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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 4, 1900)
THE MORNING OREGONIAN, TUESDAY, DECEMBER 4, 1900. 15 Printing the Paper From tKe Old Ramag'e Press to LigHtning Speed Hoe Fifty Years of Progress FROM the old Ramage hand press, on which two men could print perhaps 100 four-page papers aa hour, without folding, to the mod ern Hoe, that -will turn off 24,000 12-page papers each hour, all pasted, folded and counted. Is a long ad vance In newspaper printing, but it has been taken by The Oregonlan In Its first merits In the printing press, and Is still unexceptionable except upon the point of capacity. This press will print 21,000 4-, 6-, S-, 10- or 12-page papere, or half as many 16-, 20- or 24-page papers an hour, bUt The Oregonlan demands a machine of greater capacity. The machine that Is to be Installed the coming Spring, e. Hoe quadruple news- that department of the paper has steadily grown and now occupies an Important place in the economy of the Institution. Even In the 10 years there has been con siderable development in the field of newspaper art. Much of this Is purely mechanical; that Is, the improvement In mechanical agencies has made It possi ble to put creditable Illustrations in the newspapers. Ten years ago nobody thought of making half-tone pictures for printing In newspapers, much less papers printed on rapid presses with the grade of Ink necessarily used there. Now It is common. Coarse screens, deep etching, careful stereotyping and skillful press work are required after the artist has done his best In making the drawing. "With line pictures, pen and Ink draw ings, which were the first form of mod ern newspaper Illustration, the chances for failure after leaving the artist's hand was no telegraphic connection with the outside world, and the only outside news obtained was by steamer from San Fran cisco. "When a wire was at last extended to Portland, news came through In brief form and had to be largely rewritten. There were no typewriters In those days, and compositors had to struggle with handwriting that was frequently trying. Now tho full Associated Press report comes by special leased wire direct to the editorial rooms of the paper, all typewritten and with scarcely a word or punctuation mark missing. In addi tion to this, special dispatches come by both telegraph lines "Western Union and Postal and they are always typewritten. In the local department also most of the "copy" now turned In is typewritten. The telephone, and oven the bicycle, have grown to be Important agencies for get ting the news, neither of which were for casting a plate that will fit the press cylinder, with the type surface outward. The plates for all the pages of the paper &Te thus made on the ninth floor of The Oregonlan building, and then lowered by a special elevator to the pressroom in the basement, clamped on the press in a ' moment, and then the big machine Is set ! humming, and perfect newspapers, folded and counted, are delivered at the end of the press at the rate of 400 a minute. A large truck takes the papers to the mailing room, where they are addressed by ma chines and are wrapped and put in mail sacks to be hustled to the postoffice or early train. After the early malls are supplied, carriers go out with papers for the city subscribers, and finish their de liveries before breakfast. Rapidity marks every stage of the work, and the result Is that the details of the battle that took place yesterday on the other side of the t Half a Century Ago Henry Hill's Reminiscences .Abo-ut Pioneer Printers Carriers Addresses -- said mm ITHOUGH much has been A and written by early "historians" and "pioneer" paragraphers as re gards the early days of Oregon and The Oregonlan, some for a desire of appear in? in print, others with the laudable purpose of keeping the past as near the present as early chronicling of events will permit, it may .not become amiss forms for the Inside made up, locked up and put to press. It was Friday night. December 3. Many of the leading men of the village had been Invited by Mr. Dryer to be present at tne christening, and the room was filled. I remember how proudly I filled the position of Toller boy on that occasion, and the modus op erandi of getting the first Impression. A the guests, they being Ignorant of the . . X isay'iM ", -.WMinmr: -vwrio?i7fr,'r:? -v,, aaarKr-- ;; j? - - -- yy ; - v ,., .". -, .- ,,-y ..-. :, ' ?--,T ???l'm4m&t'W v "1 - "-' :'. '" .'' .--.-. . - "" -"'LJI ' i i i i iii i- i iiilnmVmi UT..W '-"mW-f f rt' "'' ' THE OREGONIAN'S NEW QUADRUPLE PERFECTING HOE PRESS. This machine delivers papers foldod, counted and pasted. It has a. ruanlnc speed of 48,000 4-, 6- or 8-page papers per hoar; 24,000 10-, 12-, 14- or 16-page papers per hour: 12,000 20- or 24-page papers per hour. It will be Installed In The Oregonlan pressroom la tho Sm-ine of 1901. THE OREGONIAN'S NEW THREE-ROLL SEXTUPLE PERFECTING HOE PRESS. This warhtn. prints and delivers folded 72,000 8-page papers per hour; 43,000 10- or 12-page papers per boar; 30,000 16-pago papers per hour; cr 21,000 14-, 20- or 24-page papers per hoar. It will be Installed In Tho Oregonlan pressroom after tho new quadruple perfecting Hoa press Is In position. half century. Indeed, this modern fast ' paper perfecting press, will be capable