particularly emphatic; as, " Look, my Lord, it comes I" *' Fathers I Senators of Rome ! the arbiters of the world ! to you I fly for refuge !" *' Father of light and life! thou good supreme ! Oh teach me what is good ! teach me thyself ! Save me from folly, A'anity and vice, From every low pursuit !" " God of the fair and open sky ! How gloriously above us springs The tinted dome of heavenly blue. Suspended on the rainbow's rings !" *' Look, Marcus ! ah, son of Lucius, look on her !" Interjections, being expressive of some passion, are generally accompanied by marks of admiration ; as, " O virtue ! how amiable thou art !" " Alas ! poor Yorick !" The following passage will serve to illustrate the distinction between the notes of exclamation and interrogation : " Whither shall I turn ? Wretch that I am ! to what place shall I betake myself? Shall I go to the Capitol? alas! it is overflowed with a brother's blood ! or shall I retire to my house ?— -yet there I behold my mother plunged in misery, weeping and despairing !" It is sometimes difficult |to distinguish between an interrogative and exclamatory sentence ; it is, therefore, necessary that the com- positor or examiner should carefully peruse the ambiguous passage, comparing it with the context, in order to ascertain whether it expresses more an idea of emotion than of enquiry. 112 DICTIONAUY OF TERMS The Parenthesis, thus ( ), is used to include a member which is inserted in tlie body of a sentence, to iUustrate or enforce its mean- ing, but which is not necessary to the sense, and docs not affect the construction ; as, " Consider (and may the consideration sink deep into your hearts) the fatal consequences of a wicked life." " In 1788, Mr. (afterwards Sir John) Soane was appointed architect." " The ceiling is trabcatcd (cross beamed), deeply coffered, and enriched with greek frets." " Open daily (Sundays excepted) from eleven till four." " The pix (from the Latin pixis) is the box in wliich the coins to be weighed and analysed are contained." When the incidental clause is short, or coincides with the next of the sentence, the parenthesis may be omitted, and commas inserted in their place ; as, "Every star, if we may judge by analogy, is a snn to a system of planets." The incidental clause ought to be accompanied with every point wliich the sense would require if the parenthetical characters were omitted. It should terminate with the same kind of stop that should terminate the member which precedes it, which stop should be placed after the parenthesis, thus : *' Pride, in some disguise or other (often a secret to the proud man himself), is the most ordinary spring of action among men." The Dash [— ], though often used improperly,* may be inserted when the sentence breaks off abruptly, when a significant pause is required, or when there is an unexpected turn in the sentiment. " Here lies the great — False marble ! Avhere ? Nothing but sordid dust lies here." " Every one knows what he means by civilization — till he is asked ; every one knows what it means — till he compares his opinions with his neigh- bour ; all nations know what it means — till they compare with neighbour nations ; nobody agrees, nobody knows where it is. At least, we do not — that is certain." The dash may sometimes be used as a mark of parenthesis. The Apostrophe [ ' ] is frequently inserted in poetry, and some- times in prose, to indicate the omission of a letter or a syllable. It is also used to show the possessive case of nouns, with an s following * Cobbett, in his Grammar, says, the dash is a cover for ignorance in the use 'of points, and it can answer no other purpose. USED IN PBINTTNG. 113 when in tlie singular number ; but where an s is added to the word to form the plural, the apostrophe is used after it, without an addi- tional s. The s is likewise omitted after the apostrophe where the adding it would create too much of a hissing sound, as, for righteous- ness' sake, for conscience' sake. Tlie Hyphen [ - ] is used when a word is divided, the first part printed at the end of one line, and the latter part at the beginning of the next. It is also employed to connect compound words. Marks of quotation [" "J are used when a passage is transcribed from a speaker or author in his own words. Such passages should be distinguished by having two inverted commas ["] at the beginning, and two apostrophes [ "] at the end. When a quotation is introduced within the body of the primary one, the additional quotation ought to be commenced with one inverted comma, and closed with one apostrophe. The following example will vpply to both these Eules. In St. John's Gospel we haAe the following words : " Nathaniel said unto Philip, * Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth ?' Philip saith unto him, * Come and see.' " When several successive paragraphs are taken from an author, each paragraph is commenced by inverted commas, but not closed by apos- trophes till the quotation terminates. Marks of quotation may be omitted where the matter extracted is not given in the exact words of the author ; or where a quotation in a foreign language, or a passage from Holy Writ, is short, and distin- guished by italics. Quadrats. — Pieces of metal, of the depth of the body of the type for which they are cast, and lower than the type, so as to leave a blank space on the paper in whatever part of the page they are inserted. They are used to fill out short lines ; to form white lines ; and to justify letters or figures in any part of a page. Quarto. — A sheet of paper folded into four leaves, or eight pages. Qui7'e — Of paper, 24 sheets. Quoin draiver, — A drawer under the imposing stone, in which quoins are kept. Quoins, — Short pieces of wood, of the same height as the furniture, and tapering in their width; used to wedge the pages up with in a chase. They are made of various sizes, to suit the difference of the thickness in the side or foot-sticks- P 114 DICTIONARY OF TMtMS Quoin xi}:). — To fit the quoins in a form in such a manner that when locked up they shall completely and properly secure the types. Quotation. — See punctuation. Quotations. — Pieces of hollow metal, generally cast quadrat height, and to even pica ems in length and width. A common size is three ems wide and from four to six ems long. K. Bag. — In type-founding, a burr on the edge of a letter. • Reader. — A person whose duty it is to read proofs in a printing office, for the purpose of correcting the errors that are unavoidable from the process of arranging the types into words, lines and pages. The general interest of literature depends much on the grammatical accuracy and typographical correctness of the printer's labour; it will be readily seen, therefore, that good, careful, steady readers, arc indispensable in every printing office. It is desirable that persons who hold the situations of readers, should have been previously brought up as compositors, as, by their practical acquaintance with the mechanical part of the business, they will be able to detect errata which may easily be passed over by a man of science and learning who does not know the technicalities of the art, and cannot point out imperfections in workmanship. But although it is desirable that readers should have been previously brought up as compositors, it is not absolutely necessary, as long practice in reading proof-sheets for the press, a quick eye, and application to his duties, will enable a reader, though not a com- positor, to detect those minor deviations from correctness which the inexperienced and the careless are apt to overlook. But while these habits are acquiring, without which no person can safely be trusted to read a sheet for press, books are liable to go forth to the world in a manner which reflects discredit on the printer and annoys the author, who may find he has thoughts and expressions given to him the very opposite of what he intended to express. No form, therefore, should be put to press, until it has been read by an experienced reader. But habit is not sufficient to form a competent reader, unless he ])ossesses those literary qualifications which are obviously necessary in an employment of this nature. A reader ought at least to be well USED IN PRINTING. 