US665335A - Directory-slip. - Google Patents

Description

0 FFICE.

ALEXANDER T. LOYD, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

DIRECTORY-SLIP.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 665,335, dated January 1, 1901.

Application filed May 11, 1900 To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALEXANDER T. LoYD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook, State of Illinois, have invented certain new 'and useful Improvements in Directory-Slips, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invent-ion relates to directory-slips, and particularly to slips prepared from the matter composing a previous directory and adapted to be used by a canvasser in collecting names for a subsequent publication.

The invention has for its objects to economize the time of the canvasser necessary to write the numerous slips and, furthermore, to obtain absolute accuracy in the spelling and information collected.

The invention has for a further object to avoid the omission of names through carelessness or other causes, as the names constituting the directory for a previous year must be accounted for in some manner by the canvasser in making his returns.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafter appear in the following description, and the novel features thereof will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 represents a portion of a sheet upon which the names from a previous directory may be printed. Fig. 2 is a slip prepared from the sheet shown in Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a book of said slips bound for use by a canvasser.

Like letters of reference indicate like parts throughout the several figures of the drawings.

It will primarily be stated that this system of collecting the names of inhabitants of a city or town for the purpose of compiling a directory is most advantageously used where the directory is printed from linotype-slugs, such as are largely used, or from any other form of type, although it is capable of use without such slugs or printing of the name upon the slips, as the names can be typewritten thereon if desired. In describing the preparation of the sheet from which the strips are cut, reference will be made to the use of slugs, as this method of preparing the slips is in practical use. The sheet A (shown in Serial No. 16,341. (No model.)

Fig. 1) is horizontally divided into a number of spaces, within each of which a single name and address are printed. This is accomplished by a machine especially designed for the purpose, by which impression is obtained from the slugs or printed lines used in the directory of a former year. It may here also be stated that a duplicate of this sheet is prepared upon a different-colored paper for instance, yellow to be used for the business addresses, while the first-prepared sheet will be used by the canvasser at the residences.

In the illustration of the sheet shown in Fig. 1 it will be seen that the same has been prepared with an initial letter C, as shown at B, and with an indicating-numeral l, as shown at O. This numeral indicates the column on the page from which the name was taken. A numeral impression D is then placed upon the sheet or on the strip, if the same has already been separated, to indicate the page, while a further numeral E is later applied to indicate the line in the column designated. It will be obvious that all sheets printed with the initial letter O are adapted to receive the names beginning with that letter, and in frequent cases where a repeated name is indicated by any of the usual ditto-marks the name may be impressed upon the slip or sheet by printing witha rubber stamp or otherwise, as shown at F. In this manner a complete copy of the directory of the previous year is printed upon duplicate sheets and spaced so as to be cut into slips of uniform size, which are bound together in any suitable manner, as shown in Fig. 3, to be used by a canvasser for the next years directory.

Previous to the canvass all alterations, removals, deaths, or errors of the book last printed which have been discovered during the year are entered upon the sheets and the slips then cut and separated in any suitable manner. A very desirable method of effecting this separation is to arrange a territory to be canvassed by one manfor instance, a particular streetso that all names noted as being on that street may be collected. These names are next arranged to separate odd numbers from the even ones, thus confining one book of names toa single side of a street, and the separation is carried on until a suitable subdivision of territory has been effected Where the residence is given upon a business or yellow slip, the white or residence slip is assorted among those upon a similar street. The canvasserin collecting information has before him a complete history of the previous years directory information 'of every person therein reported from any particular number on the street he is canvassing. If the information of the previous year was correct and remains unchanged, he marks the same 0. K. Otherwise he notes the necessary corrections as required and also prepares new slips for those persons or firms who appear for the first time in the directory of the year for which he is canvassing. \Vheu the canvass has been completed, one of the most important advantages of this slip at once becomes appareut. The previous laborious and expensive process of separating the written slips,which are often very difficult to read and contain many errors, is completely superceded by the presentinvention. In this system the asserting of the printed slips marked- O. K. or merely corrected is done wholly by the printed or easily-read letters or figures upon the left-hand edge of each slip, while those marked Dead, Moved, &c., are thrown out in the separation. The slips are first assorted according to the initial letters, such as C, and next according to the page-numbers, as shown at D. A finer or more exact assorting is then effected by arranging the eolumn-numerals and later the line-numerals, (indicated at E,) thus producing an exact reprod notion of the former years directory in so far as the old names remain, whether with or without change of address,

alterations of initials,&c., provided the proper name is still correct. The new matter that did not appear in the former directory is assorted with these slips. It is thus possible to utilize the slugs or type of a previous years directory in a subsequent years compiling, as a large number of names are not changed, and the distinct indexing of the slip permits the exact location of any name, so that it will be seen from the slip shown in Fig. 2 that the name of Charles A. Cookappeared in the previous directory upon page 434., in the first column and the fifty-seventh line from the top of the page.

It will readily be seen that manifold advantages are derived from this system, among which is the saving of time in the writing of the slips by canvassers, which frequently occurs under ad verse conditions, rendering the same very illegible. The slips and system used permit absolute accuracy. If the information was correct the previous year, it cannot be made incorrect by a careless canvasser and the omission of names through carelessness or forgetfulness of the person giving the canvasser information or because of their temporary absence from the city, as it is obvious that each canvasser is required to give a report upon all of the names given him from the previous directory. Furthermore, a uniformity of spelling of proper and given names is secured-as, for instance, McDonald may appear one year and another year be spelled MacDonald, while the same inaccuracy occurs in relation to business or occupation. It will therefore be apparent that the printing of a previous years names upon slips for a subsequent canvass materially reduces the time required and insures unusual accuracy, while the use of the (lesignating initial letters and page-locating numbers printed upon the end of the slip greatly facilitates the final compiling or placing in order of sequence these numerous slips containing information when the canvass is completed.

It will be obvious that changes maybe made in the various details both of preparing the slips and of the manner of placing the indicating characters thereon without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A directory-slip bearing a copy of the matter of a previous directory and indicating characters of page, column and line of column in addition to the initial of the name appearing in said line; substantially as specified.

2. A directory-slip bearing a copy of a previously-published name together with an indicating initial and page-locating numeral; substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ALEX. T. LOYD.

Witnesses:

H. A. CALLAHAN, JAMES H. BRUNDAGE.

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