Evening Star Newspaper, March 16, 1930, Page 103

intent were they upon settling their dispute that they did not notice that the foim, which probably weighed around 200 poumds, had worked, up ta the head of the cakt. No soener had they let go the handle than 6 flopped clean over. When the cart was removed there was to be seen thé finest case of “pi” any one would care to see. Type, slugs, cuts, leads, rule, reglet, and everything that then went to make up a form was there in one conglomerated mass. There was absolutely no salvage, every bit of the type had to be reset and distributed before it could be used again, and the most remark- able part of all to the writer was that these two men, the last he saw of them, were down on their hands and knees scooping up the type and the other printing material and carefully putting it into the cart, when they would have shown better judgment to quit the job there and then. If they never did before, they surely needed a friend that day. ; Speaking of old-time printers, and printing, the writer has often wondered if, after’ all, much of the revolutionizing of printing is not due to two Washington men, who in 1819 were granted a patent for printing by means of rollers. Their names were Burgess Allison and William Elliot. To explain the situation, all printing today is done with rsllers made prin- cipally of molasses, blue and glycerin, while prior to 1813 a ball made mainly of pelt or composition, or a daub, was used. It was in the last year mentioned—or four years ago before the Washington patent—that two Englishmen, Richard McKenzie Bacon and Bryan Donkin, invented a roller which consisted of an iron ‘center covered with leather, which in turn was covered with roller composition. Just what the exact construction of the Wash- ington patent was the writer does not know, but if it followed out the lines of what we use today, or even led up to it, then it was an epochal invention, and deserves mention *even above all other patents issued to the many re- markable inventors who have lived in this city. JPERHAPS the writer passed oyef Peler Force * too briefly last Sunday, for of all the print- ers of 'this city, from the very beginning ‘to the present time, none -is worthy of quite sb muich praise as he, and what he kas ‘done for his adopted city and the country at large will ever be remembered as long as this gratéful Nation survives. # 3 Ainsworth R. Spofford, librarian of Congress for many years, and an enthusiastic'miembér of the Columbia Historical Society, to'whose pub- lications he was an able and willing contributor, has left with us an excellent account of the life of this distinguished printer and historfan which is well worth drawing from for this article. Among several things, Mr. Spofford has said: “Peter Force lived for more than half a cen- tury in Washington, having removed here in 1815 from New York. He found Washington a straggiing village of wood, and left it a stately Henry Polkinhorn, one of Washingion’s early employing printers. 26, 1790, his father, William' Force, being of the veterans of the Revolutionsry ' 14 T Fi THE . SUNDAY.. STAR, . WASHINGTON;, D,s C.. "MARCH :16,", 1930; R. O. Polkinhorn’s Printing Office, at 638 D street, where the National Intelligencer was printed subsequent to 1865. dent and a printer in this city. Here he soon became known as an active and public-spirited citizen, whose judgment and sagacity made an impress upon all who were brought into contact with him. In the seventh year of his residence he was elected to the city council, then to the board of aldermen, being chosen president by both bodies, and in 1836 he was elected mayor of Washington, and served hy re-election four years—until 1840. Besides thus filling with signal -ability and dignity the highest civil of- fices in the gift of his fellow-citizens, he was also honored with the highest military officey having been made successively captain; lieuten- ant colonel, colonel and major-general in the Militia of the District of Columbia. He was also for some years president of the National In- stitute for the Promotion of Science. “BU'!‘ the ‘great distinetive service rendered by Peter Force to his countrymen was far above the province of the highest official sta- tion or military rank. Very early in life he evinced a zealous interest in historical investiga« tions, and four years after coming to Washing- ton he originated and published an annual de- voted to recording the faets of history, with statistical and official information of a varied character. This ‘National Calendar and Annals of the United States,’ as he called it, antedated by 10 years the publication of the old American Almanac, and was continuously published here from 1820 to 1836, except the years 1825, 1826 and 1827, when none were printed. In 1823 Force established a semi-weekly newspaper, the National Journal, which became a daily in 1824, and was continued until 1831. This joural was independent in politics, with moderate and conservative views upon public questions, and it drew to its columns some noted contributors, among them John Quincy Adams. “The high-minded conduct of this paper in doing justice to the opponents of the admin- istration once led to a committee of the ruling party (which it then supported) waiting upon Col. Force and asking him to permit them to edit or revise the political columns with a view a proposition to me.’ : “Among Mr. Force’s publications of greatest tion. “The of American Archives, the great monumental work of his life, was published at intervals from 1837 to 1853. It embraces the period of history from 1774 to December, 1776, in nine stately follo volumes, printed in double column and most thoroughly indexed. These archives constitute a storehouse of original in- formation about two momentous years of the revolutioary struggle, and especially concerning the Declaration of Independence, of inestimable value. To this work, the bold conception of his own mind, to contain nothing less than the or- iginal fountains of American history, repro- duced in systematic chronological order, he dedicated his long and useful life. For it he assembled, with keen, discriminating judgment and unwearied toil, that great collection of historical material which now forms an invalu- able part of the Congressional Library. “Nor was the literary and historical zeal of the subject of our sketch by any means con- fined to the early history of America. He dig- nified and adorned his profession of printer, as did Benjamin Pranklin before him, by original authorship in many fields. He was pro- foundly interested in the annals of the art of printing and the controversies over its true in- ventor. He gathered by assiduous search a small library of books printed in the infancy of the art, represting every year from 1467 (his earliest black-letter imprint) up to 1500 and later, He studied the subject of Arctic explora- tions, collecting all books published in that field, and himself writing upon it. He was the first to discover and publish in the columns of the National Intelligencer the true history of the K ‘Declaration of Independ- ence’ -of May, 1775, proving by contemporan- eous newspapers he had acquired that the true resolutions were of date May 31, and that the so-called declaration of May 20, was spurious.” SOME day, maybe, the printers of Washington will erect & monument to Peter Force. It would indeed be a grateful tribute to & great man, known printers who formerly worked on The Star, perhaps the writer failed to mention the - name of John Heydler, president of the Na+ tional Base Ball League, and no doubt there are others whom he cannot now recall. : Just 30 years ago, James Croggon, in writing - of old-time printers working in the composing room of the National Intelligencer before 1820, . mentions the following: . Simon Cameron, Prancis Coyle, Andrew Tate, John H. Wade, . John Erskine, Thomas G. Foster, Judah Delano, Thomas. Larner, John S. Gallagher, Michael Caton, George Cochran, James Wilson, W. Kerr, ially in the Upited States Senatg and as . of War in the cabinet of President’ coln, -8 undoubtedly* well known. : Of the printers on the National Intelligencer from 1820 to 1830, Mr. Croggon mentions the* following: Luther Leverence, Lambert Tree, James O'Bryon, James Clephane, Thomas Herty, W. Faithful, John Stockwell, Andrew Rothwell, Jehiel Crossfield John Frank, James King, John Bailey, Andrew Carothers, Enoch White, Michall Larner, Samuel Sherwood, Willlam O’Bryon, John T. Whitaker, James Handley, James ‘Thompson, - Thomas Dowling, John Dowling, Enoch Edmonston, T. K. Collins, Robert €. Berret, John T. Bitler, Jonathan Wilson, Wil- liam Woodward, Eugene Laporte, John Hart, Lynde Elliot, Ferd Jefferson, Thomas Francis and W. W. Halliday. Between 1830 and 1840 the Intelligencer force included: Christian Klopfer, J. T. Halliday, E. Kleiber, M. P. Crider, T. J. Halliday, A. P. Cunningham, C. P. Wannell, W, Edelin, Jo Gales Johnson, E. B. Robinson, Oscar Alexan+ der, G. W. Hodges, Joseph L. Bennet, John T. Towers, L. A. Gobright, W. A. Kennedy, John L. Smith, W. E. Marcoe, Eleazer Brown, R. A, Waters, Jonathan Kirkwood, Lem Towers, Thomas G. Foster, James E. Given, P. J, Waters, Henry Polkinhorn, A. T. Cavis, E. M, Spedden, J. C. Franzoni, Columbus Drew, Josiah Melvin, J. G. Sample, Joseph B. Tate; Samuel Shefwood, J. T. C. Clark, Joshua T. Taylor, Jehiel Crossfield, C. W.' Pettit, John Larcombe, Frank McNerhany and James T, BESIDES mentioning Senator Cameron, Mr, Croggon refers to the following as having distinguished themselves in other fields: Luther Severence, who founded the Kennebec (Me.} Journal; William Woodward, who went West, published a paper and sent a son to Congress; L. A. Gobright, long the agent. of.the Asso- ciated Press; John T. Towers, who became mayor of Washington, and A. T. Cavis, Colum- bus Drew, Josiah Melvin and Joseph B. Tate, who afterward became editors and publishers; According to Mr. Croggon, after the transfer of the ‘éwnetship of the Intelligencer in 1865, the equipmient was removed from the north- west corner of D -and Seventh -streets to the Polkinhorn building ‘at 638 D. street, in the building which is still standing and the first floor of the old building converted into stores, occupied at different times by Sol and Abe Hable, G.' F. Timms, Robinson & Parker, R. Harris & Co. and others. 5 In referring to printers in Congress, of which there are now quite a number, the name of Amos J. Cummings cannot be omitted, for he was indeed one of the printers’ best friends. Nor in speaking of members of the craft who have distinguished themselves could we leave out Samuel Woodworth, author and poet, who wrote those beautiful lines—which we have sung so often—*“The Old Oaken Bucket,” eof which the following are two of the three verses: “How dear to this heart are the scenes of my childhood, R. O. Polkinhorn, proprietor of the well known printing establishment of that name. When fond recollection presents them o view!’ % ‘wildwood; And every loved spot which my infaney knew;. stood by it, . ¥ ; The bridge, and: the rock where ‘the cataract The cot. of .my father, the dairy-house nigh 8, . And e'en the rude bucket which bung in The old oaken bucket, the iron-bound bucket,. The: moss-covered bucket, which hung in the “How :dvvmmlmw“mmymh‘m_-fl‘v e . 3 As poised on the curb it inelined to my lips! Not :&w-fi:&mmmmmh Ve . now, far removed from the loved situstion, of regret will intrusively swell, m;lm*lfllnw' which bangs in the iron-bound hangs -