115 versed in all the peculiarities and idioms of the English tongue : and a knowledge of the dead languages, so often used in quotation, would be useful to him. In this country a knowledge of the vernaculars should also be a recommendation ; so many phrases from them being interspersed in almost all works written here. Many -writers axe apt, in, the warmth of discussion or the laborious exercise of the thinking powers, to pass over such deviations from pure diction and grammatical accuracy as they have acquired in their ordinary conversation wdth mankind. Now, although no corrector of the press can be required to do more than follow his copy, that is faithfully to adhere to the original, yet he should point out such imperfections or mistakes by underlining the faulty sentence, and marking "query" (?) in the margin, thus drawing the author's atten^ tions to the p3,rt, and removing the responsibility from himself.. Some few works are "put to press" direct ; in such a case. the reader,,, of course, is respansible, and queries are of no use. The following is the process which proof sheets ought to undergo before they are put to press. The compositor should when a proof has been pulled, hand the copy and proof to the reader, for the purpose of comparing or reading. If the latter, which is most general, the reading boy must read the copy- aloud, while the reader looks at the proof. The boy should be able to read any copy put into his hands with ease and distinctness ; he- should not read too fast, but pay the same attention to the subject as though he were reading for amusement or edification. The eye of the reader should not follow, but rather precede the copy ; as, when accustomed to this mode, he will be able to anticipate every w^ord in the copy ; and should a word or sentence happen to have been omitted, his attention will the more sensibly be arrested by it when he hears it pronounced by his reading boy. After the proof has been read, the signature, head lines, and folios of each page should be carefully examined, and the signature and' folio of the ensuing sheet be accurately marked on the margin of the copy. A crotchet shouldr be madie betw^een the last word of the sheet read and the first of the next sheet, in order that both compo- sitor and reader may be certain where the sheet commences. The form being corrected in the metal, a revise should be pulled, and with the proof just corrected be conveyed to the reader, whose duty it is to collate the corrected sheet with the one before read, to ascertain whether the corrections have been made, and that other errors have not been created in the process, as it not unfrequentl^ 116 DICTIONARY OF TERMS happens that compositors, in the course of correcting, either transpose a letter or word, or alter a letter in a word that is not marked, thereby not only leaving one error uncorrected, but also making another. It often happens, too, that in raising a line to change the spaces, some of tlie letters get transposed. It is absolutely necessary, therefore, in revising a proof, that the reader should not only look at the word marked, but also glance his eye along every line in which an alteration has been made. Should outs or doubles occur in a proof, it ought to be again read by co]iy to prevent any improper connexion in the over-running, either by the insertion or removal of words. In the final revision of a proof sheet, the eye should be cast along the sides and heads of the respective pages, lest a letter should have fallen out, the form have been locked up crookedly, or the edges battered or bitten by the frisket. Stower, an early writer on the Art of Printing, says, " A reader therefore should be a man of one business ; always upon the alert, all eye, all attention. Possessing a becoming reliance on his own powers, he should never be too confident of success. Ijnperfections cling to him on every side, errors and mistakes assail him from every quarter. His business is of a nature that mav render him obnoxious to blame, but can hardly be said to bring him in any large stock of praise. If errors escape him he is justly to be censured, ior 2)e7-ftction is his duty. If his labours are wholly free from mistakes, whicli, alas ! is a very rare case— he has done no more than he ought, and consequently can merit only a comparative degree of commendation, in that he had the good fortune to be more successful in his labours after j^erfection than some of his brethren in the same employment." Ream. — A quantity of paper consisting of 20 quires of 24 sheets. Records. — Type so called, cast to resemble the abreviations used in ancient M.S.S. References. — Marks used to show to what part of the text marginal or foot notes refer. The ordinary marks are as follows, and are used in the order in which they are arranged *, t, %, §, II, IT. When more than six notes occur in a page, two of each reference are put to a note, but this has an unsightly appearance. Some printers use italic lower case letters, placed between paren- thesis, Avhile others employ figures for the same purpose. The most neat in appearance, however, are superior letters or figures * ; either of which are used when the notes on a work are collected at the end of a volume. USED IN rPJNTING. 117 Register. — So to arrange the furniture in a form, or both forms of a sheet, that the pages may fall exactly on the back of each other. Begister sheet. — The sheet or sheets used to examine the register of a form. Dry proof paper is generally used for this purpose. Reglet. — Wooden furniture of various thickness, used to white out titles, jobs, or to economise quadrats. The usual sizes made are pearl, nonpareil, brevier, long primer, pica, great primer, and double pica. Register Colour Points — Are made expressly for ornamental print- ing, with spurs made to screw in, so that in case of an accident an old spur may be taken out with a small pair of plyers, and a new one be inserted in its place, a plan which enables the pressman to go on with his work without making fresh register. These points are not fixed to the tympan, but are screwed on to some part of the furniture of a form. If four colours are to be worked, two brasses, each with four points or spurs, are fixed to the form, and the first colour is then worked, pricking four holes on each side of the sheet. The points for the remaining colours are single, and attached to the tympans in the ordinary manner. It is necessary to observe that two colours must not be perfected by one set of point holes. Reiteration. — A term used by pressmen to .denote that they are working the second side of a sheet. Revise. — A proof pulled immediately a form is laid on the press, and taken to the reader by the pressman, that he may ascertain if all correetions marked in the press proof have been attended to, before giving the order to strike off. Also, any proof pulled to compare with former corrections. fiibs. — The tramway of a press, on which the carriage traverses in running in and out. Rice paper—HO called. A material used by the Chinese for drawing or printing on. It is i)repared from the stem of a leguminous plant, which is cut into pieces eight or ten inches in length. These, again, are cut into one continuous spiral film, on the same principle as veneer cutting. These lamiuie being spread out and pressed flat, form thin sheets, which after being dyed and otliervvise prepared, constitute the rice paper of the Chinese. Rides.