I now planned to do this with the book. But why could I not invent an ink that would serve on the stone without making it necessary to trace overit with the stone-ink? Why not make an ink that would leave the paper under pressure and transfer itself to the stone entirely? Could one give the paper itself some property so that it would let go of the ink under given conditions? So reflected I, and it seemed to me not impossible. At once I began to experiment. I had observed that the stone-ink at once began to congeal and stiffen when it came into contact with ordinary writing-ink, because of the action of the vitriol of iron, which devoured the alkali that the stone-ink needed to keep it in solution. Therefore I wrote with ordinary ink, into which I put still more vitriol of iron. After it was dry, I dipped the sheet into a weak solution in water of my stone-ink. After a few seconds I withdrew it and washed it very gently in rainwater. I found that the ink had fastened itself on the written places, and pretty thickly, too. I allowed the paper to dry slightly and transferred the writing to the stone. The impression was fair, but not sufficiently complete. I tried it repeatedly but could obtain no transfers that were sharp and uniform enough to represent a handsome script. So I tried another way. I painted the paper with gum solution in which vitriol of iron was dissolved. After it dried I wrote on it with my ordinary stone-ink and dried it again. Then I dampened the paper and let it lie a while to soften, after which I transferred it to the stone, which had been treated with strong oil varnish diluted in oil of turpentine, laid on so lightly that it was only like the blurring from a breath.
These attempts were far more successful, but it was impossible to write as delicately on this paper as I desired. Therefore I made new experiments. I changed the mixture of my ink. I tried to make it more adhesive with mixtures of resin, oil varnish, gum elastic, turpentine, mastic, and similar substances. In short, I do not exaggerate when I declare that this matter cost me several thousands of experiments. I was rewarded sufficiently by succeeding. And at the same time through these investigations I discovered the chemical printing on stone of to-day.
As the transfer from paper to stone depended mainly on the greater or lesser powers of adhesion between one material and another, it was natural that in my many experiments with such various ingredients I shouldobserve that a mucous fluid, as, for instance, the gum solution, resisted the adhesion of the greasy ink. Nearer still to the new invention did the following experiment bring me: I noticed that if there happened to be a few drops of oil in the water into which I dipped paper inscribed with my greasy stone-ink, the oil would distribute itself evenly over all parts of the writing, whereas the rest of the paper would take no oil, and especially so if it had been treated with gum solution or very thin starch paste. This fact led me to investigate the behavior of paper printed with common printing-ink.
A sheet of an old book was drawn through thin gum solution, then laid on a stone and touched carefully everywhere with a sponge that had been dipped into a thin oil color. The printed letters took the color well everywhere and the paper itself remained white. Now I laid another clean white sheet on this, put both through the press, and obtained a very good transfer, in reverse, of course. In this manner, if I used great care, I found I could make fifty and more transfers from the same sheet. If I allowed such a transfer to dry thoroughly and then treated it like the original sheet, why should it not produce transfers that are like the original, not reversed? So thought I, and the result showed that I had not been wrong! Only for the first transfer I needed to use a somewhat stiffer color that had been dried more with litharge of silver, and then to let the transfer dry for at least four or six days.
So I came to find that I could print without a stone, from the paper alone; and this process, depending solely on chemical action, was totally, fundamentally different from all other processes of printing.
Old books could be republished in this manner easily and without great cost. New ones also. I needed only to invent a fatty ink, similar to the printing-ink and drying thoroughly, and I could use every sheet of printed paper instead of type. I invented this ink soon. Resin, finely pulverized litharge of silver, lampblack, thick oil varnish, and potash properly diluted with water gave me a good ink for the purpose. The only obstacle that prevented me from using this process at once on a large scale was the fragility of the paper, which tore into pieces under the slightest carelessnessin handling. The natural and simple thought that was bound to come to me under the circumstances was this, Could not a stronger material, perhaps the stone plate itself, be so prepared that it would take ink or color only on the parts covered with fatty ink, while the wet parts of the stone resisted it? I feared that the stone might not absorb the grease sufficiently, and this really is the case with many stones, such as slate, pebble, grindstone, glass, porcelain, etc.; but experiments showed that exactly the opposite is true in the case of the Solenhofer limestone. This stone has a great affinity for fat, which often is absorbed so deeply that in many cases even extensive grinding will not remove it.
I took a cleanly polished stone, inscribed it with a piece of soap, poured thin gum solution over it and passed over all with a sponge dipped in oil color. All the places marked with the fat became black at once, the rest remained white. I could make as many impressions as I pleased; simply wetting the stone after each impression and treating it again with the sponge produced the same result each time. The impressions became somewhat pale, because the color on the sponge was too thin; but I obtained perfectly black and handsome impressions as soon as I used an ink roller of leather stuffed with horse-hair.
I hurried to write a sheet of note music at once to print it in the new way; but the ink flowed too much on the polished stone. Previously I had corrected this by rubbing the stone with linseed oil or soap-water, which checked the trouble entirely. But I knew that I could not do that in this new method, because then the stone would have a coating of grease all over, and would take color on the entire surface. However, I was able to take this coating away after writing, by etching with aqua fortis, though etching would not have been necessary otherwise in this chemical form of printing. However, it was easy to see that a drawing etched into relief would be easier to print from than one not etched at all. It did not require much etching, and I saved a great deal of acid, while the stone, also, remained useful for new work for a much longer period. Therefore, without making further experiments, I adhered to my old method, first washing the stone lightly with soap-water, drying it well, writing on it with wax ink,and then etching with acid before I finished it for printing by pouring gum solution over it.
At first I imagined that I might do without the gum entirely; but I found soon that it really formed a sort of chemical union with the stone, making its pores more receptive to the grease and closing them more effectively against water. I found also that neither aqua fortis nor gum was so valuable alone as when both were used in the process.
I needed to make only a few more experiments to obtain the proper consistency of ink, and the new process would be practically perfect so far as the fundamental principle was concerned. And, in fact, I made such handsome, clean, and strong impressions after three days of trial that few better ones have been made since. Now it was necessary merely to train skillful workmen and artists as quickly as possible for this new art, that was susceptible of innumerable valuable uses, as I could see at once.
It made no difference now whether the design was worked in relief or intaglio, as good impressions could be obtained even when the drawing was perfectly level with the surface of the stone. But all three methods could be combined on one stone, if desired. If I reversed the method, by rubbing oil over the stone instead of water, while for printing I used an ink prepared with gum solution (of which I will describe the best composition afterward), then the greasy places would resist color while the wet ones took it, and thus I could print with all water colors, and this is necessary sometimes with colored pictures because of the greater height of the colors. The inscription with dry soap gave me the logical idea toward crayon work, which I used afterward. My previous experiments with etching, that recurred to my memory, now assumed entirely different aspects and I could understand many things that had puzzled me then.
It was a simple step now to the etched method, in which the stone is prepared first with aqua fortis and gum, after which the design is engraved in intaglio without first being treated with aqua fortis. Indeed, this method was used for the first work that I undertook.
