to Fig. 1753, that the forms of type and the inking table have to travel backwards and forwards for each revolution of the paper or printing cylinder-backwards to be inked, and forwards to be printed. In the Times machine, the frame has a motion of 88 inches in each direction. Now it is evident that in the reciprocating motion there must be two dead stops for every revolution of the printing cylinder, and if the machine be worked at a high rate of speed, the momentum acquired by the heavy metal table must render it liable by its sudden stoppage to rupture some part of the apparatus. It was found, moreover, that in sheets of so large a magnitude as those employed in printing the Times, each layer-on could not deliver them with the required precision at a more rapid rate than 2 in 5 seconds, or 25 per minute, which is at the rate of 1,500 sheets per hour; or with 4 cylinders, and 4 layers-on, 6,000 sheets per hour. It was, however, required to produce at least 10,000 sheets per hour, and this it was found would require 7 printing cylinders, the arrangement of which in one machine presented mechanical difficulties of a very formidable kind. Mr.Applegath therefore determined to abandon the reciprocating motion of the table, and to adopt a continuous circular motion. We may suppose his first crude idea to have been to set up the old machine on one of its sides, so that instead of the drums and cylinders moving on horizontal axes, they should move on vertical axes. In the machine as it actually exists, there is a central drum, Fig. 1754, 200 inches in circumference, or 64 inches in diameter, capable of moving on a vertical axis. The inking table and the columns of type are secured to the surface of this drum: the columns of type are placed vertically, not conforming to the curve of the drum, but forming the sides of a polygon, the axis of which coincides with that of the drum. This is contrived in the following manner:-A slab of iron is curved on its under side, so as to fit the large cylinder, while its upper surface is filed into facets or flat parts, corresponding in width and number to the width and number of the columns of the newspaper; between each column there is a strip of steel, with a thin edge to print the "rule"-the body of this strip being wedge-shaped, so as to fill up the angular space left between the columns of type, and to press the type together sideways, or in the direction of the lines; the type is pressed together in the other direction by means of screws, and is therefore firmly held together. The surface of the type thus forms a portion of a polygon, as already noticed; and the regularity of the impres- | revolution of the drum. This is accomplished by sion is obtained by pasting slips of paper on the means of 8 sets of inking rollers, one for each paper paper cylinders. The large central drum is sur-cylinder. The ink is held in a vertical reservoir (suprounded by 8 cylinders, each about 13 inches in 'plied from above), formed of a ductor roller, against diameter, also with vertical axes. They are covered which rest two straight-edges connected at the back, with cloth, and upon them the paper to be printed is so as to prevent the ink from running out. It is carried by means of tapes. Each of these cylinders conveyed from the ductor roller by one of the inking is so connected with the central drum by means of rollers in the following manner:-As the inking toothed wheels, that the surface of each must move table on the revolving drum passes the ductor roller, with the same velocity as the surface of the drum. it receives from it a coating of ink; and then coming It will thus be evident, that if the type on the drum immediately in contact with the inking rollers, it inks be inked, and each of the cylinders be properly sup- them; the types next follow and receive from the plied with a sheet of paper, a single revolution of inking rollers their coating of ink, and the drum, still the drum will cause the 8 cylinders to revolve also, revolving, brings the inked type into contact with and produce an impression on one side of each of the paper cylinders, and the sheet is printed. It the sheets of paper. But for this purpose it is must not be forgotten as one of the distinguishing necessary that the type be inked 8 times during one features of this machine, that the various processes which have just been enumerated for one set of inking rollers, and one paper cylinder, are repeated 8 times for every single revolution of the central drum, so that in this period 8 sheets are printed, and turned out of the machine. For this purpose it is necessary to supply the 8 cylinders each with a sheet of paper. Over each cylinder is a sloping desk, h, upon which a number of sheets of white paper are placed. The layer-on stands by the side of this desk, and pushes forward the paper a sheet at a time towards the tape fingers of the machine. These tapes seize it and draw it down in a vertical direction between tapes in the 8 vertical frames until its vertical edges correspond with the position of the form of type on the drum. When in this position its vertical motion is arrested for a moment, it then moves horizontally and is carried towards the printing cylinder by the tapes. Passing round this cylinder, it is instantly printed. It is then conveyed horizontally by means of tapes to the other side of the frame, and is moved along to another desk, where the takeroff pulls it down. As soon as one sheet is thus disposed of, accommodation is made for another, and as each layer-on delivers to the machine 2 sheets every 5 seconds, 16 sheets are thus printed in that brief space, and this is continued for any length of time, supposing no accident occurs, such as a sheet going wrong, in which case it is the duty of the taker off to pull a bell handle, and the machine is instantly stopped by the engineman. As the type form on the central drum moves at the rate of 70 inches per second, and the paper to be printed moves at the same rate, if by any