"Oh!" burst out Bobby enthusiastically, "it's more fun than anything!" "I'd like to see some of your work," said Mr. Daggett a flash of amusement flickering in his deep eyes. Bobby felt in his pocket and gravely presented a card. _"Mr. Robert Orde. Job Printer."_ "Why," said Mr. Daggett, surprised, "this is pretty well done. I didn't know you could make ready so well on those little presses." "What's 'make ready'?" asked Bobby. "Why, regulating the impression so that all the letters are printed evenly." "They didn't for a long time," sighed Bobby. "I had lots of trouble." "How did you make it go?" asked Mr. Daggett, interested. Bobby explained the pasting of the slips of paper. "Who taught you that?" asked Mr. Daggett sharply. "Nobody; I just thought of it." Two hours later, when the noon whistles blew, Bobby said good-bye to his friend after a most interesting morning. Mr. Daggett had showed him everything. He explained how in the type-cases the capital letters occupied little compartments all alike and at the top, but how the small letters were arranged arbitrarily in various-sized compartments. "You see," said he, "we use the _e_ oftenest, so that is the largest and is right in the middle. And here is the _a_ near it, but a little smaller. A man has to learn where they are." Then they watched the compositor setting type in the metal "stick" with the sliding end. The compositor showed Bobby how he could tell when the letters were right side up by feeling the nicks in the type, without the necessity of looking; how he used the leads to space between the lines. His hands flew from one compartment of the type case to the other and the type clicked sharply. In a moment the stick was full. All three walked over to the "composing table" of stone. Here Bobby watched the type placed in the huge iron frame, which was then filled in with the wooden blocks. The wedge-shaped irons locked it. Finally the block and mallet went over the whole surface to even it down. Bobby saw proof taken. He watched the small press in operation. It was worked by a foot lever. The round ink plate which automatically made a quarter turn at each impression and the double automatic ink-rollers were a revelation to him. All the boy had to do was to insert and withdraw the paper and push down with his foot. And the pressure was so exact and so delicate and so brief--as though the type and the platen coquetted without actually touching; and the imprint was so true and clear! Even on the thin paper, the shape of the type did not stamp through! He could have watched for an hour, but shortly the job was finished, so he moved on to look at the coloured inks and the fascinating variety of papers and cards and envelopes.