f 1H <^^..^y>?,/o 'cTumrinjnjirmjimijriiuu utninlirtrli University of California • Berkeley 1 M"'.> C7^^9 ^^A* r-*^ ^ ri- ••\ft»%*««*«rl ^ . ««%^ \ % v» V % « * « t^ *^ ^ > «r A,> Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2007 with funding from IVIicrosoft Corporation http://www.archive.org/details/fiveblackartspopOOcoggrich FIVE BLACK ARTS, A POPULAR ACCOUNT OP THE f istorg, f rormes of ^anufactun, mis '^m OP PHINTINQ, OAS-LIGHT, POTTEBY, GLASS, IRON. WITH NUMEROUS ILLUSTRATIONS. CONDENSED FROM THE ENCYGLOP J^IDIA BRITANNICA, COLUMBUS: FOLLETT, FOSTER AND COMPANY. 1861. PREFACE. The ENCYCLOPiEDiA Britannica* is standard author- ity on Science, and on Arts and Manufactures. It is an expensive work, and its circulation in America is confined to Libraries in prominent cities. It was, therefore, deemed advisable, by the Publishers of this Book, to put in form convenient for the humblest private Library, the information it furnishes on some of the Arts in which everybody is interested. Printing, Pottery and Porcelain, Gas-Light, Glass, and Iron were selected by the Editor, because in their uses they are familiar to all the people, but in their history, and in the process of their manufacture, are mysteries to a large majority. The articles, herewith published, are agreeable in style ; they have been condensed only in parts pertaining especially to English processes of man- * The Encyclopaedia Britannica, or Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, and General Literature. Eighth Edition, with extensive improvements and additions, and numerous engravings. Adam and Charles Black, Edin- burgh, Scotland. Little, Brown & Co., Boston, Massachusetts. 22 vols, quarto. 186L iv Pkeface. ufacture ; and the Editor is confident that they will prove both instructive and interesting to all who have not made the Arts represented a particular study, and will be serviceable to many who practi- cally pursue those Arts. W. T. C. Columbus, Ohio, January, 1861. CONTENTS HISTORY AND PROCESS OF PRINTING. ^*^^ History 4 Practical Printing 75 Stereotyping 96 polytypage 106 Printing for the Blind Ill Other Processes 114 Nature Printing 115 Printing in Colors 118 Bank-Note Printino 124 Printing Machines 126 POTTERY AND PORCELAIN. Historical Sketch 140 The Materials 166 The Manufacture 171 Ornamentation 179 GLASS: ITS HISTORY AND MANUFACTURE. History 189 Crown Glass 202 Sheet 210 Plate 214 Stained or Painted 219 Glazing of Windows 228 The Cutting Diamond 231 Flint Glass or Crystal 234 Bottle 241 vi Contents. HISTORY AND PROCESSES OF MAKING GAS-LIGHT. History 247 Arrangement op Apparatus 253 Retorts for Coal 255 Condensing, Main and Dip Pipes 264 Tar Apparatus 268 Apparatus for separating 266 Gasometer 271 Main and Service Pipes 275 Governor or Regulator 278 Gas Meter 280 Burners , 284 Oil, Water, and Resin Gas 294 Determining Illuminating Power 296 Hints for Improving Coal Gas 303 Deterioration op '•' " 308 Economy op " " 309 Secondary Products 311 IRON : HISTORY OF ITS MANUFACTURE, WITH AN AC- COUNT OF ITS PROPERTIES AND USES. History op Iron Manufacture 317 The Ores 323 The Fuel 331 Manufacture 336 Conversion of Crude Iron into Malleable 349 Machinery op Manufacture 363 The Forge 370 Strength and other Properties of Cast-Iron 374 Malleable 381 Statistics of the Iron Trade 391 Contents. vu ILLUSTBATIONS Index to Descriptive Pages. PRINTING. Fig. 1 65 2 66 3,4 68 5 69 6, 7 79 GLASS. Fig. 1 208 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 209 7,8 2X0 GAS-LIGHT. Fig. 1 278 2, 3 280 4,5 282 6 284 7, 8, 9, 10 287 11 292 12 296 13 298 IRON. Fig. 1 336 2,3 337 4 343 5 363 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 364 13 365 14, 15, 16, 17 368 18,19 370 HISTORY AND PROCESS OF PRINTING BY THOMAS C. HANSARD. LETTER-PRESS PRINTING. Printing is the art of taking one or more impressions from the same surface, whereby characters and signs, cast, engraven, drawn, or otherwise represented thereon, are caused to present their reverse images upon paper, vellum, parchment, linen, and other substances, in pigments of va- rious hues, or by means of chemical combinations, of which the components are contained on or within the surface from which the impression is taken, or in the fabric of the thing impressed, or in both. The most important branch of printing is what is called letter-press printing, or the method of taking impressions from letters and other characters cast in relief upon separate pieces of metal, and therefore capable of indefinite combi- nation. The impressions are taken either by superficial or surface pressure, as in the common printing-press, or by lineal or cylindrical pressure, as in the printing machine and roller-press. The pigments or inks, of whatever color, are always upon the surface of the types ; and the sub- stances which may be impressed are various. Wood-cuts and other engravings in relief are also printed in this manner. Copperplate printing is the reverse of the above, the char- acters being engraven in intaglio, and the pigments or inks contained within the lines of the engravings, and not upon the surface of the plate. The impressions are always taken by lineal or cylindrical pressure ; the substances to be im- pressed, however, are more limited. All engravings in in- taglio, on whatever material, are printed by this method. Lithographic printing is from the surface of certain porous stones, upon which characters are drawn with peculiar pen- cils. The surface of the stone being wetted, tha chemical 4 Five Black Arts. coloring compound adheres to the drawing, and refuses the stone. The impression is taken bj a scraper that rubs vio- lently upon the back of the substances impressed, which are fewer still in number. Drawings upon zinc and other mate- rials are printed by this process. Cotton and calico printing is from surfaces engraven either in relief or intaglio. The chemical compounds are either on or within the characters, as pigments or chemical colors, or in the fabric to be printed, but mostly in both ; the combination of chemical substances producing color when the fabric and the engraving are brought into contact. The im- pression is either superficial or lineal, but mostly lineal. HISTORY. The origin and history of an art which has exercised such an influence on civilization, and contributed in so essential a manner to the cultivation of the human intellect, have naturally become a matter of inquiry amongst the learned, and have almost as naturally been the source of earnest con- troversy; for there are few effects of human invention or industry that have been originated and brought to perfection at a particular epoch, without any previous train of thought or circumstance, so that the precise day or year could be noted in which the perfect Minerva started forth in full ma- turity. On the contrary, it is difficult to say at what period of time the germ of the art of printing did not exist. So obvious is the reproduction of similar appearances from an impression of the same surface, that the most early of man- kind must have noted it ; and even the impression of a foot or a hand must have suggested a simple and intelligible mode of conveying an idea, before the invention of any kind of writing. Accordingly, these and similar signs are found to compose the chief characters of the earliest writing. Observing this general law of the gradual perfectibility of human arts, we must look back to the most remote ages for the first steps of that of printing. We shall accordingly find certain evidence, that more than two thousand years before our era, a method of multiplying impressions, rude and imperfect in the extreme, was certainly practiced. The earliest practice which can with propriety be called printing was probably that of impressing seals upon a plastic Printing — History. 5 material, the purpose being confined to the single effect of each single impression. The next step of which the dili- gence of inquirers has taken note, and which is a step thus much further in advance that its object was the multiplica- tion of impressions for the purpose of diffusing information — the practice, namely, of impressing symbols or characters upon clay and other materials used in forming bricks, cylin- ders, and the walls of edifices — was an art confined, so far as our knowledge extends, to the ancient centers of civiliza- tion in Egypt and Asia. Some examples of this art found their way many years ago into the great public museums and chief private collections of Europe, where they were objects of curiosity and wonder. In the present day, the researches of Sir Gardner Wilkinson and others into the antiquities of Egypt, and of Sir Henry Rawlinson and Mr. Layard into the ruins of the buried cities of Asia, have pro- duced a vast quantity of materials illustrative of the subject. The relative antiquity of the Egyptian and Asiatic remains belong to another inquiry. Among the Egyptian remains are numerous bricks of clay stamped with the nome7i and agnomen of the king inclosed within a cartouche. The mode by which the impressions were made is manifest. The prints are very irregularly placed, without any reference to paral- lelism with the sides, and are always more or less awry, according to the manual skill and care of the workman : the surface of the bricks around the depression is forced up con- siderably, which is exactly the effect of pressing the hand or any substance into a plastic material ; and the edges, both of the general depressions and of the figures, present the effect of the stamps having been drawn up whilst the clay was yet damp and adherent to it. It is therefore evident that the inscriptions were stamped in after the clay had been turned out of the mould, and were not produced by any part of it. To make the evidence complete, there have been found many stamps of wood, having on the face cartouches and inscrip- tions precisely resembling in kind those which must have been used for stamping the bricks. On some of these stamps and impressions there are slight traces of color. There have also been found in Egypt numerous figures of baked clay and porcelain on which hieroglyphic characters have appa- rently been impressed singly, side by side, by stamps ; and 6 Five Black Arts. on the walls of their ruder huildings hieroglyphic and picto- rial figures of considerable size have been produced by the same means and afterward colored. Of articles of domestic use are certain instruments called tesserce, having incised characters, the use of which has certainly been to stamp plastic materials ; and there have also been found leather belts and ornaments on which figures have been impressed singly by tools. The ruins of the cities of Asia supply us with numerous examples similar to those of Egypt, but carrying the art farther. The ruins contain countless bricks, on which are impressed inscriptions similar to those of Egypt, but much more elaborate. Mr. Layard says, that the characters on the Assyrian bricks were made separately : some letters may have been impressed singly with a stamp, but from the care- less and irregular way in which they are formed and grouped together, it is more probable that they were all cut by an instrument and by hand ; but that the inscriptions on the Babylonian bricks are generally inclosed in a small square, and are formed with considerable care and nicety ; they ap- pear to have been impressed with a stamp, on which the entire inscription, and not isolated letters, was cut in relief. From this circumstance, Mr. Layard ascribes greater an- tiquity to the Assyrian remains. Mr. Layard's researches have further made evident that the ancient inhabitants of these cities practiced a more ad- vanced and elegant usage of imprinting in their domestic and ornamental arts. He has discovered great quantities of tiles and tablets covered with incised or incussed characters, on which was impressed, while the clay was yet wet, a line of characters or symbols — apparently an authorization or verification — produced by the rolling of engraved cylinders ; and other tiles, of which he says, " The most common mode of keeping records in Assyria and Babylon was on prepared bricks, tiles, or cylinders of clay, baked after the inscription was impressed ;^^ — this impression must not be mistaken for the application of a stamp ; it is effected by the use of an instrument in the hand, by which various combinations of the same form were indented into the moist clay, and therefore partakes more of the character of impressed writing: in many of the specimens thus impressed, the writing (or text) Printing — History. 7 does not cover the entire tile or tablet, and the blank is iSlled up by repeated impressions of the same seal ; and in some cases the entire text has been surrounded by an impression from a cylinder rolled round, forming an endless scroll, by which any addition to the text is rendered impossible. Great numbers of cylinders have been found. They are elaborately engraven on various stones ; some are perfect cylinders, some barrel-shaped, others slightly curved inward. Others again are af baked clay, on which the characters have been iV cussed while the clay was yet moist. Many of them are perforated longitudinally, and revolve on a metal axis. In describing an engraved cylinder of great beauty found in the mounds opposite Mosul, Mr. Layard says, that on each eide there were sixty lines written in such minute characters, that the aid of a magnifying glass was required to ascertain their forms. The habitual use of these elaborate articles is unknown, — by some they are supposed to be charms, — by others, records of family or personal transactions. The smaller examples were used to impress plastic materials as signets ; but it is clear, from the shapes of the greater num- ber, and from the circumstance that the characters they bear are invariably engraven or impressed in the order in which they are to be read, and not reversed, that they were not in- tended to multiply impressions on soft surfaces by way of diffusing information. That a similar art was known to the inhabitants of the old world generally, may safely be assumed. It is therefore not a little remarkable that peoples so original and ingenious as tlie Greeks, and so imitative as the Romans, should have left almost no vestige of their having practiced any such means as this to multiply their beautiful creations of fancy, or to embellish the tasteful appliances of domestic life ; especially when we consider the easy application of the art to pottery, and the beauty, taste, and ingenuity which they exhibited in that manufacture. For, excepting a few paltry designs en ereux on some of the coarser specimens, and a few marks upon the Roman military vessels, evidently stamped, there is no appearance of either people having had any idea of this kind. They had, however, numerous instruments presenting a singular instance how very nearly we may approach to an important discovery, and yet pass on unheeding. These are 8 Five Black Arts. stamps of various sizes, having on their faces inscriptions in raised characters reversed. The material is brass or bronze. The letters of the inscriptions are considerably raised, and the face of them is rough and rounded, as though they were rudely cast in a mould. To the back of most a handle has been fastened ; some have a loop to allow the fingers to pass through ; some a boss to rest in the palm of the hand ; some a ring. One use of these stamps has probably been to press the inscription into a soft material ; but the more common application, especially of the smaller specimens, has evidently been to print the inscription on surfaces by the aid of color. It has been suggested that their purpose was to imprint the coverings of bales of goods with the marks of their owners. Among relics of this kind is the signet of C. Caecilius Her- mias.* The face of this is two inches by four-fifths of an inch, and the inscription (reversed) CICAECILI HERMIAE. SN. with a border, is in relief, the surrounding parts being cut away to a considerable depth. It should be especially noticed, that the surface of the background is very rough ; and there is a ring at the back by which it could be handled or suspended. These circumstances render the use of it very clear. It would be very much easier to incise the re- quired inscription, and to let the field stand (indeed the art of engraving en creux was well known and used), than to cut away the field and leave the letters in relief ; and it would produce a much more beautiful efiect if it were used to im- press any soft substance ; whereas, cut as it is, the impres- sion sunk into wax or clay would not only be ugly, but illegible, and the rough surface of the background would present the most ungainly appearance upon the prominent parts of the wax, being the parts most presented to the eye. Its use therefore is evident. The relieved inscrip- * In the British Museum. Printing — History. 9 tion, and no other part, being covered with ink or pigment, was impressed upon an even surface (papyrus, linen, parch- ment), and consequently left a perfect but reversed im- print of itself. This is the precise effect of printing with types. From the Greek agnomen^ Csecilius probably lived under the emperors, when literature had become one of the pursuits of the great, and when the difficulties and expense of procuring books by the slow process of copying were bitterly felt. It is singular, therefore, that the Romans should have overlooked so obvious an improvement upon their own signets as the engraving whole sentences and composi- tions upon blocks, and thence transferring them to paper — even if they had gone no farther than this.* From this time a vast period elapses before any circum- stance can safely be instanced as showing that the practice of transferring characters was known to any, even compara- * The Chinese printing is not unlike this, and must by no moans be sup- posed to have much similarity to the modern art. They assert that it was used by them several centuries before it was known in Europe ; in fact, fifty years before the Christian era. They certainly may have used their method centuries before our art, for it ditt'ers in nothing but extent from that of the old Roman. The following is a description of their method at the present day, and it is probably the same in every respect as that in practice two thousand years ago in an empire where nothing is changed. As their written language consists of from eighty to one hundred thou- sand characters, it would be utterly impracticable to use movable types, and the use of block-printing would be the most easy and rapid. The sen- tences, therefore, desired to be multiplied, being drawn upon their thin paper, this is made to adhere with the face downward to a block of soft wood, so that the characters appear, though reversed. The plain wood ig then cut away with most wonderful rapidity, and the drawing left in relief. Both sides of the block are similarly operated upon. The engraved wood is then properly arranged upon a frame, and the artist, with a large brush, covers the whole surface, the field as well as the relief, with a very thin ink ; he then lays very lightly over it a sheet of paper, and passes a large soft brush over it, so slightly, yet so surely, that the paper is pressed upon the raised figures, and upon no other part. The rapidity with which this is performed is extraordinary ; for Du Halde asserts that one man can print 10,000 sheets in one day, a number which would appear incredible, did not very good testimony exist at the present time that one man can print 700 sheets per hour. The method of putting the thin sheets together when printed is as different from ours as their printing and mode of read- ing. The sheets are printed on one side only ; but instead of the blanks being pasted together to form one leaf, the sheet is so folded that no single edge of paper is presented to the reader, but only the double folded edge, the loose edges being all at the back of the book. The late emperor had punches or matrices cut, from which copper types were cast ; but the num- ber of characters required — about 60,000 — is so great, that composition ie almost impracticable. 10 Five Black Arts. lively civilized people. From the rough and imperfect at- tempts above indicated an early and obvious advance was engraving pictures upon wooden blocks. The first practice of this is involved in obscurity ; but most writers on the fine arts agree that the art was invented toward the end of the thirteenth century, by a brother and sister of the illustrious family of Cunio, lords of Imola, in Italy. By some the whole narrative is considered as apocryphal, but it is never- theless generally admitted. The engravings were discovered by a Frenchman of the name of Papillon, in the possession of a Swiss gentleman, M. de Groeder, who deciphered for him the manuscript annotations found on the leaves of the book in which they were bound. These purported that the book had been given to Jan. Jacq. Turine, a native of Berne, by the Count of Cunio, with whose family he, Turine, appears to have been intimately acquainted. Then follows a roman- tic history of the twins, and the cause of their invention. The book is entitled: " The Heroic Actions, represented in figures, of the great and magnanimous Macedonian king, the bold and vahant Alexander; dedicated, presented, and hum- bly offered to the most Holy Father Pope Honorius IV., the glory and support of the Church, and to our illustrious and generous father and mother, by us Alessandro Alberico Cunio, cavaliere, and Isabella Cunio, twin brother and sis- ter ; first reduced, imagined, and attempted to be executed in relief, with a small knife, on blocks of wood, made even and polished by this learned and dear sister ; continued and finished by us together, at Ravenna, from the eight pic- tures of our invention, painted six times larger than here represented ; engraved, explained by verses, and thus mark- ed upon the paper, to perpetuate the number of them, and to enable us to present them to our relations and friends, in testimony of gratitude, friendship, and affection. All this was done and finished by us when only sixteen years of age." This title is here given in full length, because, if genuine, it presents us at once with the origin, execution, and design of these first attempts at block-printing. The book consists of nine engravings, including the title ; the figures are toler- ably well designed, and the draperies graceful, with here and there attempts at cross-hatching ; under the principal person- ages are their names ; above, are inscriptions indicating the Printing — History. 11 subject, and below, four lines of poetical Latin explanatory of it ; and in some parts of each print is an inscription indi- cating the share the twins respectively had in the execution. The color of the pigment is gray. The first subject is Alexander on Bucephalus. Upon a stone, Isabel. Cunio pinx, et scalp. The second subject, the passage of the Granicus. Alex. Alb. Cunio Equ. pinx. Isabel. Cunio scalp. The third subject, Alexander cutting the Gordian Knot. Alex. Albe. Cunio Equ. pinx. et scalp. The fourth subject, Alexander in the tent of Darius. Isabel. Cunio pinx. et scalp. The fifth, Alexander giving Campaspe to Apelles. Alex. Alb. Cunio Eques. pinx. et scalp. The sixth, the Battle of Arbela. Alex. Alb. Equ. et Isabel. Cunio pictor. et scalp. The seventh, Porus brought to Alexander. Isabel. Cunio pinx. et scalp. The eighth, the Triumph of Alexander upon his Entry into Babylon. Alex. Alb. Equ. et Isabel. Cunio pictor. et scalp.* From the dedication of this book to Pope Honorius IV., it is deduced that these engravings must have been executed between 1284 and 1285, inasmuch as this pope only enjoyed the pontificate two years ; and it is suggested that a copy of it might be found in the library of the Vatican. The narra- tive appears to be confirmed by many incidental circum- stances, which could not be the invention either of Papillon or his informer. The name of Alberico seems to have been a favorite with the family of Cunio, and a Count of that name actually figures in history in the very years of the presumed invention ; a relative of the twins, of course, not the male artist himself. The interval between the time of the twin Cunio and the next mention of any similar usage is very perplexing ; but upon examination it will appear that that long period was not altogether a blank in the art. The next earliest evidence * It is not unlikely that the twins may have been directed in the choice of their subject by the identity of the name of the great conqueror with that of the brother ^ at least such coincidences are not without parallel in the history of literature. 12 Five Black Akts. is a document of the government of Venice, discovered amongst the archives of the Company of Printers in that city. It bears the date of 1441, and as it throws some de- gree of light upon the controversy relative to the invention of printing, it is here given from OtiX^y^ History of En- graving. "mcccxli. October the 11th. Whereas the art and mystery of making cards and printed figures, which is used at Venice, has fallen into total decay ; and this in conse- quence of the great quantity of playing-cards, and colored figures printed, which are made out of Venice ; to which evil it is necessary to apply some remedy ; in order that the said artists, who are a great many in family, may find encourage- ment rather than foreigners. Let it be ordered and estab- lished, according to that which the said masters have suppli- cated, that from this time in future, no work of the said art that is printed or painted on cloth or on paper, that is to say, altar-pieces (or images), and playing-cards, and whatever other work of the said art is done with a brush or printed, shall be allowed to be brought or imported into this city, un- der the pain of forfeiting the works so imported, and xxx livres and xii soldi, of which fine one-third shall go to the state, one-third to the Signori Giustizieri Vecchi, to whom the affair is committed, and one-third to the accuser. With this condition, however, that the artists who make the said works in this city may not expose the said works to sale in any other place but their own shops, under the pain aforesaid, except on the day of Wednesday at St. Paolo, and on Satur- day at St. Marco, under the pain aforesaid.'' From this it seems manifest that the art of printing from wood-blocks was not lost, but, on the contrary, had been so long practiced as to become an extensive and profitable busi- ness in Venice, and had spread over the Continent to such a degree as to destroy the trade of the Venetian artists. The establishment of an important manufacture, and its decay, necessarily infer a long period. From the constant conjunc- tion of the two arts of painting and printing in this docu- ment, we may infer (what the existence of prints and cards of later date prove) the method in which these figures and cards were manufactured, namely, that the outline was first printed, and that the colors and shading were filled in by the Printing — History. 13 painter and illuminator. The history of playing-cards now becomes of some importance to the narrative. When cards first came into use is uncertain ; but mention is made of them in the year 1254, when they were interdicted by St. Louis on his return from the Crusade : they were also forbidden by the Council of Cologne in 1281. In 1299 they are express- ly mentioned under the name carte; and in Das Gulden Spiegel, printed by Gunther Zainer in the year 1472, it is said that cards first came into Germany in 1300. An old French poet, who wrote " En Tan mil iij cent xxviij," has the line, " Jouent aux dex, aux cartes, aux tables.'' There is no evidence earlier than the Venetian decree to connect the art of printing from wood-blocks with the art of making cards ; but as it is evident from that document that such connection did exist, it is a fair presumption that it originated not very long after the introduction of the game ; and as the sum paid by Charles VI. for " troix jeux de cartes " was so small as fifty-six Parisian sols, it has been conjectured that they must have been illuminated prints. The Venetian decree against the importation of painted and printed figures from abroad now brings us to the country from which the chief export was made. It appears, therefore, that in the Low Countries the manufacture was carried on to a great extent ; and we shall also find that in Holland and Germany, and probably over most of Europe, religion had called this art to her aid ; that whilst the noble and wealthy recreated the mind and delighted the eye with the exquisite productions of the scribe and illu- minator, the more humble were equally gratified with rude and simple illustrations of interesting portions of Scripture, or pictures of favorite saints. It is probable that the poorer classes hung up these drawings in their dwellings, where they excited as true and heart-felt devotion as the masterpieces of the painter's art in the oratories of the great. There is no evidence how early the art was practiced, nor whether the outlining the figures of saints and sacred subjects preceded the printing of cards, or was suggested by the latter ; but it is certain that at the end of the fourteenth and the commence- ment of the fifteenth century the practice was very common. The impressions were taken by means of a burnisher, the gloss caused by the friction being distinctly visible on the backs both of cards and prints preserved to this time. As 14 Five Black Arts. facility in practice increased, a distich or quotation illustra- tive of the print became a natural improvement ; and to this was frequently added a coat of arms, the name of the saint, or the title of the subject, all in the field, or over the head of the figure ; and, lastly, sometimes a date. The earliest print of -which the date is given -within the print itself,* is a -wood- cut of St. Christopher carrying the infant Jesus across the sea. It is of folio size, and colored in the manner of our playing-cards. At the bottom is the inscription — or ri0tof0ri facUm t)ie quacunquc Uuv'xs ittUlcfimo cctc^ Jlla ncmpc Me mortc mola non moricrU. rr^ tern0. It was found in the Monastery of Buxheim, near Meiningen, and is now in the possession of Earl Spencer. The next advance was obvious. Instead of a single block, a series of blocks were employed, with additional literary illustrations ; and thus were the first printed books formed. The earliest and most memorable of these are the Historia Sancti Johannis Uvangelistce, the Ars Memorandi, the Ars Moriendi, the Bihlia Pawperum, the Historia Virginis Marice, and the Speculum Humance Salvationis. The most important of these works is the Historice Veteris et JVbvi Testamenti seu Bihlia Pauperum — truly the Poor Man's Bible. It consists of forty leaves printed upon one side of the paper only, by friction, from as many blocks ; the color is brown ; the prints are placed opposite to each other, and the blank backs are pasted together into one strong leaf. The cuts are about 10 inches in height, and 7J in width. Each print contains three sacred subjects in compartments, and four half-length figures of prophets in smaller divisions, two above * There is said to be a print at Lyons with the date 1384, but its existence is doubtful. There has lately been discovered a print with the date of 1418, but its authenticity is yet under discussion. It was found by an in- habitant of Malines, who, in breaking up an old coffer which had been used to contain the archives of the former Grand Conseil of Malines, observed an ancient-looking print pasted inside the lid. The subject is the Virgin and Child, with Saints Catherine, Dorothy, Barbara, and Margaret, within a palisaded inclosure. On the top-bar of the gate is the date m : cccc °rt)iii. distinct and unmistakable. The design and execution are very superior to those of the St. Christopher and the block-books. The London Athenccum of 1844 contains a full description of the print, and the volume of 1845 a facsimile. The earliest dated print taken from an engraved metal plate is by Maso Finiguerra, 1460. Printing — History. 15 and two beneath the principal subjects. Latin inscriptions are on either side of the upper figures, rhythmical verses on either side of the lower, and additional inscriptions are on labels at the bottom of the whole. The central subjects are from the New Testament, the others from the Old, and in some manner allusive to the former. There are many copies of tliis work, evidently from different blocks, and of different dates. Indeed it appears to have been a most popular book, and was printed repeatedly long after the introduction of le- gitimate printing ; there are several editions in which the in- scriptions are actually printed with movable types. The exact date of these curious works is not ascertained ; but Dr. Home possessed a copy contained in one volume with the Ars Moriendi and the Apocalypse^ all works of the same style, the binding of which bore the date of 142-. The original composition and design of this work is attributed, and not without some show of reason, to Ansgarius, who was Bishop of Hamburg and Bremen in the ninth century. A similar book is the Canticles^ a small folio volume of thirty-two subjects, two being painted on each leaf, and on only one side of the paper, and the leaves also pasted back to back. It differs from the Bihlia Pauperum in that the in- scriptions are engraven on scrolls fantastically dispersed amongst the figures. This is generally allowed to be of somewhat later date than the preceding, and to hold an in- termediate space between it and the Speculum Humanoe Salvationist to which a larger space must be devoted, on ac- count of its importance in the controversy relative to the in- vention of printing. This is not, strictly speaking, a block-book ; for whilst the form of the design and the portion of Scripture represented are engraven on wood, the inscription is in some cases en- graven on wood also, but in others is printed in movable type. The Latin edition, perhaps the first, consists of sixty-three leaves, divided into five unequal gatherings. The subjects are chiefly from the Old and New Testament; but some- times such stories have been selected from ancient history as might seem in some way appropriate to the events recorded in sacred writ. Each subject has a short Latin inscription underneath it, and the text occupies the remainder of the page. Its size is folio ; the impressions are taken with a 16 Five Black Arts. burnisher, on one side of the paper ; the color of the ink is brown, and the backs are pasted together, as in the books previously described. The work is certainly of nearly the same date, though probably a little later, than the Bihlia Pau~ perum ; and it may even have been in part executed by the same artist, for in the earlier portions there is so much general resemblance, both in design and execution, as to make it probable that the same graver was employed in both. The latter part, however, is the work of another artist ; the lines are not so bold, and there is an attempt at fineness of execu- tion, of shading, and of distance, which the earlier master did not attempt ; the design, though in better drawing, is not so spirited ; the drapery is more correct, though not so graceful ; and in fact the engraver was a better workman, but not so great an artist. It must be understood, that there are numerous editions of this work, many differing in essen- tial particulars, but some so nearly similar as to require a microscopic eye to detect the variations. Of four of these, two are in Latin, two in Dutch ; and between these four lies the contest for antiquity. Mr. Ottley (whose beautiful Histori/ of Engraving contains a well-drawn-up account of his inquiry, illustrated by most convincing examples) has, from a minute and laborious examination, decided that the two Latin and two Dutch are printed from the self-same blocks, and by comparing them, and finding evidences of fractures in the one which do not exist in the other, he has very satisfactorily awarded the palm of antiquity. First, although the Latin inscriptions in -the earlier part of the first Latin edition (so called by commentators) are engraven on blocks of wood, these blocks are not of the same piece as the figures, the work having been divided between two artists, the one more skilled in engraving figures, and the other in engraving letters. Secondly^ parts of the engrav- ing broken in the first Dutch are perfect in the first Latin ; parts imperfect in the first Latin are unbroken in the second Dutch, whilst the second Latin is the most perfect of all ; from which the conclusion is drawn that the second Latin is the most ancient, then the second Dutch, next the first Latin, and lastly the first Dutch. This order of succession i s of considerable importance, because the first Latin is printed with movable — some commentators say fusil — Printing — History. 17 types. The printing of this work is claimed for Laurence Koster. But by whomsoever these curious works were printed, they bring us to the very threshold of the invention of printing, in the proper sense of the word. Bibliographers agree that the pictorial parts of the Bihlia Pauperum, the Canticles^ and the Speculum were engraven by the same engraver, but from the designs of different artists ; and that while of the first Latin edition (placed third by Ottley) the plates num- bering 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 16, 17, 21, 22, 26, 27, 46, are printed entirely from wooden blocks, the five leaves of which the preface consists, and the text of the re- maining leaves — (there are 63 in all) — are printed from mova- ble type. Therefore, between the printing of the first edition of these three works, and the third of the Speculum^ the art of printing with movable type had become known to the printer. We have now come fairly to the practice of printing in the real sense of the word ; and we have also arrived at the long- pending, long-controverted question, of who invented it, and where ? The honor is disputed by as many cities as con- tended for the birth of Homer. Only three of these can show the slightest argument for their pretensions : Harlem, Strasburg, and Mentz. Harlem claims it for her citizen Laurence Koster, or Laurent Janszoon Koster (or Gustos). The claim rests principally upon the narrative in the Ba- tavia of Hadrianus Junius, a native of West Friesland, who dwelt at Harlem. The work was written in 1575, but not published until 1588. The following is a close translation of the narrative : " There lived, a hundred and twenty-eight years ago, at Harlem, in houses sufficiently splendid (as a workshop, which remains to this day entire, can serve as proof), overlooking the forum from the neighborhood of the royal palace, Lau- rentius Joannes, by surname JEdituus^ or Gustos* (which at * In the original, Koster is simply said to have been surnamed JEdituus, seu Custos, but no mention is made of the Cathedral, The statement, there- fore, that he was curtos of the cathedral is a gratuitous insertion of after narrators. The word Custos has been Dutchified into Coster or Koster ; but there is no apparent reason why we may not suppose that Cmtos was a barbarous Latin word for keeper, or constable, or any other translation the word will bear. 2 18 Five Black Arts. that time lucrative and honorable office an illustrious family of that name held by hereditary right), the person who now seeks back by just avouchments and oaths the lapsing glory of the invention of printing, nefariously possessed and seized upon by others [the man] , with the greatest right to be pre- sented with the greater laurel of all honors. He by chance, walking in a suburban grove (as was the fashion of citizens in easy means to do after dinner in those days), began first to fashion beech-bark into letters, which being impressed upon paper, reversed in the manner of a seal, produced one verse, then another, as his fancy pleased, to be for copies to the children of his son-in-law ; which when he had happily accomplished, he began (for he was of great and acute ge- nius) to agitate higher things in his mind, and first of all de- vised with his son-in-law, Thomas Peter, who left four chil- dren, all of whom obtained the consular dignity (a thing which I mention that all may understand the art arose in an honorable and talented, not a servile family), a more glutinous and tenacious species of writing ink, which he had commonly used to draw letters ; thence he expressed entire figured pic- tures with characters added ; in which sort I have myself seen Adversaria printed by him, the traces of the works being only on opposite pages, not printed on both sides. That book was in the vernacular tongue by an anonymous author, bearing for title Speculum Nostras Salutis ; in which it is to be observed among the first beginnings of the art (for never any is found and perfected at once), that the reverse pages being smeared with glue, were stuck together, lest they, being blank, should present a deformity. Afterward he changed beech-blocks for lead ; afterward he made them of tin, because it was a material more solid and less flexible, and more durable : from the relics which remained of which types very ancient wine-flasks being made, they are to this day to be seen in those houses of Laurentius which I have mentioned looking upon the forum, inhabited afterward by his grandson Gerard Thomas, whom I name for honor's sake, a noble citizen, who departed this life a few years ago. The studies of men favoring, as it happened, the new art, since a new merchandise never before seen, brought buyers from every side, with most eager quest, at once the love of the art increased, the establishment increased, workmen in the Printing — History. 19 art being added to the family, the first touch of evil ; among whom was a certain Joannes, either (as the suspicion is) that Faustus of ominous name, faithless and unlucky to his master, or some other of the same name, I do not greatly care which, because I am unwilling to disquiet the shades of the silenced, touched with the plague of conscience while they lived. He being sworn by oath to the processes of printing, after he had (as he thought) learned thoroughly the art of put- ting the characters together, the knowledge of fusil types, and whatever else may relate to the matter, taking an op- portunity, than which he could not have found one more fit, on the very eve which is sacred to the birth of Christ, on which all in common are accustomed to labor at the sacred ceremonies, stole the whole materials,* tied up a package of the instruments of his master used in that art ; thence with a servant hurried from the house, went in the beginning to Amsterdam, thence to Cologne, until he arrived at Mayence, as to the altar of an asylum, where he might live safe beyond the reach of arrows (as the saying is), and having opened an office, enjoyed the rich fruit of his robberies. Indeed, from it, in the space of the (or a turning) year, in the year 1442 from the birth of Christ, with the same types which Lauren- tius had used at Harlem, it is certain that he produced to light the Doctrinale of Alexander Gallus, which grammar was then in most famous use, with the Tractates of Peter Hispanus, his first productions. These are, for the most part, things which I have formerly heard from aged men worthy of belief, who have received them as things delivered from hand to hand, as a torch in a race, and have found others relating and attesting the same things. I remember that Nicholaus Galius, the instructor of my youth, a man with iron memory, and venerable for his long years, related to me, that when a boy he had heard, not once only, a certain Cornelius, a bookbinder, and rendered serious by age, nor less than eighty years old (who had lived as an underworkman in that office), relating with much mental anger, and with fervor, the course of the proceeding, the manner of the invention, (as he had received it from his master), the improvement * Or whatever else choragium may mean ; literally it signifies the proper- ties of a theater. 20 Five Black Arts. and increase of the art, and other things of the kind ; and that the tears would burst from him against his will at the shame of the aflfair, as often as he talked of the robbery. Which things do not differ from the words of Quirinus Tale- sius Con., who confessed to me that he had formerly the same from the mouth of the same bookbinder." Beyond this narrative of Hadrian Junius there is little, or rather no testimony to the truth of Roster's claim, all subse- quent argument being either drawn from or referred to this statement. Many very learned bibliographers have given full credence to Hadrian ; while others not less acute abso- lutely deny Koster any pretense whatever — Santander call- ing in question his very existence ; and there is a third party who, being unable to decide between the opposing arguments, and willing to take refuge in a middle course, allow to Koster the credit of having invented printing from blocks, but assign to his rivals that of printing from movable types. The whole argument may, however, be reduced into a rea- sonable compass. The probability of Hadrian's narrative will naturally be the subject of inquiry. First^ the round- about way in which this hearsay evidence reached Hadrian, is in itself an unsatisfactory circumstance. Little belief can be accorded to an uncertain bookbinder, even had any cir- cumstances been adduced besides the name Cornelius, by which this bookbinder could be identified. Secondly, Ta- lesius was many years secretary to Erasmus, who, although a Dutchman and resident in Holland, repeatedly and unhesi- tatingly ascribes the invention to John Gutenberg of Stras- burg at Mentz.* It is not at all probable that, had Erasmus ever heard of this story, or given the slightest credence to it if he had, he would have omitted some mention of a cir- cumstance so gratifying to his national vanity ; or that he should have remained in ignorance of a story well known to his secretary, and commonly bruited about, and therefore known to some of the learned men amongst whom Erasmus lived. Thirdly^ the story of the engraving on beech-bark * Anno Christi 1440. Magnum quoddam ac pene divinum beneficinm coUatum est universo terrarum orbi, a Johanne Gutenberg Argentinensi, novo scribendi genera reperto. Is cum primus artem impressoriam, quern Latini vocant excusoriam, in urbe Argentinensi invenit ; inde Moguntiam veniens eandem feliciter complevit. {Fpit. Rerum Script. 1502, cap. 95.) Printing — History. 21 accidentally, when it is quite certain that the art of taking impressions from wood-blocks of the figures of cards and of saints and sacred subjects, with religious and legendary in- scriptions, had been known and extensively practiced, not only in Italy and Germany, but in Holland itself, for more than a century, is absurd. Fourthly^ every author who has written upon the matter has given up all claim on Koster's behalf for the invention of cast type, the evidence in favor of others being too strong to be got over. Fifthly^ the tale of the conversion of the relics of these types into drinking- cups, which were yet to be seen (1575), is discredited by the circumstance that no one has since seen or heard of them, although a controversy for the honor of a discovery in which they would have been evidence, was even then and has ever since raged furiously. Sixthly^ the story of John Fust hav- ing stolen all his printing materials on the eve of Christmas, and decamped, first to Amsterdam, then to Cologne, and lastly to Mentz, and his publishing there within the same year, is self-contradictory ; for type is not a very portable commod- ity; nor would he easily have escaped pursuit at Amster- dam, a town under the same government. Again, John Fust was originally no printer, but a wealthy goldsmith of Mentz, and certainly never worked as any printer's journey- man. Indeed this is such a palpable misstatement, that commentators upon Hadrian have boldly supposed that the thief was John Gutenberg — not he of Mentz, but a brother, also named John. Unfortunately Gutenberg's brother was not named John, but Friele ; there was a cousin John ; but the only evidence by which we become aware of the existence of these persons excludes the supposition that either prac- ticed the art ; nor is it at all likely that members of a noble family, and wealthy men, should have worked in the service of any man. If it should be asserted that it was the John Gutenberg, his time is so well accounted for that it is impos- sible, since he was then resident at Strasburg, and never was at Amsterdam or Cologne. Thus, then, the narrative of Hadrian Junius appears upon examination to be utterly in- credible, being at once at variance with itself and with all probability. /Arguments for or against the claim of Harlem may be urged not derived from this narrative. Although these cir- 22 Five Black Arts. cumstances are not to be believed, the main facts Twa^ never- theless be correct. Koster may have printed the Speculuyn and other block-books attributed to him. Ottley says that they were certainly printed in Holland, for that the types are not those used in Germany, but closely resembled such as ■were afterward cut or cast in Holland; and that they are of greater antiquity than any books printed by those who after- ward used the art in the Low Countries. He also attempts to show, by the water-marks in the paper, that the works in question were produced in these parts. Water-marks, how- ever, and some bearing a general resemblance to these, were common in the papers used by printers of Cologne, Louvain, and elsewhere ; and the argument is worth little or nothing, for no evidence can be given even of the dates of these works, and much less of the printer. The Speculum was printed again and again after the invention of letter-press printing ; nor is there the slightest evidence, supposing these assertions to be correct, to connect them with the name of Koster. It is a conclusive argument against him, that those other works ascribed to him and his descendants are executed with the self-same types used at Utrecht in 1473 by Ketelaer and De Leempt. Van Mander, who lived at Harlem in 1580, in his History of the Lives of Dutch Painters and JEngravers^ treats the claim of Harlem with contempt ; for, speaking of printing, he describes it as an art " of which Harlem, with much presumption, arrogates to herself the honor of the in- vention ; " nor does he make the slightest mention of his fa- mous fellow-citizen. There is not the least evidence that his three grandsons (not/owr, as Hadrian says) ever carried on his business ; for where are their works ? and in their time printers had become so proud of their art as not only to put their names to every work, but even to add a long history of their undertaking and progress. Where are the books ascribed to them ? what mention is made of them by their cotemporaries? In a subsequent part of this article it will be seen that Caxton, the first English printer, is asserted to have been sent to Harlem to learn the art, and if possible to carry off one of the workmen. These things being also matter of controversy, cannot be used in argument ; nevertheless it is of some value that Caxton, who, supposing it to be true, would be an excellent witness in favor of Harlem, upon all Printing — Histoey. 23 occasions refers the invention to Gutenberg, and makes no mention whatever of Harlem or Koster. Santander labors to disprove the very existence of any such person. But there is no necessity to go so far as San- tander: we may allow Koster's identity; we may even allow that he practiced the art of taking impressions from wood-blocks ; but this is very different from acknowledging his claim to the invention of the art of printing. The most strenuous champion of Koster is Meerman, an eminent French bibliographer of the last century, who, in his Origi- nes Tf/pographicce, published at the Hague in 1765, strongly maintains this narrative of Hadrian ; which is not a little singular, seeing that the Newcastle Typographical Society published a letter from him to Wagenaar, of eight years* prior date, in which he expresses a precisely contrary opinion. He calls Seitz's (Hadrian's) story a mere supposition, and the chronology a romantic invention ; gives to the Speculum the date of 1470 as the earliest possible ; attributes the honor to Gutenberg, and incidentally mentions his intention of publish- ing a pamphlet on the subject. Notwithstanding this, in his work, without any new fact whatever, he accredits Hadrian's story, finds consistency in the dates, believes the Speculum, and denies John Gutenberg — completely reversing his pre- vious conclusion, though his premises remain the same. The statement of Ulric Zell, given in the Cologne Chron- icle, though always referred to by bibliographers, has not received the attention it seems to deserve. Ulric Zell is supposed to have been one of the workmen employed in the otEce of Fust and Schoeffer at Mentz, when that city was taken by the Count of Nassau in 1462. On this event Zell betook himself to Cologne, where he established a press, from which in 1467 he issued his first work. He continued to carry on the art in this city for many years. The Cologne Chroni- cle was printed by Koelhoff in 1499. Under the head of " In- vention of Printing," it contains an account of its discovery, communicated by Ulric Zell, which, considering the place where it was published, the nearness of the time, and the intimate connection of the narrator with the first movements of the art, carries great weight. ''Item, this most worthy art aforesaid [was] first of all invented in Germany, at Mayence on the Rhine ; and that is 24 PiVE Black Arts. a great honor to the German nation, that such ingenious people are to be found there ; and that happened in the year of our Lord 1440. " Item^ although the art was invented at Mayence as afore- said, in the manner it is now commonly used, yet the first idea originated in Holland from the Donatuses, which were printed there even before that time ; and from out of them has been taken the beginning of the aforesaid art, and has been in- vented much more masterly and cunningly than it was ac- cording to that same method, and is become more and more ingenious." Now we know that the Donatuses were block-books of a rude form, in no way resembling the art used by Zell and his cotemporaries ; and such as they are, there is no evidence that Koster printed any one of them. All evidence, then, and the general consent of the learned, in failure of Koster, unhesitatingly ascribe this invention to John Gutenberg, sumamed Genzfleisch, Gensfleisch, or Gensefleisch, von Solgenloch or Sorgenloch. He was a na- tive of Mentz, and of a noble family, possessed of con- siderable property in various places in the neighborhood. Fortunately the life of Gutenberg does not rest merely upon hearsay evidence, or the doubtful guesses of bibliographers from dateless wood-cuts ; legal documents supply most import- ant information. It appears that, for some reasons unknown, he resided for many years at Strasburg, and had even ac- quired rights of citizenship. The first document presents him in no amiable light. It is a lawsuit instituted to compel him to perform his marriage-contract with Anne von Isernen Thiir ; and it would appear that he was compelled to make good his promise, the name of Anne Gutenberg being found in the same register of the nobility liable to the wine-duty in the city of Strasburg, in which Gutenberg's name also ap- pears. The next document is so curious that an ample ab- stract of it cannot but be interesting. It appears that he had contracted an engagement with Andrew Dritzehen, John Rifib, and Andrew Heilmann, to instruct them in the secrets of certain arts, and had entered into partnership with them for their better advantage. An- drew Dritzehen and Andrew Heilmann having called upon him one day, perceived that he was engaged in a wonderful Printing — History. and unknown art, the secret of which he was desirous of keeping to himself; that, moved by their importunities, he consented to enter into partnership with them for the term of five years, on two conditions — first, that they should pay him the sum of 250 florins, 100 immediately, and the remainder at a certain fixed period ; second, that if any one of the partners should die during the term of the copartnership, the survivors should pay to his heirs the sum of 100 florins, in consideration of which the efiects should become the property of the surviving partners. Andrew Dritzehen died before the expiration of the period agreed on, being still indebted to Gutenberg in the sum of 85 florins. George and Nicho- las, brothers of the deceased, demanded to be admitted to the partnership, and on refusal, brought an action against Gutenberg as principal partner. The magistrates gave judg- ment on the 12th of December, 1439, relieving Gutenberg from the demand of the sum of 15 florins, being the difference of the sum of 100 florins, stipulated to be paid to the heirs of a deceasing partner, and the sum of 85 florins due to Gutenberg by Andrew on the original contract. The follow- ing evidence was produced on the trial : " Anna, the wife of John Schultheiss (hohman, marchand de hois'), deposed, that on one occasion Nicholas Beildeck came to her house to Nicholas Dreizehen, her relation, and said to him, ' My Nicholas Dreizehen, Andrew Dreizehen, of happy memory, has placed four stucJce (pages ?) in a press, which Gutenberg has desired that you will take away and them from one another put off, that no man may know what it may be, for he is not willing that any one should see.' " Also John Schultheiss says, that Laurence Beildeck sometime came to his house to Nicholas Dreizehen, when Andrew Dreizehen his brother was dead, and that the said Laurence Beildeck thus spoke to said Nicholas Dreizehen : ' Andrew Dreizehen, your brother, now happy, had four stucke lying underneath in a press. Therefore John Guten- berg desires you that you will take them therefrom and upon the presses take from one another so that no man can see what that is.' " Also Conrad Sahspach deposed, that sometime Andrew Heilmann came to him upon the Street of Merchants and said, ' Dear Conrad, as Andrew Dreizehen is departed, as 26 Five Black Arts. you made the presses, and know about the matter, do you go thither, and take the stucJce from the presses, and thoroughly separate them from one another, so that no man may know what it is.' " Laurence Beildeck says that he was sent by John Guten- berg to Nicholas Dreizehen, after the death of Andrew his brother, to say to him, ' That he the presses which he under his care has to no man should show ; which also this witness did. And he further conversed with me, and said he should take so much trouble as to go to the presses, and with the two screws upon or from them so separate the stucke from one another, and these stucke he should then in the presses [or, on the presses] separate, so that thereafter no man can see nor understand.' " The same witness also said that he knew well that Guten- berg, a little before the feast of the Nativity, had sent his servant to both Andrews to take away all stucke, which were broken up in his sight, that none of them might be found per- fect. Moreover, after the death of Andrew, this witness was not ignorant that many were desirous of seeing the presses, and that Gutenberg had commanded that some one should be sent who might hinder any one from seeing the presses, and that his servant was sent to break them up. " Also John Dunne, goldsmith, said, that three years or thereabouts previous he had received from Gutenberg about 300 florins for materials relating to printing." * From this curious document may be learnt, that separate types were used ; for if they were blocks arranged so as to print four pages, how could they be so pulled to pieces that no one should know what they were, or how could the ab- straction of two screws cause them to fall to pieces ? It ap- pears that some sort of presses were used, and the transfers no longer taken by a burnisher or roller ; and, lastly, that the art was still a great secret at the time when Koster was at the point of death. Hence it is manifest that the inge- nuity of Gutenberg had made a vast advance from the rude methods of the time, and had in fact invented a new and hitherto unknown art. * The original German text of these documents is given in M. Leon de Laborde's interesting tracts on the origin of printing. Printing — History. 27 These documents would be decisive in favor of Strasburg as the place in which printing was invented, had it appeared that any effects were produced by this establishment. This, however, does not seem to have been the case, as Gutenberg and his successors make no mention of the fact, but, on the contrary, claim for themselves the production of the first book at Mentz. Indeed the partnership appears to have ex- pired without any attempt at entering into fresh engage- ments ; for, about the year 1450, Gutenberg returned to his native city with all his materials, without any opposition from his partner. In this place he entered into partnership with John Fust, a wealthy goldsmith and citizen, who engaged, upon being taught the secrets of the art (a fact that com- pletely overthrows the fable of his having been one of Kos- ter's workmen, and of his having stolen his types), and being admitted into a participation of the profits, to advance the necessary funds ; and he did accordingly advance the consid- erable sum of 2020 florins. The new partnership immedi- ately commenced operations, and hired a house called Zum Jungen, and took into their employ Peter Schoeffer and others. Their subsequent operations we again find curiously chronicled in the records of another lawsuit,* in which Gutenberg was soon engaged with his new ally ; for Fust, dissatisfied with their proceedings, sought to recover from Gutenberg money advanced, with interest, including 800 florins of the sum advanced in virtue of the deed of partner- ship. Gutenberg in defense alleged, that the 800 florins had not been paid at once, as stipulated ; and that they had been expended in preparation for the work (apparently meaning thereby that this sum of money should have been paid down for his own use, in consideration of his communicating the secrets of his art, and that instead of so applying it to his private purposes, he had expended it for the joint benefit) ; whilst, as to the other sums, he off'ered to give an account of their appropriation, but denied that he was liable for the in- terest. The judges awarded that Gutenberg should pay the interest, as well as the part which his accounts showed he had applied to his individual use. This decision took place * Wolfii Monumenta Typographica. Fournier, Origine de V Imprimerie. 28 Five Black Aets. on the 6th of November, 1455. Upon this, Fust obtained from the public notary the following document : " To the Glory of God, Amen. Be it known unto all those who shall see or hear read this instrument, that in the year of Our Lord 1455, third indiction, on Thursday the sixth day of November, the first year of the Pontificate of our very Holy Father the Pope Calixtus III., appeared here at Mayence, in the great parlor of the Barefooted Friars, between eleven o'clock and midday, before me, the Notary, and the undersigned witnesses, the honorable and discrete person, James Fust, citizen of Mayence, who, in the name of his brother, John Fust, also present, has said and de- clared clearly, that on this same day, and at the present hour, and in the same parlor of the Barefooted Friars, John Gutenberg should see and hear taken by John Fust an oath, conformable to the sentence pronounced between them. And this sentence read in the presence of the honorable Henry Ganter, Curd of St. Christopher of Mayence, of Henry Kefier, and De Bechtoff de Hanaw, servant and valet of the said Gutenberg ; John Fust, placing his hand upon the Holy Evangelists, has sworn between the hands of me, the Notary Public, conformable to the sentence pronounced, and to a letter which he has sent to me, and has taken the following oath, word for word : I, John Fust, have borrowed 1550 florins which I have transmitted to John Gutenberg, which have been employed for our common labor, and of which I have paid the rent and annual interest, of which I still owe a part. Reckoning, therefore, for each hundred florins bor- rowed, as above is recited, six florins per annum, I demand of him the repayment and the interest, conformably to the sentence pronounced ; which I will prove in equity to be le- gal, in consequence of my claim upon the said John Guten- berg. In presence of the honorable Henry Gunter, of Henry Keffer, and of Bechtoff de Hanaw aforesaid, John Fust has demanded of me an authentic instrument, to serve him as much and as often as he hath need, in the faith of which I have signed this instrument, and have set thereto my seal." From this it would appear (indeed the mortgage of his printing materials to Fust, mentioned in this document, proves) that Gutenberg had expended the whole of his con- Prutting — History. siderable private fortune in his experiments, and had fallen into the power of his more wealthy associate ; for in conse- quence of this judgment, and owing probably to his being unable to repay the sums demanded, the whole of his mate- rials, constructed with so much perseverance, fell into Fust's hands; for the initial letters used by Gutenberg and his partners, in works known and supposed to have been executed between 1450 and 1455, are likewise used by Fust and Schoeffer in the Psalter of 1457 and 1459. After such a mortifying result of so many years' labor, it would have been no matter for wonder had Gutenberg abandoned the unprofitable pursuit. On the contrary, he appears to have immediately started anew with fresh vigor, and this time with success. Another legal document gives curious informa- tion: " We, Henne (John) Genszfleisch de Sulgeloch, named Gudinburg, and Friele Genszfleisch, brothers, do affirm and publicly declare by these presents, and make known to all, ,that, with the advice and consent of our dear cousins, John, and Friele, and Pedirmann Genszfleisch, brothers, of Mentz, we have renounced and do renounce, by these presents, for us and for our heirs, simply, totally, and at once, without fraud or deceit, all the property which has passed by means of our sister Hebele, to the convent of St. Claire of Mentz, in which she has become a nun, whether the said property has come to it on the part of our father Henne Genszfleisch, who gave it himself, or in whatsoever manner the property may have come to it, whether in grain, ready money, furni- ture, jewels, or whatever it may be, that the respectable nuns, the abbess, and sisters of the said convent, have re- ceived in common or individually, or other persons of the convent (have received), from the said Hebele, be it little or much ; and we have promised and do promise, by these pres- ents, in good faith, for us and for our heirs, that neither we, nor any person on our part, nor yet our said cousins, nor any of their heirs, nor any person on their part, shall either de- mand, gain, nor claim of the said convent, nor of the abbess, nor of the convent in general, nor of the persons who may be found therein individually, the said property, of whatever kind it may be, either wholly or in part, and that we will never demand it again, either through an ecclesiastical or 30 Five Black Arts. civil court, or without the aid of the law ; and that neither we nor our heirs will ever molest the said convent, either by words or deeds, either secretly or publicly, in any manner. And as to the books which I, the said Henne, have given to the library of the convent, they are to remain there always and forever ; and I, the said Henne, propose also to give in future, without disguise, to the library of the said convent, for the use of the present and future nuns, for their religious worship, either for reading or chanting, or in whatever manner they may wish to make use of them according to the rules of their order, all the books which JT, the said Henne, have printed up to this hour, or which I shall hereafter print, in such quantities as they may wish to make use of ; and for this the said abbess, the successors and nuns of the said convent of St. Claire, have declared and promised to acquit me and my heirs of the claim which my sister Hebele had to the sixty florins, which I and my said brother Friele had promised to pay and deliver to the said Hebele, as her por- tion and share arising from the house which Henne our father, assigned to him for his share, in virtue of the writings which were drawn up thereupon, without fraud or deceit. And in order that this may be observed by us and by our heirs, steadfastly and to its full extent, we have given the said nuns and their convent and order these present writings, sealed with our seals. Signed and delivered the year of the birth of J. C. 1459, on the day of St. Margaret." From this it will appear, that his new establishment had actually produced the long wished-for effect. He appears to have carried on the business ten years ; for in 1465 he en- tered into the service of Elector Adolphus of Nassau, as one of his band of gentlemen pensioners, with a handsome salary, as appears from the letters-patent, dated the 17th January, 1465, and finally abandoned the pursuit of an art which, though it caused him infinite trouble and vexation, has been more effectual in preserving his name and the memory of his acts, than all the warlike deeds and great achieve- ments of his renowned master and all his house. Gutenberg died on the 24th of February, 1468. His printing-office and materials had passed into the hands of Conrad Humery, syndic of Mentz, who had probably assisted him with money, and who appears to have been in some degree his partner. Printing — History. 31 He afterward sold them to Nicholas Bechtermunze of El- field, whose works are greatly sought after bj the curious, as they afford much proof, by collation, of the genuineness of the works attributed to his great predecessor. There does not appear to be any record of the early life of John Fust or Peter Schceffer before their partnership with Gutenberg, save that the former was a wealthy gold- smith and an ingenious man, and that Schceffer, surnamed de Gernsheim, was a scribe. It is very likely that the com- bination of character and qualifications of these three men may afford a good clue to the wonderful taste and beauty which distinguish the works issued from their press, and con- sequently to the great general improvement of the art during their life. The ingenuity of Gutenberg would readily sug- gest a new and expeditious method of manufacturing types ; the practical skill of Fust as a worker in metals (and the working in gold and silver had at that time attained a most extraordinary nicety and beauty), and his large pecuniary resources, would readily provide the necessary appliances, while the taste of Schoeffer would give all possible grace and beauty to the new forms. For Schoeffer, it must be recol- lected, was a scribe, one of the ancient and honorable craft whose occupation was destined to fall before the new art ; a transcriber, perhaps an illuminator, of the manuscript works in use before printed books ; and those who have had the happiness of viewing those exquisite specimens of skill which beguiled our ancestors into study and devotion (when will modern typography produce such feasts for mind, and eye, and imagination ?) will readily conceive that Schoeffer's eye was already schooled for the conception, and his hand for the execution, of all the beauty the trammels of a new art and limited skill would allow. Aided by his own taste and his partners' invention and wealth, Schoeffer proceeded to a new enterprise, namely the casting of type. The entire concep- tion and execution of this invention has been generally at- tributed and allowed to Schoeffer. It seems most probable, however, that where three ingenious men are bound together by art and interest, no one of them can lay exclusive claim to any invention or undertaking executed in the workshops and for the mutual benefit of all. Allowing, therefore, to Schoeffer, the honor of having suggested some such plan, the 82 Five Black Arts. other two may fairly put in a claim for their portion of the credit on the score of their suggestion and assistance ; espe- cially since Fust, as a worker in metals, would have been the party to engage workmen to elaborate the conceptions of his partners' brains. Accordingly the only evidence upon the subject appears to show that the partners had for some time practiced a method of taking casts of types in moulds of plaster ; for it must be remembered that the types of Guten- berg's earlier efforts, both at Strasburg and at Mentz, were cut out of single pieces of wood or metal with infinite labor and imperfection. This method of casting, however, although a great improvement, was at best but a slow and tedious pro- cess. Almost every type cast would require a new mould ; no skill or care could enable the workman to impress so small a thing as a type is at the face, yet so elongated in the shank, fully, freely, and steadily, into a soft material ; and it would be necessary afterward, under the most favorable circumstances, that the squareness and sharpness so indispens- able in type should be given by another slow process ; so that at best this advance was but an imperfect and tedious operation. Schoeffer has therefore an undoubted claim to be considered as one of the three inventors of printing ; for he it was who first suggested the cutting of punches, whereby not only might the most beautiful form of type the taste and skill of the artist could suggest be fairly stamped upon the matrix, but a degree of sharpness and finish quite unattaina- ble in type cut in metal or wood could be given to the face ; whilst to the shank, by the very same process by which the face was cast, the mould would give perfect sharpness and precision of angle. Add to this, that the punch being once approved of, could be kept ready to stamp a new matrix in precisely the same condition and form as the first, should that be worn out or mislaid, or make a duplicate should the de- mands of business require it. It is nevertheless rather singular, that the mould represented on the right side of the press of Ascensius, shortly after the time of Schoeffer, should be precisely the same in form and manner of use as that of the present day. This was evidently an immense stride toward perfection ; let Schoeffer therefore take a place on the right hand of the inventor. Whatever may have been the several shares of the mas- Printing — History. 