error in the delivery or motion of a sheet of paper it arrive at the printing cylinder th of a second too soon or too late the relative position of the columns on one side as compared with those on the other side of the paper will be out of register by th of 70 inches, viz. 1 inch, in which case the edge of the printed matter on one side will be an inch ncarer to the edge of the paper than on the other side. By inaccuracy in the delivery of the paper to the machine, we do not mean that each layer-on must deliver his sheet at the right instant of time; this would lead to strange irregularities and render fast printing impossible. No; all he has to do is to draw forward the sheets so as always to have the edge of one ready for the machine to take in, which it does by the mechanism which we are about to describe in the following detailed account. If the steam engine which works the machine be put on a greater speed, the central drum and all the attendant apparatus would work with greater rapidity, and such a speed might easily be attained as to render it impossible for the layers-on to present the paper fast enough to satisfy the improved appetite of the machine; but in any case the machine would not take in the sheets as the layers-on chose to present them, but only at those periods, rapidly recurring though they be, which are provided by the peculiar functions of the machine. There is in fact an apparatus provided, the function of which is similar to the segmental wheel Q, noticed in the description of the two-cylinder machine. In the following figures the same letters of reference refer to the same parts of the machine. a, a, is the large vertical drum, forming the centre of the system, mounted on the shaft b, b, and driven by the bevel wheel and pinion c, d, the shaft of the pinion d being supported on the floor, and carried to the prime bottom of the upper and lower type holders, Fig. 1755. The four pages of type thus prepared are bolted to the rings of the central drum. It will be observed that the impression cylinders are not arranged symmetrically around the central drum. A greater space is left between one pair than between the others, in order to give room to get at the type, which can only be done when it is in the position shown in Fig. 1754. mover, which in this case is a direct action or disc | from one end by a set-screw, as shown at top and steam engine. ff, are the 8 impression cylinders, driven by the spur wheel e; the same speed is therefore secured between the circumference of the drum (with the type) and the circumference of each impression cylinder. The columns of type, as already mentioned, are fixed in the four type holders g, g. Between the columns of type are the rules, which are fitted into the top and bottom of the type holder in a similar way to a metal saw in its frame. These rules are made like the keystone of an arch, to fill up the space left at the junction of the columns, owing to the angle which the columns form with each other in their position as sides of a polygon. In order to avoid the possibility of the type escaping from its place, in screwing it up, the centre rule in the type holder is a fixture; and each column is jammed up One of the systems of apparatus for supplying the impression cylinders with sheets of paper, is shown in Fig. 1757. This will enable the reader to understand how the paper is brought to a vertical position, and moved laterally in its passage through the machine. The sheets of paper are piled on the feeding board h, Figs. 1754, 1757, and are pushed forward, one by one, by the layer on, over the centre of the feeding frame. The rollers m, m, and n, n, and the tapes drum i, Fig. 1755, k, k, are two small fluted rollers, with them, open, and leave the sheet in its vertical fixed on the dropping bar, and driven by tapes off the position, held up by the stoppers. The opening of roller 7. At the right moment this bar turns on its the rollers m, m, and n, n, is effected by their bearings centre 1, and k k drops, as shown in the figure, and being mounted in the ends of levers, and these levers by its motion advances the sheet of paper between are made to act upon each other by means of the the rollers i and . The motion of the sheet is then toothed segments shown in the figure. The cam r continued downwards by tapes passing around the lifts the links, which moves the top pair of rollers rollers m, m, and n, n. The paper is steadied in them, m, while the motion is conveyed to the lower pair, 7 9 Fig. 1756. PLAN. whole of its course by numerous tapes, only a few of which are represented. The down tapes pass round the feeding roller and the smaller rollers m, m, and n, n, and carry the sheet with them until its progress is arrested by two long narrow strips of wood 0, 0, covered with woollen cloth, and called "stoppers," one pair of which is advanced forward against the other pair, which is fixed. The motion of this stopper frame is effected by means of the camp, Fig. 1757, which acts upon the arms 99, 99, attached to the Fig. 1757. END VIEW OF THE FEEDING APPARATUS. ", n, by the connecting rod t, which is loaded with a weight at bottom to keep the friction roller on the cam r. The sheet of paper being held up by the stoppers, the latter are now relaxed, and the weight of the paper is taken by two pairs of small fingers, or suspending rollers, at the top of the sheet, which are brought together by a cam, and, pressing slightly together, hold the sheet up during the instant of time that the stoppers are relaxing, and until the three pairs of vertical rollers u u, u u, u u, Figs. 1755, 1757, are brought into contact to communicate the lateral motion to the sheet. The vertical rollers are all driven at the same speed as the printing drum by means of bevel wheels and pinions, as shown. The three front rollers, u, u, u, are mounted in a hanging frame,, and the pinions at bottom are driven through the bevel pinions and the shaft w, w, which is made with a universal joint to allow of