— Leads or furniture are said to ride when one end projects over another. This should be carefully guarded against, as, either letters will be in danger of falling out, or, if locked up sufficiently tight to lift, the pages will be bent. 118 DICTIONARY OF TERMS Binse the Form.— Tliis should be done by the pressman as soon as a form is struck off. After being taken to the lye trough, and well brushed over, letter, furniture, and chase, with the lye, it should be stood nearly upright against a wall or other support, and be well rinsed by having water poured over to wash away the lye and the ink it has dissolved. Rinsing Trough. — A shallow wooden trough, lined with lead, used to lay up forms in. The edge is generally bound with iron, and the bottom covered with a loose board to prevent the iron chase cutting the lead. Bise. — A form is said to rise when every thing is properly justified, so that when locked up nothing will fall out. Risers. — The material upon which stereotype plates are fixed to be printed. These are sometimes made of wood, with the plates screwed or fastened by overhanging brass catches ; sometimes of type .metal. Various other substances have been used, such as brass, gun metal, gypsum, cork, &c., but all of these have failed. Those most com- monly in use at present were invented by Mr. Hansard, and are of type metal cast to even ems, like French furniture, to make up to any size of page. The plates are fixed to these risers for working by moveable clasps, or clams, of brass, which are pegged on to the sides of the metal, and catch over the bevel edge of the plate. Roller. — A cylinder coated with composition, fixed in an iron frame, and revolving upon an iron rod running through it, with which to ink forms, preparatory to taking impressions. Formerly balls were used for inking, but rollers have entirely susperseded them. The composition used for making rollers was first used for balls by Mr. B. Foster, and was a great improvement on the old pelts. Shortly afterwards steam printing was introduced, and then it became necessary to use rollers to ink the forms. Skins were tried, but the edges would not join well, and in consequence all work was defaced by marks ; but Konig covered his rollers with Foster's composition, and from that time steam printing was successful. There are many roller makers, and as many recipes for making rollers ; every one making some slight difference in his proportion of ingredients. It is hardly possible to give instructions to suit all countries, because much depends upon the climate and the state of the atmosphere. The composition is a mixture of glue and treacle, mixed, in Europe, in the proportion of eight lbs. of the former to two of the latter, for USED IN PRINTINa. 119 dry, cool weatlier ; but here we use a far greater proportion of glue, as otherwise the rollers would be too soft and run off the frames. To make new rollers in this climate the best proportion is 14 lbs. of glue and three pounds of treacle, which will make four ordinary- sized press rollers. In preparing to cast these, two lbs. of glue should be soaked in water, as soft and pure as can be procured. When thoroughly soften- ed, put it in the melting kettle, and place it on the fire, stirring it with a wooden spoon. When quite melted add the rest of the glue in similar proportions (first soaking it) till the whole is melted. Boil gently for an hour, then add the treacle, well stirring the mixture until thoroughly incorporated. Boil and skim, stirring every ten minutes, for another hour, then leave the vessel to cool slightly. While the composition is melting prepare the mould, by thoroughly cleaning it and rubbing the inside with oil, to prevent sticking. Place the wooden cylinder, or stock, in the mould, keeping it thoroughly dry, and then pour the composition carefully in ; when cold, take out the roller, and cast again. When old rollers are re-cast, the composition must be well cleaned with lye, before being melted. If the composition is very strong, add treacle and boil until it draws out well in threads, then cast. If the old rollers are too weak, or soft, boil until sufficiently firm. Boilers should not be used too soon after being cast, as the type will cut up the surface, and become clogged in the face. When rollers are soft, they must not be washed, as that will make them* honey-comb, or go into holes. When too dry, which with good management should seldom hap- pen, a little water should be sprinkled on the table, and the roller be rapidly worked backwards and forwards, scarcely touching the table, until the water is soaked up. The best way to preserve rollers when out of use, is to smother them in common ink, scraping them clean when required, with a blunt knife. This preserves the surface while it cleans the roller. Monde. — The name of an upright script type. Bounce,— IDiQ drum or cylinder to which the girth is attached to run the carriage, or table of the press, in and out. Rounce handle. — Tlie winch used to turn the rounce, liitby. — The name of a type, one size larger than Pearl, and smaller than Nonpariel. There are 165 lines to a foot. 120 DICTIONARY OF TERMS liuck. — A term used to denote that paper is liable to crease or double when going round a cylinder. Buhs—TroY>eY to be observed in a printing office. 1. Compositors will receive their cases free from all pie, with clean quadrat and space boxes; these must be kept Avhile in use and returned when done with, in the same clean state. 2. When a compositor receives letter or other material from the foreman, he is to return what he does not use in a satisfactory state. 3. Matter is to be made up and imposed as soon as corrected. 4. No matter to be kept standing more than 12 days without special orders. 5. Forms, immediately they are imposed, are to be pulled and the proofs given to the reader. If a first proof, with the copy; if a second proof, with the foul proof. 6. If any pages of loose matter are left when a form is imposed, the imposer must secure them. 7. No imposer may leave a foul stone. 8. When cases are taken from the racks, the compositor must return them immediately he has done with them. 9. No cases to be placed over others, or on the floor under the frames. 10. Ail head lines should be cleared from galleys immediately after the last form of a work is put to the press. 11. Sweepings of frames must be cleared, every day, within half an hour after being picked up. Broken matter must be cleared the same day. 12. No compositor shall mix two separate founts without an exj^ress order from his foreman, 13. Two forms must not be stood doAvn together without a partition between them. 14. The saw, bellows, waterpot, &c., are to be returned to their places as soon as done with. 15. No person shall make use of a bodkin, galley, or composing stick, not his own, without permission of the person in charge of the same. 16. No person shall misplace cases, or take an upper without the lower case, or vice versa. USED IN PRINTING. 121 17. Pie of any sort must be cleared after five minutes notice. 18. No person shall take sorts from another's case without leave. 