A piece of music by Herr Gleissner (which afterward was greatly praised in the musical paper) had been completed before I invented thenew process. Only the title-page remained to do. As I wished to make this as handsome as possible, since Herr Gleissner intended to dedicate the work to Count von Törring, I chose this new intaglio style, because I hoped to do my best work in it. Any one who still possesses a copy of this symphony can see by slight examination that the printing was done from an etched engraving. Therefore Herr Rapp in Stuttgart is mistaken when he assumes that he is the first who treated the stone in this manner. As early as the year 1800 I deposited in the archives of the Patent Office in London a full description of this and several other methods, some of which have not been used yet generally, and in 1803 I had to submit my descriptions to the Austrian Government when they gave me a franchise.
A year before this, I had invented the lever press, with which I could make several thousand of the handsomest impressions during a day. This, combined with the new treatment of the stone, enabled me to enlarge my operations greatly. I took in two of my brothers, Theobald and George, who had been in the theatre hitherto, and taught them to write and etch on stone. Also I took in two boy apprentices, sons of poor parents, to train them properly. Herr Schulrath Steiner and Herr Falter, with several others, gave me various orders, and a pretty good outlook began to appear for me and Herr Gleissner.
Until now we had been forced to suffer much grief, disappointment, deprivation, and poverty. Herr Gleissner's salary was only three hundred gulden a year. A yearly deduction of one hundred gulden was being made from this by the Government to pay debts. Then there were new expenses to repair the printery and keep it in some sort of order. My support and that of the family Gleissner,—which consisted of five persons,—then a larger residence, on account of the room needed for stones and for printing, also had to be paid for. My own yearly earnings were barely a few hundred gulden, as most of my time was used for experiments. It is no wonder, then, that during this sad period of two years, we spent almost all that could be spent of Herr Gleissner's estate, and still made new debts, despite all imaginable economies.
I can say for the honor of this man, and especially his wife, that, despiteall their losses and despite the warnings and inciting of their friends and relatives, they remained unshaken, and by making all kinds of sacrifices they enabled me to win at last. On my part they saw faithful and eager will, and a restless endeavor that went so far that I hardly took any time for eating or sleeping, but thought only of improving my art.
Now, however, our condition was changed at once. Many days we earned as much as ten to twelve gulden; and at the same time we received an exclusive franchise for fifteen years through the favor of King Maximilian Joseph, who began his glorious reign then. This privilege gave us the right to print and sell exclusively in all of Bavaria, while infringers were liable to a fine of one hundred gulden and confiscation of all stock and apparatus.
We were determined to do our utmost, to work day and night, to establish an honorable reputation for our printery at last, though we foresaw many obstacles, owing to the entire lack of assistance. Already I had half-determined to contract with the Schul-fond, permitting it to establish a lithographic press for its own use, when an accidental circumstance gave our whole undertaking a new direction.
Depending on the protection given to us by our franchise, we were making no further secret of any part of our process. We were quite content with having the monopoly in Bavaria, and cared little that other printeries might arise in other countries. Indeed, this expectation flattered my vanity as inventor, and I thought that in time I might make commercial connections with such establishments. For this reason I was very hospitable toward every stranger who came to visit us. I hoped that perhaps I might induce some such visitor to participate in our undertaking, and therefore I exhibited all the advantages of the process and permitted them to see the manipulations with their own eyes.
Just then Herr Andre of Offenbach visited Munich on business. He read about the grant of our franchise and asked his friend Falter about the process. That gentleman showed him some sheets of music printed by us and offered to introduce him to our printery, where, as technical expert, he could decide for himself as to the value or worthlessness of the new art.
Herr Andre, who possessed an extensive musical publishing institution and owned a large zinc-plate printing-plant, was delighted with the beauty of our print, and was especially impressed by the fact that the color did not off-set when rubbed with the hand, as was the case with zinc printing. He accepted Herr Falter's offer at once and was introduced as a merchant. The attention with which he noted even the slightest operations led me to conclude at once that this man had some especial interest in printing. I took particular pains to display the whole process to the best advantage.
Several plates that were already inscribed were etched and printed with beautiful results. The speed (seventy-five sheets in a quarter-hour, two being printed simultaneously each time), the quickness of drying, the economy in color, were things that increased his interest to a high pitch. He told who he was and proposed to me that I teach him the entire art for an adequate remuneration. I accepted at once and agreed to go to Offenbach within a few months, erect a press, and train men in all branches of the process. For this he promised me the sum of two thousand gulden, of which he paid down three hundred gulden on the spot.
This change from poverty to comfort made me happy mainly on Herr Gleissner's account. We could furnish our printery properly now and pay our old debts. We were assured, also, of enough work to permit enlargement of the establishment in future. What was there left to wish?
In the very beginning, however, the behavior of my own family gave me great displeasure. My mother demanded that I share my profit with my brothers, as they had a better right than Herr Gleissner and his family. I could not quite see this; therefore my mother ordered a press for my brothers and bought the necessary stones. They went to Herr Falter and asked him for his work, representing that I had made my fortune through Herr Andre, whereas they were unprovided for. They offered at the same time to furnish each plate for thirty kreuzer less than I charged. Herr Falter permitted himself to be convinced, and when Madame Gleissner discovered it she was intensely angry, and did not rest till the Governmentordered my brothers to refrain from utilizing the process in Bavaria for their own account.
My brothers went to Augsburg to erect a stone-press for Herr Gombart. They must have been unequal to the attempt or there must have been other difficulties: in brief, I know only that, after Herr Gombart had incurred many useless expenses, he discarded printing from stone.
During the three months before my journey to Offenbach I practiced my art busily, and especially studied to attain thoroughness in one branch that was of importance to Herr Schulrath Steiner. I have spoken already of his idea for pictures for children. As soon as I had invented the new chemical printing, I thought of inking an etched copper plate with a composition of tallow, soap, lampblack, and oil varnish, making an impression, laying this on stone, and putting it through the press. The picture transferred itself to the stone as I had expected. Then I poured the water and gum solution over it and inked it with the ink roller. The design took the color well; and thus, if the stone was very clean in the beginning and the proof from the copper had been made very carefully indeed, I could print several thousands of copies which resembled the original so closely that only a slightly greater degree of sharpness, clearness, and strength gave the copper etching an advantage over the stone impressions. At last I succeeded in perfecting the process so that actually my best impressions from the stone were better than those that had been made with less care from the original copper plate.
The main requisite in this process was that the ink be firm enough not to spread in printing, and still so greasy and tender that the very finest lines would come out. The copper plate had to be washed with extraordinary care, for the least bit of grease that should off-set on the white paper would, of course, transfer itself to the stone and make that part take color.
