THE ARTISTIC CRAFTS 
 [SERIES OF TECHNICAL 
 [HANDBOOKS EDITED 
 IBY W. R. LETHABY 1 
 
 fornia 
 lal 
 
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 No. I. BOOKBINDING
 
 025,7 Cockerell 
 Co Bookbinding, and the 
 care of books 
 
 42*
 
 Date Due
 
 THE ARTISTIC CRAFTS SERIES 
 
 OF TECHNICAL HANDBOOKS 
 
 EDITED BY W. R. LETHABY 
 
 BOOKBINDING
 
 THE ARTISTIC CRAFTS SERIES OF 
 TECHNICAL HANDBOOKS. 
 
 Edited by W. R. LETHABY. 
 
 'T'HE series will appeal to handicraftsmen in the industrial 
 A and mechanic arts. It consists of authoritative state- 
 ments by experts in every field for the exercise of ingenuity, 
 taste, imagination the whole sphere of the so-called "de- 
 pendent arts." 
 
 BOOKBINDING AND THE CARE OF 
 
 BOOKS. A Handbook for Amateurs, Bookbinders, 
 and Librarians. By DOUGLAS COCKERELL. With 
 l^o Illustrations and Diagrams by Noel Rooke, and 
 8 collotype reproductions of binding. izmo. 
 $1.25 net. 
 
 SILVERWORK AND JEWELRY. A Text- 
 Book for Students and Workers in Metal. By H. 
 WILSON. With 160 Diagrams and 1 6 full-page 
 Illustrations. I2mo. $1.40 net. 
 
 WOOD CARVING: DESIGN AND 
 
 WORKMANSHIP. By GEORGE JACK. With 
 Drawings by the Author and other Illustrations. 
 $1.40 net. 
 
 STAINED-GLASS WORK. A Text-Book for 
 
 Students and Workers in Glass. By C. W. WHALL. 
 With Diagrams by two of his Apprentices, and 
 other Illustrations. $1.50 net; postage, 14 cents 
 additional. 
 
 D. APPLETON AND COMPANY, NEW YORK.
 

 
 WHITE PIGSKIN. Basle, 1512.
 
 BOOKBINDING, AND 
 THE CARE OF BOOKS 
 
 A HANDBOOK FOR AMATEURS 
 BOOKBINDERS & LIBRARIANS 
 BY DOUGLAS COCKERELL 
 
 WITH 
 
 DRAWINGS BY NOEL ROOKE 
 AND OTHER ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 D. APPLETON AND COMPANY 
 1906
 
 COPYRIGHT, 1901, 
 BY D. APPLETON AND COMPANY 
 
 All rights reserved
 
 oa.5.7 
 
 Co 
 
 EDITOR'S PREFACE 
 
 IN issuing this volume of a series of Editor's 
 Handbooks on the Artistic Crafts, it Preface 
 will be well to state what are our general 
 aims. 
 
 In the first place, we wish to provide 
 trustworthy text-books of workshop prac- 
 tice, from the points of view of experts 
 who have critically examined the methods 
 current in the shops, and putting aside 
 vain survivals, are prepared to say what 
 is good workmanship, and to set up a 
 standard of quality in the crafts which 
 are more especially associated with de- 
 sign. Secondly, in doing this, we hope 
 to treat design itself as an essential part 
 of good workmanship. During the last 
 century most of the arts, save painting 
 
 7 
 
 2064684
 
 Editor's and sculpture of an academic kind, were 
 Preface \{^\Q considered, and there was a tendency 
 to look on " design " as a mere matter 
 of appearance. Such " ornamentation " as 
 there was was usually obtained by follow- 
 ing in a mechanical way a drawing pro- 
 vided by an artist who often knew little 
 of the technical processes involved in 
 production. With the critical attention 
 given to the crafts by Ruskin and Morris, 
 it came to be seen that it was impossible 
 to detach design from craft in this 
 way, and that, in the widest sense, true 
 design is an inseparable element of good 
 quality, involving as it does the selection 
 of good and suitable material, contriv- 
 ance for special purpose, expert work- 
 manship, proper finish and so on, far 
 more than mere ornament, and indeed, 
 that ornamentation itself was rather an 
 exuberance of fine workmanship than a 
 matter of merely abstract lines. Work- 
 manship when separated by too wide a gulf 
 from fresh thought that is, from design 
 inevitably decays, and, on the other hand, 
 8
 
 ornamentation, divorced from workman- Editor's 
 ship, is necessarily unreal, and quickly Pre * ace 
 falls into affectation. Proper ornamenta- 
 tion may be defined as a language ad- 
 dressed to the eye ; it is pleasant thought 
 expressed in the speech of the tool. 
 
 In the third place, we would have this 
 series put artistic craftsmanship before 
 people as furnishing reasonable occupa- 
 tion for those who would gain a liveli- 
 hood. Although within the bounds of 
 academic art, the competition, of its kind, 
 is so acute that only a very few per cent, 
 can fairly hope to succeed as painters and 
 sculptors ; yet, as artistic craftsmen, there 
 is every probability that nearly every 
 one who would pass through a sufficient 
 period of apprenticeship to workman- 
 ship and design would reach a measure 
 of success. 
 
 In the blending of handwork and 
 thought in such arts as we propose to 
 deal with, happy careers may be found 
 as far removed from the dreary routine 
 of hack labour, as from the terrible un- 
 
 9
 
 Editor's certainty of academic art. It is desirable 
 Preface j n ever y wa y tnat men o f g OO( j education 
 
 should be brought back into the produc- 
 tive crafts : there are more than enough 
 of us " in the city," and it is probable 
 that more consideration will be given in 
 this century than in the last to Design 
 and Workmanship. 
 
 W. R. LETHABY. 
 
 
 10
 
 AUTHOR'S NOTE 
 
 IT is hoped that this book will help Author's 
 bookbinders and librarians to select sound Note 
 methods of binding books. 
 
 It is intended to supplement and not 
 to supplant workshop training for book- 
 binders. No one can become a skilled 
 workman by reading text-books, but to 
 a man who has acquired skill and practical 
 experience, a text-book, giving perhaps 
 different methods from those to which 
 he has been accustomed, may be helpful. 
 
 My thanks are due to many friends, 
 including the workmen in my work- 
 shop, for useful suggestions and other 
 help, and to the Society of Arts for per- 
 mission to quote from the report of their 
 Special Committee on leather for book- 
 binding. 
 
 ii
 
 Author's I should also like to express my in- 
 Note debtedness to my master, Mr. T. J. 
 Cobden-Sanderson, for it was in his work- 
 shop that I learned my craft, and anything 
 that may be of value in this book is due 
 to his influence. 
 
 D. C. 
 
 November 1901. 
 
 12
 
 CONTENTS Contents 
 
 PART I 
 BINDING 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Editor's Preface ..... 7 
 
 Author's Note . . . . . .11 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 Introduction . . . . . .17 
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 Entering Books in Sheets Folding Collating 
 Pulling to Pieces Refolding Knocking 
 out Joints . . . . . -33 
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 Guarding Throwing Out Paring Paper 
 Soaking off India Proofs Mounting very 
 Thin Paper Splitting Paper Inlaying 
 Flattening Vellum . . . -53 
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 Sizing Washing Mending . . .67
 
 Contents CHAPTER V 
 
 PAGE 
 
 End Papers Leather Joints Pressing . . 80 
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 Trimming Edges before Sewing Edge Gilding 92 
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 Making up Sewing Materials for Sewing . 98 
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 Fraying out Slips Glueing up Rounding and 
 
 Backing . . . . . .114 
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 
 Cutting and Attaching Boards Cleaning off 
 
 Back Pressing . . ;' . .124 
 
 CHAPTER X 
 Cutting in Boards Gilding and Colouring Edges 1 39 
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 
 Headbanding . . . . .147 
 
 CHAPTER XII 
 
 Preparing for Covering Paring Leather Cov- 
 ering Mitring Corners Filling-in Boards 152 
 
 H
 
 CHAPTER XIII pAGE contents 
 
 Library Binding Binding very Thin Books 
 Scrap- Books Binding in Vellum Books 
 covered with Embroidery . . .173 
 
 CHAPTER XIV 
 
 Decoration Tools Finishing Tooling on 
 
 Vellum Inlaying on Leather . . 188 
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 Lettering Blind Tooling Heraldic Ornament 215 
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 
 Designing for Gold-Tooled Decoration . . 230 
 
 CHAPTER XVII 
 
 Pasting down End Papers Opening Books . 254 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 Clasps and Ties Metal on Bindings . . 259 
 
 CHAPTER XIX 
 Leather ....... 263 
 
 CHAPTER XX 
 
 Paper Pastes Glue
 
 Contents PART II 
 
 CARE OF BOOKS WHEN BOUND 
 CHAPTER XXI 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Injurious Influences to which Books are Subjected 291 
 
 CHAPTER XXII 
 To Preserve Old Bindings Re-backing . . 302 
 
 SPECIFICATIONS . . . . . 307 
 
 GLOSSARY . . . . . 3 1 3 
 
 REPRODUCTIONS OF BINDINGS (Eight Collotypes) 319 
 INDEX . . . . . . -337 
 
 16
 
 PART I 
 
 BINDING 
 +2.7 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 
 THE reasons for binding the leaves of a Intro- 
 book are to keep them together in their ducrion 
 proper order, and to protect them. That 
 bindings can be made, that will adequately 
 protect books, can be seen from the large 
 number of fifteenth and sixteenth century 
 bindings now existing on books still in 
 excellent condition. That bindings are 
 made, that fail to protect books, may be 
 seen by visiting any large library, when 
 it will be found that many bindings have 
 their boards loose and the leather crum- 
 bling to dust. Nearly all librarians com- 
 plain, that they have to be continually 
 2 17
 
 Intro- rebinding books, and this not after four 
 duction hundred, but after only five or ten years. 
 
 It is no exaggeration to say that ninety 
 per cent, of the books bound in leather 
 during the last thirty years will need re- 
 binding during the next thirty. The 
 immense expense involved must be a very 
 serious drag on the usefulness of libra- 
 ries ; and as rebinding is always to some 
 extent damaging to the leaves of a book, it 
 is not only on account of the expense that 
 the necessity for it is to be regretted. 
 
 The reasons that have led to the pro- 
 duction in modern times of bindings that 
 fail to last for a reasonable time, are two- 
 fold. The materials are badly selected or 
 prepared, and the method of binding is 
 faulty. Another factor in the decay of 
 bindings, both old and new, is the bad 
 conditions under which they are often 
 kept. 
 
 The object of this text-book is to 
 describe the best methods of bookbinding, 
 and of keeping books when bound, taking 
 into account the present-day conditions. 
 No attempt has been made to describe all 
 possible methods, but only such as appear 
 to have answered best on old books. The 
 methods described are for binding that 
 
 18
 
 can be done by hand with the aid of Intro- 
 simple appliances. Large editions of duction 
 books are now bound, or rather cased, 
 at an almost incredible speed by the aid 
 of machinery, but all work that needs 
 personal care and thought on each book, 
 is still done, and probably always will be 
 done, by hand. Elaborate machinery can 
 only be economically employed when very 
 large numbers of books have to be turned 
 out exactly alike. 
 
 The ordinary cloth " binding " of the 
 trade, is better described as casing. The 
 methods being different, it is convenient 
 to distinguish between casing and binding. 
 In binding, the slips are firmly attached 
 to the boards before covering ; in casing, 
 the boards are covered separately, and 
 afterwards glued on to the book. Very 
 great efforts have been made in the deco- 
 ration of cloth covers, and it is a pity 
 that the methods of construction have 
 not been equally considered. If cloth cases 
 are to be looked upon as a temporary 
 binding, then it seems a pity to waste so 
 much trouble on their decoration ; and 
 if they are to be looked upon as per- 
 manent binding, it is a pity the construc- 
 tion is not better. 
 
 19
 
 Intro- For books of only temporary interest, 
 
 duction the usual cloth cases answer well enough ; 
 but for books expected to have permanent 
 value, some change is desirable. 
 
 Valuable books should either be issued 
 in bindings that are obviously temporary, 
 or else in bindings that are strong enough 
 to be considered permanent. The usual 
 cloth case fails as a temporary binding, 
 because the methods employed result in 
 serious damage to the sections of the book, 
 often unfitting them for rebinding, and it 
 fails as a permanent binding on account of 
 the absence of sound construction. 
 
 In a temporary publisher's binding, 
 nothing should be done to the sections 
 of a book that would injure them. Plates 
 should be guarded, the sewing should be 
 on tapes, without splitting the head and 
 tail, or " sawing in " the backs, of the 
 sections ; the backs should be glued up 
 square without backing. The case may 
 be attached, as is now usual. For a per- 
 manent publisher's binding, something 
 like that recommended for libraries (page 
 173) is suggested, with either leather or 
 cloth on the back. 
 
 At the end of the book four specifica- 
 tions are given (page 307). The first is 
 
 20
 
 suggested for binding books of special Intro- 
 interest or value, where no restriction as to duction 
 price is made. A binding under this speci- 
 fication may be decorated to any extent 
 that the nature of the book justifies. The 
 second is for good binding, for books 
 of reference and other heavy books that 
 may have a great deal of wear. All the 
 features of the first that make for the 
 strength of the binding are retained, while 
 those less essential, that only add to the 
 appearance, are omitted. Although the 
 binding under this specification would be 
 much cheaper than that carried out under 
 the first, it would still be too expensive 
 for the majority of books in most libra- 
 ries ; and as it would seem to be impos- 
 sible to further modify this form of 
 binding, without materially reducing its 
 strength, for cheaper work, a somewhat 
 different system is recommended. The 
 third specification is recommended for 
 the binding of the general run of small 
 books in most libraries. The fourth is 
 a modification of this for pamphlets and 
 other books of little value, that need to 
 be kept together tidily for occasional 
 reference. 
 
 Thanks, in a great measure, to the work 
 
 21
 
 Intro- of Mr. Cobden-Sanderson, there is in Eng- 
 duction land the germ of a sound tradition for the 
 best binding. The Report of the Com- 
 mittee appointed by the Society of Arts 
 to investigate the cause of the decay of 
 modern leather bindings, should tend to 
 establish a sound tradition for cheaper 
 work. The third specification at the end 
 of this book is practically the same as that 
 given in their Report, and was arrived at 
 by selection, after many libraries had been 
 examined, and many forms of binding 
 compared. 
 
 Up to the end of the eighteenth cen- 
 tury the traditional methods of binding 
 books had altered very little during three 
 hundred years. Books were generally 
 sewn round five cords, the ends of all of 
 these laced into the boards, and the leather 
 attached directly to the back. At the end 
 of the eighteenth century it became custo- 
 mary to pare down leather until it was as 
 thin as paper, and soon afterwards the use 
 of hollow backs and false bands became 
 general, and these two things together 
 mark the beginning of the modern degra- 
 dation of binding, so far as its utility as a 
 protection is concerned. 
 
 The Society of Arts Committee report 
 
 22
 
 that the bookbinders must share with the Intro- 
 leather manufacturers and librarians the ducrion 
 blame for the premature decay of modern 
 bindings, because 
 
 " i. Books are sewn on too few, and 
 too thin cords, and the slips are pared 
 down unduly (for the sake of neatness), 
 and are not in all cases firmly laced into 
 the boards. This renders the attach- 
 ment of the boards to the book almost 
 entirely dependent on the strength of the 
 leather. 
 
 " 2. The use of hollow backs throws all 
 the strain of opening and shutting on the 
 joints, and renders the back liable to come 
 right off if the book is much used. 
 
 "3. The leather of the back is apt to 
 become torn through the use of insuffi- 
 ciently strong headbands, which are unable 
 to stand the strain of the book being taken 
 from the shelf. 
 
 "4. It is a common practice to use far 
 too thin leather ; especially to use large 
 thick skins very much pared down for 
 small books. 
 
 " 5. The leather is often made very 
 wet and stretched a great deal in covering, 
 with the result that on drying it is further 
 strained, almost to breaking point, by con- 
 
 23
 
 Intro- traction, leaving a very small margin of 
 duction strength to meet the accidents of use." 
 
 The history of the general introduction 
 of hollow backs is probably somewhat 
 as follows : Leather was doubtless first 
 chosen for covering the backs of books 
 because of its toughness and flexibility ; 
 because, while protecting the back, it 
 would bend when the book was opened 
 and allow the back to " throw up " (see 
 fig. i, A). When gold tooling became 
 common, and the backs of books were ela- 
 borately decorated, it was found that the 
 creasing of the leather injured the bright- 
 ness of the gold and caused it to crack. 
 To avoid this the binders lined up the 
 back until it was as stiff as a block of 
 wood. The back would then not " throw 
 up " as the book was opened, the leather 
 would not be creased, and the gold would 
 remain uninjured (see fig. i, B). This was 
 all very well for the gold, but a book so 
 treated does not open fully, and indeed, 
 if the paper is stiff, can hardly be got to 
 open at all. To overcome both difficul- 
 ties the hollow back was introduced, and 
 as projecting bands would have been 
 in the way, the sewing cord was sunk in 
 saw cuts made across the back of the book. 
 
 24
 
 The use of hollow backs was a very Intro- 
 ingenious way out of the difficulty, as duction 
 with them the backs could be made to 
 " throw up," and at the same time the 
 
 A 
 
 leather was not disturbed (see fig. i, C). 
 The method of " sawing in " bands was 
 known for a long time before the general
 
 Intro- use of hollow backs. It has been used to 
 duction avoid the raised bands on books covered 
 with embroidered material. 
 
 If a book is sewn on tapes, and the back 
 lined with leather, there is no serious ob- 
 jection to a carefully-made hollow back 
 without bands. The vellum binders use 
 hollow backs made in this way for great 
 account books that stand an immense 
 amount of wear. They make the " hollow " 
 very stiff, so that it acts as a spring to 
 throw the back up. 
 
 But although, if carefully done, satis- 
 factory bindings may be made with hollow 
 backs, their use has resulted in the pro- 
 duction of worthless bindings with little 
 strength, and yet with the appearance of 
 better work. 
 
 The public having been accustomed to 
 raised bands on the backs of books, and 
 the real bands being sunk in the back, the 
 binders put false ones over the " hollow." 
 To save money or trouble, the bands being 
 out of sight, the book would be sewn on 
 only three or sometimes only two cords, 
 the usual five false ones still showing at 
 the back. Often only two out of the 
 three bands would be laced into the board, 
 and sometimes the slips would not be laced 
 
 26
 
 in at all. Again, false headbands worked Intro- 
 by the yard by machinery would be stuck duction 
 on at the head and tail, and a "hollow" 
 made with brown paper. Then leather so 
 thin as to have but little strength, but used 
 because it is easy to work and needs no 
 paring, would be stuck on. The back 
 would often be full gilt and lettered, and 
 the sides sprinkled or marbled, thus further 
 damaging the leather. 
 
 In every large library hundreds of books 
 bound somewhat on these lines may be 
 seen. When they are received from the 
 binder they have the appearance of being 
 well bound, they look smart on the shelf^ 
 but in a few years, whether they are used 
 or not, the leather will have perished and 
 the boards become detached, and they will 
 have to be rebound. 
 
 As long as librarians expect the appear- 
 ance of a guinea binding for two or three 
 shillings, such shams will be produced. 
 The librarian generally gets his money's 
 worth, for it would be impossible for the 
 binder to do better work at the price 
 usually paid without materially altering 
 the appearance of the binding. The 
 polished calf and imitation crushed mo- 
 rocco must go, and in its place a rougher, 
 
 27
 
 Intro- thicker leather must be employed. The 
 duction full-gilt backs must go, the coloured letter- 
 ing panel must go, the hollow backs must 
 go, but in the place of these we may have 
 the books sewn on tapes with the ends 
 securely fastened into split boards, and 
 the thick leather attached directly to the 
 backs of the sections. (See specification 
 III. page 307.) 
 
