The First Printers. 93 



Anderson has produced on two occasions within the last few 

 years — his Hst of Belfast printed books. I understand Mr. Reed 

 rendered considerable assistance in getting it up, and I have 

 heard Mr. Anderson speak in high terms of his services in the 

 matter. I have very great pleasure in proposing this vote of 

 thanks. 



Mr. Vinycomb said : — I have much pleasure in seconding the 

 vote of thanks to Mr. Reed for his most able and instructive 

 lecture. I should have liked to have heard the subject carried 

 further on from Caxton's time, with something of the history 

 of early printing in England. It would, however, be impossible 

 in a single lecture to tell all that we would wish to know con- 

 cerning this interesting subject. As to one remark from Mr. 

 Reed with regard to the method of drawing or writing the 

 text in Gothic or black letter characters in the manuscript 

 books before printing was introduced, I have had some little 

 experience of the art of decorative lettering and illuminating, 

 and I am clearly of opinion that such characters were executed 

 with the Reed pen cut at the sides and across the. point (like a 

 J pen), and that the peculiar shapes of the letters would be 

 guided by the instrument. The earliest forms of printed letters 

 were adopted from the written characters of the time. The reed 

 pen was afterwards superseded by the quill, with which instru- 

 ment text writing became less constrained, and finally developed 

 into our modern freehand. And now in their turn steel pens 

 have almost entirely put the grey goose quill to flight. I have 

 great pleasure in seconding the vote of thanks, 



Mr. Reed said in reply : — Mr. President, ladies, and gentlemen, 

 — I am very much indebted to you for this kind vote of thanks. 

 I assure you it is a great pleasure to me to find myself at any 

 time in Belfast addressing Belfast men on my favourite subject, 

 because I know that the interest you take in this subject is a 

 genuine one. I think I may say that, outside the metropolis of 

 either of the three kingdoms, there is perhaps no provincial 

 town which has had a more interesting typographical history 