33 ters in perfecting their art, their joint labors were effectual. The first productions of their press — passing over an Alpha- bet, the Doctrinale of Alexander Gallus, and a Donatus, which are of doubtful authenticity, and are merely block- books — were three editions of Donatus, the first hooks known to have been printed entirely with movable types. In 1455 they printed the celebrated Litterce Indulgentice Nicolai V, Pont. Max., which is the first work — it is only a single page — printed with movable types which is dated. In 1455, or thereabouts, for it has no date, they printed the famous Bib- lia Latina Vulgata, generally known as "the Mazarine Bible." It has no colophon or Explicit. And it should be noted, that there is no book known which bears the conjoint names of Gutenberg, Fust, and Schoeffer, nor any which has the imprint of Gutenberg alone. Within eighteen months of their separation from Guten- berg, Fust and Schoeffer produced the celebrated Psalter. This was printed with large cut type. As it is impossible that a new font could have been prepared, and so splendid a work printed within that short space, it must be evident that the partners did great injustice to Gutenberg in sup- pressing his name from the colophon. This book was pro- duced in the month of August, 1457, and is the first book which bears the name of the place where it was printed, those of the printers, and the date of the year in which it was printed. This Psalter was reprinted in 1459, 1490, and 1502, and always in the same type, which, it is remarkable, was never used for any other work, probably because its great size made it unfit for any other works than those not intended for popular reading, but to lay on desks like our church Bibles. On the 16th of October, 1459, Fust and Schoeffer published the Durandi Rationale Divinorum Offi- ciorum, with an entirely new font of type; in 1460 the Constitutiones Clementis V.; and in 1462 the celebrated Latin Bible. In 1465 they printed Cicero de Officiis, in which occur the first printed Greek types. Fust enjoyed this successful and glorious practice of his art but ten short years ; yet in this period what an immense advance from the mis- shapen and irregular lumps of their first efforts, ugly in them- selves, and more ugly in their utter want of relative propor- tion and alignment, to the well-proportioned, evenly-stand- 3 34 Five Black Arts. ing type of the Bible ! The plague carried him off in Paris about the year 1466, full of years, and perchance full of honors. Schoeffer survived many years, and, in conjunction with Conrad Henlif, produced a great number of works. His name is found in the colophon of the fourth edition of the Bible of 1402, about which time he is supposed to have deceased. There are ten books which are known to have been printed by Fust and Schoeffer conjointly. Schoeffer continued to print during a period of thirty-five or thirty-six years after the death of Fust, and his productions are very numerous. Were we to take tradition for our guide as regards the character of Fust, we should regard him as a conjuror and an adept in the black art. The popular story (and many " grave and discreet old men " have given credit to the tale) runs, that having kept these proceedings profoundly secret, as soon as their Bible was finished. Fust transferred himself to Paris with many copies of the new work, and palmed them upon the learned as manuscripts — to which, as they were printed on vellum, in a type bearing much resemblance to the written books of the period, and the vignettes and initial letters were splendidly illuminated, they were not very dissimilar ; that some eager scholar or devotee became the possessor of the first copy, supposing it to be a rare chance, at the moderate price of four or five hundred crowns ; that as he brought the work into the market, the price fell rapidly to sixty, and then to thirty crowns, by which time the extra- ordinary glut produced suspicion, and Fust was accused of multiplying Holy Writ by the aid of the Devil, and was ac- cordingly persecuted by the priesthood, whilst the laity, look- ing to their temporal interests, prosecuted him for his inroad into their pockets ; and that from these things Fust was obliged to quit Paris precipitately. Having thus given a sketch of the origin and history of the art of printing, a brief account of the works issued by the illustrious triumvirate will not only be proper here, but will give the general reader a better idea of the astonishing perfection to which the art rose under the taste and genius of its inventors. As before remarked, there is not a single work of Gutenburg which bears his name ; yet there are several which bear such internal evidences that the literati Printing — History. 35 of all parties and opinions are unanimous in attributing them to his press. Of these works, Dr. Dibdin, the well-known bibliographer, gives the following account : " First, as to the character of the type used by the early Mentz printers. This appears to have been uniformly what is called Gothic; and if we except the varieties of the larger type (from three-eighths to two-eighths or to a quarter of an inch), which appear in the Psalters of 1457, 1459, and 1490 (the type common to the most works executed about the same period), we shall observe three distinct sets or forms of let- ters used in the printing-office of Faust and Schoiflfher. Of these three typographical characters, two only (if we except the one with which the Bible of 1455 was executed) are visible in the publications which appear to have been printed in the lifetime of Faust ; that is to say, the larger Gothic used in the Bible of 1462, and the smaller Gothic in the Offices of Cicero, of the dates of 1465 and 1466. These appeared united, the former, for the first time, in the Consti- tutions of Pope Clement V., of the date of 1460. Schoiff- her introduced a type of an intermediate size, which may be seen, among other works, in the Rudiments of Grammar of 1468, and in the Decretals of Pope Gregory the Ninths of the date of 1479. This intermediate type is of a nar- rower form, and prints very closely. Of the three types here mentioned, the largest is undoubtedly of the handsomest dimensions; but they all partake of the Secretary Gothic, and may be said to be the model of that peculiar character which was adopted by the early Leipsic printers, Thanner and Boettiger, and was more especially used by John Schoiflf- her and the other German printers for nearly the whole of the sixteenth century. Shew me, Lisardo, one book, nay, one leaf only, printed in the Roman type, in the colophon of which the name of Faust or of Peter Schoiffher appears, and you shall immediately have the amount of the balance in my favor, at my banker's, be it great or small, be it 200?. or 20?., for such a precious and unheard-of curiosity. " We shall now, in the second place, say a few words as to the character of the printing, or of the mechanical skill, of the early Mentz press. There can be but one opinion upon this point. Every thing is perfect of the kind, the pa- 36 Five Black Arts. per, the ink, and the register, or regularity of setting up the page. The Bible of the supposed date of 1455 is quite a miracle in this way ;* but the Psalters are not less miracu- lous, nor is less praise due to the Constitutions of Pope Clement F., of the date of 1460, and the Bible of 1462 ; while the Durandus, of the earlier date of 1459, exhibiting the first specimen of the smallest letter, strikes one as among the most marvelous monuments extant of the perfection of early typography. Almost all the known works before the year 1462 are printed upon vellum^ doubtless because they ventured upon limited impressions ; and even of the Bible of 1462 more copies have been described upon vellum than upon paper. Upon the whole, the vellum used by Faust and Schoiffher, although inferior to the Venetian, is exceedingly good, being generally both white and substantial. " In the third place, let us notice the nature or character of the works which have issued from the press of Faust and Schoiffher. Whatever may be our ^partiality toward that estabhshment from which the public were first gratified with the sight of a printed book, candor obliges us to confess that the fathers of printing were not fortunate, upon the whole, in the choice of books which issued from their press. " In the fourth place (for I told you I should be somewhat, tautologous), consider what is the typographical appearance of these books which Gutenberg is really supposed to have executed. It is quite unique. A little barbarous, and cer- tainly wholly dissimilar from any thing we observe in other cotemporaneous productions of the Mentz press. You will please to understand that I think very doubtfully of the Dona- tuses, which are considered to have been printed by him ; as well as of the Speculum Sacerdotum, and Celehratio Mis- sarum; concluding the Catholicon of 1460, and the Vocal- ularies of 1467 and 1469, to be the more genuine produc- * This is even sober praise. The mechanism of the press-work, and ap- pearance of the ink, beautiful, regular, and glossy as the whole appears, does not strike one with more astonishment than the manufacture of the paper. " Charta," says Tangendres, " ejusdem est crassitudinis, qualem illo tempore libris imprimendis consumere mos fuit." And again, " Charta ob ejus densitatem atque spissitudinem baud ingratam ubique se maxime commendat." {Disq. de Not. Characi. Libror. p. 27, p. 46.) And see Meer- man's testimony in favor of the paper of the Soubiaco press, Orig. Typog. vol. i. p. 9, note. Printing — History. 37 tions of his press, or of the types used by him. Is it not surprising, I ask, that these works are executed in types quite different from any thing in the Mentz productions ? and this from a man who is considered as the parent of printing in that city. No wonder, if they he the actual productions of Gutenberg, that Faust and Schoiffher thought so meanly of his talents, and that on a dissolution of partnership they adopted a different and a very superior character." In confirmation of these remarks of the learned bibliog- rapher, we shall here insert a specimen of Gutenberg's Balbus de Janiia, which will also be a curious illustration of ancient art. Notwithstanding the appearance of these types, the reader is assured that the original is really printed from separate pieces of metal.* 'rcvitwrercgutaYirme^uIacouoci^ fcZin /igniftratiuapiottwdacoTie ptidJ)al»tct^AZ> wcnioe ttiobulacoms ct mcUltv.qu^ atcmtunoti Dr. Home, in the appendix to his Introduction to Bihliog- raphy, says of the Psalter, " This precious work, as San- tander justly calls it, is one of the most known among early printed books, from the various and correct descriptions of it which have been given by different bibliographers. Un- til the discovery of Pope Nicholas's Literce Indulgentiarum, this was supposed to be the very first article ever printed with a date affixed ; the book is executed on vellum, and of such extreme rarity that not more than six or seven copies are known to be in existence ; all of which, however, differ from each other in some respect or other. The most perfect copy known is that in the imperial library at Vienna ; it comprises 175 leaves, of which the Psalter occupies the 135 first and the recto of the 136th, The remainder is appro- priated to litany, prayers, responses, vigils, etc. The psalms are executed in larger characters than the hymns, similar to those used for missals prior to the invention of printing ; but * The initial A is illuminated in a very brilliant blue. The reader who is desirous of obtaining the full effect of this specimen can fill up the printed outline in water-color. 38 Five Black Arts. all are distinguished for their uncommon blackness. The capital letters, 288 in number, are cut on wood with a de- gree of delicacy and boldness which are truly surprising ; the largest of these, the initial letters of the psalms, which are black, red, and blue, must (as Lichtenberger has remarked) have passed three times through the press. Copies are now in the Queen's library at Windsor, and in that of Earl Spen- cer at Spencer House." The extraordinaay praise awarded by these eminent bib- liomaniacs to the first productions of the Mentz press may perchance excite in the minds of the more sober public a suspicion that these writers have been led away by their en- thusiasm beyond the limits of matter-of-fact truth, and have seen merit in defects, beauty in deformity, and luster in an- tiquity. Assuredly, nevertheless, such is by no means the case ; and the happy individual who gains access to the chef- d^oeuvres of Fust and Schoeffer will return from the inspec- tion a wiser man ; for the beauty of these works is inconceiv- able. England fortunately possesses several of these treas- ures of art, there being copies of the Bible of the supposed date of 1450-55 in the Boyal Library, in the Bodleian, and in those of Earl Spencer and Henry Perkins, Esq. ; whilst of the six known copies of the Psalter of 1457, two are in England, namely, one at Windsor, and one in the possession of Lord Spencer. Of the Latin Bible of Fust and Schoeffer, 1462 (the first bearing date), there are copies on vellum at Blenheim, in the libraries of Lord Spencer, the Earl of Jer- sey, one formerly belonging to Sir M. Sykes, in the British Museum, and in the Bodleian (imperfect). Copies on paper are rarer still, there being but three in England, viz., those in the Royal Library and the British Museum, and one lately in the possession of Mr. Willett. Apparently, in retaUation for the injustice done to Gut- enberg by his partners in depriving him of any share of the honor of producing the Psalter of 1457, which, as before stated, must be the joint production of all three, although it was not finished until after the secession of Gutenberg, bib- liographers have generally agreed in attributing the printing of the Bible of 1450-55 to Gutenberg alone, when it is equally manifest that Fust and Schoeffer had as much claim to the honor as their coadjutor. It is an exceedingly beau- Printing — History. 39 tiful book, in two very large folio volumes, in two columns, containing from forty-one to forty-three lines each, in very large well-cut types. It consists of six hundred and forty- one leaves ; it has no title, paging, signatures, or catch- words ; the initial letters are not printed, but painted in by illuminators, and the initial letters of each verse of the psalms are painted alternately red and black, by way of guide to the priests in their alternate reading. From the luster and blackness of the ink, its evenness of color, and beautiful execution, it is a very superb book ; but it is nev- ertheless surpassed by the Fust and Schoeffer edition of 1462, . when they had attained greater experience in the practice of the art. By far the choicest, however, of these editiones principes, is the Mentz Psalter or Codex Fsalmorum before mentioned. Dr. Home sa3^s that the six known copies of this edition diifer from each other in some respects, and proceeds to give some particulars in which variations are found ; but by collating the copies in the Royal Library, that at Windsor, and that at the British Museum, it will be found that, al- though bearing the same date, they are in fact three distinct editions. It would have excited no surprise had it been found that the printed ornaments differed, as nothing would be more easy than to change the colors with which the differ- ent blocks were worked ; and in fact in the Museum copy the initial B is printed in a bright blue, and the scroll-work is red ; but the text varies in such a manner that there can be no doubt of their perfect distinctness. It must also be noted that in the Windsor copy each line is ''justified out," which is not the case in Earl Spencer's copy ; and that in the Museum copy the page commences with rubrical matter, which is continued down the two first lines of text, which are shortened. The difference is effect- ed by variations in the contractions of many of the words. The book * is a very large folio, on vellum, consisting of about a hundred and thirty leaves, printed on both sides. There are generally twenty-three lines in a page, in Gothic type. Every psalm begins with a splendid initial letter, printed in two colors in almost every case. Occasionally, * The copy described is that at Windsor ; the illuminations, no doubt vary in every copy. 40 Five Black Arts. however, this appears to have been neglected, and then the letter is painted in by the illuminator, but not in imitation of the printed letters. The initials consist of a bold character, of Gothic cut, surrounded by a scroll, which is sometimes of great length, but that of the B extending from the top to the bottom of the page. The same wooden block is used as often as the letter occurs, but it is not always in the same colors. Moreover, every verse commences with a smaller initial printed in a red color. Nor is this work destitute of the embellishments of the illuminator ; for at the commencement of every psalm is a rubric, painted in a most brilliant red, in a smaller letter, of precisely the same character as the text, and also the music of the chant, with the words under- neath it painted in black. The initial letters of both are spendidly illuminated in various colors. The paint is used in such profusion that the letters are absolutely in relief, often to the extent of one-sixteenth of an inch ; and besides these, the letter following the grand initial has a broad bar painted down it, and very frequently the first letter after the pauses indicated in our authorized version by a colon is illuminated in a similar manner. One page is particularly splendid ; it consists of short verses, in which the first words are constantly repeated. It commences with a grand initial, and there are twenty-two smaller initials to the verses ; the second letter of the first verse, and the first letter after every pause (twenty-three in number), having the broad illumin- ated bar. Wherever the psalm commences too near the bot- tom to allow of the full exuberance of the scroll, a piece of paper appears to have been laid over a portion of the cut, to prevent the impression from appearing ; and in one psalm where the chant is of unusual length, the lower part of the initial 0, and a corresponding portion of the scroll, are thus suppressed ; the music being illuminated in its place, and the scroll continued below it. Sometimes the illuminator has omitted to add his initial letter ; and in this copy the double device is omitted. The accuracy with which the colored blocks are printed within the text and within each other is perfectly astonishing. From this description it may be conceived how very superb is the first book ever printed, the date, and place, and artist, of which can be accurately ascertained. Dr. Dibdin in the Bihliotheca Spenceriana, Printing — History. 41 Mr. Savage in his work on Decorative Printing^ Dr. Home, whose wood-block is not colored, and several other writers, have given fac-similes of the same copy (Lord Spencer's), which, however, all differ from one another. The capture of the city of Mentz by Count Adolphus of Nassau in the year 1462, had the effect of interrupting the labors of Fust and Schoeffer ; and moreover the distracted state of the city enabled, perhaps compelled, the workmen initiated in the mysteries of the art to flee into the neighbor- ing states, and thus spread its practice over the whole civil- ized globe. Such, indeed, was the fame it had already acquired, and such the idea entertained of its importance, that every community with the slightest pretensions to liter- ature appears to have sought a knowledge of it with the great- est avidity. Thus, within six years of the publication of the Psalter, it had spread to several cities having some connec- tion with Mentz, and within fifteen years to almost every town of consideration in Christian Europe. A chronological list of the cities which first seized upon the invention would be greatly too long for this article ; it may be interesting, however, to extract a few of the principal, with a notice of such printers as are remarkable either for the beauty or the scarcity of their works. The reader is not to suppose that all, or indeed any great number of these, learned the prac- tice of the art under the tuition of the first masters. A few are known to have been pupils of the inventors, and it is probable that many others of them were so ; but the majority, in all likelihood, were men of learning, enterprise, or capital, who derived their typographical knowledge from such facts as had transpired, or from inferior workmen of Fust and Schoeffer oi; Gutenberg supplying deficiencies by their own ingenuity. Strasburg. Mentelin. Some writers have claimed fox Mentelin the invention of printing, representing that Guten- berg was his servant, without, however, showing the slightest ground for their assertions ; but others, more reasonable, say that he was acquainted with Gutenberg, and instructed by him, and that on the latter's quitting Strasburg he estab- lished a printing-oflSce, and carried on the business success- fully. Mentelin most probably printed about the year 1458. His type is rude and inelegant. The only book bearing his 42 Five Black Arts. name is Beauvais's Speculum ffistoriale, of date 1473. Schsepflin sajs, that he, as well as Fust and Schoeffer at Mentz, printed 300 sheets per day. In 1461. Bamberg. Albert Pfiister. He printed a col- lection of Fables, of date 1461. This book is excessively rare ; it is printed with cast metal type, and is illustrated with 101 wood-cuts, in much the same style as the old Biblia Pauperum. All his other works are printed in the same type. 1465. Subiaco and Rome. Schweynheym and Pannartz. Their known works are, a JDonatus, without date ; Lactan- tius, 1465 ; St. Augustin on the City of God, 1467 ; Cicero de Oratore, without date ; and the Commentary of Be Lyra on. the Bible, 1471, all in folio. These works were printed in a new letter, very closely resembling the type now in use called Roman, and of which they were the introducers. In Be Lyra are the earliest specimens of Greek types worthy of the name ; some few letters appear in the Cicero de Offieiis printed at Mentz, but so wretchedly imperfect that they are unworthy of mention. It is curious that the Greek font of Schweynheym and Pannartz at Subiaco was evidently very small ; but upon their removal to Rome they cast a much larger font. The cut and appearance of this Greek is more than respectable. There is a very curious petition from them to the pope, praying for assistance on the ground that they had entirely ruined themselves by printing Be Lyra, for which there was no sale, and representing that they had on their hands no less than eleven hundred folio volumes of that work. Subiaco is the first place in Italy in which printing was practiced. At Rome Ulric Han and Lignamine were cotemporaries. Their works, particularly those of Han, are excessively rare. 1467. Elfield. Henry and Nicholas Bechtermunze. They purchased from Conrad Humery the types and materials of Gutenberg. Their w^orks are not at all remarkable for beauty, but are very rare, and much sought for as affording evidence of Gutenberg's works. 1407. Cologne. Ulric Zell. His type is Gothic, and of no beauty ; but his works are rare. 1468. Augsburg. Ginther Zainer printed the first book in Germany with Roman type. Printing — History. 43 1469. Venice. John de Spira, whose works are of the utmost beauty. His edition of Pliny is splendid, and enor- mous sums have been given for those printed in vellum. He did not use Greek characters ; but Greek passages are com- posed in Roman types. In the same city, at the same time, printed Nicholas Jenson, whose works are equal, if not su- perior, to those of Spira ; they are not so rare, but are almost equally sought after. A copy of his folio Latin Bible of 1479, printed in Gothic type, was sold at Mr. Edwards's sale for 11 5Z. 10s. Venice was also the residence of Christopher Valdarfar, whose works gave rise to a most extraordinary event connected with bibliography, viz., the sale of the first edition of II Decamerone di Boccaccio, printed by him in 1471. For many years it had been known that a single copy of this work was in existence, and the most devoted bibliomaniacs had used their utmost endeavors to discover it, but in vain. At length, about 1470, an ancestor of the Duke' of Roxburgho obtained possession of it for the sum of one hundred guineas. In lapse of time it became the prop- erty of John duke of Roxburghe, the accomplished, indefat- igable, and undaunted bibliomaniac, after whose death his gorgeous library was dispersed by the auctioneer in the year 1811. The interest excited amongst the learned by this sale was intense. It was known that the collection contained the most superb specimens of every kind of ancient lore ; that the illuminated manuscripts were the most brilliant, the bal- lads the most obscure, the editiones principes the most com- plete that the world could produce ; that the rarest Caxtons, the finest Pynsons, and grandest specimens of the foreign printers, were here to be found ; above all, it was rumored that a m.ysterious edition of Boccaccio's Decameron would become a bone of contention amongst the noblest of the literati. The public, learned and unlearned, were infected with the mania, and the daily papers teemed with notices of the sale. At length the important day arrived, the 17th of June, 1811. St. James's Square was the place. Mr. Evans presided. The room was crowded ; Earl Spencer, the Mar- quis of Blandford, the Duke of Devonshire, and an agent of Napoleon, were amongst the most prominent. The book was a small folio, in faded yellow morocco binding, black-letter. '' Silence followed his (Mr. Evans's) address," says Dibdin. 44 Five Black Arts. " On his right hand, standing against the wall, stood Earl Spencer; a little lower down, and standing at right angles with his lordship, appeared the Marquis of Blandford. The duke, I believe, was not then present ; but my Lord Althorpe stood a little backward, to the right of his father, Earl Spen cer. Such was ' the ground taken up ' by the adverse hosts. The honor of firing the first shot was due to a gentleman of Shropshire, unused to this species of warfare, and who sepm- ed to recoil from the reverberation of the report himself had made. ' One hundred guineas,' he exclaimed. Again a pause ensued ; but anon the biddings rose rapidly to five hundred guineas. Hitherto, however, it was manifest that the firing was but masked and desultory. At length all ran- dom shots ceased, and the champions before named stood gallantly up to each other, resolving not to flinch from a trial of their respective strengths. ' A thousand guineas ' were bid by Earl Spencer; to which the marquis added 'ten.' You might have heard a pin drop. All eyes were turned ; all breathing well nigh stopped. Every sword was put home within its scabbard, and not a piece of steel was seen to move or to glitter save that which each of these champions brand- ished in his valorous hand. See, see ; they parry, they lunge, they hit ; yet their strength is undiminished, and no thought of yielding is entertained by either. ' Two thousand pounds ' are offered by the marquis. Then it was that Earl Spencer, as a prudent general, began to think of an useless eff*usion of blood and expenditure of ammunition, seeing that his adver- sary was as resolute and fresh as at the onset. For a quar- ter of a minute he paused, when my Lord Althorpe advanced one step forward, as if to supply his father with another spear for the purpose of renewing the contest. His countenance was marked with a fixed determination to gain the prize, if prudence in its most commanding form, and with a frown of unusual intensity of expression, had not bade him desist. The father and son for a few seconds converse apart ; and the biddings are resumed. ' Two thousand two hundred and fifty pounds,' said Lord Spencer. The spectators are now ab- solutely electrified. The marquis quietly adds his usual Hen,' and there is an end of the contest. Mr. Evans, ere his ham- mer fell, made a due pause, and, indeed, as if by something preternatural, the ebony instrument seemed itself to be Printing — History. 45 charmed or suspended in ' in mid-air.' However, at length down dropped the hammer, and, as Lisardo has not merely poetically expressed himself, ' the echo ' of the sound of that fallen hammer *was heard in the libraries of Rome, of Milan, and Saint Mark.' Not the least surprising incident of this extraordinary sale is, that the marquis already possessed a copy of the work, which wanted a few leaves at the end ; he therefore paid this enormous sum for the honor of possessing a few pages. The prize of this contest is now in the posses- gion of Earl Spencer." 1469. Milan. Lavagna. In 1476 Dionysius Palava- sinus printed the Greek Grammar of Constantino Lascaris, in quarto, which is the first book printed entirely in Greek. The first printing in Hebrew characters was performed at Soncino, in the duchy of Milan, in 1482. 1470. Fans, Ulricus Gering, M. Crantz, and M. Fri- burger. * 1471. Florence, Bernard Cennini. In 1488 Demetrius of Crete printed the first edition of Homer's works, in most beautiful Greek. 1474. Basle, Bernardus Richel. 1474. Valencia, Alonzo Fernandes de Cordova. 1474. •Louvain, Joannes de Westphalia. 1474. Westminster, William Caxton, the Game of Chess. 1475. ImhecJc, Lucas Brandis. 1476. Antiverp. Thierry Martins of Alost. 1476. Pz78en in Bohemia. Statuta Synondalia Pragen" sia ; printer's name not known. 1476. Delft, Maurice Yemantz. 1478. Geneva, Adam Steinschawer. 1478. Oxford. Theodericus Rood. 1480. ^St. Albans, Laurentii Guillielmi de Saona Rhetorica Nova ; printer's name not known. 1482. Vienna, John Winterburg. 1483. Stockholm, Johannes Snell. 1483. Harlem, Formulce JSfovitiorumy by Johannes Andriesson. This is the earliest book printed at Harlem with a date. In giving this as the first work known to be printed at Harlem, the claims of Koster, his grandsons and successors, must, of course, be reserved. 46 Five Black Arts. 1493. Copenhagen. Gothofridus de Ghemen. 1500. Cracow, Joannes Haller. 1500. Munich. Joannes Schobzer. 1500. Amsterdam. D. Pietersoen. 1507. Edinburgh. A Latin Breviary; no printer's name. From a patent of James lY. it appears that the first printing-press was established at Edinburgh in 1507. From the style and types, it is probable that they were imported from France. 1551. Dublin. Ireland was apparently the last country in Europe into which printing was introduced. The first book printed is a black-letter edition of the Book of Com- mon Prayer, printed by Humphrey Powell. 1569. Mexico. Antonio Spinoza, Vocabulario en Len- gua Castellana y Mexicana. 1689. United States, at the town of Cambridge, in the State of Massachusetts. Printer, Stephen Daye.* * The first printing-press " worked " in the American Colonies was " set up " at Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1639. Rev. Jesse Glover procured this press by '' contributions of friends of learning and religion " in Am- sterdam and in England, but died on his passage to the new world. Ste- phen Daye was the first printer. In honor of his pioneer position, Gov- ernment gave him a grant of three hundred acres of land. • Pennsylvania was the second colony to encourage printing. William Bradford came to Pennsylvania with William Penn, in 1686, and estab- lished a printing-press in Philadelphia. In 1692, Mr. Bradford was in- duced to establish a printing-press in New York. He received 40/. per annum and the privilege of printing on his own account. Previous to this time, there had been no printing done in the Province of New York. His first issue in New York was a proclamation bearing the date of 1692. It was nearly a century after a printing-press had been set up in New England before one would be tolerated in Virginia. The southern colonists had no printing done among them till 1727. There was a printing-press At New London in Connecticut, in - - 1709. '* Annapolis in Maryland, - - . . 1726. " Williamsburg in Virginia, - - . 1729. " Charleston in South Carolina, - - - 1730. " Newport in Rhode Island, - - - 1732. " Woodbridge in New Jersey, - - - 1752. " Newbern in North Carolina, - - . 1755. " Portsmouth in New Hampshire, - - - 1756. '' Savannah in Georgia, - - . _ i662. The first printing-press established in the North-West Territory was worked by William Maxwell, at Cincinnati, in 1793. The first printing Printing — History. 47 It was the custom of the early printers to distinguish their books by the most fantastic devices ; and by these their works may be readily recognized. Many of them were of exceeding beauty, and all the skill and appliances of their art were employed to render them striking ; they are really an ornament to their works. The invention of these has been ascribed to Aldus ; but the very first printers, Fust and SchoefFer, used each for himself, yet conjoined, devices of rare excellence. Our chronological arrangement has prevented us from mentioning some of the most skillful typographers. Their works, however, are so numerous, and their eiforts so well known, as to render it unnecessary to do more than mention their names. Such men as the Aldi,* Frobenius, Plantinus, Operinus, the Stephani, the Elzeviri, the Gryphii, the Giunti, the Moreti, and hosts of peers, have universal fame. The printing-office of Plantinus, in the Place Vendredi, at Ant- werp, exists in its full integrity, and in the possession and use of his descendants the Moreti ; the same presses, the same types, with the addition of every improvement modern skill has effected, are still in use, and an inspection of these singular relics of olden art will well repay the investigation of the curious. THE nUST PRESSES. Of the mechanical means by which these beautiful im- pressions of the old printers were produced there is little or no record ; but it is quite evident that they must have been effected by some more skillful process than mere manipula- tion, that is, than the appliance of a burnisher, as is evident executed west of the Mississippi was done at St. Louis, in 1808, by Jacob Hinkle. Tliere had been a printing-press in Kentucky in 1786, and there was one in Tennessee in 1793— in Michigan in 1809 — in Mississippi in 1810. Lou- isiana had a press immediately after her possession by the United States. Printing was done in Canada before the separation of the American Col- onies from the Mother Country. Halifax had a press in 1751, and Quebec boasted of a printing-office in 1764. — Sketch of the Origin and Progress of Printing, hy William T. Coggeshall — Newspaper Record. Lay Sf Brother, Philadelphia, 1857. * It should be mentioned that Aldus Mann tins invented the beautiful character of type called Italic at the end of the fifteenth century. The first book printed with it is a Virgil, 1501. 48 Five Black Arts. in the first wood-cuts, or of a roller, or superficial pressure applied immediately by hand. It is very probable that one of the difficulties which Gutenberg found insuperable at Strasburg, was the construction of a machine of sufficient power to take impressions of the types or blocks then em- ployed ; nor is it at all wonderful that the many years he re- sided at that city were insufficient to produce the requisite means ; for, with cutting type, forming his screws^ inventing and making ink, and the means of applying his ink when made, his time must have been amply occupied. Moreover, the construction of a press would require a versatile genius, and excellent mechanical skill, not to be looked for in one man. But upon his junction with Fust and Schoeffer, the gold of the former, and the invention of all the three, would soon supply the defect; and, for aught that appears to the contrary, the press used in their office differed in no essential point from those in use until the improvements of Blaew in 1600-20. Fortunately, amongst the singular devices with which it pleased the earlier printers to distinguish their works, Badius Ascensius of Lyons (1496-1535) chose the press ; and there are cuts of various sizes on the title-pages of his works. It appears from these, that, like that of Gut- enberg, they could print only four pages at a time, and that at two pulls ; the table and tympan ran in, and the platen was brought down by a powerful screw, by means of a lever inserted into the spindle. The color which the earliest typographers used was prob- ably made according to the style of work in hand. The earliest copies of the Speculum and Bihlia Pauperum were printed in a brown color, of which raw umber is the principal ingredient. It appears to have been well ground and thin. It was, most likely, of the same tint as the old drawings of the same subjects, and would be better adapted for the filling up in various colors, as appears to have been the practice, than a black and harsh outline of ink. Fust and Schoeffer, however, introduced, and their followers adopted, black ink, and were so skillful in compounding it that their works pre- sent a depth and richness of color which excites the envy of the moderns ; nor has it turned brown, or rendered the sur- rounding paper in the slightest degree dingy. The method of applying it to the types was by means of balls of skin Printing — History. 49 stuffed with wool, in every respect the same as those used fifty years ago. The ink was laid in some thickness on a corner of a stone slab, and taken thence in small quantities and ground by a muller, and thence again taken by the balls and applied to the types. The types appear to have been disposed in cases very much the same as ours. The com- posing-stick differs somewhat, but cannot now be very clearly made out. The different operations of casting the type, composing, reading, and working, are mostly represented in the same apartment; but, it is probable, more for the sake of pictorial unity, than because such was really the custom. There must have been many workmen engaged in most of the old establishments ; and they well knew the value of cleanli- ness, which is unattainable where all the operations are car- ried on together. The general and original belief is that William Caxton, who for thirty years resided in the Low Countries, under the reign of Charles the Bold, and who had taken every oppor- tunity of learning the new art, and had availed himself of the capture of Mentz to secure one of the fugitive workmen of Fust and Schoeffer, established a printing-office at Cologne, where he printed the French original and his own translation of the Recuyell of the History es of Troye ; that whilst at Cologne he became acquainted with Wynkyn de Worde, Theoderick Rood, both foreigners, and Thomas Hunte his countryman, who all subsequently became printers in Eng- land ; that he afterward transferred his materials to Eng- land ; that Wynkyn de Worde came over with him, and probably was the superintendent of his printing establish- ment; that his first press was established at Westminster, perhaps in one of the chapels attached to the abbey, and certainly under the protection of the abbot; and that he there produced the first book printed in England, the Game of Chess^ which was completed on the last day of March, 1474. The correctness of these facts is not matter of dispute, all writers agreeing that Caxton did so set up his press at West- minster, and print his Game of Chess in 1474 ; but it has been asserted that Caxton was not the first printer, nor his book the first book printed, in this country. Neither does the controversy rest upon the contradictory statements of 4 • 60 Five Black Arts. many writers, for all authors of the same and succeeding period agree in ascribing the honor to Caxton ; and when, in 1642, a dispute arose between the Stationers' Company and certain persons who printed by virtue of a patent from the crown, concerning the validity of this patent, a committee was appointed, who heard evidence for and against the pe- titioners, and throughout the proceedings Caxton was ac- knowledged as incontestibly the first printer in England. Thus Caxton seemed to be established as the first English typographer, when, soon after the Restoration, a quarto vol- ume of forty-one leaves was discovered in the library at Cambridge, bearing the title of Exposicio Sancti Jewnymi in Symholum Apostolorum ad Papam Laurentium, and at the end, " ExpUcit Exposicio Sancti Jeronymi in Simbolo Apostolorum ad papam Laurentium, Oxonie Et finita. Anno Domini M.cccc.LXViii. xvii. die decembris.'* Upon the pro- duction of this book the claim for priority of printing was set up for Oxford. In the year 1644 Richard Atkyns, who then enjoyed a patent from the crown, and whose claims conse- quently brought him into collision with the Stationers' Com- pany, and who was desirous of establishing the prerogative of the sovereign, published a thin quarto work, entitled The Original and G-roivih of Printing, collected out of the History and the Records of the Kingdome ; wherein is also demonstrated that Printing appertaineth to the Prerogative Royal, and is a Flower of the Crown of England. The book was published " hy order and appointment of the Right Hon. Mr. Secretary Morrice.^' In support of this proposition Atkyns asserted that he had received from an anonymous friend a copy of a manuscript discovered at Lambeth Pal- ace, amongst the archiepiscopal archives. The following is an abstract of this document : " Thomas Bouchier, arch- bishop of Canterbury, earnestly moved the king, Henry VI., to use all possible means to procure a printing mould, to which the king willingly assented, and appropriated to the undertaking the sum of 1500 merks, of which sum Bouchier contributed 300. Mr. Turnour, the king's master of the robes, was the person selected to manage the business ; and he, taking with him Mr. William Caxton, proceeded to Har- lem in Holland, where John Guthenberg had recently in- vented the art, and was himself personally at work ; their Printing — History. 51 design being to give a considerable sum to any person who should draw away one of Guthenberg's workmen. With some difficulty they succeeded in purloining one of the under- workmen, Frederick Corsellis ; and it not being prudent to set him' to work in London, he was sent under a guard to Oxford, and there closely watched until he had made good his promise of teaching the secrets of the art. Printing was therefore practiced in England before France, Italy, or Ger- many, which claims priority of Harlem itself, though it is known to be otherwise, that city gaining the art from the brother of one of the workmen, who had learned it at home of his brother, and afterward set up for himself at Mentz." The Exposicio is asserted by inference to be the work of Corsellis. That this document is a forgery may be safely assumed ; because of the more than unsatisfactory manner in which it is said to have been obtained ; because no one ever saw this copy ; because no one, except the unknown, ever saw the original, for it is not amongst the archives nor in the library of Lambeth Palace, nor was it when the Earl of Pembroke made diligent search for it in 17 — , nor was it found when the manuscripts, books, and muniments were moved into a new building; because Caxton himself, who took so important a share in the alleged abduction of the workman, states that twelve years afterward he was dili- gently engaged in learning the art at Strasburg, and repeat- edly ascribes the invention to Gutenberg, " at Mogunce in Almayne ;" because, when three years afterward the Sta- tioners' Company instituted legal proceedings against the University of Cambridge, to restrain them from printing, this document was rejected, as resting only on Atkyns's au- thority ; because Archbishop Parker, in his account of Bour- chicr, mentions the invention of printing at Mentz, but makes no claim for his having introduced it into England ; and Godwin, de FrcesuUhus Angelice, says that Bourchier, during his primacy of thirty-two years, did nothing remarkable, save giving 120^. for poor scholars, and some books to the univer- sity, and that he minutely examined two registers of his pro- ceedings during this term, without making any mention of his having found therein any record of so remarkable a trans- action ; because, since these transactions must have taken place before 1459, Henry VI. was at that time struggling 62 Five Black Arts. fearfully for his throne and life, Edward IV. being crowned in that year ; from internal evidence of the document itself, for, not to mention the weak evidence for the city of Harlem, it is quite certain that Gutenberg never printed there, and by Junius the theft is ascribed to John Fust, who certainly was a rich goldsmith of Mentz ; "whereupon Meerman, find- ing these statements at variance with possibility, boldly in- vents another theory, making the sufferers Koster's grand- sons, who never printed, as far as is known, and the robber Corsellis himself; and, lastly, because six years elapsed be- tween this asserted introduction and the publication of his Exposicio^ and eleven years between this and any other pub- lication from any Oxford press. Although these facts en- tirely confute the pretensions of Corsellis, there nevertheless remains the book itself, and unless some evidence can be pro- duced, Oxford will still maintain the distinction of having printed the earliest book in England. Some of the most learned bibliographers entirely refuse their assent to the gen- uineness of the book. Middleton asserts that there must be an error of an x in the imprint, and produces many remark- able instances of similar typographical errors. This, how- ever, is mere assertion ; and, as in the Lambeth record, the best evidence is to be sought in the production itself ; ac- cordingly the work is printed with cast metal types, which are not proved to have been used by Koster at all, that art being invented by Gutenberg, Fust, and Schoeffer at May- ence. The letter is of very elegant cut, the pages regular, and the whole work has the appearance of having been exe- cuted at a considerably advanced era of the art. Another and a good argument is, that the -work has signatures, or marks for the binder, at the foot of the page, which were not used on the Continent before 1472, by John Koelhoff at Co- logne. The evidence in favor of Caxton is direct and strong ; the date of the Oxford book is contradicted by in- ternal evidence, and discredited by the story set up in its support; there seems, therefore, no sufficient ground for withdrawing from Caxton the fame of being the introducer of printing into England. William Caxton was born about the year 1412, in the Weald of Kent. His father was a wealthy merchant, trad- ing in wool. He was brought up to the business of a mer- Printing — History. 53 cer, and conducted himself so much to his master's satis- faction, that on his death he bequeathed him the then considerable sum of twenty marks. Caxton then proceeded, probably as the agent of the Mercers' Company, into the Low Countries. He must have been a man of some wealth and consideration, for in 1464 he and Richard Wethenhall were appointed by Edward IV. " embassadors and special deputies" to continue and confirm a treaty of commerce between him and Philip, duke of Burgundy ; and, upon the marriage of Edward's sister Margaret with Charles duke of Burgundy, he was appointed to the household retinue of the princess, by whom he appears to have been treated with much familiarity and confidence ; for at her instigation he first commenced his literary labors, and he mentions her as repeatedly commanding him to amend his English. His first work was a translation of the Recuyell of the Historyes of Troye^ which he afterward printed at Strasburg, when his leisure had allowed him to turn his attention to the study of printing. The first production of his press is allowed to be the French Recuyell above mentioned, his second the Oracion of John Russell on Charles Duke of Burgundy being creat- ed a Knight of the Garter, which took place in 1469. Of his transactions between 1471 and 1474 there is no record ; probably he was engaged in the diligent pursuit of the art, and preparing to transfer his materials to England, which he accomplished some time before 1477, when we find him print- ing in or near the Abbey of Westminster, of which Thomas Milling, bishop of Hereford, was at that time abbot. The first production of his English press was the Game of Chess^ bearing date 1474, which work, however, some assert to have been printed by him at Cologne. His next production was the BoJce of the hoole lyf of Jason; but his first book bearing date and place in the colophon is the Dictes and Say- ings of Philosophres, a translation from the French by the gallant Earl Rivers, " at Westmestre, the yere of our lord M.cccc.lxxvij." From this time he continued both to print and translate with great spirit. His " capital work " was a Book of the noble Historyes of Kyng Arthur, in 1485, the most beautiful production of his press. There is but one copy of any of Caxton's works printed upon vellum ; it is the Doctrinal of Sapyence, " Translated 64 Five Black Arts. out of Frensshe in to Englysshe by wjlljam Caxton at West- mestre. Fjnyshed the vij day of May the yere of our lord M.cccG.lxxix. Caxton me fieri fecit." This unique copy is in the library at Windsor, and it is in beautiful preservation. It is moreover doubly unique, for it contains an additional chapter, to be found in no other copy whatever, and which is entitled " Of the negligencies happening in the Masse and of the Remedies. Cap. Ixiiij." It is a curious treatise of minute omissions and commissions likely to occur in the ser- vice of mass, with directions how to remedy such evils. Of their importance here are two specimens, " If by any neg- ligence fyl (fall) any of the blood of the Sacrament on the corporus^ or upon any of the vestments, then ought to cut off the piece on which it is fallen, and ought well to be wash- en, and that piece to be kept with the other relics." " And if the body of Jesu Christ, or any piece, fall upon the pal^ of the altar, or upon any of the vestments that ben blessed, the piece ought not to be cut off on which it is fallen, but it ought right well to be washen, and the washing to be given to the ministers for to drink, or else drink it himself." This singular treatise finishes with this grave confession, " This chapitre to fore I durst not sett in the booke, by cause it is not convenient ne appertaining that every lay man should know it et cetera." The Royal Library possesses another work of Caxton, which, as a perfect copy, is also unique^ This is the " Sub- tyl Historyes and Fables of Esope. Translated out of Frenshe in to Englyshe by Wyllyam Caxton at Westmynstre In the yere of our lord M cccc Ixxxiij Emprynted by the same the xxvj daye of Marche the yere of our lorde M cccc Ixxxiiij And the fyrste yere of the regno of kyng Rycharde the thyrde." It consists of 142 leaves. Each fable is illustrated by a rude wood-cut, all of which are said to have been executed abroad, where similar editions of ^sop were frequently printed. They are, however, most probably, copied ; for there is nothing either in their design or execu- tion that a most moderate artist might not perform ; and this will equally apply to other wood-cuts interspersed in Caxton's works. It has been said that the works of Caxton have been eagerly sought for by English bibliomaniacs. The most re- Printing — History. 55 markable instances of this are the enormous prices given for some of them at the sale of the Duke of Roxburghe's library before mentioned. The Chastysing of Crod^s Chil- dren was knocked down to Earl Spencer for 146Z. The Sessions Papers were bought for the Society of Lincoln's Inn for 378Z. The Duke of Devonshire gave 351Z. 158. for The 3Iirrour of the World, and 180^. for the Kalendayr of the Shippers. Gower's Confessio Amantis produced 366Z.; The Boke of Chyvalry, 336?. The Recuyell of the Historyes of Troye gave rise to a startling contest. It was the identi- cal copy presented by Caxton to Elizabeth Grey, queen of Edward IV. and sister of his patroness. " Sir Mark Sykes vigorously pushed on his courser till five hundred guineas were bidden ; he then reined in the animal, and turned him gently on one side ' toward the green sward.' More hun- dreds are offered for the beautiful Elizabeth Grey's own copy. The hammer vibrates at nine hundred guineas. The sword of the marquess is in motion, and he makes another thrust — ' One thousand pounds.' * Let them be guineas,' said Mr. Ridgway, and guineas they were. The marquess now recedes. He is determined upon a retreat ; another such victory as the one he has just gained (the Valdarfar Boccaccio) must be destruction ; and Mr. Ridgway bears aloft the beauteous prize in question." (Dibdin.) At Mr. Willett's sale Tullius of Old Age produced 210?., and be- came the property of the Duke of Devonshire. Caxton must have been a man of wonderful perseverance and erudition, cultivated and enlarged by an extensive knowl- edge of books and the world. Of his industry and devoted- ness spme idea may be formed, when Wynkyn de Worde, his successor, states, in his colophon to the Vitce Pairum, that Caxton finished his translation of that work from French into English on the last day of his life. He died in 1491, being about fourscore years of age. His epitaph has been thus written by some friend unknown : " Of your charite pray for the soul of Mayster Willyam Caxton, that in hys tyme was a man of moche ornate and moche renommed wys- dome and connynge, and decesed full crystenly the yere of our Lord MCCCCLXXXXi. Moder of Merci sbyld him from thorribul fynd, And bryng hym to lyflf eternal that neuer hath ynd." 56 Five Black Arts. The type used by Caxton is in design very inferior to that used upon the Continent even earlier than his period ; but in the latter part of his life he very materially improved his fonts, and some of his later productions are very elegantly cut. The design is peculiar to him, and is said to be in imitation of his own handwriting ; it bears, however, some resemblance to the types of Ulric Zell, from whom Caxton derived most of his instruction, and is something between Secretary and Gothic, He appears to have had two fonts of JEnglish^ three fonts of Great Primer, one Double Pica, and one Long Primer* He used very few ornamented initial letters, and those he did employ are very inferior in elegance to those of foreign printers. He preferred insert- ing a small capital letter within a large space, and leaving the interval to be filled up according to the taste of the illuminator, owing to which many excellent performances are destitute of these beautiful ornaments. Caxton's ink was not remarkable for depth of color or richness ; his paper was excellent ; and he probably used presses of the same con- struction as the continental printers. His works are not very rare, but are highly prized by English collectors. Copies of one or more of his works are to be found in most collections of any pretension, and are well worthy of inspection. The number of his productions is sixty-two. Although Caxton was the first English printer, he was not the only one of his day, Wynkyn de Worde, Lettou and Machlinia, Hunte, Pynson, the Oxford printer whoever he may have been, and he of St. Alban's, being his cotemporaries. Wynkyn de Worde came, as we have already seen, from Germany with Caxton, and remained with him in the superintendence of his office until the day of his death, when he succeeded to the business. He was a native of Lorraine, and evidently a man of considerable information and taste, and of great spirit in the conduct of his affairs. After his succession to Caxton's business, he carried on in the same premises for about six years, when he removed to the '' Sygn of the Sonne in flete strete, against the condyth." De Worde appears to have immediately commenced a complete renovation of the art, cutting many new fonts of all sizes, * These are tei-ms by which modern printers distinguish the sizes of their type. Printing — History. 57 with vast improvement of the design and proportion ; he moreover provided his cotemporaries, then becoming very numerous, with type ; and it is even said that some of the letter used by the English printers less than a century ago are from his matrices, nay, that the punches are still in exist- ence. He was the first (or Pynson) to introduce Roman letters into England, which he made use of amongst his Gothic to distinguish any thing remarkable, in the same man- ner as Italic is used in the present day. His works amount to the extraordinary number of four hundred and eight. " His books are, in general, distinguished by neatness and elegance, and are always free from professed immorality. The printer has liberally availed himself of such aid as could be procured from the sister art of engraving ; although it must be confessed that by far the greater, if not the whole, number of wood-engravings at this period are of foreign exe- cution ; nor is it without a smile that the typographical anti- quary discovers the same cut introduced' into works of a directly opposite nature.'* In his Instruction for Pilgrims to the Holy Land ^ printed in 1523, the text of which is in Roman, and the marginal notes in Italics, he makes the first use in England of Greek, which is in movable type, of Arabic and Hebrew, which are cut in wood ; and the author complains that he is obliged to omit a third part, because the printer had no Hebrew types. Appended to the work are three Latin epistles, in which he makes use of Arabic. His works are, of course, not so rare as those of his pre- decessor, but are nevertheless much sought after ; and, when sold by the side of the Caxtons at the Duke of Roxburghe's sale, produced large prices. Bartholomceus de Proprieta" tibus Berum, the first book printed on paper made in Eng- land, was bought by the Duke of Devonshire for 101. Is. Chaucer's Troylus and Cresseide, 43?.; Hawys's Exemple of Vertu, QOl. ; Passetyme of Pleasure, 81Z. ; Castell of Pleasure, 61 Z.; The Moste Pyteful Hy story e of the Noble Appolyon, Kynge of Thyre, 11 OZ. De Worde died about the year 1534. In his will, still in the Prerogative Office, dated 5th June, 1534, he bequeaths many legacies of books to his friends and servants, with minute directions for payment of small creditors and for- 58 Five Black Arts. giveness of debtors, betokening a conscientious and kindly disposition. His device is generally that of Caxton, with his own name added to the bottom ; but he also used a much more complicated one, consisting of fleurs-de-lis, lions pas- sant, portcullis, harts, roses, and other emblazonments of the later Plantagenets and the Tudors. John Lettou and William Machlinia printed separately and jointly before the death of Caxton, but were very inferi- or to him in every respect ; their type being most especially barbarous. Their works are not very numerous, and are principally upon legal subjects ; they printed the first edition of Lyttleton's Tenures. Richard Pynson was a Norman by birth, and studied the art of printing under his " worshipful master William Caxton." It would seem that he was an earlier printer than Wynkyn de Worde, having established an office before the death of Caxton. His first work is of date 1493, and was printed " at the Temple-har of London."*^ He enjoyed high patronage, and was appointed by Henry VII. to be his printer before 1503. He is perhaps inferior to De Worde as a typographer, his first types being extremely rude. He afterward used a font of De Worde's, and another peculiar to himself in this country, probably imported from France. Some of his larger works, Fabian's Chronicle, Lord Berner's translation of Froissart (which are the first editions of these important additions to English literature), and some of his law-works, are very fine specimens of the art. His device was a curious compound of R and P, on a shield which is sometimes supported by two naked figures. Richard Grafton claims especial notice. He was by trade a grocer, although of good family. Of his education nothing appears ; but he was one of the most voluminous au- thors of his time, having, by his own account, written a con- siderable portion of Hall's Chronicles, an Abridgment of the Chronicles of England, and a Manual of the same, a Chronicle at Larg^, and other books of historical character, under what circumstances is not known. In 1537 Grafton published Thomas Mathew's translation of the Bible, which was printed abroad, but where is not satisfactorily ascertained ; and in 1588 the Testament translated by Miles Coverdale, which was printed at Paris by Francis Regnault. At this Printing — History. 59 time it would not appear that English printers were in high estimation ; for Lord Cromwell, desirous of having the Bible in the English language, thought it necessary to procure from Henry YIII. letters to the king of France for license to print it at Paris, and urged Bonner to tender his earnest assistance. Bonner entered upon the undertaking with such zeal, that in recompense he was soon afterward appointed to the bishopric of Hereford. Miles Coverdale had charge of the correctness (see his letter, Gent.'s Mag. 1791), and Richard Grafton and Edward Whitchurch were the proprie- tors ; but under what arrangement does not appear. When the work was on the point of completion, the Inquisitors of the Faith interfered, seized the sheets, and Grafton, Whit- church, and Coverdale were compelled to make precipitate flight. The avarice of the lieutenant-criminal induced him to sell the sheets for waste paper instead of destroying them, and they were in part repurchased. Under the protec- tion of Cromwell they next, after many difl5culties, ob- tained their types and other materials from Paris, and the Bible was completed at London in 1539. "Thus they be- came printers themselves, which before this affair they never intended." The edition consisted of 2500 copies. Crom- well next procured for them a privilege (not an exclusive one, however) for printing the Scriptures for five years. Very shortly after the death of Lord Cromwell, Grafton was imprisoned for printing Mathew's Bible and the Great Bible, his former friend Bonner much exaggerating the case against him. The prosecution, however, was not followed up ; but in a short time he was, with Whitchurch, appointed printer to Prince Edward, with special patents for printing all church- service books and primers. The document is curious. It recites that such " bookes had been prynted by strangiers in other and strange countreys, partely to the great losse and hynderance of our subjects, who both have the sufficient arte, feate and treade of prynting, and partely to the setting forthe the bysshopp of Home's usurped auctoritie, and ke- ping the same in contynuall memorye ;" and that, therefore, of his " grace especiall, he had granted and geven the priv- ilege to our wel-biloved subjects Richard Grafton and Ed- ward Whitchurch, citezeins of London,'' exclusive liberty to 60 Five Black Arts. print all such books for seven years, upon pain of forfeiture of all such books printed elsewhere. One Richard Grafton, supposed to be the above, was mem- ber of parliament for the city of London in 1553-54, and also in 1556-57, and in 1562 was member for Coventry. He is supposed to have died about 1572, and not in very affluent circumstances. He used a punning, or, as the her- alds would call it, a canting device, of a young tree or graft growing out of a tun. His works are distinguished for their beauty, and are very numerous and costly. He was one of the most careful and meritorious of English printers. These are the titles of a few of his early Bibles, etc. The Byble, 1537, folio. " The Byble, which is all the holy Scripture: In whych are contayned the Olde and Newe Testament truly and purely translated into Englysh by Thomas Mathew. Esaye 1 1^^ Hearcken to ye heauens, and thou earth geaue eare : For the Lorde speaketh. M.D.xxxvii." The title of the New Testament is, " The newe Testament of our sauyor Jesu Christ, newly and dyly- gently translated into Englyshe, with Annotacions in the Mergent to help the Reader to the vnderstandyng of the Texte." This was printed in France. The New Testament, Latin and English. 1538. Octavo. "The new testament both in Latin and English after the vulgare texte ; which is red in the churche. Translated and corrected by Myles Couerdale : and prynted in Paris, by Fraunces Regnault. M. ccccc. xxxviii in Nouembre. Prynted for Richard Grafton and Edward Whitchurch, cyt- ezens of London. Cum gratia & priuilegio regis." The Byble in Englysshe. 1539. Folio. " The Byble in Englyshe, that is to saye the content of all the holy Scryp- ture, bothe of y® olde, and newe testament, truly translated after the veryte of the Hebrue and Greke textes, by y dyly- gent studye of dyuerse excellent learned men, expert in the forsayde tongues. Prynted hy Rychard Grafton^ and Ed- ward Whitchurclie. Cum priuilegio — solum. 1539." This is a very superb book, and is the one which was commenced at Paris and finished at London under the circumstances be- fore related. Newe Testament in Englysshe. 1540. Quarto. Printing — History. 61 " Translated after the texte of Master Erasmus of Rotero- dame." The Prymer. English and Latin. 1540. Octavo. The Byble in Englyshe. 1540. Folio. A noble volume, called, from the preface, Cranmer's Bjble. The Byble in Englyshe. 1541. Folio. "The Bj- ble in Englyshe of the largest and greatest volume, aucto- rised and appojnted by the commaundement of oure raoost redoubted prynce and soueraygne Lorde, Kynge Henrye the VIII, supreme head of this his churche and realme of Eng- lande : to be frequented and vsed in euery Churche within this his sayd realme, accordyng to the tenoure of hys former Jniunctions geuen in that behalfe. Ouersene and perused at the comaundement of the kynges hyghnes, by the ryght reu- erend fathers in God Cuthbert byshop of Duresme, and Nicholas, bisshop of Rochester.'* The lines of the title are printed alternately red and black. Such, with many other manuals, primers, etc., were the productions of this most eminent British typographer. The first complete edition of Shakspeare's plays was printed by Isaac Jaggard and Edward Blount, in folio, in 1623. Of his single plays, the earliest is " The first part of the Contention betwixt the two famous Houses of Yorke and Lancaster," which was printed by " Thomas Creed for Thomas Millington, and are to be sold at his shop, under Saint Peter's Church, Cornwall" (Cornhill), in 1594. These plays were printed by various typographers, amongst whom appear the names of George Eld, Valentine Simmes, R. Young, John Robson, and others who only give their ini- tials. The first edition of Milton's Paradise Lost was printed in quarto by Peter Parker in the year 1667 ; the Paradise Regained in 1671. During the troublesome times that preceded the great re- bellion, the Puritans, jealously watched and persecuted, introduced the anomaly of ambulatory presses, which were constantly removed from town to town to escape the vigilance of the Star Chamber. At these presses many of Milton's controversial pamphlets were printed; and it is even said that the identical press at which the Areopagitiea was printed is 62 Five Black Aets. still in existence, and was lately in the possession of Mr. Valpy, the well-known printer of the Variorum Classics. It is a very pleasing reflection, that the earlier practition- ers of the art did, by their uniform good character and relig- ious turn, tend much to render their profession productive of a highly moral class of literature, and to raise it in the esti- mation of all men. Had they been less respectable, had they turned their attention to the many ribald and tasteless writings of those times, the effect of the new art would have been to degrade literature and lower morals, to delay the spread of knowledge, and to give a depression to the charac- ter of the art and its practitioners, from which possibly they might never have recovered. These excellent and learned men appear to have received their temporal reward, in public estimation, sufficient wealth, and a length of years beyond the ordinary term of mortality. Setting aside the claim of Corsellis, printing was first practiced at Oxford by Theoderic Rood and Thomas Hunte from 1480 to 1485. In Rymer, vol. xv. is a grant by Queen Elizabeth to Thomas Cooper, clerk of Oxford, for the exclu- sive printing of his Latin Dictionary. In 1585 a printing- press was established at the expense of the Earl of Leicester, chancellor of the university. Joseph Barnes was appointed printer to the university in 1585. At Cambridge John Siberch printed in 1521, when Eras- mus resided there, and probably executed some of his books. Thomas Thomas, M.A., was the printer to the university in 1584. At Sr. Alban's printing was very early practiced, certainly in the year 1480. It would appear that the printer was a schoolmaster. It has been asserted, but without shadow of argument, that printing was introduced here many years be- fore Caxton, Printing was not introduced into Scotland till thirty years after Caxton had set up his press at Westminster. Under the patronage of James IV., who was a zealous encourager of learning and the useful arts, Walter Chepman and Andro Myllar established the first printing-press at Edinburgh, as appears by a royal privilege granted to them in 1507.* * "James, &c. To al and sindrj our oflRciaris legis and subdittis quham it efferis, quhais knawlage thir oun lettres salcum greting ; "Wit ye that Printing — History. 63 The only publications known to have issued from the press of Myllar and Chepman are a collection of pamphlets, chiefly metrical Romances and ballads, in 1508, of which an imper- fect copy is preserved in the Advocates' Library ;* and the Scottish Service Book, including the Legends of the Scot- tish Saints, commonly called the Breviary of Aberdeen, in 1509.t It is difficult to account for the discontinuance of printing in Scotland for about twenty years after this time ; probably the disastrous events at the close of the reign of James IV. may have contributed to render it an unprofitable trade ; but in its revival by Davidson there was no deterioration, either in the magnitude and importance of the works attempted, or in the mode in which the mechanical part was executed. It was probably about the year 1536 that he printed, in a black- letter folio, ''' The History and Croniklis of Scotland, compilet and newly correkit be the Reuerend and Noble Gierke Mais- ter Hector Boece. Translatit laitly be Maister Johne Bel- lenden. Imprentit in Edinburgh be Thomas Davidson, dwell- ing foment the Frere Wynd ;" and in 1540 he printed the whole works of Sir David Lindsay. Davidson was succeeded by Lekprevik, Vautrollier, and others ; but none were distinguished as printers till the time of Ruddiman. forsamekill as our lovittis servitouris Walter Chepman and Andro Millar, burgessis of our burgh of Edinburgh, has at our instance and request, for our plesour,the honour and proflBt of our Realrne and lieges, takin on thame to furnis and bring hame ane prent, with all stuff belangand tharto, and expert men to use the samyne, for imprenting within our Realme of the bukis of our Lawis, actis ot parliament, croniclis, mess bukis, and portuus efter the use of our Realme, with addicions and legeudis of Scottis Sanctis, now gaderit to be ekit tharto, and al uthcrls bukis that salbe sene nccessar, and to sel the sammyn for competent pricis, be our avis and discrecioun thair labouris and expens being considerit," etc. " Geven under our priv Scl at Edinburgh the xv day of September, and of our Regne the xx** yer." * These pamphlets were reprinted in a handsome quarto volume, edited by Mr. David Laing. The preface contains much accurate information regarding early printing in Scotland. J Of this Service Book, which forms two volumes octavo, handsomely printed with red and black letter, in the years 1509 and 1510, a beauti- ful copy is preserved in the University Library of Edinburgh. As the name and device of Walter Chepman occur in the work, without any men- tion being made of his partner, we are led to the conclusion that Andro Myllar, if then alive, had relinquished his share in the concern. 64 Five Black Arts. A mere catalogue of printers would afford little amuse- ment and less instruction ; especially since the productions of the English press, save in the works of the printers above named, not only exhibited no advance, but even much deteri- oration, in most requisites of good printing. Indeed, to so low a point had the art fallen, and so little spirit was exhibited by English typographers, that the regeneration was left to an alien, whose perception of the inferiority and capacity of improvement at once raised the art to the level of the finest productions of Bodoni and Barbou. This was John Baskerville, a japanner of Birmingham, who, having realized a considerable fortune, turned his at- tention to cutting punches for type, and succeeded in pro- ducing a series of fonts of remarkable beauty, so excellently proportioned, and standing so well, that the best of modern type-founders (and this seems the Augustan age of type- founding) have done no more than vary the proportions and refine the more delicate lines and strokes. Added to this, his press-work is of most excellent quality ; his paper the choicest that could be procured ; and his ink has a richness of tone, the mode of producing which has died with him. The works of Baskerville are amongst the choicest that can adorn a library. He died in 1775. His types and punches were purchased to print the splendid edition of Voltaire's works at Paris. He was worthily succeeded by Bulmer, whose magnificent Shakspeare and Milton are amongst the most superb books ever issued from the press, and, with Macklin's Bible and Ritchie's, Bensly's Hume, and other works, may be fearlessly produced to win for this country the palm of fine printing ; whilst in Scotland, Thomas Ruddiman and the two Foulis may challenge the prize of classical ty- pography from Aldus and the Stephani. Indeed, the larger Greek types of the Foulis are without parallel for grandeur, their press-work is beautiful, and their correctness beyond all praise. Modern printers, with all their faults, are not degenerate successors of these worthies. The works from present offices that make pretensions to fine printing need not be ashamed of comparison with these chefs-d'ceuvres: whilst, from the vast improvements in the mechanism of the art in all its branches, paper, presses, ink, type, and other adjuncts, the average of PRINTING. ] [ Plate 1. TTPPEB CASE * t LI II $ M 3- -In am o ■■ .' K % (E (E oe & [t & £ -■ -^ *-- y. .'a >^ % M JE le &. «> ® « n •m •.•III •Mn K K K A B c D E r o A B C D E F G « I K L M N o II I K L M N P Q R B T V w P Q R S T V W X Y z J U ] ) X T Z J U fl in LOWER CASE. •^^^_ ^^^^^^ ^^^^^^_ ^^^ ^^_ ^^^^ IB 81> 1 SI) ' 1 k 1 1 2 3 1 4 5 6 7 8 J ? )) c d e i • f g ff fi 9 z 1 m D h o y P » •w c c 5 1 X q V u t thick space. a r — — quads. 1 Figl. Printing — Practical. 65 the printing of the present day is infinitely superior to that of the last century. But in what relates to practical skill, cor- rectness, taste, and diligence, we cannot hope to excel, though we may perhaps equal, these departed masters. PRACTICAL PRINTING. The first operation when the new font* has entered the doors of the printing-office, is to lay it in the cases (fig. 1). These are always in pairs ; the upper case being divided into equal spaces or boxes; the part on the left of the broader di- vision being appropriated to CAPITAL letters, figures, di- aeresis vowels, particular sorts, etc. ; that on the right to SMALL CAPITALS, accented letters, and references. The let- ters and figures are arranged in alphabetical and numerical order, from left to right. The lower case is divided into un- equal portions, according to the average occurrence of the particular letters ; for the compositor (the workman whose duty it is to lay the font, and afterward to place together or compose the separate types into words) never looks at the face of the letter he picks up, but unhesitatingly plunges his fingers into any box, being sure that the letter he picks out thence is the one to which that box is appropriated, and con- sequently the one he requires. As there is no external mark or guide attached to the different boxes to denote the letters they contain, a stranger is not a little surprised and jmzzled at the eccentric movements of the workman's hand. Accordingly, it will be observed, upon looking at fig. 1, that the letter e has a box one-half larger than c, d, m, n, h, u, t, i, s, 0, a, r; and these are twice the size of b, 1, v, k, f, g, y, p, w, or the comma ; and four times the size of z, x, j, q, or the [] crotchets, full points, etc. These boxes are not arranged in alphabetical order, but those of most frequent occurrence are placed about the middle of the case to dimin- ish the distance the hands of the compositor have to travel in picking up and receiving the types. There are also other pairs of cases similarly arranged for the italic letters. The * A font is any weight of type of the same body and face, consisting of every letter, stop, figure, etc., in certain proportions, as stated on page 66, together with spaces and quadrats. 5 400 z 200 800 & 200 3.000 , 4,500 8,000 . 2,000 500 6Q Five Black Arts. following are the proportions of some of the letters in a font of pica* of 800 lbs. weight : Capitals, from 400 to 600 of each, but of J 80, and Q, X and Z, 180. Small capitals, from 150 to 300 of each, excepting J, q, x and z, which, as in the capitals, are reduced in number. a 8,500 b 1,600 j e 12,000 c 3.000 k i 8,000 d 4,000 m o 8,000 f 2,500 n u 3,400 h 6,400 q In a whole font there are about 150,000 letters, spaces, and figures. The compositor, having placed his copy upon a part of the upper case little used, and having received the necessary di- rections, takes up an instrument called a composing-stick (fig. 2), (which, as well as the way of holding it and its use, will be better understood by reference to the drawing than by description), and sliding the inner movable portion wider or closer according to the desired width of the page, he fast- ens it with a screw ; he then cuts a piece of brass rule to fit in easily between the end of the stick and slide, and which is called the setting-rule^ This rule causes the letters to slip down without any obstruction from the screw-holes of the stick, or the nicks which serve to distinguish one font from another and enable the compositor, by turning them out- outward, to place the letters in their proper position. He then reads the first few words of his copy, takes first a capi- tal letter from the upper case, the succeeding letters from the lower case, and at the conclusion of the word a space, which is merely the shank of a letter without any face, and not so high as a letter by about one-fourth part ; and therefore, not receiving the ink, forms the blank space between words ; but sometimes, through carelessness, it is allowed to stand up, in which case it is a fearful blotch upon a fair page, and must have been observed by most readers. He then proceeds with his next word, which will probably consist of lower case letters only ; and so on until he has arrived at the end of his line. It is most likely, however, that the words he has oc- casion to compose, with the necessary spaces, will not fill up * This is pica. Printing — Peactical. 