This latter circumstance was intensely difficult to overcome. It occurred to me to treat the copper plate chemically, like the stone, so that its surface would resist the ink. I succeeded, as, in future, I succeeded with other metals. The fundamental principle in each case remained the same. Onlyin the choice of materials for each metal was there a difference. I discovered soon that there are two kinds of preparations, one acid and one alkaline, for all solid bodies which have the property of taking and absorbing oil colors. The alkalines seemed to be best for use on copper plate, and I obtained such clean impressions that the stone did not take on even a vestige of ink in any spot except the design. At the same time I found that chemical printing does not limit itself to stone, but can be done on wood and metal, as well as on paper, as stated already. Yes, though apparently it is incredible—even fats, such as wax, shellac, resin, etc., can acquire the attribute, under certain circumstances, of resisting color, and, therefore, are available for chemical printing. This fact gave me hopes of discovering a sort of artificial stone some day, which might be less costly, less massive, and less fragile; and, as a matter of fact, I succeeded in inventing an artificial stone-paper in 1813, a stony mass that is smeared on paper or linen and looks somewhat like parchment.
Since the illustrations on etched copper plates were so readily transferable to the stone, Herr Schulrath Steiner could now let the best masters etch his pictures. The sales of the original impressions as works of art always covered the costs. He paid me five gulden for each transfer that I made from the copper to stone. For this extremely small sum he obtained a stone plate from which there could be made countless impressions, which, although not so fine as those from the copper, answered his purpose of circulating good pictures by making them extremely cheap. Lively prosecution of this process was prevented only by the delays of copper etchers, so that we were able to utilize it only five times on a large scale before I had to leave Munich.
Herr Gleissner, who wished to visit a friend in Frankfurt, accompanied me on my way to Offenbach. I started at once on the new work and within fourteen days I pulled the first proof on Herr Andre's own press. He was so well satisfied, and, besides, had so thoroughly considered the advantages of stone-printing, that he proposed to me to leave Munich entirely and, with him as associate, extend the art in the best possible way. He had three brothers, none of whom was engaged in a fixed occupation. Heintended to bring these into the partnership. Two were in London, the youngest and the eldest. The latter was to return soon. One brother had lived long in Paris, and was well acquainted with that city as well as with French affairs. So he laid out the following plan. We would try to obtain exclusive franchises in Paris, London, Berlin, and Vienna. Then a stone-printery and art publication house was to be opened in each city. His brothers should manage affairs, one each in London, Paris, and Berlin, while I was to take the management in Vienna. Offenbach and Frankfurt would remain under Herr Andre's management and be the centre of control and union.
The plan seemed to be easy to realize, as there was no lack of means. I could look for one fifth of the profits which would be earned by the combined, very considerable capital of the Andre family. In addition, Herr Andre possessed all the requisite knowledge and owned a great business already. Therefore I agreed gladly, after making the condition that Herr Gleissner was to remain a partner of mine and receive a decent remuneration till the business was in working order.
Herr Andre was well content, for Herr Gleissner could be used as compositor, corrector, and writer in the business, which was to consist largely of music publication in the beginning.
Herr Gleissner and I returned to Munich to arrange our affairs there. He intended to ask for three years' leave of absence. I planned, in order to save Herr Steiner any embarrassment, and also to maintain our privilege in Bavaria, since one could not tell how the Andre undertaking might turn out, to so arrange that our work could be printed properly during our absence, whether done by the Schul-fond, the Government, or private persons. It gratified me also to have an opportunity to satisfy my mother's wishes in regard to my brothers; and I gave my brothers, Theobald and George, my press, my stones, and everything else that was on hand, also the two trained apprentices, and only stipulated for myself that I should have one fourth of the net profits, leaving the accounting entirely to their sense of honor. They promised to keep accurate books and work steadily and economically, and they received from me minute instructions abouttransferring from the copper for Herr Steiner. I taught them also how to handle the crayon process, which promised an early harvest.
As soon as all was done I went to Offenbach with the whole Gleissner family. A good quantity of stones had arrived there, and a few men, previously trained, had been practicing in transcribing music. We were able to begin on a large scale at once. Herr Andre had ten copper- and zinc-plate presses at work. He stopped five and used the workmen for stone-printing. He went to London, partly for business, partly to get his youngest brother and to inform himself thoroughly about the procedure necessary to obtain English patents.
One of our chief speculations in England was to be the application of stone-printing to cotton. Once, when Herr Steiner conceived the idea of illuminating pictures with stencils in the way used by card-makers, I had made many experiments in that line. I cut out the parts to be colored in oil-soaked paper, laid this on the picture, and passed a roller over it with the desired color. The color was more even than with a brush, but not everything could be cut out, because the stencils had to have the necessary connection. Therefore I needed two stencils for every color shade. Again, these thin stencils easily slipped out of place, a defect that displeased me. Now, it happened that at times when I was a little careless, the whole stencil would roll itself up on the ink-roller. I found that it was possible to work even more surely when this happened, provided one found the exact beginning of the stencil and applied it minutely. But it was not possible to make more than twelve impressions. Then the stencil had to be taken from the roller that the latter might be inked again.
In this work the stencil paper often tore. To overcome this there was only one remedy, which was to make the roller hollow and feed it with color from inside. I did not have the time to try this and worked out another plan. I cut out the places to be colored in felt or leather, applied paste to their obverse sides, laid them face down on the exact parts of the picture which were to be colored, rolled a perfectly round roller over them, and the pieces adhered to the roller in their right places. Then the roller was inked with the required color, and of course took it only in the elevatedparts. At both ends the roller had a strip of leather of the same thickness as the cut-outs, thus making it certain that it would not touch the ink except in the proper places. In this way pictures could be illuminated very quickly, and several shades of color could be obtained if the pieces were of different qualities of leather, or of leather, cloth, and cotton, according to the shades desired. A very moderate pressure sufficed for good and even work.
What could be more natural than that I should deduce that this sort of printing might be utilized for cotton? Once inked, the roller was good for ten to twelve impressions, if the operator merely used a little more pressure as he proceeded. I saw also that the roller could easily be colored by attaching another to revolve with it and convey the ink. That would give us a form of cotton-printing that would proceed automatically.
The idea was too important to be left untried. I took a little roller, two inches in diameter and six inches long. I glued a piece of calfskin completely around it and then cut a design into it. Then this roller was so adjusted with relation to another of exactly the same dimensions that both touched perfectly. On this second one, which was to convey the color to the other, there rested a little box without a bottom, so that the roller itself represented the bottom as soon as the box was pressed on it, which was most easily done with two screws. The color was poured into this box. Now when the lower roller was passed over linen or cotton which was stretched on an evenly planed board with an under layer of cloth, a continuous print was obtained, without off-set, and with such celerity that it could be reckoned easily that with this process several thousand yards a day could be produced.
When I invented the chemical printing afterward, I held that a stone roller could be used for this work as well as a wooden one. I had too little knowledge of the industry at that time and believed that cotton print was done with oil-colors; for I thought that water-colors would wash out. I was a complete stranger to this work. Therefore, I drew a pretty cotton pattern on a stone plate and printed from it with oil varnish and finely pulverized indigo. The impressions turned out very handsome, so that I consideredthe matter settled and made no further experiments. I imparted this idea to Herr Andre, who saw its importance at once and determined to obtain a patent for it specially.
However, we had much to learn. As soon as he arrived in England he discovered that rollers with the design on them were in general use in England. So I had imagined mistakenly that my invention was new. However, printing from stone was in itself valuable for a patent, but Herr Andre unfortunately received the incorrect information that the inventor himself must appear in England, and he decided to send me there. I did not care to go; firstly, because I was vexed at the failure of my hopes in regard to cotton-printing; and secondly, because I wished to go to Vienna. However, I yielded to his representations, and within a few weeks journeyed to London with one of his brothers who spoke English.
