396 Mechanic Arts. 



for half-pence finer than copper has before been 

 roiled formakuig money; it works the coupoirs or 

 screvv^-prcsses for cutting out the circular pieces of 

 copper, and coins both the faces and edges of the 

 money at the same time, with such superior ex- 

 cellence, and cheapness of workmanship, as well 

 as with marks of such powerful machinery^ as 

 must totally prevent clandestine imitation, and, 

 in consequence, save many lives from the hand of 

 the executioner, ^j this machinery four boys, of 

 ten or twelve years of age, are capable of striking 

 thirty thousand guineas in an hour, and the ma- 

 chine itself keeps an unerring account of the 

 pieces struck."^ 



Several modern improvements in the art of 

 Printing deserve a place in this imperfect list. 

 The first worthy of being mentioned is the Stereo- 

 type^ plan of printing, which has lately become so 

 fashionable, especially in France. This plan was 

 first invented in 1725, by Mr. Ged, a goldsmith, 

 of Edinburghj who, among other books, printed 

 a very neat edition of Sallust,'" in his new method. 

 Owing, however, either to some defect in the plan, 

 or to the want of skill in the execution of his 

 specimen, Mr. Ged's invention seems to have at- 

 tracted but little notice. In 1782 Mr. Alexan- 

 der Tilloch, of Great-Britain, revived, or rather 

 re-discovered this art; for he is said to have been 

 ignorant of Ged's contrivance till long after he 

 had announced his own. The subsequent year he 

 took out a patent for it, in conjunction with Mr. 

 Andrew Foulis, printer to the University of Glas- 



i Darwin's Botanic Garden, ^zrt I. Canto I, note. 



/ This word, which M. Didot of France, seems to have first employed, 

 is derived from the Greek words, ^-te^jo-, solidus, and rvrro; typus^ dc* 

 noting that the types are soldered, or otherwise connected together. 



m In the title pagq of this edition there are the following words, viz. 

 EJinburgbi : Gulielmus Ged, aurifaber Edinens'is, nan iyP'is mobilibus^ ut vulg9 

 Jieri soletj sed tabtlUs seu luminis fusts ^ excudebat. 