6T the exact width of the line, and that there will be sometimes too much, sometimes too little room, for getting in the whole or part of the next word. In this case he has to consider whether it will be better to crowd the line and get in the word or syllable, or make the line more open and take it over to the next line ; his care being that his matter, when com- posed, shall not look too open or too close. Having decided, he takes out the spaces he has inserted, and puts in their stead others of greater or less width, as the case may require, in such a manner that on the face of the line being touched, it shall not feel loose, or require any particular pressure to force down the last letter into its proper place. This being accomplished in an artist-like manner, he takes out his setting- rule and places it in front of his line, and with a gentle press- ure of his thumb forces both back into the composing-stick ; he then proceeds in a similar manner w^ith other lines until his stick is full, when, placing it upon ti frame on which the cases rest, his setting-rule being in front, he lifts his lines out of the stick and places them upon a proper instrument called a galley. If, however, the matter is to be leaded, that is, if the lines of types are to be more apart than usual, the process is a little different. The compositor then has before him a quantity of pieces of metal called leads, of the exact width of the page, only one-fourth, one-sixth, or one-eighth of the body of the type, and not higher than spaces. After com- posing a line, before moving his setting-rule, he takes one or more of these and places it before the line ; he then takes out the setting-rule, and proceeds as above described. Hav- ing thus gone on until a considerable quantity of matter is composed, the compositor next makes it up into pages, and then into sheets. First, taking by portions as many lines of his matter as are to be contained in a page, he adds thereto at the bottom a line of quadrats, which are of the same height as spaces but much larger, varying in length from one to four m's, and places at the top the folio of the page and the run- ning head or line which indicates the title of the work or the subject of the page or chapter, and then adds such leads or other things as may be necessary ; taking care that in the iBrst page he places the signature (a letter of the alphabet intended for a guide to the binder, because by keeping this always out- side, and the second signature on the next leaf, he cannot fold 68 Five Black Arts. the sheet wrong) . He next ties it tightly round with page- cord, and places it upon a piece of coarse paper. Having made up as many pages as the sheet consists of, viz., four if folio, eight if 4to, sixteen if 8vo, he next lays them down upon the imposing-table* (a large plate of iron screwed on to a frame) in the necessary order. This is, to a stranger, a very curious arrangement ; they appear to him to be placed at random, without any design or fixed rule, and as they are necessarily laid down in two divisions, one for each side of the sheet, one is of consequence the very reverse of the other. He may easily instruct himself, however : for if he take a sheet of paper and fold it into any required size, marking the folios with a pencil, and then open it without cutting, he will find they fall in curious irregularity. The pages are laid down on the table reverse of the order they have on the paper ; for it must be remembered that every type and every page is like a seal, the reverse of the impression it leaves ; consequently, were the pages laid down as on the marked paper, viz., the first page on the right hand, it would, in type, be at the ex- treme left, and so on. The schemes (figs. 3 and 4) of the laying down or imposition of forms, will give some idea of the apparent confusion of this process. The pages being correctly laid down upon the imposing- table, the compositor removes the papers from under them, and next takes in both hands a chase (a frame of iron divided by cross-bars into four compartments, the inner angles of which are made rectangular with much care) and places it over them ; and then having ascertained the size of the paper to be used, adjusts pieces of wood or metal, cdiiled furniture, between them. Within the chase, but next to the pages, he places other pieces of wood or iron called side B.nd foot sticks, which are rather wider at one end than the other, and between these and the chase small pieces of wood, which decrease in width in the same proportion as the side-stick, and which are called quoins. He now takes off the cords from the pages, and, as he removes each cord, he tightens the adjacent * A large slab of marble or stone is used for this purpose ; but it is liable to split, and to have its smooth surface indented. A plate of iron turned into a lathe is now very generally substituted in England, but the marble ie commonly in use in America. PRINTING. ] [ Plate 2. I'UOOF I'll ESS. Printing — Practical. 69 quoins that the letters at the sides of the pages may not slip down. When all the pages are untied, and the quoins pushed up with his finger and thumb, he planes down the pages gently with a planer (a piece of beech perfectly plane and smooth on the face, about 9 inches long, 4 J inches wide, and 2 inches thick), to prevent any of the letters from stand- ing up. With a shooting-stick (which formidably-named weapon is merely a piece of hard wood,* a foot in length, an inch and a half in width, and half an inch in thickness) and a mallet he forces the quoins toward the thicker ends of the side and foot sticks, which consequently act as gradual and most powerful wedges, forcing the separate pieces of type to become a compact and almost united body, so that, the pages being securely locked up and again planed down, the whole mass, consisting of many thousand letters, may be lifted en- tire from the table. This united mass is called a form; that one which contains the first page being called the outer form, the other the inner (fig. 5). The compositor is paid by the number of thousands of letters he composes, which is thus ascertained : The letter m, being on a shank which is supposed to have its four sides parallel and equal, is taken as the standard ; he ascertains how many m's the page is in length, including the running head and the white line at the bottom ; that is, in fact, how many lines of the particular type used there would be in a page of the given size, supposing it were all solid type ; next, how many m's (laid on their side) it is in width, that is, how many times the letter m would be repeated in a line of the given length were it to consist of nothing but m's so laid. This latter sum is then doubled, because experience shows that the average width of the letters is one-half of the depth, or one-half of that of the letter m. The length of the page is then multiplied by the product of this doubled width, then by the number of pages in the sheet, and the result will give the average number of letters in the sheet. This will be much better understood by the following casting-up of a sheet of 8vo in pica : • Iron or gun-metal is now generally substituted, as being more durable. 70 Five Black Arts. Number of m's long 47 *' m's wide, 24 X 2 48 376 188 2256 Number of pages in a sheet of 8vo 16 13536 2256 36096 The compositor therefore is paid for composing 36,000 let- ters ; for the odd figures are dropped, unless they amount to or exceed 500, when they are paid for as if they com- pleted another 1000. If the sheet be of solid type, of the ordinary size, the price paid in London is sixpence per 1000 letters; if in the small type called minion, sixpence far- thing; in nonpareil,* sevenpence ; in pearl, eightpence. If the work be composed from print copy, the price is three farthings per 1000 less than it would be paid if the copy were manuscript. If, however, the type be leaded, the price is a farthing per 1000 less for fonts above pearl. If the work is to be stereotyped, and high spaces are used, it is subject to an additional charge of a farthing per 1000 ; if low spaces, of a half-penny per 1000. Works in foreign lan- guages, in type of the ordinary size and character, are paid one half-penny per 1000 more, and three farthings per 1000 more in the smaller. Greek, with leads and without accents, eightpence three farthings ; with accents, tenpence farthing, is eightpence half-penny per 1000 ; without leads or accents, Hebrew, Arabic, Syriac, etc., are paid double. f The com- ♦ This is nonpareil. t In 1804, after a protracted litigation before the Court of Session, the journeymen compositors of Edinburgh succeeded in obtaining the sanction of the Court for an advance of one penny per ttiousand letters, or, upou an average, about one-fourth on the prices of their work. The grounds upou which the Court rested this decision v/ere, that the wages were much too low ; that they had remained for forty years unaltered, whilst the price of the necessaries of life had very much increased ; and although it was proper to avoid a rise of wages which might lead to idleness, yet it was equally necessary to place the workmen upon a respectable footing, so as to enable them to do their work properly, and also to encourage them in cultivating and acquiring that degree of literature by which the public must infallibly be benefited ; and that the fair criterion was, to make the wages of Edin- burgh bear the same proportion to those of London which they did in the Printing — Practical 71 positor, it appears, must therefore pick up 72,000 letters be- fore he can receive an ordinary week's wages, must make up his matter into pages and impose them, and, moreover, cor- rect all the blunders mischance or carelessness may have occasioned, with great expenditure of time also in many other particulars; but, as is hereafter described, he must have previously placed every one of these 72,000 into the appropriate boxes whence he has withdrawn them in compo- sition. Now it is usually reckoned that this latter operation, called distributing, occupies one-fourth of a compositor's time, and the other operations another fourth ; he has there- fore only one -half of his time for composition ; consequently he must pick up letters at the rate of 144,000 per week, 24,000 per day, or 2000 per hour. His rapidity of motion is therefore wonderful, and the exertion is so long continued, that the business, although apparently a light one, is in fact extremely laborious. The number of thousands of letters in a sheet necessarily varies with the size of the type, width and length of the page, and the number of the pages. The example above given is the casting-up of an octavo sheet of pica solid, the page be- ing of moderate size ; a similar sheet of brevier* would con- tain 81,000 letters, and the cost of composing it would be 21, Os. Qd. Single tables, forming one uninterrupted mass of type, will sometimes contain 250,000 letters ; and the labor of the compositor being very great in getting them up, he is paid double. Consequently the cost of composing such a table in pearl or diamond § would be not less than 16^. 13s. 6c?., with- out extra charges. Yet this large number of types, by the year 1785, before the London prices were raised. That a court of law, whose province iti« not to legislate, but to apply and enforce existing stat- utes, should have entertained a question regarding the price of labor, for the regulation of which there not only existed no law, but which had never been deemed a fit subject for legislative interference, appear* to be a very singular incident in the history of judicial procedure. The prices thus fix- ed, however (namely, A^d. per 1000 for book-work, with an additional half- penny if nonpareil, and" a penny if pearl, and bid. for law-papers and jobs), being regarded as not unreasonable, have ever since been adhered to by every respectable establishment in Edinburgh. The price for composition in New York and other American cities averages 25 cents per thousand. Compositors at night and on rule and figure work are paid extra. * This is brevier. {TliiU 72 Five Black Arts. power of the wedge-formed side and foot sticks and quoins, is compressed into so solid a mass that it can be moved without much danger of disruption. The sheet being now imposed, an impression is taken called a proof, which is carried down to the reader, who having folded the proof in the necessary manner, first looks over the signatures, next ascertains whether the sheet com- mences with the right signature and folio, and then sees that the folios follow in order. He now looks over the runnins; heads, inspects the proof to see that it has been imposed in the proper furniture, that the chapters are numbered rightly, and that the directions given have been correctly attended to, marking whatever he finds wrong. Having carefully done this, he places the proof before him, with the copy at his left hand, and proceeds to read the proof over with the greatest care, referring occasionally to the copy when neces- sary, correcting the capitals or italics, or any other peculiar- ities, noting continually whether every portion of the com- position has been executed in a workmanlike manner ; and having fully satisfied himself upon these and all technical points, he calls his reading boy, who, taking the copy, reads in a clear voice, but with great rapidity and often without the least attention to sound, sense, pauses, or cadences, the precise words of the most crabbed or intricate copy, insert- ing, without pause or embarrassment, every interlineation, note, or side-note. The gabble of these boys in the reading- room, where there are three or four reading, is most amusing, a stranger hearing the utmost confusion of tongues, uncon- nected sentences, and most monotonous tones. The readers plodding at their several tasks with the most iron composure, are not in the least disturbed by the Babel around them, but follow carefully every word, marking every error, or pausing to assist in deciphering every unknown or foreign word. This first reading is strictly confined to making the proof an exact copy of the manuscript, and ascertaining the accuracy of the composition ; consequently first readers are generally intelligent and well-educated compositors, whose practical knowledge enables them to detect the most trivial technical errors. Having thus a second time perused the proof, and carefully marked upon the copy the commencement, signa- ture, and folio of the succeeding sheet, he sends it by his PRINTING. ] [ Plate 3. 5 I i e * PRINTING. ] [ Plate 4. 1^ I^HHi ■■■■1 ■i_ _ ■■MiiiM.-lM ' ^r ^^^ ■ F 1 L * » c* 'rl r 1 ! 1 i 1 rik n ■ . — ..^ - ■ ^^^^^^^^^^^H ^ HHHIHIH ^Hil 1 Printing — Practical. 73 reading-boy to the composing-room to be corrected by the workmen who have taken share in the composition. These immediately divide the proof amongst them, and each, taking that portion of it which contains the matter he had composed, and going to his cases, gathers the letters marked as correc- tions in the margin, together with a quantity of spaces of all sizes, and returns to the forms, which in the meanwhile one of them has laid up on the imposing-table and unlocked. He then with a bodkin lifts up each Une in which a correc- tion is required, draws out the wrong letter and inserts the right one, adjusting the spaces in such a way as to compen- sate for the increased or diminished size of the letter substi- tuted, overrunning carefully several lines should any word have been added or struck out, so that the spacing may be uniform, and the corrected matter exhibit no indication of any alteration having been made. This is an operation re- quiring much practice and skill ; and here is shown the value of attention in the preliminary operations. Should the types have been carelessly laid or inaccurately distributed, should the workman have been negligent in composition, capitaling, or spacing, he will consume as much time in amending his errors as in composing his matter, to the great detriment of his work, the injury and inconvenience of his employer and his companions, and great delay in every department of the printing-office. When every compositor has corrected his matter, that one whose matter is last in the sheet locks it up, and another proof is pulled, which, with the original proof, is taken to the same first reader, who compares the one with the other, and ascertains that his marks have been carefully attended to, in default of which, he again sends it up to be corrected ; but should he find his revision satisfactory, he sends the second proof with the copy to the second reader, by whom it undergoes the same careful inspection ; but this time, most technical inaccuracies having been rectified, the reader observes whether the author's language be good and intelligible ; if not, he makes such queries on the margin as his experience may suggest ; he sends it up to the composi- tor, where it again undergoes correction, and a proof being very carefully pulled, it is sent down to the same reader, who revises his marks and transfers the queries. The proof is then sent, generally with the copy, to the author for his 74 Five Black Arts. perusal, who, having made such alterations as he thinks necessary, sends it back to the printing-office for correction. With the proper attention to these marks, the printer's re- sponsibility as to correctness ceases, and the sheet is now ready for press. Such at least is the process of proof- reading which ought to be adopted ; but now, from the speed with which works are hurried through the press, the proofs are frequently sent out with only one reading, the careful press-reading being reserved until the author's revise is re- turned. It need scarcely be remarked that " correctness of the press " is a very material feature in every work, and more especially in those of a scientific nature. When the atten- tion and the mind are devoted to the train of some close argument or passage of surprising beauty, it is surprising how easily an error of the press, even although it may not injure the sense, and may be as evident '' as the sun at noon," will destroy the charm, and break the " thread of the dis- course ;" and even in works of ordinary reading they are exceedingly offensive. Many curious anecdotes are related of the methods which the earlier printers adopted to attain correctness. It was the glory of the early literati to take charge of the accuracy of new works ; and, in return, the value and sale of each edition varied with the skill and repu- tation of the corrector. Of these, Erasmus is an illustrious example. Many of the first printers were led to the prac- tice of the art by their love of learning, and their anxiety to promote it by the production of classic authors. Hence several are better known in the world of learning than in the circle of bibliographers ; as the editors and correctors of valuable works, than as the careful or beautiful printers of them. Aldus, it is true, has so admirably succeeded in both characters, that he has fully established his double fame ; but whether he was most valued himself upon his learning or his skill may be doubted. It would appear from his letters that he considered it as his chiefest duty to correct every sheet that passed through his press. In all his bustle in preparing every material in uss in his art, in all his occupations public and private, this important duty was never neglected. He tells us " that he has hardly time to inspect, much less to correct, the sheets which are executed in his office ; that his PRINTING. ] [PlATE 6. PRINTING. ] [ PlATB 6. ^iH^ n SI ►I II ^^^ ■ ^^^ L\ [)5 s B 24 a 4 ■■■^^H BSH^Hi ^B ■" ■■ B Printing — Practical. 75 days and his nights are devoted to the preparation of fit materials ; and that he can scarcely take food or strengthen his stomach, owing to the multiplicity and pressure of busi- ness ; meanwhile," adds he, " with both hands occupied, and surrounded by pressmen who are clamorous for work, there is scarely time even to blow one's nose :" nor did his son or grandson depart from his ways, but did themselves insure the correctness of their works, even when the latter had risen to wealth and eminence, and enjoyed the laborious dig- nity of a professor's chair. The beautiful Greek works of the Stephani are especially valued for their correctness. Stephens corrected his own press with intense labor and minuteness, and is reported to have adopted a singular plan for obtaining perfect similarity to the copy, by employing females who had not the slightest knowledge of the Greek characters or language to compare every letter of the proof with the manuscript ; a labor so intense as to be almost in- credible. He is moreover said to have hung up proofs on the doors of his printing-office, and to have amply rewarded any who could detect inaccuracies therein. Coverdale, it will be recollected, corrected the first English Bible and Testament, and received a bishopric as his reward. Foulis, the celebrated printer at Glasgow, adopted the same plan to insure the accuracy of his edition of Horace, which is styled immaculate ; in which, however, one error escaped de- tection, the ode commencing Scriberis Vario, being printed, as originally issued, Scribfris Vario. The experience of every printer will furnish a host of laughable errors ; and indeed these defects have been deem- ed of such importance as to deserve preservation. (D'ls- raeli's Curiosities of Literature.') The omission of the word not from the seventh commandment, in an edition of the Bi- ble printed by the Stationers' Company, is well known ; and the company richly deserve the severe fine they incurred for spreading the immoral command, " Thou shalt commit adul- tery." The Bible so misprinted has received the name of the " Adultery Bible;" and a copy is preserved in the Brit- ish Museum, the edition having been carefully suppressed. There is another Bible known as the " Vinegar Bible," from a misprint in the 20th chapter of St. Luke, where " Parable of the Vinegar " is printed for " Parable of the Vineyard ;" 76 Five Black Arts. this proceeded from the Clarendon press. In the reign of Charles I. a very curious traffic in Bibles, etc., arose ; they were printed by any one who chose, and imported in vast numbers from abroad. It will readily be imagined that these were made for sale, not for use, and that they abounded with egregious errors : but, what is worse than this, they were full of mistranslations and interpolations, and the omissions were fearful. All these were done as much by design as by acci- dent, the Romanists and sectaries taking the opportunity of advancing their own tenets by interpolating and altering texts to suit their views. These monstrous anomalies pro- duced, however, some good ; they occasioned the necessity of the authorized version now in use, and printed under such authority as insures perfect fidelity, whilst there is sufficient competition to make it impossible that the Word of God can ever become a sealed book to the humblest and poorest Chris- tian. Some of the blunders in these editions are sufficiently absurd to overcome the repugnance which must naturally be felt at such license. Thus, in Luke xxi. 28, condemnation has been misprinted for redemption. In Field's Bible of 1653, called the Pearl Bible, Rom. vi. 13, we find " Neither yield ye your members as instruments of righteousness unto sin," instead of unrighteousness ; and 1 Cor. vi. 9, " Know ye not that the unrighteous shall inherit the kingdom of God ?" for shall not inherit. It is said that these corrup- tions are in a great measure owing to Field's cupidity, and that he received a bribe of 1600^. from the Independents to alter the text in Acts vi. 3, to sanction the right of the peo- ple to appoint their own pastors, " Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom ye may appoint over this business," instead of we. This Bible is notorious, and, strange to say, valued, for its gross incorrectness. It is as- serted that no less than six thousand errors of greater or less magnitude have been noted in it. But the most extraordi- nary example of carelessness is presented by the Vulgate, the printing of which was sedulously superintended by no less an authority than Sextus V., a curious example of the infallibility of the Pope. To the astonishment of the world, it swarmed with errors ; and a whimsical attempt was made to remedy the defects by pasting printed slips of paper over PRINTING. ] [ PlATB 7. PRINTING. ] [Plate 8. Printing — Practical. 77 the erroneous passages. As this, however, was exceedingly laughable, the papal authority was exerted to the utmost to call in the edition, and with such effect that it soon became very scarce, and a copy of it has produced the sum of sixty guineas. To add to the absurdity, the volume contains a bull from the Pope anathematizing and excommunicating all printers who, in printing it, should make any alteration in the text. The monkish editor of The Anatomy of the Mass, printed in 1561, a work consisting of 172 pages of text and fifteen pages of errata, very amusingly accounts for these mistakes by attributing them to the artifice of satan, who caused the printers to commit such numerous blunders ; but he does not inform us whether it was really the archangel fallen, or only his minor satelHte, the printer's devil. The editor of an Ethiopic version of St. Paul's Epistles inno- cently confesses, in palliation of his errors, *' that they who printed the work could not read, and we could not print : thev helped us and we helped them, as the blind helps the blind." The sheet being printed off in the way hereafter to be de- scribed, and the forms returned by the pressmen to the com- posing-room, and very carefully washed with lye, and rinsed with water, the compositor lays them up on a letter-board in the sink, and there unlocks them ; he then passes one hand backward and forward over the pages so as effectually to loosen the type, and at the same time with the other pours on water, till, the lye and ink being washed away, it runs off clear. The forms are then allowed to drain, and carried to the bulks at the end of the frames. Each compositor em- ployed on the work then takes a share of the letter, and, wetting the face of it plentifully with a sponge, which causes the types to adhere sufficiently to prevent accidents, yet not so much as to retard the workman, takes up a portion on his setting-rule, with the nick upward, and the face turned toward him ; he then takes between his fingers and thumb a few letters, gives a rapid glance at the face to see what let- ters they are, and then, passing his hand rapidly over the cases, drops each into its appropriate box. In this operation the greatest attention is necessary, for it must be remem- bered that every letter dropped into a wrong box in dis- tributing is sure to cause an error in composing ; for the 78 Five Black Arts. workman, as before stated, never looks at the letter he takes up, relying upon the correctness of the distribution. Com- positors, therefore, should be especially careful, when learn- ing their business, not to sacrifice accuracy to swiftness ; for in this instance most especially is it found that too much haste is little speed. If the rapidity of motion in composition strikes the stranger with wonder, what must that of distribu- tion occasion ? Most compositors distribute four times as rapidly as they compose ; if, therefore, he pick upt wo thou- sand letters in an hour, he would distribute eight or ten thou- sand, or about three per second. His letter being properly distributed, he again proceeds to compose in the manner be- fore described, until the work is finished. The number of times the types are returned to their cases must depend upon the size of the font. A thousand pounds' weight of types would get up five or six sheets ; and therefore, in an ordi- nary octavo volume, the types would be returned five or six times. Many attempts have been made to substitute machinery for the manual labor of the compositors. The machines of Messrs. Young and Delcambre (1842), and of Major Rosen- borg, deserve mention for their great ingenuity ; and Major Beniowski has attempted a process by which, by the use of a new description of type, logotypes, cases, and machinery, a great saving of time and money may be effected. But there are requirements in the process of composing which are in- dependent of mechanism, and which have hitherto rendered these inventions practically useless. THE PRINTING-PRESS. The press is the machine whereby impressions are obtained of the type, when set up by the compositor as above described. On the skill and care of the pressman depends the beauty of the work. If the press-work be not good, all the labor of the compositor is thrown away ; his work makes no respectable appearance, and the master gets no credit. It has already been mentioned that very little alteration had been made in the printing-press from the time of the first printers to that of Blaew of Amsterdam, about 1620. Blaew's improvements, although very great, only consisted in alterations in the details, and not in the principle. These PRINTING. ] [ Plate 9. 1 a 8 S 1 s 11 S 1 s H H o 1 s II S 1 )9 mt S 1 ^ H ■ t* 1 I^^^HHNH^^^H ^1 ■J PRINTING. ] [Plate 10. & "-■ 1 ■ 00 s n ^ m HI s 1 o In lO 01 Uo Si ^ 1 i sg s H IHfll Printing — Practical. 79 presses have in their turn been superseded by those of Lord Stanhope ; and the latter has found successful competitors in the Columbian, Albion, and others of more modern inven- tion. Very few of Blaew's construction are now in exist- ence, save in old offices in England, where they are used as proof-presses, or kept merely as curiosities. As a descrip- tion of these by-gone pieces of mechanism would be of little utility, the Stanhope press, by which they have been super- seded, has been selected for illustration, for which it is best adapted, from the simplicity of its construction and its being easily explained. The novelty of his lordship's invention consists in an improved application of the power to the spin- dle and screw, whereby it is greatly increased. Upon refer- ence to fig. 6, it will be seen that this press possesses great strength and compactness. The heavy mass of iron AA, somewhat resembling a vase in outline, is called the staple. It is united at the top and bottom, but the neck and body are open. The upper part is called the nut B, and answers the purpose of the head in the old press ; it is in fact a box with a female screw, in which the screw of the spindle C works ; the lower portion of the open part, described as the neck, is occupied with a piston and cup D, D, in and on which the toe of the spindle works. On the nearer side of the staple is a vertical pillar or arbor A (fig. 7), the lower end of which is inserted into the staple at the top of the shoulder ; the upper end passes through a top-plate B, which being screwed on to the upper part of the staple, holds it firmly. The extreme upper end of the arbor (which is hexagonal) receives a head C, which is in fact a lever of some inches in length ; this head is connected by a coupling-bar E to a similar lever or head D, into which the upper end of the spindle is inserted. The bar or lever F, by which the power is applied by the workman, is inserted into the arbor, and not into the spindle, by which ingenious contrivance — 1st, the lever is in length the whole width of the press, instead of half, as in Blaew's press, and is, moreover, in a much better situation for the application of the pressman's strength ; 2d, there is the ad- ditional lever of the arbor-head ; 35, the additional lever of the spindle-head ; and, lastly/, the screw itself may be so en- larged in diameter as greatly to increase its power. The H platen L is screwed on to the under surface of the spindle ; L 80 Five Black Arts. the table M has slides underneath, which move in the riha N, N, instead of upon them, as in the old presses, and is run in and out by means of girths affixed to each end, and passing round a drum or wheel 0. As the platen is of considerable weight, the workman would have to exert much strength in raising it from the form after the impression has been given, were not a balance-weight P suspended upon a lever and hook at the back of the press, which counterbalances the weight of the platen, raises it from the form, and brings the bar-handle back again, ready for another pull. These are the principal parts of the machinery whereby the impression is given, and are sufficient to give the general reader, with the aid of fig. 7, an idea of the mechanism of the Stanhope press. For the printer there are yet other appliances. At the right-hand end of the table is an iron frame Q, moving freely upon pivots, so as to fall upon the table, or rise until stopped by what is called the galloios R ; this is covered with parchment very tightly stretched, and is then called the tym- pan ; upon the tympan blankets are placed, which are cov- ered by an inner tympan, and fastened by hooks ; the whole forming a solid yet elastic and yielding surface, admirably fitted for impressing the paper upon the type (for this is its use), inasmuch as the surface of the parchment is soft and without grain, and readily receives the impression of the type, while the blankets give freely to every projection, with- out retaining any indentation. To protect those portions of the paper which are not intended to be colored from ink or soil, there is at the upper end of the tympan another iron frame, of much lighter make, and also moving upon pivots, so as to fall upon the face of the tympan. This is covered with a sheet of coarse paper, and after an impression has been taken upon it, the exact size and form of the pages are carefully cut out therefrom, the parts left being an excellent protection of the paper under them. This is called the frisket. Such is the ordinary Stanhope press. A notice of the principle of many other excellent presses which have been since invented, and very extensively introduced, will be found in a subsequent part of this treatise. The manner of work- ing is the same in all. On the left front of the press stands the inking-table. PRINTING. ] [ Plate 11. ^ij 5. Printing — Practical. 81 This is made of iron, about four feet high, and three feet four inches wide ; at the back is a solid iron cylinder, turned perfectly true, against which a thin steel straight-edge is made to press by means of levers and weights, thus forming a trough for the ink ; of which, when the cylinder is turned round, it becomes covered with a thin film, its thickness being regulated by adjusting the weights on the levers. Against this iron cylinder the inking-roller (which will be hereafter described) is dabbed, and being rolled backward and forward on the table, the ink is evenly distributed over its surface. It must be fully understood that printers' ink is a very dif- ferent composition from that used for writing. It is of such consistency that if a small portion be taken up between the finger and thumb, when they are opened it will produce a thread of an inch or an inch and a half in length. Of all the materials used in printing this is the most important, and the most opposite qualities are required in it. It must be of excellent color. Formerly excellence of color was deemed to consist in an exceeding dark hue, not exactly black, but black enriched with a hue of the darkest blue or purple. This gave indescribable effect to the works for which it was used, a richness and intensity which it is impossible to describe, but of which the works of Baskerville and Bulmer, especially the Milton of the latter, afford the best specimens. Now we hold perfection to consist in the intensest black, and all the resources of chemistay and the arts have been sought to attain this end. It must stand for ever ; but here we have miserably failed. Compare the productions of the old print- ers with those printed twenty years back. What a difier- ence ! The works of the Aldi and Elzevirs, of Plantinus, Caxton, Pynson,and Grafton, preserve their color as intense as on the day they were printed ; there is no yellowness or brownness, no foxiness ; whilst the books printed from 1810 to 1820 are wretchedly discolored. "Where fine printing, however, has been required and paid for ^ the modern ink is no whit inferior to the ancient. Witness the works of Bul- mer, Macklin, Ritchie, Bowyer, Baskerville, and others ; but certain it is that the ink in general use twenty years ago was of very inferior quality. It must be perfectly mixed, and ground until it is absolutely impalpable, otherwise it will 6 82 Five Black Arts. speedily clog the types and inking apparatus ; it must adhere to the paper, and not to the type, or it will tear off the face of the former, and clog up the latter ; it must be sufficiently thick ; it must keep perfectly undried when in large masses, and dry very quickly when it is transferred to the paper. Few printers of the present day make their own ink, although some add ingredients which they believe to improve the color or quality. Ink-making is a distinct business ; and by the aid of machinery, capital, and exclusive attention to the manufacture, the ink now supplied is admirable in the quali- ties of being thoroughly mixed and ground, drying, black- ness, etc.; but whether it will stand the test of time, time alone can show. It is an expensive article, the commonest book-ink being one shilling and sixpence per pound,* whilst the usual qualities are two shillings and sixpence, three shil- lings, and four shillings per pound ; those used for superior work are five shillings or six shillings ; and those for cuts as high as ten shillings — though it is questionable whether, at the latter price, the consumer is not paying for a mere name. Every manufacturer has of course his own secrets both of ingredients and process. The universal ingredient is of the finest possible lamp-black ; the great secret probably con- sists in the manner in which, and the material from which, this is made. There are vast buildings appropriated to the sole purpose of burning oil, naphtha, spirits, coal-gas, etc., to produce this black, which is collected from the sides, ceil- ings, etc., of the buildings ; it is brought from Germany and many other countries ; and no expense is spared to get the most superior quality. The next most important article is nut or linseed oil boiled and burnt into a varnish ; then oil of turpentine, etc. The following receipts have been given. The first is the method used by Baskerville and Bulmer, and nothing can be better than the results : 1. Fine old linseed oil boiled to a thick varnish, and cooled in small quantities, three gallons ; a small quantity of black or amber rosin dissolved therein ; the mixture then stands for some months, that all impurities may be deposited ; after which it is mixed with the finest lamp-black, and carefully ground for use. * In England. In America, the ordinary price is thirty cents per pound. Printing — Practical. 83 2. One hundred pounds of nut or linseed oil are reduced bj boiling and burning one-tenth or one-eighth of its bulk, and to the thickness of a syrup, two pounds of coarse bread and several onions being thrown in to purify it from grease. Thirty or thirty-five pounds of turpentine are boiled apart, until, on cooling it on paper, it breaks clean, without pulver- izing. The former is poured nearly cold into the latter, and well mixed. The compound is then boiled again. Lamp- black is next thoroughly mixed with it, in quantity according to the ink required, and being well ground, the ink is then ready for use. Some add indigo, some Prussian blue, which considerably improves the color ; but these inks are so diffi- cult to w^ork, and so clog up the type, that the iwprovement is better let alone. The turpentine is added to give greater varnish, and improve the drying quality ; but if the oil be old and fine, the quantity required is proportionally less. 3. Mr. Savage, an admirable artist, denies that any ink can be depended on of the varnish of which oil is the basis ; he therefore gives the following receipt : Balsam capivi, 9 oz.; best lamp-black, 3 oz.; Prussian blue, IJ oz.; Indian red, } oz.; turpentine soap dried, 3 oz. This ink is of beautiful color, but appears to work foul. At the right front of the press stand the hank and horse. The bank is a deal table of some size ; the horse is an in- clined plane which stands upon the bank ; upon it is laid the white paper properly damped for working; and as each sheet is worked, it is taken off the tympan and laid on the bank. There are two pressmen to each press, one of whom attends to the inking only, to ascertain the excellence of which, whenever he has a moment to spare, he turns to the worked sheets upon the bank, glancing his eye rapidly over each, to see that every part is of its proper color, and that no picks or other imperfections mar the work ; the other attends only to the press, and gives the impression. These men are paid by every two hundred and fifty impressions, called a token. Thus, if the number be five hundred, and the price 4j6?. per token, each man receives ^d, for the five hundred impressions of each form, and the cost therefore is, I Inner form, two men, two token, at ^d Is. 6c?. Outer form, do do do Is. 6d. 3s. Qd. 84 Five Black Arts. The price varies with the size of the type and the form ; with the quality of the paper and the ink ; with the number, and the care required. Common work used to be paid for at 4 J J., good at 6d., superior at Id., the very best at 8c?., 9c?., or even Is. per token.* But now the price is matter of agreement between the master and pressmen. One of the pressmen, having received the forms after the final correction, lays the inner form, or that one which con- tains the second signature, upon the table of the press, and secures it in the center by quoins ; the other in the mean- while pastes a stout sheet of paper upon the frisket frame, and then secures it upon the tympan. The form is then inked, and an impression taken upon the frisket, and the printed parts only being cut away, that which is left protects the paper from ink or soil. The puller now carefully folds a sheet of the paper according to the crosses of the chase, and laying it upon the form, opens it carefully, by which the paper is made to lie evenly upon the form, with the same margin with which it is to be afterward worked. Having slightly wetted the tympan, he turns it down upon the form, and takes an impression, when the paper will be found to adhere to the tympan, and thus become a guide whereby to lay all the subsequent sheets, and therefore much care should be taken to lay it properly. They now choose their jooints, which are thin and narrow pieces of iron, having a short point or spur projecting from one end, and a shank at the other made to screw on to the tympan-frame, which must be done in such a manner that the spurs may fall into the grooves in the cross of the chase ; because if they did not, they would be battered or broken at the first pull. It is ad- visable to make the inner form register, for it may be very dijfficult to correct any error in the furniture when the m^er- ation, or outer form, is laid on. The puller now brings his paper from the wetting-room ; for before any good impression can be taken the paper must have been damped, by rapidly passing it, one-fourth or one- fifth of a quire at a time, through water, and then allowing it to soak for two or three days under a heavy weight, until it is evenly and thoroughly damped ; and laying a ream up- on the horse, he takes a sheet, and placing it carefully over * The price for hand-press work in America is twenty-fiye cents per token. Printing — Practical. 85 the tympan-sheet, closes the frisket over it, shuts both tvm- pan and frisket down upon the form, which in the meanwhile his companion has inked (a process that will be described below), runs the table in under the platen, pulls the handle of the bar or lever over by his full weight, until brought up by the stop, at which moment the platen descends, and exerts a powerful pressure to the tympan, etc., upon the form, producing upon the paper a perfect fac-simile in reverse of the surface of the pages. The pressman now gradually re- leases his hold, the balance-weight raises the platen, the bar returns to its first position, the table is run out, the tympan and frisket are raised by the workman, and the frisket thrown up to the catch. The sheet is taken off the spurs of the points, which have been forced through it by the pressure, and the back of the impression is carefully examined, to as- certain that every part of it is just and even, which is the great test of the workman's skill and the excellence of the press. The first impression is, however, invariably defective : the parchment may have been thicker in some parts than in others, the blankets worn, or one of two fonts of type may not have been of equal height, in which respect " the estima- tion of a hair" would produce a manifest imperfection, but which may be remedied by the thinnest possible tissue paper. The pressman now proceeds to overlay ; that is, by pasting upon his tympan-sheets portions of paper of the exact size of the defects, thicker or thinner as may be required, to hring up the form ; he overlays the faint parts of the impression ; or if the defect be great, he places a part of a sheet of paper within the tympan, or, which is a much better plan, he raises the form, and pastes the paper under the defective part. If there be any small portion of undue prominence, or that '• comes off hard," he rubs down a portion of the tympan- sheet with his wet fingers, or cuts it away altogether. Hav- ing, as he supposes, remedied all blemishes, he takes another impression, which he again examines with equal closeness, and carefully removes every remaining defect by the same method; and having at length satisfied himself, and his master or overseer, that the form is well brought up, the work is proceeded with, the inker taking off from the table with the roller or balls even portions of ink, which has been well distributed on its surface, and rolls or beats the form, 86 PivE Black Arts. being very careful that every part is equally inked; the puller taking a sheet and laying it on the tympan as before. They thus proceed until the whole number of the white paper is worked off; when it is a good precaution to count the heap, to ascertain that the number printed is correct. The form is now lifted from the table, and carefully washed with very strong lye. The outer form is then laid on and made ready. The making ready of this form varies a little from the mode previously described. It has been stated that the spurs of the points penetrate the paper at the first impres- sion. The holes thus made are the guides whereby perfect register is obtained ; that is, whereby not only the pages, but the lines, are made to fall exactly upon the back of each other, any variation in this respect being a great defect in good book-work. The outer form, therefore, having been placed on the table in precisely the same position which the inner previously occupied, a printed sheet is taken from the heap, and laid upon the tympan with its printed face inward, in such manner that the spurs of the points pass through the holes made by them in the working of the inner form, but of course the opposite way ; and an impression is taken. If the pages do not back, the points are shifted until they do ; or if the defect arise from the furniture of the form, such alterations are made in it as may be necessary. The im- pression is then brought up as before, and when all is ready, a thin sheet of white paper, called the set-off sheet, is placed over the tympan-sheet and under the points. It must be remembered that one side has been worked, that the ink has not yet dried, that the paper is still damp ; therefore at every impression some portion of the ink will be transferred to or impressed upon the set-off sheet. When this has taken place in many impressions, some of the ink of the print will be re- transferred from the set-off sheet to the sheet then working, producing a most unpleasing blurred appearance, very per- plexing to the eyes, and utterly destructive of the beauty of the press-work. To obviate this, the puller, after a few impres- sions, moves the set-off sheet slightly, and when it has be- come very black, takes it off, and replaces it with another. The pressman should be very attentive to this ; and the mas- ter should not grudge ample supplies of set-off paper, for it is Printing — Practical. 87 not destroyed, but, when dried, may be used again for the same purpose, or in other departments as ^Yaste paper. The form is now lifted, and carefully washed with lye, and the two are ready for the composing-room, where they are laid up, as previously described. Two good pressmen are sup- posed to do about one token, or 250 impressions, per hour of fair work. This, however, must depend entirely upon the quality of the work required; with small type, stiff ink, and many rules, the work is more slow, and paid for accordingly. The finest work is seldom paid for by the token, the press- men being placed upon weekly wages, and allowed as much time as they require, the rapidity being at the discretion of the overseer. Frequently they are limited to a certain num- ber per hour, often as few as fifty, the most careful inspection being given to every sheet by both pressmen, and continual attention by the press-overseer and other chief persons in the establishment. In such work the very best materials are employed. Instead of parchment, the tympans are covered with fine calico, or even silk ; instead of blankets the finest broadcloth ; picked blotting paper for the thick overlays, the thinnest tissue-paper for the finer. It will readily be under- stood that in all operations of the press-room, where every thing depends upon the skill of the workmen, there are in- finite minutiae, which it would be tedious, if it were even pos- sible, to enumerate. Seven years' apprenticeship are not more than sufficient to educate a good pressman ; it is the accumu- lated labor of a life to make a first-rate one : and, after all, excellence depends upon the native talent and ingenuity of the man himself. The ink is distributed over the type either by balls or by rollers. The rollers are of modern use. The balls, which are such prominent objects in the representation of ancient printing-offices, and which form part of the armorial bearings of the printers' guilds on the Continent of Europe, were for- merly made of sheep-skins, with the hair taken ofi" by lime, and formed into a ball with wool, gathered at all corners, and nailed upon a wooden handle. One of these was held in each hand ; and a small portion of ink being taken, they were well beaten upon the inking-table, and then upon each other, until the ink was so evenly distributed over the whole surface, that if touched gently with the finger, the prominent L 88 Five Black Arts. lines of the skin would be blackened, whilst the channels would be left perfectly clean. The balls were then beaten over every part of the type, so that the whole surface should be evenly covered ; an operation requiring much skill and practice. The skins were prepared and softened by the nas- tiest processes imaginable, which converted a press-room into a stinking cloaca. Thanks, however, to the observation and ingenuity of Mr. Forster, a practical printer, and Mr. Don- kin, an engineer, this has been entirely done away, and a press-room now regales the nose with a warm scent of ink and paper, any thing but unpleasant. This invention has been of the greatest consequence to printing. The printing- machine is said to be the handmaid of modern literature ; and so it is ; but without this, printing machines were mere old iron and brass. Earl Stanhope had attempted to substi- tute skin rollers for skin balls ; but his plan failed owing to the difficulty of preparing the pelts, and the inevitable seam, which left a broad mark upon the type. But the use of rollers, which in the hand-press would have been merely an improvement on a process in use, was a necessity to the print- ing-machine, and the complete failure of the earliest of these machines was in a great degree owing to the imperfection of their inking appliances. For many years the workmen in the potteries had used a composition of glue and treacle for applying colors to their ware. Mr. Forster observed that this composition possessed every requisite for the use of the printing-office, and he immediately proceeded to form balls of canvas, with a facing of composition. They answered admi- rably, proved beautifully soft, distributed satisfactorily, kept clean, and were easily washed and purified if soiled. Some opposition was offered by the workmen ; but the advantages proved so great that they were readily adopted by the mas- ters, and speedily drove away forever the nasty skins. The next step, however, was more important still. Mr. Donkin observing the adaptability of the composition to casting roll- ers for printing-machines, devised moulds, by which he was able to cast cylinders without seam, and of somewhat greater tenacity than the original compound. The rollers answered perfectly for printing-machines ; and there was little diffi- culty in perceiving that at the hand-press the roller might be advantageously substituted for beating by balls. They were [Plate 12. - A ^^5 7. Printing — Practical. 89 accordingly introduced, and after meeting with some oppo- sition, are now in universal use. They consist of a solid wooden cylinder, with a thick coating of composition cast in a metal mould perfectly true ; through the middle of the cyl- inder passes an iron rod attached to a curved bar, upon which are fixed two handles ; the roller revolving freely upon the rod. The pressman regulates the quantity of ink to be taken by adjusting the pressure of the straight edge against the cylinder at the back of the table, as above described ; and according as that pressure is greater or less, the cuticle of ink on its surface is proportionately diminished or increased in thickness. Having taken off upon the inking-roller a line of ink, he distributes it carefully upon the table until the en- tire face is evenly covered, and then rolls the. form, taking care that the whole surface receives its due proportion. If he does this lightly and steadily, there is no fear of the re- sult ; he cannot in rolling leave any part without ink ; but it nevertheless requires some judgment. If there be any heavy titles or large type, he must roll that portion several times ; if there be blank pages, he must take care that the roller does not sink, and so leave the pages in line with them slightly touched. The greatest judgment, however, is dis- played in choosing the exact quantity of ink required for the form. If the type be small, the quantity taken must also be small ; it must be very carefully distributed, and the form rolled many times ; for if the quantity be too great the type will become clogged, and if too little, the color will become faint. The pressman must from time to time examine the sheets as they are printed, and in working the reiteration, turn up the corners of the sheets to see that the color cor- responds with that of the inner form, detecting with quick eye every defect ; and he must be particularly careful that for every sheet of the same work he takes the same quantity of ink, so that the book when bound may present an even and beautiful color, every bold line being perfectly covered, and yet every fine stroke clear and distinct. This can only be effected by careful distribution and repeated rolling, with nice judgment as to the quantity of ink to be taken. The sheet having thus been worked off, the printed paper is taken away by the warehouseman, and hung by the boys upon poles stretched under the ceiUng, by means of a peel^ 90 Five Black Arts. which is a handle with a broad end, upon which a quire or two is hung at a time, thence transferred to the poles, and distributed in portions of four or five sheets. Here thej hang a day or two, until the ink and paper are perfectly dry. This should be a gradual process, for if by artificial heat the drying is hurried, a skin will be formed upon the surface of the ink, which will prevent that underneath from drying ; the work will look very well until it is pressed or bound, when the skin breaks, the ink spreads, and the sharpness of the impression is entirely destroyed. When perfectly dry the sheets are taken down and laid in heaps upon the gather- ing-board, each signature separately; thus, first, a heap, say 1000, of B, then C, D, E, F, and, lastly, the title-sheet A. The boys then take one sheet from each heap ; conse- quently, when they have got to the last signature, each boy has gathered one complete copy of the work. These are laid upon one another at the end of the gathering-board in such a manner that each book is perfectly distinct. The warehouseman then takes away this heap, and with a colla- tor (a needle inserted in a handle) goes over the whole with great rapidity, ascertaining that no sheet has been carelessly omitted, and that more than one of each signature has not been taken. The books are then folded down the middle, counted out in tens, thirteens, or twenty-fives, and tied up in bundles of convenient size. The process of printing is thus complete, and the work is ready for the binder. Works of finer description, indeed most works of the pres- ent day, are submitted to another process after they have been taken down from the poles, viz., hot or cold pressing, which very much improves their appearance. In cold press- ing the sheets are placed one by one between glazed boards, which are sheets of coarse material pressed and glazed on both surfaces by burnishing on a steel plate with a steel ball. The heaps are then placed in a hydraulic press, with cold iron plates at small intervals, and the whole is subjected to considerable pressure for some hours ; they are then taken out, and the sheets extracted from the boards, when the in- dentations consequent upon the working will have been all pressed out, the roughnesses of the paper smoothed out, a slight gloss given to the ink, and the whole will present a very agreeable smoothness to the eye and the touch. Hot-press- Printing — Practical. 91 ing is used when the paper is very stout and the ink strong. The sole difference is, that the iron plates are heated until thej can hardly be touched. The effect produced is much greater than that by cold pressing ; the whole surface of the paper is perfectly glazed, and the ink absolutely shines ; but the effect is not so agreeable to the eye ; it is too glossy. A machine of great power has been invented for superseding the use of glazed boards and the hydraulic : in this machine the sheets are placed between two plates of copper or zinc, and passed in rapid succession between two hard steel rollers, and come out more perfectly smoothed than by the ordinary hot or cold pressing. As these processes set the ink and also make the books lie perfectly flat, they render much beat- ing by the binder unnecessary, which is a great advantage, as the beating causes the ink to set-off upon the opposite pages when the work is recently printed. The glazed boards must be often cleaned by rubbing with waste paper, or they will soil the sheets placed between them. Every printing- office of credit should have an hydrauhc press and glazed boards ; for it is incredible how much smartness pressing gives to the work, and how greatly the warehouse work is facilitated by the readiness with which the hydraulic is pumped up, and by its great power. A press of eight-inch ram will be found sufficient for most purposes ; but where much hot and cold pressing are required, one of ten-inch ram will prove cheapest, because, from its immense power, a few hours are sufficient to give the requisite surface, and the press may therefore be filled twice or thrice a day. Wood-blocks are very often worked along with the com- mon type. The block, having been carefully reduced by the engraver to the exact height of the type, is placed in the composing-stick, and justified to the width of the page ; it is then made up along with the other matter in its proper place. When laid upon the press for working, and an im- pression of the form has been taken, the pressman examines with great minuteness whether it stands well with the type ; if not, the form is unlocked, and paper placed under it if it be too low, or under any corner that may be lower than the rest ; if the block be too high, it must be scraped or filed at the bottom. The artist in wood contents himself with pro- ducing his lights and shades by cutting" his lines in greater 92 Five Black Arts. or less degrees of fineness upon a plane, leaving to the printer the task of producing the required effects by a tedious pro- cess of overlaying ; so that the pressman becomes to a cer- tain extent an artist, and must have a good eye for perspec- tive and for the proper adjustment of tints. These effects he produces by careful and skillful overlaying. But Bewick and some other eminent engravers, instead of imposing this tedious process upon the pressman, used to cut away the parts of the block intended to appear light before engraving them ; and thus, by repeated lowering and rounding, they so regulated the lights and shades that the cut left their hands in a fit state to be worked. This process was, however, very costly, and has been discontinued by modern artists. In machine-printing, to prevent the loss that would be incurred if the machine were to stand still during the operation of bringing-up, the machiner, some time before the sheet is laid on, takes an impression of the cuts, and by overlaying and other processes, so prepares them that they require very little additional work when the forms are laid on. Where it can be managed, the cuts should be worked in the outer form, to prevent setting-off and the impression of reiteration upon them. The cuts may then be worked with the type without any other care than that of keeping them clear from clogging or picks. When done with, they must be very carefully cleaned with spirits of turpentine and a brush. The working of wood-cuts by themselves, as illustrations of works, differs from type-printing in no other respect than in the superior materials and skill required. The wood-cut must be imposed in a chase, and locked upon the table of the press, which is generally a smaller one than that used for ordi- nary printing, of most excellent construction, and in good or- der. The tympans are, as before stated, often of silk or cam- bric. For the inking, balls are preferred to rollers. The great- er opportunity for manual skill offered by the former enables the pressman to exercise an artistic judgment which is not possible when rollers are used. The ink is generally brayed out by a muller on a slab. There are in London, and probably in the larger provincial cities, parties who make an especial business of the manufac- ture of composition balls and rollers, which they supply to printers upon payment of a rent. The skill and experience Printing — Practical. 93 of these persons enable them, as must be the case in every instance where a manufacture engages exclusive attention, to supply a much better and cheaper article than could be man- ufactured by any individual whose engagements are varied ; consequently there are not many printers, either in town or country, who do not avail themselves of these opportunities. The rent is paid for each roller required, and by the quarter ; that is to say, if a printer employs six presses, and conse- quently six rollers, he pays for six rollers, the manufacturer engaging to supply him with as many changes as he may re- quire from their getting out of order or being injured ; in fact, to keep him supplied with six rollers in good condition. The rent for a common press-roller is the moderate sum of six shillings per quarter; they are sent into the country in boxes fitted for the purpose. There are, of course, situa- tions in which it is not easy to obtain a regular supply of the necessary article, and in this case the printer may very easily make them for himself ; but the expense of the uten- sils is so great as to exceed the usual rent for years. They consist of the following : For rollers, a hollow cylinder of iron, the bore of which must be most accurately turned and well polished ; this mould consists of two semi-cylinders closely fitted, and brought into contact by screws along the sides and collars at the end, and a head is made to fit into the lower end. The core, a wooden or iron cylinder, upon which the composition is cast, is held in the center of the bore by means of a star, through the radii of which the composition flows. For balls are required a concave mirror of about half an inch cavity, and a board of the same size and of a quarter of an inch convexity. A kettle for melting and mixing the composition is also required. This is made double like a glue-pot, fitting exceedingly close, and with a small orifice for the escape of the steam from the hot water between the two ; and the inner vessel should have a large lip. The recipes for making the composition vary, and this appears to arise from the different circumstances under which it is made. The ingredients are but three, and these easily purchasable, viz., fine glue, treacle (not that procured from the sugar- bakers, which is adulterated, but the best from the sugar-re- finers), and a small quantity of carbonate of barytes, called in commerce Paris white, or of carbonate of soda. The first 94 Five Black Arts. two ingredients are quite sufficient with a little skill. The following are good recipes : * 1. Two pounds of glue to one pound of treacle. 2. Two pounds of glue to three pounds of treacle. * An approved method of composing and casting rollers, in America, is described by A. E. Senter, pressman in Follett, Foster & Co.'s Printing and Publishing House, Columbus, Ohio, as follows : Take seven pounds of Upton's frozen glue, put it into hard water, and let it soak until the water has struck half way through it. In good frozen glue, this will be in ten minutes — in ordinary glue, considerably longer. Then take it out of the water, and let it lay long enough so that it will bend easily ; it is then ready for the kettle. The kettle for melting and mixing, should be so set as to heat and boil the composition by steam or a hot water bath, in the manner in use by cabinet-makers. Let the glue heat in the kettle until it is all dissolved, or if there should be any pieces that do not readily melt, take them out, or they will make the roller lumpy. When the glue is all melted evenly, take four quarts of good sugar-house molasses or sorghum syrup, stir it in, and continue to stir occasionally for three or four hours, during which time the heat under the kettle should be kept up so as to give the composition a gentle boil. To try the composition, take a little out on a piece of pa- per, and when cool, if it is tough so as to resist the action of the finger without feeling tacky, it is ready to cast. A person can generally tell when it is done, by taking out the stirring stick and holding it up, when, if the composition will hang in strings, it is done. A very important feature of roller-making, is in preparing the core. Strip off the old composition with a knife, and scrape the core. Keep water away from it, and also sweaty hands. If water is used at all, let it be hard water, and let the core dry thoroughly before casting. If the core is likely to give the composition the slip, brush it over with lime water newly made with quick lime, and let it dry well, and the composition will stick fast. Have the mould carefully cleaned and oiled on the inside, set it upright, with the core in its place in the center, then pour in the composition hot from the kettle, carefully, upon the end of the core, so as to run down the core, and not down the inner surface of the mould, as that would be likely to take off" the oil from the mould, and by flowing it against the core, would make it peel oflF when cast. When the composition is cold in the mould, and ready to be drawn out, draw it steadily ; trim the ends with a sharp knife, beveled toward the core, so the ends will not be so likely to get started loose ; take a hot iron and run it around the ends of the composition, soldering it to the core, which operation will prevent water, lye or oil from getting in between the composition and the wood, and making it peel at the ends. Do not wash a roller when it is taken from the mould ; it will be all the better for two or three days' seasoning, with the oil on the surface. It is always good economy to have enough rollers cast ahead, so as not to be obliged to use new ones until they are seasoned. In washing, use lye just strong enough to start the ink, and rinse off with water immediately, and carefully wipe dry with a sponge. Rollers should always be kept in an air-tight box, without water, and in the room where they are worked. Sudden changes of temperature, as from a cold cellar to a warm press-room, will soon use them up. Printing — Practical. 95 3. One pound of glue to three pounds of treacle and a quarter of a pound of Paris white. (Sugar is sometimes used in lieu of treacle, and is said to make the composition firmer.) Soak the glue in water until it is soft ; then place it in the inner vessel, and boil quickly, until the glue is thoroughly dissolved ; add the treacle, mixing it well, and let it boil for an hour or more ; then sift in the Paris white, but do not stir it violently, or the mixture will be full of air-bubbles, which are destructive to the roller or ball. Rub the mould slightly with a rag dipped in thin oil, taking care that no globules and streaks remain upon the surface. When the mixture is ready, pour it gently between the radii of the star, so that no air be detained within the cylinder, until the mould be filled ; allow it to set, and then take it from the mould, cut- ting off the superfluous portion with a string. When the roller has been hung up twenty-four hours it will be fit for use. Owing to the rapidity of the printing-machines re- cently introduced, the ordinary rollers have proved inade- quate to the work ; but improvements have been introduced into the manufacture which remedy the defect. The ex- cellence of the new rollers is said to depend entirely on skillful manipulation. The ingredients are the same, but great experience is required in the choice of the glue, the proportion of the ingredients, the mixture, and the heat ap- plied. In making balls, having oiled the mirror, pour the composition upon the center, and having allowed it to spread itself, lay over it a piece of coarse canvas, place the board upon it, and lay weights upon it to press it down ; it will consequently be found that the composition face of the ball will be slightly thicker in the center than at the edges, which, besides being a convenience in the working, will allow it to be knocked up with much facility, which is done in the ordi- nary manner. These balls and rollers are very easily kept in order : if they are too soft, cold water will harden them ; if too hard, warm water will soften them. When not in use they should be covered with refuse ink, and hung up in a room of even temperature, and carefully scraped with a pal- let-knife before use. They should not be cleaned with spirits of turpentine, as that will give them a hard surface. These rollers will be fit for use for a long while if attention be paid 96 Five Black Arts. to them ; and when spoiled, the composition may be repeat- edly melted down, and, with an addition of new materials, will make as good rollers as before. When the proper apara- tus is wanting, small balls for wood-cuts or single pages may be made upon an earthern pallet, or even upon a smooth dinner-plate. A new process has recently been patented by Messrs. Har- rild for the manufacture of composition rollers, which enables them to resist the friction of the fastest machines even in the warmest weather, and to continue in working order for a much longer period than those at present in use. They are also but slightly affected by atmospheric changes. These are great advantages for the fast newspaper machines, and for country printers who have not the same facilities as the print- ers in the metropolis for changing their rollers when out of order. The principal difference in the new process is, that the glue is liquified without any admixture of moisture, the condensed steam which floats on the surface of the glue be- ing entirely drawn off by a syringe. STEREOTYPING. Stereotyping is a mode of making perfect fac-similes in type-metal of the face of pages composed of movable types. Letter-press printing being a very expensive process, the price of books consequently high, and the heaviest expense consisting in the composition, the printers of the Continent very soon set up the entire of such small works as were in constant demand, and thus were enabled to sell them at little more than the cost of paper and press-work. Some works of very great extent, especially Bibles and prayer-books, were kept standing by the privileged printers. This, how- ever, was exceedingly expensive, as the cost of the type would be very great ; the forms would occupy much space in stor- ing, and be liable to continual damage from the dropping out of letters, from batters, and other accidents to which they would be unavoidably exposed. Some method, therefore, by which all or some of these disadvantages might be remedied, became desirable. About the beginning of the eighteenth century, Van der Mey, in Holland, sought to avoid this lia- bility to accidents, by immersing the bottom of his pages in Printing — Stereotyping. 97 melted lead or solder, and thus rendering them solid masses: " c'est une rdunion dcs caracteres ordinaires par le pied, avec de la matidre fondue, de Tdpaisseur d'environ trois mains de papier a ^crire ;" therefore the mass together would be somewhat less than the height of our type. It is not very easy to imagine how they contrived to make the backs of these blocks of such evenness as to produce any thing like a good impression ; but Dibdin says that the hook is very handsome. The same process was followed by a Jew of Amsterdam, in printing an Enghsh Bible ; but he was utterly ruined by his speculation. Some time before the year 1735 there is sufficient evidence that the French used casts of the calendars placed at the commencement of church books. These plates are thus de- scribed by Camus : " It (one of the plates) is formed of copper, and is three inches and a half long by two inches broad and one-seventh of an inch thick. From the rough- ness of the casting, it has evidently been made in a mould formed of sand or clay." After the plate had been cast, the back of it had been dressed with a file, in order that it might bear equally upon a block of wood to which it had been attached. Who really invented the art of stereotyping as at present practiced (and after all, he who finds out the efficient modus operandi is the inventor of the art, though he may not be of the principle) is, like the inventor of the parent art, a mat- ter of some controversy, which has been carried on with more vigor than the subject merited. It seems, however, most probable, when all assertions are weighed, that WilUam Ged, a goldsmith of Edinburgh, deserves the credit. According to his statement, being in 1725 in company with a printer, they lamented the want of a good letter-founder in Scotland ; and the printer asked him whether he could do any thing to remedy the inconvenience. He immediately answered that it would be more easy to cast plates from pages when com- posed in movable type ; and he undertook to produce, and very shortly did so, a specimen cast on his new plan, and not long afterward made arrangements with a capitalist for the advance of the requisite funds. The latter failing to perform his part of the engagement, Ged made a similar con- tract with a London stationer, in conjunction with whom he 7 98 Five Black Arts. made many attempts ; but being repeatedly thwarted in per- fecting his plans, he separated from his partner, and made proposals to the universities and the king's printers for the stereotyping of Bibles and prayer-books. These all entered into the scheme with eagerness, and some works were pro- duced from plates quite equal to the ordinary printing of the day. Nevertheless, so much ignorance and prejudice pre- vailed amongst the workmen and other interested persons that Ged was obliged to abandon the undertaking. He entered into several subsequent arrangements, in which he was equally unsuccessful ; a type-founder, in particular, causing so much opposition that the invention made no progress. Ged died before he had met with much encouragement ; and his son was equally unsuccessful, although, as the practica- bility was made more manifest, the very parties who had re- jected his plans, subsequently made extensive use of his plates. What was Ged's method of stereotyping is unknown, as he kept it private ; nor did he fully communicate the se- cret to his partners. Fifty years afterward Mr. Tilloch made a similar invention : but from private circumstances the design was laid aside, not, however, before several volumes had been printed from his stereotype plates at the press of Mr. Foulis. Some years after this. Lord Stanhope engaged an ingenious London prin- ter, Mr. Wilson, to prosecute the invention ; and after many trials, the noble lord's ingenuity succeeded in bringing the invention to practical use. When a work is expressly intended to be stereotyped, the spaces, quadrats, and leads generally used are somewhat diflferent from those commonly employed, being cast of the same height as the stem of the letter, in order that the base of the plate may be more solid and of uniform thickness. When low spaces, etc., are used, plaster is poured upon the face of the type to fill up the interstices, and just before it sets the superfluous plaster above the stem of the letter is removed by a brush, which damages the face of the type not a little. The page is composed in the ordinary manner, and very carefully corrected ; it is then imposed in a small chase with metal furniture, and the whole is placed within a moulding-frame, somewhat less than half an inch higher than Printing — Stereotyping. 