press was Installed before the paper was of turning off twice as many papers per 42 years old, and It Is now outgrown and j hour as the present machine up to eight new presses have been ordered to take j pages, and it will print as many 16-page its place. One of these will print, paste, 1 papers as the present" press will of papers fold and count 24,000 16-page papers an of 12 pages. The one contracted for later hour, and it will be Installed for opera- i delivery Is a Hoe sextuple newspaper per tlon next April. The other will turn off j fectlng press capable of turning off per 48,000 12-page papers an hour, and It will hour 72,000 papers up to 8 pages each. be, put in operation somewhat later. The Ramage press on which the first copy of The Oregonlan was printed was soon outgrown. It was taken to Olym pia, where the first paper in the territory of "Washington, the Pioneer, was printed upon It. A Washington hand press, which was regarded as very modern fcr this country, took its place in The Ore gonlan ofiice. This "machine" had a capacity about double that of the Ramage it displaced! It served until 1S62, when Jt went to print the first paper in Idaho, and the first of, the series of Hce" presses thathave since printed The Ore gonlan was Installed. The old drum-cylinder Hoe was the first steam-power press north of an Francisco, though steam power was not applied to it until It had been printing The Oregonlan about two years. An enormous amount of presswork was done on this machine, which was the only available press for the job work and the papers printed In Portland for several years. The state printing was done on it when Mr. Plttock was state printer. "Patents" or ready prints for the country papers of the Northwest were also Issued irom The Oregonlan press In thosa year3. In 1S66 the Herald was established, and it brought an old Railway press, but that was never used for any other purpose than to print the Herald. The Orego nlan press had a bed 2Sx42 Inches, and It could print 1000 sheets an hour. For years It was worked to Its full capacity 14 to 16 hours every day. About the year 1SC4 the Buckley folding machine was Invented down In Vermont, and before the patent was a year old -one of tho new folders was at work In Tho Oreponian shop, years before a news paper folder was used In San Francisco. This was a great strike for The Orego man, for It soon had strong competition in this field. The Dally Union, a co operative concern, for a time threatened the supremacy of The Oregonlan, but the ability of The Oregonlan to get Its edition out In advance of its competitor proved of great value and the other paper fell behind In the struggle. There were early malls to catch in those days, and The Oregonlan, by reason of Its superior fa cilities, was always In time for the malls, while the others were frequently left. This folder was an Important agent In the success of the paper then. One of Hoe's largest single small-cylinder two-revolution presses was added to The Oregonlan s printing facilities In j 1S7L This machine printed sheets 40x60 Inches at the rate of 1500 an hour". The I paper was "worked and turned"; that Is, It had to be run through the press i twice before a complete paper was pro- duccd, but at the latter Impression two complete papers were turned out. Both these presses were soon crowded with work, and In 1SS0 a Hoe double-cylinder mammoth press, the largest -press made j to ieea oy nana, was put in. xn oraer to make room for this machine, the old drum cylinder was sold, and It went to Hlllsboro, where it Is still doing good work for the Independent. The new Hoe printed 3000 papers an hour, and It ena bled The Oregonlan to make a great stride forward. In less than four years, however. Its limit was reached, and In 1SS4 it was superseded by a Hoe web TOtary press, which printed from type placed on "turtles" making a srgment of the cylinder. This was the first web. or continuous sheet, printing press installed north of San Francisco. Type was used on this press until about the year 1SSS. when the first stereotype foundry In the Northwest was Introduced In The Orego nlan shop and the "turtles" were ad justed to take the stereotype plates In stead of the type forms. "When this press came Into use. the old separate folder was laid a&kle. the new machine being complete with folder attachment and ca pable of turning off 12,000 papers an hour. The double-cylinder press was taken to Seattle, where it printed the Post-Intelligencer until its destruction in the big fire of 1S89. The next press to servo The Oregonlan mts the one that is still printing the ppr. a Hoe double-supplement perfect lttf press that was Installed in December, 18H. It represented the latest develop- 4S.000 up to 12 pages, 36.000 of 16 pages, and 24,000 up to 24 pages. It will print from three rolls or webs of paper at the same time, and will have an attachment for printing In colors. Both the new presses will be driven by electric power by direct connection, the motors being built In the machines. These presses represent the very latest development In printing ma- ' chines, and with them The Oregonlan t will have unsurpassed facilities for turn- j lngt out a modern newspaper. j '.From Gutenberg to .Mergenthaler the basis of the printing art remained prac- j tlcaliy without change. For four and a i half