 Such a binding would look well and not 
 be more expensive than the usual library 
 binding. It should allow the book to 
 open flat, and if the materials are well 
 selected, be very durable, and specially 
 strong in the joints, the weak place in 
 most bindings. The lettering on the back 
 may be damaged in time if the book is 
 much used, but if so it can easily be 
 renewed at a fraction of the cost of re- 
 binding, and without injury to the book. 
 
 While the majority of books in most 
 libraries must be bound at a small cost, 
 at most not exceeding a few shillings a 
 volume, there is a large demand for good 
 plain bindings, and a limited, but grow- 
 ing, demand for more or less decorated 
 bindings for special books. 
 
 Any decoration but the simplest should 
 be restricted to books bound as well as 
 
 28
 
 the binder can do them. The presence Intro- 
 of decoration should be evidence that the duction 
 binder, after doing his best with the " for- 
 warding," has had time in which to try 
 to make his work a beautiful, as well as 
 a senviceable, production. 
 
 Many books, although well bound, are 
 better left plain, or with only a little 
 decoration. But occasionally there are 
 books that the binder can decorate as 
 lavishly as he is able. As an instance of 
 bindings that cannot be over-decorated, 
 those books which are used in important 
 ceremonies, such as Altar Books, may be 
 mentioned. Such books may be decorated 
 with gold and colour until they seem to 
 be covered in a golden material. They 
 will be but spots of gorgeousness in a 
 great church or cathedral, and they can- 
 not be said to be over-decorated as long 
 as the decoration is good. 
 
 So, occasionally some one may have a 
 book to which he is for some reason 
 greatly attached, and wishing to enshrine 
 it, give the binder a free hand to do 
 his best with it. The binder may wish 
 to make a delicate pattern with nicely- 
 balanced spots of ornament, leaving the 
 leather for the most part bare, or he may 
 
 29
 
 Intro- wish to cover the outside with some close 
 duction gold-tooled pattern, giving a richness of 
 texture hardly to be got by other means. 
 If he decides on the latter, many people 
 will say that the cover is over-decorated. 
 But as a book cover can never be seen 
 absolutely alone, it should not be judged 
 as an isolated thing covered with orna- 
 ment without relief, but as a spot of 
 brightness and interest among its sur- 
 roundings. If a room and everything in 
 it is covered with elaborate pattern, then 
 anything with a plain surface would be 
 welcome as a relief; but in a room which 
 is reasonably free from ornament, a spot 
 of rich decoration should be welcome. 
 
 It is not contended that the only, or 
 necessarily the best, method of decorating 
 book covers is by elaborate all-over gold- 
 tooled pattern ; but it is contended that 
 this is a legitimate method of decoration 
 for exceptional books, and that by its use 
 it is possible to get a beautiful effect well 
 worth the trouble and expense involved. 
 
 Good leather has a beautiful surface, 
 and may sometimes be got of a fine colour. 
 The binder may often wish to show this 
 surface and colour, and to restrict his 
 decoration to small portions of the cover, 
 
 30
 
 and this quite rightly, he aiming at, and Intro- 
 getting, a totally different effect than that duction 
 got by all-over patterns. Both methods 
 are right if well done, and both methods 
 can equally be vulgarised if badly done. 
 
 A much debated question is, how far 
 the decoration of a binding should be 
 influenced by the contents of the book ? 
 A certain appropriateness there should be, 
 but as a general thing, if the binder aims 
 at making the cover beautiful, that is the 
 best he can do. The hints given for 
 designing are not intended to stop the 
 development of the student's own ideas, 
 but only to encourage their development 
 on right lines. 
 
 There should be a certain similarity of 
 treatment between the general get-up of 
 a book and its binding. It is a great pity 
 that printers and binders have drifted so 
 far apart ; they are, or should be, working 
 for one end, the production of a book, 
 and some unity of aim should be evident 
 in the work of the two. 
 
 The binding of manuscripts and early 
 printed books should be strong and simple. 
 It should be as strong and durable as the 
 original old bindings, and, like them, last 
 with reasonable care for four hundred years 
 
 3 1
 
 Intro- or more. To this end the old bindings, 
 
 duction with their stout sewing cord, wooden 
 
 boards, and clasps, may be taken as models. 
 
 The question is constantly asked, espe- 
 cially by women, if a living can be made 
 by setting up as bookbinders. Cheap 
 binding can most economically be done 
 in large workshops, but probably the best 
 bindings can be done more satisfactorily 
 by binders working alone, or in very small 
 workshops. 
 
 If any one intends to set up as a book- 
 binder, doing all the work without help, 
 it is necessary to charge very high prices 
 to get any adequate return after the 
 working expenses have been paid. In 
 order to get high prices, the standard of 
 work must be very high ;' and in order to 
 attain a high enough standard of work, 
 a very thorough training is necessary. It 
 is desirable that any one hoping to make 
 money at the craft should have at least a 
 year's training in a workshop where good 
 work is done, and after that, some time 
 will be spent before quite satisfactory work 
 can be turned out rapidly enough to pay, 
 supposing that orders can be obtained or 
 the books bound can be sold. 
 
 There are some successful binders who
 
 have had less than a year's training, but 
 they are exceptional. Those who have 
 not been accustomed to manual work have 
 usually, in addition to the necessary skill, 
 to acquire the habit of continuous work. 
 Bookbinding seems to offer an opening 
 for well-educated youths who are willing 
 to serve an apprenticeship in a good shop, 
 and who have some small amount of capital 
 at their command. 
 
 In addition to the production of de- 
 corated bindings, there is much to be done 
 by specialising in certain kinds of work 
 requiring special knowledge. Repairing 
 and binding early printed books and 
 manuscripts, or the restoration of Parish 
 Registers and Accounts, may be suggested. 
 
 Intro- 
 duction 
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 Entering Books in Sheets Folding Collating 
 Pulling to Pieces Refolding Knocking out 
 Joints 
 
 ENTERING 
 
 ON receiving a book for binding, its title Entering 
 should be entered in a book kept for 
 that purpose, with the date of entry, and 
 
 3 33
 
 Entering customer's name and address, and any in- 
 structions he may have given, written out 
 in full underneath, leaving room below to 
 enter the time taken on the various opera- 
 tions and cost of the materials used. It 
 is well to number the entry, and to give 
 a corresponding number to the book. It 
 should be at once collated, and any special 
 features noted, such as pages that need 
 washing or mending. If the book should 
 prove to be imperfect, or to have any 
 serious defect, the owner should be com- 
 municated with, before it is pulled to 
 pieces. This is very important, as imper- 
 fect books that have been " pulled " are 
 not returnable to the bookseller. Should 
 defects only be discovered after the book 
 has been taken to pieces, the bookbinder is 
 liable to be blamed for the loss of any 
 missing leaves. 
 
 BOOKS IN SHEETS 
 
 Books in The sheets of a newly printed book are 
 Sheets arranged in piles in the printer's ware- 
 house, each pile being made up of repeti- 
 tions of the same sheet or " signature." 
 Plates or maps are in piles by themselves. 
 34
 
 To make a complete book one sheet is Books in 
 gathered from each pile, beginning at the Sheets 
 last sheet and working backwards to signa- 
 ture A. When a book is ordered from a 
 publisher in sheets, it is such a " gathered " 
 copy that the binder receives. Some books 
 are printed " double," that is, the type is 
 set up twice, two copies are printed at once 
 at different ends of a sheet of paper, and 
 the sheets have to be divided down the 
 middle before the copies can be separated. 
 Sometimes the title and introduction, or 
 perhaps only the last sheet, will be printed 
 in this way. Publishers usually decline to 
 supply in sheets fewer than two copies of 
 such double-printed books. 
 
 If a book is received unfolded, it is 
 generally advisable at once to fold up the 
 sheets and put them in their proper order, 
 with half-title, title, introduction, &c., and, 
 if there are plates, to compare them with 
 the printed list. 
 
 Should there be in a recently published 
 book defects of any kind, such as spiled 
 sheets, the publisher will usually replace 
 them on application, although they some- 
 times take a long time to do so. Such 
 sheets are called " imperfections," and the 
 printers usually keep a number of" overs " 
 
 35
 
 Books in in order to make good such imperfections 
 Sheets as m ay occur. 
 
 FOLDING 
 
 Folding Books received in sheets must be folded. 
 Folding requires care, or the margins of 
 different leaves will be unequal, and the 
 lines of printing not at right angles to 
 the back. 
 
 Books of various sizes are known as 
 "folio," "quarto," "octavo," "duode- 
 cimo," &c. These names signify the 
 number of folds, and consequently the 
 number of leaves the paper has been folded 
 into. Thus, a folio is made up of sheets 
 of paper folded once down the centre, 
 forming two leaves and four pages. The 
 sheets of a quarto have a second fold, 
 making four leaves and eight pages, and 
 in an octavo the sheet has a third fold, 
 forming eight leaves and sixteen pages 
 (see fig. 2), and so on. Each sheet of 
 paper when folded constitutes a section, 
 except in the case of folios, where it is 
 usual to make up the sections by inserting 
 two or more sheets, one within the other. 
 
 Paper is made in several named sizes, 
 such as " imperial," " royal," " demy," 
 
 36
 
 "crown," "foolscap," &c. (see p. 283), 
 so that the terms " imperial folio " or 
 " crown octavo " imply that a sheet of a 
 definite size has been folded a definite 
 number of times. 
 
 Folio 
 
 
 FIG. 2. 
 
 Besides the traditional sizes, paper is now 
 made of almost any length and width, re- 
 sulting in books of odd shape, and the 
 names folio, quarto, &c., are rather losing 
 their true meaning, and are often used 
 loosely to signify pages of certain sizes, 
 irrespective of the number that go to a 
 sheet. 
 
 37 
 
 Folding
 
 Folding On -receipt, for instance, of an octavo 
 book for folding, the pile of sheets is laid 
 flat on the table, and collated by the letter 
 or signature of each sheet. The first sheet 
 of the book proper will probably be signa- 
 ture B, as signature A usually consists of 
 the half-title, title, introduction, &c., and 
 often has to be folded up rather differently. 
 
 The " outer " sides, known by the signa- 
 ture letters B, C, D, &c., should be down- 
 wards, and the inner sides facing upwards 
 with the second signatures, if there are any, 
 62, C2, Da, &c., at the right-hand bottom 
 corner. 
 
 The pages of an octave book, com- 
 mencing at page i, are shown at fig. 3. 
 A folder is taken in the right hand, and 
 held at trie bottom of the sheet at about 
 the centre, and the sheet taken by the left 
 hand at the top right-hand corner and bent 
 over until pages 3 and 6 come exactly over 
 pages 2 and 7 ; and when it is seen that 
 the headlines and figures exactly match, the 
 paper, while being held in that position, 
 is creased down the centre with the folder, 
 and the fold cut up a little more than half- 
 way. Pages 4, 13, 5, 12 will now be 
 uppermost ; pages 12 and 5 are now folded 
 over to exactly match pages 13 and 4, and 
 
 38
 
 Folding 
 
 9 
 
 4 
 
 
 13 
 
 
 16 
 
 
 1 
 
 B 
 
 Outer side: Dotunwwcb. 
 
 L 
 
 
 01 
 
 
 It 
 
 
 9 
 
 2 
 
 
 15 
 
 
 14 
 
 
 3 
 B2 
 
 Inner side : Upwands. 
 AN OCTAVO SHEET. 
 
 FIG. 3.
 
 Folding the fold creased and cut up a little more 
 than half-way, as before. Pages 8 and 9 
 will now be uppermost, and will merely 
 require folding together to make the pages 
 of the section follow in their proper order. 
 If the folding has been done carefully, 
 and the "register" of the printing is 
 good, the headlines should be exactly even 
 throughout. 
 
 The object of cutting past the centre at 
 each fold is to avoid the unsightly creas- 
 ing that results from folding two or more 
 thicknesses of paper when joined at the 
 top edge. 
 
 A " duodecimo " sheet has the pages 
 arranged as at fig. 4. 
 
 The" inset" pages, 10, 15, 14, i i,must 
 
 be cut off, and the rest of the section 
 
 * folded as for an octavo sheet. The inset 
 
 is folded separately and inserted into the 
 
 centre of the octavo portion. 
 
 Other sizes are folded in much the same 
 way, and the principle of folding one sheet 
 having been mastered, no difficulty will be 
 found in folding any other. 
 
 Plates often require trimming, and this 
 must be done with judgment. The plates 
 should be trimmed to correspond as far as 
 possible with the printing on the opposite 
 
 40
 
 Outer Side. 
 
 Folding 
 
 Vi 
 
 Inner Side. 
 A DUODECIODO SHEET. 
 
 FIG. 4.
 
 Folding page, but if this cannot be done, it is desir- 
 able that something approaching the pro- 
 portion of margin shown at fig. 2 (folio) 
 should be aimed at. That is to say, the 
 back margin should be the smallest, the 
 head margin the next, the fore-edge a little 
 wider, and the tail widest of all. When a 
 plate consists of a small portrait or diagram 
 in the centre of the page, it looks better if 
 it is put a little higher and a little nearer 
 the back than the actual centre. 
 
 Plates that have no numbers on them 
 must be put in order by the list of printed 
 plates, or " instructions to the binder." 
 The half-title, title, dedication, &c., will 
 often be found to be printed on odd sheets 
 that have to be made up into section A. 
 This preliminary matter is usually placed 
 in the following order : Half-title, title, 
 dedication, preface, contents, list of illus- 
 trations or other lists. If there is an index, 
 it should be put at the end of the book. 
 
 All plates should be "guarded," and 
 any " quarter sections," that is, sections 
 consisting of two leaves, should have their 
 backs strengthened by a " guard," or they 
 may very easily be torn in the sewing. 
 Odd, single leaves may be guarded round 
 sections in the same way as plates. 
 
 42
 
 When a book has been folded, it should Folding 
 be pressed (see p. 87). 
 
 There will sometimes be pages marked 
 by the printer with a star. These have 
 some error in them, and are intended to 
 be cut out. The printer should supply 
 corrected pages to replace them. 
 
 COLLATING 
 
 In addition to the pagination each sheet Collating 
 or section of a printed book is lettered or 
 numbered. Each letter or number is called 
 the " sheet's signature." Printers usually 
 leave out J W and V in lettering sheets. 
 If there are more sections than there are 
 letters in the alphabet, the printer doubles 
 the letters, signing the sections A A, BB, 
 and so on, after the single letters are ex- 
 hausted. Some printers use an Arabic 
 numeral before the section number to 
 denote the second alphabet, as 2 A, 26, 
 &c., and others change the character of 
 the letters, perhaps using capitals for the 
 first alphabet and italics for the second. 
 If the sheets are numbered, the numbers 
 will of course follow consecutively. In 
 books of more than one volume, the num- 
 ber of the volume is sometimes added in 
 
 43
 
 Collating Roman numerals before the signature, as 
 II A, II B. 
 
 The main pagination of the book usually 
 commences with Chapter I., and all before 
 that is independently paged in Roman 
 numerals. It is unusual to have actual 
 numbers on the title or half-title, but if 
 the pages are counted back from where 
 the first numeral occurs, they should come 
 
 right- 
 There will sometimes be one or more 
 blank leaves completing sections at the 
 beginning or end. Such blank leaves must 
 be retained, as without them the volume 
 would be " imperfect." 
 
 To collate a modern book the paging 
 must be examined to see that the leaves 
 are in order, and that nothing is defective 
 or missing. 
 
 The method of doing this is to insert the 
 first finger of the right hand at the bottom 
 of about the fiftieth page, crook the finger, 
 and turn up the corners of the pages with 
 it. When this is done the thumb is placed 
 on page i , and the hand twisted, so as to fan 
 out the top of the pages. They can then 
 be readily turned over by the thumb and 
 first finger of the left hand (see fig. 5). 
 This is repeated throughout the book, 
 
 44
 
 taking about fifty pages at a time. It Collating 
 will of course only be necessary to check 
 the odd numbers, as if they are right, the 
 
 FIG. 5. 
 
 even ones on the other side of the leaf 
 must be so. If the pages are numbered at 
 the foot, the leaves must be fanned out 
 from the head. 
 
 Plates or maps that are not paged can 
 only be checked from the printed list. 
 When checked it will save time if the 
 
 45
 
 Collating number of the page which each faces is 
 marked on the back in small pencil figures. 
 In the case of early printed books or 
 manuscripts, which are often not paged, 
 special knowledge is needed for their 
 collation. It may roughly be said, that 
 if the sections are all complete, that rs, 
 if there are the same number of Jeaves 
 at each side of the sewing in all the 
 sections, the book may be taken to be 
 perfect, unless of course whole sections 
 are missing. All unpaged books should 
 be paged through in pencil before they 
 are taken apart ; this is best done with a 
 very fine pencil, at the bottom left-hand 
 corner ; it will only be necessary to num- 
 ber the front of each leaf. 
 
 PULLING TO PIECES 
 
 Pulling to After the volume has been collated it 
 Pieces must be " pulled," that is to say, the 
 sections must be separated, and all plates 
 or maps detached. 
 
 If in a bound book there are slips laced 
 in the front cover, they must be cut and 
 the back torn off. It will sometimes 
 happen that in tearing off the leather 
 nearly all the glue will come too, leaving 
 46
 
 the backs of the pages detached except Pulling to 
 for the sewing. More usually the back Pieces 
 will be left covered with a mass of glue 
 and linen, or paper, which it is very diffi- 
 cult to remove without injury to the 
 backs of the sections. By drawing a sharp 
 knife along the bands, the sewing may be 
 cut and the bands removed, leaving the 
 sections only connected by the glue. 
 Then the sections of the book can usually 
 be separated with a fine folder, after the 
 thread from the centre of each has been 
 removed ; the point of division being 
 ascertained by finding the first signature 
 of each section. In cases where the glue 
 and leather form too hard a back to yield 
 to this method, it is advisable to soak the 
 glue with paste, and when soft to scrape 
 it off with a folder. As this method is 
 apt to injure the backs of the sections, 
 it should not be resorted to unless neces- 
 sary ; and when it is, care must be taken 
 not to let the damp penetrate into the 
 book, or it will cause very ugly stains. 
 The book must be pulled while damp, 
 or else the glue will dry up harder than 
 before. The separated sections must be 
 piled up carefully to prevent pages being 
 soiled by the damp glue. 
 
 47
 
 Pulling to All plates or single leaves " pasted on " 
 Pieces must be removed. These can usually be 
 detached by carefully tearing apart, but 
 if too securely pasted they must be soaked 
 off in water, unless of course the plates 
 have been painted with water-colour. If 
 the plates must be soaked off, the leaf 
 and attached plate should be put into a 
 pan of slightly warm water and left to 
 soak until they float apart, then with a 
 soft brush any remaining glue or paste 
 can be easily removed while in the water. 
 Care must be taken not to soak modern 
 books printed on what is called " Art 
 Paper," as this paper will hardly stand 
 ordinary handling, and is absolutely ruined 
 if wetted. The growing use of this paper 
 in important books is one of the greatest 
 troubles the bookbinder has to face. The 
 highly loaded and glazed surface of some 
 of the heavy plate papers easily flakes off, 
 so that any guard pasted on these plates 
 is apt to come away, taking with it the 
 surface of the paper. Moreover, should 
 the plates chance to be fingered or in any 
 way soiled, nothing can remove the marks ; 
 and should a corner get turned down, the 
 paper breaks and the corner will fall off. 
 It is the opinion of experts that this 
 48
 
 heavily loaded Art Paper will not last a Pulling to 
 reasonable time, and, apart from other Pieces 
 considerations, this should be ample reason 
 for not using it in books that are expected 
 to have a permanent value. Printers like 
 this paper, because it enables them to 
 obtain brilliant impressions from blocks 
 produced by cheap processes. 
 
