Copying

Copying, in its simple meaning, the imitation as closely as possible of a model. In painting the copy is often made to do duty for the original, which it sometimes fraudulently counterfeits. A familiar example of copying is the ordinary tracing of a map, or drawing, which is first taken on transparent paper, and then transferred by means of a carbon paper to the surface upon which it is intended finally to appear. For the rapid and indefinite multiplication of copies many processes have been devised, the most familiar of which are the ordinary copying-press, which finds its place in every office where it is desirable that copies of correspondence, or other transactions, should be preserved. In this case a special kind of ink is made to transfer the writing under heavy pressure to one or more prepared papers. Another familiar contrivance for copying, which, with slight modifications, and under many names, is largely employed, has for its principal feature the transfer of a document written with a special ink to the surface of a composition which takes a negative of the writing, and from which a multitude of copies may be taken by simply laying on successive sheets of paper one at a time and applying a gentle pressure. Printing is the most widely extended method of copying.