99 the type. The surface of the type is then rubbed with a soft brush holding a small quantity of very thin oil. The plaster of Paris (gypsum) of which the mould is formed is of the finest quality, and may be purchased ready prepared. Having been carefully mixed with water to the thickness of cream, a small portion is gently poured upon the surface of the page, and softly worked in with a brush, care being taken that every part is fully covered, and that no air-bubbles remain. Then a larger quantity is poured on, and spread over the previous layer without disturbing it ; a straight-edge is then passed over the moulding-frame, clear- ing away the superfluous plaster, and leaving that within the frame of uniform thickness. It is then left to set. When sufficiently dry, the moulding-frame is raised, and the mould with it, from off the face of the page ; the mould is then dressed, and placed in a heated oven until it be perfectly dry, and raised to an adequate temperature for the casting. The oil with which the page is rubbed prevents the plaster from adhering to the type. The melting-pot is a square vessel of iron about two inches and a half deep, having a separate lid, of which the four corners are cut off, the inner face being turned true, but the outer face hollow toward the center. A floating plate, of which the upper surface is turned, is placed at the bottom of the pot. Over the melting-pit is a crane with a rack, upon which a pair of nippers are made to run. These lay hold of ears upon the melting-pot, closing with its weight, and open- ing when relieved. The metal does not differ from type- metal, and must be sufficiently fluxed to flow easily, but not made too hot, or it will prove brittle. The melting-pot having been heated in the same oven with the mould, and conse- quently to the same temperature, the latter is placed within it, the face being turned down upon the floating-plate. A bar or other piece of iron is screwed down upon that part of the lid which is turned hollow ; and the whole being suspend- ed by the rack and crane, is swung over the melting-pit, and gradually let down into the metal, which flows gently into the pot through the openings left at the corners. The metal flowing slowly in gradually dispels all the air ; the mould immediately rises to the inner surface of the lid ; the float- ing-plate being specifically lighter than the metal, rises also 100 Five Black Arts. to the edge of the mould ; consequently the metal which has run in between is of the exact thickness of the depth of the mould, the upper surface being the field upon which are the casts of the type, the under surface the smooth surface of the floating-plate, and the rest of the melting-pot being filled with metal. The pot is allowed to remain immersed ten min- utes or a quarter of an hour, that is, until the air is supposed to be perfectly expelled. It is then drawn up, and swung to a board resting upon a trough of water, and there allowed to cool. The cooling is a process requiring much care and attention. It is obvious that unless the whole mass cool equally, the plate will be warped, and consequently spoiled ; it is equally clear that the heat will more readily radiate at the corners, and consequently that the center will remain fluid after the other parts are set, and that the contraction must be unequal. This is provided against by the lid having been turned hol- low in the center, and it will therefore allow the metal under it to cool more rapidly. The mass having been turned out from the pot, the metal under the plate is separated by a smart blow or two of the mallet ; the floating-plate will be readily disengaged, and the mould be removed from the cast. Some defects will invariably be found in a new plate ; but these are removed by the picker, who goes carefully over it, clearing away the picks from the face of the letter, and deep- ening the larger white lines with a graver, that they may not blacken in working at press ; for it must be remembered that the quadrats and spaces used in stereotyping are higher than those in movable-type printing. If the face of the plate has cooled evenly, and it is in other respects a successful cast, it is placed, the face inward, in a turning-lathe or planing-ma- chine, and the back rendered a plane parallel to the face ; the margins are then squared, and the edges flanched. The plate is now ready for use. If any errors or batters occur in the plates, they are cut out, and the corrections made with movable type let in and soldered at the back. A great improvement in the stereotype art was a number of years ago introduced by Mr. Thomas Allen, printer in Edinburgh, into his establishment, by which a number of plates are cast at once, whilst the risk of broken casts is con- siderably lessened. This is effected by means of a pot suf- ficiently deep to contain moulds placed in a perpendicular Printing — Stereotyping. 101 position. The pot is an oblong square cast-iron box, widen- ing toward the mouth, and having placed inside, at each end, a wedge-like block, of which one face is parallel to the side, while the other is perfectly vertical. On the vertical side are perpendicular grooves, at distances rather greater than the thickness of a stereotype mould. Into these grooves are inserted plates of malleable iron, by which the interior of the box or pot is partitioned into spaces sufficiently wide to admit with ease the plaster moulds. The moulds, when baked, being inserted into these spaces, a cross bar of metal is placed over the top, instead of a cover, which serves to prevent the moulds from being raised by the liquid metal flowing beneath them ; and it is then suspended upon the crane, and dipped into the metal-pit in the usual way. By this method not only the moulds are saved from all risk of breaking by being placed horizontally and pressed between the two broad surfaces of a float-block and cover, as in the method of single-page casting, but a number of plates are produced at one cast, and thus additional celerity is combined with greater certainty of sound plates. The plates of the Encyclopoedia Britannica^ which is the most extensive work ever stereotyped, were for the most part produced by this process, in pots containing each five moulds ; and it is especially advantageous for large plates, the risk of breakage by the old method increasing in a greater ratio than the increase in the size of the page. The plates are sometimes screwed down at the corners upon blocks of wood, the height of which is the difierence between the thickness of the plate and the height of the type. This answers very well for jobs and standing adver- tisements ; but for ordinary book-work it is usual to have the blocks formed of several separate pieces of mahogany furnish- ed on one side and at one end with brass or iron catches (let in and screwed to the blocks), the upper part of which is turned over so as to take hold of the flange of the plate. But as wood is liable to warp and to other accidents, a plan has recent- ly been devised of making hollow blocks of type-metal of the requisite height and of different sizes, by means of which pages may be easily composed to any required size, the plates being fastened on by brass holders. At a small expense, once in- curred, the stereotype printer may furnish himself with 102 Five Black Arts. blocks capable of being made up to suit works of any meas- ure. There are many smaller instruments requisite, which it is unnecessary to mention. The founder requires some prac- tical skill, which, however, it is not difficult to acquire ; and the excellence of the casts will depend upon his personal knack and observation. The best metal for stereotyping is composed of new metal and old type in moieties. The price of prepared metal is about 28s. per cwt.* The following, however, are proportions which may be used when the pre- pared metal cannot be procured : 1. From five to eight parts lead, one of regulus, one fiftieth of block-tin. 2. One seventh of pure regulus, six sevenths of lead. The best lead is that which comes from China, in the lining of tea-chests. The mixing of the metals is exceedingly injurious to the workman, and should be avoided whenever it is possible. The foundery should be thoroughly ventilated, as the fumes from the melting-pit, and the moisture and smell of the drying oven, are very noxious. In some cases stereotyping is of great advantage ; but chiefly in books of numbers, in which it is of the utmost importance that every figure should be correct. In this case the proofs must be read again and again, until the correctness is unquestionable ; when once stereotyped, there is no fear of alteration from the error of compositors or carelessness of readers, but the book remains the same for ever. Such works also are most expensive in getting up, and the cost of composition very much exceeds that of stereotyping. Books of logarithms may be especially mentioned, tables of longi- tude, indexes to maps, and other works, which being once written, remain unchangeably the same, such as ready reck- oners, interest tables, etc. ; or when it is found expedient to have duplicates of the work where large numbers are required, and it is necessary for speed to work on double-sized paper, the cast and the movable types are imposed together, and are worked side by side at the same moment, producing two copies instead of one. There is also another advantage, for * la the United States, about $10 per cwt. I Printing — Stereotyping. 103 the stereotype remains without further expense for another edition ; again, where it is expedient to send duplicate plates to other countries to be worked. Wood-cuts may be stereotyped with great advantage ; for a small cut which has cost several guineas to engrave may be multiplied indefinitely, and at a cost of only a few shillings^ No printer should stereotype by the common process who wishes his type to be a credit to his house. The wear of the type in casting is very great, especially when low spaces, etc., are used ; the gypsum is at best a fine powder, and grinds away the edge and face of the letter when rubbed in with the brush, in a frightful manner. The letter can never be entirely freed from the plaster, and will present a very dirty appearance ever after. The wear of a font of 1000 lbs. weight, returned six times from the foundery, is greater than would occur in six years' constant fair usage ; besides which, the high spaces, quadrats and leads, are all extra ex- penses, for which the economical bookseller makes no remu- neration whatever. The plan of stereotyping Bibles and prayer-books has been nearly abandoned, and the entire sheets are kept standing, in movable types, at a great expense, by the Queen's printer, and the universities of Oxford and Cambridge. Before every edition, however, is worked, each sheet must undergo a care- ful reading, in order to guard against accidents which may have occurred since the last edition. Such is the process of stereotyping at this time in com- mon use, and which will probably continue in practice in provincial and colonial printing-offices, by reason of the readiness of the materials and the knowledge now acquired by the workmen. A greatly improved method has, however, been recently introduced by Messrs. Dellagana, by which all the incon- veniences incident to the existing system are obviated. The page is composed with the ordinary spaces, leads, etc., and there is therefore no additional charge for composition ; the destructive tampering with the face of the type is avoided ; the plast«r-mould is not required ; and there is no necessity for reimposition, as the new moulds can be taken from the pages as they are imposed in the chases ; and the forms can be returned to the printer within an hour from the time of 104 Five Black Arts. their being sent to the foundery. So great are the resources of this invention that the largest or the smallest pages can be cast with equal facility, and either plane or curved to suit the periphery of cylinder machines. The pages, for instance, of The London Times newspaper are each cast in a single plate, in a curved form to fit the cylinders of the great machines used in that establishment. The following is a brief account of the process : A page of a newspaper or a sheet of book-work (as im- posed), carefully cleaned and perfectly dry, is laid on an iron chest previously filled with hot water. A fine brush, having the whole of its surface slightly anointed with olive oil, is rubbed over the face of the type to remove any picks or other impurities from the pages, which are then ready for moulding. A substance, in appearance resembling two or three sheets of wrapper-paper pasted together, of a soft and pulpy nature (the matrix), understood to be composed of an earthy material very finely ground, and afterward felted to- gether, and which is not affected by heat, in a damp state, is laid smoothly on the face of the type, and carefully beaten in with a brush until every letter is indented into this substance, and the matrix is thus formed. The type, with the matrix unremoved, is taken to a press and subjected to a steady pressure, continued for two or three minutes. The matrix is then removed from the type, which may now be returned to the printer. Not more than ten minutes is required for these operations. The matrix is next laid upon a plate heated to 200° or 300°, and covered with a piece of flannel (as a non-conductor of heat and an absorbent of the moisture gen- erated in drying) upon which is placed a thin metal plate of the dimensions of the page or form, to keep the matrix flat. [t remains on this hot plate about two minutes, and is then ready for casting. The matrix, with its face upward, is now placed in a "register" flat or curved, as the plates are required to be plane or convex. The register is formed of two iron plates, the inner surfaces of which are accurately planed ; these plates are joined together by hinges at the further end. The matrix is placed, face uppermost, on the lower of these plates, and is secured on three sides by an iron gauge, which varies in height according to the intended thickness of the plate about to be cast. The upper plate is Printing — Stereotyping. 105 closed over, and the two, inclosing the matrix, are firmly clamped together by an iron bar which passes over, with a screw in the center, which presses the two plates upon the gauge. The register swings upon trunnions ; and thus prepared, is turned into a vertical position, and the metal, at a temperature of 500°, is poured in through a mouth. In one minute the metal is set sufficiently hard to bear removal, the register is brought back to a horizontal position, the upper plate is thrown back, and the cast and matrix are taken out and placed (the matrix uppermost) on an iron table, which is flat or curved like the register, otherwise the cast in cool- ing would contract or spring, and its flatness or curvature would not be preserved. The matrix may now be carefully lifted off", and, if required, again placed in the register for another cast. The curved casts for newspapers are fixed on the cooling table by four screws, and the dressing is performed by a tool on the lever principle, which cuts ofi" the flange or waste piece of metal at the top of the page, and bevels it at the same time. For book-work, the under surface of the cast is planed, as in the ordinary mode. A little chiseling is required to lower the white and break lines, to prevent their blacking the paper when worked. The casts obtained by this process are remarkably true, and require little "bringing up.'^ The matrix is uninjured by the casting, and may be used again for any number of casts, or preserved for future use. The power of multiplying casts from the same matrix is of im- mense advantage where large numbers are required to be printed in a short space of time. As before stated, a matrix and the first cast may be obtained in less than a quarter of an hour, and several subsequent casts will not require more than five or six minutes each. In half an hour, therefore, several machines may be at work simultaneously. It is of course not necessary that any cast should be taken from the matrix ; and therefore when a second edition of a book is doubtful, the matrix only need be made, and may be kept until required, at a cost of not more than one-third of a casting ; and when used, may be put by without inconven- ience, and another cast taken when the first is worked out or injured. In book-work also this process will be found of great ad- 106 Five Black Arts. vantage, as compared with the charge of recomposition. The matrices of a work of 500 pages would occupy no more space than a ream of demy, and not weigh more than 10 lbs. They will remain unchanged for years if preserved free from damp or water. The cost of casts by this process is about 10 per cent, less than by the ordinary mode ; and the proportions of lead and regulus used in the composition of the metal are those given above in recipe No. 2. The great excellence of the imperial Austrian printing establishment in the art of stereotyping should not escape mention. In the Exhibition of 1851 were some magnificent moulds taken from type by the electrotyping or galvano- plastic process. From these moulds other copies in relief were obtained by doubling the process, which are stated to produce beautiful work ; or casts in type-metal could be taken of great perfection. A curious specimen was also exhibited, the work of the Rubeland ducal foundery, of a stereotype- plate of cast-iron. OF POLYTYPAGE, AND OTHER METHODS OF PRODUCING PRINTING SURFACES ON METAL PLATES. Many considerable improvements in stereotyping are to be ascribed to French artists ; but stereotyping has never been a favorite with them, and they have rather exerted their inventive talents in a series of experiments which may be classed under the general name of polytypage. In 1780 Hoffman, a German residing in France, not satis- fied with his success in stereotyping, made many ingenious experiments in polytypage. Whilst he was thus engaged, a practical printer named Carez discovered a method which Hoffman afterward pursued. The page, after being composed in the ordinary manner, was attached, with the face down- ward, to the under side of a heavy block of wood, suspended from a long beam. Immediately under the page was an anvil, whereon was a tray of oiled paper into which the workmen poured a portion of type-metal, attentively watching the cooling. When the metal was on the point of setting, the page, block, and beam, were brought down with a very smart blow, forcing the face of the type into the setting metal, and producing a very sharp matrix ; which again was made to Printing — Polytypage. 107 take the place of the type upon the block, was struck in a similar manner upon the fused metal, and thus produced a perfect and excellent polytjpe plate. This having been properly dressed at the edges and back, was affixed to the usual wooden raiser and made type height, and might be printed separately or in conjunction with movable type. Several cases might be made from the same mould. This process was designated cliche. Ign, a native of Alsace, who settled in Paris as a printer in 1784, availing himself of the discoveries made in the art of stereotyping, endeavored to extend them by inventing logotypy, or the art of uniting several characters into a single type. He printed on solid plates several sheets of his Jour- nal Polytype^ and advertised Father Chenier's Recherches mr les Maures, 3 vols. 8vo, as a polytyped book ; but being deprived of his printing-office in 1787 by a decree of the council, he was prevented from executing his design. In 1791 M. Gegembre made considerable improvements in the art of polytyping in printing the fifty-sous notes of the Caisse Patriotique. lie caused the whole print of the notes to be engraved in relief upon a plate of steel, and this en- graving he pressed into a plate of copper, from which poly- type casts were taken. Any number of these casts could be taken from the copper mould, and if by chance the copper mould became injured, a new one could be readily made from the steel engraving. When the revolutionary government commenced issuing assignats, it became necessary to have an immense number of plates to work the enormous quantity required of these documents. A design having been approved of, artists were employed to engrave three hundred fac-similes. Of course, if three hundred so-called fac-similes could be engraved, other artists would find no difficulty in engraving another hundred, nor could even the bank-officers tell which document was printed from a forged fac-simile and which from the plates engraved by their authority. The consequence was an utter want of confidence in the government paper. To remedy this, the committee of assignats caused many experiments to be instituted for the production of plates which should be not only imitative and similar, but pro re identical. The plan adopted was the engraving a plate in intaglio on steel, from 108 Five Black Arts. "which copper matrices were obtained in relief. From these perfect fac-similes of the original engraving were struck and were worked by the roller-press in the manner of copper- plates. But it was a great defect in this process, that the air compressed within the hollows of the letters frequently destroyed the form in the reproduction. Upon the suppres- sion of assignats this establishment was broken up ; but some of the plates and matrices are preserved in the public reposi- tories of France. Poly typing, as now practiced in England, is confined to the production of casts from metal plates in intaglio and from wood-cuts. Instead of the cumbrous machinery employed by Carez, a fly-press is used, the wood-cut is fixed upon what may be called the platen, and a tray containing semi-fluid metal is placed upon the table of the press immediately under the cut to be matriced. By a slow motion the cut is im- pressed into the metal, and an intaglio matrix is produced. The matrix is then attached to a drop stamp to perform the cliche process, and by the rapid descent of the stamp with the matrix attached into a tray of molten metal, a polytype in relief is obtained. The type-founders have adopted this process for the production of casts for their ornamental de- signs ; and Mr. Bramston has practiced this mode so success- fully that he is able to take fac-simile polytype casts of the most elaborately engraved wood-cuts, without in the slightest degree injuring the original. A method of producing raised surfaces for the purposes of printing has of late years been extensively used in Paris and London, chiefly for forming maps and rough designs for the cheap illustrated press. The art is of French origin, but has been patented in England. In a patent granted in 1853 to Mr. Vizetelly it is described for "improvements for produc- ing plates for printing surfaces, by which the manipulatory process of engraving is superseded.'' A plate of highly-polished zinc, copper, or steel, is thor- oughly rubbed over with very fine pounce powder moistened with water, and then with a soft dry piece of linen it is again rubbed until no greasy appearance remains on the surface, which is now in a fit state to receive the transfer. Where the engraving has been recently printed, say within a month, the transfer is thus effected : The print is soaked Printing — ^Polytypage. 109 for five minutes in a flat dish containing a liquid composed of seven parts of water, one of azotic acid, and six drops of phos- phoric acid. It is then taken out and placed between two sheets of blotting-paper, to absorb the superfluous moisture, after which it is laid on the prepared plate and covered with a sheet of soft paper, and subjected to the strong pressure of the lithographic press. When the transfer is thus eSected, the plate is washed with a sponge moistened in a solution of gum-arabic, slightly acidulated with nitric acid ; this prep- aration having remained on the plate for five minutes, is sponged ofi* with clean water. While the plate is still wet, a lithographic roller charged with ink composed of bitumen of Judsea, powdered very fine with a muller and mixed with linseed oil, is passed over it. The linseed oil must be of the purest quality, and be boiled for at least an hour, and after- ward filtered through a felt bag containing some animal black. For zinc plates, lithographic transfer-ink and melted virgin wax, well mixed and ground together, must be substituted. When the plate is well rolled over with this ink, it will be observed that the transfer only has taken up the ink, the parts of the plate where the lines of the print do not occur having no power to take it up. While the ink is still wet, some resin, ground to an impalpable powder, is distributed over the plate with a piece of cotton wool or a camel's hair brush, care being taken that it adheres to the inked trans- fer only, and not to the other parts of the plate. The plate is now placed over a spirit-lamp, and gradually heated until it becomes luke-warm, in which state it is allowed to remain undisturbed for at least two hours ; if expedition is not re- quired, it will be better not to disturb the plate for twelve hours, as the resin and ink will then have thoroughly com- bined, and more completely protect the portions of the plate covered by the transfer from the corroding action of the acid, by which the surface in relief is produced. Before the plate is subjected to this " biting" process, it is necessary to cover its back with a varnish or other substance, to protect it from the action of the acid. When this is done, it is placed in a slanting position, and a liquid composed of nitric acid, diluted to about 4° Reaumur, for zinc and steel plates, and to about 12° for coppers, to which is added a table-spoonful of spirits of wine to every half-pint of acidulated water, is applied with a 110 Five Black Arts. clean sponge to the surface of the plate. This bathing is con- tinued for a quarter of an hour, and pure water is then poured over the plate until the acid is entirely washed off. The plate is then again sponged over with the slightly-acidulated gum- water, reinked, submitted to the action of the acidulated water, and washed with pure water as above described ; and these operations are repeated four or five times, until the ex- posed portions of the plate are so much bitten away by the acid as to leave the transfer suflficiently in relief to be printed from. The " whites," i. e. the blank spaces in the engraving, must be lowered or removed to prevent their receiving the ink in process of printing, and blacking the paper. This is effected by covering the surface of the raised lines of the transfer, and the sides also where practicable, with engraver's varnish, which is composed of bitumen of Judaea dissolved in essence of turpentine, with the addition of lamp-black to make it of a proper consistency, and allowed to stand two hours before it is used. The plate is then bathed with the solution of acid- ulated water and spirits of wine, and washed as before de- scribed ; but in this operation a stronger solution is used, being 8° instead of 4°. "Where the whites are very large, essence of spikenard (aspic) is substituted for essence of tur- pentine, or they may be lowered by scrapers or gouges, or cut out with a fine saw. Great care must be taken that the bi- tumen is entirely dissolved, and that the varnish is made of the proper consistency. A raised printing surface being now produced, the plate is cleaned with turpentine and well rubbed over with charcoal, after which it may be mounted on raisers to type height, and used as a stereotype cast. When an old print is to be transferred, it is treated in the manner commonly employed by lithographic printers prior to making a transfer. Anastatic printing is a process by which a print, whether from type or a copperplate, maybe reproduced without draw- ing or engraving. The print is saturated with a strong so- lution of nitric acid ; it is then placed between sheets of blot- ting-paper, and the superfluous fluid absorbed ; after which it is laid, face downward, upon a polished plate of zinc, and another placed over it. The plates are then passed between Printing — For the Blind. Ill iron rollers, and subjected to great pressure. The nitric acid is thus squeezed out upon the zinc, except in those parts which are protected by the ink of the old print. The acid bites away the zinc, and a rough surface is produced, the protected parts continuing bright and unaffected. The plate is then wetted with a solution of gum in water. The corroded sur- faces retain the fluid, while the unaffected portions remain dry. A roller charged with the ink used by copperplate printers is then rolled over the plate : the ink covering the dry and being repelled by the wet surfaces. This is repeated until the lines of the print are well covered with the ink — a process which is rapidly effected if the ink of the original print is fresh, and has parted with a portion of its oil under the pressure of the rollers. Impressions may now be read- ily taken in the same manner as lithographic prints. PRINTING FOR THE BLIND. The invention of printing for the blind forms a new era in the history of literature. In European countries, one indi- vidual in every 1200 or 1400 of the entire population is blind, and in America one in every 2000. To open up to this large and unfortunate class such a source of profit and pleasure as reading could afford was long considered very desirable, and also very doubtful ; but while, of late years, embossed books have very rapidly increased, it is exceedingly gratifying to find that blind readers have far more rapidly multiplied. The credit of this invention belongs to France. In 1784 Valen- tine Haiiy printed the first book at Paris with raised letters, and proved to the world that those for whom such books were intended could easily be taught to read with their fingers. He seems to have caught the hint from a blind pianist of Vi- enna, who distinguished the keys of her instrument by the sense of touch. After many experiments as to the form of his raised letters, he at last chose a character a little approaching the Italic. A new institution was at once established — Institu- tion Royale des Jeunes Aveugles — and Haiiy was placed at the head of it. Twenty-four of his pupils exhibited their at- tainments in reading, writing, arithmetic, music, and geog- raphy, before the king and the royal family at Versailles, on the 26th December, 1786, to the very great delight of those 112 , Five Black Arts. high personages. In 1814, when Haiiy was pensioned off, Dr. Guilli^ was chosen in his stead. This enterprising direc- teur-general modified Ilaiij's letters, and prosecuted the pub- lication of embossed books with renewed vigor. Still, how- ever, very little progress was made toward the extension of Haiiy's system ; and their books could only be read by those possessing a very delicate touch. In 1806 M. Haiiy estab- lished schools for the blind in Germany and St. Petersburg, but they have made very slow progress. It was in Scotland and the United States that improvements were first made in embossed typography. To Mr. James Gall of Edinburgh be- longs the merit of reviving and improving this very useful art. After canvassing every form of letter, he at last adopt- ed his angular alphabet. Before 1826, when Mr. Gall be- gan his experiments, not a single blind person using the English language could read by embossed printing. On the 28th September, 1827, he published A First Book for Teaching the Art of Beading to the Blind, the first book printed for the blind in the English language. In October, 1834, this zealous individual published in a perfected alpha- bet The Gospel hy St. John, for the Blind. The text, which was embossed, and, unlike his former effort, printed not with wooden but with metallic types, consisted of 141 pages, with 27 lines on a page of 70 square inches. This book was counted a great improvement, but it was objected that the types were too angular. He afterward printed a number of books with serrated edges. It is unquestionably to Mr. Gall, more than to any other man, that the interest in the educa- tion of the blind was awakened throughout Great Britain and America. While Mr. Gall was engaged in perfecting his plan in this country. Dr. S. G. Howe, of the Perkins Institution, Boston, United States, was busily engaged in de- veloping his system. In 1833 Dr. Howe began, like Gall, by taking Haiiy's invention as the basis of his system, and soon effected those improvements upon it which have given so wide a fame to the Boston press. He chose the common Roman letter of the lower case, reducing it by cutting off the flourishes, etc., until it occupied but a space and a half instead of three. This alphabet remains unchanged. So rapid was his progress, that in 1836 he printed in relief the whole of the New Testament for the first time in any Ian- Printing — For the Blind. 113 guage, in 4 small quarto volumes, comprising 624 pages, for four dollars. More than twelve times this amount has now been printed, and seventeen of the American States have adopted Dr. Howe's method. The Society of Arts in Edinburgh awarded a medal, on the 31st of May, 1837, to Dr. Fry of London for the inven- tion of an alphabet, which seems, however, to have been in use in Philadelphia* since 1833. Mr. Alston of Glasgow im- proved upon Fry's alphabet, by reducing the size of the let- ters, and sharpening the embossing. In 1840 Mr. Alston published the entire Old Testament in lo quarto volumes, of 2535 pages, and 37 Hues to a page, in double pica type. Alston, in his just pride, designated this " the first Bible ever printed for the blind ; " in which he was wrong, however, for Boston had claimed the honor years before. Some 70 dis- tinct volumes have been printed by the Glasgow press ; but since the death of Alston, on the 20th of August, 1846, it has almost ceased to work. Since 1837 it has supplied Eng- land, Ireland, and Scotland with embossed books in Koman type. The best of all the arbitrary systems is that of T. M. Lucas of Bristol, who set it on foot about 1835, and which " The London Society for Teaching the Blind to Read" has been gradually improving since its establishment in 1839. In May, 1838, " The London and Blackheath Association for Embossing the Scriptures" adopted the phonetic method of James Hartley Frerc. A cheap plan of embossing or stereo- typing was devised by Mr. Frere in 1839. His books read from left to right, and back, after the ancient Greek l3ov- (f-pQ9r,Sov writing. Mr. Moon, of the Brighton Blind Asylum, has slightly improved on Mr. Frere's method. Dr. Howie's typography is judged, however, to be superior to the British both in cheapness and in size. There are at present no less than five different systems of typography in use in Great Britain. The following table shows the results of the six systems of printing for the blind used in the English language, taking the New Testament as a standard of comparison : 8 114 Five Black Arts. Systems. No. of Vols. Size. No. of Pages. No. of Lines in a Page. No. of Square Inch. in a Page. Price. The New Testameat— Howe's 2 4 8 9 8 9 4to. u << (< Ob. 4to. 430 623 '*84l' 723 ■*42" 28 , 27 '"25'" 117 90 70 70 110 110 L. s. d. 16 Alston's 2 Gall's 2 Lucas's 2 Frere's 2 10 Moon's 4 10 OTHER PROCESSES. To the magnificent establishment of the imperial printing- office at Vienna we owe the introduction of several pro- cesses, which, though not founded on the use of type, belong to the art of printing. The description of these new arts is derived from the Reports of Jurors of the Exhibition of 1851.* Galcano-plastie Process. — The Austrian department con- tained some extraordinary prints of fossil fishes, which were produced by the following process : By means of successive layers of gutta percha applied to the stone inclosing the pet- rified fish a mould is obtained, which being afterward sub- mitted to the action of a galvanic battery, is quickly covered with coatings of copper, forming a plate upon which all the marks of the fish are reproduced in relief, and which, when printed at the common press, gives a result upon the paper identical with the object itself. Grolvanography. — The artist covers a plate of silvered cop- per with several coats of a paint composed of any oxide — such as that of iron, burnt terra sienna, or black-lead — ground with linseed oil. The substance of these coats is thick or thin ac- cording to the intensity to be given to the lights or shades. The plate is then submitted to the action of the galvanic bat- tery, from which another plate is obtained reproducing an in- taglio copy, with all the unevenness of the original painting. This is an actual copperplate resembling an aquatint engrav- ing. It may be touched up by the engraving-tool. This process has been improved upon by outlines etched in the * At London. Printing — Nature. 115 usual manner, and the tones laid on with a roulette. A galvano-plastic copy of this sunk plate is obtained. On this second raised plate the artist completes his picture by means of chalks and Indian ink, and puts in the lights and shades; from this a second galvano-plastic copy is produced. This second copy or sunk plate, the third in the order of procedure, serves, after being touched up, for printing from in the cop- perplate-press. G-aloanoglyphy. — Upon a plate of zinc coated with var- nish a drawing is etched ; then ink or varnish is rolled over. The ink adheres only to the parts it touches, every applica- tion when dry raising the coating and consequently deepen- ing the etched lines — a galvanic battery produces a plate in relief, which is printed at the common press. Chemiiypy. — A polished zinc plate is covered with an etching-ground. The etching is bitten in with diluted aqua- fortis. Remove the etching-ground, and carefully wash out the aquafortis. Heat the plate thus cleansed over a spirit- lamp, after covering with filings of a fusible metal, until fu- sible metal has filled all the lines of the engraving. When cold, scrape down to level of zinc plate until none of the metal remains but what has entered into the engraving. Place compound plate in solution of muriatic acid ; and as of the two metals one is positive the other negative, the zinc alone is eaten away by the acid, and the fusible metal which had filled the lines of the engraving is left in relief, and may be printed by the common press. Paneiconography. — On a polished plate of zinc draw with lithographic crayon or ink, or transfer impressions from lithog- raphy, wood engraving, or copperplates. The thickness of the drawn lines is increased by repeated rollings or powdered resin. For relief-block, place plate in trough of very dilute sulphuric or hydrochloric acid. The acid eats away the unprotected parts of the plate, and leaves raised lines of the protected parts. NATURE-PRINTING. Mr. Henry Bradbury, who has had a principal share in introducing this beautiful process into England, describes it as a method of producing impressions of plants and other 116 Five Black Arts. natural objects, in a manner so truthful that only a close in- spection reveals the fact of their being copies. So deeply sensible to the touch are the impressions, that it is difficult to persuade those who are unacquainted with the manipulation that they are the production of the printing-press. The process, in its application to the reproduction of botanical subjects, represents the size, form, and color of the plant, and all its most minute details, even to the smallest fibers of the roots. The distinguishing feature of the process, compared with other modes of producing engraved surfaces for printing purposes, consists, firstly, in imprinting natural objects — such as plants, mosses, sea-weeds, feathers, and embroideries — into plates of metal, causing, as it were, the objects to engrave themselves by pressure ; and, secondly, in being able to take such casts or copies of the impressed plates as can be printed from at the ordinary copperplate-press. The art is by no means new in idea, many persons having attempted something analogous to the present process, and produced results which were imperfect, merely because science had not yet discovered an art necessary to its practical devel- opment. It is to the discovery of electrotyping that the exist- ing art of nature-printing is due. The progress of the art, and the persons to whose ingenuity the steps were severally due, are stated by Mr. Bradbury thus: Professor Kniphof of Erfurt took impressions from leaves, etc., which had been colored with lamp-black, printers' ink, etc., 1728-57. Kyhl, a goldsmith of Copenhagen, took copies of natural objects in plates of metal between two steel rollers. These were not for the purposes of printing, but for reproduction of embossing and ornamentation in metal. 1833. In 1851 Dr. Ferguson Branson of Sheffield read a paper before the Society of Arts, in which he detailed some experi- ments in nature-printing. He had taken impressions from plants, etc., in gutta percha, for the purpose of having them printed. The experiment failed through the softness of the material. Dr. Branson then bethought kimself of the elec- trotype process ; but appears to have found it too tedious and costly, and he abandoned the idea. In 1849 Professor Leydolt of Vienna availed himself of Printing — Nature. 1 '- 7 the facilities aflforded by the imperial printing-ofBce to carry out experiments in the representation of flat objects of min- eralogy, — such as agates, fossils, and petrifactions, — and obtained great results. Soon after, Haidinger and Abbate suggested, the former the reproduction of plants, etc., and the latter the representation by this means of different sorts of ornamental woods on woven fabrics, paper, and plain wood ; and lastly, Andrew Worring, of the imperial printing-office, Vienna, perfected the application of these processes to print- ing, 1853. These circumstances are dwelt upon at some length, because nature-printing is yet in its infancy, and appears capable of development to a degree at which it will be an impressorial art of greater importance than any which has been invented since the art of printing itself. Worring's services were so highly estimated that the emperor rewarded him with a mu- nificent gift, and with the Order of Merit. The plant, perfectly dry, or any other suitable subject, is placed on a plate of fine rolled lead, the surface of which has been polished by planing. The plate and subject are then passed between rollers, by the pressure of which the subject is forced into the surface of the lead. The leaden plate is then subjected to a moderate heat, by the action of which the subject is loosened from its bed and easily removed. This mould is then subjected to the galvano-plastic process, the second cast being a perfect fac-simile of the leaden mould. When the subject to be printed is of one color only, that pigment is rubbed in, and any superfluity removed ; but when it is of two or more colors, the process is simple, but, it is believed, perfectly novel in any process of printing here- tofore practiced. In the case, for instance, of flowering plants, having stems, roots, leaves, and flowers, the plan adopted in the inking of the plate is to apply the darkest color, which generally happens to be that of the roots, first ; the superfluous color is cleaned off"; the next darkest color, such, perhaps, as that of the stems, is then appHed, the superfluous color of which is also cleaned off"; this mode is continued until every part of the plant in the copperplate has received the right tint. In this state, before the plate is printed, the color in the different parts of the copper looks as if the plant were imbedded in the metal. The plate thus 118 Five Black Arts. charged, with the paper laid over it, is placed upon a copper- plate-press, the upper roller of which is covered with five or six layers of blanket of compact fine texture. The elFect of the pressure is, that all the colors are printed by one impres- sion ; for when the paper is removed the plant is seen quite perfect, highly embossed, with the roots, stems, and other parts, each of its proper tint. The great national work which the Austrian establishment has produced as the exemplar of the new art is truly imperial. The Physiotypia Plantarum Austriacarum consists of five volumes large folio, containing 500 plates (about 600 plants), with a quarto volume of plates and text. The first produc- tion of the English press, though it will bear no comparison in extent with the imperial magnificence of the Austrian work, fully equals it in beauty of execution. It is The Ferns of Great Britain and Ireland^ by Thomas Moore, edited by I)r. Lindley, imperial folio, with 51 plates. It is printed by Mr. Bradbury. PRINTING IN COLORS. One of the most beautiful aids to typography, the art of printing in colors, has been unduly neglected in this country ; at least so far as relates to the embellishing works of ordinary excellence with vignettes, capitals, tail-pieces, and other devices of fancy, in beautiful tints, in the manner of the early typographers. It is true that some very beautiful works, illustrated with remarkable richness of design and color, have been produced ; but these have been executed rather as examples of the beautiful in art than as books, — the work of the artist has been the principal object, and the work of the author the occasion and vehicle. In other works, chiefly ecclesiastical, the object has been to reproduce in facsimile the rich illuminations of the monkish scribes. But as regards the average printing — the literature of the day — the art of printing in colors has been very much neglected. This may very easily be accounted for. To print in two colors occu- pies more than twice the time necessary to print in one ; and it also requires more skill and ingenuity. These unfortunately must be paid for ; and this pecuniary consideration is suf- ficient to banish from our pages this lovely art. So did not Printing — In Colors. 119 our forefathers ; they took pride in choosing the most tasteful designs, the most harmonious colors, to illuminate their pro- ductions, and beguile the reader into study by the illusive charms of gold, and blue, and crimson. Fortunately, either time was of little value, or the exclusive possession of the market enabled them to demand remunerating prices for the time thus well bestowed ; but in the bustle and competition of our more mercantile days, time is money, and blue and gold, scarlet and green, give way to the equally useful but infinitely less beautiful uniformity of unredeemed black. To a country printer, however, some knowledge of color-printing would be of advantage, because, as his fonts of type are more limited, he can create unlimited variety by a judicious use of colors in job-work: moreover, as he has usually much more time upon his hands, his ingenuity would have ample scope for the production of small works of vertu, in a taste which cannot be indulged by the denizens of a busy me- tropolis. Except in the execution of works of a very high order, and the imitation of intricate and delicate patterns, printing in colors requires no addition to the ordinary accomplishment of printing, other than considerable ingenuity and a little practice in preparing the colors. The latter may, it is true, be purchased of the ink-maker, prepared for use ; but the charge for them is enormous, and they require constant replace- ment, whilst it is not possible to have on hand every variety of tint. By the purchase of the most simple materials from the oil-shop, the ingenious printer has at his hand every color that fancy can require, at the most moderate cost, without waste or delay. The appliances are few and cheap : a muller, •a marble slab, and the pallet-knife ; the materials, a can of printers' varnish, to be purchased of the ink-maker, which will keep any length of time, and the raw colors hereafter given, which may be purchased from time to time; care, however, being taken that they are of the best quality, or they will fade and turn rusty in a short time, and be a de- formity instead of an ornament to the work. Useful tints of red may be prepared of orange lead, ver- milion, burnt sienna, Venetian red, Indian red, and lake. Vermilion is the most brilliant of these reds ; but its beauty depends very much upon the particular parcel used. The 120 Five Black Arts. pale vermilion is best for a bright tint, as the dark, when mixed with the varnish, produces a dull red. Orange lead and vermilion ground together produces a very bright tint, which is more permanent than vermilion alone. Yellows are prepared with yellow ocher, gamboge, and chromate of lead. Of these, the brightest is the chrome ; yellow ocher, when mixed with the varnish, produces a very dull tint. Blues are made from indigo, Prussian blue, and Antwerp blue. Of these, indigo is exceedingly dark, and not very easily lightened. Prussian blue is a very useful color ; Ant- werp blue is very light. Greens may be produced from a mixture of any of the blues and yellows, as gamboge and Prussian blue, chromate of lead and Prussian blue. These may be mixed in any proportions until the required tint is produced ; but it must be remembered that the varnish has a considerable yellow tinge, and will produce a decided effect upon the mixture. With a slight portion of Antwerp blue it will, without the mixture of any of the yellows, produce a decidedly greenish tinge. Purples of any degree of richness are made by judiciously mixing reds and blues. Ssepia produces a nice brown tint, burnt umber a very hot brown, raw umber a much lighter brown, bister a brighter still. Neutral tints may be obtained by mixing Prussian blue, lake, and gamboge. In fact, every pigment that painters use can also be used in printing, avoiding, as much as possible, all heavy colors. In truth, if the printer is desirous of imitating any particular color, or of producing any particular tint, he cannot do better than consult the nearest artist in oil or water colors (oil in preference), or in default of that, the neighboring house-painter. The necessary colors having been procured, the method of preparing them is very simple. Each must first be well ground by the muller upon the slab, even although they may have been purchased well powdered. The color should then be well mixed with the pallet-knife vdth the varnish, until the pigment has attained the required consistency, which will vary with the quality of the work to be executed ; for if it be a posting-bill or coarse job, the ink should be very thin^ Printing — In Colors. 121 and consequently a much larger proportion of varnish should be used. If, however, the work be a wood-cut, or in small type, the pigment should be made as thick as possible. If the color required be a compound, the predominant tint should be first mixed with the varnish, and the lighter tint added in small quantities, until the exact shade required be produced. Thus, if the color be a dark green, the blue should be mixed up first, and the yellow added ; but if it be a very light green, then the yellow should be first applied, and the blue added. If the tint desired be exceedingly light, it will be found that the quantity of raw material to be employed will not make the mixture sufficiently thick to be applied to the type or wood-block : in this case whitening is added to thin colors, and dry white-lead to the heavier, in considerable quantities, which must be adjusted in the course of mixing. To insure thorough combination, the mixture should be scraped into a corner of the slab, and*a very small portion of it spread with the pallet-knife, and well ground with the muller until no specks or lumps appear, then scraped up and placed in another corner. This should especially be done when white-lead is used, as it will be found that every little lump when crushed will produce a white streak upon the slab. If this be not carefully done, independently of its tendency to clog the type, it will very materially alter the tint. When the pigment seems sufficiently mixed, it is better to bray it out with the muller instead of the usual brayer, and grind again each particular portion immediately before it is used. Colors may be worked either with a ball or a roller. If the job be large and coarse, and the ink consequently thin, the roller will answer every purpose ; but if it be small, and requiring much nicety in the manipulation, decidedly with a ball ; but in either case the ink should be well distributed, and the form well beaten or rolled. When two or more colors are employed, they must be worked at as many differ- ent times. In this case extreme nicety in the register and justification is required, in order that every color may fall in its just place, without overlaying any other tint employed in the print. This would be a great dis-sight in any case, but most especially where the combination of colors would produce a third ; as, for instance, if any part of a blue line should unfortunately fall upon a yellow, a green outline would be 122 Five Black Arts. the result. The simplest way to guard against this is to have the wood-blocks all cut to precisely the same size, with the print in the proper place upon each ; when, therefore, the first color has been worked, the form is unlocked, the block taken out, and the second block inserted ; it then falls at once into its proper position. If the form consist of type, each line should be carefully composed in its proper body ; that is, if three colors be employed for as many different lines in pica y small pica, and long primer, the one to be first worked should be composed in pica letters, the other lines in small pica and long primer quadrats. When the second line is to be worked, its quadrats should be taken out and letters inserted, while the type of the first line should be removed and quadrats substituted ; and so of the third line. The points on the tympan must never be moved. It is clear, therefore, that if the paper be placed upon the same point- holes as before, and if the form has never been moved, the new line cannot fail to fall in its proper place. In these cases the paper must never be suffered to dry ; indeed the sooner each color succeeds the other the better. If it be covered with a wet blanket, and the edges well sprinkled, the danger will be little ; but if it should dry and shrink in the slightest degree, it will be impossible to obtain register. For printing red-letter days in almanacs and the rubrics in prayer-books (an almost extinct practice), an especial type is used called rubrical ; it is cast about an m higher than ordinary type. The black is first worked, quadrats having been inserted in the places of the red-letter, which are subsequently with- drawn and the rubrical type inserted. But as, in so small an insertion in so large a body this process does not attain any very good register, and is expensive withal, the red-letter days have been abandoned, and some other distinguishing type (generally old English or black) has been substituted, which sufficiently indicates the day. It would not be possi- ble here to give sufficient instructions to enable the printer to execute landscapes, portraits, and other delicate subjects, in various colors and shades. The difference between this and other color-printing consists mainly in the superior individual skill and ingenuity of the artist, the excellence and truth of his engravings, and the superiority of his appliances. In truth, before the printer can produce any great effect, he Printing — In Colors. 123 must be excellently qualified as a painter, -which it is not the province of an article on printing to teach. It will be suf- ficient to state that the lighter and more extensive tints, and especially those in which transparent colors are used, are worked first ; that the color is gradually deepened by success- ive blocks until the required efiects are produced ; and that the outline is printed last, which has the effect of giving sharpness and finish to the design. The curious reader is referred to Mr. Savage's beautiful book on Decorative Printing, and to the many admirable productions of Mr. Baxter and Mr. Vizetelly. Nor should the accurate work and beautiful colors of Mr. Delarue's playing-cards be pTissed over without notice. To Mr. Dela- rue, indeed, the revival of color-printing in England as a practical art is greatly due. The lottery system and the stamp duties gave extensive employment to the color-printer, and also gave occasion to a process which is denominated " compound plate-printing." The effects are produced by an ingenious system of mechan- ism, by which several plates are made to separate for the pur- pose of receiving the colors, and to combine with perfect ac- curacy, for the purpose of transferring these colors to the paper by a single impression. This process is in daily use at the stamp and excise oflSces, and the most familiar exam- ples are to be seen in the intricate patterns printed on the labels of reams of paper, or those of patent medicines. The printing is effected by the cylinder printing-machine with the greatest rapidity. There is no difiiculty in printing in gold ; it is within the power of any typographer. The type is composed and made ready at press in the usual manner. Take the best printer's varnish, grind it to a thick consistency with burnt sienna or brown umber ; reduce this with gold-size, the same as that used by gilders and japanners. The first admixture is ne- cessary because it has been found that the umber will not combine with the size. The type is then rolled with this compound in the same manner that ordinary ink is applied, and the impression is taken upon the paper. Leaf-gold is then laid over it with a piece of cotton-wool, and pressed lightly upon it. When the varnish has had time to set, a piece of cotton-wool is rubbed steadily over the part 124 Five Black Arts. printed, and the superfluous leaf is thereby removed, leav- ing the gold adhering to the varnish. The print should then be passed between steel rollers, or hot-pressed — care being taken in the latter process that the plates be not too hot, or a dull drossy surface will be produced. The sharpness of the print will vary with the judgment of the printer in the quantity of sizing applied to the type ; for if the press-work be bad, the print will be bad also. For inferior gold-printing bronze-powder is extensively used. For this the varnish is made very much thicker than for gold ; the method of print- ing is the same. After the impression has been given, the powder is brushed over the print, and adheres thereto, whilst the superfluity is easily removed. In printing the golden " Coronation Sun" with this powder, a very distressing dis- ease arose, — the hair became perfectly green, and the men were very seriously affected ; great care should therefore be ta- ken that particles of the powder be not allowed to fly about the room. Dutch gold cannot be used as a substitute for gold-leaf. When all these appliances cannot readily be obtained, very fair gold-printing may be produced by the following process : Let the surface of the type be heated by any convenient means — as by laying upon it for a space a heated metal plate — and then cover it carefully with leaf-gold by a ball of cot- ton-wool. Having carefully sifted dry white-of-egg or resin, finely pulverized, over the surface of the paper, place it on the tympan, and bring it gently down upon the type. Dwell upon the pull. The leaf-gold will be found perfectly adher- ent to the impression on the paper, and the superfluous part may be brushed off*. The sheet, after drying, should then be hot-pressed. Some observation is required to ascertain the proper heat to be given to the type : if it be insufficient, the gold transfer will be imperfect and the tint light; if too great (of which there should be no danger) the color will be dull, BANK-NOTE PRINTING. The Bank of England notes were formerly printed from steel-plates ; but in 1853 the Bank adopted the surface or letter-press mode of printing. The plates are produced by the electrotype process. An original is first engraved in metal in relief. This original is subjected to the galvano- Printing — Bank-Note. 125 plastic process, by which a matrix is obtained, and from this matrix a second cast is obtained in relief, a i^erfect facsimile of the original engraved plate. From this plate the bank- notes are printed. The metal of which these plates are formed is exceedingly hard, frequently yielding nearly one million impressions without being worn out. The original engraving is never used for printing, but only for the pro- duction of matrices ; consequently it always remains unim- paired, and thus perfect identity is maintained in the ap- pearance of the notes. The notes are printed at platen-machines possessing great advantages over the ordinary printing-machines, more partic- ularly in the distribution of the ink. Three machines are employed, two of which were manufactured by Messrs. Na- pier & Sons, and the other by Messrs. Hopkinson & Cope. A tell-tale, or register, is attached to each machine, which marks the number of impressions. These registers are set by a clerk before the printing commences, and are checked by him at the close of the day, when the printer must ac- count for (either in bank-notes or " spoils") the number of impressions registered by the dial. The notes are printed upon dry paper, a process which has been very greatly ac- celerated by the recent improvements introduced into the ink by Mr. Winstone, who manufactures for the bank. The number and dates of the bank-notes are added in an after-printing. This is effected at Messrs. Napier & Sons' cylinder machines : a very ingenious mechanism being at- tached to these machines which makes it impossible to com- mit any fraud by printing two notes of the same number. The apparatus consists of a series of brass discs, of which the rim is divided by channels into projecting compartments, each containing a figure. The numbers 1 to 9 having been printed in the course of the revolution of the first disc, the second disc then presents the figure 1, which, by combining with the of the first disc, the number 10 is formed. The second disc now remains stationary until, in the course of the revolution of the first disc, the numbers 1 to 19 have been printed, when it presents the figure 2, and does not again move until another revolution of the first disc completes the numbers 20 to 29. Thus the two discs proceed until 99 notes have been numbered, when the third disc comes into 126 Five Black Arts. operation, and with the first two, produces 100, consequently the first disc performs one hundred revolutions to ten of the second and one of the third. The notes may be numbered indefinitely by this process, without the possibility of error, the machine, meanwhile, being its own check. PRINTING-MACHINES. As long as the thirst of literature was confined to books and a few periodicals of limited sale and size, the ordinary printing-presses sufficed to supply the demand : nor was it discovered that any further speed was requisite, until the in- creased facility of conveyance, and the important events at the close of the last century, created a demand for news which the utmost exertions of the printers were unable to supply ; for the attempt to increase the speed by the compo- sition of two distinct forms of type would avail little, so long as the presses could turn out only 250 or 300 impressions each per hour. Accordingly for this branch of the art were the first machines projected. Many schemes were proposed for accelerating the movements of the press ; but the first at- tempts at any thing like the machine afterward introduced were made by William Nicholson, a gentleman connected with periodical literature, who took out a patent about 1790 for a printing-machine, of which the chief points were the follow- ing : The type being rubbed or scraped narrower toward the bottom, was to be fixed upon a cylinder, in order, as it were, to radiate from the center of it. This cylinder, with its type, was to revolve in gear with another cylinder cov- ered with soft leather (the impression-cylinder) ; and the type received its ink from another cylinder, to which inking apparatus was applied. The paper was impressed by passing between the type and impression- cylinders. Most of these plans were, when modified, adopted by after-constructors. This machine was never brought into use. Konig, an ingenious German, was the next who under- took to construct a machine ; and having made considerable advance in his plans, obtained a contract with Mr. Walters, the proprietor of The London Times newspaper, for manu- facturing two for that journal. His machine was successful, and the number for the 28th November, 1814, was worked I Printing — Machines. 127 by it at the rate of 1100 impressions per hour. In this Nicholson's plan was so far altered, that the ordinary type was used and laid upon a flat surface, and the impression was given by the form passing under a cylinder of great size. Konig afterward invented a machine in which the sheet was printed on both sides before it left the machine ; but his ar- rangements for the equal distribution of the ink were so com- plicated and clumsy (consisting of not less than forty wheels) and the works of every part of the machine so intricate, that it never came into practical use. The first really useful machine was constructed by Messrs. Applegath and Cowper, being an extensive modification of that of Konig ; its principal improvement consisting in the application of two drums between the impression-cylinders, one of which reverses the sheet, and the other secures the register, by retaining it, after the impression of the first form, just so long that it may pass on to the second cylinder in ex- act time to be impressed thereby upon the second form ; and of the distribution of the ink upon a plane surface, instead of by a number of rollers, by which Konig's complicated ma- chinery was got rid of. These machines, with numerous modifications, according to the plans of different makers, are now in general use. For newspapers, machines are generally made to work but one side at a time. It is manifest that a machine will work a much greater number (more than double) of one form than of two, and that the machinery will be lighter and less expen- sive, and of course require less motive power. One form, therefore, of a newspaper, containing advertisements and the less important matter, is worked at leisure ; and the second form, containing the leading article, important news, and other matter of consequence, is reserved until the last mo- ment, and is then thrown off with immense rapidity. For the usual description of book-work, machines (perfecting- machines) are constructed to work both forms at a time. In these, perfect register, and the exact and even distribu- tion of the ink, are of the greatest consequence, and such immense rapidity is not necessary. These machines, there- fore, differ very much in construction, though not in princi- ple, from those used for newspapers. The machine constructed by Messrs. Applegath and Cow- 128 Five Black Arts. per in 1827 for The Times, two of which are still used for printing the supplements and advertising pages, has four im- pression-cylinders, which are so arranged that two are in contact with the type as the table passes to the right, and two as it passes to the left. It will print from 4000 to 5000 impressions per hour. One of the principal impediments to great speed in this form of printing-machines is the necessity for a reciprocating motion in the type, table, and inking-table, — a great weight, the vis motus of which has to be neutralized, and then the vis inertice overcome, at each end of the traverse. This not only occasions a great waste of motive power, but also causes breakages and serious accidents. Mr. Applegath, finding these and other difficulties insuperable, abandoned the prin- ciple of placing the type on a plane table and the reciproca- ting motion, and constructed a machine in which the type is placed on the surface of a cylinder of large dimensions, which revolves on a vertical axis, with a continuous rota- tory motion. The Times has the credit of being first in adopting this great improvement in newspaper printing. The following is a careful description of this vast and com- plicated piece of machinery : In the center of the machine is a vertical cylinder or drum, 5 feet 4 inches in diameter. In contact with it, and revolving each on its own vertical axis, are eight impression- cylinders, 13 inches in diameter, each of which has a set of inking-roUers working in advance of it. The cylinders move with the same velocity as the surface of the drum. The columns of type are placed in a kind of iron galley, or turtle, curved to fit the surface of the drum„ The outer sur- face of these galleys is not formed into a segment of a circle, but into facets, each the width of a column ; the wedge- shaped interval, w^hich is left between the top and bottom of the types of every two adjoining columns, is compensated by column-rules, made thicker at the top than at the bottom in the same proportion. The middle column-rule is fixed. The columns are locked up in the galleys by means of screws, and the column-rules press the types together like key-stones in an arch. The fixed rule in the center prevents the types from rising. The galleys are then screwed on to the drum, the columns vertical. The outer face of the forms is now, it must PRINTING. ] [ Plaie 13. Printing — Machines. 129 be remembered, a series of facets, sides as it were of a poly- gon ; the surfaces of the impression-cylinders are made to conform to these facets, with suflScient accuracy, by paper overlays. When stereotype plates are used, they are cast by Dellagana's process, in accurate segments of a circle, and the overlaying is unnecessary. The forms of types do not, of course, occupy the whole circumference of the central drum : a large part of the remainder is made the inking-table. The ink-box, which is also vertical, supplies ink to a ductor-roller, which works between two straight edges. As the drum re- volves, a portion of ink is taken from the ductor by two vi- brating rollers, and distributed on to the inking-table. The inking-table precedes the type-forms, and as it passes the inking rollers attached to each impression-cylinder come into contact with it, and receive ink from its surface. The type-forms, following next, come into contact with these ink- ing-rollers, and take from them the ink they have just re- ceived. The inking-table passes under the impression-cylin- ders without touching them ; but the type is brought into contact with the paper upon them, and the impression is given. Therefore, at every revolution of the drum, the type is inked eight times, comes into contact with eight impression-cylin- ders, and prints eight sheets of paper. It is most difficult to convey, by any verbal description, the singularly ingenious mechanism by which the sheets of paper are conveyed to and around the impression-cylinders. It must be remembered that the sheets are necessarily laid on the feeding-table horizontally^ and that they pass around the cylinder vertically. The task will be rendered some- what simpler by reminding the reader that each impression- cylinder is a complete machine within itself, acting with the drum, but independent of the other cylinders ; and that, as each has its own system of inking-rollers, so each has its own system of feeding-drums and tapes. The white paper is laid on the feeding-table at the top ; each sheet is placed by the layer-on to the center of a feeding-drum. At the right moment, the sheet is advanced by finger-rollers until its forward edge is brought between two small rollers, each con- nected with a series of endless tapes, between which it is passed vertically downward. At the right moment its further progress is arrested by two vertical slips of wood called 9 I. 130 Five Black Arts. " stoppers," which start forward and press the sheet against two fixed stoppers ; and, at the same moment, the two rollers and their tapes separate, and leave the sheet extended verti- cally between the two pairs of stoppers. Observe that, up to this moment, the travel of the sheet has been vertically downward, and that its plane surface is part of a radius from the axis of the central drum. The problem now to be solved is, to give it a horizontal movement toward the center, preserving its vertical position. The instant the sheet is arrested vertically between the stoppers, its top edge is caught by two pairs of small finger or susj^ending rollers ; at the same instant the stoppers separate, and the sheet is sus- pended for a moment between these rollers ; a slight inward motion is then given to the suspenders, sufiicient to bring the inner edge of the sheet into the mouth of two sets of hori- zontal tapes, by which it is carried around the impression- cylinder and printed. As the sheet, after being printed, issues from the horizontal tapes, it is delivered to other sets, by which it is conveyed outward, under the laying-on board ; arrived at the proper point, it is again caught at the top edge between suspending rollers, the tapes separate, and it hangs for a moment ; when the taker-ofi", who sits below the layer- on, releases it by a slight jerk,, and lays it on his board. No description can give any adequate idea of the scene presented by one of these machines in full work, — the maze of wheels and rollers, the intricate lines of swift-moving tapes, the flight of sheets, and the din of machinery. The central drum moves at the rate of six feet per second, or one revolution in three seconds ; the impression- cylinders make five revolutions in the same time. The layer-on delivers two sheets every five seconds, consequently, sixteen sheets are printed in that brief space. The diameter of an eight-feeder, including the galleries for the layers-on, is twenty-five feet. The Times employs two of these eight-cylinder machines, each of which averages 12,000 impressions per hour ; and one nine-cylinder, which prints 16,000. These vast machines, however, are only useful when the necessity of working a very large number with the utmost rapidity overrides all considerations of cost and space. An excellent machine, in which considerable speed is obtained with comparative economy of expense and room, the inven- Printing — Machines. 