The office was, unfortunately, burnt down; but a larger office rose in its place.
What Mr.Clowes principally aimed at, in carrying on his business, was accuracy, speed, and quantity.

He did not seek to produce editions de luxe in limited numbers, but large impressions of works in popular demand--travels, biographies, histories, blue-books, and official reports, in any quantity.

For this purpose, he found the process of hand-printing too tedious, as well as too costly; and hence he early turned his attention to book printing by machine presses, driven by steam power,--in this matter following the example of Mr.Walter of the Times, who had for some years employed the same method for newspaper printing.
Applegath & Cowper's machines had greatly advanced the art of printing.
They secured perfect inking and register; and the sheets were printed off more neatly, regularly, and expeditiously; and larger sheets could be printed on both sides, than by any other method.

In 1823, accordingly, Mr.Clowes erected his first steam presses, and he soon found abundance of work for them.

But to produce steam requires boilers and engines, the working of which occasions smoke and noise.
Now, as the printing-office, with its steam presses, was situated in Northumberland Court, close to the palace of the Duke of Northumberland, at Charing Cross, Mr.Clowes was required to abate the nuisance, and to stop the noise and dirt occasioned by the use of his engines.