The panel inserted in Example [509] is illustrative.
The three letters (Hdp) at the left are twenty-four-point “lining” Caslon; the three letters (Hdp) at the right are thirty-point Caslon Oldstyle No. 471. The economical printer too often prefers the “lining” fonts, as he does not need to buy waste (?) metal. It is the same sort of reasoning that sees in the park spaces of the cities real-estate waste.
The laws of compensation in good typography require, where one point or two points or more are unwisely removed by shortening descenders, that these points shall be restored by leading. So where is the gain by mutilation?
Italic Types
Italic, the graceful, inclined, feminine type that is now mated with most Roman types, was not known by Jenson or his contemporaries. It made its appearance for the first time in 1501 on a book printed and published at Venice, Italy, by Aldus Manutius. In that volume, an edition of Virgil, Aldus gave credit for the cutting of the face to “Francia of Bologna,” who has since been identified as the great painter and contemporary of Leonardo da Vinci.
The legend has been passed along for many years that Italic was fashioned after the handwriting of the Italian poet Petrarch, but specimens of his handwriting do not bear the proper resemblance, and there are now those who scoff at the story.
However, the Aldus Italic is not, as one writer declares, merely an inclined Roman. As it has been recut by the American Type Founders Company and mated with Cloister, the recut Roman letter of Jenson, there is opportunity to compare Italic and Roman lower-case, which is done in Example [515]. It will be seen that, while there is a family resemblance, there are many differences other than that of mere inclination. Italic capitals, however, are inclined Roman letters, but it should be remembered that Aldus and Francia did not make or use Italic capitals, but that with the slanting lower-case letters Aldus used small Roman capitals. Example [513] shows how this was done, and this example, by the way, is a resetting in Cloister Italic and Roman small capitals of the Aldus page, reproduced on page [15] of the chapter on “The Spread of Typography.” In that chapter are included further facts about this famous printer.
EXAMPLE 509
The various sizes of type set to lengths determined by measuring as in Example [510]. Also showing the space between lines needed for easy reading. The size of type-face and space between lines of the eighteen-point, fourteen-point and twelve-point of the Caslon group have been authoritatively recommended for schoolbook printing (Read page [188])