the motion of the frame v, v. The back rollers are driven in a similar way, but their centres are stationary. The proper motion is communicated to the hanging frame ʊ, v, by a cam, similar to p, acting upon the lever and friction pulley, the motion being communicated through the levers y, y, Fig. 1757. Immediately on the rollers being brought into contact with the paper, it is advanced by their motion into the mouth of two sets of horizontal tapes, which pass round the drums 2 and 3, (also driven by gearing,) and carry the sheet onwards towards the impression cylinder f, where it is printed, and whence it returns in the direction of the arrows, the dotted line showing its path. The sheet of paper in its passage out meets with another set of endless tapes at the roller 4, Fig. 1756, which assist it out as far as the roller 5, where these tapes return and leave the sheet to complete its course by the action of a single pair of suspending tapes at the top of the sheet, and pressed lightly together by the pulleys 6. On arriving at the outer pulley these tapes are forcibly pressed together by a lever and stopped, and thus hold the sheet of paper suspended and ready for the taker-off to draw down, and place on the taking-off board 7-an operation very easily performed. The method of counteracting the deviation of the faces of the columns of type from a true circle is as follows: strips of paper are pasted down the impression cylinder, in width equal to each column. Other narrower strips of paper are pasted in the centre of these, and other strips, narrower still, until the surface of the impression cylinder becomes a series of segments of smaller circles, agreeing sufficiently with the required curve to produce a perfect impression of the type over the whole width of the column. The ink is supplied to the type by 3 inking-rollers (shown on the type gg, Fig. 1755), between each 2 impression-cylinders. These rollers receive their ink from revolving in contact with a curved inking table, placed on the central printing drum opposite to the form of type. The ink is communicated to the inking table by two vibrating rollers, alternately in contact with it and the ductor roller. The ductor roller 9, Fig. 1756, forms one side of an ink-box from which, as it revolves by the bevel gearing, 10 and 11, it withdraws a portion of ink. The two ink-boxes are kept full by a reservoir placed above them. The inking rollers are caused to press in contact with the inking table by means of coiled springs, as shown, and their brass bearings are also furnished with set-screws to hold them in close contact with the type, as it passes, in a similar manner to other quick machines. The spindles of the inking rollers are also provided with small friction wheels at top and bottom, which run upon a | brass bearer on the central drum; by which they are kept from being drawn into the drum by their springs, except at the proper time. There is an advantage incidental to the vertical position of the type and the paper; viz., that the ink does not sink into the type as it does when it is placed horizontally, and on that account the type is kept much cleaner. In looking at a copy of the Times, it will occasionally be observed that the impression is not exactly in the centre of the paper. Now, the only wonder really is, that it should be so nearly true. The type and the paper move at about the rate of 6 feet per second, so that an error in the arrival of a sheet of paper to the impression cylinder of th of a second would cause an error of 1 inch in the margin. Yet so accurately is this performed, that the waste of sheets is considerably less with this machine than with the old horizontal ones. Some little difficulty was experienced at first in carrying on the paper, when vertical, without buckling it. This difficulty was conquered by introducing an additional roller, to give the paper a slight angle, instead of drawing it out in a straight line, which had the effect of stiffening it, on the same principle as corrugating a plate of iron. The produce of this machine might readily be doubled, by having two forms of type on the central drum, instead of one, and if there were not space for two machines, the additional eight laying-on boards and feeding drums might be made in a story above the present ones.1 The following are interesting statistics relative to the printing of the Times :-On the 7th of May, 1850, the Times and Supplement contained 72 columns, or 17,500 lines, made up of upwards of 1,000,000 pieces of type, of which matter about ths were written, composed, and corrected after 7 o'clock in the evening. The Supplement was sent to press at 7.50, P.M., the first form of the paper at 4.15, A.M., and the second form at 4.45, A.M.; on this occasion 7,000 papers were published before 6.15, A.M., 21,000 papers before 7.30, A.M., and 34,000 before 8.45, A.M., or in about four hours. The largest number of copies ever printed in one day was 70,000, and this was on the 14th of November, 1852, the day after the Duke of Wellington's funeral. As there was no supplement on this day, the whole of the impression was printed at the two vertical machines, one of which now prints 11,000 per hour, and the other 12,000 per hour, not including stoppages. The whole of this enormous impression was worked without once washing the rollers or brushing the form. As such numbers as these may not convey to every reader an adequate idea of the enormous amount of material consumed in the publication of this wonderful journal, we may (1) Mr. Applegath's machine was described by the late Professor Cowper, in Mr. Weale's "London Exhibited," 1851. There is also a carefully prepared account of the machine in the Artizan; and in the Mechanic's Magazine, No. 1509, is an account of Mr. Applegath's new vertical machine, which is capable of printing 16,000 per hour. We have to thank Mr. J. Applegath, of the Times office, for his attention to our wishes during several visits to his brother's printing machine. |