 In " cased " books, sewn by machinery, 
 the head and tail of the sheets will often 
 be found to be split up as far as the 
 " kettle " stitches. If such a book is to 
 be expensively bound, it will require mend- 
 ing throughout in these places, or the glue 
 may soak into the torn ends, and make the 
 book open stiffly. 
 
 Some books are put together with staples 
 of tinned iron wire, which rapidly rust and 
 disfigure the book by circular brown marks. 
 Such marks will usually have to be cut out 
 and the places carefully mended. This pro- 
 cess is lengthy, and consequently so costly, 
 that it is generally cheaper, when possible, 
 to obtain an unbound copy of the book from 
 the publishers, than to waste time repairing 
 the damage done by the cloth binder. 
 
 Generally speaking, the sections of a 
 book cased in cloth by modern methods 
 are so injured as to make it unfit for more 
 4 49
 
 Pulling to permanent binding unless an unreasonable 
 Pieces amount of time is spent on it. It is a 
 great pity that publishers do not, in the 
 case of books expected to have a perma- 
 nent literary value, issue a certain number 
 of copies printed on good paper, and un- 
 bound, for the use of those who require 
 permanent bindings ; and in such copies it 
 would be a great help if sufficient margin 
 were left at the back of the plates for the 
 binder to turn it up to form a guard. If 
 the plates were very numerous, guards 
 made of the substance of the plates them- 
 selves would make the book too thick ; but 
 in the case of books with not more than a 
 dozen plates, printed on comparatively 
 thin paper, it would be a great advantage. 
 Some books in which there are a large 
 number of plates are cut into single leaves, 
 which are held together at the back by a 
 coating of an indiarubber solution. For a 
 short time such a volume is pleasant enough 
 to handle, and opens freely, but before long 
 the indiarubber perishes, and the leaves and 
 plates fall apart. When a book of this 
 kind comes to have a permanent binding, 
 all the leaves and plates have to be pared 
 at the back and made up into sections 
 with guards a troublesome and expensive 
 
 50
 
 Pulling to 
 Pieces 
 
 business. The custom with binders is to 
 overcast the backs of the leaves in sections, 
 and to sew through the overcasting thread, 
 but this, though an easy and quick process, 
 makes a hopelessly stiff back, and no book 
 so treated can open freely. 
 
 REFOLDING 
 
 When the sheets of books that have to Refolding 
 be rebound have been 
 carelessly folded, a 
 certain amount of re- 
 adjustment is often 
 advisable, especially 
 in cases where the 
 book has not been 
 previously cut. The 
 title - page and the 
 half-title, when found 
 to be out of square, 
 should nearly always 
 be put straight. The 
 folding of the whole 
 book may be cor- 
 rected by taking each 
 pair of leaves and 
 holding them up to the light and ad- 
 justing the fold so that the print on one 
 leaf comes exactly over the print on the 
 
 5 1 
 
 FIG. 6. Dividers
 
 Refolding other, and creasing the fold to make them 
 stay in that position. With a pair of 
 dividers (fig. 6) set to the height of the 
 shortest top margin, points the same dis- 
 tance above the headline of the other leaves 
 can be made. Then against a carpenter's 
 square, adjusted to the back of the fold, the 
 head of one pair of leaves at a time can be 
 cut square (see fig. 7). If the book has 
 
 FIG. 7. 
 
 been previously cut this process is apt to 
 throw the leaves so far out of their original 
 position as to make them unduly uneven. 
 
 Accurate folding is impossible if the 
 " register " of the printing is bad, that is 
 to say, if the print on the back of a leaf 
 does not lie exactly over that on the front. 
 
 Crooked plates should usually be made 
 straight by judicious trimming of the mar- 
 gins. It is better to leave a plate short at
 
 tail or fore-edge than to leave it out of Refolding 
 square. 
 
 KNOCKING OUT JOINTS 
 
 The old "joints " must be knocked out Knocking 
 of the sections of books that have been out joints 
 previously backed. To do this, one or two 
 sections at a time are held firmly in the left 
 hand, and well hammered on the knocking- 
 down iron fixed into the lying press. It 
 is important that the hammer face should 
 fall exactly squarely upon the paper, or 
 it may cut pieces out. The knocking- 
 down iron should be covered with a piece 
 of paper, and the hammer face must be 
 perfectly clean, or the sheets may be soiled. 
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 Guarding Throwing Out Paring Paper Soaking 
 off India Proofs Mounting very Thin Paper 
 Splitting Paper Inlaying Flattening Vellum 
 
 GUARDING 
 
 GUARDS are slips of thin paper or linen Guarding 
 used for strengthening the fold of leaves 
 that are damaged, or for attaching plates 
 or single leaves. 
 
 Guards should be of good thin paper. 
 That known as Whatman's Banknote paper 
 
 53
 
 FIG. 8. 
 
 Guarding answers very well. An easy way to cut 
 guards is shown in fig. 8. Two or three 
 
 pieces of paper 
 of the height of 
 the required 
 guards are fold- 
 ed and pinned to 
 the board by the 
 right - hand cor- 
 ners. A series 
 
 of points are marked at the head and 
 tail with dividers set to the width desired 
 for the guards, and with a knife guided 
 by a straight - edge, cuts joining the 
 points are made right through the paper, 
 but not extending quite to either end. 
 On a transverse cut being made near the 
 bottom, the guards are left attached by 
 one end only (see 
 fig. 9), and can 
 be torn off as 
 wanted. This 
 method prevents 
 the paper from 
 slipping while it 
 is being cut. 
 
 A mount cutter's knife (fig. 10) will 
 be found to be a convenient form of knife 
 to use for cutting guards. 
 54
 
 In using the knife and straight-edge a Guarding 
 good deal of pressure should be put on 
 
 
 FIG. 10. Mount Cutter's Knife 
 
 the straight-edge, and comparatively little 
 on the knife. 
 
 To mend the torn back of a pair of 
 leaves, a guard should be selected a little 
 longer than the height of the pages 
 and well pasted with white paste (see 
 page 288). If the pair of leaves are not 
 quite separated, the pasted guard held by 
 its extremities may be simply laid along 
 the weak place and rubbed down through 
 blotting-paper. If the leaves are quite 
 apart, it is better to lay the pasted guard 
 on a piece of glass and put the edges of 
 first one and then the other leaf on to it 
 and rub down. 
 
 On an outside pair of leaves the guard 
 should be inside, so that the glue may 
 catch any ragged edges ; while on the 
 inside pair the guard should be outside, or 
 it will be found to be troublesome in sewing. 
 In handling the pasted guards care is 
 needed not to stretch them, or they may 
 cause the sheet to crinkle as they dry. 
 
 55
 
 Guarding Plates must be guarded round the 
 sections next them. When there are a 
 great many plates the back margin of 
 each, to which a guard will be attached, 
 
 i , 
 
 A 
 
 must be pared (see fig. 1 1, A), or the ad- 
 ditional thickness caused by the guards 
 will make the back swell unduly. In 
 guarding plates a number can be pasted 
 at once if they are laid one on another, 
 with about an eighth of an inch of the 
 back of each exposed, the top of the pile 
 being protected by a folded piece of 
 waste paper (see fig. 12). To paste, the 
 brush is brought from the top to the 
 bottom of the pile only, and not the 
 other way, or paste will get between 
 the plates and soil them. Guards should 
 usually be attached to the backs of plates, 
 and should be wide enough to turn up 
 round the adjoining section, so that they 
 
 56
 
 may be sewn through. Should a plate Guarding 
 come in the middle of a section, the guard 
 
 FJG. 12. 
 
 is best turned back and slightly pasted to 
 the inside of the sheet and then sewn 
 through in the ordinary way. 
 
 If plates are very thick, they must be 
 hinged, as shown at fig. n, B. This is 
 done by cutting a strip of about a quarter 
 of an inch off the back of the plate, and 
 guarding with a wide guard of linen, leav- 
 ing a small space between the plate and 
 the piece cut off to form a hinge. It will 
 save some swelling if the plate is pared 
 and a piece of thinner paper substituted 
 for the piece cut off (see fig. n, C). If 
 the plates are of cardboard, they should 
 be guarded on both sides with linen, and 
 may even need a second joint. 
 
 A book that consists entirely of plates 
 
 57
 
 Guarding or single leaves must be made up into 
 sections with guards, and sewn as usual. 
 In books in which there are a great many 
 plates, it is often found that two plates 
 either come together in the centre of a 
 section, or come at opposite sides of the 
 same pair of leaves. Such plates should 
 be guarded together and treated as folded 
 sheets (see fig. 13). 
 
 FIG. 13. 
 
 In order to be sure that the pages of 
 a book to be guarded throughout will 
 come in their proper order, it is well to 
 make a plan of the sections as follows, 
 and to check each pair of leaves by it, as 
 they are guarded : 
 
 Thus, if the book is to be made up 
 into sections of eight leaves, the pairs of 
 leaves to be guarded together can be seen 
 at once if the number of the pages are 
 written out 
 
 i 3 5 7 9 " *3> *5- 
 
 First the inside pair, 7 and 9, are guarded 
 together with the guard outside, then the 
 next pair, 5 and n, then 3 and 13, and
 
 then the outside pair, I and 15, which Guarding 
 should have the guard outside. A plan 
 for the whole book would be more con- 
 veniently written thus 
 
 1-15 
 
 I7-3 1 
 
 33-47 
 
 3-13 
 
 19-29 
 
 35-45 
 
 5-1 1 
 
 21-27 
 
 37-43 
 
 7-9 
 
 23-25 
 
 3941, and so on. 
 
 To arrange a book of single leaves for 
 guarding, it is convenient to take as many 
 leaves as you intend to go to a section, 
 and opening them in the centre, take a 
 pair at a time as they come. 
 
 The number of leaves it is advisable to 
 put into a section will depend on the thick- 
 ness of the paper and the size and thick- 
 ness of the book. If the paper is thick, 
 and the backs of the leaves have been 
 pared, four leaves to a section will be 
 found to answer. But if the paper is thin, 
 and does not allow of much paring, it is 
 better to have a larger section, in order 
 to have as little thread in the back as 
 possible. 
 
 The sheets of any guarded book should 
 be pressed before sewing, in order to re- 
 duce the swelling of the back caused by 
 the guards. 
 
 59
 
 Throwing 
 Out 
 
 60 
 
 FIG. 14. 
 
 THROWING OUT 
 
 Maps or dia- 
 grams that are 
 frequently re- 
 ferred to in the 
 text of a book, 
 should be 
 " thrown out " 
 on a guard as 
 wide as the sheet 
 of the book. 
 Such maps, &c., 
 should be placed 
 at the end, so 
 that they may 
 lie open for re- 
 ference while 
 the book is 
 being read (see 
 fig. 14). Large 
 folded maps or 
 diagrams should 
 be mounted on 
 linen. To do 
 this take a piece 
 of jaconet and 
 pin it out flat 
 on the board,
 
 then evenly paste the back of the map Throwing 
 with thin paste in which there are no Out 
 lumps, and lay it on the linen, rub 
 down through blotting-paper, and leave 
 to dry. Unless the pasting is done 
 evenly the marks of the paste-brush will 
 show through the linen. If a folded 
 map is printed on very thick paper each 
 fold must be cut up, and the separate 
 pieces mounted on the linen, with a slight 
 space between them to form a flexible joint. 
 A folded map must have in the back 
 of the book sufficient guards to equal it 
 
 FIG. 15. 
 
 in thickness at its thickest part when 
 folded, or the book will not shut properly 
 (see fig. 15). 
 
 PARING PAPER 
 
 For paring the edge of paper for mend- 
 ing or guarding, take a very sharp knife, 
 
 61
 
 Paring Paper and holding the blade at right angles to 
 the covering-board, draw the edge once or 
 twice along it from left to right. This 
 should turn up enough of the edge to 
 form a " burr," which causes the knife to 
 cut while being held almost flat on the 
 paper. The plate or paper should be laid 
 face downwards on the glass with the 
 edge to be pared away from the workman, 
 the knife held in the right hand, with the 
 burr downwards. The angle at which to 
 hold the knife will depend on its shape 
 and on the thickness and character of 
 the paper to be pared, and can only be 
 learned by practice. If the knife is in 
 order, and is held at the proper angle, 
 the shaving removed from a straight edge 
 of paper should come off in a long spiral. 
 If the knife is not in proper order, the 
 paper may be badly jagged or creased. 
 
 SOAKING OFF INDIA PROOFS 
 
 Soaking off Place a piece of well-sized paper in a 
 
 India Proofs pan of warm water, then lay the mounted 
 
 India proof, face downwards, upon it and 
 
 leave it to soak until the proof floats off. 
 
 Then carefully take out the old mount, 
 
 and the India proof can be readily removed 
 
 62
 
 from the water on the under paper, and Soaking off 
 dried between sheets of blotting-paper. India Proofs 
 
 MOUNTING VERY THIN PAPER 
 
 Very thin paper, such as that of some Mounting 
 " India " proofs, may be safely mounted vei 7 Tnin 
 as follows : The mount, ready for use, Paper 
 is laid on a pad of blotting-paper. The 
 thin paper to be mounted is laid face 
 downwards on a piece of glass and very 
 carefully pasted with thin, white paste. 
 Any paste on the glass beyond the edges 
 of the paper is carefully wiped off with 
 a clean cloth. The glass may then be 
 turned over, and the pasted plate laid on 
 the mount, its exact position being seen 
 through the glass. 
 
 SPLITTING PAPER 
 
 It is sometimes desirable to split pieces Splitting 
 of paper when the matter on one side only Pa p er 
 is needed, or when the matter printed on 
 each side is to be used in different places. 
 The paper to be split should be well 
 pasted on both sides with a thickish paste, 
 and fine linen or jaconet placed on each 
 side. It is then nipped in the press to 
 
 63
 
 Splitting 
 
 Paper 
 
 make the linen stick all over, and left to 
 
 If the two pieces of jaconet are care- 
 fully pulled apart when dry, half the 
 paper should be attached to each, unless 
 at any point the paste has failed to stick, 
 when the paper will tear. The jaconet 
 and paper attached must be put into warm 
 water until the split paper floats off. 
 
 Inlaying 
 
 Leaves or 
 
 Plates 
 
 INLAYING LEAVES OR PLATES 
 
 When a small plate or leaf has to be 
 inserted into a larger book, it is best to 
 " inlay it " ; that is to say, the plate or 
 leaf is let into a sheet of 
 paper the size of the page 
 of the book. To do this, a 
 piece of paper as thick as 
 the plate to be inlaid, or 
 a little thicker, is selected, 
 and on this is laid the plate, 
 which should have been 
 previously squared, and the 
 positions of the corners marked with a 
 folder. A point is made about an eighth of 
 an inch inside each corner mark, and the 
 paper within these points is cut out (see fig. 
 1 6). This leaves a frame of paper, the 
 64 
 
 FIG.
 
 inner edges of which will slightly overlap Inlaying 
 the edges of the plate. The under edge Leaves or 
 of the plate, and the upper edge of the 
 mount, should then be pared and pasted, 
 and the plate laid in its place (with the 
 corners corresponding to the folder marks). 
 If the edges have been properly pared, the 
 thickness where they overlap should not 
 exceed the thickness of the frame paper. 
 If an irregular fragment is to be inlaid, 
 it is done in the same way, except that the 
 entire outline is traced on the new paper 
 with a folder, and the paper cut away, 
 allowing one eighth of an inch inside the 
 indented line. 
 
 FLATTENING VELLUM 
 
 The leaves of a vellum book that have Flattening 
 become cockled from damp or other causes Vellum 
 may be flattened by damping them, pull- 
 ing them out straight, and allowing them 
 to dry under pressure. To do this take 
 the book to pieces, clean out any dirt 
 there may be in the folds of the leaves, and 
 spread out each pair of leaves as flatly as 
 possible. 
 
 Damp some white blotting-paper by 
 interleaving it with common white paper 
 
 5 6
 
 Flattening that has been wetted with a sponge. One 
 Vellum sheet of wet paper to two of blotting- 
 paper will be enough. The pile of blot- 
 ting-paper and wet paper is put in the 
 press and left for an hour or two under 
 pressure, then taken out and the common 
 paper removed. 
 
 The blotting-paper should now be 
 slightly and evenly damp. To flatten the 
 vellum the open pairs of leaves are inter- 
 leaved with the slightly damp blotting- 
 paper, and are left for an hour under the 
 weight of a pressing-board. After this 
 time the vellum will have become quite 
 soft, and can with care be flattened out 
 and lightly pressed between the blotting- 
 paper, and left for a night. The next day 
 the vellum leaves should be looked at to 
 see that they lie quite flat, and the blot- 
 ting-paper changed for some that is dry. 
 The vellum must remain under pressure 
 until it is quite dry, or it will cockle up 
 worse than ever when exposed to the air. 
 The blotting-paper should be changed 
 every day or two. The length of time 
 that vellum leaves take to dry will vary 
 with the state of the atmosphere, and the 
 thickness of the vellum, from one to six 
 weeks. 
 
 66
 
 Almost any manuscript or printed Flattening 
 book on vellum can be successfully flat- Vellum 
 tened in this way ; miniatures should have 
 pieces of waxed paper laid over them to 
 prevent the chance of any of the fibres of 
 the blotting-paper sticking. The pressure 
 must not be great ; only enough is needed 
 to keep the vellum flat as it dries. 
 
 This process of flattening, although so 
 simple, requires the utmost care. If the 
 blotting-paper is used too damp, a manu- 
 script may be ruined ; and if not damp 
 enough, the pressing will have no effect. 
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 Sizing Washing M ending 
 SIZING 
 
 THE paper in old books is sometimes soft Sizing 
 and woolly. This is generally because the 
 size has perished, and such paper can 
 often be made perfectly sound by re- 
 sizing. 
 
 For size, an ounce of isinglass or good 
 gelatine is .dissolved in a quart of water. 
 This should make a clear solution when
 
 Sizing gently warmed, and should be used at 
 about a temperature of 120 F. Care 
 must be taken not to heat too quickly, 
 or the solution may burn and turn brown. 
 If the size is not quite clear, it should 
 be strained through fine muslin or linen 
 before being used. When it is ready it 
 should be poured into an open pan (fig. 
 17), so arranged that it can be kept warm 
 
 FIG. 17. 
 
 by a gas flame or spirit lamp underneath. 
 When this is ready the sheets to be sized 
 can be put in one after another and taken 
 out at once. The hot size will be found 
 to take out a great many stains, and espe- 
 cially those deep brown stains that come 
 from water. If there are only a few 
 sheets, they can be placed between blotting- 
 paper as they are removed from the size ; 
 but if there is a whole book, it is best to 
 lay them in a pile one on the other, and 
 68
 
 when all have been sized to squeeze them Sizing 
 in the " lying press " between pressing- 
 boards, a pan being put underneath to 
 catch the liquid squeezed out. When 
 the sheets have been squeezed they can 
 be readily handled, and should be spread 
 out to dry on a table upon clean paper. 
 When they are getting dry and firm they 
 can be hung on strings stretched across 
 the room, slightly overlapping one an- 
 other. The strings must first be covered 
 with slips of clean paper, and the sized 
 sheets should have more paper over them 
 to keep them clean. 
 
