page 35

Recent Specimens.

Messrs Stephenson, Blake, & Co. send us five octavo specimen-sheets of their second series of combination rules, the patterns of which are registered. We are glad to note that they are arranged to picas—or rather, what is not quite so convenient, to 1½ pica. The extra nonpareil in the unit of the design prevents them from falling in with such every-day measures as 8, 10, 14, 16, 20, and 22 ems. The designs are original, and form an unlimited number of beautiful borders. There are only six primary rules, but for ordinary use they are made up in sections of four rules, the combinations of which it would take a long time to exhaust. Six new corners are provided, the largest, No. 11, being precisely similar to four of No. 2 arranged as a square.

The Patent Typefounding Company have brought out in six sizes with lower-case a good and useful style, entitled « Concave Extended » —a good descriptive name.

The Dickinson Foundry show several new styles. « Latin Antique, » eight sizes, with lower-case, is a good bold legible letter, carrying plenty of color. The word-ornaments supplied with the founts are, in our view, inappropriate to so plain a style, and detract from its effect. In an ordinary composing-room, however, they would soon travel away from the fount. « Colonial » is a good condensed latin, slightly eccentric in cut, in seven sizes, caps only. This enterprising house has sent us their « pony » specimen. ( « Pony » is the latest Yankee slang for anything small or compact—in contra-distinction, we suppose, to the equally objectionable « Mammoth. » ) This is a very neatly-printed little book of sixteen pages. In it we note six sizes of « Artistic » —a very pretty light condensed with lower-case, and seven sizes of « Kenaissant, » a very similar, but heavier face. The latest product of this foundry is « Quaint, » a solid letter, the exact counterpart of « Quaint Open, » with which it works in register. Will the founders kindly send us about half-a-dozen specimen letters by mail,—including, say, E, V, M, and U—that all Typo's readers may see how intensely ugly this design is?

The Central Typefoundry, St. Louis, send us a little specimenbook containing examples of their new and standard original styles. Among the new faces the most novel in idea is a letter called « Hades, » in four sizes. It is something like the « Enchorial, » with a backward slope, but its peculiarity is that it consists of the shade only, the body of the letter not being indicated, even in outline. The shade is left-handed. We have seen similar faces before in two-color founts, but only as adjuncts to the solid letter. We have met with letters of the kind on survey plans and occasionally on sign-boards, and it is remarkable how, in a line of such letters, the mind supplies the missing outlines. « Erebus » is a solid letter to correspond, and the two worked together in colors produce an excellent effect. « University » is a pretty light-face broad roman in three sizes, with a very decided bracket to the serif, « Word ornaments, » series E, 41 characters, are similar to many previous series of line ornaments, with which they would combine well, « Combination ornaments, » series K, 36 characters, are heavily flourished and free in design, and would be an acquisition to a tasteful printer. Series L, 28 sorts, contains some good pieces, but is too much in the « slob » style to be a thing of beauty. From the sorts 9-13 and 19-22 very neat borders may be formed.

The Franklin Typefoundry, Cincinnati, have brought out eleven sizes of « Gothic No 1 » —a bold and well-cut heavy sanserif with lower-case.

Barnhart Bros. & Spindler show a good expanded eccentric with lower-case, very black, entitled « Peerless. »

Both in Boston and New York the lithographic artists and engravers have associated for social intercourse and mutual protection.