23. The first periodical paper of France originated with Renaudot, a physician in Paris, who, for a long time, had been in the habit of collecting news, which he communicated verbally to his patients, with the view to their amusement. But, in 1631, he commenced the publication of a weekly sheet, called the "Gazette de France," which was continued with very little interruption, until 1827. There are now, probably, in France, about 400 periodical publications most of which have been established since the commencement of the revolution of 1792.
24. Periodicals devoted to different objects have been established in every other kingdom of Europe; but, in many cases, they are trammelled by a strict censorship of the respective governments. This is especially the case with those devoted to politics or religion. But all Europe, with its 200,000,000 of inhabitants, does not support as many regular publications as the United States, with its 17,000,000.
25. The workmen employed in a printing-office are of two kinds: compositors, who arrange the types according to the copy delivered to them; and pressmen, who apply ink on the types, and take off impressions. In many cases, and especially where the business is carried on upon a small scale, the workmen often practise both branches.
26. Before the types are applied to use, they are placed in the cells or compartments of a wooden receptacle called a case, each species of letter, character and space, by itself. The letters which are required most frequently, are lodged in the largest compartments, which are located nearest to the place where the compositor stands, while arranging the types.
27. The compositor is furnished with a composing-stick, which is commonly an iron instrument, surrounded on three sides with ledges about half an inch in height, one of which is moveable, so that it may be adjusted to any length of line. The compositor, in the performance of his work, selects the letters from their several compartments, and arranges them in an inverted order from that in which they are to appear in the printed page.
28. At the end of each word is placed a quadrat, to produce a space between that and the one which follows. The quadrats are of various widths, and being considerably shorter than types, they yield no impression in printing. A thin brass rule is placed in the stick, on which each successive line of types is arranged. When the composing-stick has been filled, it is emptied into the galley, which is a flat board, partly surrounded with a rim.
29. On this galley, the lines are accumulated in long columns, which are afterwards divided into pages, and tied together with a string, to prevent the types from falling asunder, or into pi, as the printers term it. A sufficient number of pages having been completed to constitute a form, or, in other words, to fill one side of a sheet of printing-paper, they are arranged on an imposing-stone, and strongly locked up, or wedged together, in an iron chase.
30. The first impression taken from the types is called the proof. This is carefully read over by the author or proof-reader, or both, and the errors and corrections plainly marked in the margin. These corrections having been made by the compositor, the form is again locked up, and delivered to the pressman.
31. The pressman having dampened his paper with water, and put every part of his press in order, takes impressions in the following manner: he places the sheet upon the tympan, and confines it there by turning down upon it the frisket; he then brings them both, together with the paper, upon the form, which has been previously inked. He next turns a crank with his left hand, and thereby places the form directly under the platen, which is immediately brought, in a perpendicular direction, upon the types, by means of a lever pulled with his right hand.
32. After the impression has been thus communicated, the form is returned to its former position, and the printed sheet is removed. The operation just described, is repeated for each side of every sheet of the edition. In the cut at the head of this article, the pressman is represented as in the act of turning down the frisket upon the tympan. The business of the boy behind the press is to apply the ink to the types by means of the rollers before him. In offices where much printing is executed, the roller-boy is now dispensed with, simple machinery, attached to the crank of the press, called a patent roller-boy, being substituted in his place.