 Before sizing it will be necessary to go 
 through a book and take out any pencil 
 or dust marks that can be removed with 
 indiarubber or bread crumbs, or the size 
 will fix them, and it will be found exceed- 
 ingly difficult to remove them afterwards. 
 
 When the sheets are dry they should 
 be carefully mended in any places that 
 may be torn, and folded up into sections 
 and pressed. A long, comparatively light 
 pressure will be found to flatten them 
 better and with less injury to the surface 
 of the paper than a short, very heavy press- 
 ure, such as that of the rolling-machine. 
 
 In some cases it will be found that 
 
 69
 
 Sizing sheets of old books are so far damaged 
 as to be hardly strong enough to handle. 
 Such sheets must be sized in rather a 
 
 stronger size in the following way : Take 
 
 i 
 a sheet of heavily-sized paper, such as 
 
 notepaper, and carefully lay your damaged 
 sheet on that. Then put another sheet 
 of strong paper on the top, and put all 
 three sheets into the size. It will be 
 found that the top sheet can then be 
 easily lifted off, and the size be made to 
 flow over the face of the damaged sheet. 
 Then, if the top sheet be put on again, 
 the three sheets, if handled as one, can be 
 turned over and the operation repeated, 
 and size induced to cover the back of 
 the damaged leaf. The three sheets 
 must then be taken out and laid between 
 blotting-paper to take up the surplus 
 moisture. The top sheet must then be 
 carefully peeled off, and the damaged 
 page laid face downwards on clean blot- 
 ting-paper. Then the back sheet can be 
 peeled off as well, leaving the damaged 
 sheet to dry. 
 
 The following is quoted from " Cham- 
 bers' Encyclopaedia " on Gelatine : 
 
 " Gelatine should never be judged by 
 the eye alone. 
 
 70
 
 " Its purity may be very easily tested Sizing 
 thus : Soak it in cold water, then pour 
 upon it a small quantity of boiling water. 
 If pure, it will form a thickish, clear straw- 
 coloured solution, free from smell ; but if 
 made of impure materials, it will give off 
 a very offensive odour, and have a yellow, 
 gluey consistency." 
 
 WASHING 
 
 When there are stains or ink marks on Washing 
 books that cannot be removed by the use of 
 hot size or hot water, stronger measures may 
 sometimes have to be taken. Many stains 
 will be found to yield readily to hot water 
 with a little alum in it, and others can be 
 got out by a judicious application of curd 
 soap with a very soft brush and plenty of 
 warm water. But some, and especially ink 
 stains, require further treatment. There 
 are many ways of washing paper, and most 
 of those in common use are extremely 
 dangerous, and have in many cases resulted 
 in the absolute destruction of fine books. 
 If it is thought to be absolutely necessary 
 that the sheets of a book should be washed, 
 the safest method is as follows : Take an 
 ounce of permanganate of potash dissolved 
 
 71
 
 Washing in a quart of water, and warmed slightly. 
 In this put the sheets to be washed, and 
 leave them until they turn a dark brown. 
 This will usually take about an hour, but 
 may take longer for some papers. Then 
 turn the sheets out and wash them in 
 running water until all trace of purple 
 stain disappears from the water as it comes 
 away. Then transfer them to a bath of 
 sulphurous (not sulphuric) acid and water 
 in the proportion of one ounce of acid to 
 one pint of water. The sheets in this 
 solution will rapidly turn white, and if 
 left for some time nearly all stains will be 
 removed. In case any stains refuse to 
 come out, the sheets should be put in 
 clear water for a short time, and then 
 placed in the permanganate of potash solu- 
 tion again, and left there for a longer time 
 than before; then after washing in clear 
 water, again transferred to the sulphurous 
 acid. When sheets are removed from the 
 sulphurous acid they should be well washed 
 for an hour or two in running water, and 
 then may be blotted or squeezed off and 
 hung up on lines to dry. Any sheets 
 treated in this way will require sizing 
 afterwards. And if, as is often the case, 
 only a few sheets at the beginning or end 
 72
 
 of the book have to be washed, it will be Washing 
 necessary to tone down the washed sheets 
 to match the rest of the book by putting 
 some stain in the size. For staining there 
 are many things used. A weak solution 
 of permanganate of potash gives a yellowish 
 stain that will be found to match many 
 papers. Other stains are used, such as 
 coffee, chicory, tea, liquorice, &c. Whatever 
 is used should be put in the size. To as- 
 certain that the right depth of colour has 
 been obtained, a piece of unsized paper, 
 such as white blotting-paper, is dipped in 
 the stained size and blotted off and dried 
 before the fire. It is impossible to judge 
 of the depth of colour in a stain unless the 
 test piece is thoroughly dried. If the 
 stain is not right, add more water or more 
 stain as is needed. Experience will tell 
 what stain to use to match the paper of 
 any given book. 
 
 To remove grease or oil stains, ether 
 may be used. Pour it freely in a circle 
 round the spot, narrowing the circle gra- 
 dually until the stain is covered. Then 
 apply a warm iron through a piece of 
 blotting-paper. 
 
 Ether should only be used in a draught 
 in a well-ventilated room on account of 
 
 73
 
 Washing its well - known inflammable and anaes- 
 thetical properties. 
 
 A very dilute (about one per cent.) 
 solution of pure hydrochloric acid in cold 
 water will be found to take out some 
 stains if the paper is left in it for some 
 hours. When the paper is removed from 
 the solution, it must be thoroughly washed 
 in running water. It is important that the 
 hydrochloric acid used should be pure, as 
 the commercial quality (spirits of salts) 
 often contains sulphuric acid. 
 
 The following recipes are quoted from 
 De r organisation et de F administration des 
 Bibliotheques, -par Jules Cusin : 
 
 To remove stains from paper : " Mud 
 Stains. To take away these kinds of 
 stains, spread some soap jelly very evenly 
 over the stained places, and leave it there 
 for thirty or forty minutes, according to 
 the depth of the stain. Then dip the 
 sheet in clean water, and then having 
 spread it on a perfectly clean table, remove 
 the soap lightly with a hog's hair brush or 
 a fine sponge ; all the mud will disappear 
 at the same time. Put the sheet into the 
 clear water again, to get rid of the last 
 trace of soap. Let it drain a little, press 
 it lightly between two sheets of blotting- 
 
 74
 
 paper, and finish by letting it dry slowly Washing 
 in a dry place in the shade. 
 
 " Stains of Tallow, Stearine, or Fat. To 
 take away these stains cover them with 
 blotting-paper and pass over them a warm 
 flat-iron. When the paper has soaked up 
 the grease, change it and repeat the opera- 
 tion until the stains have been sufficiently 
 removed. After that, touch both sides 
 of the sheets where they have been stained 
 with a brush dipped in essence of turpen- 
 tine heated to boiling-point. Then to 
 restore the whiteness of the paper, touch 
 the places which were stained with a piece 
 of fine linen soaked in purified spirits of 
 wine warmed in the water-bath. This 
 method may also be employed to get rid 
 of sealing-wax stains. 
 
 " Oil Stains. Make a mixture of 500 gr. 
 of soap, 300 gr. of clay, 60 gr. of quick- 
 lime, and sufficient water to make it of the 
 right consistency, spread a thin layer of this 
 on the stain, and leave it there about a 
 quarter of an hour. Then dip the sheet 
 in a bath of hot water ; take it out, and 
 let it dry slowly. 
 
 " You can also use the following method, 
 generally employed for finger-marks : 
 
 " Finger-marks. These stains are some- 
 
 75
 
 Washing times very obstinate. Still they can gene- 
 rally be mastered by the following 
 method : Spread over them a layer of 
 white soap jelly (savon blanc en gelee), and 
 leave it there for some hours. Then 
 remove this with a fine sponge dipped in 
 hot water, and more often than not all 
 the dirt disappears at the same time. If 
 this treatment is not sufficient, you might 
 replace the soap jelly by soft soap (savon 
 noir\ but you must be careful not to leave 
 it long on the printing, which might de- 
 compose and run, and that would do more 
 harm than good." 
 
 Sheets of very old books are best left 
 with the stains of age upon them, except- 
 ing, perhaps, such as can be removed with 
 hot water or size. Nearly all stains can 
 be removed, but in the process old paper 
 is apt to lose more in character than it 
 gains in appearance. 
 
 MENDING 
 
 Mending For mending torn sheets of an old 
 book, some paper that matches as nearly 
 as possible must be found. For this pur- 
 pose it is the custom for bookbinders to 
 collect quantities of old paper. If a piece 
 76
 
 of the same tone cannot be found, paper Mending 
 of similar texture and substance may be 
 stained to match. 
 
 Supposing a corner to be missing, and a 
 piece of paper to have been found that 
 matches it, the torn page is laid over the 
 new paper in such a way that the wire 
 marks on both papers correspond. Then 
 the point of a folder should be drawn 
 along the edge of the torn sheet, leaving 
 an indented line on the new paper. The 
 new paper should then be cut off about an 
 eighth of an inch beyond the indented line, 
 and the edge carefully pared up to the 
 line. The edge of the old paper must be 
 similarly pared, so that the two edges when 
 laid together will not exceed the thickness 
 of the rest of the page. It is well to leave 
 a little greater overlap at the edges of the 
 page. Both cut edges must then be well 
 pasted with white paste and rubbed down 
 between blotting-paper. To ensure a per- 
 fectly clean joint the pasted edge should 
 not be touched with the hand, and pasting- 
 paper, brushes, and paste must be perfectly 
 clean. 
 
 In the case of a tear across the page, 
 if there are any overlapping edges, they 
 may merely be pasted together and the 
 
 77
 
 Mending end of the tear at the edge of the paper 
 strengthened by a small piece of pared 
 paper. If the tear crosses print, and there 
 are no overlapping edges, either tiny pieces 
 of pared paper may be cut and laid across 
 the tear between the lines of print, or 
 else a piece of the thinnest Japanese paper, 
 which is nearly transparent, may be pasted 
 right along the tear over the print; in 
 either case the mend should be strengthened 
 at the edge of the page by an additional 
 thickness of paper. In cases where the 
 backs of the sections have been much 
 damaged, it will be necessary to put a 
 guard the entire length, or in the case of 
 small holes, to fill them in with pieces of 
 torn paper. The edges of any mend may, 
 with great care, be scraped with a sharp 
 knife having a slight burr on the under 
 side, and then rubbed lightly with a piece 
 of worn fine sand-paper, or a fragment of 
 cuttle-fish bone. Care must be taken not 
 to pare away too much, and especially not 
 to weaken the mend at the edges of the 
 sheet. As a general rule, the new mend- 
 ing paper should go on the back of a 
 sheet. 
 
 Sometimes it is thought necessary to 
 fill up worm-holes in the paper. This 
 
 78
 
 may be done by boiling down some paper Mending 
 in size until it is of a pulpy consistency, 
 and a little of this filled into the worm- 
 holes will re-make the paper in those 
 places. It is a very tedious operation, 
 and seldom worth doing. 
 
 Mending vellum is done in much the 
 same way as mending paper, excepting 
 that a little greater overlap must be left. 
 It is well to put a stitch of silk at each 
 end of a vellum patch, as you cannot 
 depend on paste alone holding vellum 
 securely. The overlapping edges must 
 be well roughed 
 up with a knife to 
 make sure that the 
 
 paste will stick. X X X X X X X I, 
 
 A cut in a vellum 
 page is best mended 
 with fine silk with 
 
 a lacing stitch FIG. 18. 
 
 (see fig. 1 8). 
 
 Mending is most easily done on a sheet 
 of plate-glass, of which the edges and 
 corners have been rubbed down. 
 
 79
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 End Papers Leather Joints Pressing 
 END PAPERS 
 
 End Papers IF an old book that has had much wear 
 is examined, it will generally be found 
 that the leaves at the beginning and the 
 end have suffered more than the rest of 
 the book. On this ground, and also to 
 enable people who must write notes in 
 books to do so with the least injury to 
 the book, it is advisable to put a good 
 number of blank papers at each end. As 
 these papers are part of the binding, and 
 have an important protective function to 
 perform, they should be of good quality. 
 At all times difficulty has been found in 
 preventing the first and last section of 
 the book, whether end papers or not, 
 from dragging away when the cover is 
 opened, and various devices have been 
 tried to overcome this defect. In the 
 fifteenth century strips of vellum (usually 
 cut from manuscripts) were pasted on to 
 the back of the book and on the inside 
 80
 
 of the boards, or in some cases were End Papers 
 merely folded round the first and last 
 section and pasted on to the covers. The 
 modern, and far less efficient, practice is 
 to " overcast " the first and last sections. 
 This is objectionable, because it prevents 
 the leaves from opening right to the back, 
 and it fails in the object aimed at, by 
 merely transferring the strain to the back 
 of the overcast section. 
 
 In order to make provision for any 
 strain there may be in opening the cover, 
 it is better to adopt some such arrange- 
 ment as shown in fig. 19. In this end 
 paper the zigzag opens slightly in re- 
 sponse to any strain. 
 
 The way to make this end paper is 
 to take a folded sheet of paper a little 
 larger than the book. Then with dividers 
 mark two points an eighth of an inch 
 from the back for the fold, and paste your 
 paste-down paper, BB, up to these points 
 (see fig. 19, II). When the paste is dry, 
 fold back the sheet (Ai) over the paste- 
 down paper, and A2 the reverse way, 
 leaving the form seen in fig. 19, III. A 
 folded sheet of paper similar to A is 
 inserted at C (fig. 19, V, H), and the 
 sewing passes through this. When the 
 6 81
 
 End Papers book is pasted down the leaf Ai is torn 
 
 I 
 
 HI 
 
 Afblded sheet of the * * * 
 S^mepaperasAis it> 
 Jerttd at C.& revving- 
 goo through this at F. F 
 
 Leather And Waste vt folded ove- Bl xe E and A folded 
 sherr inserted at C- 5evving goes through both E and F. 
 
 V 
 
 off, and Bi pasted down on the board. 
 82
 
 If marbled paper is desired, the marble End Papers 
 
 should be " made," that is, pasted on to 
 
 Bi. 
 
 There are considerable disadvantages in 
 using marbled papers, as if they are of 
 thick enough paper to help the strength 
 of the binding, the " made " sheet is very 
 stiff, and in a small book is troublesome. 
 On no account should any marble paper 
 be used, unless it is tough and durable. 
 The quality of the paper of which most 
 marbled papers are made is so poor, that 
 it is unsuitable for use as end papers. 
 For most books a self-coloured paper of 
 good quality answers well for the paste- 
 down sheets. 
 
 It is a mistake to leave end papers to 
 be pasted on after the book has been 
 forwarded, as in that case they have little 
 constructive value. Every leaf of such 
 an end paper as is described above will 
 open right to the back, and the zigzag 
 allows play for the drag of the board. 
 
 Paper with a conventional pattern 
 painted or printed on it may be used for 
 end papers. If such a design is simple, 
 such as a sprig repeated all over, or an 
 arrangement of stars or dots, it may look 
 very well ; but over elaborate end papers, 
 
 83
 
 End Papers and especially those that aim at pictorial 
 effect, are seldom successful. 
 
 Ends may be made of thin vellum. 
 If so, unless the board is very heavy, it is 
 best to have leather joints. 
 
 A single leaf of vellum (in the place of 
 Bi and 2, II, fig. 19) should have an edge 
 turned up into the zigzag with the leather 
 joint, and sewn through. Vellum ends 
 must always be sewn, as it is not safe to 
 rely upon paste to hold them. They 
 look well, and may be enriched by 
 tooling. The disadvantage of vellum is, 
 that it has a tendency to curl up if sub- 
 jected to heat, and when it contracts it 
 unduly draws the boards of the book. 
 For large manuscripts, or printed books 
 on vellum, which are bound in wooden 
 or other thick boards and are clasped, 
 thicker vellum may be used for the ends ; 
 that with a slightly brown surface looks 
 best. The part that will come into the 
 joint should be scraped thin with a knife, 
 and a zigzag made of Japanese paper. 
 
 Silk or other fine woven material may 
 be used for ends. It is best used with a 
 leather joint, and may be stuck on to the 
 first paper of the end papers (Bi, No. 2, 
 fig- J 9)> an d cut with the book. The 
 
 84
 
 glaire of the edge gilding will help to stop End Papers 
 the edges fraying out. In attaching silk 
 to paper, thin glue is the best thing to 
 use ; the paper, not the silk, being glued. 
 Some little practice is needed to get suffi- 
 cient glue on the paper to make the silk 
 stick all over, and yet not to soil it. 
 When the silk has been glued to the paper, 
 it should be left under a light weight to 
 dry. If put in the press, the glue may 
 be squeezed through and the silk soiled. 
 
 If the silk is very thin, or delicate in 
 colour, or if it seems likely that it will 
 fray out at the edges, it is better to turn 
 the edges in over a piece of paper cut a 
 little smaller than the page of the book 
 and stick them down. This forms a pad, 
 which may be attached to the first leaf of 
 the end papers ; a similar pad may be 
 made for filling in the board. 
 
 Before using, the silk should be damped 
 and ironed flat on the wrong side. 
 
 Silk ends give a book a rich finish, but 
 seldom look altogether satisfactory. If 
 the silk is merely stuck on to the first 
 end paper, the edges will generally fray 
 out if the book is much used. If the 
 edges are turned in, an unpleasantly thick 
 end is made. 
 
 85
 
 LEATHER JOINTS 
 
 Leather Leather joints are pieces of thin leather 
 Joints that are used to cover the joints on the 
 inside (for paring, see page 154). They 
 add very little strength to the book, but 
 give a pleasant finish to the inside of the 
 board. 
 
 If there are to be leather joints, the end 
 papers are made up without A i, and the 
 edge of the leather pasted and inserted at 
 D, with a piece of common paper as a pro- 
 tection (see fig. 19, IV). When the paste 
 is dry, the leather is folded over at E. 
 
 A piece of blotting-paper may be pasted 
 on to the inside of the waste leaf, leaving 
 enough of it loose to go between the 
 leather joint and the first sheet of the 
 end paper. This will avoid any chance 
 of the leather joint staining or marking 
 the ends while the book is being bound. 
 The blotting-paper, o'f course, is taken 
 out with the waste sheet before the joint 
 is pasted down. 
 
 Joints may also be made of linen or 
 cloth inserted in the same way. A cloth 
 joint has greater strength than a leather 
 one, as the latter has to be very thin 
 
 86
 
 in order that the board may shut pro- 
 perly. 
 
 With leather or cloth joints, the sewing 
 should go through both E and F. 
 
 Leather 
 
 PRESSING 
 
 While the end papers are being made, 
 the sections of the book should be pressed. 
 To do this a pressing - board is taken 
 which is a little larger than the book, and 
 a tin, covered with common paper, placed 
 on that, then a few sections of the book, 
 then another tin covered with paper, and 
 
 ( 
 
 
 FIG. 20. 
 
 then more sections, and so on, taking care 
 that the sections are exactly over one 
 another (see fig. 20). A second pressing- 
 board having been placed on the last tin, 
 
 87 
 
 Pressing
 
 Pressing 
 
 FIG. 21. Standing Press
 
 Pressing 
 
 FIG. 22. French Standing Press
 
 Pressing the pile of sections, tins, and pressing- 
 boards can be put into the standing-press 
 and left under pressure till next day. 
 Newly printed plates should be protected 
 by thin tissue paper while being pressed. 
 Any folded plates or maps, &c., or in- 
 serted letters, must either not be pressed, 
 or have tins placed on each side of them 
 to prevent them from indenting the ad- 
 joining leaves. 
 
