Printing for the Blind.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXX, Issue 32, 7 August 1902, Page 15

Printing for the Blind.

Thh New York Sunday Time* gives an interesting account of a printing houße established with the object of supplying religious books to the blind. Several volumes have already been turned out, and placed in varioui libraries throughout the United States. It •ay a : —

There has been established at West Sixteenth Street a printery of religious books for the blind. It was founded and is controlled by Father Joseph Stadelman, S.J. While there are many books printed for the blind, Father Stadelman says that scarcely any of them are of a religious character. Since the blind, of all others, turn to religion, he has devoted himself to the development of the religious nature of those people, whom misfortune has placed in a world apart, with different ways of thinking from that of others. He is now placing within the reach of the 75,000 blind people of the United States, througrh the medium of the public libraries,— books which will give them the solace of religion. The society also publishes a ten-page magazine called the Catholic Transcript for the Blind.

A new Byatem of printing in tangible characters was introduced with the stenographic shorthand of Lucas and the phonetic of Frcre. In Frere's system the lines run alternately from right to left, bo that the fingers run on from line to line without interruption. The system used by Father Stadelman is one invented by Braille, a Frenchman, and modified by William B. Waite of the New York Institute for the Blind. The machine invented by Mr Waite is known aa the 'stereograph,' and works like a typewriter, with but six keys. By a variation of the keys 62 different signs are obtained. Ab the keyi are operated, ' points,' or indents, are cut into a sheet of brass or zinc about 12 by H inches in size. The ' points ' look like a series of dot impressions made in horizontal lines on the ■heet. At a casual glance the lines look like music bars. This indented sheet is placed in a hand-press, a piece of starched paper of the same size is placed on it, and thus the impressions are transferred. But one side of the paper is printed on, and when dried it preserves the dot impressions remarkably well. The passing of the finger over the sheet does not wear the marki off. It requires about 10 days to print in this manner a book of ICO pages, and the cost is perhaps 8s a volume. The books are bound by hand, and when finished look as large a» a email bound newspaper. The books can be illustrated where surfaces only are necessary to convey the idea.

Wanted Known.— That for acute Bronchitis or Pneumonia TUSSICTJRA is an immediate and permanent remedy. — %*