We went through Hamburg to Cuxhafen and thence in an English packet-boat to Yarmouth, where we landed after a six days' stormy passage.
My sojourn in London did not achieve its purpose, which was to establish printing from stone. The exaggerated caution and precision of Herr Philip Andre, who had been named as the man who was to manage the London negotiations, caused a waste of seven months, during which nothing was done to reach our object.
We lived with Herr Philip and he kept me at home most of the time, for fear that I might betray our purpose, in which case some speculative spirit might take out a patent before us and then compel us to buy him off for some heavy sum. He did not reflect that a mere declaration is not sufficient in England, but that an exact description of a process must be deposited with the Patent Office.
As he could have rendered all these fears unnecessary by simply taking out the patent, I could not understand why he delayed from month to month, and at last I voiced my suspicion that he was not honest with me and had some unknown designs. I declared that nothing would keep me longer in England, which had become wearisome to me owing to my constant seclusion; and my suspicions were increased by the entire lack of allnews from the Gleissners and from my family. When Herr Philip Andre realized that I could be held back no longer, he went to work at last, and in twelve days we had the patent in our hands. As I had trained Herr Philip already in the art of stone-work, there was nothing to keep me longer, and I began my homeward voyage at once with my former companion, Herr Friedrich Andre.
My seven months' sojourn in London had the following results for myself and for lithography:—
First, I had decided in Offenbach to use my spare time entirely for the study of chemistry. Particularly did I want to learn everything that was known about color, that I might use stone for cotton-printing. I bought the best books and worked steadily, testing the teachings by experiment.
Second, I made many experiments with stone-ink, to find the very best composition. The ingredients which I utilized in course of the time were about as follows:—
Soap—a, common tallow soaps;b, Venetian soap.B, wax.C, tallow, butter, and other animal fats.D, spermaceti.E, shellac.F, resins and Venetian turpentine.G, gum elastic.H, linseed oil.I, the fat contained in chocolate.L, various resinous products, such as mastic, copal, dragon's blood, gum elemi, quajac pensoe, etc.
Soap—a, common tallow soaps;b, Venetian soap.B, wax.C, tallow, butter, and other animal fats.D, spermaceti.E, shellac.F, resins and Venetian turpentine.G, gum elastic.H, linseed oil.I, the fat contained in chocolate.L, various resinous products, such as mastic, copal, dragon's blood, gum elemi, quajac pensoe, etc.
Then I used various solvents besides the soap, such as—
M, vegetable alkalies, among them tartaric acid.N, similar mineral alkalies.O, animal lyes, spirits of sal ammoniac, and sal volatile with spirits of ammonia.P, borax.Q, various metallic solutions.
M, vegetable alkalies, among them tartaric acid.N, similar mineral alkalies.O, animal lyes, spirits of sal ammoniac, and sal volatile with spirits of ammonia.P, borax.Q, various metallic solutions.
It is evident that with these substances an endless number of experiments can be made, not to count the variety of proportions. Certainly it is not exaggeration when I say that during that time and later I made many thousands of experiments, only to confirm my experience that accidentally I had discovered the best compositions during the first twenty or thirty investigations, and that my time after that had been wasted, unless I counted the knowledge I had gained of chemistry.
Thirdly, I made my first attempts at that time in the aqua-tint style, and also practiced printing with several plates, which I had begun previously under suggestion of Herr Steiner. The son of the Swiss idyllic poet, Gessner, was in London at that time and was a good friend of Herr Philip. He made some neat sketches for us in the crayon process, which I had invented in Munich immediately after my invention of chemical printing. I had exhibited the process to Professor Mitterer at that time, and he thought that it might become valuable for art.
Thus my residence in London was not unimportant for lithography. The complete lack of disturbance, the adequacy of all needed material, enabled me to discover more than I might have learned in Offenbach. I left England with a certain satisfaction, gained from the certainty that I had raised my art to a high degree of perfection.
I am satisfied even to this day that the world would have many masterpieces as the result, had I come into contact at that time with an enterprising art publisher who would have engaged the needed artists and undertaken interesting works. As it was, however, and as I shall show, circumstances forced me into untoward positions, so that little or no opportunity was left me to use my knowledge practically and in an important way.
Immediately on my arrival in Offenbach, I received the displeasing news that Herr Andre had sent Madame Gleissner to Vienna to claim the exclusive franchise for the new printing process, and to enter lawsuit against my mother, who had gone to Vienna with the same purpose.
The reason for this was as follows: My two brothers, Theobald and George, who could not earn enough in Munich, had been engaged as lithographersby Herr Andre in Offenbach on my request. In a confidential mood I told them that I hoped to go to Vienna and open a great printing establishment and art publication house with assistance of Herr Andre, and that this establishment should make my fortune as well as that of my family.
Probably they did not believe my promise, or they did not care to depend on my fraternal feeling for something which they believed they could get for themselves: enough, they wrote to my mother that it was unfair to let Herr Andre become exclusive proprietor of the new process everywhere, and as I was well established in London anyway, she would better travel to Vienna and ask for a franchise. They sent her several good proofs from the Andre press.
Would to Heaven this plan of theirs had succeeded! I should have been spared many a succeeding sorrow, and I would have been glad for their sakes. The world was large enough for me, and certainly it was not thoroughly fair that they, the nearest relatives of the inventor, should be shut out by the far-reaching plans of Herr Andre to obtain exclusive franchises everywhere. To be sure, I had told them that I would give them the Bavarian franchise; but as they had enjoyed it for several months with little profit, this did not seem to them a tempting equivalent.
The news of my mother's journey to Vienna had been brought to Madame Gleissner quite accidentally, and it made her almost frantic.
When she used to charge me with depending so completely on Herr Andre's promises, without possessing anything in writing, I used to comfort her by pointing out his righteous character, and also by reminding her that it was all agreed that I and Herr Gleissner should undertake the printery in Vienna as part of the general enterprise, and that we were to obtain the necessary advance funds as soon as I returned from England. The repeated complaints that she made, many of them in the presence of my brothers, possibly helped to give them the idea of trying themselves for a franchise in Austria. They may have thought, "If our brother is careless enough to depend on empty words, we will be wise enough to obtain a certainty. It remains open to us always to share our fortune with the inventor."
Madame Gleissner had entertained great hopes about living in splendid Vienna and having means enough to take part in its brilliant life. This made the news about my mother's errand all the more irritating. She did not consider that an Imperial franchise is not easily obtained by women who are not even well informed on the case at issue. She succeeded in imparting her fears to Herr Andre, and as he himself was prevented from going, he entered into her fool's counsel to send her to Vienna at once. She had strong hopes of success, because as a matter of fact the Bavarian franchise had been obtained entirely through her efforts, and she also calculated that the Austrian Government would pay more heed to the inventor himself than to his brothers, who could not equal his attainments.