 Hand-printed books, such as the pub- 
 lications of the Kelmscott Press, should 
 have very little pressure, or the " impres- 
 sion " of the print and the surface of the 
 paper may be injured. Books newly 
 printed on vellum or heavily coloured 
 illustrations should not be pressed at all, 
 or the print may " set off." 
 
 The protecting tissues on the plates of 
 a book that has been printed for more 
 than a year can generally be left out, 
 unless the titles of the plates are printed 
 on them, as they are a nuisance to readers 
 and often get crumpled up and mark the 
 book. 
 
 In order to make books solid, that is, to 
 make the leaves lie evenly and closely to 
 one another, it was formerly the custom 
 to beat books on a " stone " with a heavy 
 
 90
 
 hammer. This process has been super- Pressing 
 seded by the rolling-press ; but with the 
 admirable presses that are now to be had, 
 simple pressing will be found to be suf- 
 ficient for the " extra " binder. 
 
 At fig. 21 is shown an iron standing- 
 press. This is screwed down first with a 
 short bar, and finally with a long bar. 
 This form of press is effective and simple, 
 but needs a good deal of room for the 
 long bar, and must have very firm supports, 
 or it may be pulled over. 
 
 At fig. 22 is shown a French standing- 
 press, in which the pressure is applied by 
 a weighted wheel, which will, in the first 
 place, by being spun round, turn the 
 screw until it is tight, and give additional 
 pressure by a hammering action. This 
 press I have found to answer for all ordi- 
 nary purposes, and to give as great pressure 
 as can be got by the iron standing-press, 
 without any undue strain on supports or 
 workmen. 
 
 There are many other forms of press 
 by which great pressure can be applied, 
 some working by various arrangements of 
 cog-wheels, screws, and levers, others by 
 hydraulic pressure. 
 
 9 1
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 Trimming Edges before Sewing Edge Gilding 
 TRIMMING BEFORE SEWING 
 
 Trimming WHEN the sheets come from the press the 
 before treatment of the edges must be decided 
 Sewing upon, that is, whether they are to be en- 
 tirely uncut, trimmed before sewing, or 
 cut in boards. 
 
 Early printed books and manuscripts 
 should on no account have their edges 
 cut at all, and any modern books of value 
 are better only slightly trimmed and gilt 
 before sewing. But for books of refer- 
 ence that need good bindings, on account 
 of the wear they have to withstand, cut- 
 ting in boards is best, as the smooth edge 
 so obtained makes the leaves easier to 
 turn over. Gilt tops and rough edges 
 give a book a look of unequal finish. 
 
 If the edges are to remain uncut, or be 
 cut " in boards " with the plough, the 
 book will be ready for " marking up " as 
 soon as it comes from the press ; but if it 
 is to be gilt before sewing, it must be first 
 trimmed. 
 
 92
 
 The sheets for trimming with end Trimming 
 papers and all plates inserted must first be before 
 cut square at the head against a carpen- Sewln g 
 ter's square (see fig. 3 
 
 7). Then a piece 
 of mill-board may 
 be cut to the size ^ 
 
 J 
 
 it is desired to leave 
 the leaves, and the 
 sections trimmed to 
 it. To do this three 
 nails should be put 
 into the covering 
 board through a 
 piece of straw-board, 
 and the back of the 
 section slid along 
 nails i and 2 until 
 it touches No. 3 (see fig. 23). 
 
 FIG. 23. 
 
 The 
 
 board is slid in the same way, and any- 
 thing projecting beyond it cut off. When 
 the under straw-board has become in- 
 conveniently scored in the first position, 
 by shifting the lower nail (i) a fresh sur- 
 face will receive the cuts. Fig. 24 is a 
 representation of a simple machine that I 
 use in my workshop for trimming. The 
 slides A A are adjustable to any width 
 required, and are fixed by the screws B B. 
 
 93
 
 Trimming The brass-bound straight edge C fits on to 
 
 before slots in A A, and as this, by the adjust- 
 
 Sewmg ment O f the slides, can be fixed at any 
 
 distance from B B, all sizes of books can 
 
 be trimmed. As by this machine several 
 
 sections can be cut at once, the time taken 
 
 FIG. 24. 
 
 is not very much greater than if the book 
 were cut in the plough. 
 
 Considerable judgment is required in 
 trimming. The edges of the larger pages 
 only, on a previously uncut book, should 
 be cut, leaving the smaller pages un- 
 touched. Such uncut pages are called 
 " proof," and the existence of proof in a 
 bound book is evidence that it has not 
 been unduly cut. 
 
 Before gilding the edges of the trimmed 
 
 94
 
 sections, any uncut folds that may remain Trimming 
 should be opened with a folder, as if before 
 opened after gilding, they will show a Sewing 
 ragged white edge. 
 
 FIG. 25. 
 
 EDGE GILDING 
 
 To gild the edges of trimmed sections, 
 the book must be " knocked up " to the 
 fore-edge, getting as many of the short 
 leaves as possible to the front. It is then 
 put into the 
 " lying press," 
 with gilding 
 boards on each 
 side (see fig. 
 No. 25), and 
 screwed up 
 tightly. Very little scraping will be 
 necessary, and usually if well rubbed 
 with fine sand-paper, to remove any 
 chance finger-marks or loose fragments of 
 paper, the edge will be smooth enough to 
 gild. If the paper is very absorbent, the 
 edges must be washed over with vellum 
 size and left to dry. 
 
 The next process is an application of 
 red chalk. For this a piece of gilder's 
 red chalk is rubbed down on a stone with 
 
 95 
 
 Edge 
 Gilding
 
 Edge water, making a thickish paste, and the 
 Gilding edges are well brushed with a hard brush 
 dipped in this mixture, care being taken 
 not to have it wet enough to run between 
 the leaves. Some gilders prefer to use 
 blacklead or a mixture of chalk and black- 
 lead. A further brushing with a dry 
 brush will to some extent polish the 
 leaves. It will then be ready for an ap- 
 plication of glaire. Before glairing, the 
 gold must be cut on the cushion to the 
 width required (see p. 200), and may be 
 either taken up on very slightly greased 
 paper, a gilder's tip, or with a piece of net 
 stretched on a little frame (see fig. 26). 
 The gold leaf will adhere sufficiently to 
 the net, and can be readily released by a 
 light breath when it is exactly over the 
 proper place on the edge. 
 
 When the gold is ready, the glaire 
 should be floated on to the edge with a 
 soft brush, and the gold spread evenly 
 over it and left until dry ; that is, in a 
 workshop of ordinary temperature, for 
 about an hour. The edge is then lightly 
 rubbed with a piece of leather that has 
 been previously rubbed on beeswax, and 
 is ready for burnishing. It is best to com- 
 mence burnishing through a piece of thin 
 96
 
 slightly waxed paper to set the gold, and 
 afterwards the burnisher can be used 
 
 Edge 
 Gilding 
 
 FIG. 
 
 directly on the edge. A piece of blood- 
 stone ground so as to have no sharp edges 
 (see fig. 27) makes a good burnisher. 
 
 There are several different prepara- 
 tions used for gilding edges. One part of 
 
 FIG. 27. 
 
 beaten up white of egg with four parts of 
 water left to stand for a day and strained 
 will be found to answer well. 
 
 7 97
 
 Edge After the fore-edge is gilt the same opera- 
 
 Gilding tion is repeated at the head and tail. As 
 it is desirable to have the gilding at the 
 head as solid as possible, rather more 
 scraping is advisable here, or the head 
 may be left to be cut with a plough and 
 gilt in boards. 
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 Marking up Sewing Materials for Sewing 
 
 MARKING UP 
 
 Marking up THIS is drawing lines across the back of 
 the sections to show the sewer the position 
 of the sewing cords. 
 
 Marking up for flexible sewing needs 
 care and judgment, as on it depends the 
 position of the bands on the back of the 
 bound book. Nearly all books look best 
 with five bands, but very large, thinnish 
 folios may have six, and a very small, thick 
 book may look better with four. Gene- 
 rally speaking, five is the best number. In 
 marking up trimmed sheets for flexible 
 sewing, the length of the back should be 
 divided from the head into six portions, 
 
 98
 
 five equal, and one at the tail slightly Marking up 
 longer. From the points so arrived at, 
 strong pencil lines should be made across 
 the back with a carpenter's square as 
 guide, the book having been previously 
 knocked up between pressing-boards, and 
 placed in the lying press. It is important 
 that the head should be knocked up ex- 
 actly square, as otherwise the bands will 
 be found to slope when the book is bound. 
 In the case of a book which is to be cut 
 and gilt in boards, before marking up it 
 will be necessary to decide how much is 
 to be cut off, and allowance made, or the 
 head and tail division of the back will, 
 when cut, be too small. It must also be 
 remembered that to the height of the 
 pages the amount of the " squares " will 
 be added. 
 
 About a quarter of an inch from either 
 end of the back of a trimmed book, and a 
 little more in the case of one that is to be 
 cut in boards, a mark should be made for 
 the " kettle " or " catch " stitch. This 
 may be slightly sawn in, but before using 
 the saw, the end papers are removed. If 
 these were sawn, the holes would show in 
 the joint when the ends are pasted down. 
 
 If the book is to be sewn on double 
 
 99
 
 Marking up cords, or on slips of vellum or tape, two 
 lines will be necessary for each band. 
 
 It has become the custom to saw in the 
 backs of books, and to sink the bands into 
 the saw cuts, using " hollow backs," and 
 putting false bands to appear when bound. 
 This is a degenerate form, to which is due 
 much of the want of durability of modern 
 bindings. If the bands are not to show 
 on the back, it is better to sew on tapes or 
 strips of vellum than to use sawn-in string 
 bands. 
 
 SEWING 
 
 Sewing The sewing-frame used by bookbinders 
 is practically the same now as is shown in 
 prints of the early sixteenth century, and 
 probably dates from still earlier times. It 
 consists of a bed with two uprights and 
 a crossbar, which can be heightened or 
 lowered by the turning of wooden nuts 
 working on a screw thread cut in the 
 uprights (see fig. 29). 
 
 To set up for sewing, as many loops 
 of cord, called " lay cords," as there are 
 to be bands, are threaded on to the cross 
 piece, and to these, by a simple knot, 
 shown at fig. 28, cords are fastened 
 form the bands. The " lay cords "
 
 Sewing 
 
 FIG. 28. 
 
 can be used again and again until worn 
 out. 
 
 101
 
 Sewing To fasten the cord below, a key is 
 taken (see fig. 28) and held below the 
 press by the right hand ; the cord is then 
 pulled up round it by the left, and held 
 in position on the key by the first finger 
 of the right hand. The key is then 
 turned over, winding up a little of the 
 string, and the prongs slipped over the 
 main cord. It is then put through the 
 slit in the bed of the sewing-press, with 
 the prongs away from the front. The 
 cord is then cut off, and the same opera- 
 tion repeated for each band. When all 
 the bands have been set up, the book is 
 laid against them, and they are moved 
 to correspond with the marks previously 
 made on the back of the book, care being 
 taken that they are quite perpendicular. 
 If they are of the same length and evenly 
 set up, on screwing up the crossbar they 
 should all tighten equally. 
 
 It will be found to be convenient to 
 set up the cords as far to the right hand 
 of the press as possible, as then there 
 will be room for the sewer's left arm on 
 the inner side of the left hand upright. 
 
 A roll of paper that will exactly fill 
 the slot in the sewing-frame is pushed in 
 in front of the upright cords to steady 
 
 IO2
 
 them and ensure that they are all in the Sewing 
 same plane. 
 
 When the sewing-frame is ready, with 
 the cords set up and adjusted, the book 
 must be collated to make sure that neither 
 sheets nor plates have been lost or mis- 
 placed during the previous operations. 
 Plates need special care to see that the 
 guards go properly round the sheets next 
 them. 
 
 The top back corner, on front and 
 back waste end paper, should be marked. 
 When this has been done, and all is found 
 to be in order, the book is laid on a 
 pressing-board behind the sewing-frame, 
 the fore-edge towards the sewer, and the 
 front end paper uppermost. As it is 
 difficult to insert the needle into a section 
 placed on the bed of the sewing-frame, 
 it will be found convenient to sew upon 
 a largish pressing-board, which will lie on 
 the bed of the frame, and may have small 
 catches to prevent it from shifting. When 
 the board is in place, the first section (end 
 paper) is taken in the left hand and 
 turned over, so that the marks on the 
 back come in the proper places against 
 the strings. The left hand is inserted 
 into the place where the sewing is to be, 
 
 103
 
 Sewing and with the right hand a needle and 
 
 FIG. 29. 
 
 thread is passed through the kettle stitch 
 104
 
 mark (see fig. 29). It is grasped by Sewing 
 
 the fingers of the left hand, is passed out 
 
 through the back at the first mark on 
 
 the left-hand side of the first upright 
 
 cord, and pulled tight, leaving a, loose end 
 
 of thread at the kettle stitch. Then with 
 
 the right hand it is inserted again in the 
 
 same place, but from the other side of 
 
 the cord, and so on round all five bands, 
 
 and out again at the kettle stitch mark 
 
 at the tail, using right and left hands 
 
 alternately. The centre of the next sec- 
 tion is then found, and it is sewn in the 
 same way from tail to head, the thread 
 being tied to the loose end hanging from 
 the first kettle stitch. Another section 
 is laid on and sewn, but when the kettle 
 stitch is reached, the under thread is 
 caught up in the way shown in fig. 30. 
 These operations are repeated through- 
 out the whole book. If the back seems 
 likely to swell too much, the sections can 
 
 105
 
 Sewing be lightly tapped down with a loaded 
 stick made for the purpose, care being 
 taken not to drive the sections inwards, 
 as it is difficult to get such sections out 
 again. When all the sheets and the last 
 end paper have been sewn on, a double 
 catch stitch is made, and the end cut off. 
 This method is known as flexible sewing 
 " all along." 
 
 When one needle full of thread is 
 exhausted, another is tied on, making 
 practically a con- 
 tinuous length of 
 thread going all 
 along each section 
 and round every 
 band. The weaver's 
 j-t \ I^K knot is the best 
 
 2 \3 2 \3 lengths of thread. 
 
 FIG. 31. A simple way of 
 
 tying it is shown at 
 
 fig. 3 1 . A simple slip knot is made in the 
 end of the new thread and put over the end 
 of the old, and, on being pulled tight, the 
 old thread should slip through, as shewn 
 at B. The convenience of this knot is, 
 that by its use a firm attachment can be 
 made quite close up to the back of the 
 106
 
 book. This is a great advantage, as Sewing 
 if the knot is made at some distance 
 from the back, it will have to be dragged 
 through the section two or three times, 
 instead of only once. The knot, after 
 having been made, must be pulled inside 
 the section, and remain there. Consider- 
 able judgment is required in sewing. If 
 a book is sewn too loosely, it is almost 
 impossible to bind it firmly ; and if too 
 tightly, especially if the kettle stitches 
 have been drawn too tight, the thread 
 may break in " backing," and the book 
 have to be resewn. 
 
 One way to avoid having too much 
 swelling in the back of a book consisting 
 of a great many very thin sections is to 
 sew " two sheets on." In this form of 
 sewing two sections at a time are laid on 
 the sewing-frame. The thread is inserted 
 at the " kettle stitch " of the lower sec- 
 tion, and brought out as usual at the first 
 cord, but instead of being reinserted into 
 the lower section, it is passed into the 
 upper one, and so on, alternately passing 
 into the upper and lower sections. This 
 will give, if there are five bands, three 
 stitches in each section instead of six, as 
 there would be if the sewing were " all 
 
 107
 
 Sewing along," lessening the thread, consequently 
 the swelling by half. It is usual to sew 
 the first and last few sections " all along." 
 
 The common method of sewing is to 
 make saw cuts in the back, in which thin 
 cords can be sunk, and the thread merely 
 passes behind them and not round them, 
 as in flexible sewing. This method, 
 although very quick and cheap, is not to 
 be recommended, on account of the injury 
 done to the backs of the sections by the 
 saw, and because the glue running into 
 the saw cuts is apt to make the back stiff, 
 and to prevent the book from opening 
 right to the back. Indeed, were a sawn-in 
 book to open right to the back, as it is 
 expected a flexibly-sewn book will do, 
 showing the sewing along the centre of 
 each section, the saw marks with the band 
 inserted would show, and be a serious 
 disfigurement. 
 
 Mediaeval books were usually sewn on 
 double cords or strips of leather, and the 
 headband was often sewn at the same 
 time, as shown at fig. 32, A. This is an 
 excellent method for very large books 
 with heavy sections, and is specially suit- 
 able for large vellum manuscripts, in many 
 of which the sections are very thick. An 
 
 108
 
 advantage of this method is, that the twist Sewing 
 round the double cord virtually makes a 
 knot at every band, and should a thread 
 at any place break, there is no danger of 
 the rest of the thread coming loose. This 
 is the only mode of sewing by which a 
 thread runs absolutely from end to end of 
 the sections. The headband sewn at the 
 same time, and so tied down in every sec- 
 tion, is firmer and stronger than if worked 
 on in the way now usual. In the fif- 
 teenth century it was the custom to lace 
 the ends of the headbands into the boards 
 in the same way as the other bands. This 
 method, while giving additional strength 
 at the head and tail, and avoiding the 
 somewhat unfinished look of the cut-off 
 ends of the modern headband, is, on the 
 whole, of doubtful advantage, as it is 
 necessary to cut the " turn in " at the 
 point where strength in the leather is 
 much wanted. 
 
 At fig. 32 is shown in section the three 
 methods of sewing mentioned. A is the 
 old sewing round double bands ; with the 
 headbands worked at the same time with 
 the same thread ; B is the modern flexible 
 sewing, and C the common sawn-in method. 
 
 Books that are very thin or are to be 
 
 109
 
 Sewing 
 
 
 
 ABC 
 
 FIG. 32.
 
 bound in vellum, are best sewn on tapes or 
 vellum slips. The easiest way to set up 
 the sewing - frame for 
 such sewing is to sling 
 a piece of wood 
 through two of the lay 
 cords, and to pin one 
 end of the vellum or tape 
 band round this, pull the 
 other end tight, and se- 
 cure it with a drawing- 
 pin underneath the 
 frame. The sewing, in 
 
 o> 
 
 the case of such flat 
 
 bands, would not go 
 
 round, but only across 
 
 them. To avoid undue 
 
 looseness, every three 
 
 or four threads may be 
 
 caught up at the back of the band, as 
 
 shown in fig. 33. 
 
 Sewing 
 
 FIG. 
 
 MATERIALS FOR SEWING 
 
 The cord used should be of the best Materials 
 hemp, specially made with only two strands for Sewing 
 of very long fibres to facilitate fraying out. 
 For very large books where a double cord 
 is to be .used, the best water line will be 
 
 in
 
 Materials found to answer, care being taken to select 
 for Sewing that which can be frayed out. If tape is 
 used it should be unbleached, such as the 
 sailmakers use. Thread should also be un- 
 bleached, as the unnecessary bleaching of 
 most bookbinder's sewing-thread seems to 
 cause it to rot in a comparatively short 
 time. Silk of the best quality is better 
 than any thread. The ligature silk, un- 
 dyed, as used by surgeons, is perhaps the 
 strongest material, and can be had in 
 various thicknesses. It is impossible to 
 pay too great attention to the selection of 
 sewing materials, as the permanency of the 
 binding depends on their durability. The 
 rebinding of valuable books is at best a 
 necessary evil, and anything that makes 
 frequent rebinding necessary, is not only 
 objectionable on account of the cost in- 
 volved, but because it seriously shortens 
 the life of the book. 
 