19. No person shall keep useful sorts by him, for which he has no present use. 20. Every part of the office must be swept twice a day, and types found on the floor be immediately cleared by the occupant of the frame from which they were swept. 21. No person shall be absent without leave. 22. Persons absenting themselves, except in case of sickness, and leaving copy unfinished, are liable to dismissal. Pressmen. — 1. Proofs must be pulled immediately upon notice being given. 2. Immediately after a proof is pulled, the form and chase is to- be rubbed over with the lye brush, and then be given to the compo-- sitor to whom it belongs^ 3. As soon as printed, each form must be carried to the lye-tub,, and thoroughly washed, and then be delivered to the compositors for distribution. 4. All spoiled sheets must be returned. Any excess in the num- ber of spoiled sheets will subject the pressman in fault, to fine. 5. Presses must be cleaned daily. 6. Faults in the rollers must be brought to the notice of the press overseer, who will see that all are kept in good working order. 7. No pressman shall work with a soft dirty roller, or one which has gone into holes. 8. Any pressman spoiling a roller by too frequent washing or soaking in water, shall provide another at his own expense. 9. Types or quadrats falling out on the press, must be immediate- ly given to the compositor to whom the form belongs. 10. Any pressman delayed by compositors correcting revises, for a longer time than ten minutes, should report to his overseer. Ruling Machine.— A. machine for ruling red or blue lines in account books, blank statements, copy books, or any thing in which such lines are required. It is very simple in construction. At each end of a frame a wooden roller is affixed, one of which is turned by an handle. Round these rollers revolves a broad endless band, of can- vass, or any substance sufficiently smooth and elastic. At one end ia. Q 122 DICTIONARY OF TERMS a table, witlj moveable guages, on which to lay the sheets to be ruled, and a short distance from this is a broad clasp, formed of two pieces of wood united by screws, which holds the pens. These pens are formed of brass foil, and are simple channels, to convey the ink from its reservoir to the paper. The ink reservoirs are pieces of flannel, fastened with a nail to the clasp, just over and laying on the upper r id of the pens, and thoroughly saturated by means of a small brush. When a sheet is to be ruled, it is laid on the table, touching a set of wheels which guide it on to tlie revolving band, and by the band it is carried under the pens, and ruled with as many lines. Run in. — To run the table and form under the platten. Rtin out. — To run the form from under the platten. Amongst com- positors, to have emptied a case of any particular sort in composing, or to have used up all the copy in the office. Buns on sor^s.— When a book uses certain letters above the average, Ruthven's Press. — See ISTachinery. s. Sans^Kiriel Cas^s.— Cases with moveable bars, intended to hold large type. Saw. — An implement for cutting wood. A small thin saw, with a back to strengthen it, is very useful in a printing office, for cutting furniture, &c. Saiv-hloch. — A piece of wood on which to cut wooden furniture to certain lengths. It should have two mitreing, or diagonal grooves, and one at right angles. Scale hoard. — Thin slips of wood, used next to the crosses, to faci- litate making register at press. Many use leads for this purpose. Scandinavian Printing Machine. — A press invented by Mr. C. A. Holm, of Stockholm. The platten descends perpendicularly, as in the common press. The inking apparatus is so arranged that the distributing rollers have several motions, the object of which is to produce a perfectly uniform distribution of the ink. Where fine work is required, all the means of making ready are the same as at a com- mon hand press ; while the facility for getting at forms for alterations, &c., is greater than at any other machine. It is capable of throwing off about GOO impressions per hour. USlSD IN PRiKTiKG. 123 Script. — A type cast to imitate writing. Section.— A mark (§) used to denote the division of a book or chapter into smaller portions. Also used as a mark of reference to notes. Semicolon.— See Punctuation. Set at Random. — To compose matter without makihg up. Set wa«en— -Matter composed but not worked off. So called to distinguish it from distribution matter. Set of sheets. — Sheets of waste paper placed upon the tympan sheet, and frequently changed to prevent the ink on the first side setting off, while working the second. Sets oJf-'.—A sheet is said to set off when it parts Avith some of its ink to the sheet on which it is laid. The impressions in printing the second side of a sheet, will cause some of the ink from the first side to adhere to the tympan sheet, and this is likely to dirt succeeding sheets. Set up close. — When compositors have set all their copy, so that there is none intermediate between them. Seventy-two mo. — A sheet of paper folded into seventy-two leaves, or 144 pages. Shank. — The body of the letter. Sharp impression. — A clear, firm impression, with little indention on the paper. Shears. — A large kind of scissors, with short blades and long- handles, used to cut brass, leads, scale board, &c. to required lengths. Sheep's foot. — An iron hammer, with a claw at one end, used by pressmen. Sherwin and Cope's Press. — See Machinery. Shooting stick. — An instrument used to assist in driving the quoins up with a mallet when locking up a form. Short c?*055.— The shortest and broadest bar which divides a chase into quarters. Short page.— A page not full of matter. Side stick.— A wedge shaped piece of furniture placed on the side of the page to lock up by. Signature.— A letter of the alphabet placed at the bottom of the first page of each sheet of a work, to denote the order of their succession. A small capital of the body fount is generally used. 124 DICTIONARY OF TERMS Sixteen mo. — A sheet of paper folded into sixteen leaves, or thirty- two pages. Sixty-four mo. — A sheet of paper folded into sixty -four leaves, or 128 pages. Slice. — The false bottom of a large galley, made to slide out. Also, an implement used to take ink from the tub, or to scrape it together on the ink block. Slips. — Matter pulled in long narrow pieces, for facility in cor- recting. Slur. — A smear on the paper from any part of an impression. Slur pin. — A flat headed pin that goes through the ofF-side of the outer tympan, near the head band, so as to rest on the chase or furniture. Its use is to prevent the off-corner of the tympan coming down on the types before the other parts, which when it happens causes slurring. Small capitals. — Capitals of a smaller size than the regular capitals of a fount, but cast on the same body, to range with the lower case letters. Small Pica.— 'The name of a type one size larger than Long Primer, and one size less than Pica. There are 83 lines to a foot. Solid matter. — Matter that is composed without any leads between the lines. Sorts. — The letters that lie in every box of a case are called sorts. Thus a is a sort ; 6 is a sort, &c. Space Lines. — Thin pieces of metal cast to various thickness, and of different lengths, quadrat high, to put between lines, or to white out titles, &c. They are generally called leads by printers. Sjmcing. — The adjustment of the distance between the words in a line, so that there shall not be any glaring disproportion ; also extend- ing a word, or line of capitals, by putting spaces between the letters. Uniformity in spacing is a most important part of the compositor's occupation, requiring both care and judgment ; and, therefore, cannot be too strongly impressed on the mind of the young beginner. Very wide, or very close spacing are equally unpleasant to the sight, and ought never to be permitted, except in very narrow measures ; and frequently, even in that case, it may be prevented. What is commonly called the composing space (the thick, or three to an em) should be as nearly as possible adhered to. It is not merely necessary to have a line here and there uniformly spaced;, a careful compositor will USED IN PRINTING. 