The American Printer: A Manual of Typography / Containing practical directions for managing all departments of a printing office, as well as complete instructions for apprentices; with several useful tables, numerous schemes for imposing forms in every variety, hints to authors, etc.

by Thomas MacKellar

GENERAL REMARKS.

Experience proves that the apprentice foreshadows the workman, just as surely as the bend of the twig foretells the inclination of the tree. The upright, obedient, industrious lad will become a steady, skilful, and capable man, as unmistakably as the perverse, idling, careless boy will ripen into a lazy, dissolute, and worthless fellow. The fact is, a boy is measurably the maker of his own destiny; and if he fails to acquire a master-knowledge of the trade to which he is put, it will mainly be because he did not at his outset determine to be a master-workman. Good morals and steady industry are indispensable.

When a lad who possesses these qualities proposes to learn the art and mystery of printing, it should be inquired of him, Has he had a fair common-school education? Is he a perfect speller? Has he a turn for reading? Is his eyesight good? Is he under fifteen years of age? A true affirmative answer to all these queries will entitle him to the position of reading and errand-boy. He is told the hours at which he is to come and go, and a strict punctuality is enjoined upon him. He sweeps the room,—he sorts out the pi,—he learns the position of the various letters in the case. A year spent in this way is an excellent preparative for “going to case,” or learning the art of composing type.

When he is put to composition, he is told to set up one line and show it to the foreman or to the journeyman under whose care he may be placed. The errors in the line are pointed out to him, and he is required to correct them himself. When the words are perfectly correct, he justifies the line tight enough to prevent it from falling down when the composing-stick is slightly inclined, and yet sufficiently loose to enable him to lift it out with ease. In thus spacing out the line, the blanks between the words must be so graduated that, when the matter is printed, all the words will appear at equal distances apart. No matter how impatient he may be to get on, he must be drilled at this exercise till he becomes a thorough master of it. The grand doctrine to be instilled into him at first is, to do his work well and correctly; swiftness will follow as a natural consequence. He sets a second line; and after it has been made faultless he proceeds with the third, and so on till the stick is full. The utmost care must be taken to keep every letter and every line in an exact vertical position; and when he essays to empty the stick he must be taught to lift the entire mass in one square solid body, and to place it squarely and vertically on the galley. If the lines are allowed to slant either backward or sidewise, it is difficult afterward to make them stand accurately.

After the apprentice has become thoroughly conversant with the shape of every type, and can distinguish “u” from “n,” “b” from “q,” and “d” from “p,” he is allowed to distribute type for his own use. He is taught to take up at one time no more matter than he can conveniently grasp in his left hand, which he holds so that the light falls on the face of the type, and his eye can readily read it. In distributing the various letters, he takes a word or two between the thumb and forefinger of his right hand, and the types are lightly dropped into their respective boxes.

At the outset, and as he proceeds, the novitiate must be cautioned against the acquisition of bad habits; such as swinging the body as the types are picked up, nicking the type against the stick several times before placing it in line, standing on one leg, &c.

While avoiding these ridiculous practices, a learner must acquire (if he does not possess them already) certain habitudes or principles which lie at the foundation of successful effort. The first is

Punctuality. He must conscientiously observe the time-rules of the office in coming and leaving. The early hours are the best for work; and the mind being cheered by the consciousness of doing right, the body feels the influence, and is strengthened; and when the quitting hour arrives, the amount of work accomplished will satisfy himself and his master too. The most successful masters have been distinguished for punctuality. The apprentice’s time is not his own, but his master’s property; and wasting it by want of punctuality, or idling during his master’s absence, is simply equivalent to stealing. The second point is

Obedience. The apprentice has no right to question orders given by the master or his deputy. His duty is promptly to do as he is told, without grumbling or dissatisfaction. Let him remember that he is under orders, and that, if he ever expects to learn how to command, he must learn in his youth how to obey. He will promote his own interests by seeking to anticipate his master’s wishes, and by endeavouring to make himself so useful that his services cannot well be dispensed with. Akin to this is

Courtesy. Good manners in a youth are wonderfully pleasing, and effectively aid in his advancement. Courtesy toward his master is a matter of course, and deserving of little commendation; but he must be courteous to customers when sent out on an errand, and courteous to the workmen in the office. By this means he will secure good-will, and many a friendly hint will be given to him in acquiring a knowledge of the art. The habit when fixed will bless him and others as long as he lives.