CHAPTER XX.
WILLIAM MILLER, 1809.
ILLIAM MILLER, the originator of this now great foundry, was for some time a foreman in the Glasgow Letter Foundry. About the year 1809 he left that service to begin a foundry of his own in Edinburgh under the style of William Miller and Co. The first specimen is stated to have been published in this year,[738] but no copy unfortunately has been found still to exist.
A further specimen was issued in 1813, followed in the ensuing year by another of 28 pages, consisting entirely of Roman and Italic letter, of which there was a complete series from Double Pica to Pearl, with 2-line letters and one page of borders. As Hansard observes respecting early founts of this foundry, the letters so much resemble those of Messrs. Wilson as to require minute inspection to distinguish the one from the other.[739]
The business, once started, made rapid progress, and in due time became a formidable rival not only to the Glasgow foundry, but to the London founders. The specimen of 1815 showed further additions to the founts, some of which, we have it on Hansard’s authority, were cut by Mr. Austin, of London.[740]
In 1822, the firm is described as William Miller only, Letter Founder to His Majesty for Scotland. The energy and care displayed by Mr. Miller in the {356} prosecution of his business rapidly brought his foundry to the front rank, and secured for him the support not only of English printers but of some of the most important newspapers of the day, including The Times.
In 1832, Mr. Richard was admitted a partner; and the style of the firm became once more William Miller and Co., and so continued until 1838, when it became Miller and Richard.
Of the later history of this foundry it is beyond the scope of this work to treat, further than to say that it was the first house successfully to introduce machinery for the casting of type in this country; and that on the revival of the old style fashion about 1844, it took a prominent and successful part with its series of “Modern Old Face” letter. For the Exhibition of 1851, the proprietors produced a “Brilliant” type, the smallest then in England,[741] and subsequently cut a “Gem” expressly for Mr. Bellows’ French Dictionary[742]—a book which for clearness and minuteness combined ranks as a typographical curiosity.