Rowland Hill:--

"Hampstead" January 5th, 1870.

"My dear sir,

"In your very interesting article in Macmillan's Magazine on the
subject of the printing machine, you have unconsciously done me some
injustice. To convince yourself of this, you have only to read the
enclosed paper. The case, however, will be strengthened when I tell
you that as far back as the year 1856, that is, seven years after the
expiry of my patent, I pointed out to Mr. Mowbray Morris, the manager
of The Times, the fitness of my machine for the printing of that
journal, and the fact that serious difficulties to its adoption had
been removed. I also, at his request, furnished him with a copy of the
document with which I now trouble you. Feeling sure that you would
like to know the truth on any subject of which you may treat, I should
be glad to explain the matter more fully, and for this purpose will,
with your permission, call upon you at any time you may do me the
favour to appoint. "Faithfully yours,

"Rowland Hill."

On further enquiry I obtained the Patent No. 6762; but found that
nothing practical had ever come of it. The pamphlet enclosed by Sir
Rowland Hill in the above letter is entitled 'The Rotary Printing
Machine.' It is very clever and ingenious, like everything he did. But
it was still left for some one else to work out the invention into a
practical working printing-press. The subject is fully referred to in
the 'Life of Sir Rowland Hill' (i. 224,525). In his final word on the
subject, Sir Rowland "gladly admits the enormous difficulty of bringing
a complex machine into practical use," a difficulty, he says, which
"has been most successfully overcome by the patentees of the Walter
Press."

CHAPTER VIII.

WILLIAM CLOWES: INTRODUCER OF BOOK-PRINTING BY STEAM.

"The Images of men's wits and knowledges remain in Books, exempted from
the wrong of time, and capable of perpetual renovation. Neither are
they fitly to be called Images, because they generate still, and cast
their seeds in the minds of others, provoking and causing infinite
actions and opinions in succeeding ages; so that, if the invention of
the Ship was thought so noble, which carrieth riches and commodities
from place to place, and consociateth the most remote Regions in
participation of their Fruits, how much more are letters to be
magnified, which, as Ships, pass through the vast Seas of time, and
make ages so distant to participate of the wisdom, il