 Experience is required to judge what 
 thickness of thread to use for any given 
 book. If the sections are very thin, a thin 
 thread must be used, or the " swelling " of 
 the back caused by the additional thick- 
 ness of the thread in that part will be 
 excessive, and make the book unmanage- 
 able in " backing." On the other hand, 
 
 112
 
 if the sections are large, and a too thin Materials 
 
 thread is used, there will not be enough for Sewing 
 
 swelling to make a firm "joint." Broadly 
 
 speaking, when there are a great many 
 
 very thin sections, the thinnest thread 
 
 may be used ; and coarser thread may be 
 
 used when the sections are thicker, or 
 
 fewer in number. In the case of large 
 
 manuscripts on vellum it is best to use 
 
 very thick silk, or even catgut. Vellum 
 
 is so tough and durable, that any binding 
 
 of a vellum book should be made as if 
 
 it were expected to last for hundreds of 
 
 years. 
 
 In selecting the thickness of cord for a 
 book, some judgment is required. On an 
 old book the bands are best made rather 
 prominent by the use of thick cord, but 
 the exact thickness to be used is a matter 
 for taste and experience to decide. 
 
 A very thick band on a small book is 
 clumsy, while a very thin band on the back 
 of a heavy book suggests weakness, and is 
 therefore unsightly. 
 
 In bindings of early printed books and 
 manuscripts an appearance of great strength 
 is better than extreme neatness. 
 
 When the sewing is completed, the cords 
 are cut off close to the lay cords, and then 
 8 113
 
 Materials the keys will be loose enough to be easily 
 for Sewing removed. The knots remaining on the 
 
 lay bands are removed, and the keys slung 
 
 through one of them. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 Fraying out Slips Glueing up Rounding 
 and Backing 
 
 FRAYING OUT SLIPS AND GLUEING UP 
 
 Fraying out AFTER sewing, the book should be looked 
 
 Slips and through to see that all sheets and plates 
 
 Glueing up nave Dee n caught by the thread, and special 
 
 attention should be given to end papers to 
 
 see that the sewing lies evenly. 
 
 The ends of the cords should next be 
 cut off to within about two inches of the 
 book on each side, and the free portions 
 frayed out. If proper sewing cord is used, 
 this will be found to be very easily done, 
 if a binder's bodkin is first inserted be- 
 tween the two strands, separating them, 
 and then again in the centre of each sepa- 
 rated strand to still further straighten the 
 fibres (see fig. 34). 
 
 The fraying out of the thick cord re- 
 114
 
 commended for heavy books is a more Fraying out 
 
 difficult operation, but with a little trouble sli P s an d 
 
 the fibres of- any good ^ Gluein g U P 
 
 cord can be frayed out. 
 
 Vellum or tape bands 
 
 will only require cutting 
 
 off, leaving about two 
 
 inches free on each side. 
 
 The free parts of the 
 
 bands are called slips. 
 
 The book is now FIG. 
 ready for glueing up. 
 A piece of waste mill-board or an old 
 cloth cover is put on each side over the 
 slips, and the book knocked up squarely 
 at the back and head. Then it is lowered 
 into the lying press and screwed up, 
 leaving the back with the protecting 
 boards projecting about three - quarters 
 of an inch. If the back has too much 
 swelling in it or is spongy, it is better to 
 leave the slips on one side free and to pull 
 them as tight as possible while the book is 
 held in the press, or a knocking-down iron 
 may be placed on one side of the project- 
 ing back and the other side tapped with 
 the backing hammer to make the sections 
 lie close to one another, and then the slips 
 pulled straight (fig. 35). The back must 
 
 "5
 
 Fraying out now be glued. The glue for this opera- 
 Slips and tion must be hot, and not too thick. It 
 
 Glueing up j s ver y important that it should be worked 
 well between the sections with the brush, 
 and it is well after it has been applied to 
 rub the back with a finger or folder to 
 make quite sure that the glue goes be- 
 tween every section for its entire length. 
 
 FIG. 35. 
 
 If the book is too tightly screwed up in 
 the press, the glue is apt to remain too 
 much on the surface ; and if not tightly 
 enough, it may penetrate too deeply be- 
 tween the sections. If the glue is thick, 
 or stringy, it may be diluted with hot 
 water and the glue-brush rapidly spun 
 116
 
 round in the glue-pot to break it up and Fraying out 
 to make it work freely. Slips and 
 
 Very great care is needed to see that Gluem g U P 
 the head of a previously trimmed book 
 is knocked up exactly square before the 
 back is glued, for if it is not, it will be 
 very difficult to get it even afterwards. 
 
 ROUNDING AND BACKING 
 
 The amount of rounding on the back Rounding 
 of a book should be determined by the ^ 
 necessities of the case ; that is to say, a Backin 
 back that has, through guarding, or excess 
 of sewing, a tendency to be round, is best 
 not forced to be flat, and a back that 
 would naturally be flat, is best not forced 
 to be unduly round. A very round back 
 is objectionable where it can be avoided, 
 because it takes up so much of the back 
 margins of the sheets, and is apt to make 
 the book stiff in opening. On the other 
 hand, a back that is quite flat has to be 
 lined up stiffly, or it may become concave 
 with use. 
 
 The method of rounding is to place the 
 book with the back projecting a little 
 over the edge of the press or table, then 
 to draw the back over towards the work- 
 
 117
 
 Rounding man, and, while in this position, to tap it 
 
 and carefully with a hammer (see fig. 36). 
 
 Backing This is repeated on the other side of 
 
 the book, and, if properly done, will give 
 
 y 
 
 the back an even, convex form that should 
 be in section, a portion of a circle. 
 Rounding and backing are best done .after 
 the glue has ceased to be tacky, but before 
 it has set hard. 
 118
 
 Backing is perhaps the most difficult and Rounding 
 important operation in forwarding. The an d 
 sewing threads in the back cause that part Backin g 
 to be thicker than the rest of the book. 
 Thus in a book with twenty sections 
 there will be in the back, in addition to 
 
 2 
 
 FIG. 37. 
 
 the thickness of the paper, twenty thick- 
 nesses of thread. 
 
 If the boards were laced on to the book 
 without rounding or backing, and the 
 book were pressed, the additional thick- 
 ness of the back, having to go somewhere, 
 would cause it to go either convex or 
 concave, or else perhaps to crease up 
 
 119
 
 FIG. 38. 
 
 Rounding (see fig. 37). The object of rounding 
 and i s to control the distribution of this 
 Backing swelling, and to make the back take an 
 even and permanently convex form. 
 
 If the boards were merely laced on after 
 rounding, there would be a gap between 
 the square ends of the 
 board and the edge of the 
 back (see fig. 38), though 
 the convexity and even 
 curve of the back would 
 be to some extent assured. 
 What is done in backing 
 is to make a groove, into 
 which the edges of the 
 board will fit neatly, and to hammer the 
 backs of the sections over one another 
 from the centre outwards on both sides 
 to form the "groove," to 
 ensure that the back shall re- 
 turn to the same form after 
 the book has been opened. 
 
 To back the book, back- 
 ing boards are placed on each 
 side (leaving the slips outside) 
 a short distance below the edge of the 
 back (fig. 39). The amount to leave 
 here must be decided by the thickness of 
 the boards to be used. When the back- 
 
 I2O
 
 ing boards are in position, the book and 
 boards must be carefully lowered into the 
 lying press and screwed up very tight, 
 great care being taken to see that the 
 boards do not slip, and that the book is 
 put in evenly. Even the most experienced 
 forwarder will sometimes have to take a 
 book out of the press two or three times 
 
 FIG. 40. 
 
 before he gets it in quite evenly and 
 without allowing the boards to slip. 
 Unless the back has a perfectly even curve 
 when put in the press for backing, no 
 amount of subsequent hammering will put 
 it permanently right. 
 
 The backs of the sections should be 
 evenly fanned out one over the other 
 from the centre outwards on both sides. 
 
 121 
 
 Rounding 
 
 and 
 Backing
 
 Rounding 
 
 and 
 Backing 
 
 This is done by side strokes of the 
 hammer, in fact by a sort of " riveting " 
 blow, and not by a directly crushing blow 
 (see fig. 41, in which the arrows show the 
 direction of the hammer strokes). If the 
 sections are not evenly fanned out from 
 
 FIG. 41. 
 
 the centre, but are either zigzagged by 
 being crushed by direct blows of the ham- 
 mer, as shown in fig. 42, A, or are un- 
 evenly fanned over more to one side than 
 the other, as shown in fig. 42, B, the back, 
 although it may be even enough when 
 first done, will probably become uneven 
 
 122
 
 with use. A book in which the sections Rounding 
 have been crushed down, as at fig. 42, A, and 
 
 Backing 
 
 FIG. 42. 
 
 will be disfigured inside by creases in the 
 paper. 
 
 FIG. 43. FIG. 44. 
 
 It is a mistake to suppose that a very 
 
 123
 
 Rounding heavy hammer is necessary for backing 
 
 and any but the largest books. For flexible 
 pi' 
 Backing books a hammer with a comparatively 
 
 small face should be used, as by its use 
 the book can be backed without flattening 
 the bands. It is well to have a hammer 
 head of the shape shown in fig. 43. By 
 using the thin end, the force of a com- 
 paratively light blow, because concen- 
 trated on a small surface, is effective. 
 
 At fig. 44 is shown an ordinary backing 
 hammer. 
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 
 Cutting and Attaching Boards Cleaning off Back 
 Pressing 
 
 Boards 
 
 CUTTING AND ATTACHING BOARDS 
 
 Cutting and THE first quality of the best black board 
 Attaching mac j e from old rope is the best to use for 
 "extra" binding. It will be found to be 
 very hard, and not easily broken or bent 
 at the corners. In selecting the thickness 
 suitable for any given book, the size 
 and thickness of the volume should be 
 taken into account. The tendency of 
 most modern binders is to use a rather 
 124
 
 over thick board, perhaps with a view to Cutting and 
 bulk out the volume. For manuscripts, .Attaching 
 or other books on vellum, it is best to 
 use wooden boards, which should be 
 clasped. From their stability they form 
 a kind of permanent press, in which the 
 vellum leaves are kept flat. In a damp 
 climate like that of England, vellum, 
 absorbing moisture from the atmosphere, 
 soon cockles up unless it is held tightly 
 in some way ; and when it is once cockled, 
 the book cannot be made to shut pro- 
 perly, except with very special treatment. 
 Then also dust and damp have ready 
 access to the interstices of the crinkled 
 pages, resulting in the disfigurement so 
 well known and so deplored by all lovers 
 of fine books. 
 
 For large books a " made " board, that 
 is, two boards pasted together, is better 
 than a single board of the same thickness. 
 In making boards a thin and a thick board 
 should be pasted together, the thin board 
 to go nearest the book. It will not be 
 necessary to put a double lining on the 
 inside of such boards, as a thin board will 
 always draw a thick one. 
 
 If mill-boards are used they are first 
 cut roughly to size with the mill-board 
 
 125
 
 Cutting and shears, screwed up in the " lying " press. 
 
 Attaching The straight arm of the shears is the one 
 
 Boards to x m tne p resS) f or Jf the bent arm be 
 
 undermost, the knuckles are apt to be 
 
 FIG. 
 
 severely bruised against the end. A better 
 way of fixing the shears is shown at fig. 45. 
 Any blacksmith will bend the arm of the 
 shears and make the necessary clips. This 
 method saves trouble and considerable 
 126
 
 wear and tear to the " lying " press. Cutting and 
 Where a great many boards are needed, Attaching 
 they may be quickly cut in a board 
 machine, but for " extra " work they 
 should be further trimmed in the plough, 
 in the same way as those cut by the 
 shears. After the boards have been 
 roughly cut to size, they should have one 
 edge cut straight with the plough. To 
 do this one or two pairs of boards are 
 knocked up to the back and inserted in 
 the cutting side of the press, with those 
 edges projecting which are to be cut off, 
 and behind them, as a " cut against," a 
 board protected by a waste piece of mill- 
 board. 
 
 The plough, held by the screw and 
 handle, and guided by the runners on the 
 press, is moved backwards and forwards. 
 A slight turn of the screw at each move- 
 ment brings the knife forward. In cutting 
 mill-boards which are very hard, the screw 
 should be turned very little each time. 
 If press and plough are in proper order, 
 that part of the board which projects 
 above the cheek of the press should be 
 cut off, leaving the edges perfectly square 
 and straight. If the edge of the press has 
 been damaged, or is out of " truth," a 
 
 127
 
 Cutting and cutting board may be used between the 
 Attaching cheek of the press and the board to be 
 
 Boards 
 
 FIG. 46. Lying or Cutting Press 
 
 cut, making a true edge for the knife to 
 run on. 
 128
 
 Boards 
 
 The position of the plough on the press Cutting and 
 is shown at fig. 46. The side of the press Attaching 
 with runners should be reserved for cut- 
 ting, the other side used for all other 
 work. 
 
 The plough knife for mill-boards should 
 not be ground at too acute an angle, or 
 the edge will most likely 
 break away at the first cut. 
 The shape shown at fig. 47 
 is suitable. The knife should 
 be very frequently ground, 
 as it soon gets blunt, which 
 adds greatly to the labour of 
 cutting. 
 
 After an edge has been 
 cut, each side should be well 
 rubbed with a folder to smooth down 
 any burr left by the plough knife. 
 Then a piece of common paper with 
 one edge cut straight is pasted on to 
 one side of the board, with the straight 
 edge exactly up to the cut edge of the 
 board. Then a piece of paper large 
 enough to cover both sides of the board 
 is pasted round it, and well rubbed down 
 at the cut edge. After having been lined, 
 the boards are nipped in the press to 
 ensure that the lining paper shall stick. 
 9 129 
 
 FIG. 47.
 
 Cutting and They are stood up to dry, with the doubly 
 Attaching lined side outwards. The double paper 
 Boards j s intended to warp the board slightly to 
 that side, to compensate for the pull of 
 the leather when the book is covered. If 
 the board is a double one, a single lining 
 paper will be sufficient, the thinner board 
 helping to draw the thicker. The paste 
 for lining boards must be fairly thin, and 
 very well beaten up so as to be free from 
 lumps. It is of the utmost importance 
 that the lining papers should stick pro- 
 perly, for unless they stick, no subsequent 
 covering of leather or paper can be made 
 to lie flat. 
 
 When the lined boards are quite dry, 
 they should be paired with the doubly 
 lined sides together, and the top back 
 corner marked to correspond with the 
 marks on the top back corners of the 
 book. Then near the top edge, with the 
 aid of a carpenter's square, two points are 
 marked in a line at right angles to the cut 
 edge. The pair of boards is then knocked 
 up to the back and lowered into the press 
 as before, so that the plough knife will 
 exactly cut through the points. The 
 same operation is repeated on the two 
 remaining uncut edges. In marking out 
 130
 
 those for the fore-edge, the measurement is Cutting and 
 
 taken with a pair of compasses (fig. 48) Attaching 
 
 from the joint of the book to the fore-edge Boards 
 
 of the first section. If the book has been 
 
 trimmed, or is to remain uncut, a little 
 
 more must be allowed for the " squares," 
 
 and if it is to be cut in the plough, it 
 
 must be now decided how 
 
 much is to be cut off, 
 
 remembering that it is 
 
 much better to have the 
 
 boards a little too large, 
 
 and so have to reduce 
 
 them after the book is 
 
 cut, than to have them 
 
 too small, and either be 
 
 obliged to get out a new 
 
 pair of boards, or unduly 
 
 cut down the book. 
 
 The height of the boards 
 for a book that has been 
 trimmed, or is to remain 
 uncut, will be the height of the page with 
 a small allowance at each end for the 
 squares. When a pair of boards has been 
 cut all round, it can be tested for square- 
 ness by reversing one board, when any 
 inequality that there may be will appear 
 doubled. If the boards are out of truth 
 
 FIG. 48.
 
 Boards 
 
 Cutting and they should generally be put on one side, 
 Attaching to be used for a smaller book, and new 
 boards got out. To correct a badly cut 
 pair of boards, it is necessary to reduce 
 them in size, and the book consequently 
 suffers in proportion. If the boards have 
 been found to be truly cut, they are laid 
 on the book, and the position of the slips 
 marked on them by lines at right angles 
 to the back. A line is 
 then made parallel to the 
 back, about half an inch 
 in (see fig. 49). At 
 the points where the 
 lines cross, a series of 
 holes is punched from 
 the front with a binder's 
 FIG. 49. bodkin on a lead plate, 
 then the board is turned 
 over, and a second series is punched from 
 the back about half an inch from the first. 
 If the groove of the back is shallower than 
 the thickness of the board, the top back 
 edge of the board should be bevelled off 
 with a file. This will not be necessary if 
 the groove is the exact depth. When the 
 holes have been punched, it is well to cut 
 a series of V-shaped depressions from the 
 first series of holes to the back to receive 
 132
 
 the slips, or they may be too prominent Cutting and 
 when the book is bound. It will now be Attaching 
 necessary to considerably reduce the slips 
 that were frayed out after sewing, and to 
 remove all glue or any other matter at- 
 tached to them. The extent to which 
 they may be reduced is a matter of nice 
 judgment. In the desire to ensure ab- 
 solute neatness in the covering, modern 
 binders often reduce the slips to almost 
 nothing. On the other hand, some go to 
 the other extreme, and leave the cord 
 entire, making great ridges on the sides 
 of the book where it is laced in. It 
 should be possible with the aid of the 
 depressions, cut as described, to use slips 
 with sufficient margin of strength, and yet 
 to have no undue projection on the cover. 
 A slight projection is not unsightly, as it 
 gives an assurance of sound construction 
 and strength, and, moreover, makes an 
 excellent starting-point for any pattern 
 that may be used. When the slips have 
 been scraped and reduced, the portion left 
 should consist of long straight silky fibres. 
 These must be well pasted, and the ends 
 very slightly twisted. The pointed ends 
 are then threaded through the first series 
 of holes in the front of the board, and
 
 Boards 
 
 Cutting and back again through the second (fig. 50). 
 Attaching In lacing-in the slips must not be pulled 
 so tight as to prevent the board from 
 shutting freely, nor left so loose as to 
 make a perceptible interval in the joint of 
 the book. The pasted slips having been 
 laced in, their ends are cut off with a 
 sharp knife, flush with the surface of the 
 
 FIG. 50. 
 
 board. The laced-in slips are then well 
 hammered on a knocking-down iron (see 
 fig. 51), first from the front and then 
 from the back, care being taken that the 
 hammer face should fall squarely, or the 
 slips may be cut. This should rivet them 
 into the board, leaving little or no pro- 
 134
 
 jection. If in lacing in the fibres should Cutting and 
 get twisted, no amount of hammering will Attaching 
 make them flat, so that it is important in 
 pointing the ends for lacing in, that only 
 
 Boards 
 
 FIG. 51. 
 
 the points are twisted just sufficiently to 
 facilitate the threading through the holes, 
 and not enough to twist the whole slip. 
 
 To lace slips into wooden boards, holes 
 are made with a brace and fine twist bit, 
 and the ends of the frayed out slips may 
 be secured with a wooden plug (see fig. 52). 
 