131 I tion of Messrs. Hoe of New York, has been lately used for newspapers and periodicals of long numbers. In principle, it does not differ from Applegath's vertical, inasmuch as the type is fixed upon a central cylinder or drum, which has a con- tinuous rotatory motion, in contact with impression-cylinders set around it. The chief difference is, that the drum and impression-cylinders are not vertical, but horizontal. The machines are manufactured of different sizes, according to the number of impression-cylinders required. Those more generally made have six cylinders, some have eight, and The Times has recently constructed one with ten. This last machine is calculated to produce 20,000 impressions per hour. The following is a description of a six-cylinder ma- chine : A horizontal central cylinder is mounted on a shaft with appropriate bearings, and around it, arrayed at proper dis- tances, are six horizontal impression-cylinders. The mov- able types or stereo-casts are secured on a portion of the central cylinder, about a quarter of its circumference, and compensated by a balance-weight on the opposite side ; the remainder of the cylinder is used as a distributing-table for the ink. This portion of the cylinder is lower than the face of the type, in order that it may pass under the impression- cylinders without being touched by them. The ink is con- tained in an ink-box placed beneath the central cylinder, and supplies the ink to the ductor-roller, from which it is transferred by a vibrating distributing-roller to the distribu- ting-table. The ductor-roller receives a slow and continuous rotary motion, so that it always presents a uniform line of ink to the vibrating roller. The machine being put in mo- tion, the form of type on the central cylinder is brought into contact with each of the six impression-cylinders in succes- sion ; and six sheets of paper, which have been introduced, one to each impression-cylinder, are printed in one revolu- tion of the central cylinder. For each impression-cylinder there are two inking-roUers, which roll over the distributing surface and take a supply of ink ; at the proper time they rise, pass over the type, and then fall on to the distributing surface. Each page is locked up upon a detached segment of the large cylinder called a " turtle,'' which constitutes the bed 132 Five Black Arts. and chase. The column-rules, like those for the vertical machine, are wedge-shaped, and are held down to the turtle by tongues projecting at intervals along their length, and sliding in rebated grooves cut crosswise in the face of the turtle, the space in the grooves between the column-rules being filled with sliding blocks of metal, accurately fitted, the outer surface level with the surface of the turtle, the ends next the column-rules being cut away underneath to receive a projection in the sides of the tongues. The head and cross rules are segments of a circle of the same curv- ature as the turtle. The types are secured by screws and wedges. Six persons, one to each impression-cylinder, are required to supply the paper, — three on each side of the machine. The paper is conveyed from the laying-on board to the im- pression-cylinders by gripers. The sheets when printed are carried by tapes to six self-acting fly-frames, which lay them regularly in piles. Another American, M. S. Beach, has improved upon Hoe*s machine, by converting it into a perfecting-machine. His improvement consists in placing the second form upon the central type-drum, superseding the necessity for the balance-weight : the sheet, after being printed on one side, is immediately drawn back and printed on the other side from the second form, without checking or changing the uniform revolution of the cylinder ; and thus the work done by it is doubled. The diameter of the type-drum in this machine, which is calculated for eight impression-cylinders, i3 only four feet ; the type has therefore to travel a less dis- tance in one revolution of the drum ; and the consequence is, that in traveling the same distance in this machine, and at the same speed, 22,000 double impressions would be produced in an hour. This account is taken from the New York Sun, A horizontal cylinder-machine, on the same system as Hoe's, made by Middleton, capable of printing 20,000 im- pressions per hour, is now used for printing The London blam- ing Herald. The type is secured on the central cylinder, 2J feet in diameter, in the same way as in The Times vertical machine ; the ink is supplied from a ductor below the type-cyl- inder, and distributed upon an inking-table attached to the type-cylinder, to which a slight lateral motion is communi- Printing — Machines. 133 cated by two straps, one on each side of the machine. There are five impression-cylinders at equal distances around the central cylinder, to which the paper is supplied from ten feeders, on the same principle as in the other horizontal ma- chines, four on one end of the machine and six on the other; the printed sheets are delivered on to five taking-off boards, one to each two feeders, and received by five lads. The machine is 26d feet long, 5 feet wide, and ITs high. The machines of Mr. Napier, intended for book-work, are in good repute. They have the advantage of being easily worked by two men, thus rendering steam-power unnecessary. They stand in a very small compass, and do beautiful work. As far as regards motion and impression, they do not greatly vary from the cylinder machines already described ; but in the method of conveying the paper, obtaining register, and inking, they are altogether different. The paper is laid to a certain gauge, when, in the revolution of the cylinder, gripers are made to compress the edge of the paper upon it, very much in the manner in which the fore-finger closes on the thumb. It is by these means conveyed with it during one revolution, in the course of which it is printed on one side. At the commencement of the second revolution these gripers open at the precise moment, when the gripers attached to the second cylinder close, and thus convey the sheet over the second form. Tapes pass under the second cylinder, between the blanket and the paper, and over a pulley upon a bar, by the mere friction of which the sheet is thrown out upon a board. These gripers are made to act with such perfect cer- tainty that the best possible register is obtained. The inking apparatus consists of a trough with a ductor and vibrating roller, which communicates the ink to composition-rollers, by the revolution of which in contact with each other the ink is perfectly distributed, and from these to the type. A cross motion is communicated to the distributing-roller by means of a worm in the elongated spindle. As but one impression is given during the traverse of the table in each direction, the cylinder which does not at the moment hold the paper would be in contact with the type, had not Mr. Napier added a beautiful adjustment, whereby the cylinders rise and fall alternately, so that the one not in use passes over the form intact. This machine will work from 1000 to 1200 perfect 134 Five Black Arts. sheets per hour, and requires but two boys. Mr. Napier has constructed several other machines of great merit, one of which, for newspapers, will perfect 2000 sheets per hour by the labor of two men. Messrs. Hopkinson and Cope have also produced a double- cylinder perfecting griper machine adapted for book-work or newspapers. The peculiarity of this machine is, that it is supplied with a set-off sheet apparatus, by which a " set-off sheet" is fed in with each sheet to be printed, which it meets as the latter enters on the second cylinder, and, passing round with it, prevents the ink on the printed side of the paper setting off on the blanket of the cylinder, and being thence transferred to the following sheet. This apparatus can be easily dispensed with when ordinary work is being printed. They have also made a single cylinder griper ma- chine called a " Desideratum." It is supplied with a point- ing apparatus, which renders it available for book-work. Before the invention of cylinder machines, the desire to obtain increased speed led to many ingenious contrivances for accelerating the action and economising the expense of the ordinary printing-press ; all of which, however, either failed, or were superseded by the steam machine. There are now in general use, for book-work of a quality superior to that produced by the cylinder, several machine-presses which are in every respect satisfactory. They generally consist of two tables, on each of which a form is laid ; these pass alternately under a self-acting platen : while one form is receiving the impression, the other is delivering its printed sheet to the taker-off, and receiving its white sheet from the layer-on. This double operation is effected at the same time, by the frisket being attached to the tympan at the bottom (not at the top as in the common press). When the tympan opens, it falls back inward ; the white paper is laid on the frisket, the tympan closes upon it, it is printed ; but when the tympan opens, the printed sheet is made to rise with it, and is taken off while the layer-on is placing another sheet on the frisket. The ink is conveyed to the type by a similar apparatus to that used in cylinder machines. These machine- presses do excellent work at the rate of 600 or 700 impres- sions per hour, and are made by the same firms as supply cylinder-machines. P RiNTiNG — Machines . 185 The " Scandinavian " machine-press differs from all others in respect that the form of type is stationary, and that the tympan and inking-roller are passed between the form and the platen. As the power required to set this press in mo- tion is much less than that required where the form and table travel, manual labor is sufficient ; but only one form can be worked at a time. These are by no means all the machines that have been devised or brought into use. They are, however, all that it is necessary to mention, as the same principle is common to all. Every maker is at liberty to manufacture almost all of them, with such modifications as his own talents may suggest, the patents, where any were taken out, having, with few exceptions, expired. POTTERY AND PORCELAIN BY CHARLES TOMLINSON. 1 POTTERY AND PORCELAIN. The word pottery is said to be derived from the low Latin term potus, a pot, which is from tlie classical Latin potus, drink ; * but the etymology of porcelain is more uncertain. Some writers derive it from porcellana, the Portuguese for a drinking-cup ; others from a similar word in Italian, which is applied to a univalve shell of the genus Cyprceidce, or cow- ries, having a high arched back resembling that of a hog (^porco, Ital.), and a white, smooth, vitreous glossiness of surface similar to that of fine porcelain. The essential in- gredients of every article in pottery and porcelain are silica and alumina. The pure chemical compound, silicate of al- umina, must, however, be regarded as an ideal type, unat- tainable even in the finest porcelain ; while in the coarser va- rieties, and in pottery, impurities, such as iron, lime, potash, etc., give character to the resulting wares. Even if it were possible to obtain pure silica and alumina in sufficient quanti- ties for manufacturing purposes, it would still be necessary to add certain substances to increase somewhat the fusibility of these refractory materials. Pottery is also distinguished by being opaque, while porcelain is translucent. Wares of either kind are further distinguished by the terms soft and hard, or, as the French term them, tendre and dur — distinc- tions which relate as well to the composition of the ware as to the temperature at which it is made solid. Common bricks and earthenware vessels, pipkins, pans, etc., are soft; while fire-brick and crockery, such as queen's-ware, stone-ware, etc., are hard. Soft pottery, consisting of silica, alumina, and lime, admits of being scratched with a knife or file, and is usually fusible at the heat required merely for baking por- [ *Pot is said byTooke to be the past tense of the verb toj>i< — >. e., to ex- cavate or sink into a hollow. 140 Five Black Arts. celain. Stone- ware is composed of silica, alumina, and ba- ryta, and may be regarded as a coarse kind of porcelain. Hard porcelain contains more of alumina and less of silica than the soft ; it is baked at a stronger heat, and is more dense. Soft porcelain contains more silica than the hard, and is also combined with alkaline fluxes, so that its softness is manifested in being easily scratched and less able to resist a strong heat. HISTORICAL SKETCH. Articles of fictile ware are at once the most fragile and the most enduring of human monuments. A piece of common pottery, liable to be shivered to pieces by a slight blow, is more enduring than epitaphs in brass and effigies in bronze. These yield to the varying action of the weather; stone crumbles away, ink fades, and paper decays ; but the earthen vase, deposited in some quiet but forgotten receptacle, sur- vives the changes of time, and even when broken at the mo- ment of its discovery by the pick of the laborer, affords in- struction in its fragments. In their power of traversing accumulated ages, and affording glimpses of ancient times and people, fictile articles have been compared to the fossils of animals and plants, which reveal to the educated eye the former conditions of our globe. Clay is so generally diffused, and its plastic nature is so obvious, that the art of working it cannot be considered as above the intelligence of a savage ; hence the production of articles in clay may be said to belong to every people and to all time. The first drinking-vessels would be sun-baked, and consequently very destructible ; so that few articles would survive a single winter. A considerable period must have elapsed before the method of giving permanence to these ar- ticles by the action of fire was discovered ; but it is chiefly to this discovery that we owe the preservation of so many ancient relics of the fictile art. The sun-dried bricks of Egypt, Assyria, and Babylonia, have, however, been pre- served to this day, and " not only afford testimony to the truth of Scripture by their composition of straw and clay, but also by the hieroglyphs impressed upon them, transmit the names of a series of kings, and testify the existence of edi- fices, all knowledge of which, except for these relics, would I Pottery and Porcelain — ^History. 141 have utterly perished. Those of Assyria and Babylon, in addition to the same information, have, by their cuneiform in- scriptions, which mention the locality of the edifices for which they were made, afforded the means of tracing the sites of ancient Mesopotamia and Assyria with an accuracy unattain- able by any other means. When the brick was ornamented, as in Assyria, with glazed representations, this apparently insignificant but imperishable object has confirmed the de- scriptions of the walls of Babylon, which critical skepticism had denounced as fabulous. The Roman bricks have also borne their testimony to history. A large number of them present a series of the names of consuls of imperial Rome ; while others show that the proud nobility of the Eternal City partly derived their revenues from the kilns of their Cam- panian and Sabine farms." * The excellent authority just quoted refers to the next step in the progress of manufacture, namely, that of modeling in clay the forms of the physical world, the origin of the plastic art, " to which the symbolical pantheism of the old world gave an extension almost universal." When stone and metal came to be used as materials for sculpture, clay was still em- ployed for the elaboration of the model, and also for the mul- tiplication of copies for popular use of celebrated pieces of sculpture. The invention of the mould caused the terra cot- tas of antiquity to be as widely diffused as the plaster casts of modern times. Among the Assyrians and Babylonians clay was used as a material for writing on. The traveler Layard discovered in the palace of Sennacherib a whole li- brary of clay books, consisting of histories, deeds, almanacs, spelling-books, vocabularies, inventories, horoscopes, receipts, letters, etc. About 2000 of these clay books of the Assyr- ians have been discovered : they are in the form of tablets, cylinders, and hexagonal prisms of terra cotta. Before the invention of the potter's wheel, clay vessels could have had but little symmetry of shape. The necessity for some such contrivance must have been early felt, and it was probably invented by several nations. It is represented on the Egyptian sculptures ; it is mentioned in Holy Scrip- ture ; and was in use at an early period in Assyria. Mr. *IIistory of Ancient Pottery, by Samuel Birch, F.S.A., London, 1858. 142 Five Black Arts. Birch states, that " the very oldest vases of Greece, some of which are supposed to have been made in the heroic ages, bear marks of having been turned upon the wheel." The art of firing .the ware is also of the highest antiquity. Re- mains of baked earthenware are common in Egypt in the tombs of the first dynasties, and the oldest bricks and tablets of Assyria and Babylon bear evidence of having passed through the fire. The oldest remains of Hellenic pottery owe their preservation to their having been fired. As the clay by this process is rendered porous and incapable of holding liquids, the necessity for some kind of glaze must have been early felt. Opaque glasses or enamels have been found in Egypt as old as the fourth dynasty, and both the Egyptians and the Assyrians seem to have preferred an opaque enamel to a transparent glaze, somewhat after the fashion of the mod- ern faience. Numerous fragments testify to the use of glaz- ing amongst the ancient Greeks and Romans. With respect to form, the Greek vases, by their beauty and simplicity, have become models for various kinds of earthenware ; while the application of painting to vases has transmitted to us much in- formation respecting the mythology, manners, customs and literature of ancient Greece. Even the Roman lamps and red ware illustrate in their ornaments many customs, man- ners, and historical events. As the pottery of difierent modern nations has its characteristic features, so the ancient pottery has its distinctions of time and place. It is impossi- ble not to distinguish between the rude and simple urns fash- ioned by the early inhabitants of Great Britain and the more carefully finished specimens of the Roman conquerors of these islands. Then, again, the simple unglazed earthenware of Greece contrasts with the more elaborate Etruscan forms, the finest of which, however, are probably by Greek artists. Then, again, the red and black potteries of India contrast with the black and white potteries of North America, the latter being interspersed with fragments of bivalve shells. On the dis- covery of the extraordinary ruins in Central America, speci- mens of pottery were found which showed considerable ad- vance in the art compared with the date assigned to these ruins, namely, 1000 B.C. The specimens had been formed without the assistance of the potter's wheel ; but they are well baked, the ornaments are in different colors, and they I Pottery and Porcelain — History. 143 are coated with a fine vitreous glaze, such as was unknown in Europe until within about ten centuries. The religious em- ployment of earthen vessels in early times, and the custom of placing them in tombs as receptacles for medals, trophies, in- signia, money, rings, and votive offerings, has greatly assisted the studies of archaeologists in modern times, and we can do no more in this brief sketch than refer to their useful labors. Porcelain is of modern introduction into Europe, but it was known in China more than a century before the Christian era. The Chinese appear to have improved their art during four or five centuries, and then, supposing themselves to have at- tained perfection, they allowed the art to remain stationary. So completely was the manufacture identified with that na- tion, that on the introduction of porcelain into Europe by the Portuguese in 1518, it received the name of china^ which it still partially retains. The Chinese continued to supply us with porcelain during many years. It was supposed that the fine clay or kaolin used in its production was peculiar to China, and that it was consequently hopeless to attempt to manufac- ture porcelain in Europe. The porcelain of Japan is only a variety of the Chinese. While the Chinese were improving their manufacture, the art of making decorative pottery became lost in Europe amid the darkness which followed the overthrow of the Western Empire. The first symptoms of revival were due to the Mo- hammedan invaders of Spain, whose tiles of enameled earth- enware are to be seen in the Moorish buildings of Seville, Toledo, Granada, and the Alhambra. They are of a pale clay, " the surface of which is coated over with a white opaque enamel, upon which the elaborate designs are executed in colors.* The Spaniards acquired from the Moors the art of manufacturing enameled tiles, or azulejos as they are called, and they still continue to be made in Valencia. The Moors also adorned their pottery with Arabic inscriptions, and with arabesque patterns resembling a lace vail in richness. The vase known as that of the Alhambra is of earthenware ; the ground is white, the ornaments are either blue of two shades, or of gold or copper luster.f The Moors continued to manu- *A History of Pottery and Porcelain, mediaeval and modern, by Joseph Marryat, 2d edition, London, 1857. t This vase is figured in Owen Jones's work on the Alhambra. 144 Five Black Arts. facture ornamental pottery until the time of their final expul- sion from Spain at the beginning of the seventeenth century. This Hispano-Arabic pottery, as it is called, is the prototype of the Italian majolica, and was long confounded with it. Specimens of it are to be seen in several celebrated collec tions. The majolica, or enameled ware of Italy, probably dates from the twelfth century. It is related that a pirate king of Majorca, about 1115, was besieged in his stronghold by an armament from Pisa, and being vanquished, the expe- dition returned to Italy laden with spoil, among which, it is supposed, were a number of plates of painted Moorish pot- tery, such specimens being found incrusted in the walls of the most ancient churches of Pisa. They appear to have been regarded as religious trophies. No attempt, however, was made to imitate them until the fourteenth century, when specimens of majolica, so called from the island of Majorca, were produced ; they resemble the Moorish examples in having arabesque patterns in yellow and green, upon a blue ground. About the year 1451 the manufacture had become celebrated at Pesaro, the birthplace of Luca della Kobbia, who is re- garded by persons who set aside the foregoing origin of ma- jolica as the inventor of this ware. He appears to have earned distinction as a sculptor when he took to working in terra cotta, and gave permanence to his productions by the invention of a white enamel. His Madonnas, Scripture sub- jects, figures and architectural pieces are still prized by collec- tors. Mr. Marryat refers to them as " by far the finest works of art ever executed in pottery." He is also " the founder of a school which produced works not much inferior to his own." Existing specimens are of a dazzling whiteness, and the glaze, after so great a lapse of time, continues to be quite perfect. The manufacture of majolica flourished during two centuries under the patronage of the House of Urbino. The first duke, Frederick of Montefeltro (1444), took a lively interest in the manufacture ; his son established a manufacture at Pesaro, and the most eminent artists were employed in furnishing de- signs, a system of patronage which was maintained by suc- ceeding dukes. There is a tradition that Raffaelle was em- ployed in furnishing designs; whence majolica sometimes passes by the name of Raffaelle ware. But as the finest specimens do not date earlier than 1540, or twenty years ( Pottery and Porcelain — History. 145 after the death of that great artist, he was probably not di- rectly concerned in the manufacture. But it is admitted that his scholars used his drawings in composing designs for the finest specimens. In the middle of the fifteenth and during part of the sixteenth century, many towns of Italy had be- come renowned for their majolica ware, of which the coarser specimens were named inezza-majolica, and the finer, how- ever inappropriately, porcelana. The manufacture had at- tained its greatest celebrity between 1540 and 1560. After the last-named date the art began to decline, and the intro- duction of porcelain, properly so called, helped to complete its downfall. The caprices of fashion cannot be alone charged "with the destruction of this beautiful art, since, so far as util- ity is concerned, a hard paste covered with a vitreous glaze, as in porcelain, must be very superior to a soft paste coated with a metallic glaze, as in the case of majolica. The best examples of mezza-majolica are distinguished by the beauty of their color, and the perfection of their enamel glaze ; the latter imparting to the yellow and white tints the metallic luster of gold and silver. There is also a remarkable mother- of-pearl luster, together with an iridescent ruby, peculiar to Pesaro and Gubbio. The most general colors used in the painting were blue and yellow, with their mixtures. The drawing is not so good as the coloring, until the so-called por- celana raised the art to its zenith. After the year 1560 the designs became more fanciful and grotesque, and the colors inferior. It must not, however, be supposed that the arti- cles manufactured were ornamental only. During the whole reign of majolica ware, all kinds of common articles were produced, such as pilgrim's bottles, with holes in the bottom rim for the strap or cord by which the vessel was carried ; various forms of vases, adorned with paintings, with handles in the form of serpents, and rims surmounted by grotesque figures of animals and fishes ; fruit dishes, with embossed pat- terns in high relief; small plates for ices and sweetmeats; vases, for holding different kinds of wine, which could be poured out from one spout ; small flasks, in the shape of lemons and apples ; cups covered with tendrils or quaint devices ; small figures of saints ; jocose figures ; birds colored after nature ; painted tiles for walls and floors, etc. Some of the most interesting specimens of majolica are known as amato- 10 146 Five Black Arts. m, and consist of vessels, plates, or deep saucers, containing the. portrait and name of a lady ; these were filled with fruits or sweetmeats, and presented as pledges of affection. The portraits not only perpetuate the female beauty of a former age, but also the costume by which it was sought to make that beauty more attractive. Some of the amatorii repre- sent hands united, hearts a-flame, or pierced with darts, after the fashion of the modern valentine. The painters who exe- cuted the designs were usually copyists, the design itself being furnished by an eminent artist. In some cases, how- ever, the painters themselves were the artists, and are known by certain monograms and marks. Occasionally the painters bought the pieces ready prepared for painting, executed them at home, and took them to the kiln to be fired. In such cases, the piece is often marked with the name of the potter, as well as that of the artist. The custom of attaching sig- natures to the pieces is peculiar to some manufactories : those with names and monograms for the most part belong to Gub- bio and Albino. Different towns had their distinguishing marks, and it was common to mark in blue characters on the back of the dish the subject of the design ; but when a com- plete service was painted, only the principal piece was marked : it was also customary to introduce the arms of the family for whom the service was prepared. Majolica was introduced into Germany in 1507 by Hirsch- vogel of Nuremberg, but the manufacture does not appear to have survived him. It prospered better in France, where, under the name of faience* it flourished under the patronage of Catherine de Medici and her kinsman Louis Gonzaga. The latter established Italian artists in his dukedom of Nev- ers, and they were successful in producing enameled pottery from native materials. Gradually as native artists succeeded the Italian ones, the classical designs of the latter were de- graded, and the enameled ware of Italy was represented only by the common faience of France. In the eighteenth cen- tury Nevers recovered her reputation, and became celebrated for the brilliancy of a dark blue enamel with white patterns upon common ware. A variety of enameled pottery was also * This term is supposed to be derived from the small town, now a village, of Faience, in the department of Var, which, as early as the sixth century, appears to have been celebrated for glazed pottery. Pottery and Porcelain — History. 147 produced at Rouen : this attracted some notice ; but the kind of ware which maj be said to be peculiar to France is that known as PaHssy ware. There is a good deal of romance mixed up with the life of the inventor of this ware. Ber- nard Palissy and his adventures, real or imaginary, have as- sisted in multiplying the number of those dangerous books which ascribe imaginary events to real characters. Palissy was born at the commencement of the sixteenth century, of poor parents ; but nature had implanted within him a love of the beautiful, which became his teacher. He managed to ac- quire a knowledge of reading, writing, and land-surveying, by which last-named art he earned his livelihood. In the in- tervals of employment he was much given to the study of the Italian masters, and he was delighted to obtain work in paint- ing images and designs on glass. This enabled him to gratify his taste for travel, and for studying natural objects. He be- came master of the chemistry and mineralogy of his day, such as it was. In 1539 he settled at Saintes as an artist, where he married. His attention was directed to pottery by being shown a beautiful enameled cup, and on proceeding to inquire into its mode of manufacture, he found that there were secrets connected with it, and especially with the composition of the enamel. He at once undertook a course of experiments on the subject, but without success. The desire to master the subject had, however, taken such possession of him, that du- ring several years he devoted nearly all his time and means to this pursuit, in spite of the claims of his wife and family and the remonstrances of his friends. He borrowed money to enable him to construct a new furnace ; and when too poor to buy fuel, he used his furniture instead. When unable to pay his assistant's wages, he gave him the coat from off his back. Thus becoming every year more wretched than the preceding, the folly of sixteen years (as it would have been called had he failed) ended in a triumph. His figulines or rustic pottery became the fashion of the day, and his beauti- ful patterns were every where admired. The general style of his ware is marked by quaintness and singularity ; his fig- ures are usually chaste in form : the ornaments and subjects of an historical, mythological, and allegorical character are in relief, and colored. His natural objects, with the excep- tion of certain leaves, were all moulded from nature. His 148 Five Black Arts. shells are those of the tertiary formation of the Paris basin ; his fish are those of the Seine ; the reptiles and plants are from the neighborhood of Paris ; and he made use of no for- eign natural production. The colors are usually bright, and mostly confined to yellows, blues, and grays ; sometimes ex- tending to green, violet, and brown. Mr. Marryat says that Palissy never succeeded in attaining the purity of the white enamel of Luca della Robbia, or even that of the faience of Nevers. The pieces rustiques of this artist, intended to adorn the large sideboards of the dining-rooms of the period, are loaded with objects in relief. A favorite subject with him was a flat kind of basin or dish, representing tlie bottom of the sea, covered with fishes, shells, sea-weeds, pebbles, snakes, etc. We have also from the hand of this artist, ewers and vases with grotesque ornaments, boars' heads, curiously- formed salt-cellars, figures of saints, wall and floor tiles, etc. Mr. Baring Wall speaks of Palissy as " a great master of the power and effect of neutral tints." * France is also celebrated for a fine ware known as faience fine and gres cerame. Some of the earliest specimens are known under the name of renaissance, or fine faience of Henri II. There are only thirty- seven pieces of this manu- facture extant ; and as twenty-seven of them have been traced to Touraine and La Vendue, it has been conjectured that the manufactory was at Thouars in Touraine. The ma- terial is a fine white pipe-clay, the texture of which is seen through the thin transparent yellow varnish. The patterns are engraved on the paste, and the hollows filled up with col- ored pastes, so as to resemble fine inlaying, or chiseled silver works in niello; whence this ware has also been termed faience a niello. There are also beautifully-modeled raised ornaments : the articles are for the most part small and light, consisting of cups, ewers, and a vase with a spout for pouring, called a hiberon. A single candlestick of this ware was sold a few years ago for 220^. Germany had its enameled wares as early as the thirteenth century, the secret of success being of course the discovery of a fine glaze. Ratisbon, Landschut, and Nuremberg thus became formidable rivals of the Arabs and the Italians. The ♦Lecture delivered before the Literary and Scientific Society of Salis- bury, January, 1853. Printed for private circulation. Pottery and Porcelain — History. 149 distinctive characters of this ware are the fine green glaze, the complex form, the number and variety of ornaments, lightness, and good workmanship. Nuremberg also became famous for its large enameled tiles used for covering stoves. Holland, from its exclusive trade with Japan, was induced to imitate the Japanese porcelain. The chief seat of the man- ufacture was Delft ; and the ware was known and esteemed in the sixteenth century by its fantastic design, good color, and beautiful enamel — the latter being smooth and even, and slightly tinged with blue. The Japanese origin was seen in the monstrous animals of the chimera class, the three-ringed bottle, the tall shapeless beaker, and the large circular dish, which were long regarded in Europe as favorite ornaments ; while the common articles were so generally distributed as to obtain for Delft, the title of the " parent of pottery." The fine English wares introduced by Wedgwood and others were the means of injurng the trade of Delft. In England, the first manufactory of fine earthenware is said to have been erected in the reign of Elizabeth at Strat- ford-le-Bow. The well-known Shakspeare jug is cited as a good specimen of Elizabethan pottery. It is of cream-colored earthenware, about 9 inches in height and 16 in circumfer- ence in the largest part. Its shape resembles that of a mod- ern coffee-pot. It is divided lengthwise into eight compart- ments, each containing a mythological subject in high relief and of considerable merit. The silver top is a modern ad- dition. The Elizabethan pottery nearly approaches in hard- ness that of fine stone-ware ; it is of a dingy white, and its ornaments in relief consist mostly of quaint figures and foli- age. In the reign of Elizabeth the Staffordshire potteries came into notice, of which some of the earliest specimens consist of butter-pots of native brick earth, glazed with pow- dered lead-ore, which was dusted on while the ware was in a green state ; the tig^ or drinking-cup, with three handles ; and the parting-cup, with two handles. In 1684 a manu- factory of earthenware was established at Fulham, some of the products of which, under the name of Fulham-ware,SLve . still valued by collectors. They consist of white gorges or pitchers, marbled porcelain vessels, statues, and figures. The proprietor, Mr. John Dwight, attempted to produce the trans- parent porcelain of China, but his success was not such as to 160 Five Black Arts. turn him from the more profitable manufacture of earthen- ware. About the time of the Revolution, ale-jugs of native marl, ornamented with figures in white pipe-clay, were intro- duced. During the reigns of Anne and George 1. an im- proved ware was made of sand and pipe-clay colored with oxide of copper and manganese, forming the well-known agate-ware and tortoiseshell-ware, conferring on the pottery the character of a hard paste, which was subsequently so much improved by Wedgwood, and introduced under the name of Queen^s-ware. The proceedings of Wedgwood form an epoch in the his- tory of the art. Josiah Wedgwood was the son of a potter at Burslem in Staffordshire. He was born about the year 1780, and can scarcely be said to have received any formal education. At the age of eleven he entered his brother's pottery as a thrower ; but he had not been long so engaged before he was attacked by small-pox, which left him with a lame leg, and rendered amputation necessary. Ilis first at- tempts to settle in life were not fortunate ; he became part- ner for a short time in 1752 with a man named Harrison, at Stoke, where he is said to have first felt a strong desire to manufacture ornamental pottery. His next partner was named Wheildon, and his employment consisted in manufac- turing knife-handles in imitation of agate and tortoise-shell, melon table-plates, green pickle-leaves, etc. ; but he could not induce his partner to embark largely in the production of ornamental wares, nor was there much encouragement to do so. The upper classes of Great Britain obtained their porce- lain from China ; the great bulk of the earthenware in do- mestic use was supplied by France, Germany, and Holland ; and even the trade in tobacco-pipes, in which England had attained some success, was becoming monopolized by the Dutch. To compete with these formidable rivals required the courage and persistence of genius ; and Wedgwood was not slow in bringing them to bear upon the native materials which surrounded him. Accordingly, in 1759 he established a small factory on his own account at Burslem. Here he must have been successful, for he soon undertook a second manufactory, where he produced a white stone-ware, and afterward a third, where he manufactured his celebrated cream-colored ware. Some specimens of the latter having Pottery and Porcelain — History. 151 been shown to Queen Charlotte, her Majesty was so pleased with them that she appointed Wedgwood the royal potter, and gave permission for calling the ware Queen's-ware. Wedg- wood had now no longer reason to complain of want of taste or of prtronage on the part of the public, and nobly did he use his best exertions to encourage the one and respond wor- thily to the other. He studied the chemistry of his day, and courted the society of scientific men, with a view to improve the composition, glaze, and color of his wares. He invited good artists to furnish him with desi;2;ns, among whom was the celebrated Flaxman. Among Wedgwood's inventions may be mentioned a terra cotta, resembling porphyry; ba- salts, or black ware, which would strike sparks like a flint ; white porcelain biscuit, with properties similar to basalt; bamboo, or cane-colored biscuit ; jasper, a white biscuit, of exquisite delicacy and beauty, well adapted for cameos, por- traits, etc. ; also blue jasper and green jasper, and a porcelain biscuit little inferior to agate in hardness, and used for pes- tles and mortars in the laboratories of chemists. He also succeeded in imparting to hard pottery the vivid colors and brilliant glaze of porcelain. About the year 1762 Wedg- wood opened a warehouse in London, and intrusted it to the care of Mr. Bentley, a gentleman of recognized taste, who succeeded in attracting; attention to the risin": Staffordshire works, and also in obtaining the loan of vases, cameos, ori- ental porcelain, etc., which at that time were difficult to procure, especially for the purposes of the manufacturer ; but such was the sympathy of persons of taste with Wedg- wood's pursuits, that they freely lent their fictile treasures either to be copied or to suggest new designs. Even the Barbarini vase, which was purchased by the Duchess of Port- land for 1800 guineas, was lent to Wedgwood, who, after ex- ecuting fifty copies, destroyed the mould. Wedgwood's wares now became so deservedly popular that the extension of his works in Staffordshire led to the formation of a new village near Newcastle-under-Lyne, which was named " Etruria," from the resemblance which the clay dug there had to the ancient Etrurian earth, and also probably to mark the success with which Wedgwood had imitated the ancient Etruscan ware. This village long continued to be a center of attrac- tion for travelers from all parts of Europe, and we may still 152 Five Black Arts. trace that celebrity in many noted collections of the ceramic art, Wedgwood's finest productions taking rank with the choicest specimens of Dresden and Sevres. Wedgwood died at his mansion in Etruria in 1795. The stone-ware which Wedgwood so greatly improved had long existed under various forms in different potteries of the world. In some cases it was common, and in others fine — the difierence consisting in the composition of the paste. The Chinese were acquainted with this ware, and were accustomed to use it as the basis for a surface of porcelain paste. The stone pottery of the Rhine of the sixteenth century is esteemed by collectors for its quaintness of form, richness of ornament, and the color of its enam.el. Gres Flamand, or Flemish stone-ware, of the period between 1540 and 1620 is remark- able for its beautiful blue color, quaint forms, and rich orna- ments. France also appears to have manufactured stone- ware before the sixteenth century. In England, Dutch and German workmen were engaged in the manufacture at an early period. In 1690 the mode of glazing by means of com- mon salt enabled the stone-ware manufacturers to compete successfully with delft and soft paste fabrics. Toward the end of the seventeenth century a very fine unglazed stone- ware, with raised ornaments, known as red Japan ware, was made in England, after the failure of many previous attempts. It appears that two brothers named Elers, from Nuremberg, discovered at Bradwell, about two miles from Burslem, a bed of fine red clay, which they worked at a small factory erected on the bed itself. They endeavored to conceal their discov- ery, as well as their mode of working, for which purpose they employed the most ignorant assistants that they could meet with ; but no sooner did their ware attract attention than a potter named Astbury, feigning to be an idiot, entered the service of the two brothers, and having learnt all their secrets, established a factory for himself; the processes soon became known, and others followed the example. In 1720 the two brothers closed their establishment, and entered the porcelain manufactory at Chelsea. Mr. Marryat characterizes their ware as being fine in material and sharp in execution, the or- naments being formed in copper moulds. Regarding stone-ware as a connecting-link between earth- enware and porcelain, we come now to the history of the Pottery and Porcelain — History. 153 latter article. China, Japan, and Persia are the earliest na- tions which produced this beautiful material. Bottles of Chinese manufacture have been found in the tombs of Thebes ; and from an inscription on one of them, the date of the man- ufacture would appear to be between 1575 B.C. and 1289 B.C. The workmanship, however, is inferior. Porcelain seems to have been common in the Chinese empire in the year 163 B.C., and to have attained its greatest perfection in the year 1000 A.D. The porcelain tower near Nankin was erected in 1277. Marco Polo describes the manufacture in China during the thirteenth century. Specimens of the ware had gradually found their way to Europe, but were not generally known until the Cape of Good Hope had been doubled by the Portu- guese. The latter were so struck with the resemblance be- tween the texture of this fine ware and that of cowrie-shells or " porcellana,'* as they were called, that they imagined that the ware might be made of such shells, or of a compo- sition resembling them, and named it accordingly. They im- ported numerous and splendid collections of the ware into Europe, where it was also named from the country which pro- duced it ; and, from its ringing sound, " China metal. '^ It was also called " China earth." On the expulsion of the Portuguese, the Dutch succeeded in establishing a traffic with India and Japan ; and Europe was for a long time supplied with porcelain through Holland. The English shared in the trade somewhat later, through the medium of the East India Company ; but the taste for collecting china had become very general, and about the middle of the seventeenth century had amounted to a passion. The writers of the day fre- quently refer to it, especially in Queen Anne's reign. The French, who had established missions in China, succeeded in obtaining, from time to time, information respecting the man- ufacture. Fokien was represented as the seat of manufac- ture of the pure white porcelain of China, some of which consists of small cups and similar articles, with inscriptions, devices, etc., under the glaze, so that they can only be seen by holding the article up to the light. Nankin produced the blue and white porcelain, as also the pale buff on the necks of bottles and backs of plates. King-te-tching was named as the origin of the old sea-green and crackle porcelain. To the former the term celadon has been applied ; but the French 154 Five Black Arts. extend the term to porcelain of any tint in which the colors are mixed with the glaze, and burnt in at the first firing. In some cases two or more colors are blended so as to give the appear- ance of shot-silk ; a variety, known as marbled, belongs to this class, and resembles marble in its coloring and veining. Crackle china, in which an immense number of cracks occur on the surface in small regular figures, is due to the unequal expansion of the glaze on the paste. The crackled " tsoui-khi'' are produced by combining steatite with the glaze ; and this when fired, splits into a net-work over the surface. A simi- lar effect can be produced by plunging the heated porcelain into cold water ; the cracks are then filled in with a thick ink or red-ocher. The ancient crackle is so much esteemed in Japan that as much as 300?. has been paid for a single specimen. The Chinese call this ware snake-porcelain ; and the French apply to it the term porcelame iruitee. But the perfection of the ceramic art among the Chinese is exhibited in their egg-shell porcelain, which is thin and transparent, and resembles an egg-shell in appearance. This ware is col- ored citron-yellow for the exclusive use of the emperor, and ruby for the use of the imperial family. The porcelain in common use in China is brown, the inside being white, and white medallions outside. There is also an inferior and mod- ern porcelain, manufactured at Canton, and known as Indian china. But all the specimens of Chinese porcelain, however beautiful may be the material and delicate the texture, how- ever brilhant the color and pure the glaze, the form and the design are hideous. It has been remarked that the vase of the humblest Greek potter of the best period has an aesthetic value far surpassing the most costly productions of the Ce- lestial Empire. The porcelain of Japan is in better taste than that of China, the dragons being less monstrous and the flowers more natural. After the introduction of Chinese porcelain into Europe, many attempts were made during two centuries to imitate it. The first successful experiment was the result of one of those accidents which are doubtless of frequent occurrence, although the quality of mind required to take advantage of them is rare. John Frederick Bottcher was an apothecary's assist- ant at Berlin : he was fond of chemistry, and conducted his experiments with so much ardor that the authorities could not Pottery and Porcelain — History. 155 resist the conclusion that he was practicing the black art. He found it convenient to make his escape from Berlin and to visit Dresden, where the Elector of Saxony, Augustus II., patronized chemistry, not from the love of science, but from that of gold. Bottcher claimed the protection of the elector, who eagerly inquired of him respecting the transmutation of the baser metals. With the natural frankness of his charac- ter, Bottcher confessed his ignorance, but was disbelieved. Why should a man study chemistry except to enrich himself? it was argued ; and as the ^lector was already patronizing the alchemist Tschirnhaus in his endeavors to discover the art of transmuting old age into youth, by means of the elixir vitce, he associated Bottcher with him, with strict orders not to let him out of his sight. Bottcher was employed to seek after the philosopher's stone ; and in the course of his experi- ments he made some crucibles, which, on being fired, pos- sessed many of the characters of oriental porcelain. The vessels were made from a brown clay found near Meissen, aud they were of a reddish tint. When the result was brought before the elector he appreciated its importance ; and in order that Bottcher might pursue the inquiry in secret, he sent him to the castle of Albrechtsburg, near Meissen, where he was magnificently entertained, but restrained in his personal lib- erty. So much importance was attached to the secret, that during the troubles consequent on the invasion of Saxony by Charles XII. of Sweden, Bottcher, Tschirnhaus, and three workmen, were sent to the fortress of Konigstein on the Elbe, where a laboratory was prepared for them. ]^ottcher's fel- low-prisoners formed a plan of escape, which he communica- ted to the commandant, whereby he gained favor and a little more personal liberty. In 1707 he returned to Meissen, where he continued to prosecute his experiments, delighting every one around him with his active cheerfulness, and keeping up the spirits of the workmen during the furnace operations, which sometimes lasted sixty hours consecutively. Tschirn- haus died in the following year, and Bottcher enlarged the scale of his operations ; he caused a new furnace to be erected, and extended the time of firing to five days and five nights. The elector was present at the opening of the furnace, and expressed his satisfaction at the progress which was being made. Up to this time, however, the only result was a kind 166 Five Black Arts. of red and white stone-ware ; and when, in 1709, Bottcher succeeded in producing a white porcelain, it became bent, and cracked in the fire. The progress, however, was deemed to be sufficient to determine Augustine to establish a manu- factory at Meissen, and to appoint Bottcher the director. In 1715 the new factory produced a beautiful description of por- celain by means of the kaolin of Aue in the Erzgebirge, the discovery of which was made by an ironmaster of the dis- trict named Schnorr. This man had observed, while riding near the place, that his horse's feet stuck in a soft white te- nacious earth, and it occurred to him that if this earth were dried and reduced to powder, it would make a good substi- tute for hair-powder, which the fashion of the day required, all except the poor, to use. Accordingly he manufactured the powder in large quantities, and found a ready sale for it in Dresden and elsewhere. Bottcher's valet used it, and so in- creased the weight of his master's wig as to lead to inquiry ; and finding that the new hair-powder was of mineral origin, the idea flashed across his mind that this white powder might be useful in his experiments. He made the attempt, and was delighted to find that he had at length discovered the long wished-for material for making white porcelain. The secret so curiously obtained was for a long time as carefully guarded. The powder was made to retain its commercial name of *' Schnorr's white earth" QSnorrische weisse Urde), its export was forbidden, and it was introduced into the factory in sealed barrels by persons sworn to secrecy. All persons connected with the factory were obliged to take a similar oath ; no visitor was admitted; and the factory was regulated after the manner of a fortress. The motto in large letters, " Be secret unto death" (^Geheim Ms ins G-rah)^ was set up in each room ; the oath to the workmen was renewed every month ; and when the king or any distinguished visitor was allowed to enter the factory, a similar obligation was im- posed on him. But all this parade of secrecy would make it clear to the most ill-informed workmen that the secret had a high mark- etable value, and we cannot wonder that it should have been sold to one or other of the monarchs of Europe, most of whom were ambitious to manufacture oriental porcelain. Bottcher died in 1719, at the age of thirty-seven, but before his pre- Pottery and Porcelain — History. 157 mature death, a foreman had escaped from the factory, and proceeding to Vienna, submitted to be bribed, and it was not long before rival factories sprang up in different parts of Germany. A few years ago the writer visited the Meissen factory, which is pleasantly situated on the banks of the Elbe ; it still retains something of its fortress character, al- though the workshops are light and cheerful. The principal room is adorned with the bust of Bottcher. The factory, however, has lost its former vigor : an air of lassitude seems to pervade the place, and neither there nor at Sdvres are we impressed with the idea that the work is being done in earn- est, as it is at such an establishment as Minton's at Stoke upon-Trent. There can be no doubt that private enterprise, unshackled by state restrictions, is the only healthy condition of the useful arts. A royal factory, which can neither be- come bankrupt nor meet with the wholesome stimulus of com- petition, is not likely to be worked at a profit, nor to inspire activity in its attendants. The temporary success of the Meissen factory depended on the singularity of its position. There was a great demand in Europe for fine porcelain, and Meissen was in a condition to supply it. The first productions of the factory were mostly imitations of oriental patterns, but they were deficient in grace and lightness. There was a marked improvement when Kand- ler, a professional sculptor, was appointed in 1731 to superin- tend the modeling. He introduced wreaths and bouquets, animals and groups of figures, with the feeling of an artist. The works were arrested by the Seven Years' War ; but after this calamity Meissen became celebrated for its exquis- ite miniature copies of the best works of the Flemish school, together with birds and insects, painted by Lindenir, and flowers and animals by the best artists. In 1745, when Frederick of Prussia took possession of Dresden, he obtained among the spoils of war enormous quantities of porcelain. He also removed to Berlin some of the workmen, together with the models and moulds of the finest pieces. Again, in 1759, the factory was plundered and its archives destroyed : it revived somewhat under Dietrich the painter, Liich the modeler, Breicheisen, and the sculptor Fran9ois Acier. Grad- ually, however, the factory ceased to be profitable, and w^as for many years maintained at a loss ; when some years ago the 158 Five Black Akts. king gave it up to the finance dejiartment of the state. The finest works of art are no longer produced ; and it is also stated that the beds of fine clay in the neighborhood are nearly exhausted, and that an inferior material from Zittau is used instead.* Various marks were placed on different pe- riods; the first mark consisted of the letters A. R. (Augus- tus Rex), and was placed on all pieces not intended for sale. The well-known mark of the electoral swords, crossed, also distinguishes Dresden china. Fac-similes of these marks, and of the marks and monograms of other celebrated Euro- pean potteries, are given in Mr. Marryat's work. Among the best of the Dresden works are groups from antique models ; lace figures, so called from the fineness of the lace-work in the dress ; flowers, evidently studied from nature ; and vases richly adorned and incrusted, forming what is called honey-comh china. But even during the palmy time of this manufacture, namely, from 1731 to 1756, the productions were sometimes disfigured by the highly arti- ficial taste of the age. The first rival of Meissen was the porcelain factory of Vi- enna, which originated in 1720, in consequence of the per- jury of a Meissen workman, as already noticed. The fac- tory does not, however, appear to have flourished until warmed into life by the patronizing smiles of Maria Theresa in 1744, and of the Emperor Joseph. The porcelain of Vienna holds a lower rank than that of Dresden or of Berlin. It is not so light as that of Dresden, and the glazing has a grayish tint. Its chief feature is its raised and gilded work, which are in good taste, and of late years the application in relief of solid platinum and gold. The works are now in private hands, and the chief markets for the sale of the ware are in Turkey, Russia, and Italy. As the Vienna works were based on treachery, so was the next important establishment based on the defection of a Vi- * This statement is made on the authority of Mr. Marryat ; but at the time we are writing an account is given in the German papers of an order from Paris having been executed at Meissen, consisting of portraits of the Emperor and Empress of the French, of a medallion shape, and inclosed in a rich porcelain frame. According to the German critics, " these are the finest works of art which porcelain painting has yet produced." If this criticism be true, or even partially true, the Meissen works must have ex- perienced an extraordinary revival. Pottery and Porcelain — History. 159 ennese workman. A celebrated pottery was already in ex- istence at the village of Hochst on the Nidda, when in 1740 a man named Ringler undertook to superintend the manufac- ture of porcelain if the proprietors would introduce it. This man appears to have been simply a knave without skill or in- vention ; he had committed to writing the various processes of the Vienna establishment, and concealing his manuscript about his person, consulted it every time he had to give out materials to the workmen. As knavery propagates itself, the workmen, taking advantage of Ringler's fondness for wine, invited him to a feast, where they made him helplessly drunk — when they robbed him of his papers, carefully copied his recipes, and then decamped to other parts of Germany, where they sold the secrets to those who were anxious for their possession. Hence originated from one source the por- celain factories of Switzerland, of the Lower Rhine, of Cassel, and even of Berlin. The Fiirstenburg works, in the duchy of Brunswick, originated in a bribe offered by one of the dukes to a Hochst workman. The works at Frankenthal in Ba- varia originated in a pottery which was visited by Ringler after he had been plundered of his papers. The factory of Nymphenburg in Bavaria had a similar origin. The porce- lain of this factory is much esteemed, many of the designs having been furnished by the celebrated picture-gallery of Munich. A factory at Baden was conducted by some of the Hochst workmen until 1778. The factory of Ludwigsburg, begun in 1768 under the patronage of the Duke of Wirtem- berg, has executed some beautiful works, which are known as Croneiibarg porcelain, from the town of that name, and the mark CC on its wares. The distance from which the clay and the fuel had to be procured prevented the suc- cess of this establishment. The porcelain factory of Ber- lin was first undertaken in consequence of the information supplied by the men who robbed Ringler ; but it was not very successful until a more magnificent fraud had been perpe- trated, namely, the transference of the best of the work- people, and the material of the Meissen factory, as already referred to. The Berlin porcelain was, of course, only an imitation of the Dresden, but the factory was carried on with such vigor as to yield to the king an annual revenue of 200,000 crowns. In 1790 a second royal porcelain factory 160 Five Black Arts. was established about two miles from Berlin. To one of Ringler's fraudulent comrades is also due the factory estab- lished at Fulda, about 1763. The prince-bishop of Fulda established another factory in a house adjoining the episco- pal palace ; but it is said to have failed in consequence of the taste for porcelain extending to the dignitaries of the church, who claimed the privilege of carrying off specimens without paying for them. The porcelain factories of Thuringia originated about 1758, when an old woman having sold some sand at the house of the chemist Macheleid, his son, struck by its appearance, experimented on it, and obtained by its means a porcelain-looking substance, whereupon the Prince of Schwartzburg sanctioned the erection of a factory at Sitz- erode, which was afterward removed to Yolkstadt. The abund- ance of fuel supplied by the Thuringian forest led to the erection of other factories, such as that of VVallendorf in Saxe-Coburg, Limbach in Saxe-Meinengen, the director of which succeeded so well as to be able to purchase the factory of Grosbreiten- bach in Rudelstadt, and also that of Kloster Veilsdorf. Fac- tories were also founded at Gotha in 1780, at Hildburghaus, at Anspach, at Ilmenau, at Britenbach, and at Gera. All these factories had their periods of prosperity, and produced porcelain which is still esteemed by collectors. Some of them have degenerated into potteries, and some produce pipe- bowls as their only article in porcelain. Nor will our list ap- proach completeness without mentioning a factory established by the Empress Elizabeth in 1756, near St. Petersburg, which still continues to produce good porcelain from native materials. Denmark has a factory at Copenhagen ; it is sup- ported by the government, but is said to be, commercially, a failure. The factory at Zurich in Switzerland was established on the information supplied by one of Ringler's workmen. A factory at Nyons, in the Canton de Vaud, has also pro- duced some good porcelain. During all this active rivalry on the Continent it will not be supposed that England had escaped the porcelain-making mania. Bow and Chelsea produced the first porcelain works. They made a soft ware from a mixture of white clay, white sand from Alum Bay, and pounded glass. The Chelsea works do not appear to have been in a very flourishing condition until George II. imported workmen, models, and materials Pottery and Porcelain — History. 161 from Brunswick and Saxony. Chelsea porcelain then became the rage, and such was the eagerness to obtain it, that it was sold by auction to the highest bidders, the dealers rushing in crowds to compete for it. Some of the best works were pro- duced between 1750 and 1755 : they are in the style of the best German ; the colors are fine and vivid, and the claret color is peculiar. Bow china, made at Stratford-le-Bow, has some resemblance to that of Chelsea, but the material is not so good. Its principal productions were tea-services and dessert-sets. In 1750 was established the factory at Derby, which became important in consequence of the introduction of the Chelsea artists, workmen, and models, the junction of the two factories being notified by the anchor and the letter D, the monograms of each manufacture. Flaxman furnished designs for the establishment ; but the union did not continue long; the partners quarreled, and one of them destroyed the models. Mr. Marryat describes the Derby porcelain as be- ing very transparent, of fine quality, and distinguished by a beautiful bright blue, often introduced on the border or edge of the tea-services, the ground being generally plain ; the white-biscuit figures are said to equal those of Sc^vres. The Worcester works were established in 1751 by Dr. Wall and some others, under the name of the Worcester Porce- lain Company. The company first imitated the blue and white Nankin china ; they afterward adopted the S^wres style, with the Dresden method of painting. These works are remarkable as being the first to make use of the Cornish stone or kaolin, discovered by Cook worthy in 1768. They are still carried on with distinguished success by Messrs. Kerr and Binns. In 1772 a factory was established at Caughley, near Broseley, Colebrook Dale, the productions of which are known as Salopian ware. Early in the present century some good porcelain was made at Nantgarrow and Swansea ; it is also stated that the Bristol china, a white ware formerly com- mon in the west of England, was made in Wales, and sold in Bristol. France regarded with impatience during sixty years the progress of porcelain in Europe, and although eminently quali- fied in point of taste, skill, and science to contribute to the ceramic treasures of the world, she was unable to compete with other nations for want of a suitable raw material. It 11 162 Five Black Arts. is true that as early as 1695 a soft porcelain had been man- ufactured at St. Cloud, and that some of the scientific men of France had endeavored, under royal patronage, to discover the secrets of the art, but no great success was attained. The company had been established at Vincennes, but in 1756 they removed to a large building which they had erected at Sevres. In 1760 Louis XV. bought up the establishment, probably at the instigation of Madame de Pompadour, who seems to have shared with her sex the passion for china. The factory became celebrated for its porcelain, or pate tendre, but the great point aimed at was to produce the hard porcelain which had rendered Saxony the envy of Europe. But kaolin was not known in France, nor was its presence even suspected, until about 1768, when the wife of a surgeon named Darnet of St. Yrieix, near Limoges, having noticed in a ravine near the town a wliite unctuous earth, thought that she might relieve her husband's poverty somewhat by using it in her house in- stead of soap. The surgeon showed a portion of the substance to an apothecary of Bordeaux, who being aware of the search that was being made for porcelain earth, forwarded a speci- men to the chemist Macquer, who recognized it as the much- desired kaolin. Assuring himself that an abundant supply could be had, he established the manufacture of hard porce- lain at Sevres in 1769. At first some difficulty was experi- enced in managing the colors upon the more compact and less absorbent material, so that the soft porcelain continued to be made until the year 1804. Such, in few words, is the origin of the hard porcelain of Sevres. The pate tendre was not considered as real porce- lain, but the taste and skill of the French are remarkable in carrying it to the highest pitch of perfection under many diffi- culties, arising from its complicated and expensive composi- tion, and from its liability to collapse during the firing. Mr. Marryat speaks of it as being " remarkable for its creamy and pearly softness of color, the beauty of its painting, and its depth of glaze." The ware for common or domestic use had generally a plain ground, painted with flowers in patterns or medallions ; articles de luxe, and pieces intended for royal use, had commonly grounds of various colors, such as bleu de roi, bleu turquoise, jonquille, or yellow, vert pres, or green, and a lively pink or rose color, named after Madame Dubarry . Pottery and Porcelain — History. 163 Skillful artists were employed upon the finest porcelain, which is adorned with landscapes, flowers, birds, bojs, and cupids gracefully arranged in medallions. Some of the specimens are painted with subjects after AVatteau, and other known masters. The jeweled cups, with the blue de roi ground are celebrated. The best period of the soft porcelain was from 1740 to 1769, and the tests which Mr. Marryat gives to dis- tinguish it form its highest praise, namely, '^ the beauty of the painting, the richness of the gilding, and the depth of color." In point of form the Sevres china is not equal to that of Dresden. A law was passed in 1766, and renewed in 1784, limiting the use of gold in the decoration of porce- lain to the royal manufactory of Sevres, which accounts for the rarity of old French gilded porcelain. At the time of the Revolution many fine specimens of Sev- res porcelain in the royal palaces and mansions of the nobility were destroyed. The establishment of Sevres, however, was supported by the revolutionary government, who appointed three commissioners to manage it. In the year 1800 the first consul appointed M. Brongniart as director. He held the appointment during forty-seven years, and originated the celebrated Musee Ceramique, consisting of a historical series of specimens illustrative of the ceramic art in all times and among all people, together with a collection of raw materials, tools implements, trial-pieces, models of furnaces, etc. On our visit to this museum, we were particularly struck with a col- lection 0^ failures, or specimens showing what had been done to overcome faulty results, and what it was hopeless to at- tempt. M. Brongniart is also the author of a classical work on the art to which he devoted his life with such distinguished success.* M. Ebelman succeeded Brongniart as diiector. and held the appointment for a year or two. The present director, M. Regnault, was appointed by the Emperor Na- poleon III. The following is a list of the more celebrated porcelain manufactures of France : Chantilly, which owed its origin in 1735 to a workman from St. Cloud; Menecy, founded in 1735 under the patronage of the Due de Viileroi ; Sceaux- * Traitd dcs Arts Cdramiques ou des Poteries cousiderees dans leur his- toire, leur pratique, et leur theorie, par Alexandre Brongniart, etc,, etc. 2 vols. 8vo, with au Atlas of plates. Paris, 1844. 164 Five Black Arts. penthi^vre, established in 1751 ; Clignancourt, 1750, under the patronage of the Duke of Orleans ; Etiolles, near Cor- boil, 1766; Bourg la Rt-ine, Paris, 1733. Lille, estab- lished, it is supposed, in 170^, when the Dutch were masters of the town; Arras, 1782; Tournay, 11^)0. At St. Amand les Eaux, near Valenciennes, and at Tournay in Belgium, are two factories, the only two in Europe where the old pate tendre of Sevres is still produced. As respects Icaly, a factory was established at Doccia, near Florence, at the beginning of the eighteenth century. Venice also manufactured porcelain until 1812. There was also a factory at Vineuf, near Turin ; but the most famous factory in Italy is the Capo di Monti at Naples, founded by Charles III. in 1736. This sovereign appears to have ex- celled the other royal amateurs of Europe in the ardor with which he cultivated the ceramic art, and he even surpassed Augustus III., who was nicknamed by Frederick of Prussia " the Porcelain King," and who exchanged a whole regiment of dragoons for some huge useless china vases. Charles III. even worked in the factory with his own hands, and held an annual fair in front of the royal palace at Naples, where there there was a shop for the sale of the royal productions ; and there was no more certain road to the king's favor than to become a purchaser. When Charles became king of Spain he founded a factory at Madrid, and that at Naples declined. His suc- cessor Ferdinand sanctioned the erection of other porcelain works, and allowed the royal workmen to assist in their form- ation; and they appear not only to have assisted but to have robbed the parent factory of its gold and silver models and other valuables. The royal factory was closed in 1821. The porcelain of Capo di Monti is not, as is commonly the case, an imitation of that of some rival factory. Its beauty and excellence are due to the design from shells, corals, embossed figures, etc , artistically moulded in high relief. Mr. Mar- ryat regards the tea and coffee services of this ware as per- haps the most beautiful porcelain articles ever produced in Europe, for transparency, thinness of the paste, elegance of form, and gracefully-twisted serpent handles, as also for the delicate modeling of the ornamental groups in high relief, painted and gilt, contrasting well with the plain ground. The factory at Madrid was conducted with the utmost secrecy Pottery and Porcelain — History. 165 during several reigns, but was destroyed bj the French in 1812. Portugal has a factory of hard porcelain near Oporto. The prices paid for porcelain are high. As much as 150/. has been paid tor a single specimen of majolica; while a service of Chelsea ware has cost 1200/. One of Sdvres, of a good period, 30,000 livres; while the Dresden ware was equally costly. Although our modern manufacturers have produced porcelain rivaling that of the best periods of cele- brated works, the price still continues to be necessarily high, where the materials require to be treated with the precision of a chemical process, ond the design and ornamentation require high artistic skill. Mr. Minton received 1000/. for his service of turquoise and Parian ; Lord Hertford gave 1000/. for two vases; Mr. Mills the same; one of the Queen's vases has been valued at 1000/., and Lord Ward gave 1500/. for a des- sert service of Sevres. Such works as these, however, be- long rather to the fine arts than the useful arts, to be preserved in cabinets and museums. Formerly it was customary on great occasions to serve the guests on porcelain, which gave to wealth a real distinction. In those days the transition from porcelain to earthenware was abrupt ; but through the exertions of Wedgwood and others, porcelain now descends through numerous varieties of material, style, taste, and dec- oration ; so that every class of consumer may suit his own taste and means. Our trade in earthenware has of late years gone on increasing. In the year 1835 the declared value of earthenware exported from the United Kingdom was 540,421/. ; in the year 1857 it amounted to 1,488,(568/. Our exports extend to most parts of the world, including Russia, Austria, Turkey, and even France. The United States of America take nearly the half of our exports in earthenware, so little has the potter's art been encouraged in the New World.* Our exports to foreign countries would doubtless be larger if the restrictions were fewer and less clumsy. In Germany and Italy the duty is levied on the weight; so that Wedgwood, on account of the lightness of his ware, was long able to command the market in those states. In France the duty on common English china of one color, without gilding or ornament, is lu4 francs per 1000 kilo- * Stoae-ware is extansivcly manafactured in Northern Ohio. 166 Five Black Arts. grammes (200 lbs.) ; for fine china, 327 francs for the same quantity. The most whimsical of all tariffs is that of Portu- gal, where the charge is according to the number of colors; so that, as Mr. Wall remarks, " no man's pojket could stand the choice of a rainbow pattern.'' THE MATERIALS. Clay, which forms the basis of pottery and earthenware, is not only abundant and widely diffused, but presents so many varieties that much experience and judgment are required in adapting the kind of clay to the article to be manufactured. Brongniart enumerates 167 varieties of clay, and states their physical and chemical characters, composition, locality, and application. Some of the commonest varieties of clay con- sist of — 1. Pipe clay. It has a grayish-white color, a smooth greasy feel, an earthy fracture ; it adheres to the tongue, and is plastic, tenacious, and infusible. It becomes of a cream color when fired ; and is used for tobacco-pipes and white pot- tery. It is found near Poole in Dorsetshire. — 2. Po^ter^s clay. This is of various colors ; those used in the Stafford- shire potteries are the brown and blue clays from Dorsetshire,* and black and cracking clays from Devonshire. The color of the black clay is due to bitumen or coaly matter, which disappears in passing through the kiln; so that the wares formed of it are almost white. Cracking clay is esteemed on account of its whiteness, but as it is liaMe to crack during the firing, it must be mixed with other clays which are free from this defect. Brown clay when passed through the gloss oven sometimes causes the glaze to crack, or craze, as it is called. For ordinary purposes blue clny is preferred ; it can be mixed with a larger proportion of flint than the other va- rieties, and thus produces a white ware. Potter's clay, mixed with sand, is formed into bricks and tiles. — 3. Stourbridge clay. This is of a dark color, from the presence of carbon- aceous matter, and from its being more refractory than pot- ter's clay, it is largely employed for glass pots, crucibles, etc. 4. Brick clay or loam is abundantly met with on the Loudon clay, and is often found on an interposed bed of sand. Its * In the year 1855 there were exported from Poole in Dorsetshire 53,702 tons of Pcole clay, and 582 tons were sent to London by railway. Pottery and Porcelain — Materials. 