Herr Andre had kept it all, even to the journey of Madame Gleissner, a secret from me, presumably because he wanted to save me annoyance and also to prevent my hasty return from England.
Unfortunately I had conceived some suspicions in England, and these were increased when I received this unexpected news on my arrival in Offenbach. What was worse, Herr Gleissner gave me a letter from his wife, in which she adjured me to hurry to Vienna with all speed, as Andre was planning to deceive me and set me aside as a mere tool as soon as I had founded his own fortune.
This letter, which contained no evidence but only lamentations, was accompanied by another from her landlord in Vienna, a very reputable merchant. It seemed to bear her out, for he warned me in it to be cautious in my relations with Andre and to hurry to Vienna if I wished to obtain the franchise, which could not escape me as a most influential man had come to our support and it depended merely on the evidence to be furnished by me.
Greatly as my suspicions were increased by this, I hoped that everything was due merely to misunderstanding, and I proposed to Herr Andre to let me go to Vienna, where I would inform myself thoroughly and make strong efforts to obtain the franchise. He denied my request, saying that there was nothing more to do in Vienna, as the Government had turned both women away, and the whole plan was spoiled as the whole art andcopper-etching trade had become apprehensive and was united in opposition to the new process. He said that I should rather go quickly to work to transfer his music from zinc plates to the stone, because he had an excellent opportunity to sell his entire stock of zincs, which would give us a new capital of forty thousand gulden for the greater enterprises.
I realized the good sense of this, but would not admit that a delay of three or four weeks could interfere with it, as the entire transfers could not be completed in less than a year, and the slight delay, therefore, could be made up by additional work or by engaging a few more assistants. I insisted on my demand, all the more as I had spent seven months in England on his account. In the heat of the succeeding dispute he reminded me of the helpless position in which he had found me, and said that as partner in his business, I owed him all my present fortune. Conscious as I was of my honest intention to help him to the best of my ability, and also of the unbounded trustfulness with which I had imparted to him far more than was called for in our contract, I was so deeply hurt that I forgot myself and tore up our agreement, which had been signed only the day before and which assured for me one fifth of all profits of the Andre business. I threw the pieces down with the exclamation that I did not wish to make my fortune through his means.
This was one of the most important moments in my life, and in the process of lithography. It gave my work an entirely new direction, hurled me into a mass of troubles, and brought it about that Herr Andre himself did not gain anything like the expected profits from the new art. Indeed, he lost heavily in London and France, whereas, had we remained together, lithography might now be highly perfected in both these countries and produce no small wealth for its users.
When Andre saw that I was determined to go to Vienna, he yielded, but assured me that I would go in vain and achieve no result.
The lawsuit between Madame Gleissner and my mother, which Herr Andre considered the greatest obstacle in his way, still continued; and in order to get it out of the way once and for all, I took my brothers, George and Theobald, who had been dismissed by Herr Andre, to Vienna with meto combine with me. Andre told me afterward, after our relations had reached final rupture, that this act had annoyed him most, and that it was the main reason for giving up all dealings with me, because it was inconceivable to him how any one, without the utmost weakness of character, could forgive such treachery as theirs. He did not reflect that I, who knew selfishness only by name, had not felt their affront so keenly, and that my brotherly affection excused it and made me trust that it never had been their intention to shut me out entirely from any gains they might make.
It was in August, 1800, that I went to Vienna with my brothers. In Regensburg we met my mother, who had come to visit one of her daughters because the decision of the Imperial Austrian Government had been delayed too long for her patience. She assured me that when she petitioned for the privilege she had named not only my brothers but me, too, and had asked it for us three.
This assurance gave me great joy, and I determined absolutely to urge Madame Gleissner to accept my brothers as partners. I thought that if we three worked industriously and unitedly, we would succeed much better and more quickly. I entered Vienna with excellent hopes, based mostly on a letter from Madame Gleissner, saying that the influential man who was interested in our cause had promised to advance us six thousand gulden. But these fine things retired into dark shadows when I learned, in my first conversation with her, that all these promises were made dependent on conditions.
The whole understanding rested on the following: Madame Gleissner lodged with a prominent family. Andre himself had told her that she was to live well and exhibit no lack of money, because she was much more likely to obtain the franchise if the Government were led to expect that it would bring wealthy people into the country. Therefore Madame Gleissner considered it necessary to take part in all amusements and fashions of her hosts. Her monthly expenditures were beyond the sum considered necessary by Herr Andre's friend in Vienna, who had been authorized to pay her an allowance. Friendly solicitude caused him to write to Offenbach that Madame Gleissner knew nothing of economy, and that it was to be feared if the franchise were not granted in Herr Andre's name, he wouldhave too little power to check her extravagance in the future. He added that judging from her utterances and her present behavior, with the franchise still in question, it was only too likely that she intended to spend Herr Andre's money for show and society instead of for the business.
Therefore, he advised that, unless Andre was sure that Senefelder had enough character to oppose her with the necessary firmness, we be treated solely as subordinates and thus be prevented from using his credit to his loss.
Well meant as this counsel was, it simply furnishes an addition to the thousands of cases where exaggerated timidity, coupled with secrecy, does more harm than good.
Andre knew my intense gratitude to Herr Gleissner and his family, and he suspected that I would always live in a certain dependence on them and would pay little attention to their financial doings. The Gleissners had awakened a fear of their extravagance in him before this time. He knew, for instance, that I had kept little of the money he had paid me for the secret of our process, but had turned almost all over to them. Again, he had granted us the sum of one thousand six hundred gulden for our support in Offenbach until the business should be in operation. Of this Herr Gleissner was to draw six hundred gulden and I one thousand gulden. I was a bachelor and did not need so much as a family. Therefore I reversed this, and gave Herr Gleissner one thousand gulden, keeping six hundred for myself. But the latter also went into the Gleissner treasury, because Herr Andre, who had come to like me very much, made me live in his house and eat with him. He even kept a horse for me, that I might have the exercise necessary for my health, and if he bought himself a new article of dress I was sure to get one like it; and I had to take part in all the amusements of his home, though many times I would rather have worked.
Thus I had absolutely no needs and did not require money. All the more did Madame Gleissner require. She strained everything to be very elegant and could not get along with the money she received, but asked forfurther, quite considerable advances while I was in London, and Herr Andre granted these willingly through friendship for me.
Therefore Andre's suspicions seemed well founded; and as in his heart he was firmly determined to treat me as a brother, he believed that a mere outward formality and my hitherto quite unknown name would make no real difference, but rather that the Vienna undertaking would benefit if it had his own well-known name and excellent credit at its head in the very beginning.
So he wrote to his friend in Vienna that he agreed with him, and he gave authority to him to act as he thought best for the mutual good.
This gentleman told Madame Gleissner at once that Herr Andre had decided to ask for the franchise in his own name to give value to the undertaking, and that she was to appear before court and declare that she withdrew her petition and turned it over to him. She suspected a trick and refused. A dispute followed, and there came rebukes for her heavy expenditures. The climax was reached with the threat that, if she insisted on her refusal, Herr Andre would cease from that moment to let her have any money and would let her support herself.