125 endeavour to give to every line and every page, that uniform appear- ance which is one of its chiefest excellencies. Careless and foul com- positors will never preserve this most desirable uniformity ; because, when their proof is crowded with corrections, the utmost care in rec- tifying them will not make the spacing regular. In correcting, many compositors do not overrun the matter through the stick, as they ought to do, but prefer doing it on the stone, in which case they frequently hairspace, or treble space, in order either to get in or drive out a word; when by overrunning a line or two forward or backward, they would not only preserve uniformity, but also save considerable labour. When a line is set, and requires additional spaces for justification, it is best to insert them where they will be least observed, as between perpendicular letters, such as d and h, or after a curved letter, as f. But the whole line should be spaced as nearly alike as possible by a judicious use of middhng, thin, and hair spaces. In many cases it is well to change the thick spaces for en quadrats at such places as I have mentioned above, as the difference will be hardly perceptible to any but a professional eye. A thick and middling, or two thick spaces, in one place, and one thick only in another, should never be allowed, except in newspaper work — where speed is sometimes preferred to quality. Where it may be necessary to reduce the spacing of a line, to get in the last letters of a word or syllable, the reduction should be rather made after a sloping letter, as w or y, than after a perpendicu- lar one. The spaces inserted after points vary. After a comma, a thick space is sufficient ; the colon, semicolon, admiration, and interroga- tion, should have an hair space before, and an en quadrat after. The period is always followed by an em quadrat. In places where the admiration or interrogation are followed by capitals, to commence a sentence, an em quadrat may also be used. But these rules vrill not always hold good, as it may be necessary to reduce the space in these cases, as in the rest of the line, taking care to observe the same proportions. Spaces are cast to such regular gradations, 3, 4, 5 and 7 to an em, that no sufficient excuse can be urged either for irregidar appearance or bad justification. Good spacing is a sign of a good workman. Specimen 2?age. — A page composed and pulled, as a sample of the type and paper intended to be used for any work. 126 DICTIONARY OF TEKMS ^ Spottiswoode Press. — A platten machine, the invention of Mr. As Spottiswoode. It prints two forms at a time, which pass alternately under the platten, and will strike off about COO impressions of each form in an hour. Spi^ing of a Form. — When a form has a great quantity of furniture in it and is locked up very tight, it frequently springs up in the mid- dle so as to endanger its bursting upwards ; it is then said the form springs ; to remedy this, unlock the form, plane it down, and tighten again very gradually, frequently planing down while locking up. Spur. — The projection on the point that strikes a hole in the paper while striking off the first side, and is used to make register with. Squabble. — To twist, or displace the types in a page. Stand still. — A term used by compositors and pressmen to denote that they are waiting for letter, copy, or a form to strike off. Stanhope Press. — A press, gaining its power by a combination of the lever and screw, the invention of Earl Stanhope. IL was the first iron press invented. Stereotype. — The surface of a page of types cast in one piece of type metal, about the eighth of an inch thick. Many attempts to procure casts of pages were made, and various systems of stereotyping were proposed in the 18th century, but none were thoroughly successful until the year 1800, when Lord Stanhope, after numerous experiments, at last introduced a plan which is even yet followed, and has never been improved upon in the quality of the work executed. The first operation is that of taking a mould from each page of moveable types. The pages are not arranged as they would be combined in a sheet, and wedged up together in one iron frame or chase, but each page is put in a separate chase. It is essential that the face of the types should be perfectly clean and dry, and that no particle of dirt or other substance should attach to the bottom of the types, so as to prevent them being completely level upon the surface. The page thus locked up is placed upon the lower part of what is called a moulding frame, the upper part of which is some- what larger than the page, and the margin of which thus formed determines the thickness of the plate. The types, having previously been rubbed over with an oily com- position, gypsum (plaster of Paris) mixed to the consistence of cream is poured evenly over the whole surface. This sets very quickly, and soon becomes perfectly solid. When dry the mould is removed from USED IN PRINTING. 127 tlie type. A great deal of nicety is required from the workmen in tliis operation, for if any part of the plaster adheres to the face of the type, the mould is of course imperfect, and the operation must be gone over again. Having been removed and found perfect, it is dressed with a knife round the edges, and several notches cut in the margin to allow the metal to enter the mould. It is now fit for back- ing, which process also requires a great deal of accurate knowledge. The oven in which the moulds are placed on their edges must be kept at a very regular temperature ; for if it be too hot, the moulds warp. When backed the process of casting begins. For this a strong iron frame called a casting box, or casting pot, is used. At the bottom of the box is a moveable plate of cast iron, called a floating plate, and upon this plate, the face of which is perfectly accurate, the mould is placed with the face downwards. Upon the back of the mould rests the cover of the casting-box, the inside face of which is also perfectly true. The cover is held down tightly upon the mould by a screw, connected with two shackles, and also by two nippers connected %vith the apparatus for plunging the pot into the metal-pit. Tliis apparatus, which is attached to a crane, is so constructed as to swing with a perfectly horizontal motion; and the casting box, with the mould, being thus suspended over the metal-pit, is gradually forced down into the molten metal, and there kept steady by a lever and weight. The lid of the box is cut off at the corners ; and it is through these spaces that the metal enters the box, and insinuates itself into every hollow. When the box is plunged into the metal, a bubbling noise is heard, which is caused by the expulsion of the air within the box. After having remained immersed for about 10 minutes, it is steadily lifted out by the crane, and swung to a cooling trough in which the under side of the box is exposed to water. Being com- pletely cooled, the caster removes the mould from the casting-box. The plaster mould, the