167 appearance, texture, and composition vary greatly; and the color depends on the proportion of oxide of iron contained in it. — 5. London day. This is an extensive deposit of bluish clay: althous. Hence it would be necessary to make the counterpoise 3740 lbs. lighter than it was supposed to be according to the above-mentioned arrangements, in order that the gas might issue from the gasometer under the pressure of three-fourths of an inch of water. If the calculation were conducted with extreme accuracy, the specific gravity of the gas ought also to be taken under consideration ; but the object to be attained is not of so delicate a nature as to require an attention to such minute circumstances. Besides, we shall afterward find that the value of the arrangements we have described for obtaining a uniform and equable pressure is greatly di- minished ; and these are even entirely supersed'cd by a con- trivance called the governor. Such is the old method of constructing gasometers. Of late years, however, a different system has prevailed. In- stead of making them of heavy plate iron, strengthened by angle iron and stays, and of so great a weight as to require the above-described complex system of equilibrium chains and counterbalancing weights to relieve the gas from the great pressure to which it would otherwise be subjected, the gas- holders are now made so light that they actually require to be loaded in order to supply the required pressure. The practice has even been introduced of not suspending the gas-holders at all, but regulating their rise and fall by means of guide-rods placed round the tank. The pipes by which the gas is commonly introduced and conducted off being in many cases considerably below the level of the street pipes with which they communicate, are apt to be filled up in the course of time with the condensed water which passes off in a vaporous state with the gas. To remedy this inconvenience, it is necessary to place vessels for receiving that water in connection with the entrance and exit pipes, so contrived that the accumulated water may be easily removed from them when required. Gas — Distribution. 2l7S Of the Main and Service Pipes, The gas being duly purified and prepared for combustion, the next point to be considered is the transmission of it from the gasometer to the various places where it is to be consumed. As it must sometimes be conveyed, particularly in the case of large establishments, to the distance of several miles, it is evident that unless the diameters of the various pipes through which it is to be conducted have a due relation to the quan- tity of gas to be transmitted, there will be a danger either of incurring an unnecessary expense, by making the pipes too large ; or, what is still worse, of being exposed to a deficiency of supply, by making them too small. The first object, there- fore, to be ascertained by the engineer, is the probable num- ber of lights that may be required in the various streets and lanes in which these pipes are to be laid ; and these being known, the corresponding quantity of gas, according to the quality of it, may be afterward computed. With regard to the relative dimensions of the pipes at different distances from the gas-work, the only general rule to be observed is, that the sum of the areas of the sections of the main pipes proceed- ing immediately from the gasometer should be equal to the sum of the areas of the sections of the various branch-] >i pes which they supply with gas ; and this rule, with some little modification, should be followed in the case of the subordinate ramifications. In the case of good coal-gas, we may safely reckon that one-fourth of a cubic foot of it will furnish the light of a moulded candle for an hour, of which one pound will, when the candles are burnt in succession, last forty hours. On this supposition, and assuming that the pressure upon the gas in the gasometer is equal to three-fourths of an inch of water, the diameters of pipes necessary for conveying various quan- tities of gas may be stated as follows : 276 Five Black Arts. Diameter of Quantity of Gas in Equivalent Num- Pipe in Inches. cubic feet per hour. ber of Candles. 1 4 4 16 i 20 80 3 4 60 200 1 90 360 2 380 1,520 8 880 8,520 4 1,580 6,320 5 2,480 9,920 6 3,580 14,320 T 4,880 19,520 8 6,380 25,520 9 8,090 32,360 10 10,000 40,000 This table has been deduced partly from theoretical con- siderations, and partly from the results of experiment. Peckston affirms, in his work on Gas-lighting, that a pipe ten inches in diameter, is capable of transmitting 50,000 cubic feet of gas per hour, under a pressure of one inch of water ; while, according to the statement of Mr. Creighton, such a pipe would scarcely convey the tenth part of that quantity, under a pressure of from four-eighths to three- fourths of an inch of water. It is impossible to reconcile these discordant statements either by an allowance for the difiference of pressure or the difference of the specific gravi- ties of the gases ; for it ought to be kept in view that the discharge of gas is directly proportioned to the square root of the height of the column of water by which it is pressed, and inversely as the square root of the specific gravity of the gas. Both of these propositions, however, must be greatly modified by friction, and consequently by the length of the pipes through which the gas is conveyed. In the supply stated to be furnished by pipes of different dimensions, we have deemed it safest rather to underrate the quantity than overrate it. The main-pipes are usually made of cast-iron, joined to- Gas — ^Distribution. 277 gether with socket-joints, in lengths of three yards. The depths of the sockets vary in pipes of different sizes from three to six inches, part of them being fitted with gasket to bring the centers of the pipes into line, and the remainder with lead after the gasket has been driven home with suitable chisels or caulking irons. The depth of lead to secure b, good joint should not be less than an inch and a half; the in- terval between the spigot and the socket being from three- eighths to seven-eighths of an inch, according to the diameter of the pipe. Joints are now frequently made without lead. One plan is to caulk into the bottom of the socket, to the depth of two inches, white rope-yarn covered with putty, and to nearly fill up with tarred gaskets, leaving a gate into which is poured a composition of melted tallow and vegetable oil. Another plan is to bore the socket of the pipe with a slightly conical opening, the small end being similarly turned to fit the socket. The two ends of the pipe are coated with a mix- ture of white and red lead, and being brought together, are driven home by a mallet. Such a joint is said to be quite tight. Rings of vulcanized India-rubber have also been recommended for the joints of gas and water pipes. As a considerable quantity of water is carried off by the gas in the state of vapor, which is afterward condensed in the pipes, some arrangement must be made for its collection and occasional removal ; and accordingly, in laying the pipes, care must be taken to give them a regularity of declivity toward one or more points, where proper syphons, close ves- sels, and cocks must be placed, to receive and discharge the collected water. When these precautions are neglected, or when the levels are inaccurately taken, much anaoyance is experienced ; and as the evil can only be corrected by lifting and rejoining tlfe pipes, the utmost attention should be paid to guard against it at first. To convey the gas from the main-pipes, and distribute it through the various apartments of dwelling-houses, pipes made of block-tin are generally used ; these being more du- rable and better adapted to the purpose than pipes composed of copper or any other metal. In arranging the interior fit- tings, the same precautions must be observed as were recom- mended in the case of the main pipes, viz., to give the va- rious branches a due degree of inclination, so as to cause all 278 Five Black Arts. the condensed water to flow to one or more points, where proper cocks must be placed for its removal. Unless this be done, the lights will be apt to flicker, or be extinguished at times altogether. Nor is it of trivial moment to enjoin the workmen, when they are soldering the service-pipes, to avoid with the utmost care allowing any of the melted metal to find its way into the inside of the pipes'; it being in a great meas- ure to this circumstance that the deficiency in the supply of gas, so frequently complained of, is owing. Of the Governor or Regulator, The quantity of gas consumed in large towns varying greatly at different times, it is evidently a matter of some im- portance to the public, as well as to the manufacturers of gas, that the supply of it should be duly adjusted to the consump- tion ; 80 that when the lamps are once regulated to a proper height of flame, they may continue afterward to burn with the same steady light throughout the whole of the evening. Any contrivance that can accomplish so desirable an object must save a great deal of trouble to the consumer of gas, and much unnecessary waste of it to the manufacturer ; and such is the design of the governor or regulator. Fig. 1 rep- resents one of these contrivances, d being the pipe proceed- ing from the gasometer, by which the gas is admitted, and e the pipe by which it escapes ; c is a valve of conical form, fitted to the seat i, and raised and depressed by means of the weight / attached to a cord passing over a pulley ; 55 is a cylindrical vessel formed of sheet-iron which ascends and descends in the exterior vessel aa, in which water is con- tained to the level represented. The gas, entering at c?, passes through the valve, fills the upper part of the inverted vessel 56, which it thus partially raises, and escapes by e. If the pressure from the gasometer be unduly increased or diminished, the buoyancy of hh will be increased or diminished in like proportion, and the valve being by this means more or less closed, the quantity of gas escaping at e will be unaltered. And not only will the governor accommodate itself to the varying pressure of the gasometer, but also to the varying quantities of gas required to escape at e for the supply of the burners. Thus, if it were necessary that less gas should Gas — Distribution. pass through e, in consequence of the extinction of a portion of the lights, the increased pressure which would thus be pro- duced at the gasometer would raise the governor, and par- tially shut the valve, till the state of it was duly adapted to the requisite supply of gas. When a large district is supplied by a single gas com- pany, and different parts of the same district consume va- riable quantities of gas, variable pressures are required. One part of the district where there are numerous shops will consume more than another part which consists chiefly of private houses, so that the pressure for the former must be greater than that required for the latter. For example, the Westminster district has about 20 such divisions, comprising nearly 150 miles of main, and the varying pressures required for each division are managed as follows : In the superin- tendent's room there are a number of small gasometers, call- ed pressure indicators, and over each is the name of the sub- district to be supplied. Each gasometer is about 12 inches in diameter. It is supported in a tank of water in such a manner that it can rise and fall with the varying pressure in the mains with which it is connected hy a pipe. At the up- per part of the gasometer is a rod, carrying a black lead pen- cil, which bears upon a cylinder which is covered with a sheet of paper, along the top of which are marked the twenty- four hours of the day. From these hours perpendicular lines are drawn to the bottom of the sheet, and there are also hori- zontal lines, and the bottom is divided into tenths. The cylinder is connected with a time-piece, so as to rotate on its axis, by which means the pencil draws a line opposite the hour when it is set going. If the pressure be constant for a number of hours, the pencil will of course describe a portion of the circle round the cylinder parallel with the top and bottom edges of the paper, or a straight line when the paper is unrolled ; if the pressure vary, the line will be diagonal or zig-zag. At the end of twenty-four hours the paper is taken off the cylinder, and replaced by a new one. A collec- tion of these papers for each district furnishes an index to the supply of gas at any hour of the day to the sub-district to which it refers. It is often necessary to ascertain the pressure to which the gas is subjected in the various forms of apparatus used in the 280 Five Black Arts. manufacture. For this purpose a simple gauge is attached thereto, consisting of a bent graduated glass tube containing a portion of water or of mercury. If one end of the tube be screwed into a vessel or an upright tube containing gas of the same pressure as that of the external air, the liquid will stand at the same height in the two limbs of the gauge. If the press- ure be greater than that of the external air, the liquid will rise in the open limb, and the pressure of the gas will be 1, 2, or more inches, according to the height to which the liquid rises. But if the pressure of the gas be less than that of the atmosphere, the atmospheric pressure, which always acts at the open end of the tube, will prevail, and the liquid will be depressed in the open limb, and rise in the other. The Gas-Meter, The gas-meter is a simple but ingenious mechanical con- trivance, the design of which is to measure and record the quantity of gas passing through a pipe in any given interval of time. Experience has proved it to be no less advantageous to the consumer than to the manufacturer of gas, by allow- ing the former to use gas without any unnecessary waste of it, and securing to the latter a fair and regular price for the quantity of it actually consumed. There are two forms of meter in actual use, viz., the wet and the dry. The former, the invention of Mr. Clegg, is repre- sented in the annexed figures. In the sections, figs. 2, 3, ec represent the outside case, having the form of a flat cylin- der ; a is a tube which enters at the center for admitting the gas, and 6, fig. 2, is another for conveying it off to the burn- ers ; gg 'are two pivots, one supported by the tube a, and the other by an external water-tight cup, projecting from the out- side casing, and in which is contained a toothed wheel ^, fix- ed upon the pivot, and connected with a train of wheel-work (not shown in the figure) to register its revolutions. The pivots are fixed to and support a cylindrical drum-shaped ves- sel ddd^ having openings e, e, e, e, internal partitions ^/, ef, ef, ef, and a center piece ffff. The machine is filled with water, which is poured in at h up to the level of z, and gas being admitted under a small pressure at a. it enters into the upper part of the center piece, and forces its way through GAS.] [ PlATE 1. AV2 F/s- 3. GAS.] -MfsT^^^^ Gas — Meter. 2«1 such of the openings / as are from time to time above the surface of the water. By its action upon the partition which curves over the opening a, a rotatory motion is communicated to the cylinder ; the gas from the opposite chamber being at the same time expelled by one of the openings e, and afterward escaping at 6, as already mentioned. As the quantity of gas which passes through the machine in any given time depends not only upon its internal dimen- sions and the number of revolutions which it performs, but also upon the level of the surface of the water in which the cylin- der revolves, due care must be taken to maintain the water at the same level, for the regular action of the meter. This is easily accomplished, by pouring in water when necessary, till the superfluous quantity is discharged by an orifice properly placed for the purpose. One great objection to the wet meter is, that the water is liable to freeze in winter, by which means the supply of gas is stopped ; it has been proposed to use a solution of caustic potash or soda instead of water, as being less liable to freeze, and exerting a beneficial action on the gas by removing traces of carbonic acid or sulphide of hydrogen. A second objection is, that if the water level be lowered so that one compartment may at the same time communicate with the central and outer spaces// and de, more gas will pass than can be registered, an effect sometimes produced by the dishonest consumer tilting forward the meter. In the dry meter, as its name implies, no liquid is used, and the gas is measured by the number of times that a certain bulk of it will fill a chamber constructed so as to contract and expand for the passage of the gas. These alternate contractions and expansions give motion to certain valves and arms, which, with the aid of a train of wheels, turn the hands of the dials as in the wet meter. The two forms of dry meter which have attracted most attention are Defrie's and CroU and Glover's. Defrie's meter consists of three measuring chambers separated by leathern partitions partially covered by metal plates, and as they expand by the pressure of the gas they assume the form of a cone on one side or other, the motion of which backward and forward drives the measuring machinery, and by an action somewhat similar to that of a three-throw pump, a continuous stream of gas is ejected. This incessant bending of the leather backward 282 Five Black Arts. and forward causes it to wear rapidly, while the efficiency of the meter obviously depends on the soundness of the leather. In Messrs. Croll and Glover's meter the leather is applied in perhaps a less objectionable form. This meter consists of two short metal cyUnders, each closed at one end ; AA, fig. 4, representing one such end attached to a fixed central plate BB, by means of broad bands of leather, which act as hinges, allowing one side to swell out with gas, while the other parts with its gas by being pressed in toward the center plate. The to-and-fro motion of the discs which close the short cylinders afibrds means for measuring the gas. Each disc is kept in place by a hinge joint S attached to upright rods, RR'. There are also parallel motions exy attached to each disc, and to the top plate of the meter. As the gas passes intoleach cylinder and distends it, the rods RR', one on each side, are made to move each through the half of a circle by means of jointed levers S attached to them. At the top of each rod are two arras R«c?, R'ac?, fig. 5, each of which partaking of the motion of the rods RR describes alternately the arc of a circle, and a rotatory motion is obtained by means of connecting rods attached to these arms, and also to two other arms rr which work two D valves DD, each of which is made to slide back- ward and forward over three apertures, the two outer of which lead to the inside and outside of the cylinders respec- tively, and the middle aperture to the exit pipe E. It is the function of these valves to regulate the flow of gas into and out of the two chambers of each division of the meter. While the gas is flowing into one cylinder and distending it, the gas on the other side of this cylinder disc is expelled to the exit pipe E ; as soon as this is done, the valve is reversed and gas enters on the side of the disc from whence it was last expelled. The process is then repeated by the other disc, and in this way a continuous flow of gas is obtained by means of the two valves DD, which being placed at right angles to the double- cranked shaft, and the two cranks on the shaft being at an angle of 45*^ to each other, it follows that as one valve closes the other opens, but the closed valve always begins to open before the other is quite shut. In fig. 5, the dotted portion represents one of the short cylinders A' distended with gas, and the other cylinder A collapsed. We will now trace the course of the gas in its passage Gas— Meter. 283 through the meter. Suppose a continuous stream of gas under pressure to be passing down the inlet pipe I. On arriving at i it meets with a horizontal tube which conducts it by the aperture o, fig. 5, in the direction of the arrow into a triangular chamber VV. It then passes down an open slit of one of the valves, which we will call No. 1, and entering one of the cylinders, distends it and forces the gas which was on the outside of the disc to escape through slit No. 2, and so along a tube Jc leading to the exit pipe E. While this action is going on, that is, while the cylinder on one side is being distended, the cylinder on the other side is already full, the gas is shut off from it by the shding valve D, and is made to pass on the outside, where exerting its pressuieon the disc AA, it forces it inward, and the gas escapes along a short pipe attached to either side of the partition BB into slit No. 2, and so escapes to the exit pipe. The triangular chamber VV has no connection with the cylinders, etc. situated below it except through the tubes already indicated, and the train of wheels W, fig. 5 ; and the dials are also so boxed in as not to be exposed to the corrosive action of the gas. The rods R'R pass into this upper compartment through leather washers and a stuffing of wool. The cylinders are inclosed in an oblong box of iron plate or galvanized iron, so as to be completely concealed from view. The pressure to which the gas is subjected in order to force it along the mains is amply sufficient to work this meter. If the gas were subjected to the pressure of only half an inch of water, this quantity multiplied into the area of the disc, which in a ten-light meter is ten inches in diameter, amounts to many pounds. The circular motion of the double crank is transmitted by means of an endless screw c, fig. 4, and a spur-wheel b along a wire bb, fig. 5, to a train of wheels W, waich record their revolutions on the face of the dials G, also shown separately in fig. 6, registering the number of cubic feet of gas consumed, in units, tens, hundreds, thousands, etc. The top circle marks the units, the left-hand circle hundreds. The motion of the hand from to 1 shows that 100 cubic feet of gas have passed through the meter, while a whole revolution of this hand re- gisters ten times that quantity, or 1000 cubic feet. The motion of the hand of the center circle from to 1 indicates 1000 feet, and a whole revolution 10,000 feet. The right- 284 Five Black Arts. hand circle, in a similar manner, indicates in a whole revolu- tion 100,000 feet. In reading off the numbers on the circles, we take the number at which the hand is pointing, or the lower of the two numbers that the hand is between. In fig. 6, beginning with hte right-hand dial, the hand is be- tween 9 and 0, showing that nearly a whole revolution has been accomplished ; we therefore write down : 90,000 for the right-hand dial, 8,000 for the middle dial, 700 for the left-hand dial. 98,700 I If the collector, in taking the register three months before, had recorded the quantity as 73,200, this quantity, deducted from 98,700, gives 25,600 cubic feet as the consumption of gas for three months. The top or units dial is not used in registering, but it serves to indicate to the collector as well as to the consumer that the dial is acting properly, the more rapid motion of the hand facilitating this object. Burners, * The most economical mode of consuming gas, so as to obtain from a given volume of it the greatest possible quantity of light, both in degree and duration, is a problem of no less importance than that of the most suitable arrangements for its production and purification. The presence of oxygen, in some form or another, being essentially necessary to produce ordinary combustion, it follows, that from whatever cause that principle may be deficient in quantity, the combustion must be imperfect; and when this is the case, the light yielded by the combustible body is also diminished in a proportional degree. On the other hand, if the quantity of oxygen brought into contact with the combustible body be more than sufficient for its entire combustion, the superfluous quantity of that gas, instead of augmenting the effect, can only lower the temper- ature, and diminish, it may be presumed, in a corresponding degree, the intensity of the light. This must be the conse- quence if the brilliancy of the light yielded by a combustible body depends at all upon the temperature to which it is exposed during its combustion ; and that this is the case may be in- GAS.] [ Plate 3. fyff. Fi-r. Gas— Burners. 285 ferred from the simple fact of causing the flame of a jet of gas to play first against a sheet of ice, and then against a bar of red-hot iron, when the difierence of the light will be such as to leave no doubt of the influence of temperature upon its intensity. A similar result is obtained by bringing the flames of two separate jets into contact, when an obvious increase of light is perceived. From these simple facts it may be inferred, that though a certain quantity of common air must be brought into contact with the inflamed gas to produce the greatest intensity of light, whatever exceeds that quantity will not only be useless, but by diminishing the tem- perature of the flame, must tend to impair the brilliancy of its light. But although the immediate cause of the light is probably the high temperature to which the carbonaceous portion of the gas is exposed, the condition in which the carbon exists at the time it is so exposed is of the utmost importance to the efiect. According to the opinion of Sir Humphry Davy, as adopted by Drs. Christison and Turner, " a white light is emitted only by those gases which contain an element of so fixed a nature as not to be volatilizable by the heat caused during the combustion of the gas; and that in coal-gas this fixed element is charcoal, formed by the gas undergoing de- composition before it is burnt. The white light is caused by the charcoal passing into a state, first of ignition, and then of combustion. Consequently no white light can be produced by coal or oil gas without previous decomposition of the gas." '• That the gas undergoes decomposition before it burns, and that the carbonaceous matter is burnt in the white part of the flame in the form of charcoal, is shown by placing a piece of wire-gauze horizontally across the white part of the flame, when a large quantity of charcoal will be seen to escape from it unburnt. And that this previous change is necessary to the production of a brilliant white light will appear, if we consider the kind of flame which is produced when decompo- sition does not previously take place. For example, if the gauze be brought down into the blue part, which always forms the base of the flame, no charcoal will be found to escape. Or, if the gauze be held at some distance above the burner, and the gas be kindled not below but above it, by which ar- rangement the air and the gas are well mixed previous to 285 Five Black Arts. combustion, the flame is blue, and gives hardly any light. The reason is obviously, that in both cases the air is at once supplied in such quantity in proportion to the gas that the first effect of the heat is to burn the gas, not to decompose it.'* {Edin. Phil. Journal^ No. xxv.) To these statements it may be added, that if a jet of oil or coal gas, burning with a fine yellow flame in common air, be suddenly surrounded with an atmosphere of oxygen gas, the color instantly changes into a pale blue, yielding the most feeble light; nor does the flame recover its brilliancy until the oxygen is largely diluted with carbonic acid, when it burns for a short time with greater splendor than at first. For although the light is greatly enfeebled when the combustion of the gas takes place in pure oxygen, it becomes much more vivid when the combustion is carried on in air that is more largely charged with oxygen than common air. Hence the brilliancy of the light appears to depend upon two conditions : Ist^ the perfect combustion of a portion of the gas in an undecomposed state ; ^dly^ the temperature produced by that combustion upon the residual part in a decomposed state. When a large portion of the gas is consumed in the first condition, the temperature is higher; but the undecomposed part is then too small in quantity to yield an intense light, in consequence of the attenuated state of the carbon ; and, on the other hand, when a small portion of the gas is con- sumed in the undecomposed state, the temperature produced is too feeble to raise the temperature of the now partially decomposed part to a sufficient pitch for the full ignition of the carbon. The conditions which thus seem to be necessary for obtain- ing the greatest portion of light from the combustion of a given quantity of gas, while they are perfectly consistent with the most anomalous facts presented by that process, so they appear to afford the only sure principles upon which we can proceed in the construction of gas-burners. One of the most obvious conclusions deducible from these principles is, that whatever be the form of the gas-burner its construction should be such that while it admits as much air as is neces- sary for the perfect combustion of the gas, it should never ad- mit more than is barely sufficient for that purpose. According to the experiments of Drs. Christison and Tur- Gas — Burners. 287 ner, the diameter best fitted for single-jet burners appears to be about one twenty-eighth of an inch for coal-gas, and one forty-fifth for oil-gas. As these dimensions, however, must vary with the quality of the gas, we consider one thirty-sixth of an inch to be more applicable to the gas obtained from cannel coal, if its specific gravity be not less than -65. Every form of burner composed of separate jets, in which the gas is made to issue in a horizontal or oblique direction, gives a consumption which increases in a much faster ratio than the light which it yields ; and consequently, however beautiful such burners may be in appearance, they are far from being economical. One of the most useful forms of a burner with single jets, is where there are two holes, and their directions are so in- clined as to cause the streams of issuing gas to cross, and exhibit during their combustion a broad continuous flame. This burner, which is termed a swallow-tail, is well adapted for street-lights, as it gives a powerful light and consumes a small quantity of gas. When the gas is emitted by a narrow slit at the top of the burner, the burner receives the name of a bat-tving. Specimens of common gas flames are represented in figs. 7, 8, 9. But of all the forms of the burner, that upon the Argand principle, in which the holes are arranged in a circle, c?, fig. 10, so as to allow the air to have access to the flame internally as well as externally, is the most economical, and the best calculated to secure the complete combustion of the gas. The diameter of the holes should, in this burner, be about the fortieth part of an inch for coal-gas of an ordinary good quality, and the distance between them should be such as to allow the separate flame of the different jets to unite together and form a continuous hollow cylinder of light. In fig 10, a is the pipe which supplies the gas, and b h the channel up ■which it passes to the holes shown in the lower figure. The construction of burners, and the most economical mode of consuming gas, having been examined with much philosophical precision by Drs. Christison and Turner, we shall extract from their elaborate dissertation on the subject the most valuable and important conclusions which they have deduced from their experiments ; and this we do with great- er confidence, because the results they obtained coincide very 288 Five Black Arts. exactly with those which the writer of this article procured when engaged in the same inquiry. The three leading points to which they directed their attention were, 1st, the length of flame most suitable for different burners ; 2dli/, the form, magnitude, and position of the orifices through which the gas is discharged, and ddli/, the modifications of the light pro- duced by the glass chimney of the Argand burner. With regard to the length of flame which afforded the greatest light compared with the expenditure of gas, they found that, in the case of the jet, the best length for coal-gas was about five inches, and for oil-gas about four inches. When the flame was kept shorter, the quantity of gas con- sumed was greater in comparison of the light which it yield- ed ; but no advantage was gained hy increasing the length beyond that mentioned as the most suitable for each gas ; the combustion becoming less perfect and beginning to be accom- panied with the escape of the carbon in the form of smoke. Thus they found that, in the case of coal-gas having the specific gravity -602, while the lights emitted from a two- inch and a five-inch flame were as 556 to 1978, the corres- ponding expenditures were to each other as 605 to 1437. But the light, in an economical point of view, must be estima- ted inversely as the quantity of gas from which it is obtained ; and hence the ratio of the lights, in reference to the expen- diture, was as III to |f H» being as 100 to 150. In the case of Argand burners, the augmentation of the light in a ratio greater than the expenditure was exemplified in a still more remarkable degree. Thus the following results were obtained with coal-gas of the specific gravity -605, by elevating the flame of a five-holed burner, successively from half an inch to five inches ; Length of Flame. Half- Inch. 18-4 83-7 One- Inch. Two- Inch. Three- Inch. Four- Inch. Five- Inch. Light 92-5 148 259-9 203-3 308-9 241-4 332-4 265-7 425-7 Expenditure ^18-1 Ratio of light to expendi- ) ture \ 100 282 560 582 582 604 Hence the light is increased about six times for the same ex- penditure by raising the flame from half an inch to three or Gas— Burners. 280 four inches ; but very little is gained by any additional increase of the flame beyond that lengthy in the description of burn- ers with which the experiments were made. These facts receive a satisfactory explanation from the general principles which we have already laid down with re- spect to the combustion of the luminiferous gases. When the flame is short, the supply of oxygen for the combustion is too great ; almost the whole of the gas is thus consumed before any portion of it can undergo the decomposition which is necessary for the evolution of light ; while the temperature of the flame being reduced by the superfluous air which brushes along its surface, the intensity of ignition, and with it the splendor of the light, is proportionally diminished. This explanation is well illustrated by partially shutting the central part of the burner, and thus interrupting the supply of air to the internal surface of the flame ; the moment this is done, the length of the flame is increased, and a visible im- provement of the light takes place, thus indicating that more air was previously brought in contact with the gas than was requisite for its perfect combustion. The second point to which Drs. Christison and Turner directed their attention was the construction of the burner itself, particularly the magnitude and position of the orifices at which the gas is emitted during the combustion. The same principles which explained the relation between the light and the expenditure in the case of flames of different lengths, suggested the rule for regulating the dimensions of the orifices ; and accordingly they justly inferred that, in a single jet, the diameter of the aperture ought to be such as to ensure the complete combustion of the gas, without rendering it more vivid than is necessary for that efi*ect. If the orifice be too small, the greater portion of the gas is liable to be con- sumed without suffering a previous decomposition, and thus the light is extremely feeble ; and, on the other hand, if the orifice be too large, the surface of flame exposed to the action of the air being too small in comparison of the discharge of gas, the combustion is imperfect, and the carbon, after being separated from the hydrogen, either burns at a low tempera- ture with a dusky flame, or, what is still worse, a large por- tion of it passes off" in the state of smoke. In conformity 19 290 Five Black Arts. with these views, they recommend, as we have already stated, a twenty-eighth of an inch for coal-gas, and a forty-fifth for oil-gas, as the most suitable dimensions for single jets. They acknowledge, however, that their experiments with coal-gas ■were too limited to justify them in using \ery confident lan- guage on the subject ; and we have therefore the less hesita- tion in stating that we consider an orifice varying in diameter from a thirty-second to a thirty-sixth of an inch as better adapted to coal-gas of a specific gravity between -62 and -70. In Argand burners the diameter of the orifices ought to be a little smaller. Drs. Christison and Turner state that the diameter which appeared to answer best for coal-gas of the specific gravity '6, when the holes are ten in a circle of three-tenths of an inch radius, was a thirty-second of an inch. We consider this, however, to be too great for coal-gas of a better quality, and would recommend, in preference, apertures varying in diameter from a thirty-sixth to a fortieth of an inch. The distance between the jet-holes of Argand burners is a matter of no less importance than the diameter of the orifices, and must be regulated by the same principles. When they are so far asunder that the flames of the separate jets do not coalesce, no advantage is derived from the Argand form ; but when they unite, and compose a uniform and un- broken surface of flame, the light is considerably greater, compared with the expenditure of gas, than is obtained from detached jets. In order to determine the most suitable dis- tance at which the orifices of Argand burners should be placed, Drs. Christison and Turner employed burners six- tenths of an inch in diameter, which they caused to be drilled ■with eight, ten, fifteen, twenty, and twenty-five holes, a fiftieth of an inch in diameter ; and having determined with each of these burners the light and expenditure in the case of oil-gas, they obtained the following results : Burners. VIII. X. XV. XX. XXV. Light 360 367 360 318 391 296 409 289 382 275 Ratio of light to expenditure 98 113 132 141 139 As the standard of comparison was a single jet, burning Gas — ^Burners. 291 with a four-inch flame, the ratio of the light yielded by which to the expenditure was expressed by 100, it was inferred that no advantage is gained by giving the jets the Argand ar- rangement with a burner of the dimensions above-mentioned if the holes are only eight in number ; and that the gain does not increase after the number reaches to twenty. In the for- mer case the distance of the holes must have been -2356 inch, or nearly one-fourth of an inch, and, in the latter, •0945 ; so that the most advantageous distance for jet-holes of a fiftieth of an inch in diameter would seem to be about yf o^hs of an inch. For coal-gas burners, however, the dis- tance between the jet-holes ought to be increased in a ratio varying inversely with the quality of the gas, or directly as the diameters of the orifices themselves. Hence, if the coal- gas were of an ordinary quality, the jet-holes should not be less than one-eighth nor more than one-sixth of an inch from each other. ^ The difference between the orifices being once assumed, serves to determine the diameter of the circle of holes. Thus, in a burner of eighteen holes, each a seventh of an inch asunder, the circumference ought to be 18 X ^ = 2*57 inches, and consequently the diameter of the circle of holes 2-57 should be . ^ .., ., = '818 inch. If the breadth of the rim o*14ib be supposed to be a tenth of an inch, and perhaps it ought not to exceed that quantity, it may be proper, in the case of the larger burners, to contract the lower part of the central air-hole, on account of the supply of air to the inside surface of the flame increasing in a faster ratio than the number of jets. The only remaining point to be considered with respect to the burner is the glass chimney, which serves at once to pro- tect the flame from irregular currents of air, and to convey to the gas a due supply of it during combustion. When the interval between the chimney and the external part of the flame is too great, the tendency of the air to flow through the air-hole is diminished, and the flame contracts toward the top, where it yields a dusky light, and indicates a disposition to smoke. The diameter of the chimney should therefore be reduced until it is perceived that the upper part of the flame 292 Five Black Arts. is enlarged and acquires the same diameter as the lower part. When this is the case, the color of the flame is improved in brightness, and none of the carbon is uselessly wasted in the formation of smoke. On the other hand, if the supply of air to the external surface of the flame be diminished be- yond a certain extent, either by reducing the diameter of the glass chimney, or by any other means, the flux of air through the central air-hole is unduly increased, the flame diverges in the form of a tulip till it touches the chimney, and the supply of air to the outside of the flame being thus interrupted, smoke is again produced. Hence the greatest degree of light, in relation to the expenditure of gas, may be expected to be obtained when the supply of air to the exter- nal and internal surface of the flame is so adjusted by the diameter of the chimney that the flame is perfectly cylindri- cal, neither burning with too much vivacity, nor showing any tendency to smoke. The length of the glass chimney is of much less importance than its diameter, and may vary from five to six inches. A cylindrical chimney, however, is the least advantageous form that can be adopted. If the chimney be tall and narrow, and contracted toward the top, as in a, fig. 11, or suddenly contracted near the bottom, as in 6, the draught is increased and the light improved. It is also useful to contract the diameter of the glass chimney about a couple of inches above the burner, as at c, so as to form a shoulder a few lines in width, the effect of which is to change the direction of the draught and project it on the flame at a certain angle. In the Bude light proposed by Gurney, oxygen gas instead of air was passed through the flame, the effect of which was greatly to increase its brilliancy. In the Bude light as now constructed, there are two, three, or more concentric burners with chimneys supplied with common air, and a dioptric appa- ratus. Attempts have been made of late years to ventilate gas- burners so as to get rid of the injurious products of combustion. One part by weight of good coal-gas produces nearly three parts by weight of carbonic acid, which produces many dis- tressing symptoms when breathed with the air of the room. Sulphurous acid, and other compounds which are not entirely removed in the purification of the gas, form deleterious pro- Gas — Burners. 293 ducts during the combustion of the gas. The sulphurous acid forms sulphuric acid, which exerts a corrosive action on the walls and furniture, books, pictures, etc., while the hy- drogen of the gas produces vapor of water which serves as a vehicle for some of the other products. To get rid of these noxious fumes a bell-«shaped vessel is sometimes suspended over the chimney, and is connected with a tube leading into the open air. Unless this tube be judiciously arranged the condensed water may accumulate in it, and cause inconven- ience. By a contrivance of Dr. Faraday, a copper tube of about the same diameter as the flame is conducted from its summit out of the apartment ; the heat of this tube establishes a rapid current, which serves to convey away the products. The same distinguished chemist invented another contrivance, by which the ventilating current is made to descend between two concentric glass chimneys of different heights, the outer one being the taller, and this is covered with a disc of talc. When the current reaches the bottom of the space between the two glasses, it is conveyed away by a ventilating tube which bends upward. The descending current is first estab- lished by applying heat to the bend of the ventilating tube where it begins to ascend ; when this current is established the gas is lighted, and the plate of talc is put on : the pro- ducts of combustion are conveyed into a box, from which pro- ceeds a pipe for conveying the vapors outside. A globe of ground glass open only at the bottom is placed over the lamp. The accumulation of condensed water in different parts of this apparatus is said to have greatly interfered with its successful action. Mr. R. Brown of Manchester has a contrivance for venti- lating by means of gas. Through an opening in the ceiling a wide tube is passed, one end of which conveys the foul air outside, and the other projects a little below the level of the ceiling. The gas-pipe enters on one side, and is bent so as to hang perpendicularly in the center of the tube, and has an annular burner at the lower extremity, surrounded by a glass chimney, which is supported on the top on a metal cone piece, secured to the lower extremity of the tube by screws. This arrangement is surrounded by a hemispherical glass shade with its mouth uppermost, and a few inches below the level of the ceiling. The air of the apartment passes off ia 294 Five Black Arts. the strong draught occasioned hy the burner, and a fresh supply of air is admitted at the lower part of the room. Oil- Gas, Resin-Gas, and Water- Gas. When tallow or oleaginous matter of any kind is raised to a certain temperature, it is resolved into various gases, of which the compounds of carbon and hydrogen, viz., olefiant gas or bicarburetted hydrogen, and lighted carburetted hydro- gen, are the principal, both in point of quantity and quality, for the purposes of illumination. As oil contains in its com- position a portion of oxygen, existing most probably in union "with hydrogen in the state of water, that substance also yields, during its destructive distillation, a considerable quantity of carbonic oxide, as well as traces of carbonic acid, hydrogen, and even nitrogen. With these products, all of which are of a determinate character, is found in greater or less abund- ance a quantity of a very inflammable vapor,* which seems to be a compound of carbon and hydrogen. Oil-gas owes its illuminating power chiefly to the proportion of olefiant gas which it contains, and the oleaginous vapor which is diffused through it ; and as both of these ingredients vary in quantity with the temperature at which the decom- position is effected, the quality of the oil-gas is extremely fluc- tuating. When the temperature is too high, a portion of the olefiant gas and oleaginous vapor is resolved, by the deposition of carbon, into light carburetted hydrogen ; and though the quantity of gas from a given portion of oil is thus increased, the quality of it is diminished in a still higher ratio. On the other hand, if the temperature be rather too low, a larger quantity of olefiant gas, mixed with a greater proportion of oleaginous va- por, is obtained ; but as the latter is gradually and rapidly con- densed when the gas is allowed to stand over water, the higher *The oleaginous vapor alluded to consists, according to the experiments of Mr. Faraday, of two distinct compounds of carbon and hydrogen. One of these he terms bicarhurd of hydrogen, which, by his analysis, is composed of six proportions of carbon and three of hydrogen. The other compound, to which Dr. Thomson has given the name of quadro-carhuretted hydrogen, consists of four proportions of carbon and four proportions of hydrogen, existing in a different state of aggregation from that in which they exist in olefiant gas, the elementary constituents of which are in the same propor- tion. Gas — Kinds. . 295 illuminating power of this richer gas is more than counterbal- anced bj the deficiency in its quantity, and the deterioration to which it is liable by keeping. We are indebted to Dr. Henry of Manchester for the first analysis of the aeriform compounds obtained by the decom- position of oil by heat ; and though his elaborate researches can scarcely be said to have led to the determination of the precise products of that decomposition, they furnish data from which their true nature may be inferred, with a probability nearly as great as that which belongs to the results of direct experiment. The principal diflSculty of the analysis consists in determining the condition in which the elementary princi- ples of carbon and hydrogen exist in union with each other, and reconciling the various suppositions that may be made respecting the compounds thus formed, with the specific gravity which belongs to the original gas, supposed to be produced by their mixture. The results of Dr. Henry's first experiments were published in 1805 ; but it was not till about ten years after that period that an apparatus for decomposing oil, on a large scale for economical purposes, was constructed. Oil being decomposed at a loss of nearly fifty per cent., the conversion of it into gas, after a protracted but ineffectual competition with coal, was gradually abandoned on the large scale, even in those places where, from the interest they had in the whale-fisheries, there was the strongest inducement to foster the prejudices which prevailed for some time against the use of coal-gas. The exaggerated advantages which it was pretended would be derived from compressing oil-gas and thus rendering it portable, served to prolong the delusions on the subject ; nor were these delusions fully removed until a de- monstration was given of the failure of the scheme, in the decay of the costly edifices and expensive apparatus which had been constructed for carrying it into efi*ect. The late Professor Daniell of King's College, London, also contrived an ingenious form of apparatus for making gas from resin ; but the plan did not succeed on account of the impossibilty of competing with the coal-gas works. Of late years a new process of gas-making has been much discussed, and has formed the subject of a variety of patents. It is known as the hydrocarbon process of gas-making^ or 296 Five Black Arts. more briefly water-gas. The principle of the manufacture is to pass steam over red-hot coke, by which it is resolved into hydrogen and carbonic oxide, and then to supply these in- flammable gases with the carbon required for their illuminating power, by passing them through a retort in which oil, resin, tar, naptha, cannel coal, or some other carbonaceous substance, is undergoing decomposition by heat. The process does not appear to have been successful with resin, but better results seem to have been attained with cannel coal. Methods for determining the Illuminating Power of the Gases. Having described the various manipulations by which gas is prepared, both from coal and oil, we now proceed to explain the methods which have been adopted for determining their respective illuminating powers ; it being by these methods that we acquire a knowledge of one of the most important tests by which the comparative value of the gases can be ascertained. The first and most obvious of these tests is to determine the intensity of the light which the gases are capable of diff'using during their combustion, upon a white and smooth surface directly exposed to its emanations. The determination of that intensity is obtained with a considerable degree of accuracy, not by a direct comparison of the degree of illu- mination shed on two separate surfaces, but by means of a contrivance, first proposed by Count Rumford, which allows the illuminated surfaces to be contrasted with each other on the same ground, and so closely adjoining that the eye can readily detect a slight difference between them. This con- trivance is as follows : Let A and B, fig. 12, be two luminous objects ; EF a smooth and white surface, having the same inclination to the rays of light emitted by A and B ; and CD an opaque cylindrical rod parallel to the surface EF ; then it is evident that aa and bb will be the shadows of CD, in reference to the lights A and B. But the shadow aa being illuminated by the light B, and the shadow bb by the light A, it follows that if these shadows be perfectly the same in point of intensity of shade, the light yielded by A and B must be the same in degree. If the shadows, however, be different, one of the lights must be removed either further from EF or GAS.] [ Plath 4. Ryll ill liJ Lll ^ cm mi F^ISt Gas— Illuminating Power. 297 brought nearer to it, until the shades seem to be exactly alike, when the light shed upon EF by A and B must, in point of intensity, be, as before, the same. But the intensity of light, like that of other emanations proceeding in straight lines from a central point, being inversely as the square of the distance, the relative degrees of light emitted by A and B must, in conformity with that principle, be proportional to the squares of their respective distances from the surface on which the shadows are projected. Thus, if the light A were at the distance of fifteen feet, and the light B at the distance of twenty- five feet, their relative illuminating powers would be as the square of fifteen to the square of twenty-five ; that is, as 225 to 625, or as 9 to 25. As the quantity of gas con- sumed in the same time to yield the supposed lights might be diff'^rent, it is evident that a correct estimate of the absolute value of the gases for the purpose of illumination would not be duly determined unless that circumstance were also taken into account. But the economical value of the gases, yielding equal degrees of light, being inversely as the quantities con- sumed, it follows that that value will be directly as the squares of the distances at which the shadows are the same, and in- versely as the rate of consumption. Thus, if we now sup- pose that the gas yielding the light A consumed three cubic feet in the same time that the gas yielding the light B con- sumed five cubic feet, the value of the former would be to that of the latter as ~ is to V » or ^s three to five. In ob- taining the necessary data for determining the ratio of the lights, it may be proper to add that the screen on which the shadows are projected should be guarded with the utmost care from all extraneous light. If it be desired to contrast the illuminating power of a gas-light with that of a candle, the comparison is easily made. If, for example, the gas-light give a shadow equal to that of a candle placed at one-third the distance, the light of the gas is equal to the light of nine candles. If the candle be placed at one-fourth the distance of the gas-light, the latter is equal to sixteen candles, and so on. Professor Bunson of Marburg has contrived a photometer which is now in common use in gas-works. The principle of this instrument is not the comparison by shadows, which forms a delicate experiment, but a comparison of light trans- 298 Five Black Arts. mitted through a translucent surface with light reflected from an opaque surface. For this purpose a disc of paper, TO, fig. 13, is placed between the two lights to be compared ; an annular portion of this paper T is made translucent by means of melted spermaceti, or that substance dissolved in oil of naptha, while a central disc of the paper being left un- touched by the composition, remains opaque. Fine cream- colored letter-paper answers the purpose very well, and the central opaque disc may be about the size of half-a-crown. Now it is evident that the translucent ring will be illuminated by a light behind the disc, while the opaque portion is illumi- nated by a light in front. The frame on which the disc is mounted is moved backward and forward on a graduated bar BB between the two lights until the transmitted and reflected lights appear of the same intensity. The pointer P then shows the division over which the disc stands. Under such circum- stances, tlie lights are to each other in the ratio of the squares of their distance from the disc The determination of the intensity of light by the above simple means is capable, under careful management, of all the precision which the nature of the problem requires ; it is even preferred by engineers to the more elaborate method of chemical analysis. The latter method has for its object to ascertain the relative value of the gases used for illumina- tion, by finding the quantity of olefiaut gas which they con- tain under equal volumes ; it being assumed that the illu- minating power of the compound combustible gases derived from the decomposition of oil and pit-coal is directly propor- tional to the quantity of that gas existing in their constitution. Though that supposition is by no means a matter of certainty, or even of probability, we shall nevertheless briefly explain the mode of analysis which has been recommended. According to the experiments of Dr. Henry, chlorine has no action upon any of the gases obtained from oil or coal when the influence of light is carefully excluded, with the exception of olefiant gas ; and as chlorine and olefiant gas unite together in equal volumes, this property affords an easy mode of determining the quantity of the latter which may exist in any compound gas of which it forms a constituent part. All that is required for the purpose is to add somewhat more chlorine than is ab- solutely necessary for uniting with the olefiant gas, and to Gas — Illuminating Power. W^ allow the mixture to remain about fifteen minutes completely excluded from light. The extent of absorption being thus observed, half the quantity of the gas which has disappeared of the whole mixture will be olefiant gas. Thus, if twenty parts of chlorine by measure were added to twenty-five of coal-gas, and if the mixture, after being allowed to remain a sufficient length of time in the dark, were found to occupy thirty-six measures, the absorption would be nine measures, and consequently the coal-gas must have contained four and a half measures of olefiant gas, or eighteen per cent. The quantity per cent, of olefiant gas is determined without cal- culation, by adding to fifty measures of the gas to be ana- lyzed an equal volume of chlorine ; when the diminution of volume in the graduated jar, is the quantity which the gas contains per cent, of olefiant gas. Dr. Fyfe states that the illuminating power of the different specimens of oil and coal- gas which he subjected to this test bore a pretty exact ratio to the quantity of olefiant gas which they contained. One great advantage to be derived from this method of testing the quality of any species of carburetted hydrogen containing olefiant gas in its composition, is, that it admits of a comparison being made between gases in different places and at different times, without the necessity of transporting them to a distance, and making a simultaneous examination of their illuminating properties. Of late years, bromine has been substituted for chlorine in the above analysis. The gas is passed up into a eudiometer tube, and the carbonic acid is removed by means of caustic potash : a small portion of bromine is dropped in and shaken in contact with the gas. Potash is again added to remove the bromine vapors, and the absorption is then noted. It is stated that some of the highly illuminating cannel-coal gases are condensed by this process as much as 12 or 14 per cent. ; while some of the poorer gases not more than 4 or 5 per cent. The specific gravity of oil and coal gas, and the quantity of oxygen which they require for their perfect combustion, have also been proposed as means of ascertaining their illumi- nating powers. The latter, however, even if it were a correct test, is determined with considerable difficulty ; and that little reliance can be placed on the former may be inferred from 298 Five Black Arts. mitted through a translucent surface with light reflected from an opaque surface. For this purpose a disc of paper, TO, fig. 13, is placed between the two lights to be compared ; an annular portion of this paper T is made translucent bj means of melted spermaceti, or that substance dissolved in oil of naptha, while a central disc of the paper being left un- touched by the composition, remains opaque. Fine cream- colored letter-paper answers the purpose very well, and the central opaque disc may be about the size of half-a-crown. Now it is evident that the translucent ring will be illuminated by a light behind the disc, while the opaque portion is illumi- nated by a light in front. The frame on which the disc is mounted is moved backward and forward on a graduated bar BB between the two lights until the transmitted and reflected lights appear of the same intensity. The pointer P then shows the division over which the disc stands. Under such circum- stances, the lights are to each other in the ratio of the squares of their distance from the disc The determination of the intensity of light by the above simple means is capable, under careful management, of all the precision which the nature of the problem requires ; it is even preferred by engineers to the more elaborate method of chemical analysis. The latter method has for its object to ascertain the relative value of the gases used for illumina- tion, by finding the quantity of olefiant gas which they con- tain under equal volumes ; it being assumed that the illu- minating power of the compound combustible gases derived from the decomposition of oil and pit-coal is directly propor- tional to the quantity of that gas existing in their constitution. Though that supposition is by no means a matter of certainty, or even of probability, we shall nevertheless briefly explain the mode of analysis which has been recommended. According to the experiments of Dr. Henry, chlorine has no action upon any of the gases obtained from oil or coal when the influence of light is carefully excluded, with the exception of olefiant gas ; and as chlorine and olefiant gas unite together in equal volumes, this property afibrds an easy mode of determining the quantity of the latter which may exist in any compound .gas of which it forms a constituent part. All that is required for the purpose is to add somewhat more chlorine than is ab- solutely necessary for uniting with the olefiant gas, and to Gas — Illuminating Power. allow the mixture to remain about fifteen minutes completely excluded from light. The extent of absorption being thus observed, half the quantity of the gas which has disappeared of the whole mixture will be olefiant gas. Thus, if twenty- parts of chlorine by measure were added to twenty-five of coal-gas, and if the mixture, after being allowed to remain a sufficient length of time in the dark, were found to occupy thirty-six measures, the absorption Avould be nine measures, and consequently the coal-gas must have contained four and a half measures of olefiant gas, or eighteen per cent. The quantity per cent, of olefiant gas is determined without cal- culation, by adding to fifty measures of the gas to be ana- lyzed an equal volume of chlorine ; when the diminution of volume in the graduated jar, is the quantity which the gas contains per cent, of olefiant gas. Dr. Fyfe states that the illuminating power of the different specimens of oil and coal- gas which he subjected to this test bore a pretty exact ratio to the quantity of olefiant gas which they contained. One great advantage to be derived from this method of testing the quality of any species of carburetted hydrogen containing olefiant gas in its composition, is, that it admits of a comparison being made between gases in different places and at different times, without the necessity of transporting them to a distance, and making a simultaneous examination of their illuminating properties. Of late years, bromine has been substituted for chlorine in the above analysis. The gas is passed up into a eudiometer tube, and the carbonic acid is removed by means of caustic potash : a small portion of bromine is dropped in and shaken in contact with the gas. Potash is again added to remove the bromine vapors, and the absorption is then noted. It is stated that some of the highly illuminating cannel-coal gases are condensed by this process as much as 12 or 14 per cent. ; while some of the poorer gases not more than 4 or 5 per cent. The specific gravity of oil and coal gas, and the quantity of oxygen which they require for their perfect combustion, have also been proposed as means of ascertaining their illumi- nating powers. The latter, however, even if it were a correct test, is determined with considerable difficulty ; and that little reliance can be placed on the former may be inferred from 300 Five Black Arts. the fact that some of the gases which are component parts of oil and coal gas have a great specific gravity without posses- sing any illuminating power. This will readily be perceived from the subjoined table : Quantity of Gases. Specific Grayity. Oxygen for 100 volume*. Olefiant gas -970 300 Carburetted hydrogen -556 300 Hydrogen -069 50 Carbonic oxide -972 50 Carbonic acid 1-538 None. Of these gases, carbonic oxide and carbonic acid possess the greatest specific gravity ; while the latter is not only des- titute of illuminating property, but calculated, as we shall afterward show, to deteriorate to a great extent the quality of the luminiferous gases with which it may happen to be mixed. There are cases, however, in which it is necessary to de- termine accurately the composition of a sample of coal-gas, and the following is the now generally adopted method of conducting the analysis.* The ingredients or impurities which may be present in the gas are — 1, Common hydrogen ; 2, olefiant gas and other hydrocarbons ; 8, light carburetted hydrogen ; 4, carbonic oxide ; 5, carbonic acid ; 6, sulphur- etted hydrogen ; 7, ammonia ; 8, oxygen and nitrogen derived from the atmosphere. A qualitative examination is made thus — the proportion of ammonia and of sulphuretted hydrogen is usually very minute, and in most cases these gases must be sought for by placing the tests for their presence for some time in a current of the gas. In searching for ammonia a piece of moistened litmus paper feebly reddened is placed for a minute in a jet of the issuing gas. If the blue color be restored, ammonia is present. Paper soaked in a solution of acetate of lead may be subjected to a similar trial. If it turn brown, sulphuretted hydrogen is present. The presence of oxygen is detected by admitting a bubble of the deutoxide of nitrogen into a tube filled with the gas under trial, and looking through the tube obliquely upon a sheet of white paper ; very small traces of oxygen may thus be de- * Abridged from Elements of Chemislry, by Professor Miller, of King's College, London. Gas — Illuminating Power. &0| tected bj the red tinge produced, owing to the formation of peroxide of nitrogen. The presence of carbonic acid may be readily detected by throwing up a little lime water, or solution of sub-acetate of lead, into the gas whilst standing in a tube over mercury. The existence of the other gases may be assumed, as they are certain to be present in greater or less quantity. The sulphuretted hydrogen and ammonia being neglected, and supposing that oxygen and carbonic acid are found to be present, seven diflferent gases are there- fore supposed to exist in the mixture. The following method may be adopted for their quantitative determination : — 1. Oxygen, — A volume of the gas is confined over mercury, and its bulk is measured with due attention to temperature and pressure. A piece of moist phosphorus, which has been melted upon the end of a long platinum wire to serve as a handle, is introduced from below through the mercury into the tube. After twenty- four hours the phosphorus is with- drawn, when the amount of absorption indicates the propor- tion of oxygen which was present. 2. Carbonic Acid. — This gas is determined in a similar manner, substituting a ball of caustic potash for the phosphorus; the second diminution in bulk shows the proportion of carbonic acid. 3. Olefiant Gas and Heavy Hydrocarbons. — These gases are absorbed by introducing a third ball, consisting of porous coke, mois- tened with fuming sulphuric acid. It is necessary, however, before reading off the volume of the gas, to introduce a ball of potash a second time, to withdraw the vapor of an hy- drous sulphuric acid, which possesses sufficient volatility to introduce a serious error by dilating the bulk of the gas, un- less it be completely removed. The total amount of ab- sorption will indicate the proportion of olefiant gas, together with the vapors of condensible hydrocarbons. 4. Carbonic Oxide. — The separation of carbonic oxide from the other gases is not easily done with accuracy. The gas may be di- vided into two portions, one of which is to be carefully measured as it stands over mercury, and a small quantity of a solution of subchloride of copper in hydrochloric acid is to be added, and the mixture briskly agitated ; the gas is then transferred to a second graduated tube, also standing over mercury, and a ball of potash is introduced for the purpose of absorbing the vapors of hydrochloric acid with which the 302 Five Black Arts. gas is saturated ; the bulk of the gas may then be read off, and the volume of carbonic acid may be known by the loss in bulk. 6. Nitrogen, Carhuretted Hydrogen, and Hydro- gen. — In determining the proportion of these gases, that of carbonic oxide may also be ascertained, for which purpose a portion of coal-gas, in which the carbonic oxide is still present, is transferred to a siphon-eudiometer, and its bulk is measured : it is then mixed with twice its volume of oxygen, and the bulk of the mixed gases is again measured : the mixture is then exploded by means of the electric spark, and ihQ bulk is a third time measured : call this diminution in bulk a, next inject a small quantity of a strong solution of potash, and the resulting condensation due to the absorption of carbonic acid may be called 6; the remaining gases, c, consist of oxygen in excess and nitrogen ; the quantity of oxygen in excess is ascertained by mixing the residual gas with twice its bulk of pure hydrogen, and a second time causing the electric spark to pass ; one-third of the condensation observed will be due to the excess of oxygen ; on deducting this excess from the residue c, the difference gives the quantity of nitro- gen. The difference between the amount of the oxygen thus found to be in excess, and that originally introduced, will of course represent the quantity of oxygen consumed ; call this d. We have now all the data for calculating the proportion of carhuretted hydrogen, of hydrogen, and of carbonic oxide, which are present in the mixture. Let x represent the quantity of light carhuretted hydrogen ; this gas requires twice its own volume of oxygen for complete combustion, and furnishes its own volume of carbonic acid, which requires an equal volume of oxygen for its formation, or half the amount consumed ; the other half of the oxygen being required by the hydrogen, which condenses in the form of water, 2 x will be the diminution in bulk of oxygen which occurs on detona- tion. Again, when hydrogen is converted into water, it re- quires half its bulk of oxygen, and both are condensed entirely. If y represent the bulk of the hydrogen, -~ will be the diminution in bulk of the mixed gases on detonation, which is occasioned be the hydrogen in the mixture. Let z represent the volume of carbonic oxide present ; carbonic oxide, for conversion into carbonic acid, requires half its bulk Gas — Hints Respecting. 303 of oxvgen, the carbonic acid produced occupying the same bulk as the carbonic oxide. ^ will therefore indicate the condensation which occurs on firing the mixture. The total condensation in bulk {a) which occurs on firing a mixture of light carburetted hydrogen, hydrogen, and carbonic oxide, will consequently admit of thus being represented — (1.) a = 2x + | + ?. Further, the quantity of the carbonic acid formed by detona- tion, 5, is composed of a volume of carbonic acid equal in bulk to the light carburetted hydrogen, and a volume equal to that of the carbonic oxide, so that the quantity of carbonic acid may be thus indicated — (2.) h^x-\-z. And lastly, the oxygen consumed, c?, will be composed of the following quantities : Light carburetted hydrogen, twice its bulk ^ "• ' ^ — '^— '•^ i^"i^ '^- iv.^iu y 2 x; hydrogen half its bulk, ^ ; carbonic oxide, half Ik, I ; or be the following 2 its bulk, - ; or the total quantity of oxygen consumed will (3.; = 2. +1 + 1- From these three equations the values of x, y, z, are deter- mined : a4-b y — a — c a + 45 BxnU respecting the Improvement of Coal- Gas, Of all the combustible bodies having an elementary charac- ter, carbon and hydrogen are not only the most widely and copiously diiOfused throughout the three kingdoms of nature, 304 Five Black Arts. but best adapted for the evolution of light during their com- bustion. It is only, however, when they are united together in due proportion that they answer the purpose most eflfectu- ally ; and, indeed, in a separate state their illuminating powers are so feeble, that even when their combustion is accelerated and rendered more perfect by the presence of oxygen, the light which they yield is yet unfit for many of the useful ends to which light is subservient. The substances in which carbon and hydrogen are united in the best proportion for the pro- duction of light are pit-coal in the mineral kingdom, and oils and fatty matter in the animal and vegetable. The great abundance of coal, and the comparative cheapness at which it can be obtained, give it a decided advantage in point of economy over oleaginous matter,whether of animal or vege- table origin ; while the processes of decomposing it, with the view of converting it into a volatile and elastic product, have been so much improved as to render the gas which it yields equally fit for the purposes of illumination with the more costly gases obtained from the oils. The gas produced by the decomposition of coal and oleagi- nous matter at a high temperature is a compound of carbon and hydrogen, and consists chiefly of two gases, in which these elementary substances exist in definite proportions. One of these gases is termed carburetted hydrogen, and the other defiant gas or bicarburetted hydrogen. The former contains one atom of carbon united with two atoms of hydrogen, and the latter an atom of each of these elements. Of these two compounds of hydrogen and carbon, that which contains the largest proportion of the latter element is found to yield during its combustion the most brilliant light, and that too for a longer period of time. And, indeed, so great is the difference in these respects, that the hydrogen may not improperly be regarded as the mere solvent or ve- hicle of the carbon, acting the part of wick, and thus pre- senting that substance in a state sufficiently comminuted for its more perfect combustion. Accordingly, the more abun- dantly the hydrogen is impregnated with carbon the greater may we expect to be its illuminating power, and the fitter in every respect for yielding artificial light. These views are fully supported by experiment ; for not only is the brilliancy of the light modified by the quantity of carbon held in sola- Gas— Hints Respecting. 