This last, which Madame Gleissner wrote me in a very bitter letter, outraged me; for I held it cruel to send a woman to a strange city where she had no relatives or friends, and then to tell her: "Now do my will, or I will leave it to bitter necessity and your own helplessness to tame you." To be sure, it was only a threat, and surely it never lay in Herr Andre's mind. His friend never ceased to give her money. But the harm had been done.
Madame Gleissner appeared at her host's table with signs of tears that aroused the sympathy of her host, Herr von Bogner, a most worthy and reputable merchant. She told him everything, complained bitterly about my gullibility, and generally painted everything in such colors that Herr Bogner could not well help thinking that Herr Andre did not consider promises any too sincerely. It was only then that he learned Madame Gleissner's business and was told that the new art promised a great profit.
Herr Andre's far-reaching plans for foreign exploitation seemed to himto confirm what she said. Herr Bogner thought that Herr Andre would not invest so much money if stone-print were not a valuable invention, and he asked Madame Gleissner, point-blank: "Why do you need Herr Andre at all? Try to obtain the Austrian franchise for yourself, and then, if you choose, you can take him into the company. Then he will be obligated to you and will have to meet your wishes, whereas now the reverse is the case."
Madame Gleissner interposed that Herr Andre had the capital necessary for establishing the process on a large scale, to which Herr Bogner responded that it was better to begin modestly. "A good thing," said he, "grows of itself. And you must not imagine that we here in Austria have no appreciation of useful inventions and undertakings. There are many who will assist the arts and industries. There is even a special fund from which as much as one thousand gulden may be advanced to develop an invention that has proved itself to be of merit. I myself might not be disinclined to become a partner after I have examined the matter properly; also I can recommend a very enterprising, active man, who has much weight with the Ministers and even with His Majesty the Emperor, and who has obtained exclusive franchises for others. He is named von Hartl, is Imperial Court Agent, and is a very sensible and honorable man, who will surely tell you at once whether or not anything can be done here with the process."
Herr von Bogner kept his promise, and introduced Madame Gleissner the very next day to Herr von Hartl. She explained our relations with Andre and described the new invention, wherein, to be sure, she did not fail to boast of its advantages and beauties. Among other specimens she produced a piece of cotton which I had printed in Offenbach.
This was very pretty, the print being so sharp and clear that it seemed to exceed the best English work. It happened that just then a great company with a capital of one and one half million gulden had been formed by Herr von Hartl to introduce English machine-spinning in Austria. They had secured a very skillful English mechanic named Thornton, who had been under contract to erect similar machines for a Hamburg merchant.They had paid a great sum to have him released from this contract, had bought his machines, and had done enough sample work so that it had been resolved to push the enterprise through even if several more millions were needed. The chief objection that was urged at that time was that an adequate sale of the products was doubtful because of the widespread business that the English controlled. The reply was that they must seek to work up a great part of their product themselves,—that is, combine with their spinnery the industries of weaving, dyeing, and cotton-printing.
As soon as Herr von Hartl heard that the new invention promised great advantages for cotton-printing, he pledged himself to lay the matter before His Majesty at once, and he promised that if I would come to Vienna and produce the necessary proofs he would surely get the exclusive franchise for me. Furthermore, when Madame Gleissner told him, in reply to a question, that we would need about six thousand gulden in the beginning, he announced his readiness to furnish that sum himself if I could convince him that a real benefit was to be produced by the new art.
Madame Gleissner wrote to me, but withheld the condition of Herr von Hartl that I must convince him. I would have taken care not to give such greedy heed to her, for I knew from experience how difficult it is to convince most people. But, I was determined to show my friend Andre that I and my art were by no means at a loss without him. Besides, I always had the royal Bavarian franchise to fall back on. His secrecy had shaken my confidence, and I was determined to find out everything for myself.
Many years later, when I reviewed everything calmly, I was sufficiently convinced that Herr Andre always had meant honestly by me; and I count myself fortunate to have him still as my friend. But at that time various misunderstandings brought it about that he did not give me full knowledge of everything, before he took steps contrary to our agreement and without my cognizance that could not fail to impress me as strange, since I was ignorant of the circumstances. Besides, he defended himself against my accusations in a manner that affronted my vanity deeply, for he gave me to understand plainly that my past weakness in the matter of the Gleissners' extravagance proved that I should always have to dance to their tune. Itangered me that he should turn against me, as weakness, my recognition of the patient faithfulness of the Gleissners through the many sorrows that had overwhelmed us since the beginning of the process; and the more so as I was giving them merely that which I did not require and which was my own undisputed property. According to that, I would have earned the reputation of being a firm, strong man had I used my superfluous earnings to buy a few watches, a ring, or some garments, rather than to use it to pay a debt of gratitude! Besides, whatever Herr Andre had advanced to them was something that had been done without my knowledge; therefore I accounted all his charges as being only empty words, used to cover a proposed piece of trickery.
After my first conversation with Madame Gleissner, but more especially with Herr Andre's representative in Vienna, I realized that the latter could not be censured for his measures of prudence, and I repented that I had so easily given way to my quick sensitiveness. Thefranchiseevidently was very uncertain. The only hope for it lay in the assistance of Herr von Hartl, and, therefore, depended on my ability to convince him. I had spent my money traveling, and instead of finding Madame Gleissner in funds, as I had assumed from her letter, I found her ill with only a few guldens, and in addition I had two brothers on my hands who also were penniless and looked to me for their support.
Madame Gleissner assured me that Herr von Hartl would assist us and that I could reckon also on help from her host, who had counseled her to part from Herr Andre and seek the privilege for herself. I mustered up sufficient courage to explain our situation to the latter gentleman and to ask him if we could count on his help for the beginning. This request must have been unexpected by Herr von Bogner, as Madame Gleissner's manner of living had indicated anything rather than lack of wealth. However, he liked my frankness, and promised active aid. He gave me a handsome room, and I and Madame Gleissner ate at his own table. He paid, also, for the lodging of my brothers in another house.
Two days after our arrival, I and my brothers visited Herr von Hartl in his country residence in Dornbach. We were received most kindly, and hepromised me his aid if I could give satisfactory proofs. So far as the franchise was concerned, however, he showed me that it could be taken out only in my name, and this, he explained, would be difficult enough, as all the art dealers were against it. To ask for it in the name of three brothers was out of the question. Neither, said he, would it be necessary, as I could make a separate contract with them through which they could be partners with me.
Herr von Hartl, who, as Court Agent, naturally knew all that was to be done, would not have said this without good reason. My brothers, however, were highly incensed, and declared that they would not be dependent on me, but would be their own masters. Had they possessed the money necessary to travel they would, no doubt, have carried out this resolve at once, for they had been angered already by the fact that Herr von Bogner kept only me as his guest. My representations were without effect. They told me that they would return to Munich and practice the Bavarian privilege in my name if Herr von Hartl would give them the journey money; otherwise they would be forced to listen to the proposition of several Viennese art dealers and sell them the secret of the stone-printing art.
As this would have destroyed all chance for getting an exclusive privilege, Herr von Hartl gave them the money, and Theobald and George Senefelder returned to Munich, after making a contract with me which permitted them to establish a printing business and, if possible, an art business, my share in which was to be one third of the net profit after deducting the cost of their own support. This contract was necessary to authorize them to practice under my privilege.
