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Design in Typography. Initials.

Little need be added to what we have already written on this subject, in our article on page 2. We therein laid down the rules for lining, indentation, &c., which are observed by the best bookwork compositors. We have since met with extracts from DeVinne's Office Manual—one of the most concise and practical handbooks ever published—and we find substantially the same directions. In addition, Mr DeVinne has the following:

« In open display-work, a large initial letter may be used entirely out of line with good effect. »

This is an important exception to the strict rules of lining which apply to solid matter. It is not uncommon in open work for the line to start from the centre of the letter.

In the case of a plain two-line letter, in close work, it is quite allowable to line with the foot. The late Mr T. S. Houghton, in his Every-Day Book, expressed his preference for this method of lining, and followed it in every chapter.

Another good rule of Mr DeVinne's is this: « Never put a big letter at the end of a line to balance an initial at the beginning. » A common, but most objectionable practice.

A rule already given on p. 2—that where the pendant descends from the centre an equal space should be left on each side, is not of universal application. In the case of very large initials and close text, it sometimes leaves too large a white space on the page. As a general direction, however, it should always be borne in mind.

Initials are now used so extensively that the ingenuity of designers has been stimulated, and devices are at the disposal of the compositor which a few years ago were not thought of. Home of these we will shew below.

In typographic forms, there is none to excel the « Filigree, » which may be found employed pretty freely in our pages. It is a beautiful and legible style, harmonising equally with roman and old english, and combining admirably with the special ornaments supplied with the fount. A common style is an initial in white, on a solid or dotted ground. Those we shew are by Stephenson, Blake, & Co. The larger style is provided with some of the modern adjuncts already mentioned, in the shape of separate head-and foot-ornaments, and also brass frames of various patterns, giving a massive effect in a large page, and well adapted for color-work. Another pair of ornaments, suited specially to the E of the series, may be seen on page 45. Initials of this class are commonly and appropriately used with old-style headpieces on a dark background. When printed in red, with the text in black, they are very effective.

One of the finest initial alphabets ever engraved is the large classic series of Otto Weisert, used in the present series of articles. The L on this page is a beautiful example of the Egyptian style; and the whole series is marked by that harmony of detail characteristic of German work.

The floral style of initial decoration is well illustrated in the choice examples on pp. 20, 68, and 91; and original designs, with studies of native flowers, on pp. 8 and 43.

Exceedingly beautiful initials, adorned with Amorets or Cupids, are produced by German houses, and by none other. Genzsch & Heyse and Poppelbaum especially have excelled in this direction. Weisert has a series much like those of Genzsch & Heyse, but not of equal merit. German artists, more than any others, can draw the infant figure, nude or draped, in natural and graceful attitudes. In English work, such figures are very commonly stiff and out of drawing, and French work of the kind, though generally in correct drawing, may always be known by the affected stage-attitudes of the figures.

One of the latest devices is that of « initial ornaments, » or designs with an open space mortised to admit a type. The first of the specimens shewn above is by Reed, the other two by Miller & Richard. A sufficient number of designs is provided to avoid monotony, and a suitable letter being chosen, they may be very effectively used. They are in great favor, and the first one shewn above is also furnished with handsome ornaments at head and foot. In a still later style, a large corner-piece is provided with an opening for the initial, and a corresponding corner is provided to balance it on the other side.— And this brings us very near to the next division of our subject: « Vignettes. »

No more extraordinary initial alphabet was ever devised by a type-founder than « Series 42, » brought out by the Johnson Foundry two years ago. At the first casual glance, it appears to be a very pretty set, but upon examination every letter is found to be decorated with grim emblems of human mortality. The expiring taper, the broken column, the cypress wreath, the mourner, the scythe—it is in fact a collection of all the lugubrious devices of the monumental mason. The artist surely « hails » from Tombstone, Arizona. Four or five centuries ago, the « Dance of Death » was considered a profitable theme of meditation and a fitting subject of art; but to introduce the charnel-house element into decoration at the present day is a very retrogressive step. We have not yet seen these letters in practical use.

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Certainly, in the matter of initials alone, there is variety enough for the most exacting printer. Some time ago, Weisert issued his « Jubilee » or fiftieth series, and he has brought out a good many since.

The errors to be avoided in the use of initials are; overdoing, misapplying, and misplacing. Generally speaking, there should not be more than one large initial in a page. The head-piece, initial, and tail-piece, should harmonize. The nature of the work should be borne in mind. An initial or other ornament appearing with perfect propriety in Punch, might be very objectionable in a book of science or theology. Mediæval illuminators saw no incongruity in adorning books of devotion with grotesque and sometimes indecent devices; but there is in the present day a better sense of the fitness of things. Beware of placing the initial too low down in the page. Very lately we saw a book with two handsome initials in its advertising pages. This mistake had been made in each instance, and the elaborate display was a complete failure, the balance of the page being destroyed.