305 tion by the hydrogen, but the time which a given portion of the gas takes to consume away by combustion is affected by it in a still greater degree. To determine in what ratio the illuminating power of the gases obtained both from oil and coal was reduced by diluting them in various proportions with hydrogen, we instituted a series of experiments, the results of which are of importance inasmuch as they indicate not only that the mixture is dete- riorated, but that the same quantity of carbonaceous matter yields less light the more largely it is diluted with hydrogen. In the first experiment we took a portion of coal-gas of the specific gravity '67, which we found to consume at the rate of 4400 cubic inches per hour, and yielded the light of eleven candles, being 400 cubic inches per hour for the light of one candle. This gas being diluted with a fourth part of its bulk of pure hydrogen, acquired the specific gravity -55, and wasted away at the rate of 6545 cubic inches per hour, yielding the light of ten candles. As a fifth part of the compound gas was hydrogen, the remaining four-fifths, amount- ing to 5236 cubic inches, was the quantity of the coal-gas which in its diluted state gave the light of ten candles for an hour ; so that 524 cubic inches of the original coal-gas were requisite to give the light of one candle for the same time. But in its unmixed state, 400 cubic inches were suflBcient to give the light of one candle for an hour ; and, consequently, the de- terioration occasioned by the dilution was in the ratio of 524 to 400, or of 100 to 76, being 24 per cent. It must be distinctly kept in view that the deterioration has been reck- oned, not with respect to the whole volume of the mixture (in which case it would have been 39 per cent.), but simply in reference to the coal-gas itself ; and therefore the experi- ment, so far as it goes, justifies us in adopting the conclusion, that had. the hydrogen existed originally in union with the coal-gas, the latter would have improved in quality 24 per cent, by its abstraction ; because the residuary portion would not only have lasted longer, but yielded during its combustion a superior light. In a second experiment, conducted in a similar manner, in which the proportion of hydrogen was one-third of the quan- tity of the coal-gas, the deterioration was 27^er cent. ; in a third experiment, the proportion of hydrogen ibeing a half of 20 306 Five Black Arts. the volume of the coal-gas, the deterioration amounted to 31 per cent. ; and in a fourth experiment, the quantity of hydro- gen being exactly equal to that of the coal-gas, the deterio- ration extended to 36 per cent. These results indicate a progressive deterioration in the quality of coal-gas by the admixture of hydrogen ; and the important conclusion to which they lead is, that the abstrac- tion or removal of the latter, though diminishing the entire volume, would improve the nature of the residuary portion not only in a higher ratio than the loss which the whole sus- tained in its bulk, but render that portion capable of yielding, for a longer period of time, a greater light than it could have done in its original state. Hence it may be inferred that the illuminating power of coal-gas, whether considered with re- spect to the cost of its production or the intensity of its light, admits of being improved ; first, by impregnating the hydro- geneous element more largely with carbon ; secondly, by preventing the disengagement of hydrogen in a free state during the carbonization of the coal ; and, lastly, by detach- ing a portion of that gas from coal-gas when it already exists in admixture with it. The first of these modes of improvement seems to be prac- ticable, at least to a certain extent, by thoroughly drying the coal before it is introduced into the retorts, and modifying the pressure under which the gas is generated ; the second, by preventing the gas after its formation from being exposed to a high temperature by allowing it to pass over very hot sur- faces, the effect of which is to deprive it of carbon. The second object may also be assisted by arresting the process of distillation at an earlier period than is usually practiced, hy- drogen and carbonic oxide being the products which predomi- nate during the last periods of decomposition. On this point, however, the interests of the public and of the manufacturer are at variance. The consumer pays by measure, and hence it is the interest of the manufacturer to carry on the process of distillation as long as possible, for, by so doing, not only does he increase the quantity of gas but he improves the quality of the coke. With respect to the third mode of improvement, we are unfortunately, in the present state of our knowledge, acquainted with no method of detaching hydrogen from the gases with which it is mixed in oil or coal Gas — Hints Respecting. 307 gas that would not impair the illuminating power of these gases to a greater extent perhaps than the benefit that would be derived from the removal of the hydrogen. A plan has been proposed by Mr. Lowe to increase the quantity of car- bon in the gas by impregnating it with the vapor of coal nap- tha ; for which purpose it was proposed to fill the wet gas meter at the house of the consumer with purified naptha, and to maintain it at the same height by means of a reservoir connected with the meter , by which means the gas would be measured and saturated with naptha at the same time. A more practical plan was to pass the gas through an ornamental vase containing a sponge saturated with naptha, and placed at some point between the meter and the burner. To determine the diminution of the illuminating power produced by separating the particles of the inflammable gag during its combustion, and thus diminishing the temperature of the flame, it occurred to the writer of the present article that nitrogen, having neither the property of supporting com- bustion nor of adding to the quantity of combustible matter sub- mitted to that process, was well fitted to answer for the intend- ed purpose; and, accordingly, on mixing coal-gas of ordinary quality (which, when burnt alone, yielded the light of twelve candles when it consumed 5400 cubic inches per hour) with varying portions of nitrogen, results were obtained which im- plied that the diminution of the intensity of the light proceed- ed in a ratio much more rapid than was observed when the gas was diluted with hydrogen. Thus, when six volumes of the coal-gas were mixed with one volume of nitrogen, the expenditure per hour was 6000 cubic inches, and the light equivalent to that of nine candles, being 667 cubic inches per hour for the light of one candle. But one-sixth of the whole being nitrogen, the remaining five-sixths, amounting to 556 cubic inches, was the quantity of the coal-gas which, in its diluted state, afforded the light of a candle for an hour. On the other hand, the quantity of the coal-gas requisite, in its unadulterated state, to give an equal degree of illumina- tion being ^ j|% or 450 cubic inches, it follows that the de- terioration was in the ratio of 556 to 450, or 100 to 81 nearly. By diluting the same coal-gas with other proportions of nitrogen as subjoined, and afterward applying to each of the Volumes of Volumes of Coal-gas. Nitrogen. 60 60 10 60 12 60 15 60 20 60 30 60 60 SOS Five Black Arts. results the same kind of reduction as that which we have al- ready made, we have deduced the following table, which ex- hibits the gradual deterioration of the illuminating power of the same quantity of coal-gas, produced by the mere separa- tion of the atoms of the gas during its combustion. Illuminating Power. 100 81 69 55 3T 29 When carbonic acid was used instead of nitrogen, similar results were obtained ; only the deterioration was considerably greater. Thus, when five volumes of the coal-gas were mixed with one volume of carbonic acid, the illuminating power was reduced from 100 to 30, whereas in the case of the nitrogen it was from 100 to 69. It is therefore a fortunate circum- stance that carbonic acid, which is so apt to be generated during the production of coal-gas, and has so debasing an influence upon its illuminating power, is readily absorbed by a variety of substances ; while nitrogen, the less injurious as well as the less abundant accompaniment, cannot be separated from the other gases with which it may exist in mixture by any process yet known. Deterioration of 6ras hy keeping it after it is prepared. Both oil and coal gas suffer, by keeping, a gradual loss in their power of illumination, which seems to increase in a more rapid ratio than the time they are kept. The deterioration, though greatest when the gases are allowed to stand over water, takes place in a considerable degree even when they are kept over oil, or in air-tight vessels. Hence it may be presumed that the carbon held in solution by the hydrogen is separated from that element, partly by its own gravity, and partly perhaps by solution in the water, or by condensation in the liquid form. Gas — Economy. ^9 To whatever cause the deterioration is owing, the fact itself is undoubted. Thus, an oil-gas which, when newly prepared, had the specific gravity 1*054, gave the light of a candle for an hour when it consumed 200 cubic inches ; kept two days, it gave the same light with a consumpt of 215 cubic inches per hour ; and kept four days, it required for the same light 240 cubic inches per hour. In the case of a portion of coal- gas, which, when newly prepared, required 404 cubic inches to yield the light of a candle for an hour, the same gas kept two days required 430 cubic inches ; and kept four days, 460 cubic inches to yield the same light. These results in- dicate a progressive deterioration in the quality of the gases, increasing with the length of time they are kept ; and it is deserving of remark, that in both gases the diminution of the illuminating power decreases in a faster ratio than the time increases. After being kept three weeks, the oil-gas was so much debased in quality that it required 606 cubic inches of it to yield the light of a candle for an hour ; and hence its illuminating power was reduced to one-third of what it was when the gas was newly made. From these experiments it may obviously be inferred that both oil and coal gas should' be used as soon as possible after they are prepared. Economy of Coal- Qas, Among the advantages which have resulted from the intro- duction of coal-gas, we may reckon, first, its comparative cheapness; and, secondly, its superiority to all the other modes of artificial illumination. In forming a comparative estimate of the cost of coal-gas and that of the other means employed for procuring artificial light, we may contrast it with the expense of wax, tallow, and oil, the ordinary substances used for the purpose. It deserves to be remarked, however, that while the price of coal, in consequence of the regular and abundant supply of that article, is liable to little fluctuation, the cost of wax, tallow, and oil, on account of the more precarious nature of the sources from which they are obtained, varies exceedingly in different seasons. The very extensive use, too, into which coal-gas has been brought has produced a considerable effect upon the price of oil and tallow, as well as of wax ; so that 310 Five Black Akts. a comparative estimate of the expense of procuring the same extent of illumination from coal-gas and from these substances must appear less favorable to the former than would have been the case had the comparison been made when gas was first introduced. But by way of illustration, the approximative economy of the substances commonly employed for illumination may be contrasted as follows : — Supposing that 5 cubic feet of gas per hour give a light equal to that of 12 candles, then 1000 cubic feet, if burnt at the rate of 5 feet per hour, would give a light equal to that of 12 candles for 200 hours, at the cost of 4«. 6^., which is about the average price of gas in London per 1000 feet at the present time (1855). Suppose the candles to cost 9d. per lb., then 2 lbs. of candles, 6 to the lb., would burn for 6f hours at the cost of Is. 6d., or 60 lbs. would burn 200 hours, at the cost of 21. 5s. Assuming wax to be three times the price of the candles, the cost of wax candles for 200 hours would be 61. 15s. ; and taking sperm oil at 8s. per gallon, 4 gallons would give a light equal to that of 12 candles for 200 hours, at a cost of 11. 12s. So that, by comparing the cost of these various sources of light for equal periods of time, we have — L. s. d. For wax candles, the cost of 6 15 For tallow candles, *' 2 5 For sperm oil, " 112 For gas, " 4 6 The expense of gas, as compared with that of the other sources of light, will be — Gas 1-0 Candles 100 Oil 7.1 Wax 300 In the above comparison we have taken London gas as the standard, which is scarcely fair, seeing that this gas is inferior in illuminating power to that of most other towns. But the light obtained from coal-gas is not only procured at a smaller expense ; it is also more convenient for most purposes than the light yielded by other substances. In the ordinary mode of lighting by tallow and oil, the light derived from their combustion cannot be diminished in intensity with- out considerable disadvantage and trouble ; whereas in the case of gas, it may be reduced in an instant from the most Gas — Secondary Products. 311 perfect splendor to the feeblest degree of illumination by the simple adjustment of the stop-cock. The advantages arising from this easy method of regulating the light of gas, when it is used in the chambers of the sick, and indeed in all apart- ments where a variable but uninterrupted supply of light must be kept up, can only be duly estimated by those who have experienced them. To every branch of manufacturing industry which requires a steady and powerful light, the benefits which have resulted from the introduction of coal-gas are not less important. In many operations the light may be conveyed by means of flexible pipes, connected together with ball-and-socket joints, so as to be almost in contact with the fabric it is intended to illuminate, without the slightest risk of injury ; and it may be kept in the same state for many hours in succession, or altered, as circumstances may render necessary. For lighting churches, theaters, and other public buildings, where a strong and uniform light is required, gas answers the purpose more effectually than any other mode of illumination ; partly from the facility of its application, and partly from the diversified and tasteful manner in which the jets of flame may be exhibited in various kinds of burners. As a street light, its superiority is universally admitted ; and from that application of gas it cannot be doubted that the metropolis, and other large towns, have derived great ad- ditional security against the perpetration of nocturnal crimes, as well as the means of carrying on the ordinary business of life, during the evening with nearly the same convenience as during the full light of day. Secondary Products. The chemistry of the gas manufacture has been for some years in a state of mutation, the effect of which has been to bring about important changes in the nature and amount of the secondary products. We may, however, refer to the methods of disposing of the usual secondary products, namely, the coke, the tar, and the ammoniacal liquor. A ton of New- castle coals of the average weight of 2240 lbs. yields — 3i2 Five Black Arts. 1 Chaldron of coke = 1494 lbs. 12 Gallons of tar = 136 " 10 Gallons of ammoniacal liquor = 100 " 9000 to 10,000 Cubic feet of Gas = 291 « Loss = 220 « 2249 lbs. It is found, on an average, that 1 cwt. of coals yields about 2 bushels of coke. About one-fourth of the quantity of coke produced is used as fuel for heating the retorts, and the re- mainder is sold. The tar and ammoniacal liquor or gas-water separate in the tar cistern, the tar forming the lower stratum. This is used in the manufacture of patent fuel and of creasote, and as a rough paint for out-door work, 100 lbs. of tar yield by distillation about 26 lbs. of an oily liquid known as coal-oil. A light product first distils over, which is called coal-naptha ; the remaining pitch is used for paying the bottoms of ships, wooden piles, etc. The coal-naptha is used for dissolving caoutchouc, and for burning in the naptha-lamp. The ammo- niacal liquor is used in the manufacture of sal-ammoniac, carbonate of ammonia, and prussian-blue. The presence of cyanogen in the ammoniacal liquor has led to its employment in the manufacture of ferrocyanide of iron or prussian-blue. It is stated that a gallon of ammoniacal liquor, when satu- rated with sulphuric acid, contains enough of cyanogen and cyanates to form, with a salt of iron, 24 grains of prussian- blue. The secondary products of the Edinburgh gas-works are turned to account at the chemical works, situate at a distance of about two miles from them, the gas-works being on a lower level. They are, however, connected by a line of pipes, and the gas-liquor is lifted over the shoulder of the Calton Hill by means of a force-pump. The difference of level is then sufficient to carry it to the chemical works. The liquor is left for the tar to subside, but the ammoniacal liquor, consist- ing of an impure solution of carbonate and hydrosulphuret of ammonia, still contains a portion of tar, which is got rid of by distillation. The larger portion of the distilled liquid is converted into sal-ammoniac, and a portion into sulphate of ammonia. In order to obtain the sal-ammoniac, the liquor is neutralized with hydrochloric acid, and is then pumped into large cauldrons and evaporated to the crystalizing point, when Gas — Secondary Products. 818 it is drawn oflf into large vats, and on cooling deposits small feathery crystals ; these are transferred to a stone chest, and are dried by the heat of a furnace below. The salt then resembles brown sugar ; it is mixed with charcoal powder for the purpose of reducing any oxide of iron which may be present, and thus to get rid of the brown tint in the process of sublimation. The subliming vessels resemble a man's hat, and are arranged in the furnace with the crown downward ; they are about three feet in depth, and two and a half in di- ameter, and they contain sufficient for a week's charge. Each pot is covered with a leaden cupola, luted on with clay, and the salt is at first allowed to sublime away through a hole in the center. This occasions some loss, but it appears to be a necessary precaution to prevent porosity in the sublimate. The central hole is then plugged with clay, and the sublima- tion is continued for a week. In this way hemispherical cakes of sal-ammoniac are produced ; they are rasped on the sur- face to remove crust or coloring matter, and are broken into wedges, which are packed in barrels for exportation. In preparing sulphate of ammonia the distilled ammoniacal liquor is saturated with sulphuric acid, and concentrated until small crystals are formed, which are removed by perforated ladles, dried, and packed in barrels lined with paper. The tar, which contains a considerable portion of water, is transferred to a still, where crude naptha and vapor of water distil over. They separate in consequence of their different densities, and the naptha is digested with sulphuric acid in a leaden trough. This separates ammonia and other substances ; the acid is removed by means of quick-lime, the naptha is washed with water, distilled, and is ready for the market. The remaining tar is raised to a higher temperature, and a liquid less volatile than naptha is produced ; it is term- ed pitch-oil, and is used for impregnating wood, etc. The pitch in the still is then run out, when it settles into a soft solid, for which at Edinburgh no market has yet been found, but it may probably be turned to account as a cheap fuel. Scarcely any market is found for the tar, which was for- merly largely consumed at Continental seaports. The in- crease of gas-works on the Continent, and the absence of duty on foreign tar as distinguished from British tar, has greatly retarded the sale of the latter abroad. 314 Five Black Arts. Since the introduction of the Boghead cannel coal, a new secondary product has been obtained in the form of paraffine. It is separated at the Westminster gas-works as paraffine-oil, and is used for lubricating the machinery. IRON. HISTORY OF ITS MANUFACTURE, AN ACCOUNT OF ITS PROPERTIES AND USES. IRON Iron, on account of its abundance, working qualities, and tenacity, is probably the most useful and valuable of metals. According to Dr. Ure, " it is capable of being cast into moulds of any form, of being drawn into wire of any desired length or fineness, of being extended into plates or sheets, of being bent in every direction, of being sharpened, or hard- ened, or softened at pleasure. Iron accommodates itself to all our wants and desires, and even to our caprices ; it is equally serviceable to the arts, the sciences, to agriculture, and war ; the same ore furnishes the sword, the plowshare, the scythe, the pruning-hook, the needle, the graver, the spring of a watch or of a carriage, the chisel, the chain, the anchor, the compass, the cannon, and the bomb. It is a medicine of much virtue, and the only metal friendly to the human frame." In its primitive position it is commingled with the earth's strata in bountiful profusion ; it is found in various combinations and conditions in every formation, and it is a constituent element of both animals and vegetables. HISTORY OF THE IRON MANUFACTURE. Malleable iron appears to have been known from a remote antiquity. Its obvious utility and great superiority over the softer metals, then commonly used, combined with the expense of its reduction, caused it to be highly prized, though the ex- treme difficulty of working it by the rude methods then em- ployed greatly restricted its application.* There are notices in Homer and Hesiod of the arts of reducing and forging iron, but cast-iron was then unknown, an imperfectly mallea- ble iron being produced at once from the ores in the furnace. * This is shown by the epithet much-wrought, applied to it by Homer — Jliad, vi. 48. 318 Five Black Arts. It is probable that the Greeks obtained most of their iron through the Phoenicians from the shores of the Black Sea, and from Laconia. It would be interesting to trace the gradual advances which have been made in the reduction of iron from its dis- covery to the present time ; to inquire into the circumstances which led to the successive changes in the processes, and into the principle on which those changes were founded ; to ex- amine into differences in the products which from time to time ensued, and to notice the influence of these conditions on the extent and progress of the manufacture. Our knowl- edge of these changes, however, is scanty and imperfect, and we can only conjecture what was probably its early progress. The furnaces which were first employed for smelting iron were probably similar to those now called air-bloomeries. They were probably simple conical structures, with small openings below for the admission of air, and a large one above for the escape of the products of combustion, and would be erected on high grounds in order that the wind might assist combustion. The fire being kindled, successive layers of ore and charcoal would be placed in it, and the heat regulated by opening or closing the apertures below. The process of reduction would consist of the de-oxidation of the ore and the cementation of the metal by long-continued heat. The temperature would never rise sufficiently high to fuse the ore, and the product would therefore be an imper- fectly malleable iron, mixed with scoriae and unreduced oxide. It would then be brought under the hammer, and fashioned into a rude bloom, during which process it would be freed from the greater portion of the earthy impurities. By such a process as this the Romans probably worked the iron ores of our own island ; scoriae, the refuse of ancient bloomeries, occur in various localities, in some cases identified with that people by the coincident remains of altars dedica- ted to the god who presided over iron. Mungo Park saw a rude furnace of this kind used by the Africans, and, indeed, with some modifications, it is still retained in Spain, and along the coast of the Mediterranean, where rich specular ores are worked. The advantages of an artificial blast would soon become manifest, and a pair of bellows or a cylinder and piston would Iron — Manufacture. 319 soon be applied to the simple construction mentioned above. Homer represents Hephaestus as throwing the materials from which the shield of Achilles was to be forged into a furnace urged by 20 pairs of bellows (9ufl'ai). The inhabitants of Madagascar smelt iron in much the same way, their blowing apparatus, however, consisting of hollow trunks of trees, with loosely fitting pistons. The furnace corresponds to the JZas^bloomery, and has by successive improvements developed into the blast furnace, now almost universally used, and into the Catalan forge, still employed in some districts. The application of the blast would offer considerable advantages ; it would obviate the necessity of an elevated site, place the temperature more immediately under the direction of the smelter, and render the whole process more regular and certain. The method of reduction remained the same as before, but the product would differ considerably, for whenever the blast was sufficiently powerful, the iron would be fused, a partial carburation would take place, and the resulting metal would be a species of steel, utterly useless to the workmen of those days ; hence, it seems necessary to infer, that a rude process of refining was invented, the metal being again heated with charcoal, and the blast directed over its surface, the carbon would be burnt out, and the iron become tough and malleable. The processes might perhaps form two successive stages of one operation, as at present practiced with the Catalan forge. The increasing demand for iron, and the progress of inter- nal communication, would lead the smelter to increase the size and height of his bloomery, and this probably would lead to a very unexpected result. The greater length through which the ore had to descend would prolong its contact with the charcoal, and a higher state of carburation would ensue, the product being cast-iron — a compound till then perhaps unknown. From the time that cast-iron became the product of the smelting furnace, the refining would be made a separate pro- cess, requiring a separate furnace and machinery. It would soon be found also that, as the furnace increased in height, the pressure of the superincumbent mass would render the mate- rials so dense as to retard the ascent of the blast, and thus cause it to become soft and inefficient ; hence the internal 320 Five Black Arts. buttresses called hoshes were first introduced to support the weight of the charge, relieving the central parts from the pressure, and permitting the free ascent of the blast. Whilst the good quality of the iron and the regularity of the process were thus insured, increase of quantity was the result of im- provements in the blowing apparatus, which was now enlarged and worked by water-power. With these modifications, the furnace was the same essentially as the blast-furnace now employed, though not so large ; indeed, until the introduction of coke at a much later period, the blast-furnace seldom ex- ceeded 15 feet in height by 6 at the widest diameter. The more perfect operation of the blast-furnace allowed the re- duction of the heaps of scoriae which had been gradually accumulating during the period that the blast bloomeries had been in operation, and which contained 30 to 40 per cent, of iron. A new species of property was thus created, extensive proprietorships of Danish and Roman cinders were formed ; large deposits of scoriae which for ages had lain concealed beneath forests of decayed oak, were dug up, and in Dean Forest it is computed that 20 furnaces, for a period of up- ward of 300 years, were supplied chiefly with the bloomery cinders as a substitute for iron ore. At what period the complete transformation of the blast- bloomery into the blast furnace was effected, it is impossible to say. It was probably in the early part of the 16th century, as we find that in the 17th the art of casting had arrived at a considerable degree of perfection, and in the reign of Elizabeth there was a considerable export trade of cast-iron ordnance to the Continent. In the forest of Dean are the remains of two blast furnaces, which formerly belonged to the kings of England, but they have been out of blast since the commencement of the struggle between Charles I. and bis Parliament. Calculating from the quantity of scoriae accumulated in their immediate neighborhood, which appear to have lain undisturbed for the last two centuries, Mr. Mushet has attempted to deduce the period of their erection, which he conceives to have been about the year 1550, in the time of Edward VI. Up to this period wood charcoal was the only material employed in smelting operations, but the wants of a constantly increasing population, not less than the great consumption of Iron — History. 321 the blast furnaces themselves, created a scarcity of this essen- tial material, and gave a check to the manufacture. To such an extent had the wood been destroyed, that the cutting down of timber for the use of the iron-works was prohibited by special enactments ; and the forests of Sussex alone appear to have been exempt from the general decree of conservation. The number of furnaces in blast decreased three-fourths, and the annual production, which but a short time before is said to have been 180,000 tons, was in 1740 reduced to only 17,350 tons. James I. granted patents to ironmasters in various parts of the kingdom for using pit-coal in the manufacture of iron. The obstacles to its introduction, however, were numerougi, and not easily overcome. The comparatively incombustible nature of coke, and its feebler chemical affinities, rendered a more powerful blast and a longer subjection to the heat indis- pensable to its successful adoption. Ignorance of the causes of failure operated long and seriously, but all difficulties were at length surmounted. An enlargement of the height of the furnace prolonged the contact of the ore and coke, and at last the employment of the steam-engine and improved blowing apparatus rendered the blast much more powerful and regular, and gave that impetus to the manufacture which has caused Great Britain to take the first rank in this branch of in- dustry. The first great improvement on the blowing apparatus was the substitution of large cylinders, with closely fitting pistons, for the bellows. The earliest of any magnitude were prob- ably those erected by Smeaton at the Carron Iron-Works, in 1760. In 1783-4, Mr. Cort of Gosport introduced the processes of puddling and rolling, two of the most important inventions connected with the production of iron since the employment of the blast furnace. About this time the steam-engine of James Watt came into use, and along with it commenced a new era in the history of the iron trade and every other branch of industry. Its immense power, economy, and convenience of application, brought it at once into general employment. It was soon applied to pumping, blowing, and rolling ; it enabled the mines to be sunk to a greater depth ; refractory ores to be reduced 21 322 Five Black Arts. with facility, and the processes of rolling, forging, etc., to be effected with a rapidity previously unknown. Of late years, Scotland has made considerable progress in the iron manufacture. The introduction of railway commu- nication, and the invention of the hot-blast, have given a stimulus to the trade which has raised Glasgow into impor- tance as an iron district, and few towns possess greater fa- cilities for the sale of their produce, than this central depot of the mineral treasures of the country by which it is sur- rounded. The hot-blast process, for which a patent was taken out by Mr. Neilson in 1824, has effected an entire revolution in the iron industry of Great Britain, and forms the last era in the history of this material. This simple but effective invention has given such facilities for the reduction of refractory ores, that between three and four times the quantity of iron can be produced weekly, with an expenditure of little more than one- third the fuel ; and, moreover, the coal does not require to be coked, or the ores to be calcined. In conclusion, we may add that there appear to have been five distinct epochs in the history of the iron trade. The first dating from the employment of an artificial blast to accelerate combustion. The second marked by the employment of coke for reduc- tion, about the year 1760. The third dating from the introduction of the steam-engine, and on account of the facilities with which that invention has given for raising the ores, pumping the mines, supplying the furnace with a copious and regular blast, and moving the powerful forge and rolling machinery, we may safely attrib- ute this era to the genius of James Watt. The fourth epoch is indicated by the introduction of the system of puddling and rolling, very soon after the employ- ment of the steam-engine. The fifth, and last — though not the least important epoch in the history of this manufacture — is marked by the appli- cation of the hot-blast — an invention which has increased the production of iron fourfold, and has enabled the ironmaster to smelt otherwise useless and unreducible ores ; it has abol- ished the processes of coking and roasting, and has given facilities for a large and rapid production, far beyond the Iron— Ores. 323 most sanguine anticipations of its inventor. Manufacturers taking advantage of so powerful an agent, have not hesitated to reduce improper materials, such as cinder-heaps and im- pure ores, and by unduly hastening the process, and attend- ing to quantity more than to quality, have produced an infe- rior description of iron, that has brought the invention into unmerited obloquy. THE ORES. The ores of iron are found in profuse abundance in every latitude, imbedded in or stratified with every formation. They occur both crystallized, massive, and arenaceous ; lying deep on strata of vast extent, filling veins and faults in other rocks, and scattered over the surface of the ground. Sometimes, but rarely, found native ; usually as oxides, sulphurets, or carbonates, more or less mingled with other substances Of these ores there are perhaps twenty varieties, many of which are, however, rare ; others are combined with substances which unfit them for the manufacture of iron, so that the remainder may be classed under the following general heads ; their composition, however, varies greatly : 1. The magnetic oxides, in which the iron occurs, as Fcg O4 or Fca Og-fFe 0. This is the purest ore which is worked ; the best Swedish metal is manufactured from it. It is found in primitive rocks, and is widely difiused over the globe. 2. Specular iron ore, peroxide of iron, Ye 2 O3. This is rich and valuable ore, and has been worked from a remote antiquity in Elba and Spain. It is found chiefly in primary and transition rocks. 3. Red and brown haematites, hydrated peroxide of iron. These ores occur in botyroidal radiating masses, in Cumber- land, Ireland, America, and other places. 4. Carbonate of iron. This ore occurs mixed with large quantities of argillaceous, carbonaceous, and silicious sub- stances, forming the large deposits of clay-ironstone and blackbands, from which most of the iron of this country is obtained. These strata are generally found in close proxim- ity to the coal measures. All the above ores are more or less mixed with silica, alu- 324 Five Black Arts. mina, oxide of manganese, etc., and it may not be uninter- esting to glance at their geographical distribution in Europe and America. This country possesses peculiar and remarkable advanta- ges for the manufacture of iron. The ores are found in ex- haustless abundance, usually interstratified with the coal for their reduction, and in close proximity to the mountain lime- stone, which is used as a flux. In few countries do these three essential materials occur in such abundance, or so near together as to give the necessary facilities for a large and profitable production. The ores principally employed are the clay-ironstones and carbonates of blackbands, which are found interstratified with the coal fields of Ayrshire, Lanarkshire, Shropshire, South Wales, and other parts, and these vary in richness in different localities, according to position and the amount of silica clay and other foreign matter with which they are associated. The chemical composition of three varieties of the ore used in Lanarkshire is given by Dr. Colquhoun, as follows : Protoxide of iron .. Carbonic acid Silica Alumina Lime Magnesia Peroxide of iron . . . Bituminous matter . Sulphur Oxide of Manganese Moisture and loss . . No. 1. 5303 35-17 1-40 0-63 3-33 1-77 0-23 303 0-00 000 1-41 No. 2. 47-33 33-10 .6-63 4-30 2-00 2-20 0-33 1-70 0-22 0-13 2-26 No. 3. 35-22 32-53 9-56 5-34 8-62 6-19 1-16 213 0-62 0-00 000 100-00 10000 100-37 The carbonic acid in the above ores may be partly com- bined with the lime as carbonate of lime, as well as with the protoxide of iron. M. Berthier gives, according to Dr. Ure, the following analyses of the English and Welsh ironstones of the coal measures : Iron — Ores, 325 Rich Welsh Ore. PoOr Welsh Ore. DadleyRich Ore or Gubbin. Loss by ignition 3000 8-40 60-00 0-00 27-0> 22-03 42 GG 6 00 3100 Insoluble residuum 7-66 Peroxide of iron 58-33 Lime ... . 2-66 98-40 97-69 99-65 Calculating the amount of carbonate of iron and metallic iron indicated bj the above analyses, we have : Carbonate of iron 88-77 42-15 65-09 31-38 85-20 Metallic iron 40-45 The richness of the above ironstones would be about 33 per cent, of iron. In the process of roasting, 28 per cent, of the ore is dissipated. Mr. Mitchell gives also the following assays of clay-iron- stone and blackband ore, as under : Clay iron- stone, Lei- trim, Ireland. Blackband Carbonate Ore. Protoxide of iron 51-653 3-742 •976 1-849 •284 •410 •274 •372 •214 •284 31-142 6-640 I 2-160 20-924 Peroxide of iron •741 Oxide of Man&ranese 1-742 Alumina 14-974 Mao^nesia . -987 •881 Potash trace. Soda trace. •098 Phosphoric acid •lU 14-000 Silica 26-179 Carbonaceous matter 16-940 2-420 100-000 100-000 In North Lancashire and Cumberland, the red haematite ores 326 Five Black Arts. are now extensively worked, and great quantities are yearly shipped from Whitehaven, IJlverstone, etc., to Staffordshire, South Wales, and Scotland, for mixing with the poorer ar- gillaceous and blackband ores. In Cumberland and North Lancashire, no less than 546,998 tons were raised in 1854 for this purpose, and the greater portion was exported from those districts. In addition to these exports, about 25 to 30,000 tons are smelted by the hot blast at Cleator, in the neighborhood of Whitehaven. It produces a strong and ductile iron, con- sidered highly valuable for mixing with the weaker irons. These ores have been carefully analyzed, and contain : Peroxide of iron 90-3 Silica 5-0 Alumina 30 Lime trace. Magnesia trace. Water 60 104-3 Or about 62 per cent, of metallic iron. In Ireland there are vast deposits of iron ore of great richness, though as yet but little worked. Some of these, such as the ores worked at the Arigua mines, and the Kidney ores of Balcarry Bay, yield as much as 70 per cent, of iron. If these mines were worked more extensively, and if peat fuel were used in the smelting operations, the iron would probably be of the very best quality, and might rival the famed Swedish charcoal metal. Of this there is now every reason to hope, as the establishment of railway communica- tion, with almost every part of Ireland, will open out the immense peat bogs of that country, and facilitate the intro- duction of vegetable fuel for the reduction of the ores, and create a large and important addition to other branches of Irish industry. In a communication to the writer from Mr. M'All, dated Scrabby, he states — " I have sent you samples of two kinds of iron ore, one is the red, the other the purple haematite. There are strata which are inexhaustible, and the ore can be raised and delivered at the furnace for less than a shilling a ton ; the peat or vegetable carbon is equally cheap and abundant. Limestone of the purest quality is also close Iron— Ores. 327 at hand, and can be delivered at the furnace at ninepence per ton. On account of the purity of these materials, iron of the greatest strength and ductility can be made, which, from its non-liability to corrode, would be admirably adapted for naval and marine purposes." Ireland is, therefore, ac- cording to Mr. M'All and others, in a condition to supply large quantities of excellent iron. France possesses an abundant supply of iron ore, but on account of the scarcity of coal, the manufacture has been greatly restricted in extent. The introduction of railway communication is, however, rapidly removing the difficulty, and the operations of smelting are greatly on the increase. The railroad has enabled the French ironmaster to substitute coal for charcoal in the reduction of the iron ores, and in consequence an immense increase has taken place in the pro- duction of pig and manufactured iron. The ores are found in beds or strata in the Jura range ; accumulated in kidney- shaped concretions in the fissures of the limestone ; or dis- persed over the surface of the ground, and but slightly cover- ed with sand or clay. They are found in the departments of the Yonne, the Meuse, and the Moselle, and indeed may be traced from the Pas de Calais on the north to the Jura on the south, in- dicating throughout an abundant and ample supply. The present increased production of iron in France is chiefly due to the introduction of coal in smelting, but it may also be traced in some measure to the encouragement given by the Government to that branch of industry, and to the enterprise of such men as M. de Gallois and M. Dufrenoy, who have exerted themselves to extend its manufacture in that country. M. de Gallois resided in England for several years, immediately subsequent to the peace of 1815, and having ob- tained admission into the different iron-works here, he returned to France and established the works at St. Etienne, now probably the largest and most extensive in that country.* * The universal exhibition of last year (1855) fully justifies the remarks in reference to the great increase of the iron trade of France. Any person in the least conversant with the imperfect machinery and processes of the iron manufacture as it existed in France some years since, could not have been otherwise than struck with the improved character of those exemplified in the Paris Exhibition. In no country (probably not excepting even this) has so great progress been made in so short a time, in advancing from a ^ate of comparative rudeness to one of considerable perfection, as in France. 328 Five Black Arts. The production of crude pig-iron in France is now little short of 1,000,000 tons annually, but the demand for railways, rolling-stock, bridges, iron ships, girders, and other construc- tions is so great that large quantities of iron are still annu- ally imported into this country. Valuable deposits of the blackband and clay carbonate ores are found interstratified with the great coal-field of Ruhr ; and the bog-iron and haematite ores are found in con- siderable profusion in Rhenish Prussia and other parts. In Upper Silesia, on the Vistula and the Oder, large deposits of coal and iron are found in juxtaposition, and are worked to a considerable extent. The consumption of iron is not so great as in France, though it is increasing rapidly, as may be seen from returns recently given by the British Charge d^Aflfaires at Berlin. These returns show that the amount of iron ore raised in Prus- sia has increased from 1,495,516 tons in 1853, to 2,144,509 tons in 1854 ; this has taken place in nearly all the producing districts, but chiefly on the Rhine, where the demand has in- creased from 719,684 to 1,068,656 tons ; in Westphalia, from 146,320 to 330,014 tons ; in Silesia, from 563,739 to 650,369 tons; in Lower Saxony and Thuringia, from 51,963 to 70,- 676 tons ; in Prussian Brandenburgh, from 8084 to 12,731 tons ; and in the Upper ZoUverein, from 6736 to 13,063 tons. In Austria, all the iron is smelted with charcoal or car- bonized peat, and is in consequence of the finest quality ; it may be applied to every description of manufacture, from the most ductile wire to the hardest steel. The production is, however, small. The ores are found in Hungary, Styria, Moravia, and Upper Silesia. In Belgium, both coal and iron are found in equal abun- dance, and are worked at Charleroi, Liege, and at other places. The ores which are chiefly haematite, are derived from the limestone at the base of the coal measures. The superiority of the Swedish iron has long been ac- knowledged, and till recently it has been unrivaled. This arises not only from the purity of the ore — the magnetic oxide of iron — but in consequence of its being smelted with charcoal only. The quantity is however restricted, as the ironmasters are allowed by law only a certain number of trees per annum, in order that the forests may not be totally Iron — Ores. 329 destroyed. Coal does not exist in either Sweden or Nor- way. In 1844 some experimental researches were undertaken by Mr. Fairbairn of Manchester, at the request of the Sub- lime Porte, in regard to the properties of iron made from the ores of Samakoff in Turkey. The ores were strongly magnetic, and contained, according to Dumas and others, 62 to 64 per cent, of iron. They consist of: One atom iron 28 -}- one atom oxygen . 8 = 36 Two atoms iron 56 -j- three atoms oxygen 24 = 80 Iron 84 Oxygen 32 116 Some of these ores have been smelted with charcoal, and some very fine specimens of iron and steel produced. The manufacture is, however, in a languid state in Turkey, and although smelting furnaces, blowing apparatus, forges, rolling mills, etc., were prepared and sent out from this country, they are to a great extent useless among a people who have deeply rooted prejudices and habitual inactivity to overcome, and every thing to learn in all those habits of industry which indi- cate the rising prosperity of an energetic and an active people. Both the magnetic, haematite, and clay-ironstones abound in the United States. The magnetic ores worked in New England, New York, and New Jersey ; the haematite in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, and other localities ; but the greater part of the manufacture must eventually es- tablish itself in the valley of the Mississippi west of the Alleghany range, where vast deposits of coal and iron exist, though at present but imperectly known or developed.* The ores in most of these districts are smelted with a mixture of charcoal and anthracite, and the usual limestone flux, and pro- duce a very excellent quality of iron. In Nova Scotia some of the richest ores yet discovered occur in exhaustless abundance. The iron manufactured from them is of the very best quality, and is equal to the finest Swedish metal. The specular ore of the Acadian mines, Nova Scotia, is said by Dr. Ure to be a nearly pure peroxide of iron, con- taining 99 per cent, of the peroxide, and about 70 per cent, of iron. When smelted, 100 parts yield 75 of iron, the in- crease in weight being due to combined carbon. The red * Especially in Ohio and in Missouri. 330 Five Black Arts. ore Dr. lire states to be analogous to the kidney ore of Cum- berland, and to contain : (1) (2) Peroxide of iron 85-8 84.4 Silica 8.2 8-0 Water 6-0 7-6 100-0 100.0 The Acadian ores are situated in the neighborhood of large tracts of forests, capable of supplying almost any quantity of charcoal for the manufacture of the superior qualities of iron and steel. Several specimens of iron from these mines have been submitted to direct experiment, and the results prove its high powers to resist strain, ductility, and adaptation to all those processes by which the finest description of wire and steel are manufactured. The difficulties which the Government have had to encoun- ter, during the last two years, in obtaining a sufficiently strong metal for artillery, are likely to be removed by the use of the Acadian pig-iron. Large quantities have been pur- chased by the War Office, and experiments are now in prog- ress, under the direction of Lieutenant-Colonel Wilmot, In- spector of Artillery, and of Mr. Fairbairn, which seem cal- culated to establish the superiority of this metal for casting every description of heavy ordnance. There are also some very rich ores at the Nictau mines, as the following analyses by Dr. Jackson show. They con- tain impressions of Silurian tentaculities, spirifers, etc. : Iron — Fuel. 331 Brown Ore somewhat magnetic. Red Iron Ore. Peroxide of iroa 70-20 14-40 5-60 2-80 6-80 •40 •00 64-40 Silica 19.20 Carbonate of Lime 5-40 Carbonate of Magnesia 320 Alumina 1-20 Oxide of Manganese 4-40 Water 2-40 * Gain from oxygen. t Over-run, probably carbonic acid from 100-20 •20* 100-20 •20t carbonate of lime. 10000 10000 As our limits are circumscribed, it will not be necessary to extend this section further ; suffice it therefore to observe, that in all countries nature has, with a beneficent purpose, interlaid and interstratified the whole surface of the globe with this useful and indispensable material, and it would ill bespeak that high intelligence with which man is endowed if he did not avail himself of, and turn to good account, the immense stores of mineral treasures which are so profusely laid at his feet. THE FUEL. The inquiry into the properties and composition of the ores of iron, and the processes employed for their reduc- tion and subsequent conversion into bars and plates, would be incomplete unless accompanied by a descriptive analyses of the fuel by which they are fused. Indeed the results of the operations of smelting, puddling, etc., are so intimately de- pendent on the quality of the fuel employed, as to render a knowledge of its constituents essential to the manufacture of good iron. Charcoal was at first universally employed in the manufac- ture of iron, and on account of its purity compared with other kinds of fuel, and its strong chemical affinities and con- sequent high combustibility, it is of very superior value where 332 Five Black Arts. it can be obtained in large quantities at a moderate cost. This, however, is rarely the case, and hence its use is restric- ted within very narrow limits in most countries. Charcoal is the result of several processes, in each of which the object is to increase the amount of fuel in a given bulk. The wood being cut into convenient lengths, and piled closely together, in a large heap, the interstices being filled with the smaller branches, and the whole being covered with wet charcoal pow- der, is then set on fire. Care is taken that only sufficient air is admitted to consume the gaseous products of the wood, so as to maintain the high temperature without needlessly consum- ing the carbon. After the whole of the gaseous products have been separated, and the carbon and salts only are left, the access of air is prevented, and the heap allowed to cool. Another and better process is to throw the wood into a large close oven or furnace, heated either by the combustion within it, or by a separate fire conducted in flues around it. By this process, not only is the yield greater and of better quality, from the slower progress of the operation, but the products of the distillation may be preserved and employed for a great variety of purposes. The following results of some experiments by Karsten, show the difference in yield of very rapid and very slow processes : Wood. Charcoal produced by quick carboimation Charcoal produced by Blow carbonization, ji,^^. Young Oak 16-54 15-91 14-25 14-05 16-22 15-35 25-60 0]d " 25-71 Young Deal 25-25 Old " 25-00 Young Fir 27-72 Old " 24-75 Mean 15-38 25-67 These, on the average, give for the quick process 15*3, and for the slow 25*6, being in the ratio of 1 : 1*67, or 0.67 in favor of the quick process. Peat. — This material seems likely to come into use for Iron— Fuel. 8SB smelting iron in countries such as Ireland, where neither coal nor wood are found in abundance. It is purer and less ob- jectionable than coal, and if properly dried, compressed, and carbonized, would prove a very valuable fuel for the reduc- tion of such ores as we have already described in the section on the iron ores of Ireland. It is carbonized in the same way as the charring of wood. Coke. — Before the introduction of the hot-blast, this mate- rial was used to a very great extent in the manufacture of iron ; it is prepared from coal in the same way that charcoal is prepared from wood, the operation being called the coking or desulphurizing process. The heaps do not require so care- ful a regulation of the admission of air as those of charcoal, on account of the comparatively incombustible character of the coke. Sometimes the heaps are made large, with per- forated brick chimneys, to increase the draught through the mounds ; at other times they are formed into smaller heaps, and the conversion takes place without the intervention of flues. The more usual and economical plan is, however, the employment of close ovens, by which process a great saving is effected, the yield being from 30 to 50 per cent, in tKe one case, and from 50 to 75 in the other, according to the nature and quality of the coal. Coal. — The hot-blast has enabled the ironmasters to use raw coal in the blast furnaces, the great heat of the ascending current of the products of combustion coking it as it falls in the furnace. The sulphur, however, and other deleterious ingredients, do not appear to be so completely got rid of as when the coal is used in the shape of coke ; and it appears probable that even with the hot blast, the separate process of coking might be advantageously used, on account of the greater purity of the iron produced. The following tables, selected from various sources, give the composition of the different kinds of fuel, all of which are applicable to the reduction and fusion of the iron ores : 334 Five Black Arts. Fael. LocaUty. 1 1 1 111 o g a B it Authority. Splint Coal u (( '.!!!!!. c( ^ , CannelCoal (( « Cherry Coal Caking Coal....... (( Newcastle, Wylam Glasgow. Lancashire, Wigan Edinburgh. Parrot coal. Newcastle, Jarrow. Glasgow. Newcastle, Gares- field. Durham, South Hetton. 129 1266 1.302 1.307 1272 1.228 1.319 1.318 1263 1.266 1.286 1.280 1.274 1.269 75 00 70 90 74823 82 924 64.72 72.22 83.753 67 597 74.45 84.846 81.208 87 952 83274 75 28 6.26 4 30 6.180 6.491 21.56 3.93 5.660 5.405 12.40 5.048 5.452 5.239 5.171 4.18 18 75 24.80 5.085 10.457 13.72 23 85 8.039 12 432 13.15 8.430 11.923 5.416 3 036 20 54 13.912 1.128 2 545 14.566 1.676 1.421 1.393 1.519 4.670 Thomson. Ure. 1 Richardson. Thomson. Ure. I Richardson. Thomson. -Richardson. Thomson. Anthracite Swansea, South Wales, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Worcester. 1.348 1.270 1.462 92.56 90 58 94 05 90.15 94.89 28 35 2 330 2.600 3 38 2.430 2.650 0.920 2.530 4. 00 2.570 2 46 2.560 2.150 1.720 4.370 68.65 Regnault. Jacquelin. Overman. Regnault. I Overman. Peat Vulcaire, Long, Camp de Feu, Cappage, Kilbeggan, KUbakan, •"• 57.03 58 09 57 79 51.05 61.04 51.13 5 630 0.930 6.110 6.85 6.67 633 31760 31370 30.7.0 39.555 30 46 34.48 2.55 1.83 8.06 \ u I Regnault. (C (( It > Dr. Kane (( According to Knapp, peat contains from 1 to 33 per cent. its weight of ash. In coal we have the following from Mr. Mushet's analyses : Specific gravity Carbon. Ashes. Volatile matter. Welsh furnace coal 1-377 1-393 1-409 1-264 1-278 88-068 89-709 82-175 52-882 48-362 3.432 2.300 6 725 4-288 4-638 8-300 « a « 8000 " slaty " 9100 Derbyshire furnace coal " cannel " 42-830 47-000 Iron — Fuel. 335 And again the analyses, from Overman, of the ash of coal, may be quoted, as showing the constituents contained in the ashes derived from combustion : Sulphate of lime . .. 80-3 3' 8 14-2 1-7 0-0 100-0 3' 6 Lime 2-5 Silex 85-7 Oxide of iron 00 Alumina 8-2 1000 The following table of the heating power of various kind s of fuel, from Knapp's Chemical Technology, is not without interest ; in practice, however, only a portion of the absolute heating power is made available : Charcoal — Average Peat from Allen in Ireland- Upper Lower Pressed Peat charcoal — Essone Framont and Champ de Feu Coke— St. Etienne Besseges Rive de Gier Brown coal — Mean of 7 varieties Cannel coal, Wigan Cherry, Derbyshire Cannel, Glasgow " Lancashire Durham Gas coke, Paris — Anthracite Pennsylvania Mean of 5 varieties Authority. Berthier. Griffith. Berthier. Berthier. Berthier. Berthier. Berthier. Lbs. of water heated from 0^ to 100 « centig. by 1 lb. of fuel. 68-0 62-7 56-Q 280 50-7 58-9 65-6 64-3 68-9 50-3 64-1 61-6 56-4 53-2 71-6 50-3 69-1 67-4 336 Five Black Arts. In concluding the observations on fuel, we may notice that the various kinds of coal are classed by mineralogists as the bituminous, and stone or anthracite coal. The first class is chiefly employed for the purpose of smelting, though, since the introduction of the hot-blast, anthracite is coming largely into use both in this country and America. Mr. Crane of South Wales was the first who attempted the reduction of iron ores by anthracite, and Mr. Budd, at his works at Ystalyfera, followed successfully in the same path. To these two gentle- men the public are indebted for having surmounted the ob- stacles to the employment of this fuel for smelting iron. THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON. The processes for the manufacture of iron, as we have already pointed out, are of two distinct kinds, those of cemen- tation and those of smelting ; the product of the former is imperfectly malleable iron, that of the latter, cast-iron, or iron combined with more or less carbon. The first and older process is uncertain in its results, in- volves considerable expense, and as there are no efficient means of getting rid of the earthy impurities, it necessitates the employment of rich magnetic, specular, or haematite ores ; on account of these defects, it is now seldom employed. The ores to be reduced by this process were heated with charcoal in open furnaces, the fire being urged by a blast. The oxy- gen, water, and volatile substances were driven ofi", and the iron — carburized and partly fused — sunk to the bottom of the hearth. The blast was then directed downward, so as to play over the surface of the iron, and oxidized the greater part of the combined carbon ; during this operation the iron became tough and malleable, and fit for the hammer. The process of smelting in the blast furnace is now almost universally adopted for the reduction of iron ores, and for the cheapness and working qualities of the metal produced, as well as for the rapidity of the manufacture, it is decidedly superior to all others. Ores which contain much carbonic acid, water, or volatile matter, were at one time invariably subjected to a prepara- tory process of calcination, but since the introduction of the hot-blast, they are now frequently employed in the raw state. IRON.] [PlATE 1. Iron — ^Manufacture. 337 The calcination is sometimes effected in the open air, by stack- ing the ore with coal, setting fire to it, and allowing it to burn out ; but this method is liable to serious objection. It is impossible to keep the temperature uniform throughout the heap, and in consequence, while some portions are scarcely affected, others are fused together into large masses, which cannot be smelted without difficulty, even when broken up. Apart from the irregularity and uncertainty of the open air process, it appears to be more expensive than the calcination in kilns, when the admission of air is entirely under com- mand. These ovens or kilns are usually built of masonry, and are placed, if .possible, on a level with the charging platform of the smelting furnace. The argillaceous ores lose, during this process, 20 to 30 per cent. ; the carbonaceous, 30 to 40 per cent, of their weight. The blast furnace consists of a large mass of masonry, usually square at the base, from which the sides are carried up in a slightly slanting direction, so as to form, externally, a truncated pyramid. In the sides there are large arched re- cesses, in which are the openings into the furnace for the ad- mission of the blast, and for running out the metal and cin- der ; at the top of the furnace is a cylindrical erection of brickwork, called the tunnel-head, for protecting the workmen from the heated gases rising from the furnace, and having one or more doors through which the charges of ore, fuel, and flux are thrown into the furnace, In front, protected by a roof, is the casting-house, where the metal is run from the furnace into moulds. Fig. 2 is a vertical section, and fig. 3 a plan of one of the furnaces at the Dowlais Iron Works. Mr. Truran, in a re- cently published and elaborate work on iron, has figured and described it. He states that it is one of the largest class, 38 feet square at the base, diminishing upward 3 inches for every vertical foot, till it attains a height of 25 feet, where the square form ends with a moulded cap ; above this, the form is circular, diminishing in diameter at a similar rate, and finishing at top with a plain moulded cornice, as a support for the charging platform. In the section and plan A is the hearth, 8 feet high and 8 feet in diameter. BB the boshes, rising to the height of 15 feet, and 18 feet wide at their greatest diameter. From the top of the boshes the body of 22 388 Five Black Arts. the furnace contracts, in a barrel-shaped curve, so that at the charging platform D, at a height of 50 feet, it is only ten feet in diameter ; E is the tunnel-head, with doors of iron, to admit the charges of ore and fuel ; FFF the tujere-houses, arched over and spread outward, with the openings into the furnace for admitting the blast. G, the opening through which the iron is run from the furnace. The exterior is generally built of stone, and requires to be strongly bound with iron hoops, to prevent fracture from the expansion of the interior by the heat. The interior is lined with fire-brick set in fire-clay, a space of 2 or 3 inches being left between the two courses, to allow the expansion of the inner course. The hearth and boshes were usually constructed of refractory sandstone grit, or conglomerate, but fire-bricks are now chiefly used, and although they do not last so long, they are, in the end, more economical, and may be replaced whenever the furnace is blown out. The proper inclination of the boshes is a point of much importance, so that the materials, whilst smelting, may neither press too heavily downward, nor yet be so re- tarded as to adhere in a half-liquid state to the brickwork, and cool there, thus forming what are known by the name of scaffolds^ the removal of which is a source of great incon- venience. Another form of furnace is occasionally used for smelting, called the cupola, and built much more slightly than the blast furnace. Its form is circular, and from the boshes up- ward it is constructed of fire-brick, one, or sometimes two, courses in thickness. It is strongly bound together with wrought-iron hoops, and pillars of cast-iron, bolted at each end to imbedded rings of the same metal, rise through the foundation to the summit of the tuyere arches, giving con- siderable firmness and stability to the structure. Cheapness and facility of construction are much in its favor, and although objections have been made to the thinness of its sides, as per- mitting great loss of heat by radiation, it has met with very general adoption. In addition to the cupola furnace, another of the same character has of late years been introduced. It consists of a truncated cone, composed entirely of boiler plates riveted together. On the four opposite sides recesses are cut to ad- mit the tuyeres and the opening from the hearth into the Iron — Manufacture. 339 casting-house. The interior of the furnace is lined with fire- brick and fire-claj in the usual way, and this plate furnace is not only perfectly secure, as regards the expansion and contraction, but it is found to be economical and to answer every purpose in common with the large stone and iron-bound furnaces. The blast is usually created by a steam-engine ; a piston being attached to the extremity of the beam, working in a cylinder of large diameter, and forcing the air through proper valves into a large spherical reservoir, constructed of boiler- plate, whence its own elasticity causes it to flow in a regular unintermitting stream into the furnace. A cylindrical vessel, open at bottom, and immersed in a pit of water, has some- times been used to regulate the pressure of the blast, but the water evaporated is detrimental to the working of the furnace. The nozzles by which the blast is directed into the furnace are made of cast or wrought-iron, and sometimes a current of water is conveyed round their extremities to keep them cool. The number of blow-pipe nozzles to each furnace varies at different works ; the usual number is three, one for each of the tuyere houses, but sometimes six, eight, or twelve are employed ; it, however, appears questionable whether this is not objectionable, as the density and penetrating power of the blast is considerably diminished by this system of diffusion. This, however, is a point which can only be decided by prac- tice, and must be left to the judgment of the smelter. The usual pressure of the blast as it enters into the furnace is 3J lbs. per square inch, but in some cases it is as much as 5 lbs. per square inch. The communication between the ground and the tunnel- head is effected in various ways. In South Wales the fur- naces are usually built on a declivity, which affords ready means of access from behind ; sometimes an incline is con- structed, or other contrivances, such as the balance and pneu- matic lifts, are resorted to for the elevation of the materials. The dimensions and form of the blast furnace vary greatly, according to the fashion of the district, and the notions of the builder. Yet so much does the quantity and quality of the iron depend upon the size of the furnace and strength of the blast, that we may venture to assert that the production varies in the ratio of the cubical contents of the furnace, and the 340 Five Black Arts. volume of air admitted. Mr. Truran gives the following particulars of the Dowlais Foundry iron furnace : " The capacity is 275 cubic yards. It is blown with a blast of 5390 cubic feet of [cold] air per minute. The materials charged at the top consist of calcined argillaceous ore, coal, and limestone. The yield or consumption averages 48 cwts. of calcined ore, 50 cwts. of coal, and 17 cwts. of broken limestone, to 20 cwts. of crude iron obtained. The weekly make of iron is occasionally over 130 tons. The weekly product of cinder amounts to 250 tons. For the production of white iron for the forge, in furnaces of the same capacity as the foregoing, a larger volume of the blast is employed, along with a different burden of materials. The blast aver- ages 7370 feet per minute. The consumption of materials to one ton of iron averages 28 cwts. of calcined argillaceous ore, 10 cwts. of haematite, 10 cwts. of forge and finery cinders, 42 cwts. of coal, and 14 cwts. of limestone. With these materials the weekly produce amounts to 170 tons of crude iron, and 310 tons of cinder." The action which takes place in the blast furnace is as follows : The contents being raised to an intense heat by the combustion of the fuel, are brought into a softened state ; the limestone parts with its carbonic acid, and combining with the earthy ingredients of the ironstone, forms, with them, a liquid slag, whilst the separated metallic particles, descend- ing slowly through the furnace, are deoxidized and fused ; in their passage they imbibe a portion of carbon, and at last settle down in the hearth, from whence they are run off into pigs about every twelve hours ; the slag, being lighter, floats upon the surface of the liquid metal, and is constantly flow- ing out over a notch in the dam-plate, level with the top of the hearth. This slag indicates, by its appearance, the manner in which the furnace is working ; thus, if the cinder is liquid, nearly transparent, or of a light grayish color, and has a fracture like limestone, a favorable state of the furnace is indicated. Glints of blue, yellow, or green are caused by a portion of oxide of iron passing into the slag, and show that the furnace is working cold. The worst appearance of the cinder is, however, a deep brown or black color, the slag flowing in a broad hot rugged stream, and indicating that the Iron — Manufacture. 84t supply of coke is not sufficient to deoxidize the whole of the iron. During the process of smelting, the interior of the furnace requires to be very carefully watched. The stream of air constantly rushing in at the tuyeres, exerts a chilling agency on the melted matter directly opposed to it at its entrance. The consequence of this is the formation of rude perforated cones of indurated scoriae, stretching from either side hori- zontally into the furnace, each one having its base directly over the embouchure of a blast-pipe. When these project only to a certain extent, they are favorable to the working of the furnace, as the blast is thrown into the center, and prevented from passing up the sides and burning the brickwork. Some- times, however, when the furnace is driving cold and slow, these conduits of slag become so strong, and jut out so far as to meet in the middle, and thus cause a great obstruction to the entrance and ascent of the blast. When this happens, there is usually no remedy but to increase the burden, that is, to increase the quantity of mine or ore to the charge. This causes an intense heat, the furnace is said to work hot, and the conduits of slag drop off from the sides. This, however, is followed by bad as well as good consequences ; the brickwork is frequently melted, and, for a time, the iron produced is small in quantity and of the worst quaUty. To bring the furnace again to its proper state, the burden must be reduced ; the sides then become cool, new tubes of slag are formed, and the iron produced is good. At the end of every twelve hours, more or less, the furnace is tapped, that is to say, the aperture in the dam-stone, which, at the commencement, had been stopped up with a mixture of loam and sand, is re-opened, and the metal contained in the hearth allowed to flow out into moulds, made in the sand of the cast-house floor, thus forming a cast or sough of pigs. When this operation ceases, the dam -stone is again secured, and the work proceeds as before. In this manner a furnace is. kept continually going, night and day, and never ceases to work until repairs are necessary. Incessant action has even been thought necessary to the successful carrying on of an iron- work, but the example of perhaps the largest ironmaster in South Wales has shown, contrary to general practice in that district, that smelting may be discontinued for at least one 342 Five Black Arts. day in the week without any very serious derangement of operations. Thus far we have confined our observations to the produc- tion of iron by the cold-blast process ; we have now to con- sider the changes introduced by the employment of a heated blast. In the year 1828, Mr. J. Beaumont Neilson, a practical engineer at Glasgow, took out a patent for an " improved application of air to produce heat in fires, forges, and fur- naces, where bellows or. other blowing apparatus are re- quired." Mr. Neilson proposed to pass the current of air through suitably shaped vessels, where it was to be heated hefore it entered the furnace. In this simple substitution of a hot-blast, heated in a separate apparatus, for a cold-blast heated in the furnace itself, consists the whole invention. Like most other improvements, the progress of this was at first slow. Retarded by practical difficulties, which beset all new processes in their first use — stopped every now and then by the prejudices of custom and ignorance, which cling with inveterate tenacity to maxims of established practice, and re- pel indiscriminately innovations which improve and those which modify without improving — the invention was more than once on the point of being abandoned. A great part of the interest in its possible remuneration was transferred by the inventor to strangers, whose combined efforts and influ- ence were necessary to insure its success. But though thus tardy in its first steps and feeble in its early efforts, the hot-blast process is now. adopted at the greater number of the iron- works of Great Britain, and other parts of Europe and America. It is perhaps not generally known that practical men, pre- vious to Mr. Neilson's invention, universally believed that the colder the blast the better was the quality and quantity of the iron produced ; and this opinion appeared to be confirmed by the fact that the furnaces worked better in winter than in summer. Acting on such views, the ironmaster actually re- sorted to artificial means of refrigeration, to reduce the tem- perature of the blast before it entered the furnace. The fact of the improved action of the furnace in winter may per- haps be explained as a consequence of the diminished amount of the aqueous vapor contained in the atmosphere in cold weather ; and the opinion that the low temperature is the Iron — Manufacture. 343 cause of the alleged increase of production has been shown to be wrong bj the success of Mr. Neilson*s invention. This simple invention affects only the transit of the air from the blowing cylinder to the furnace, an oven or stove being interposed, through which, in appropriately shaped vessels, the air in conducted, and in which it is heated to 600° or 800° Fahr., or to any other temperature adapted for the pur- pose of smelting. The earliest and simplest plan by which the blast was heat- «d is shown in the sketch, fig. 4. In an oven of brickwork •000, with a fire fed by the door D, a large cylindrical tube cr receiver h A, made of riveted boiler-plate, about 3 feet in dameter, and 8 or 10 feet long, was placed. The pipes, B and S, attached to the receiver A A at the opposite ends, communicated with the blowing-cylinder and smel ting-furnace respectively. Lunular partitions pp p, projecting from op- posite sides on the interior of the receiver, caused the air passing through it to inpinge alternately first on one side and then on the other, in order that the temperature might be uniformly and effectively communicated from the metal to the blast. By this means a moderate current of air has been heated up to 300° or 400° Fahr.* ^ The figures of the transverse pipes vary considerably at different iron-works. Sometimes they rise up and form a large semicircular arch over the fire, 8 or 10 feet perpendicu- larly, and are then connected by an arch at the top ; some- times they cross the fire in the form of a pointed arch, vari- ously acuminate, or a single large tube is used, traversing the furnace in a long spiral direction. Their cross-section is as various as the form in which they are bent ; pipes of circular, flattened, elliptical, rectangular, heart-shaped, and other sectional forms have been employed, in order to increase the heating surface in proportion to the volume of the blast. All these forms of apparatus, although admirably adapted for heating the air, are liable to fracture, from the unequal ex- pansion of the metal. The more difficult the reduction of the ironstone the smaller must be the diameter of the hearth, so as to enable the blast to penetrate and circulate throughout the whole of its con- tents. In other conditions, where the ores are easily reduced, * Various modifications of this plan are in use. 844 Five Black Arts. hearths of 9 feet diameter have been introduced with great / advantage, and that without detriment to the quality of the/ iron produced. The diameter of the body of the furnace is! likewise regulated by the quality of the materials used, and i in cases where the coal is not bituminous, and the ore hard,/ a large diameter is found to work very irregularly ; and thef results have been, where furnaces have been erected 18 feeil diameter, to have them reduced to only 6 feet. / The height of the furnace is also regulated by the nature of the materials and the strength of the blast by which they are reduced. Sometimes, when the coal is soft and crushef by the superincumbent pressure, it is bound or compressed such an extent as to prevent the blast from penetrating the mass and causes an irregular working of the furnace ; and, mor( over, under these conditions, it makes what is called white silvery iron. The pressure of the blast requires also to be regulated to suit the materials, and, according to the workings at Coltness Works, the pressure is about 4 lbs. on the square inch, and as much as 10,000 cubic feet of air is discharged into the fur- nace per minute. The temperature of the blast is 594° Fahr., and the area of the heating surface of the apparatus for raising that temperature is 3500 square feet. The quantity of materials to make a ton of iron at these works varies in some relative proportion to their densities ; but the following may be taken as a fair average of the con- sumption of fuel, ore, limestone, etc. : Ton, Cwt. Ton. Cwt. 1 10 of raw coal. 4 of coal for heaters. 1 17 of calcined ironstone. 4 of •* for blowing engine. 