Meantime I had a small hand-press made and produced several pieces of work for Herr von Hartl, which gave him a clearer idea of the new art, and convinced him finally that it was worth while to risk something on it. He made a full contract with me, in which he bound himself to furnish money and everything necessary, and use all his influence to further the business, while I was to give all my time and knowledge. The profits were to be divided into two equal parts, one of which was to be his, while theother was to be divided between myself and Herr Gleissner. He allotted a proper sum for my support, told me to rent a comfortable residence, and authorized me to buy some large presses. He told me frankly that the use of stone for cotton-printing had the most interest for him, and that he cared about the other forms of printing only as paying for our expenditures. When the big spinning-shops were ready, said he, he would give me so great an opportunity that I could let Herr Gleissner have all the art- and music-printing to himself.
What glorious prospects opened themselves to me! What could I think except that it would require merely industry to become a famous, happy man in a short period?
Here I must interpolate the account of a happening that brought about a total rupture with Andre. Until now our relations had not been wholly severed. His last word was that I would, no doubt, go to Vienna in vain, and in that case I should return to him, as he would receive me with open arms. When I saw his correspondent in Vienna and learned from him that he had orders to let me have money if I wanted it; when I perceived further that Madame Gleissner had been too hasty, and that all the tangle was caused by misunderstandings, I dismissed all anger and wrote to my friend Andre at once, telling him that I had found things not nearly so bad in Vienna as he imagined. It was true, I said, that the two women had failed to obtain the franchise, but mostly because they could give no demonstrations. It was quite different, now that the inventor himself was petitioning for it, especially as Herr von Hartl had promised absolutely to take our part. If, therefore, Andre were willing to spend at most one thousand gulden for a press and to pay for our support and necessary working expenses for six months, there would be absolutely no doubt of fortunate outcome.
Had I had the happy thought to ask Herr von Hartl to add a few lines, my letter might have had the intended result. But I considered my word sufficient, and unluckily my letter reached Offenbach when Andre was absent, and was answered by his brother in about the following fashion:
His brother, he said, was absent; but as he knew his opinion exactly, hewould not keep me waiting. I must not be offended, but he believed that my ready trustfulness, caused by my good-heartedness, had played me a prank again. He was completely convinced from the advices of their Vienna friends that the privilege would be granted only if his brother removed bag and baggage to Vienna and had himself naturalized there, something which his affairs did not permit. I would discover, soon enough, that the lovely promises made me were nothing but air.
Then he went on to say that even if the sum of one thousand gulden really were only a trifle, it would not produce the desired result. Madame Gleissner, said he, had incurred debts of one hundred and fifty gulden since she had broken with his brother, and as she had used this sum not for his good but rather for his harm, it was only fair that she pay it herself. I, probably, would be in debt nearly one hundred gulden, now that I had been in Vienna some weeks with my brothers. If I wanted to build a press in Vienna where wood is dear, it would cost easily one hundred and fifty gulden. Then there would be one hundred gulden for stones, etc. I would need a dwelling, for which I would have to pay at least one hundred gulden in advance. This would leave only four hundred gulden. The winter was at hand, neither my brothers nor Madame Gleissner had the necessary clothing, everything would be needed. In brief, he assured me, before many weeks the one thousand gulden would be spent and in the end there would be no press, no stones, and no specimen work.
Therefore, he concluded, I should not feel affronted if he told me his heartfelt thoughts. The aspect of the Vienna matter would, probably, be different if my over-great good-heartedness did not put fetters upon me that must prevent anybody from placing full confidence in my advice. I would better, therefore, dismiss the plans, and be sure that nobody meant it more sincerely with me than, etc.
It may be supposed that this letter gave me little pleasure; and I made up my mind to show Herr Andre that he had made a mistake and had thrown away a great profit idly. I made the contract with Herr von Hartl, and we went to work actively at once. I had a large lever press built and asked the Austrian Government to appoint a commission to examine theprocess. This was done, and besides the Mayor, there appeared the factory inspector, Herr von Jaquin, who was a Professor of Chemistry, and the director of the academy of copper-plate engravers, Herr Schmutzer. I showed them the various methods of printing from stone on paper, cotton, and calico, and explained the difference of my process from all others. My demonstrations were applauded, and the commission certified most heartily in favor of my petition for the exclusive privilege.
In addition, Herr von Hartl went with me to a meeting of the Imperial Councilors, then to the Imperial Counsel of State, von Gruber, to Count Lazansky, and, finally, to His Majesty, the Emperor himself. Everywhere I had to make demonstrations with my little hand-press, at which time Herr von Hartl, to my great joy, always acted as cicerone and eagerly described the manifold advantage which the new art had for so many branches of the arts and sciences.
Everywhere we received praise and were promised the speedy issuance of the privilege. As, however, the matter had to take a regular course, and it was evident that some time must elapse, we petitioned meantime for a mere license to work, which we received within a few weeks, so that I was able to begin printing without further delay.
Herr von Hartl became more friendly each day, and opened for me the most beautiful outlook on the future. My easily moved imagination interpreted his speeches as brightly as possible, and I imagined that I saw fortune and position close at hand. I worked all the harder, therefore, to fulfill his expectations; and as his chief object was printing on cotton I threw myself zealously into the study of color, as absolute permanence was needed besides beauty of printing.
During this time Herr Gleissner had left Offenbach and had returned to Munich with his children. As I was in partnership with him, and he could make himself useful in the printing of music, Herr von Hartl decided to have him come to Vienna, and his wife took it on herself to get him and arrange for an extension of his leave of absence. She found him in the saddest of circumstances. In his ignorance of such things, he had sold all the furniture in Offenbach for a mere joke of a sum. Most of this money hadbeen used to defray his traveling expenses, and she found the family stripped of even necessaries. What was to be done? Her husband and children needed clothing that they might not make a bad impression in Vienna, her husband's debts had to be paid, and then came the traveling expenses. The money advanced by Herr von Hartl was not nearly enough for all this. She wrote to me to ask him for an additional sum of three or four hundred gulden.
This was exceedingly unpleasant for me. I should have to tell him the truth, and thus place Herr Gleissner in a bad light right in the beginning. Furthermore, he had received no too favorable a report about the domestic management of the two, either from Herr Andre's friend in Vienna or perhaps from Herr Andre himself. It was torture for me to ask him for money, especially if it was to be used for something not absolutely necessary for the business in hand, as I knew his opinions in that respect. Willingly as Herr von Hartl gave money when it was needed to achieve a useful object, so reluctant was he if he deemed that it was to be wasted. In my embarrassment I dropped a hint as to the situation to our hostess, Madame von Tannenberg. She counseled me at once not to ask, as the family would lose the respect of Herr von Hartl entirely, and offered voluntarily to advance Madame Gleissner four hundred gulden herself, if I would guarantee the payment of it in half a year. Nothing seemed more certain to me than that I could save such a sum in that time. I accepted her offer and sent the money to Munich on the same day. I would not mention this apparently trivial matter, if it were not for the fact that in the end it was the cause of the ruin of all my hopes in Vienna.