plate mould, and the floating plate, are all solidly fixed together. The metal, by its specific gravity, has forced itself under the floating plate, which it has consequently driven tight up against the ledges of the mould. The mould has in the same way been driven tightly up against the lid of the casting-box. The notches in the ledges of the mould have at the same time admitted the metal into the minutest impression from the face of the types. The caster now breaks oft' the superfluous metal and the ledges of the mould with a wooden mallet ; the mould is of course destroyed, and if another plate is required, another mould must be taken from the types. When the superfluous metal and the plaster are removed, the stereotype plate comes out bright and well formed, but perhaps not of the proper thickness, which can seldom be determined by the 128 DICTIONARY OF TERMS mould; the back is therefore turned in a lathe, in which the plate revolves against a cutting tool, and a perfectly true surface is obtained by the superfluous parts being cut away in a series of concentric circles. The very best casting cannot prevent occasional defects in the face of the plate ; it is therefore minutely examined by a workman called a picker. It is his business to remove the small globules of metal which occasionally fill up such letters as the a and the e ; to insert a new letter, which he can do by cutting out the damaged letter, and soldering another in, if any one be broken ; and, what is a still more delicate operation, to remove with his graver any impurities which may fill up the lines of a wood cut. When the plates have been carefully examined and passed as correct, they are ready for delivery to the printer. But several patents have been taken out within the last few years, for a new, and as far as economy of cost and labour are concerned, an improved system of stereotype, known as the French, or papier mach6 process. It is far cleaner and more rapidly executed than the old plaster casts, but the plates are not so clear and sharp ; this may be improved by and bye,— the art being yet very young. To take a mould on the papier mache process, the page is locked up as described before ; but, instead of pouring liquid plaster on to the types, a prepared sheet, or flong, as it is technically termed, is laid upon it, and beaten with a long handled, hard brush. The flong is made of alternate sheets of blotting paper and a peculiar paste, and is used while yet v.^et ; the beating, therefore, drives a part of it down into every interstice of the letter, no matter how fine. When suffi- ciently beaten the form, with the flong still on it, is placed on a heated iron plate, is then covered with a blanket, and a platten screwed firmly down. The type and mould is kept on this " moulding press" as it is called, for about fifteen minutes, and is then unscrewed, the blankets taken off, and left another ten minutes to dry. The mould is now lifted away, the edges trimmed with a pair of scissors, and little inequalities beaten down, and is ready for casting. The casting box and metal-pit are not used in this process, but the paper mould is laid on its back on the under side of a large iron " casting mould," bars of steel, the thickness of the required plate are placed round three sides of the margin of the mould to determine the size of the plate, the top is screwed firmly down, and melted metal is poured into the mould. As soon as set, the casting mould is unscrewed, and the platten and mould lifted away, and separated carefully. Sometimes the mould is destroyed, but now and then as many as twelve castings USED IN PRINTINO. 129 may be taken from tlie same mould. The plate liaa now to be trimmed round the edges, and to be examined by the picker, and is then ready for the printer. The cost by this process is only about half of that of the old plaster process, and in England many newspapers, even dailies, are stereotyped, the types not behig so much worn by moulding as by striking off a long number at press, besides the advantage of return- ing letter to the compositors immediately. The process is by no means universally applied, but only in pecu- liar cases ; while in those cases it is so valuable that it may be pronounced absolutely necessary. Works printed periodically, or long numbers, should always be stereotyped, as much time will be saved, and type preserved by the process. Stet. — When a word has been struck out by mistake in reading a proof, it is usual to make dots under the word which has had the pen run through, and write the word stet in the margin. Stick/till. — As many lines as will fill a composing stick. Superior's. — Small letters and figures upon the upper part of the shank, to range with the top of the fount to which they belong. They are generally used as references to words ; and occasionally for abbreviations, as M"^- M"- N®- &c. Sweepings. — Types found on the floor when the rooms are swept. Those swept from the frames should be given to the persons working in them; those from the centre of the room to a person appointed for the purpose. T. Table ivorh. — Here called statement, is figure column work, with rules between, consisting of five columns, or more. It is paid double the price of common matter. Tabular. — Similar work to the above, but of three or four columns only. It is paid one and one half of common matter. Tail Pieces. — Ornaments placed in a short page to fill up the vacancy. Take Ink. — To dab the roller against the ink ductor for a fresh supply. Take down, — To remove printed sheets from the lines with a peal when dry. R 130 DicrroNAUY of terms Take up. — To lift a quantity of matter either from a galley, or the imposing stone ; or to lift a number of lines for distribution. Take copy. — To receive copy from the foreman to compose. Taylor and Martineaii^s Pro's. — An iron press on the knee joint principle. The power is regulated by a screw through the head. Thermography. — Printing by heat. An invention for taking im- pressions, or facsimiles, showing the grain and general appearance of different kinds of wood. The process consists in slightly wetting the surface of the wood of which facsimiles are to be made, with any diluted acid or alkali, and then taking an impression upon paper. The impression is quite invisible, but by exposing it for a few moments to a strong heat, the impression appears in a more or less deep tone, according to the strength of the alkali. Thick space. — A space, three of which are equal to an em, or the depth of the body of the letter to which they belong. Thin space. — A space of which five are equal to an em, or to the depth of the body of the letter to which they belong. Thii-ty-sLv mo. — A sheet of paper folded into thirty-six leaves, or seventy-two pages. Thirty-tivo mo. — A sheet of paper folded into thirty-two leaves, or sixty-four pages. Tightening the Quoins. — It is necessary now and then to examine any standing forms, as the quoins and side sticks are apt to shrink, and become loose, when the form will be in danger of falling out. If loose, they should be tapped up and tightened with a sheep's foot, or iron side stick. Token. — A half ream of perfect paper, containing ten quires eigh- teen sheets, or 258 sheets. Trafalgar. — The name of a type, the next size larger than Two-line Double Pica, and smaller than Canon. There are twenty lines to a foot. Transpose.