12 of broken limestone. With the above charges the furnaces will produce from 168 to 170 tons per week, or 8700 tons of good iron per annum. With regard to the advantages and defects of the hot-blast process, much has been said on both sides, and the question does not appear by any means settled. It is asserted, on the one hand, that iron reduced by the hot-blast loses much of its strength, whilst, on the other, it is contended that the quality of the iron is richer, more fluid, and better adapted for general purposes than that produced by the cold-blast. The advocates of the hot-blast say that the process has in- moN. ] [ Plate 2. Fio 4. Iron — Manufacture. 345 creased the production and diminished the consumption of coal three or four fold ; and the upholders of the cold-blast maintain that the same effects may be produced, to almost the same extent, by a judicious proportion of the shape and size of the interior of the furnace, a denser blast, and greater attention on the part of the superintendent to the process. On these points it appears to us that although the hot-blast has enabled the manufacturer to smelt inferior ores, cinder- heaps, and other improper materials, and to send into the market an inferior description of iron ; this is no reason for its rejection, but rather an argument in its favor. It is true that when a strong rigid iron is required for such works as bridges or artillery, the somewhat uncertain character of hot- blast metal renders it objectionable, but this appears to be due rather to the carelessness or want of attention in the manu- facture than to the use of heated air or defects in the process. On the other hand, the hot-blast, by maintaining a higher temperature in the furnace, insures more eflfectually the com- bination of the carbon with the iron, and produces a fluid metal of good working qualities, generally superior to cold- blast iron, in cases where great strength is not required ; and, moreover, we have yet to learn why even the strongest and most rigid iron cannot be made by this process. The comparative strength of hot and cold-blast iron will, however, be given in another part of this article ; for the present it is sufficient to observe that the results of the experiments are not unfa- vorable to the hot-blast iron, either as regards its resistance to a transverse strain, or its power to resist impact. Dr. Clark, Professor of Chemistry in the University of Aberdeen, investigated the merits of the hot and cold-blast process in regard to the consumption of fuel, as early as 1834-5. He states, that after the hot-blast had been brought fully into operation at the Clyde Iron Works, *' during the first six months of the year 1833, one ton of cast-iron was made by means of 2 tons 5i cwt. of coal, which had not previously to be converted into coke ; adding to this 8 cwt. of coal for heating, we have 2 tons 13 J cwt. of coal re- quired to make one ton of iron. In 1829, when the cold- blast was in operation, 8 tons IJ cwt. of coal had to be used. This being almost exactly three times as much, we have from the change of the cold-blast to the hot, combined 346 Five Black Arts. ■with the use of coal instead of coke, three times as much now made from the same quantity of coal." Dr. Clark adds the following statistics of the Clyde Iron Works : " In 1829, the weekly produce of three furnaces, cold air and coke being used, was 110 tons 14 cwt. ; and the aver- age of coal to one ton of iron was 8 tons 1 cwt. 1 qr. " In 1830, the weekly produce of three furnaces, coke, and air at 300° Fahr. being used, was 162 tons 2 cwt. ; and the average of coal to one ton of iron was reduced to 5 tons 3 cwt. 1 qr. " In 1833, the weekly produce of four furnaces, raw coal, and air heated to 600° being used, was 245 tons; and the average of coal to one ton of iron was reduced to 2 tons 5 cwt. 1 qr. "On the whole then, the application of the hot-blast has caused the same fuel to reduce three times as much iron as before, and the same blast twice as much." This decrease in the amount of fuel and blast required for the reduction of iron. Dr. Clark accounts for by showing that in an ordinary furnace, " 2 cwt. of air a minute or 6 tons an hour are injected into the furnace." This he considers " a tremendous refrigeratory passing through the hottest part of the furnace," and to a great extent repressing the temper- ature which is necessary for the complete and rapid reduction of the iron. Mr. Truran considers that " writers on the hot-blast have greatly exaggerated the effects of this invention on the iron manufacture of this country. If we are to believe the ma- jority of them, the great reductions which have been effected within the last 25 years, in the quantities of fuel and flux to smelt a given weight of iron, and the large increase of make from the furnaces, is entirely owing to the use of this inven- tion. That the hot-blast, under certain circumstances, has also effected a saving in the consumption of fuel, and also augmented the weekly make,' we freely admit. But the saving of fuel, and increase of make due to its employment, is not generally one-fourth of the quantity which writers have asserted." Here Mr. Truran is at issue with Dr. Clark, and denies the cooling effect of a cold-blast. He attributes the effects of a heated-blast, " first to the caloric thrown into the furnace along with the blast, enabling a corresponding Iron — Manufacture. 347 quantity of coal to be withdrawn from the burden of mate- rials, with a proportionate reduction in the volume of blast, the effects of which are seen in an augmentation of the make, but do not result in the saving of fuel ; secondly, to the re- duced volume of blast and large proportion of caloric which it carries into the furnace, causing a diminished consumption of fuel in the upper parts of the furnace." Although we do not agree with all Mr. Truran's strictures on the hot-blast, the consumption of fuel in the throat is, nevertheless, a ques- tion well worthy of investigation. The combustion is of course largely increased by the narrow form of throat given to furnaces, which greatly increases the effect of the blast there, and accounts for the diflSculty of using those kinds of coal, in the raw state, which splinter if rapidly heated. If Mr. Truran's conjectures be correct, and it be found, that by increasing the area of the throat, raw coal and anthracite can be advantageously used with the cold -blast, the superi- ority of the hot-blast will not be so decidedly marked. This must, however, be determined by practice ; as at present, certainly, it is well known that the anthracite and splint coal can be used most effectively and economically with the hot- blast. We quote from one more authority on this subject. M. Dufrenoy, in his report to the Director-General of Mines in France, states, that upon heating the air proceeding from the blowing cylinder up to 612° Fahr., a considerable saving in fuel was effected by the use of raw coal instead of coke, and that this caused no derangement of the working of the fur- nace or deterioration of the iron produced. On the contrary, " the quality of the metal was improved, and a furnace which, when charged with coke, produced only about half No. 1 and half No. 2 pig-iron, gave a much larger proportion of No. 1 after the substitution of raw coal. Besides this, the quantity of limestone was considerably diminished." This last cir- cumstance, according to M. Dufrenoy, is due to the increased temperature of the furnace, which fuses more readily the earthy matter and other impurities in combination with the ores. To show the saving effected, M. Dufrenoy gives the quan- tities used in each of the experiments at the Clyde Iron Works : 848 Five Black Arts. In 1829, the combustion being produced by cold air, the consumption for one ton of iron was — Tons. Cwt. Tons. Cwt. Coal— for fusion, 3 tons of coke, corresponding with . 6 13 " for blowing engine . 1 Total coal used . . . • . 7 13 Limestone .... lOJ In 1831, the furnaces being blown with air heated to 450° Fahr. — Tons. Cwt. Tons. Cwt. Coal — for fusion, 1 ton 18 cwt. coke, corresponding with . 4 6 '' for the hot air apparatus . 5 " for blowing engine . 7 Total coal used .... 4 18 Limestone .... 09 In July, 1833, the temperature of the blast being raised to 612° Fahr., and the fusion effected by raw coal, the consumption per ton of iron was — Ton«. Cwt. Tons. Cwt. Coal— for fusion . . . 2 " for the hot air apparatus . 8 " for blowing engine . 11 Total coal used .... 2 19 Limestone .... 07 Since that time, the employment of a blast heated to 800° or 900° has still further increased the weekly production and saving of fuel. The Waste Gases. — From the description that we have given of the smelting operations, it is evident that a large volume of gaseous products are constantly escaping at the top of the blast-furnace. These are found to contain a large proportion of unconsumed inflammable gas, capable of de- veloping heat, and in countries where fuel is expensive, it is of great importance that these should be applied to useful purposes, and not be wasted in the atmosphere. Various con- trivances have been adopted for this purpose, and in some places, particularly on the Contirient, they have been utilized with great economy. To enable the waste gases to be collected and applied to raising steam, heating hot-blast stoves, etc., without detri- ment to the working of the blast-furnace, it is necessary to withdraw them at an elevation where they have completed their work, yet at such a distance from the mouth of the fur- Iron — Manufacture. 349 # nace that they may be extracted in a dry state, and before they come into contact with the atmosphere, so as to cause combustion. This may be effected, either by increasing the height of the blast-furnace, withdrawing a portion of the gases through apertures in the side, or, if the furnace be not too large, by closing the top of the furnace with a movable door. The Conversion of Crude into Malleable Iron, The conversion of the carburized crude iron, obtained from the blast-furnace, into malleable or wrought iron is effected by several operations of an oxidizing character, in which it is sought to separate, in the gaseous state, the carbon con- tained in the iron, by combining it with oxygen, whilst the other metals alloyed with the iron and the phosphorus pass into the slag. In reference to subsequent operations, the iron produced in the smelting furnace may be be divided into two kinds — that reduced by charcoal and that reduced by coke or raw coal. When charcoal iron has to be converted by charcoal, as in Sweden, it is decarburized in the charcoal refinery, with or without an intervening process. Where coal can be ob- tained, however, it is now usually converted by the process of puddling. Pig-iron produced by coke or coal is converted into malleable iron either by decarburation in the refinery or oxidizing hearth, and subsequent puddling, or it is con- verted at once in the puddling furnace by the process of boiling, which is equally effective, and is now more generally practiced. This last process, as the one most generally adopted in Great Britain, deserves a special notice, and we are fortunate in having before us the particulars of the manner in which it is conducted by Messrs. Rushton and Eckersley of Bolton. This establishment is probably one of the most modern and complete of the kind in the kingdom ; it is one that has spared no expense in the application of useful inventions, and has kept pace with every improvement that has taken place in the manufacture of bar and plate iron for the last fifteen years. The machinery and appliances at these works consist of— 350 Five Black Arts. x 6 Steam engines, of 180 total nominal HP. 2 Five-ton and 2 fifty-cwt. steam hammers. 3 Helve hammers.^ 1 Set of puddled iron rolls. 1 Set of boiler plate rolls. 1 Merchant train and balling mill. 16 Puddling fnrnaces. 14 Balling and scrap furnaces. And other machinery, such as plate and bar shears, lathes, etc. At Messrs. Rushton and Eckersley's works, a small pro- portion of the Cumberland haematite ore is mixed with the crude pig-iron to be converted, as it is found to assist in the process of boiling in the puddling furnace, and in other re- spects to facilitate the process and improve the quality of the iron. The crude pig-iron is assorted according to the degree and uniformity of its carburization, and classed as Nos. 1, 2, 3, etc. ; No. 1 being most highly carburizod, No. 2 less so, and so on to No. 4, which contains much more oxygen than the others. The carbon combined with iron gives it fusibility and fluidity, but deprives it of ductility. To render it malleable and capable of being welded, it must be deprived as far as possible of all the extraneous substances which have been mixed with it in the blast-furnace, more especially of the car- bon. Prima facie, therefore, it would appear that the highly carburized pig-iron is the most suitable for casting, whilst that containing least carbon is best adapted for conversion into malleable iron ; hence, in the trade, the crude iron is divided into foundry and forge pigs. The pigs, however, in which carbon most predominates, and which, as a rule, have been most effectually separated from all other impurities during the process of smelting, are in many respects preferable for the manufacture of wrought iron ; up to this time, however, great practical difficulties have attended the decarburization of iron containing so much carbon, and the white or forge iron is almost always preferred, measures having been taken for depriving it of the metals and earthy impurities not separated in the blast-furnace. With regard to the process of refining, we may observe that the crude iron is melted in a hollow fire, and partially decarburized by the action of a blast of air forced over its surface by a fan or blowing engine. The carbon having a greater affinity for the oxygen than for the iron, combines Iron — Manufacture. 351 "with it, and passes off as gaseous carbonic oxide or carbonic acid. During this process, a portion of the silicum, etc., is fused out and separated from the iron. It is obvious from the above that the iron to be refined, being placed in contact with fuel at a high temperature, is liable to be deteriorated by the admixture of sulphur and other impurities of the fuel ; and as the iron is only partially exposed to the action of the blast, the operation is necessarily, under these circumstances, imperfect. From the refinery the metal is run out into large moulds, and is then broken up into what is technically dis- tinguished as ''•plate-metal.^^ The process of puddling succeeds that of refining ; and in this operation the reverberatory furnace is employed, with the fire separated by a partition or bridge from the hearth, on which is placed the metal to be puddled. By this ar- rangement the flame is conducted over the surface of the metal, creating an intense heat, though the deleterious por- tions of the fuel cannot mix with the iron. In this furnace the iron is kept in a state of fusion, whilst the workman, called the " puddler," by means of a rake or rabble, agitates the metal so as to expose, as far as he is able, the whole of the charge to the action of the oxygen passing over it from the fire. By this means the carbon is oxidized, and the metal is gradually reduced to a tough, pasty condition, and subse- quently to a granular form, somewhat resembling heaps of boiled rice with the grains greatly enlarged. In this condi- tion of the furnace the cinder or earthy impurities yield to the intense heat, and flow off from the mass over the bottom in a highly fluid state. The iron at this stage is comparatively pure, and quickly becomes capable of agglutination ; the puddler then collects the metallic granules or particles with his rabble, and rolls them together, backward and forward, over the furnace bot- tom, into balls of convenient dimensions (about the size of thirteen-inch shells), when he removes them from the furnace to be subjected to the action of the hammer or mechanical pressure necessary to give to the iron homogeneity and fiber. These processes of refining and puddling have universally been employed till recently ; but improvements have rendered it simpler, and the refining process is now very generally abolished. 352 Five Black Arts. Shortly after the employment of the puddling process, it was found advantageous to mix a portion of crude iron with the refined plate metal, the expense of the process of refin- ing being saved upon the iron used in the crude state ; and trusting to the decarburizing effects of the puddling furnace, it was found that the refining process might be altogether dis- pensed with, if the crude iron containing a proportion of ox- ygen and very little carbon was employed. In this single process it is to be observed, that as all the carbon has to be got rid of in the puddling furnace, the evolution of gas is much more violent, the fluid iron boiling and bubbling ener- getically during the period of its disengagement, and hence the operation has acquired the popular name of the " boiling" process. In this operation the pig-iron when melted is more fluid, on account of containing a greater proportion of carbon than the metal from the refinery, and requires more labor in stir- ring it about and submitting it to the action of the current of air ; the process, moreover, is attended by a greater waste of iron than puddling either plate, or crude iron and plate mixed, but not so great a loss as in the two operations of re- fining and puddling. It must, however, be admitted that the superior fluidity of the iron in the boiling process has a more injurious action on the furnace. Notwithstanding these ob- jections, the system of boiling without the intermediate pro- cess of refining has been gaining ground for the last ten years, and in many places has entirely superseded the use of the refinery ; recent events have therefore led to the conclusion, that in a short time the refining process will have become a thing of the past. Numerous attempts have been made to secure a more sci- entific and perfect decarburization of the crude iron, but without success. One improvement, however, recently pat- ented by Mr. James Nasmyth, gives promise of making the boiling process as nearly perfect as we may hope to see it. It has been in use for two years at the Bolton Iron Works, and from its constant employment in the puddling furnaces of that establishment, it has given direct proof of its utility, and is gradually extending itself among the large manufac- turers as its advantages become known. The invention consists of the introduction of a small quan- Iron — Manufacture. 353 tity of steam at about 5 lbs. pressure per square inch, into the molten metal as soon as it is fused, as the oxygen of the steam has at that high temperature a greater affinity for car- bon than for the hydrogen with which it is combined or for the iron, the carbon is rapidly oxidized off. The liberated hydrogen has no affinity for the iron, but unites with sulphur, phosphorus, arsenic, etc. — substances very injurious to the quality of the iron, if present even in very minute quantities, and yet frequently found in the ores and fuel. The mode of operating is as follows : The steam is con- veyed from the boiler to a vertical pipe fixed near the fur- nace door, having at its lower end a small tap or syphon, to let off the condensed steam, and prevent its being blown into the furnace. A cock with several jointed pieces of pipe are fastened to the flange of the vertical pipe, so as to form, as it were, jointed bracket pipes, somewhat similar to those of gas-pipes, which allow free motion in every direction. This apparatus is introduced into the furnace, immediately the iron is melted, the puddler moving it slowly about in the molten iron, while the steam pours upon it through the bent end of 'he tube. In the course of from five to eight minutes the mass begins to thicken, the steam pipe is withdrawn, and the operation finished in the ordinary way with the common iron rabble. The time saved by this process in every operation or heat^ as it is technically called, averages from ten to fifteen minutes, and that during the hottest and most laborious part of the operation. By means of this apparatus, the highly carburized pig-iron, which is the most free from impurities, is rendered malleable in one furnace operation, without the deteriorating adjuncts of the refining and puddling process as ordinarily practiced ; in this operation no deleterious substance can combine with the iron, whilst in the refinery process the mixture of the fuel and metal is liable to deteriorate the latter with sulphur, sili- cura, etc. This new process, it is affirmed, has a beneficial effect in purifying the iron with greater economy and rapid- ity than any other process with which we are acquainted. Irrespective of the improvements just described, there is another which is extensively used on the Continent, denom- inated the Silesian gas furnace. The new Silesian furnaces which are used in the manufacture of iron in that country, 23 854 Five Black Arts. in place of our reverberatory air furnaces, and are said, on good authority, to be a very great improvement, not only in regard to the entire prevention of smoke and the economy of fuel, but also in simplifying the wrought-iron manufacture, and enabling a less skilled class of workmen to manage the furnaces. The chief feature is the gas generator, which may be de- scribed as a close brick chamber with an opening at the bot- tom for the admission of air from a fan, by means of which the gases are driven out of the chamber into the furnace amongst the iron to be heated. At the point where the gases enter the furnace, a series of tuyeres are provided for the ad- mission of air from the same fan. The pipes that convey the air and the gas from the retort to the tuyeres are both pro- vided with valves in order that the attendant may modify the quantity from either source, so as to produce any intensity of flame the work may require, and also to produce perfect com- bustion, thus placing the entire action of the furnace under complete control. It is about eleven years since these fur- naces were first introduced, and notwithstanding the prejudices that were naturally raised against them, they are said to be now extensively adopted in the Silesian district, and in great favor with both the master and the workmen. In this description of furnace there appear to be three great advantages over the air furnace — Is^. The entire absence of smoke in consequence of com- plete combustion. • 2(i. The saving of upward of 33 per cent, in fuel, from the whole of the gaseous products being made available, and there being no necessity for the flame to pass up the chimney to produce draught, as in the case of the reverberatory fur- nace, which requires an inordinate supply of fuel as compared with what is wanted to work the fan. M, The absolute control the attendant has over the fur- nace, as regards the temperature and the simplicity with which it can be worked. Its operations in this respect are, according to those who have seen it at work, so perfect as to be as precise in its action as a machine. An apparently new light has been thrown on the conversion of iron, by a paper read by Mr. H. Bessemer at the meeting of the British Association for the advancement of science, Iron — Manufacture. 355 held at Cheltenham in August, 1856. In this paper the author announces to the world the discovery of an entirely new system of operations for the manufacture of malleable iron and steel. The crude metal is converted, by one simple process, directly as it comes from the blast-furnace. We should detract from its clearness did we attempt to curtail the lucid description in which Mr. Bessemer has recommended his inven- tion to the manufacturers and the public ; we therefore give the account in his own words : Mr. Bessemer states that " for the last two years his atten- tion has been almost exclusively directed to the manufacture of malleable iron and steel, in which, however, he had made but little progress until within the last eight or nine months. The constant pulling down and rebuilding of furnaces, and the toil of daily experiments .with large charges of iron, had begun to exhaust his patience, but the numerous observations he had made during this very unpromising period, all tended to confirm an entirely new view of the subject, which at that time forced itself upon his attention, viz. — that he could pro- duce a much more intense heat, without any furnace or fuel, than could be obtained by either of the modifications he had uscil, and consequently, that he should not only avoid the injurious action of mineral fuel on the iron under operation, but that he would, at the same time, avoid also the expense of the fuel. Some preliminary trials were made on from 10 lbs. to 20 lbs., of iron, and although the process was fraught with considerable difiiculty, it exhibited such unmis- takable signs of success, as to induce him at once to put up an apparatus capable of converting about 7 cwt. of crude pig-iron into malleable iron in 30 minutes. With such masses of metal to operate on, the difiiculties which beset the small laboratory experiments of 10 lbs. entirely disappeared. On this new field of inquiry, he set out with the assumption that crude iron contains about 5 per cent, of carbon ; that carbon cannot exist at a white heat in the presence of oxygen with- out uniting therewith, and producing combustion ; that such combustion would proceed with a rapidity dependent on the amount of surface of carbon exposed ; ■ and, lastly, that the temperature which the metal would acquire would also be de- pendent on the rapidity with which the oxygen and carbon were made to combine, and consequently, that it was only neces- 856 Five Black Arts. sarj to bring the oxygen and carbon together in such a man- ner that a vast surface should be exposed to their mutual action, in order to produce a temperature hitherto unattaina- ble in our largest furnaces. With a view of testing practi- cally this theory, he constructed a cylindrical vessel of three feet in diameter, and five feet in height, somewhat like an ordinary cupola furnace, the interior of which was lined with fire-bricks, and at about two inches from the bottom of it he inserted five tuyere pipes, the nozzles of which were formed of well-burnt fire clay, the orifice of each tuyere being about three-eighths of an inch in diameter ; they were put into the brick lining from the outside, so as to admit of their removal and renewal in a few minutes, when they were worn out. At one side of the vessel, about half way up from the bottom, there was a hole made for running in the crude metal, and in the opposite side was a tap-hole, stopped with loam, by means of which the iron was run out at the end of the pro- cess. In practice, this converting vessel may be made of any convenient size, but he prefers that it should not hold less than one or more than five tons of fluid iron at each charge. The vessel should be placed so near to the blast-furnace as to allow the iron to flow along a gutter into it ; a small blast- cylinder is required, capable of compressing air to about 8 lbs. or 10 lbs. per square inch. A communication having been made between it and the tuyeres before mentioned, the converting vessel will be in a condition to commence work; it will, however, on the occasion of its first being used,, after relining with fire-bricks, be necessary to make a fire in the interior with a few baskets of coke, so as to dry the brick- work and heat up the vessel for the first operation, after which the fire is to be carefully raked out at the tapping hole, which is again to be made good with loam. The vessel will then be in readiness to commence work, and may be so con- tinued until the brick lining, in the course of time, is worn away, and a new lining is required. The tuyeres, as before stated, were situated nearly close to the bottom of the vessel, the fluid metal therefore rose some eighteen inches or two feet above them. It was therefore necessary, in order to pre- vent the metal from entering the tuyere holes, to turn on the blast before allowing the fluid crude iron to run into the ves- sel from the blast-furnace. This having been done, and the Iron — Manufacture. 357 fluid iron run in, a rapid boiling up of the metal was heard going on within the vessel, the iron being tossed violently about, and dashed from side to side, shaking the vessel by the force with which it moved. Flame, accompanied by a few bright sparks, immediately issued from the throat of the converting vessel. This state of things lasted for about fif- teen or twenty minutes, during which time the oxygen in the atmospheric air combined with the carbon contained in the iron, producing carbonic acid gas, and at the same time evolv- ing a powerful heat. Now as this heat is generated in the interior of, and is diflfusive in innumerable fiery bubbles throughout the entire mass, the vessel absorbs the greater part of it, and its temperature becomes immensely increased, and by the expiration of the fifteen or twenty minutes before named, that part of the carbon which appears mechanically mixed and diffused through the crude iron has been entirely consumed. The temperature, however, is so high that the chemically combined carbon now begins to separate from the metal, as is at once indicated by an immense increase in the volume of flame rushing out of the throat of the vessel. The metal in the vessel now rises several inches above its natural level, and a light frothy slag makes its appearance, and is thrown out in large foam-like masses. This violent eruption of cinder generally lasts about five or six minutes, when all further appearance of it ceases, a steady and powerful flame replacing the shower of sparks and cinders which always ac- companies the boil. The rapid union of carbon and oxygen which thus takes place, adds still further to the temperature of the metal, while the diminished quantity of carbon present allows a part of the oxygen to combine with the iron which undergoes a combustion, and is converted into an oxide. At the excessive temperature that the metal has now acquired, the oxide, as soon as formed, undergoes fusion, and forms a powerful solvent of those earthy bases that are associated with the iron. The violent ebullition which is going on mixes most intimately the scoriae and metal, every part of which is thus brought into contact with the fluid oxide, which will thus wash and cleanse the metal most thoroughly from the silica and other earthy bases, which are combined with the crude iron, while the sulphur and other volatile matters, which cling so tenaciously to iron at ordinary temperatures, are driven off, 858 Five Black Arts. the sulphur combining with the oxygen, and forms sulphuric acid gas. The loss in weight of crude iron during its conver- sion into an ingot of malleable iron, was found, on a mean of four experiments, to be 12J per cent., to which will have to be added the loss of metal in the finishing rolls. This will make the entire loss probably not less than 18 per cent, instead of 28 per cent., which is the loss on the present system. A large portion of this metal is, however, recoverable by treating with carbonaceous gases the rich oxides thrown out of the furnace during the boil. These slags are found to contain innumerable small grains of metallic iron, which are mechanically held in suspension in the slags, and may be easily recovered. It has already been stated that after the boil has taken place, a steady and powerful flame succeeds, which continues without any change for about ten minutes, when it rapidly falls off. As soon as this diminution is apparent, the workman knows that the process is completed, and that the crude iron has been converted into pure malleable iron, which he will form into ingots of any suitable size and shape by simply opening the tap-hole of the converting vessel, and allowing the fluid mal- leable iron to flow into the iron ingot moulds placed there to receive it. The masses of iron thus formed will be perfectly free from any admixture of cinder oxide, or other extraneous matters, and will be far more pure, and in a forwarder state of manufacture, than a pile formed of ordinary puddle bars. And thus, by a single process, requiring no manipulation or particular skill, and with only one workman, from three to five tons of crude iron passes into the condition of several piles of malleable iron, in from thirty to thirty-five minutes, with the expenditure of about one-third part the blast now used in a finery furnace with an equal charge of iron, and with the consumption of no other fuel than is contained in the crude iron. To those who are best acquainted with the nature of fluid iron it may be a matter of surprise that a blast of cold air forced into melted crude iron is capable of raising its temperature to such a degree as to retain it in a perfect state of fluidity, after it has lost all its carbon, and is in the condition of malleable iron, which, in the highest heat of our forges, only becomes a pasty mass. But such is the excessive tem- perature that may be arrived at, with a properly shaped con- verting vessel, and a judicious distribution of the blast, that Iron — Manufacture. 359 not only may the fluidity of the metal be retained, but so much surplus heat can be created as to remelt the crop ends, ingot, runners, and other scrap, that is made throughout the process, and thus bring them, without labor or fuel, into in- gots of a quality equal to the rest of the charge of new metal. For this purpose a small arched chamber is formed immediately over the throat of the converting vessel, somewhat like the tunnel-head of the blast-furnace. This chamber has two or more openings in the side of it, and its floor is made to slope downward to the throat. As soon as a charge of fluid malleable iron has been drawn off from the converting vessel, the work- man will take the scrap intended to be worked into the next charge, and proceed to introduce the several small pieces into the small chamber, piling them up round the opening of the throat. When this is done, he will run in his charge of crude metal, and again commence the process. By the time the boil commences, the bar ends or other scrap will have ac- quired a white heat, and by the time it is over, most of them will have melted and run down into the charge. Any pieces, however, that remain, may then be pushed in by the work- man, and by the time the process is completed, they will all be melted and intimately combined with the rest of the charge ; so that all scrap iron, whether cast or malleable, may thus be used up without any loss or expense. As an exam- ple of the power that iron has of generating heat in this pro- cess, Mr. Bessemer mentions that when trying how small a set of tuyeres could be used, the size he had chosen proved too small, and after blowing into the metal for one hour and three-quarters, he could not get up heat enough with them to bring on the boil. The experiment was therefore dis- continued, during which time two-thirds of the metal solidi- fied, and the rest was run off. A larger set of tuyere pipes were then put in, and a fresh charge of fluid iron run into the vessel, which had the effect of entirely remelting the for- mer charge ; and when the whole was tapped out it exhibited, as usual, that intense and dazzling brightness peculiar to the electric light. " To persons "conversant with the manufacture of iron, it will be at once apparent that the ingots of malleable metal which are produced by this process, will have no hard or steely parts, such as are found in puddled iron, requiring a great amount 360 Five Black Arts. of rolling to blend them with the general mass, nor will such ingots require an excess of rolling to expel the cinder from the interior of the mass, since none can exist in the ingot, which is pure and perfectly homogeneous throughout, and hence requires only as much rolling as is necessary for the development of fiber; it therefore follows that instead of forming a merchant bar or rail by the union of a number of separate pieces welded together, it will be far more simple and less expensive, to make several bars or rails from a single ingot ; doubtless this would have been done long ago had not the whole process been limited by the size of the ball which the puddler could make. " The facility which the new process affords, of making large masses, will enable the manufacturer to produce bars that, on the old mode of working, it was impossible to obtain ; while, at the same time, it admits of the use of some power- ful machinery, whereby a great deal of labor will be saved, and the process be greatly expedited. Mr. Bessemer merely mentions this in passing, without entering into details, as the patents he has obtained for improvements in this branch of the manufacture are not yet specified. He next points out the perfectly homogeneous character of cast-steel — its free- dom from sand cracks and flaws — and its greater cohesive force and elasticity, compared with the blister steel from which it is made, qualities which it derives solely from its fusion and formation into ingots — all of which properties malleable iron acquires in like manner, by its fusion' and for- mation into ingots in the new process'. Nor must it be for- gotten that no amount of rolling will give to blistered steel (although formed of rolled bars) the same homogeneous char- acter that cast-steel acquires, by a mere extension of the in- got to some ten or twelve times its original length. " One of the most important facts connected with the new system of manufacturing malleable iron is, that all the iron so produced will be of the quality known as charcoal iron, not that any charcoal is used in its manufacture, but because the whole of the processes following the smelting of it, are conducted entirely without contact with, or the use of any mineral fuel ; the iron resulting therefrom will, in consequence, be perfectly free from those injurious properties which that description of fuel never fails to impart to iron that is brought IRON. ] [ Pl^TE 3. IRON. ] [ Plate 4. Iron — Manufacture. 361 under its influence. At the same time, this system of manu- facturing malleable iron offers extraordinary facility for mak- ing large shafts, cranks, and other heavy masses ; it will be obvious that any weight of metal that can be founded in or- dinary cast-iron, by the means at present at our disposal, may also be founded in molten malleable iron, and be wrought into the forms and shapes required, provided that we increase the size and power of our machinery to the extent necessary to deal with such large masses of metal. A few minutes' re- flection will show the great anomaly presented by the scale on which the processes of iron-making are at present carried on. The little furnaces originally used for smelting ore have, from time to time, increased in size, until they have assumed colossal proportions, and are made to operate on 200 or 300 tons of material at a time, giving out 10 tons of fluid metal at a single run. The manufacturer has thus gone on increas- ing the size of his smelting furnaces, adapting to their use the blast apparatus of the requisite proportions, and has by this means lessened the cost of production, in every way in- suring a cheapness and uniformity of production, that could never have been secured by a multiplicity of small furnaces. While the manufacturer has shown himself fully alive to these advantages, he has still been under the necessity of leaving the succeeding operations to be carried out on a scale wholly at variance with the principles he has found so advantageous in the smelting department. It is true that, hitherto, no better method was known than the puddling process, in which from 4 cwt. to 5 cwt. of iron is all that can be operated upon at a time, and even this small quantity is divided into home- opathic doses of 70 lbs. or 80 lbs., each of which is moulded and fashioned by human labor, carefully watched and tended in the furnace, and removed therefrom, one at a time, to be carefully manipulated and squeezed into form. The vast ex- tent of the manufacture, and the gigantic scale on which the early stages of its progress is conducted, it is astonishing that no effort should have been made to raise the after processes somewhat nearer to a level commensurate with the preceding ones, and thus rescue the trade from the trammels which have so long surrounded it. Mr. Bessemer then adverts to another important feature of the new process, the produc- tion of what he calls semi-steel. At the stage of the pro- 362 Five Black Arts. cess immediately following the boil, the whole of the crude iron has passed into the condition of cast-steel of ordinary quality ; by the continuation of the process the steel so pro- duced gradually loses its small remaining portion of carbon, and passes successively from hard to soft steel, and from softened steel to steely iron, and eventually to very soft iron ; hence, at a certain period of the process, any quality may be obtained ; there is one in particular, which, by way of distinction, he calls semi-steel, being in hardness about midway between or- dinary cast-steel and soft malleable iron*. This metal possess- es the advantage of much greater tensile strength than soft iron ; it is also more elastic, and does not readily take a per- manent set, while it is much harder, and is not worn or in- dented so easily as soft iron. At the same time it is not so brittle or hard to work as ordinary cast-steel. These quali- ties render it eminently well adapted to purposes where light- ness and strength are especially required, or where there is much wear, as in the case of railway bars, which, from their softness and lamellar texture, soon become destroyed. The cost of semi-steel will be a fraction less than iron, because the loss of metal that takes place by oxidation in the convert- ing vessel is about 2J per cent, less than it is with iron, but as it is a little more difficult to roll, its cost per ton may fairly be considered to be the same as iron, but as its tensile strength is some thirty or forty per cent, greater than bar iron, it follows that for most purposes a much less weight of metal may be used, so that taken in that way the semi-steel will form a much cheaper metal than any we are at present acquainted with. " In conclusion, Mr. Bessemer observes that the facts he has discovered have not been elicited by mere laboratory ex- periments, but have been the result of operations on a scale nearly twice as great as is pursued in the largest iron-works, the experimental apparatus converting 7 cwt. in thirty min- utes, while the ordinary puddling furnace makes only 4 J cwt. in two hours, which is made into six separate balls ; while the ingots or blooms are smooth, even prisms ten inches square by thirty inches in length, weighing about as much as ten ordinary puddle balls." Iron — Machinery of Manufacture. 363 MACHINERY OF THE MANUFACTURE. The mechanical operations connected with the manufacture of wrought iron consist of shingling, hammering, rolling, etc., to which we may add the forging of " wses," that is, the forging of those peculiar forms so extensively in demand for steam-engines, railway carriages, and other works, which has lately become a large and important branch of trade. In tracing the processes in the manufacture of wrought iron bars and plat-es, it will not be necessary to enlarge on those practices which have been superseded by more modern and improved machinery. Suffice it then to observe, that formerly the puddled balls were shingled or fashioned into oblong slabs or blooms by the blows of a heavy forge hammer ; during this operation, the scoriae and impurities which adhered to the balls were separated from the blooms by the force of im- pact, and then by a series of blows the iron was rendered malleable, dense, and compact. The blooms were then passed through a series of grooved iron rollers, which reduced them to the form of long, slender iron bars. These were cut up and piled regularly together or fagotted, and brought to a welding heat in the heating or balling furnace, when they were again passed several times through grooved rollers, and by this latter process were made into bars or plates ready for the shears. In order to arrive at a clear conception of the mechanical operations employed in the manufacture of iron, it will be nec- essary to describe more at length the processes as at pres- ent practiced, with the improved and powerful machinery now employed ; and as much depends upon the application of the motive power, the steam-engine claims the first notice. Un- til of late years, the vertical steam-engine was invariably used for giving motion to the forge hammer and rolling mill, which were placed on one side of the fly-wheel and the crank on the other ; but the high-pressure, non-condensing engine is found to be decidedly preferable, as the waste heat pass- ing off with the products of combustion from the puddling and heating furnaces, is quite sufficient to raise the steam for working the rolls and one of Brown's bloom queezers, as shown by fig. 5. 364 Five Black Akts. In this arrangement the cylinder A (figs. 5, 6, 7) is placed horizontally, and is supplied with steam from boilers near the puddhng furnaces. Tne piston and slides B, and connecting rod C, give motion to the crank shaft D, on which is fixed a heavy fly-wheel E. The puddling rolls F are driven direct from the end of the fly-wheel shaft, and the bloom squeezers H, by a train of spur wheels GG. Under the lower rolls of the squeezers a Jacob's ladder or elevator I is fixed, for raising the block which has been deprived of its impurities, and reduced to an oblong shape by passing between the rollers of the squeezer. The block, on leaving the rollers, is carried in front of one of the projecting divisions of the ladder and thrown on to the platform in front of the rolls ; the workman then seizes it with a pair of tongs and forces it into the largest groove in the rolls ; it is then passed in succession through the other grooves till it attains the required form of the bar. The drawings of Brown's bloom squeezers, figs. 8, 9, and 10, will sufficiently explain how the heated ball of puddled iron, K, thrown on the top, is gradually compressed between the revolving rollers as it descends and at last emerges at the bottom, where it is thrown on to the movable " Jacob's ladder," by which it is elevated to the rolls, as already de- scribed. This machine eSects a considerable saving of time ; •will do the work of 12 or 14 furnaces, and may be kept constantly going as a feeder to one or two pairs of rolls. There are two distinct forms of this machine, one as shown in fig. 8, where the bloom receives only two compressions ; and the other, which is much more effective, where it is squeezed four times before it leaves the rolls and falls upon the Jacob's ladder, as exhibited in figs. 9 and 10. There are two other machines for preparing the blooms by compression. One is a table firmly imbedded in masonry, as shown at AA, in fig. 11, with a ledge rising up from it to a height of about two feet, so as to form an open box. Within this is a revolving box C, of a similar character, much smaller than the last and placed eccentrically in regard to it. The ball or bloom D is placed between the innermost revolving box C and the outer case AA, where the space between them is greatest, and is carried round till it emerges at E, com- pressed and fit for the rolls. Another instrument, fig. 12, used for the same purpose, acts IRON. ] [ Plate 5. IRON. ] [ Plate 6. A>//. rio 13 Iron — Machinery of Manufacture. 365 as a pair of pliers, and squeezes the iron between two flat blades AA. This machine is called the Alligator, and is probably more effective than the horizontal machine, but it requires an attendant to keep the bloom rolling about under the jaws AA, and is, in other respects, inferior to Brown's patent squeezer. We have stated that the horizontal, non-condensing steam- engine, from its compact form and convenience of handling, is admirably adapted for giving motion to the machinery of iron-works. For this object, it is superior to the beam-engine, as its speed can be regulated with the greatest nicety, by opening or shutting the valve, so as to suit all the require- ments of the manufacture, under the varied conditions of the pressure of the steam, and the power required for rolling heavy plates and bars, or those of a lighter description. It is also much cheaper in its original cost, and all its parts being fixed upon a large bed-plate, require a comparatively small amount of masonry to render it solid and secure. In regard to the manufacture of the rollers for the puddling, boiler-plate, and merchant train, the greatest care must be observed in the selection of the iron and the mode of casting. In Staffordshire there are roller-makers, but in general the manufacturer casts his own, and as much depends upon the metal, the strongest qualities are carefully selected and mixed with Welsh No. 1 or No. 2, and Staffordshire No. 2. This latter description of iron, when duly prepared, exhibits great tenacity, and is well adapted, either in the first or second melting, for such a purpose. In casting, the moulds are pre- pared in loam, and when dry are sunk vertically into the pit to a depth of about five feet below the floor. The moulding box is surrounded by sand firmly consolidated by beaters, and a second mould or head is placed above it, which receives an additional quantity of iron to supply the space left by shrink- ing, and keep the roll under pressure until it solidifies, and thus secures a great uniformity and density in the roller. The metal is run into the mould direct from the air furnace by chan- nels cut in the sand, and immediately the mould is filled, the w^orkman agitates the metal with a rod, in order to consolidate the mass and get rid of any air or gas which may be confined in the metal. This stirring with iron rods is continued till the metal cools to a semi-fluid state, when it is covered up and al- 366 Five Black Arts. lowed slowly to cool and crystallize. This slow rate of cooling is necessary to favor a uniform degree of contraction, as the exte- rior closes up like a series of hoops round the core of the cast- ing, which is always the most porous and the last to cool. In every casting of this kind it is essential to avoid unequal con- traction, and this cannot be accomplished unless time is given for the arrangement of the particles by a slow process of crys- tallization. Rollers for boiler-plates and thin sheet iron are difficult to cast sound on account of their large size. They are subjected to very great strain, and require to be cast from the most tenacious metals. The bearings or neck should be en- larged, or turned to the shape shown i-rf^ ~U at AA, and the cylindrical part B n_ "^ t should be slightly concave, because, when the slab is first passed through the rollers, it comes in contact with a small portion only of the revolving surface. The central parts of the roller thus be- come highly heated, whilst their extremities are perfectly cool ; the consequence is, that the expansion of the roller is great- est in the middle, and unless this be provided for by a con- cavity in the barrel, the plates become buckled, that is, both warped and uneven in thickness, and consequently, imperfect and unfit for the purposes of boiler making. Bar rolls are generally cast in chill, and great care is required to prevent the chill penetrating too deep so as to injure the tenacity of the metal and render it brittle. There are different kinds of rolling mills used in the iron manufacture, and they vary considerably in their dimensions according to the work they have to perform. The first, through which the puddled iron is passed, we have already described as puddling rolls. There are others for roughing down which vary from 4 to 5 feet long, and are about 18 inches diameter ; those for merchant bars, about 2 feet 6 inches to 3 feet long and 18 inches in diameter, are in constant use. The boiler-plate and black sheet-iron rolls are generally of large dimensions ; some of them for large plates are upward of 6 feet long and 18 to 21 inches in diameter; these require a powerful engine and the momentum of a large fly-wheel to carry the plate through the rollers, and not unfrequently when thin wide plates have to be rolled, the two combined prove unequal to the task, and the result is, the plates cool and stick fast in the Iron — Machinery of Manufacture. 367 middle. The greatest care is necessary in rolling plates of this kind, as any neglect of the speed of the engine or the setting of the rolls results in the breakage of the latter, or bringing the former to a complete stand. The speed of the different kinr's of rolling mills varies ac- cording to the work they have to perform. Those for mer- chant bars make from 60 to 70 revolutions a minute, whilst those of large size for boiler-plates are reduced to 28 or 30. Others, such as the finishing and guide rollers, run at from 120 to 400 revolutions a minute. In Stafford shire, where some of the finer kinds of iron are prepared for the manufacture of wire, the rollers are generally made of cast-steel, and run at a high velocity ; such is the ductility of this description of iron, that in passing through a succession of rollers, it will have elongated to 10 or 15 times its original length, and when completely finished, will have assumed the form of a strong wire f to i of an inch in diameter, and 40 to 50 feet in length. A high temperature is an indispensable condition of success in rolling. The experience of the workman enables him to judge, from the appearance of the furnace, when the pile is at a welding heat, so that when compressed in the rolls the particles will unite. Sometimes it is necessary to give a fine polish or skin to the iron as it* leaves the rolls, but this can only be done when the iron cools down to a dark-red color, and by the practiced eye of an intelligent workman. The above operations would still be incomplete unless the ironmaster had means of cutting the bars and plates to any required size or shape. The machinery for this purpose has of late been brought to a high degree of perfection, both in regard to power and precision. The circular saw has been successfully applied for squaring and cutting the larger descriptions of bars, and does its work, particularly in railway bars, with almost mathematical pre- cision. This machine consists of a cast-iron frame or bed AA, fig. 13, bolted down to a solid foundation, on the ends of which slide two frames BB to support the bar to be cut. . The two circular saws or cutters CC are driven by straps pass- ing over the pulleys DE, and rotate at the rate of 800 to 1000 revolutions per minute. The machine is set in motion by transferring the straps from the loose pulley D to the fast Five Black Arts. pulley E, and as soon as the required speed is attained, the frame BB is carried forward, and the bar FF along with it, by a lever G or eccentric motion, till the bar is cut through. The rate of cutting or pressure upon the saws may be regu- lated either by hand or weight; care must, however, be taken not to allow the saws to become too hot, and this is provided against by running them in a trough of water. By this pro- cess it is evident that the bar must always be cut square at the ends and correctly to the same length. A great variety of shears are used for cutting iron, some driven by cams or eccentrics, and some by connecting-rods and a crank on the revolving shaft. In large iron-works it is necessary to have two or three kinds, some for cutting up scrap iron and bars for piling, and others for boiler-plates. Of the first we may notice two, one shown in fig. 14, cuts on both sides at AA, and is driven by a crank and connecting- rod B. This machine is chiefly used for cutting puddled bars from the puddling rolls, or any work required for shingling. The next machine, fig. 15, receives motion in the same man- ner, and also cuts on both sides, the cutters being fixed on the lever and moving with it. This is used for the same pur- pose as the last, and likewise for cutting scrap iron. These machines are extensively used in the manufacture of iron, and before the introduction of the plate shears, they were used, -with some modifications, to cut boiler-plates, but the work was very imperfectly executed. The demand for plates of large dimensions and greatly in- creased weight, such as those for the front and tube plates of locomotive and marine boilers, and those for tubular and plate bridges, created great difficulties, not only in piling, heating, and rolling, but also in cutting the plates accurately to the required size. To meet these demands, and more particularly for the manufacture of the large plates employed in the cellular top of the Britannia and Conway tubular bridges, Messrs. G. B. Thorneycroft and Co. constructed a large shearing machine which cut upward of 10 feet at one stroke. These shears have now come into general use, and are of great importance, on account of the accuracy wdth which they cut plates of large dimensions, square and even. Figs. 16 and 17 represent this machine ; aaa is the stand- ard and table on which the plate is fixed. This table slides IRON. ] [ Plate 7. IRON. ] [ Plate 8. Iron — Machinery of Manufacture. 369 forward at right angles to the shears or cutters AAA* A*. The top cutter descending by the action of three eccentrics ccc, which press upon the top of the frame B as it revolves, and force it down, and by one stroke, the knife AA cuts through the whole length of the plate, perfectly clean, and straight. The plate is then reversed, the newly cut edge being held against the slopes, and the sliding frame again moved forward to the required width of the plate, when another stroke cuts the other side as before. The rapidity with which the plates are cut is another advantage of this machine, as great as the precision of its cut, and when the immense quantity of plates daily produced at Messrs. Thorney croft and Co.'s works are considered, its importance becomes evident. At the Paris Universal Exhibition (1855), a plate-cutting machine was exhibited, from the United States, which ap- pears to effect the same operation as Messrs. Thorneycroft and Co.'s. It consists of a strong cast-iron frame, nine or ten feet wide, having inserted along its face a steel plate, on which the iron to be cut rests and is held firmly by a faller, which descends on the upper side of the plate. On the same side of the frame a revolving steel cutter, about nine inches in diameter, traverses the whole length of the frame, and in its passage cuts the plate, by compression, in a perfectly straight line, corresponding with the steel edge below. Cut- ting and shaving plates by a revolving disc has been long in use, but the traversing motion in this machine is certainly new, and its application very creditable to the ingenuity of the inventor. Having thus traced the processes for the conversion of crude into malleable iron, and the machinery employed, it only re- mains to give a general summary of the whole. As regards the arrangement of large iron-works, the general principle should be for the machinery to be classed and fixed in the order of the different processes, so that the products of one machine should pass at once to the next, and, in fact, the crude iron should be received at one end, and having passed through all the processes, delivered at the other in the man- ufactured state. The crude iron from the smelting furnace is either refined and puddled, or subjected to the boiling process, to get rid of the combined carbon and render the iron malleable ; it is then 24 370 Five Black Arts. shingled by the forge hammer, by the " alligator," by Brown's squeezer, or by the other machines which have been invented for this purpose. It is then at once passed through the pud- dling rolls, where it is reduced to the form of a flat bar, and is then cut into convenient lengths by the shears. These pieces are again piled or faggoted together into convenient heaps and re-heated in the furnace. As soon as a faggot thus prepared has been heated to the welding temperature, it is passed through the roughing rolls to reduce it to the form of a bar, and then through the finishing rolls, where the required form and size is given to it, either round or square bars, etc. These are straightened and cut to the required sizes, and are then ready for delivery. In most large works all these operations are carried on simultaneously with the smelting process, and in some with extensive mining opera- tions for procuring the coal, ore, and limestone required to supply a production of several thousand tons of manufactured iron per month. THE FORGE. The forging of iron has entered, of late years, so largely into the constructive arts, that the manufactures, however perfect in the rolling-mill, would be imperfect indeed without the forge. To the discussion of this part of the subject there are many inducements, and we cannot but wonder at the many devices, and the numerous contrivances which present themselves for the attainment of the operations of the forge. In effecting these objects, Mr. Nasmyth's steam-hammer is evidently the most effective, and to that instrument we are in- debted for the formation and welding of iron upon a scale previously unknown to the workers in that metal. Mr. Nasmyth took out his patent lor this invention in 1833 ; and from that time up to the present, it has maintained its ground against every innovation, and has performed an im- portant duty in almost every well-regulated work in Europe. It consists of an inverted cylinder D, figs. 18. and 19, through which the piston-rod E passes, attached to the ham- mer-blade F by means of bars and cross -key h. which press upon an elastic packing, to soften the blow of the hammer, which in heavy forgings and heavy blows, operates severely Iron — The Forge. 371 upon the piston-rod. The hammer-block FF is guided in its vertical descent by two planed guides or projections, extend- ing the length of the side-standards AA, between which the hammer-block slides. The attendant gives motion to the ham- mer bj admitting steam from the boiler to act upon the under side of the piston, bj moving the regulator I by the handle d. The length of stroke is regulated by increasing or dimin- ishing the distance between the cam N and the valve lever 0, by turning the screws P and U by the bevil wheels qq. The lever o operates by the cam N coming in contact with the roller o. As soon as this contact takes place, the further admission of steam is not only arrested, but its escape is at the same time eifected, and the hammer, left unsupported, descends by its gravity upon the work on the anvil with an energy due to the height of the fall. From this description, it will be seen that the movement of the roller o causes the shoulder of the rod P to get under the point of the trigger catch U ; the valve is by these means kept closed till the whole force of the blow is struck. The instant the operation is effected, the concussion of the hammer causes the latch X to knock off the point of the trigger from the shoulder on the valve-rod P, by means of the bent lever % v, and the instant this is accom- plished, the valve is re-opened to admit the steam below the piston, by the pressure of steam on the upper side of the small piston in the cylinder M, forcing down the valve rod, which, in this respect, is the active agent for opening the valve. To arrest the motion of the hammer, it is only necessary to shut the steam-valve ; during the process of forging, it is, however, desirable to give time between the blows, to enable the workman to turn and shift his work on the anvil ; and to effect this reduced motion, the trigger U is held back from the shoulder of the valve-rod P, by the handle y, which at the same instant opens the valve in the case J, and thus the ac- tion of the steam in the cylinder D retards the downward motion of the hammer. The result of these changes is an easy descent of the hammer, which vibrates up and down without touching the anvil, but ready for blows of any se- verity the instant the trigger is elevated above the shoulder of the valve lever P. From this description, it will appear evi- dent that Mr. Nasmy th's invention is one of the most important that has occurred in the art of forging iron. It has given an 372 Five Black Arts. impetus to the manufacture, and affords facilities for the welding of large blocks of malleable iron that could not be accomplished by the tilt and helve hammers formerly in use ; and we. have only to instance the forging of the stern-posts and cutwaters of iron ships ; the paddle-wheel and screw- shafts of our ocean steamers, some of them weighing upward of 20 tons, to appreciate the value as well as the intensity of action of the steam-hammer. In addition to the machinery of the forge, the V anvil, the natural offspring of the steam-hammer, came into exist- ence from this same fertile source. It is chiefly employed for forging round bars and shafts, and may be thus de- scribed, A being a section of the round bar or shaft to be forged, B the anvil- block, and C the hammer. From this, it is obvious that, in place of the old plan, where the work is forged upon flat surfaces, as shown in the annexed figure, and where the blows are diverg- ing, the effect of the V anvil is a con- verging action, thus consolidating the mass, and enabling the forger to retain his work directly under the center of the hammer. This is the more strik- ingly apparent, as the blows of the hammer upon a round shaft have the effect of causing the mass to assume the elliptical form, forcing out the sides as at AA in every successive blow, and this again, when turned, produces a spongy, f porous center, as shown in D. This process ^a is, however, more clearly exemplified in Ry- der's forging paachines, where all the anvils are of the V form, for the forging of spindles, round bars, and bolts. The next important discovery in the art of forging, is that of Mr. Ryder's machine, patented some years since, for forging small articles, which, on ac- count of the rapidity and precision of its operations, demands a notice in passing. It consisted essentially of a series of small anvils about three inches square, supported from below by large screws passing through the frame of the machine. This screw was employed in order that the dis- IRON. ] [ Pt-atk 9. FIG 18 IRON. ] [ Plate 10. Iron — Tue Forge. 373 tance between tlie hammer and anvil might be accurately ad- justed. Between the screw and the anvil, a stuflfing of cork was introduced to deaden the effect of the blow. The ham- mers were arranged over the anvils, and slid up and down in the frame of the machine. The blow was effected by the revolution of an eccentric, acting by means of a cradle on the hammer-head, the hammer, however, being lifted again by a strong spiral spring. At the side of the machine was a cutter or shears worked by a long lever ; with this the arti- cles were cut to the required length as they were finished. In Mr. Ryder's machine 700 strokes a minute was the maximum ; but Messrs. Piatt Brothers, of Oldham, by in- creasing the strength of the spring, run as high as 1100. A pair of knife edges, worked by the machine itself, has also been substituted for the hand-shears. These perform the work more rapidly and accurately than before, and leave the workman more at liberty. Dies are let into the surfaces of the hammers and anvils, which shape the iron as required. The rapidity with which this machine executes all kinds of intricate work is truly remarkable ; for instance, a bar about 2| X 2J inches, will be reduced to li x 1^ inches, and cut off in a minute. Set-screws, bolts, spindles, and all kinds of small work are produced at the same rate. Its precision is very effective ; the articles are almost as true as if turned in a lathe, and very accurate as to size and weight. Other machines, called '' lifts," have been, and continue to be, used for forging a variety of forms and ^'uses;^^ but as these partake more or less of the principle employed in Ryder's machine, it will not be necessary to furnish further examples. In conclusion, we may observe that the facilities afforded by the present age for the forging of malleable iron, are with- out a parallel in the history of that material. Every known resource has been adopted, and every contrivance and device has been employed to meet the demands of a large and an in- tricate trade ; and looking at the present resources of the country, and the admirable mechanical contrivances for the conversion of crude iron into the malleable state, it assuredly is not unreasonable to look forward to still greater improve- ments in the manipulations of the forge. 374 Five Black Arts. THE STRENGTH AND OTHER PROPERTIES OF IRON. In this section we have to consider the tensile and trans- verse strengths and powers of resisting compression of cast and malleable iron as determined by dn-ect experiment upon specimens of the material ; and also to examine whether, as has been alleged, the hot-blast process injures the tenacity of the metal. Cast Iron. — The following tables give the results of ex- periments undertaken by Mr. Hodgkinson and Mr. Fairbairn at the request of the British Association, to determine the tensile and transverse strengths of cast-iron derived from the hot and cold blast. The castings for ascertaining the tensile strain were made very strong at the ends, with eyes for the bolts to which the shackles were attached ; the middle part, where it was intended that the specimen should break, was cast of a cruciform -f- transverse section. The four largest castings were broken by the chain-testing machine belonging to the corporation of Liverpool, the others by Mr. Fairbairn's lever. Table I. — Results of the Experiments on the tensile strength of Cast-iron. Description of Iron. Number of Experi- ments. Mean strength per square inch of section. Carron. iron, No. 2, hot-blast 3 2 2 2 1 1 1 2 2 IbH. 13,505 16,683 17,755 14,200 21,907 13,434 17,466 16,676 18,855 tons cwts. 6 Oi " " cold-blast 7 9" " No. 3, hot-blast 7 18^ 6 7 " " cold-blast . Devon (Scotland) iron, No. 3, hot-blasi Buffery iron. No. 1, hot-blast 9 15i 6 " " cold-blast Coed Talon (North Wales) iron, No. 2 hot-blast 7 16 7 9 Do. do. cold-blast 8 8 From the same series of experiments we select the follow- ing tables, giving the results obtained in regard to the resist- ance opposed to compression by cast-iron. The specimens employed were cylinders and prisms of various dimensions, and having their faces turned accurately parallel to each other and perpendicular to the axis of the specimen. They were crushed by a lever between parallel steel discs. Iron — Strength and other Properties. 375 Table II. Weights required to crush cylinders, etc., of Carron Iron, No. 2, Hot-Blast. Diameter of Cylinder in parts of an inch. •64 Prism base '50 inch square . Prism base 1-00 x '26 Number of Experi- ments. Me-n Crushing Weight. 3 4 5 lbs- 6,426 14,542 22,110 1 35,888 3 2 25,104 26,276 Me&n Crushing Weight per square inch 130.909 131.665 121,605 111,560 100,416 101,062 General mean p«r square inch. 121,685 lbs. = 54 tons 6^ cwt. 100,738 lbs. = 44 tons 19J cwt. Table III. — Weights required to crush cylinders, etc., of Carron Iron, No. 2, Cold-Blast. liameter of Cylinder in parts of an inch. Equilateraf triangle — side -866 Squares — side ^ inch Rectangles — base 1-00 X -243 Cylinders -45 inch di- ameter, k -75 inch high Number of Experiments, Mean Crushing Weight. 6,088 14,190 24,290 32,398 24,538 26,237 15,369 Mean Crush iiig Weight pei square inch. lbs. 124,023 128.478 123,708 99,769 98,152 107,971 96,634 General Mean per square inch. ) 125, j 19 403 lbs. 55 tons 19J cwt. 100,631 lbs. = 44 tons 18^ cwt. Table IV.- -Resulls of Experiments to ascertain the forces necessary to crush short cylinders, etc., of Cast Iron. Description of Iron. Devon (Scotch) iron, No. 3 hot-blast Buffery iron. No. 1, hot-bast " " cold-blast , Coed Talon, No. 2, hot-blast , " " cold-blast Carron iron, No. 2, hot-blast , " " cold-blast Carron iron, No. 3. hot-blast , '' " cold-blast , Number of Experi- M«an Crushing Weight per square inch. lbs. 145,435 86,397 93.:-{85 82,734 81,770 108,540 133,440 115,442 tons. cwt. 64 18^ 38 ll| 41 13^ 36 18^ 36 10 48 9 47 9f 59 n\ 51 lOf The specimens of Carron iron in table lY. were prisms, whose base was I •/• J = i inch, and whose height varied 376 Five Black Arts, from J inch to 1 inch. The other specimens were cylinders, whoso diameter was about J inch, and height varied from J inch to 2 inches. From the above experiments, Mr. Hodgkinson concludes that '' where the length is not more than about three times the diameter, the strength for a given base is pretty nearly the same." Fracture took place either by wedges sliding off, or by the top and bottom forming pyramids, and forcing out the sides ; and the angle of the wedge is nearly constant, a mean of 21 cylinders being 55° 32'. From the same series of experiments, we give the results obtained by Mr. Fairbairn, in regard to the effects of time and temperature. The bars employed were cast to be 1 inch square, and 4 feet 6 inches long, and were loaded with per- manent weights as under ; the deflections being taken at va- rious intervals during a period of fifteen months. Coed-talon hot and cold-blast iron was employed. Table V. — The effects of Time on loaded bars of Hot and Cold-blast Iron in their resistance to a transverse strain. rermanent load in lbs. Increase of deflection of cold- blast bars. Increase of deflection of hot-blast bars. 280 336 392 449 •033 •046 •140 •047 •043 •077 .088 Mean. .066 •069 It has been assumed by most writers on the strength of materials, that the elasticity of cast-iron remained perfect to the extent of one-third the weight that would break it. This is, however, a mere assumption, as it has been found that the elasticity of cast-iron is injured with less than one-half that weight, and the question to be solved in the above experiments was, to what extent the material could be loaded without en- dangering its security ; or how long it would continue to sup- port weights, varying from one-half to one-tenth of the load that would produce fracture. These experiments were con- tinued from six to seven years, and the results obtained were, Iron — Strength and other Properties. 377 that the bars which were loaded to within yV of their breaking weight, would have continued to have borne the load, in the absence of any disturbing cause, ad infinitum ; but the ef- fect of change, either of the same or a lighter load led ulti- mately to fracture. From these facts it is deduced, that so long as the mole- cules of the material are under strain (however severe that strain may be), they will arrange and accomodate themselves to the pressure, but with the slightest disturbance, whether produced from vibration or the increase or diminution of load, it becomes, under these influences, only a question of time when rupture ensues. In the following experiments on the relative strengths of coed-talon hot and cold-blast iron to resist transverse strain at different temperatures, the results are reduced to those of bars 2 feet 3 inches between supports, and one inch square, as follows : Table VI. Tempe- rature, Fahr. Specific Modulus of Breaking Ultimate Power of re- Gravity. Elasticity. weight. deflection. ^isiing impact. Cold Blast, No. 2 ... . 27° 6955 12799050 874 .4538 397.7 32» 6U55 14327450 919.8 .402 882.4 113« 6 955 14168000 812.9 .336 273.1 Hot Blast, No. 2 .... 20'» 6 968 14902900 811.69 .4002 325.0 32" 6-968 140033;30 919,7 .429 395.0 SI"* 6 968 14500000 877.5 .421 366.4 Cold Blast, No. 2 .... 192» 14398600 743.1 .301 223.7 No.3.... 212" 600" .... 924.5 1033.0 No. 2 '.'.'.'. Red by^ 6633 " daylight. Hed III dark. .... 723 1 not Blast, No. 2 '.'.'.'. 136° .... 13046266 875.7 .389 310 6 " 187° .... 11012500 638.8 .359 229 3 (C 188o 13869500 823 6 .363 298.9 No.3 '.!.".■ 212» .... 818 4 (( 600» .... 875 8 No. 2 .'.*!! ReJindark. .... 8297 From the above it will be seen " that a considerable fail- ure of the strength took place after heating the No. 2 iron from 26° to 190°. At 212°, we have in the No. 3 a much greater weight sustained than by No. 2 at 190° ; and at 600° there appears, in both hot and cold-bast, the anomaly of in- creased strength as the temperature is increased." * The * This probably arises from the greater ductility of the bars at an increased temperature. 378 Five Black Arts. above results are, with one exception, in favor of the cold- blast, as far as strength is concerned ; and in favor of the hot- blast, with one exception, as regards power of resisting im- pact. With regard to the comparative strengths of hot and cold- blast iron, the following extracts from Mr. Hodgkinson's re- port, read before the British Association, give the general results of his experiments : Table Yll.—Carron Iron, No. 2. Tensile Btrength in lbs. per inch square . . . Comprest