centuries men set movable type by j hand; then all at once came a revolution In the business and machines took the 1 place of hand compositors, and a new basis of reckoning was established. An opera roi and a machine will do the wo-k ' of five men. and do It better. The Ore- l Sonlan kept its force and equipment In le composing-room up to the most mod- ern standard always, but for many years I that Involved little except adding to the capacity. In 1S04 the Mergenthaler lino- i type machines were put In. Ten of thrss j machines are now In operation in The j Oregonlan composing-room, and the en- j tire body of the paper Is set with them. A considerable part of the heading and display advertisements even is set with them. Various type faces arc used, and changes may be made at any time. The THE OREGONIAN'S FIRST PRESS. In 1850 The Oreconlaa waa printed on a Para age press, capable of printing about 100 papers per hoar. The primitive style of the machine is shown in the Above illustration. dreamt of when the first number of The Oregonlan was Issued. The mechanical agencies for collecting and distributing the news have been so wonderfully perfected In the half century The Oregonlan has been published that It Is a matter of minutes now where it for merly was a matter of weeks. A battle takes place In Africa or China and the news comes ticking into the newspaper ofiice, Is written out on a typewriter, goes through the hands of the telegraph editor, who sees that It reads straight, writes a heading and sends It to the com-posing-rooom. The foreman cuts the ac- for me to try my hand in giving to your readers' the trials and tribulations of the first "devil" that wielded the broom, the "briar" and the "roller" at the advent of The Oregonlan, December 4, 1850. It Is somewhat of a task to think back in detail for a period of 60 years, and my data may not be up to chronometer cor rectness; yet I will endeavor to note down events that may come to my mind connected with my career and appren ticeship on The Oregonlan, and the con tinuance of many years' service up to the advent of the linotype, as carrier, "devil" and compositor. Fifty years ago! How well I remember being ushered Into the august presence of the foreman, Mr. Berry, by Mr. Dryer, the editor and proprietor. In his gruff but good-natured way he remarked: "Here, Mr. Berry, Is a boy for you. Put him to work. I think he will fill the bill and make a first-rate "devil. " I was somewhat astonished at the re mark as to the "devil" part, but it was not long before I found out its meaning In its fullest Import. Thfe being my first Job on my own hook, I felt somewhat important. My first "official" act was the acceptance of a new broom, and by the foreman was given the injunction to sweep clean. This task being finished, I was taken into a small room in the rear of the composing-room and introduced to a largo copper kettle, known by the pressman as the "composition kettle," with an order from my worthy boss to extract- the glucose substance from the inner lining of said receptacle. I went to work with a will, and after about 10 hours' scraping and polishing: "handed, my work over as finished in good shape. I was then promoted to washing rollers, mixing ink, etcx, winding up my Imtla- MMt-) ")$ - ' . ,7-'i,'- C H. Hill, Eajrly Oregonlan "Devil" sad Compositor. COMPOSITOR AT HIS CASE. Betting" type by hand has been superseded In the modern composing-room by machines. The old-time compositor, showr In the above Illustration, has slven way before the advance of improved machinery. change from hand composition to ma chines is the only material one that has come to "the art of typesetting since The are comparatively few. This form of Illustrating is by no means outgrown. Half-tone pictures have largely super- Oregonlan first appeared, and this pap:r j seded line drawings, however. In cases was among the earlier ones to take ad- j where good photographic copy can be ob vantage of the Improvement. J talned. The Oregonlan made no attempt to ! The facilities for transmltilng new3 and maintain an art department or to print I preparing "copy" have greatly Improved illustrations until about 10 years ago. j since the first number of The Oregonlan J Then an artist was added to Its staff, and j appeared Is 1S50. For many years there UmtmmtMMUHtHMMMf count into "takes" of convenient length and numbers them, and compositors each take a "take" and set the matter at the machines. A galley boy takes proofs of' the matter, and these s to the proof readers, who mark any errors that may have been made In setting. The proofs then go to the men who set the matter, and they set corrected lines, which are then put in place of the faulty ones. Then the matter goes to tne imposing stone, where the forms, or pages, are made up, and the battle news, being Im portant, Is put on the first page with a big heading over It. In the meantime an artist has drawn a portrait of the leading General or map of the battle-field, and It THE MODERN TYPESETTING MACHINE. One man can. on a Mergenthaler linotype, perform the labor of five composi tors by the old hand process. Ten of these machines are running day and night In The Oregonlan office. globe are waiting for us at our door when we rise this morning. "While one set of men was getting the telegraphic news into the paper, another set