He could not fail to
be cast down by the utter failure of his English partnership, and
the loss of the fruits of his ingenious labours. But instead of
brooding over his troubles, he determined to break away from
them, and begin the world anew. He was only forty-three when he
left England, and he might yet be able to establish himself
prosperously in life. He had his own head and hands to help him.
Though England was virtually closed against him, the whole
continent of Europe was open to him, and presented a wide field
for the sale of his printing machines.
While residing in England, Koenig had received many
communications from influential printers in Germany. Johann
Spencer and George Decker wrote to him in 1815, asking for
particulars about his invention; but finding his machine too
expensive,[7] the latter commissioned Koenig to send him a
Stanhope printing press--the first ever introduced into Germany
--the price of which was 95L. Koenig did this service for his
friend, for although he stood by the superior merits of his own
invention, he was sufficiently liberal to recognise the merits of
the inventions of others. Now that he was about to settle in
Germany, he was able to supply his friends and patrons on the
spot.
The question arose, where was he to settle? He made enquiries
about sites along the Rhine, the Neckar, and the Main.
Pages:
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237