In the early days of the printing trade in America stereotyping was, of known, and the local publishers were accord' ly com pelled to recompose the type for each new edition that might be required. The introduc tion of stereotyping by the Bruces in 1813, there fore, suggested such economy that the enter prise could scarcely have failed to meet with favor at the hands of the printers. While the plaster process, the first method of stereotyping in vogue, was invented in England by Lord Stanhope, tidings of this great discovery were soon brought to America, and David Bruce at once set sail for the Old World for the express purpose of securing the information that would enable him to make practical use of the new invention in America. -Although the stories that had reached the United States had pictured the new discovery as a perfected in vention, Lord Stanhope's experiments had act ually by no means been concluded, and, as the result, Bruce found it impossible to acquire anything more than the most superficial knowl edge concerning the process. Finding that all material facts were being withheld from him, and that it would be useless to attempt to per suade Lord Stanhope to disclose his secret, Bruce returned to the United States. So far from admitting his defeat, however, he promptly went to work, and, with the little information he had obtained, he managed by his own genius and mechanical skill to make a plate that was in every respect superior to any that had as yet been cast in England. Through his own dili gence he had mastered the defects which Lord Stanhope had been unable to overcome, for his plate was not only perfectly level on both sides, but it was of uniform thickness in every part. In fact, so successful was he that an Englishman named Watts, who had succeeded in learning his process, went back to Europe with his knowl edge. There he found scores of master-printers who, disgusted with the English invention, were glad to be taught how the American plates were made, and it was through his efforts that both Austria and Germany acquired the art of stereotyping.
From the day on which David and George Bruce opened their foundry in New York they had all the orders that they could fill, for American publishers were quick to appreciate the economical advantage of the new invention. It was the time when the public was just be ginning to demand books, and as the plaster casts were not only made without great expense but also guaranteed plates of great durability, printers were eager to stereotype all books that might by any possibility require a second edition, From this simple beginning, therefore, came the great stereotyping industry of America. By 1850, the year in which the making of plaster plates attained its greatest development, there i were more than 50 firms engaged in this ness in the United States, while more than 1,000 men were employed in the work. Then came the modern improvements — the electrotyping for book-work and the introduction of the papier-mache process in the making of news papers — since which time the making of plates has become practically an art by itself.
Prior to 1805 comparatively little printer's ink was made in the United States. Although printers were supposed to know how to mix the compound the preparations that they concocted proved such a poor substitute that all the good inks were imported. In 1805, however, two
firms—one in Philadelphia and the other in Cambridgeport — began the manufacture of printing ink, and, since that time, the industry has been steadily extended until there are now about 35 firms engaged in this branch of the printing trade. About 1860 the cheapness of aniline colors inspired a more general use of colored inks, but as many of these tints soon lost their brilliancy they did not become very popular until the chemists had succeeded in cor recting this fault.
The period between 1819 and 1833 witnessed many great improvements in the art of printing. One of the most important innovations was the substitution of iron for wood in the making of hand presses. Although wooden presses had been used since the time of Gutenberg they had always proved a handicap to good. printing. Even the strongest wood was weak, and as the machine was liable to give way in some part at any pull, the pressman found it impossible to obtain a good impression, even when the type surface was no larger than 12 by 20 inches. As the natural result, all hand-presses were small affairs, and as they required the services of two expert workmen to keep them going the process was as costly as it was slow. In the adoption of the iron press American printers followed the example of their English brethren. The first iron press to be made in America was completed about 1820, but, sometime previous to that date, such presses had been imported from England. Recognizing the advantage of a machine that was capable of printing a sheet three times as large as the old press and with no greater muscular effort, American printers soon demanded them, but, in spite of this de mand, it was several years before the wooden presses were relegated to the junk-heap, some of them having been in use, even in New York, as late as 1850. In the beginning presses were made by Turney, Worrall, Wells and Smith, but gradually the business began to centre with Hoe in New York and Ramage and Bronstrup in Philadelphia, until, finally, nearly all the presses were manufactured by these houses.
Another invention that proved an invaluable aid to the progress of the art of printing was the making of elastic rollers for inking the type. The original method of inking was a most laborious system, the application of the ink being made with balls of pelt. Early in the 19th century, however, an English compositor dis covered that a composition of glue and molasses, long used in the making of pottery, could be ap plied in the inking of type, and from this idea was evolved the composition roller which was so necessary to the success of the first machine presses. This roller was first employed in America about 1826. Another invention that played an important part in the production of cheap printing was the improved method of paper manufacture which came with the intro duction of Fourdrinier's machine. This, too, was introduced in America soon after 1826, and since that time the growth of the printing in dustry has been a steady and rapid evolution.