— 1o place pages or matter in their wrong order ; also, to correct the wrong arrangement, and put pages, words, or lines in their proper place. Turn for it. — When matter runs upon particular sorts, such as; Capitals or Figures, it is usual if any run out before the rest of the case, to turn another letter of the same thickness up-side-down in its. place until the necessary sorts are procured by distribution. This is called turning. USED IN PRINTING. 131 Twenty-four mo. — A sheet of paper folded into twenty-four leavea, or forty-eight pages. Twenty-mo. — A sheet of paper folded into twenty leaves, or forty pages. Two-line Double Pica. — A type, the next size larger than two-line Great Primer, and smaller than Trafalgar. There are SOf lines to the foot. Ttvo-line English, — A type one size larger than two-line Pica, and smaller than two-line Great Primer. There are 32 lines to the foot. Two-line Great Primer. — A type, one size larger than two-line English, and smaller than two-line Double Pica. There are 25| lines to the foot. Two-line Letters. — Capitals that are equal to two bodies of any specific sized type. They are made from two-line Diamond to two- line Great Primer, and are so cast that the face covers the whole square of the shank. They are known as titling letters. Two-line Pica. — A type, one size larger than Double Pica, and smaller than two-line English. There are 36 lines to the foot. Tympan. — A frame covered with linen, cloth, silk, or parchment, on w^hich the sheet of paper to be printed is placed. This is the outer tympan ; the inner fits into it, and between, the tw^o blankets and making-ready sheets are placed, all which being run in receive the pressure of the platten, which produces the impression on the paper. Tympan joints. — The joints by which the outer tympan is attached to the carriage on w^hicli it works. Tympan sheet. — A sheet of paper pasted on the tympan by the corners as a mark by which to lay the sheets even in working. When a form is laid on the press, a sheet of the paper used for printing it, or of a similar size, is folded exactly into four. It is then laid on tlie form, with a sheet of waste under it, so that the marks of the folds fall exactly in the centres of the crosses. The tympan is wetted slightly", to take out the indentions caused by the preceding form, and is then turned down on the form, which is run in and pulled, so as to cause the sheet to adhere to the wet tympan. When lifted the corners are pasted down, with the exception of the bottom near corner; which is torn off, as it is likely to be taken hold of in removing the printed sheets when working. Types. — The letters, marks and signs, cast in metal, or cut in wood with which Printing is executed. 132 DICTIONARY OF TERMS The types used for ordinary purposes are called Roman and Italic- all others are " fancy" founts. Roman letter has long been held in the highest estimation, and is the national character wherever English is spoken, and also in France, Holland, Spain, Portugal, and Italy. Italic was invented by Aldus Manutius, in 1496, and Avas originally used to distinguish! such parts of a book as might not be considered strictly to belong to the body of the work ; as Prefaces, Introductions, Annotations, (tc, all which sub-parts of a work were formerly printed in this character. It is generally used for headings to chapters, to mark emphatical sentences, or to distinguish names of^persons. Tu'O-line letters are used for displaying heads or titles. Scripts of various kinds are frequently used in lie\i of lithography, for circulars, letters, &c. Black Letter, Egyptian, Clarendon, and other fancy types, are only used for headings, or for Job Work, such as cards or hand-bills. The names of a great variety of types will be found in their places in the course of this book. Type-founder. — A person who foimds, or casts type. As shoMTi under the head "Printing," when letter press printing was first introduced, the types were cut from small pieces of wood, and after a short time, from pieces of metal. But another step was required to perfect the invention — the multiplication of separate let- ters by casting metal in moulds. Ail these gradations were the result of long and patient experiment, carried on by several individuals, who each saw the importance of the notion they were endeavouring to work out. It is this circumstance which has given rise to the interminable controversies as to the inventors of printing ; and, as is usual in all such disputes, it was represented that the man to whom public opinion had assigned the credit of the invention had stolen it from another. As far as can now be ascertained, a man named Peter Schoeffer, who was employed by Faust about the year 1455, was the first person who cast metal types. He shared his master's love for the art, and desired equally with him to improve it, and spent much of his time in endeavouring to simplify the method of making types. It should be remembered that the metal types previ- ously in use were cut, not cast ; they were carved on solid pieces, not shaped in a mould with melted metal. But Schoeifer now formed them with the punch and matrix, tools which will be presently described. USED IN rniNTIKCr. 133 Scho-'fFer having privately made punches and formed matrices for the whole alphabet, cast some letters, and showed them to his master in triumph. Faust was so greatly surprised and delighted by the diligence and ability of his servant, that he took him into partner- ship, and finally gave him his daughter Catherine in marriage. A great thing had in truth been accomplished. Casting not only ren- dered the manufacture of types more easy and less expensive, but increased the beauty of printing ; for though the metal types cut by hand greatly resembled each other, still there was some difference, and this gave an irregular appearance to the printing ; but those cast by the matrix were alike, exact images of each other, and were therefore the more beautiful. At first, the metal used was not hard enough to bear the force of the impression, but the defect was soon remedied. The history of type-founding may be summed up as follows : The ,Chinese used block-printing 900 or more years ago ; Laurence Coster, of Haarlem, invented moveable wooden types ; Guttenburg, of Mentz, invented cut metal types ; Schoeffer invented cast metal types. After this, the knowledge soon spread. The English printers, from Caxton to John Day, were all letter founders, but the trades, after this, began to be separated. Joseph Moxon, an early writer upon printing, says that in 1686 letter cutting was a handy-work, kept so concealed amongst the artificers of it, that he could not learn any one had taught it any other. In the reign of Queen Anne a great deal of type was imported from Holland, as the Dutch founders produced far more beautiful characters than the English. About the year 1700, William Caslon, who was employed in cutting letters and ornaments used by bookbinders, and in en- graving on gun-barrels, was persuaded by Mr. Watts, an eminent printer, to attempt cutting punches for type-founding. He was first employed by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, to cut the punches for a fount of Arabic, and succeeded so well, that he entered into the business of a letter-founder, in which undertaking he was assisted by Bowyer, a printer at that time. In a few years the English types were superior to any in Europe, and the demand for foreign founts had ceased. Caslon's letter became in demand on the continent, and instead of im.porting type from Holland, it was exported to that country in large quantities. Since that time English type-founding has steadily progressed. The early printers and type founders were very imperfectly ac- quainted with the proper composition of metal to be