11

ADVERTISEMENT.

up to that date wert in type, amounting to nearly 2000pages : this mass, lnwever, was still unarranged ; and itwas not until four days previous to the opening of theExhibition that anydefined plan of classification could bedetermined upon. The contractors were bound under apenalty to produce a certain quantity of the small Cata-logue on the first of May; to effect this within four daysseemed almost impracticable. It was originally intendedby the contractors that the Illustrated Catalogue shouldalso appear at the snne time, but all hope of producinganything more that a specimen Part was abandoned.

The classificatioi, which should have been the labourof literary men, became the task of the operative printer:the type was arrarged in 368 slips, each representing apage; slip after sl.p was taken up by the compositor, andthe exhibitors’ retirns, as numerically distinguished, col-lected together, uitil the whole 30 Classes of the UnitedKingdom were aranged. The same arrangement neces-sarily took place for the Colonies and Foreign States ; foralthough each St:te had but one numerical order for allthe articles exhibited, they stand in the Catalogue in therespective State in the same order as the 30 Classes of theUnited Kingdom ; upwards of 100 distinct arrangementshad to be effected : the classification completed, reviseswere forwarded to the compiler, to receive the numbersby which the articles were to be distinguished in theBuilding; 320 pages was the prescribed limit of the smallCatalogue, and 368 pages were in type; a further reduc-tion had to take place in the description of the articles ex-hibited ; and it was not until the midnight immediatelypreceding the opening of the Exhibition that the smallCatalogue was finally “ ready for press.”

The first or specimen Part of the Illustrated Cataloguewas also proceeded with on the same principle laid downfor the prodiction of the small Catalogue j and on themorning of the 1st of May both these works were on salein the Exhibition Building.

The printing in itself would have been but a smallaffair for tie number of persons employed, could thematter have been placed before them according to theusual routine of authorship and printing : this, however,was impracticable; and no better plan could perhaps havebeen suggested than that followed to a most suecessfhl ter-mination and through most extraordinary difficulties.

After tie opening, additional returns came in. The firstedition was found exceedingly imperfect: the superintend-ents of Classes undertook the examination of the proofs,supplied omissions, and corrected the numerical arrange-ments ; many articles were found in one class that be-longed to another; the exhibitors’ descriptions had againto be curtailed to make room for additions amounting to41 pages; and a second edition was produced, withgreater labour and exertion than the first.

New returns continued to come in—removals from oneclass to another were still found necessary, and it was notuntil a third edition was produced, at a cost of labourequal to the two preceding, that a correct Catalogue of theExhibition could be said to exist.

Under these circumstances it was found impracticableeither to produce the Illustrated Catalogue in a completeform, or the French and German translations, until a lateperiod of the Exhibition : and as the labours of the printerdid not really commence until within four days of theopening, so neither did they terminate until within fourdays of the close of the Exhibition.

A detail of the progress of the Illustrated Cataloguewould be a repetition of the circumstances connected withthe small Catalogue; inasmuch, however, as the largerwork is five times the size of the smaller, and the care andattention required more minute, the cost and labour inthe printing-office were at least ten times greater.

. French and German compositors were employed on theforeign translations. The Exhibition of all Nations, how-ever, had created a demand for foreign papers; and thecompositors, knowing that the employment on the Cata-logues would not extend over a long period, acceptedother engagements ; and those works were finally andsuccessfully brought to a close by men who knew not aword of the respective languages ; French and German

readers, however, were employed to insure correctness.The repeated alterations and transpositions in the English Catalogue created a great amount of confusion in theforeign Catalogues. The same mechanical classification,applied to the English , could not be effected: a numberof persons were therefore employed to cut up each returnseparately, and paste them on sheets of paper under theirrespective class and country, and again place them in thecompositors’ hands for reproduction. Of the French Catalogue 146 pages, and of the German 62, were in thismanner a second time set up in type.

The time occupied in printing the various works was216 days. The whole of the other employments necessaryfor their production were also completed within the sameperiod.

Every alteration in the small Catalogue created a cor-responding alteration in the Illustrated Catalogue, and inthe French and German translations.

'File cost of these alterations, compared with the usualcost for setting up the types, was—

On the small Catalogue as four to one.

„ Illustrated Catalogue as Jive to two.

,, French Translation as Jive to two.

,, German Translation as tivo to one.

And to this must be added, as an increased element in theexpense of printing, the extra amount received by theworkmen for night-work, equal to 10 per cent, on thewages paid.

Compositors are paid by the 1,000 for setting up thetypes; and by the hour for corrections: the completearrangement of 10,000 types is considered an averageday’s work for one person. Tabular Statements similarto the Priced Lists are attended with extra trouble, andare paid double the price of other work; and works inForeign Languages a small increased price per 1,000.From the circumstance of all the types used for the Cata-logues being new, the Compositor had an advantage ofabout 10 per cent, on the day’s work.

The hours of attendance are from 8 in the morning until8 in the evening. When the men are employed duringthe night they receive extra payment, equivalent to 40 percent, on their earnings.

To this branch of printing must be added readers andreading boys, in the proportion of one reader and one boyto each 12 compositors.

From the extraordinary number of proofs requiredduring the progress of the Catalogues, four proof-pullerswere constantly employed so long as the compositors wereat work : 54 reams of paper, equal to 27,864 sheets, wereconsumed in proofs only.

There are two descriptions of machines employed inprinting: the cylinder machine, attended by one man andtwo boys, producing on the average 7,000 impressions perday of loj hours; and the platteu machine, managed byone man and four boys, averaging 4,000 impressions perday. The machincmen and boys are paid by day-work.

Pressmen arc paid by the ream of 500 sheets, printedon both sides (or 1,000 impressions), the price varyingaccording to the quality of the work required. Each pressis worked by two men : and it is estimated that, on theusual description of printing, two men would produce 1,250perfect copies of one sheet (or 2,500 impressions) per day.The Illustrated Catalogue was printed entirely at thehand-press, and required so great an amount of care, that500 sheets, or 1,000 impressions, were scarcely obtainedfrom the men in one day : and of the separate engravings,eight of which were printed on one sheet of paper, but 500impressions were produced in a day , and, in addition tothe men engaged in printing, four men were constantlyemployed in what is technically called “ bringing up” theengravings on wood, preparatory to the printing.

To the Press and Machine Departments must be addedpersons to wet the paper before printing, and others to dryand press it after printing, and deliver to the binders.The average number of persons employed in “ wetting’’paper was equal to 6 men for !)() days.

Comparative Power of Production of Hand-Presses andSteam-Machines. —Comparing the press and the cylinder