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Print Buyers Guide

Terminology just for fun

Printing - the art preservative of all arts.

Alligator Press - a job press used between 1845 and 1860. “It closed the tympan and platen very rapidly and often seriously injured the feeder.”

Beating - to apply ink to a form by means of inking balls.

Old Pelt - an old pressman.

Out of Truth - a book that is not cut square.

Out of His Time - an apprentice who has completed his apprenticeship.

Mackle - an accidental double impression or image on a press sheet. (Sounds like the crumpling of a sheet of paper)

Mutton Fist - the pointing hand used to draw attention. It is similar to the *return to sender* stamp used by the post office. (Mutton Fist?)

Mutton Thumper - A bad workman. (There is a lot of it going around)

Naked Form - A form of type waiting for or stripped of the wooden furniture that held it in place on the press.

Note of Admiration - an old name for an exclamation mark!

Objectional Man - the person who distributes or returns type to the case that is more difficult than usual. This type was objectional to the other typesetters. The objectional man got a higher wage.

Polling Backwards - a typesetter who intentionally works slowly.

Polyautography - printing one’s own handwriting from a lithographic stone.

Scabby - uneven or rotten color in printing.

Short Sort - type that is about to run out.

Twicer - a term of contempt for a person who professes to work both as a typesetter and press operator. This term applied when there was severe competition between the pressroom and composing room.

Unfair Fonts - foundry type that is very thin. It took more letters to fill a page so the compositor had to work harder for his wages.

Wetting Down - The process of wetting paper in water prior to printing. Printing papers sometimes had a rough surface and the process of wetting allowed the metal type to make a better impression.

Working in Pocket - Typesetters who worked on a job together and split the pay equally.

Wayzgoose - (or Wayzegoose) a holiday or party for the benefit of the printers. Originally it meant a fat goose suitable for stuffing. Another name for a printer’s party was “beanfest”. (Supposedly the later originated in a less prosperous shop.)

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