used. Lead, a s being the most flexible, was principally employed; but then it was too soft for durability, and a portion of iron was consequently added- 134 DICTIONARY OF TERMS Regulus of antimony is now used instead of iron. The smallest sized types require the hardest metal, and the ordinary alloy for these is 25 parts regulus of antimony to 75 parts lead; the proportions vary to the larger sizes. Types are cast in a matrix, which is formed by a punch. The punch is of hardened steel, and exhibits upon its face a single letter, formed by hammering down the hollows, and filing up the edges, when the metal was in a softened state. With this tool an im- pression is struck into a piece of copper, about an inch and a quarter long, one eighth of an inch deep, and wide in proportion to the size of the type to be cast. This is the matrix, which, after the die is sunk, is filled up, to ensure the cast taken from it being of the requisite depth. This process is called justifying. The mould is composed of two parts, the external surface of wood, the internal of steel. At the top is a shelving orifice, into which the metal is poured. The space within is formed by the intimate union of the two parts of the mould, each part forming two of the four sides of the letter ; but although in two pieces, the space within is as true as though it had been hollowed out of a single piece of steel. At the bottom of the mould, immediately under the orifice, is the matrix, which is held in its place by a metal spring. The founder works at a little table, by the side of a small furnace. Taking a little metal out of the pot with a very small ladle, he pours it into the mould with his right hand, returns the ladle to the melt- ing pot, and throws iip his left hand, which holds the mould, above his head, with a sudden jerk, supporting it with his right hand. This movement forces the metal into all the interstices of the matrix, and without it the metal, especially in the smaller types, would not reach the bottom of the mould, for it could not force out the air by its specific gravity alone. As soon as brought down again the mould is unclosed, and the letter picked out with an hook attached to the top of one half of the mould. So rapid is the whole operation of pouring in the metal, throwing up the mould, unclosing it and removing the pressure of the spring, picking out the cast letter, closing the mould again, and re-applying the spring to be ready to repeat the whole act, that the average number of letters cast in an hour is 500. When the type is turned out of the mould, a considerable piece of metal remains attached to it. This is removed by a boy who is known as the " breaking-off boy." The average number of letters broken off in an hour is 2,000. USED IN PRINTING. 135 From the breaking-off boy the types are removed to the " rubber." This workman sits with a round grit-stone table before him, upon which is a heap of types. The fore and middle fingers of^his right hand are armed with a piece of tarred leather, and with them he passes each side of the type smartly over the stone,^turning it, of course, in the movement. This is again, an example of wonderful rapidity ; 2,000 types are thus rubbed in an hour. From the rubber the heap is conveyed^to a boy whose business it is to set up the types in lines, in a long shallow frame. The face of each must be uppermost, and the nicks outward. This boy works at about the same rate as the rubber. The long frame, filled with a single line of type, is now taken to the "dresser." By the application of other frames he is enabled to dress, or polish them on each edge, and, turning them with the face downwards, to channel out, with a plane, a groove in the bottom, so that they will stand steadily. It will be at once understood how important it is that every letter should be perfectly square and true. If they were not of a uniform height, the impression could not be even ; and if there were the least deviation from a regular form, it would be quite impossible that when 200,000 single letters are com- bined, as on one side of a large newspaper, they should hold together as they do, quoined up, as securely as if they were composed of one piece of metal. Each letter being tied up into lines of a convenient length, the proportionate number of each variety, small letters, points, capitals, and figures are selected, and the fount is ready for delivery to the printer. Hand-made type is considered the best, but type is now made by machinery, at the rate of thousands instead of hundreds an hour. The machinery is, however, so complicated, that it is impossi- ble to describe it with any chance of being understood. These machines are not altogether new in conception, although they have only been used for the last few years. Mr. Nicholson took out a patent for one in 1790, and Dr. Church, of Birmingham, obtained a patent in 1825 for a plan of casting 75,000 letters an hour. Mr. J. L. Pouchee succeeded in casting 24,000 letters an hour ; and a machine was made by Mr. Applegath, and worked in the foundry at his office, in the year 1824. Machine-made type is more generally used in America than England, in the latter country accuracy and beauty being more highly esteemed by the tasteful printer than cheapness. Machine-made, is not so lasting as hand-made type, the latter being generally hollow, and easily broken. 136 DICTIONARY OF TERMS USED IN PRINTING. u. Ultimate. — The last syllable of a word. Underlays. — Pieces of paper, pasted on the bottom of an engraving on wood, to raise it to a proper height to print with types. Also pieces of paper placed under stereotype plates, to make the impres- sion even. Unlock the Form. — To loosen the quoins all round. w. Wash the Form. — To rub a form over with lye, and rinse it with water, after striking a proof, or when worked off. Waste. — The surplus sheets of a work. Wetting ^a;/?^/'. —Preparing paper to be printed on. To wet paper, the wetter, or damper, places the dry paper on his left hand, with the backs of the quires towards him, so that he can readily catch them up. On his right is a board, which should be covered with a wrapper, to prevent the bottom sheet being stained. The back of the quire is now taken in the right hand, the fore-edge in the left, and the paper is drawn quickly through the water, back first. About half of the quire is then opened on to the board, and the other half is again dipped, and opened on the first, and so on to the end of the heap. When all is damped, a board is placed on the heap of wet paper, with weights on the top, to squeeze out the superfluous moisture. This is left to stand till the sheets are uniformly damp throughout, and is then ready for the pressman. Wheel. — The drum or cylinder to which the two girths of the press are affixed, and by which the table is run in and out. White line. — A line of quadrats, or blank space, equal in depth to a line, between two other lines. White page. — A blank page. White paper. — When pressmen are printing the first side of a form, they say they are working white paper. Wide spacing. — Using en quadrats, or more, between the words throughout a line or page. Wood letter. — Large type for posting bills, &c. is usually cut in wood, to save weight and expense. Worked off.— ^txyxok off, printed. \^^ 14 DAY USE RETURN TO DESK FROM WHICH BORROWED LIBRARY >HiiK^ This book is due on the last date stamped below, or on the date to which renewed. Renewed books are subjert to immediate recall. NOV 2 5 1963 LD 21-50m-4,'63 (D6471sl0)476 General Library University of California Berkeley U.C. B RK EL Y LIBRARIES CDE7Mbbt,3M