History of Printing and Paper-Making

Printing from letters engraved on blocks of wood is an ancient art, having had its origin in China many centuries before the Christian era. The Chinese method, which is still followed, was to write their characters with a brush on a sheet of paper, and while still wet, the piece of paper was laid face downward on a smooth piece of board to transfer the ink lines, and then all except the ink lines on the board was cut away. Thus they have one type plate for each book page. Printing with movable type, i. e., with a separate type for each letter, which may be repeatedly set up into forms of varying composition, is practically the beginning of the modern art of printing. This invention is usually ascribed to Johann Gutenberg, of Mentz, about 1436.

In the earliest printing presses the form was locked up in a tray, and placed upon a platform, and the platen was then brought down upon it by turning a screw in a cross bar above. The first printing press of this type was made by Blaew, of Amsterdam, in 1620, which had a spring to cause the screw to fly back after the impression was taken. The press upon which Benjamin Franklin worked in London in 1725 is of this pattern, and is to be seen in the National Museum at Washington.