was attend ing to local news, and another set to ad- takes Its place In the page. "When the vertisemen-ts. and so on with all the de- page Is filled. It goes on a truck to the j partments and elements of the news-stereotyplng-room. where an Impression paper. Perhaps In no other line of hu of it Is taken in moist papier-mache, that I man endeavor has the progress of the Is baked hard, and this serves as a mold J past half century been more marked. tory services by being sent to a first-class hotel near by after a "bucket of edi torial." The ofiice was at tnat time lo cated In the second story of a building at the northwest corner of Front and Morrison streets. It was there that The Oregonlan was born, and most vividly do I call to mind what a time was indulged in at the birth. The outside had been printed, and the name to be given to the first paper pub lished In Portland., A sheet was carefully laid upon the form, the foreman taking the impression, -when the guests each tools hold of the paper by the edge and care fully lifted it from the types. At this juncture Mr. Dryer proclaimed the namev "The Oregondan," amid cheers and con gratulations. Those participatins', as I re member, were: Messrs. Daniel H. Lowns dale, W. W. Chapman, Stephen Coffin (the proprietors of tho townsite). Ami P. Dennison, A. P. Ankeny, W. "W. Baker, J. Terwilllger, Thomas and James Steph ens, Job McNamee, Benjamin Allen, T. J. Dryer, Mr. Berry, and others whom I cannot bring to mind at present. "W. "W. Baker and the writer are, I think, the only two now living of the party assem bled at the christening on that memorable night. The office was afterward moved to the northeast corner of First and Mor rison, the present location, of the Occi dental Hotel. There it was that the plant was enlarged and an additional force of printers addeflr. "Wages at that time were $25 per week. There are those yet in Portland who will remember that force of "jolly good fellows, most of whom have joined the silent ma jority. "W. A. Daly arrived about this time, first mate of a vessel from Hono lulu. He was a practical printer, and soon took a situation on' The Oregonlan, where he worked for a number of years. John Riley, Daniel Lindsay, Edward Shef field, George Dee and E. T. Gunn were among printers who were at various times employed in the office. H. Ij. Pit tock became foreman of 'the office, la course of a few years, and were it not for his well-known aversion to appeartna In public print, I could and would chro-a-dle many incidents in his admlnlstratlroa of affairs that made the "boys" happy-, as matters were in a somewhat muddled condition when he took charge. To mj! own knowledge, it was a continuous struggle during the '60s and '60c The carrier boy's experience in theweerlTj days of Portland was varied, and ccm siderable hardship and fatigue was gon through, as he was always loaded with from 100 to 10 copies on each, of his trips going first north from Morrison ami thea south to the southern limit. The street if such they could be called, were In a primitive state no sidewalks, and soma not even, graded. In fact, they were-nearly In as bad condition as some of them' at the present day. In Chose days the carrier looked forwards with -great ex pectations and pleasure when his "car-, rier's address" was to appear, grenersily New Tear's day, whereby he waa kindly; remembered and remunerated! by his pa trons, some giving liberally, other scant ily; but, all In all, it was cheering- to the faithful carrier. One gentleman, I remem ber with kindly feelings, gave me tS for a copy of my first address, and bis next door neighbor gave me23cents very retuc. tantly,with the admonition that he wished after this I would "get his paper to him by 6 A. ML, as he desired to be at hla store by 7." Comment is unnecessary, as he doesn't need the paper now. T. J. Dryer wrote my first address, Sylvester Pennoyer my second, and my good) frieml and fellow-craftsman, Ed Sheffield, my third. The latter, I learn, Is now prac ticing law. in some of the Eastern cities. The practice of giving carrier "boys a New Year's address has seemingly long gone out of date, being supplanted by monster New Tear editions, whereby all concerned are benefited by large sales, and a corresponding largo per cent to the carrier. A few months after the- establishment of The Oregonlan I cannot state as to the exact time there came upon the field seefcin-g patronage and support' a news paper plant, editor, proprietors and print ers, the Star, which had made a start at Mllwaukle, Clackamas . County. The above town was considered then the fu ture metropolis, being at that time thought to be at the head of navigation. This paper was edited by John Orvis Wa terman, a Vermonter, but nevertheless a Democrat of the Jeffersonlan-simpllcity stripe. The proprietors were "W. D. Car ter and R. D. Austin. They located their office on First street, between Stark and "Washington, afterward on "Washington between First and Second. Mr. Dryer was an earnest and forcible writer, and. It may be truthfully said, fought for that which he thought was right and just, at great odds against him, during the territorial days of Oregon. There are those alive today that remember him as the "war horse" in the Republican ranks, with his chariot of deatruotlon against anything Democratio C. H. HTTJj. K