The dealers had spared no pains to oppose my franchise in the beginning, before they knew of my connection with Herr von Hartl, and while they still considered me an unimportant foreigner, who had neither friends nor influence. When they discovered the truth, their noise became clamorous, for they had to fear in earnest now that their trade would suffer, since so eminent and rich a man was associated with the new art. The more important art dealers feared it less than the smaller ones, among whom Herr Sauer and the new Industrie-Komptoir were my most active enemies.Despite this, there opened a way suddenly by which I could make peace with the art dealers and even draw considerable profit from them.
Through Herr von Hartl, I became acquainted with a skillful clavier-player, Teuber, who was also a composer, and at once showed great interest in my invention. He spoke to his acquaintances, Herr Sonnleithner and Herr Ricci. Through their intervention the art dealers asked me if I would abstain from establishing a music-printery of my own, providing they guaranteed me a sufficient amount of work. I calculated that I could print six thousand sheets of music a day with the three presses that I had planned. This, at the low price of twenty-five kreuzer per hundred impressions, would amount in all to a sum of twenty-five gulden. Also if I accepted, say, work that would average three hundred impressions, there would be needed ten stones, counting two sheets to each stone. Thus there would be a further engraving profit of ten gulden, because I received fifty kreuzer for each sheet, but paid my note-writer only twenty kreuzer. For house, color, acids, polisher's wages, etc., there must be reckoned four gulden a day. The six printers to operate the three presses would cost four gulden a day also. Now if I reckoned two gulden a day for possible accidental errors, etc., there would still remain twenty-five gulden a day profit. This meant seven thousand and five hundred gulden clear profit in the three hundred working days of a year, without the least risk.
As I considered this a satisfactory profit for one single branch of my art, I told Herr Sonnleithner that I would attempt to induce Herr von Hartl to give up the idea of establishing his own publishing house, provided that the united art dealers would guarantee me that amount of work and agree also to reimburse me if the presses were not kept busy, excepting through my own fault. Herr Sonnleithner welcomed the proposal, not doubting that the dealers would need all the work stipulated, and, indeed, declaring that the Art and Industrie-Komptoir alone might give me twice that much.
I knew that Herr von Hartl had entertained little regard for this branch of work. Therefore I thought it would delight him to find that he could not only relieve himself from further expense in this line, but gain several thousand gulden. I was mistaken. He deduced that music-printing wasnot so unimportant as he had imagined; and he told me to inform the dealers that I would take as much work as they offered at low prices, but that we could not make ourselves dependent on them.
As the dealers refused decidedly to give me the means with their own hands of building up a great establishment, the project fell entirely.
However, Herr von Hartl now had declared himself in favor of establishing a music-printery; and a few days later there came a highly favorable opportunity to start one at once under happy auspices, together with a complete art publishing establishment.
An acquaintance of my landlady, to whom I had showed my printery, sent for me to tell me that Herr Eder, an art dealer, wished to give up his business because of illness and was willing to sell reasonably. This friend enlarged on the luck it would be to obtain this well-situated shop, which earned several thousand gulden by printing birthday and New Year's cards alone, at the very easy terms which Herr Eder had suggested provisionally. He desired me to see him at once, under the pledge of secrecy, which pledge Herr von Hartl was to give also, as Herr Eder did not wish to injure his credit by offering his establishment openly for sale.
Herr Eder did, indeed, offer most favorable terms, according to my opinion. He showed me that on the average the net profit of his business had been ten thousand gulden annually during the last ten years. (At that time the gulden notes stood at par.) Furthermore he estimated the value of all his printed stock only at the cost of manufacture, and the great stock of copper plates, many newly etched, at merely their value as copper. The large stock of different papers, with the many writing and drawing materials, were estimated at cost value, also. For his trading rights, and for his excellent rental contract which had many years to run, he did not ask anything. The sum that he asked for everything was forty thousand gulden, of which only ten thousand gulden were to be paid at once, the rest being paid in annual installments during the following ten years.
If Herr von Hartl had accepted this, there would have been four thousand gulden net profit a year in it. And by combining with it the advantages of the new process, the profit was certain to be greater. To begin anew publishing house without mercantile knowledge, without knowing what the public wanted, would be far more difficult than to continue one that already was in operation, especially so as Herr Eder had offered to remain for a year as associate to teach me the business.
I cannot yet understand why Herr von Hartl discarded this proposition. Perhaps he feared that he would be overreached in some way. He might have been more receptive had he been able to foresee that his new establishment would cost him a sum of twenty thousand gulden within a very few years without advancing toward being even the ghost of a business. Perhaps I did not possess the gift of convincing others. At any rate, both projects failed to meet with approval. That Herr von Hartl could be convinced, however, even to his plain injury, I will prove later. For lithography the failure of this plan was a great loss, because it would have given me opportunity to get into the art line ten years earlier than I did, and make useful application of my inventions.
The family Gleissner now arrived in Vienna and brought one of my former apprentices, Mathias Grünewald. Meantime some presses had been completed, and we could begin to print. Gleissner's symphonies recently had been much praised in a musical paper of Leipsic, and he proposed to us to begin with a few of his works. Of course it would have been wiser to begin with a good work by a famous man, whose name was sufficiently popular in Vienna. I did visit Herr Doctor Haydn, but received the reply that he could not compose any more and would only review old works thenceforth.
Immediately at the commencement a stock of stones was needed. As we could foresee that we should need some thousands of stones in the course of time, Herr von Hartl decided to make a trip with me, by way of Munich and Augsburg, to the quarries of Solenhofen that we might inform ourselves on the spot about the best way to get stones.
A further inducement to make this journey was that he wished to examine the estate of Niedau, which had been described as being very favorably situated for the erection of manufactories. Herr von Hartl already had a large spinnery in operation. This, and perhaps the printery,he planned to establish in Niedau, because there both workers and property were cheaper. He intended to leave only the business offices in Vienna.
The establishment of this spinnery had so important an effect on my fate as well as on the future of lithography that I must describe it here. When I arrived in Vienna, Count von Saurau had just gone to Petersburg as Austrian Ambassador. Being a patron of home industries, he had advanced ten thousand gulden some time before to an expert spinner named Mistelbauer, to erect looms for manufacturing fine English and French stuffs in Austria, a work for which Mistelbauer was perfectly qualified. When the Count departed, Herr von Hartl took charge of several of his interests, among them the Mistelbauer spinnery. Thus at the next Vienna Messe (market-fair), Mistelbauer visited Herr von Hartl to make an accounting. The goods that Mistelbauer had brought convinced Herr von Hartl of his skill and technical capacity. The details of his processes, and his ingenuity in operating so many looms with so little capital, indicated to Herr von Hartl that increased capital would bring enormously increased results. As the spinnery company had as good as decided that a good part of their own products should be further worked by themselves, Herr von Hartl considered it a lucky circumstance to meet a particularly good weaver and also a cotton-printer, who alleged that he could print the home-made cottons exactly as well as the English printers and possibly at smaller cost.