 Old books were sometimes sewn on 
 
 135
 
 Cutting and bands of leather, but as those sewn on 
 
 Attaching cord seem to have lasted on the whole 
 
 Boards mucn better, and as, moreover, modern 
 
 FIG. 52. 
 
 cord is a far more trustworthy material 
 than modern leather, it is better to use 
 cord for any books bound now. 
 136
 
 Cleaning off 
 
 the Back 
 
 CLEANING OFF THE BACK AND an j p res sing 
 
 PRESSING 
 
 When the boards have been laced on 
 and the slips hammered down, the book 
 should be pressed. Before pressing, a tin 
 is put on each side of both boards, one 
 being pushed right up into the joint on 
 the inside, and the other up to the joint, 
 or a little over it, on the outside. While 
 in the press, the back should be 
 covered with paste and left to j" | 
 soak for a few minutes. When \ / 
 the glue is soft the surplus on 
 the surface can be scraped off 
 with a piece of wood shaped as FIG. 53. 
 shown in fig. 53. For impor- 
 tant books it is best to do this in the 
 lying press, but some binders prefer 
 first to build up the books in the stand- 
 ing press, and then to paste the backs 
 and clean them off there. This has the 
 advantage of being a quicker method, and 
 will, in many cases, answer quite well. 
 But for books that require nice adjustment 
 it will be found better to clean off each 
 volume separately in the lying press, and 
 afterwards to build up the books and 
 
 137
 
 Cleaning off boards in the standing press, putting the 
 the Back larger books at the bottom. It must be 
 and Pressing seen t j iat t j ie en ti re pile is exactly in the 
 centre under the screw, or the pressure will 
 be uneven. To ascertain if the books are 
 built up truly, the pile must be examined 
 from both the front and side of the press. 
 Each volume must also be looked at care- 
 fully to see that it lies evenly, and that the 
 back is not twisted or out of shape. This 
 is important, as any form given to the 
 book when it is pressed at this stage will 
 be permanent. 
 
 Any coloured or newly printed plates 
 will need tissues, as in the former press- 
 ing ; and any folded plates or diagrams or 
 inserted letters will need a thin tin on each 
 side of them to prevent them from mark- 
 ing the book. 
 
 Again, the pressure on hand-printed 
 books must not be excessive. 
 
 The books should be left in the press 
 at least a night. When taken out they 
 will be ready for head-banding, unless the 
 edges are to be cut in boards. 
 
 138
 
 CHAPTER X 
 
 Cutting in Boards Gilding and Colouring Edges 
 CUTTING IN BOARDS 
 
 THE knife for cutting edges may be ground Cutting in 
 more acutely than for cutting boards, and Boards 
 should be very sharp, or the paper may 
 be torn. The plough knife should never 
 be ground on the under side, as if the 
 under side is not quite flat, it will tend to 
 run up instead of cutting straight across. 
 Before beginning to cut edges, the posi- 
 tion of the knife should be tested care- 
 fully by screwing the plough up, with the 
 press a little open, and noting whereabouts 
 on the left-hand cheek the point of the 
 knife comes. In a press that is true the 
 knife should just clear the edge of the 
 press. If there is too much packing the 
 knife will cut below the edge of the press, 
 and if too little, it will cut above. 
 
 " Packing " is paper inserted between 
 the knife and the metal plate on the 
 plough, to correct the position of the 
 knife. When by experiment the exact 
 thickness of paper necessary for any given
 
 Cutting in knife is found, the packing should be 
 Boards carefully kept when the knife is taken out 
 for grinding, and put back with it into 
 the plough. 
 
 The first edge to be cut is the top, and 
 the first thing to do is to place the boards 
 in the position they will hold when the 
 book is bound. The front board is then 
 dropped the depth of the square required, 
 care being taken that the back edge of the 
 board remains evenly in the joint. A piece 
 of cardboard, or two or three thicknesses 
 of paper, are then slipped in between the 
 end paper and the back board to prevent 
 the latter from being cut by the knife. 
 The book is then carefully lowered into 
 the press, with the back towards the work- 
 man, until the top edge of the front board 
 is exactly even with the right-hand cheek, 
 and the press screwed up evenly. The 
 back board should show the depth of the 
 square above the left-hand cheek. It is 
 very important that the edge of the back 
 board should be exactly parallel with the 
 press, and if at first it is not so, the book 
 must be twisted until it is right. 
 
 The edges can now be cut with the 
 plough as in cutting mill-boards. The 
 tail of the book is cut in the same way, 
 
 140
 
 still keeping the back of the book towards Cutting in 
 the workman, but cutting from the back Boards 
 board. 
 
 Cutting the fore-edge is more difficult. 
 The waste sheets at each end of the book 
 should be cut off flush with the edge of 
 the board, and marks made on them below 
 the edge showing the amount of the square, 
 and consequently how much is to be cut 
 off. The curve of the 
 back, and consequent 
 curve of the fore-edge, 
 must first be got rid of, 
 by inserting a pair of 
 pieces of flat steel called 
 " trindles " (fig. 54) 
 across the back, from 
 the inside of the boards. 
 When these are inserted 
 the back must be knocked quite flat, 
 and, in the case of a heavy book, a 
 piece of tape may be tied round the 
 leaves (see fig. 55) to keep them in 
 position. A pair of cutting boards is 
 placed one on each side of the leaves, the 
 back one exactly up to the point that the 
 edge of the board came to, and the front 
 one as much below that point as it is 
 desired the square of the fore-edge should 
 
 141 
 
 FIG. 54.
 
 Cutting in be. The trindles are removed while the 
 Boards book is held firmly between the cutting 
 boards by the finger and thumb ; book and 
 boards are then lowered very carefully into 
 the press. The top edge of the front 
 cutting board should be flush with the 
 right - hand cheek of 
 the press, and that of 
 the back a square above 
 the left-hand cheek (see 
 fig. 56). A further 
 test is to look along 
 the surface of the 
 right - hand cheek, 
 when, if the book has 
 been inserted truly, the 
 amount of the back 
 cutting board in sight 
 should exactly cor- 
 respond with the 
 amount of the paper 
 FIG. 55. to be cut showing 
 
 above the front board. 
 It will also be necessary before cutting 
 to look at the back, and to see that 
 it has remained flat. If it has gone 
 back to its old curve, or the book 
 has been put into tjie press crookedly, 
 it must be taken right out again and the 
 142
 
 trindles inserted afresh, as it is usually a Cutting in 
 waste of time to try to adjust the book Boards 
 when it is in the press. The leaves are 
 
 FIG. 56. 
 
 cut in the same way as those of the head 
 and tail.
 
 GILDING OR COLOURING THE EDGES 
 OF A CUT BOOK. 
 
 Gilding or Gilding the edges of a book cut in 
 
 Colouring boards is much the same process as that 
 
 the Edges d escr ib e d for the trimmed book, excepting 
 
 E k ^ at when gilt in boards the edges can be 
 
 scraped and slightly sand-papered. It is 
 
 the custom to admire a perfectly solid gilt 
 
 edge, looking more like a solid sheet of 
 
 metal, than the leaves of a book. As the 
 
 essential characteristic of a book is, that it 
 
 is composed of leaves, this fact is better 
 
 accepted and emphasised by leaving the 
 
 edges a little rough, so that even when 
 
 gilt they are evidently the edges of leaves 
 
 of paper, and not the sides of a block, or 
 
 of something solid. 
 
 To gild the edges of a cut book the 
 boards should be turned back, and cutting 
 boards put on each side of the book flush 
 with the edge to be gilt. For the fore- 
 edge the book must be thrown up with 
 trindles first, unless it is desired to gild in 
 the round, a process which gives the objec- 
 tionable solid metallic edge. 
 
 After the edges have been gilt they may 
 be decorated by tooling, called " gauffer- 
 144
 
 ing." This may be done, either by tooling Gilding or 
 with hot tools directly on the gold while Colouring 
 the leaves are screwed up tightly in the th *: E <Jg es 
 press, or by laying another coloured gold 
 on the top of the first and tooling over 
 that, leaving the pattern in the new gold 
 on the original colour. But, to my mind, 
 edges are best left undecorated, except for 
 plain gold or colour. 
 
 If the edges are to be coloured, they 
 should be slightly scraped, and the colour 
 put on with a sponge, commencing with 
 the fore-edge, which should be slightly 
 fanned out, and held firmly, by placing a 
 pressing-board above it, and pressing with 
 the hand on this. The colour must be 
 put on very thinly, commencing from the 
 centre of the fore-edge and working to 
 either end, and as many coats put on as 
 are necessary to get the depth of colour 
 required. The head and tail are treated 
 in the same way, excepting that they 
 cannot be fanned out, and the colour 
 should be applied from the back to the fore- 
 edge. If in the fore-edge an attempt is 
 made to colour from one end to the other, 
 and if in the head or tail from the fore-edge 
 to the back, the result will almost certainly 
 be that the sponge will leave a thick 
 10 145
 
 Gilding or deposit of colour round the corner from 
 
 Colouring which it starts. 
 
 the Edges p or co l ourmo - edges almost any stain 
 
 of a Cut .,, B j. , 7 
 
 Book w answer, or ordinary water-colours may 
 be used if moistened with size. 
 
 When the colour is dry the edge should 
 
 be lightly rubbed over 
 
 vi li { with a little beeswax, and 
 
 FIG. 57. burnished with a tooth 
 burnisher (see fig. 57). 
 
 In addition to plain colour and gilding, 
 the edges of a book may be decorated in a 
 variety of ways. The fore-edge may be 
 fanned out and painted in any device in 
 water-colour and afterwards gilded ; the 
 painting will only show when the book is 
 open. The fore-edge for this must be cut 
 very solid, and if the paper is at all 
 absorbent, must be sized with vellum size 
 before being painted. The paints used 
 must be simple water-colour, and the edge 
 must not be touched with the hand before 
 gilding, as if there is any grease or finger- 
 mark on it, the gold will not stick evenly. 
 Painting on the fore-edge should only be 
 attempted when the paper of the book is 
 thin and of good quality. More common 
 methods of decorating edges are by mar- 
 bling and sprinkling, but they are both 
 
 146
 
 inferior to plain colouring. Some pleasant Gilding or 
 
 effects are sometimes obtained by mar- Colouring 
 
 bling edges and then gilding over the ^ ^^ 
 
 marbling. g ook ut 
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 
 Headbanding 
 
 \ 
 
 HEADBANDS 
 
 MODERN headbands are small pieces of Headbands 
 
 vellum, gut, or cord sewn on to the head 
 
 and tail of a book with silk or thread. 
 
 They resist the strain on the book when 
 
 it is taken from the shelf. The vellum 
 
 slip or cord must be of such a depth, that 
 
 when covered with silk it will be slightly 
 
 lower than the square of the boards. The 
 
 cut edge of the vellum always slants, and 
 
 the slip must be placed in position so that 
 
 it tilts back rather than forward on the 
 
 book. 
 
 To start, ease the boards slightly on 
 the slips and pull them down with the 
 top edges flush with the top edge of the 
 leaves. If this is not done the silk catches 
 on the projecting edges as the band is 
 worked. Stand the book in a finishing 
 
 H7
 
 Headbands press, fore-edge to the worker, and tilted 
 forward so as to give a good view of the 
 headband as it is worked. The light 
 must come from the left, and well on to 
 the work. A needle threaded with silk 
 is put in at the head of the book, and 
 through the centre of the first section 
 after the end papers, and drawn out at 
 the back below the kettle stitch with about 
 two-thirds of the silk. The needle is 
 again inserted in the same place, and drawn 
 through until a loop of silk is left. The 
 vellum slip is placed in the loop, with the 
 end projecting slightly to the left. It 
 must be held steady by a needle placed 
 vertically behind it, with its point between 
 the leaves of the first section. The needle 
 end of silk is then behind the headband, 
 and the shorter end in front. The needle 
 end is brought over from the back with 
 the right hand, passed into the left hand, 
 and held taut. The short end is picked 
 up with the right hand, brought over the 
 needle end under the vellum, and pulled 
 tight from the back. This is repeated ; 
 the back thread is again drawn up and 
 over the band to the front, the needle end 
 crosses it, and is drawn behind under the 
 vellum slip, and so on. The crossing of 
 148
 
 the threads form a " bead," which must Headbands 
 
 be watched, and kept as tight as possible, 
 
 and well down on the leaves of the book. 
 
 Whenever the vellum or string begins to 
 
 shift in position, it must be tied down. 
 
 This is done when the needle end of silk 
 
 is at the back. A finger of the left hand 
 
 is placed on the thread of silk at the back, 
 
 and holds it firmly just below the slip. 
 
 The needle end is then brought up and 
 
 over the slip, but instead of crossing it 
 
 with the front thread, the needle is passed 
 
 between the leaves and out at the back of 
 
 the book, below the kettle stitch, and the 
 
 thread gradually drawn tight, and from 
 
 under the left-hand finger. The loop so 
 
 made will hold the band firmly, and the 
 
 silk can then be brought up and over the 
 
 slip and crossed in the usual way. The 
 
 band should be worked as far as the end 
 
 papers, and should be finished with a 
 
 double " tie down," after which the front 
 
 thread is drawn under the slip to the 
 
 back. Both the ends of silk are then cut 
 
 off to about half an inch, frayed out, and 
 
 pasted down as flatly as possible on the 
 
 back of the book. 
 
 The band should be tied down fre- 
 quently. It is not too much to tie down 
 
 149
 
 Headbands every third time the needle end of the 
 silk comes to the back. To make good 
 headbands the pull on the silk must be 
 even throughout. 
 
 When the ends of the silk are pasted 
 down, the ends of the vellum slip are cut 
 off as near the silk as possible. The correct 
 length of the headband is best judged by 
 pressing the boards together with thumb 
 and finger at the opposite ends of the 
 band, so as to compress the sections into 
 their final compass. If the band then 
 buckles in the least, it is too long and 
 must be shortened. 
 
 The mediaeval headbands were sewn 
 with the other bands (see fig. 32), and 
 were very strong, as they were tied down 
 at every section. Modern worked head- 
 bands, although not so strong, are, if fre- 
 quently tied down, strong enough to 
 resist any reasonable strain. There are 
 many other ways of headbanding, but if 
 the one described is mastered, the various 
 other patterns will suggest themselves if 
 variety is needed. For very large books a 
 double headband may be worked on two 
 pieces of gut or string a thick piece with 
 a thin piece in front. The string should 
 first be soaked in thin glue and left to 
 
 150
 
 dry. Such a band is worked with a figure Headbands 
 of eight stitch. Headbands may also be 
 worked with two or three shades of silk. 
 As vellum is apt to get hard and to break 
 when it is used for headbanding, it is well 
 to paste two pieces together with linen in 
 between, and to cut into strips as required. 
 
 Machine-made headbands can be bought 
 by the yard. Such bands are merely glued 
 on, but as they have but little strength, 
 should not be used. 
 
 Where leather joints are used, the 
 headbands may be worked on pieces of 
 soft leather sized and screwed up. If the 
 ends are left long and tied in front while 
 the book is being covered, they may be 
 conveniently let into grooves in the boards 
 before the leather joint is pasted down. 
 This method, I think, has little construc- 
 tive value, but it certainly avoids the 
 rather unfinished look of the cut-off head- 
 band. 
 
 '5*
 
 CHAPTER XII 
 
 Preparing for Covering Paring Leather Covering 
 Mitring Corners Filling-in Boards 
 
 PREPARING FOR COVERING 
 
 Preparing AFTER the headband is worked, a piece 
 for of brown or other stout paper should be 
 
 /"> * * Jt 
 
 covering we ]Q g} uec j on at ^he head and tail, care 
 being taken that it is firmly attached to 
 the back and the headband. When dry, 
 the part projecting above the headband is 
 neatly cut off, and the part on the back 
 well sand-papered, to remove any irregu- 
 larity caused by the tie-downs attaching 
 the headband. For most books this will 
 be quite sufficient lining up, but very 
 heavy books are best further lined up 
 between the bands with linen, or thin 
 leather. This can be put on by pasting 
 the linen or leather and giving the back a 
 very thin coat of glue. 
 
 The only thing now left to do before 
 covering will be to set the squares and to 
 cut off a small piece of the back corner of 
 each board at the head and tail, to make 
 it possible for the boards to open and 
 152
 
 shut without dragging the head-cap out of Preparing 
 
 place. The form of the little piece to be f r 
 
 cut off varies with each individual binder, Covering 
 
 but I have found for an octavo book that 
 
 a cut slightly sloping from the inside 
 
 cutting off the corner about 
 
 an eighth of an inch each way, 
 
 gives the best result (see fig. 
 
 58). When the corner has 
 
 been cut off, the boards should FIG. 58. 
 
 be thrown back, and the slips 
 
 between the book and the board well 
 
 pasted. When these have soaked a 
 
 little, the squares of the boards are 
 
 set ; that is, the boards are fixed so that 
 
 exactly the same square shows on each 
 
 board above head and tail. A little 
 
 larger square is sometimes an advantage 
 
 at the tail to keep the head-cap well off 
 
 the shelf, the essential thing being that 
 
 both head and both tail squares should be 
 
 the same. In the case of an old book 
 
 that has not been recut, the edges will 
 
 often be found to be uneven. In such 
 
 cases the boards must be made square, and 
 
 so set that the book stands up straight. 
 
 When the slips have been pasted and 
 the squares set, tins can be put inside and 
 outside the boards, and the book given a
 
 Preparing slight nip in the press to flatten the slips. 
 for Only a comparatively light pressure should 
 
 Covering ^ e given, or the lining up of the head- 
 bands or back will become cockled and 
 detached. 
 
 PARING LEATHER 
 
 Paring While the slips are being set in the press 
 
 Leather the cover can be got out. Judgment is 
 necessary in cutting out covers. One 
 workman will be able, by careful cutting, 
 to get six covers out of a skin where 
 another will only get four. The firm 
 part of the skin is the back and sides, and 
 this only should be used for the best 
 books. The fleshy parts on the flanks 
 and belly will not wear sufficiently well to 
 be suitable for good bookbinding. 
 
 The skin should be cut out leaving 
 about an inch all round for turning in 
 when the book is covered, and when cut 
 out it must be pared. If the leather is 
 of European manufacture most of the 
 paring will have been done before it is 
 sold, and the leather manufacturer will 
 have shaved it to any thickness required. 
 This is a convenience that is partly respon- 
 sible for the unduly thin leather that is 
 
 '54
 
 commonly used. The better plan is to Paring 
 get the leather rather thick, and for the Leather 
 binder to pare it down where necessary. 
 For small books it is essential, in order 
 that the covers may open freely, and the 
 boards not look clumsy, that the leather 
 should be very thin at the joint and round 
 the edges of the boards. For such books 
 it is very important that a small, naturally 
 thin skin should be used that will not 
 have to be unduly pared down, and that 
 the large and thicker skins should be kept 
 for large books. 
 
 Binders like using large skins because 
 there is much less waste, but if these skins 
 are used for small books, so much of the 
 leather substance has to be pared away, that 
 only the comparatively brittle grained sur- 
 face remains. By the modern process of 
 dyeing this surface is often to some extent 
 injured, and its strength sometimes totally 
 destroyed. 
 
 When the cover has been cut to size the 
 book is laid on it with the boards open, 
 and a pencil line drawn round them, a 
 mark being made to show where the back 
 comes. The skin is then pared, making 
 it thin where the edge of the boards will 
 come. Great care must be taken that the 
 
 155
 
 Paring thinning does not commence too abruptly, 
 Leather O r a ridge will be apparent when the 
 leather is on the book. 
 
 The paring must be done quite smoothly 
 and evenly. Every unevenness shows when 
 the cover is polished and pressed. Care is 
 needed in estimating the amount that will 
 have to be pared off that part of the leather 
 that covers the back and joints. The object 
 of the binder should be to leave these por- 
 tions as thick as he can consistently with 
 the free opening of the boards. The leather 
 at the head-caps must be pared quite thin, 
 as the double thickness on the top of the 
 headband is apt to make this part project 
 above the edges of the board. This is a 
 great trouble, especially at the tail, where, 
 if the head-cap projects beyond the boards, 
 the whole weight of the book rests on it, 
 and it is certain to be rubbed off when the 
 book is put on the shelf. 
 
 The method of paring with a French 
 knife (fig. 60, A) the only form of knife 
 in use by binders that gives sufficient con- 
 trol over the leather is shown at fig. 59. 
 To use this knife properly, practice is re- 
 quired. The main thing to learn is that 
 the knife must be used quite flat, and 
 made to cut by having a very slight burr 
 
 .56
 
 FIG. 59. 
 
 Paring 
 Leather
 
 Paring 
 Leather 
 
 on the under side. This burr is got by 
 rubbing the knife on the lithographic stone 
 on which the paring is done. The handle 
 of the knife should never be raised to such 
 a height above the surface of the stone 
 that it is possible to get the under fingers 
 of the right hand over the edge of the 
 
 FIG. 60. 
 
 stone. Another form of knife suitable 
 for paring the edges of leather is shown 
 at fig. 60, B. 
 
 To test if the leather has been suffi- 
 ciently pared, fold it over where the edge 
 of the board will come, and run the finger 
 along the folded leather. If the paring 
 has been done properly it will feel quite 
 even the whole length of the fold ; but if 
 there are any irregularities, they will be 
 very apparent, and the paring must be 
 gone over again till they have disappeared.
 
 When even, the book must be again laid Paring 
 on the leather with the boards open, and a Leather 
 pencil line drawn round as before. If there 
 are leather joints they will have been pared 
 before the book was sewn, and care must 
 be taken in paring the turn-in of the 
 cover that it is of the same thickness as 
 the leather joint, or it will be impos- 
 sible to make a neat mitre at the back 
 corners. 
 
 COVERING 
 
 Before covering, the book must be Covering 
 looked at to see that the bands are quite 
 square and at equal distances apart. Any 
 slight errors in this respect can be cor- 
 rected by holding the book in the lying 
 press between backing boards and gently 
 tapping the bands from one side or the 
 other with a piece of wook struck with 
 a hammer. This is best done when the 
 back is cleaned off, but by damping the 
 bands slightly it may be done just before 
 covering. The squares must be looked 
 to, and the edges of the board well rubbed 
 with a folder, or tapped with a hammer, 
 to remove any burr that may have been 
 caused by the plough knife, or any chance 
 
 159
 
 Covering blow. The back is then moistened with 
 paste, or, in the case of a very large book, 
 with thin glue, and left to soak. The 
 cover can then be well pasted with thick- 
 ish paste, that has been previously well 
 beaten up. When the cover is pasted, it 
 can be folded with the pasted sides to- 
 gether and left to soak for a few minutes 
 while the back is again looked to, and 
 any roughness smoothed down with the 
 
 FIG. 61. 
 
 folder. Before covering, the bands should 
 be nipped up with band nippers (see fig. 
 61) to make sure that they are sharp. 
 The coverer should have ready before 
 covering a clean paring stone, one or two 
 folders, a pair of nickeled-band nippers, 
 a clean sponge, a little water in a saucer, 
 a piece of thread, and a strip of smooth 
 wood (boxwood for preference), called a 
 band stick, used for smoothing the leather 
 between the bands, a pair of scissors, and 
 a small sharp knife, a pair of waterproof 
 sheets the size of the book, and, if the 
 1 60
 
 book is a large one, a pair of tying up Covering 
 boards, with tying up string, and two 
 strips of wood covered in blotting-paper 
 or leather. It is best to have the band 
 nippers for covering nickeled to prevent 
 the iron from staining the leather. The 
 waterproof sheets recommended are thin 
 sheets of celluloid, such as are used by 
 photographers. 
 
 When these things are ready, the pasted 
 cover should be examined and repasted if 
 it has dried in any place. The amount 
 of paste to be used for covering can only 
 be learned by experience. A thick leather 
 will take more than a thin one, but, 
 provided the cover sticks tight at every 
 point, the less paste used the better. If 
 there is too much, it will rub up and 
 make very ugly, uneven places under the 
 leather ; and if there is too little, the 
 cover will not stick. 
 
 Take the pasted cover and look to see 
 which is the better side of the leather. 
 Lay the front of the book down on this 
 exactly up to the marks that show the 
 beginning of the turn-in. Then draw 
 the leather over the back and on to the 
 other side, pulling it slightly, but not 
 dragging it. Then stand the book on 
 " 161
 
 Covering its fore-edge on a piece of waste paper, 
 with the leather turned out on either side, 
 as shown at fig. 62, and nip up the bands 
 
 FIG. 62. 
 
 with nickeled band nippers (see fig. 63). 
 After this is done there will probably be 
 a good deal of loose leather on the back. 
 This can be got rid of by dragging the 
 leather on to the side ; but by far the 
 better plan, when the back is large enough 
 to allow it, is to work up the surplus 
 leather on to the back between the panels. 
 This requires a good deal of practice, and 
 is very seldom done ; but it can be done 
 with most satisfactory results. The book 
 should now have the leather on the back 
 162
 
 stretched lengthways to make it cover Covering 
 the bands, but not stretched the other 
 way, and the leather on the boards should 
 lie perfectly flat and not be stretched at 
 
 FIG. 63. 
 
 all. The leather on the fore-edge of the 
 board is then rubbed with the hand on 
 the outside, and then on to the edge, 
 and then on the inside. The edge and 
 the inside are smoothed down with a 
 folder, and any excessive paste on the 
 
 163
 
 Covering inside squeezed out and removed. When 
 the fore-edge of both boards has been 
 turned in, the head and tail must also be 
 turned in. A little paste is put on to 
 that part of the leather that will turn in 
 below the headband, and this portion is 
 neatly tucked in between the boards and 
 the back. The turned-in edge must lie 
 quite evenly, or it will result in a ridge 
 on the back. The leather is turned in 
 
 C 
 
 FIG. 64. 
 
 on the two boards in the same way as 
 described for the fore-edge, and the edge 
 rubbed square with a folder. At fig. 64 
 is shown a convenient form of folder for 
 covering. At the corners the leather 
 must be pulled over as far as possible 
 with two folders meeting at the extreme 
 point, the object being to avoid a cut in 
 the leather at the corner of the board. 
 The folds so formed must be cut off 
 with the scissors (see fig. 65, A), then 
 one edge tucked neatly under the other, 
 (B). Care must be taken throughout not 
 to soil the edges of the leaves. 
 
 At the headband the fold of leather, 
 
 164
 
 pared thin for the purpose, must be Covering 
 squeezed together with a folder and 
 pulled out a little to leave an even 
 projection that can be turned over to 
 
 B 
 
 FIG. 65. 
 
 form a head-cap. When both ends have 
 been turned in, in this way, the boards 
 must each be opened and pressed against 
 a straight-edge held in the joint (fig. 66) 
 
 FIG. 66. 
 
 to ensure that there is enough leather 
 in the turn-in of the joint to allow the 
 cover to open freely ; and the leather of 
 the turn-in at the head and tail must 
 
 165
 
 Covering be carefully smoothed down with a 
 folder. 
 
 The book may now be shut up if a 
 waterproof sheet is put at each end to 
 prevent the damp of the cover from cock- 
 ling the paper. It must then be stood on 
 its fore-edge and the bands 
 again nipped up with a 
 pair of nickeled band 
 nippers, and the panels 
 between the bands well 
 pressed down with the 
 band stick to cause the 
 leather to stick at every 
 point. A piece of thread 
 is tied round the back 
 from head to tail, squeez r 
 ing the leather in the gap 
 caused by the corners of the board having 
 been cut off. The book is then turned 
 up on end, resting the tail on a folder 
 or anything that will keep the projecting 
 leather for the head-cap from being pre- 
 maturely flattened. The head-caps (fig. 
 67) must now be set. To do this the 
 first finger of the left hand is placed 
 behind it, and a sharp folder is pressed 
 into the corners of the head-cap between 
 the headband and the thread. The leather 
 166 
 
 FIG.
 
 is then tapped over the headband, and the Covering 
 whole turned over on the stone and rubbed 
 at the back with a folder. This opera- 
 tion requires great nicety. The shape of 
 head-cap is shown at fig. 67. The nice 
 adjustment of head-caps and corners, al- 
 though of no constructional value, are the 
 
 FIG. 68. 
 
 points by which the forwarding of a book 
 is generally valued. 
 
 If the book is a large one, it will be 
 best to tie it up. The method of tying 
 up is shown in fig. 68. The tying up 
 cords will make marks at the side of the 
 bands, that are not unpleasant on a large
 
 Covering book. If they are objected to, it is best 
 to tie the book up for about half-an-hour, 
 and then to untie it, and smooth out the 
 marks with the band stick. Even with 
 small books, if the leather seems inclined 
 to give trouble, it is well to tie them up 
 for a short time, then to untie them, 
 to smooth out any marks or inequalities, 
 and to tie them up again. 
 
 MITRING CORNERS AND FILLING IN 
 
 Mitring A book that has been covered should 
 Corners and be left under a light weight until the 
 
 c**ii* * ^ ^ 
 
 next day, with waterproof sheets be- 
 tween the damp cover and the end paper 
 to prevent the sheets of the book from 
 cockling through the damp. When the 
 cover is thoroughly set the boards should 
 be carefully opened, pressing them slightly 
 to the joint to ensure a square and even 
 joint. If, as is sometimes the case, the 
 turn-in of the leather over the joint 
 seems to be inclined to bind, the cover 
 should be merely opened half-way, and 
 the leather of the turns-in of the joint 
 damped with a sponge, and left to soak 
 for a short time, and then the cover can 
 168
 
 usually be opened without any dragging. Mitring 
 A section of a good joint is shown at Comers and 
 fig. 69, A, and a bad one at B. FUlin g in 
 
 The next operation will be to fill in 
 the board and mitre the corners. To fill 
 in the boards, a piece of paper as thick as 
 
 the turn-in of the leather (engineer's 
 cartridge paper answers very well) should 
 be cut a little smaller than the board, 
 with one edge cut straight ; then with the 
 straight edge adjusted to the back of the 
 board, and a weight placed on the centre, 
 the paper is marked round with divi- 
 ders set to the intended width of the 
 turn-in of the leather. Then with a 
 sharp knife, paper and leather may be cut 
 through together. The paper should 
 then be marked to show its position on 
 the board, and the ragged edges of the 
 leather trimmed off. This will leave an 
 even margin of leather on three sides of 
 the inside of the board, and a piece of 
 paper that will exactly fit the remaining 
 space. The corners must next be mitred. 
 
 169
 
 Mitring To do this, both thicknesses of leather 
 
 Corners and a re cut through from the corner of the 
 
 Filling m b oar cl to the corner of the inside margin. 
 
 The knife should be held slightly slanting 
 
 to make a cut, as shown at fig. 70. The 
 
 corners should then be thoroughly damped, 
 
 FIG. 70. 
 
 and the overlapping leather from both 
 sides removed, leaving what should be a 
 neat and straight join. If the leather at 
 the extreme corner should prove to be, as 
 is often the case, too thick to turn in 
 neatly, the corners should be opened out 
 and the leather pared against the thumb 
 nail, and then well pasted and turned back 
 again. The extreme corner may be 
 slightly tapped on the stone with a ham- 
 mer, and the sides rubbed with a folder, 
 to ensure squareness and sharpness. When 
 all four corners have been mitred, the filling 
 in papers can be pasted in. As they will 
 probably stretch a little with the paste, it 
 will be well to cut off a slight shaving, and 
 they should then fit exactly. When the 
 boards have been filled in and well rubbed 
 170
 
 down, the book should be left for some Mitring 
 hours with the boards standing open to Corners and 
 enable the filling-in papers to draw the Flllm 8 m 
 boards slightly inwards to overcome the 
 pull of the leather. 
 
 In cases where there are leather joints 
 the operation is as follows : The waste 
 end paper is removed, and the edge of the 
 board and joint carefully cleaned from 
 glue and all irregularities, and if, as is 
 most likely, it is curved from the pull of 
 the leather, the board must be tapped or 
 ironed down until it is perfectly straight. 
 If there is difficulty in making the board 
 lie straight along the joint before pasting 
 down, it will be well first to fill in with 
 a well pasted and stretched thin paper, 
 which, if the boards are left open, will 
 draw them inwards. If the leather joint 
 is pasted down while the board is curved, 
 the result will be a most unsightly pro- 
 jection on the outside. When the joint 
 has been cleaned out, and the board made 
 to lie flat, the leather should be pasted 
 down and mitred. The whole depth of 
 the turn-in of the covering leather in the 
 joint must not be removed, or it will be 
 unduly weakened. The mitring line 
 should not come from the extreme corner, 
 
 171
 
 Mitring but rather farther down, and there it is 
 
 Corners and W ell to leave a certain amount of overlap 
 
 Filling m j n t | le j omtj f or w hich purpose the edge 
 
 of the turn-in leather and the edge of the 
 
 leather joint should be pared thin. After 
 
 n 
 
 o 
 
 FIG. 7 i . 
 
 pasting down the leather joints the boards 
 should be left open till they are dry (see 
 fig. 71). The turn-in and leather joint are 
 then trimmed out, leaving an even margin 
 of leather all round the inside of the 
 172
 
 board, and the panel in the centre filled in Mitring 
 with a piece of thick paper. Corners and 
 
 When corners and filling in are dry, the Filling m 
 boards may be shut up, and the book is 
 ready for finishing. 
 
 It is a common practice to wash up the 
 covers of books that have become stained 
 with a solution of oxalic acid in water. 
 This is a dangerous thing to do, and is 
 likely to seriously injure the leather. 
 Leather, when damp, must not be brought 
 in contact with iron or steel tools, or it 
 may be badly stained. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 Library Binding Binding very Thin Books Scrap- 
 Books Binding on Vellum Books covered with 
 Embroidery 
 
 LIBRARY BINDING 
 Specifications III and IV 
 
 To produce cheaper bindings, as must be Library 
 done in the case of large libraries, some Bmdm g 
 alteration of design is necessary. Appear- 
 ance must to some extent be sacrificed to 
 strength and durability, and not, as is too 
 
 173
 
 Library often the case, strength and durability 
 Binding sacrificed to appearance. The essentials 
 of any good binding are, that the sections 
 should be sound in themselves, and that 
 there should be no plates or odd sheets 
 " pasted on," or anything that would pre- 
 vent any leaf from opening right to the 
 back ; the sewing must be thoroughly 
 sound ; the sewing materials of good 
 quality ; the slips firmly attached to the 
 boards ; and the leather fairly thick and of 
 a durable kind, although for the sake of 
 cheapness it may be necessary to use skins 
 with flaws on the surface. Such flawed 
 skins cost half, or less than half, the price 
 of perfect skins, and surface flaws do not 
 injure the strength of the leather. By 
 sewing on tape, great flexibility of the 
 back is obtained, and much time, and con- 
 sequent expense, in covering is saved. By 
 using a French joint much thicker leather 
 than usual can be used, with* correspond- 
 ing gain in strength. 
 
 To bind an octavo or smaller book ac- 
 cording to the specification given (III, page 
 307) ; first make all sections sound, and 
 guard all plates or maps. Make end papers 
 with zigzags. After the sections have been 
 thoroughly pressed, the book will be ready 
 
 174
 
 for marking up and sewing. In marking Library 
 up for sewing on tapes, two marks will be Binding 
 necessary for each tape. When there are 
 several books of the same size to be sewn, 
 they may be placed one above the other 
 in the sewing press, and sewn on to the 
 same tapes. It will be found that the 
 volumes when sewn can easily be slid along 
 the tapes, which must be long enough to 
 provide sufficient for the slips of each. 
 The split boards may be " made " of a 
 thin black mill-board with a thicker straw- 
 board. To " make " a pair of split boards 
 the pieces of straw- and mill-board large 
 enough to make the two are got out, and 
 the straw-board well glued, except in the 
 centre, which should previously be covered 
 with a strip of thin mill-board or tin about 
 four inches wide. The strip is then re- 
 moved, and the thin black board laid on 
 the glued straw-board and nipped in the 
 press. When dry, the made board is cut 
 down the centre, which will leave two 
 boards glued together all over except for 
 two inches on one side of each. The 
 boards then are squared to the book in a 
 mill-board machine. The back of the 
 book is glued up, and in the ordinary way 
 rounded and backed. The edges may be 
 
 I7S
 
 Library cut with a guillotine. The ends of the 
 Binding tapes are glued on the waste end paper, 
 which should be cut off about an inch and 
 a half from the back. The split boards 
 are then opened and glued, and the waste 
 end papers with slips attached are placed 
 in them (see fig. 72), and the book nipped 
 
 FIG. 72. 
 
 in the press. To form a " French joint" 
 the boards should be kept about an eighth 
 of an inch from the back of the book. 
 The book is then ready for covering. 
 The leather must not be pared too thin, as 
 the French joint will give plenty of play 
 and allow the use of much thicker leather 
 than usual. If time and money can be 
 spared, headbands can be worked, but 
 they are not absolutely necessary, and a 
 piece of string may be inserted into the 
 turning of the leather at head and tail in 
 the place of them. When the book is 
 176
 
 covered, a piece of string should be tied Library 
 round the joints, and the whole given a Binding 
 nip in the press. The corners of the 
 boards should be protected by small tips 
 of vellum or parchment. The sides may 
 be covered with good paper, which will 
 wear quite as well as cloth, look better, 
 and cost less. 
 
 The lettering of library books is very 
 important (see Chapter XV). 
 
 BINDING VERY THIN BOOKS 
 
 Books consisting of only one section Binding very 
 may be bound as follows: A sheet of Thin Books 
 paper to match the book, and two coloured 
 sheets for end papers, are folded round 
 the section, and a " waste " paper put 
 over all. A strip of linen is pasted to 
 the back of the waste, and the whole sewn 
 together by stitching through the fold. 
 The waste may be cut off and inserted 
 with the linen in a split board, as for 
 library bindings. The back edges of the 
 board should be filed thin, and should not 
 be placed quite up to the back, to allow 
 for a little play in the joints. 
 
 The leather is put on in the ordinary 
 12 177
 
 Binding very way, except that the linen at the head and 
 Thin Books tail must be slit a little to allow for the 
 turn in. If waterproof sheets are first 
 inserted, the ends may be pasted, the 
 boards shut, and the book nipped in the 
 press. By substituting a piece of thin 
 leather for the outside coloured paper, a 
 leather joint can be made. 
 
 SCRAP-BOOKS 
 
 Scrap-Books Scrap-books, into which autograph let- 
 ters, sketches, or other papers can be 
 pasted, may be made as follows : Enough 
 paper of good quality is folded up to the 
 size desired, and pieces of the same paper, 
 of the same height, and about two inches 
 wide, are folded down the centre and 
 inserted between the backs of the larger 
 sheets, as shown at fig. 73. It is best not 
 to insert these smaller pieces in the centre 
 of the section, as they would be trouble- 
 some in sewing. If, after sewing, the 
 book is filled up with waste paper laid 
 between the leaves, it will make it man- 
 ageable while being forwarded. 
 
 It is best to use a rather darkly-toned 
 or coloured paper, as, if a quite white 
 paper is used, any letters or papers that 
 178
 
 have become soiled, will look unduly Scrap-Books 
 dirty. 
 
 Autograph letters may be mounted in 
 the following ways : If the letter is 
 
 FIG. 
 
 written upon both sides of a single leaf, 
 it may be either " inlaid," or guarded, as 
 shown at fig. 74, A. A letter on a folded 
 sheet of notepaper should have the folds 
 strengthened with a guard of strong thin 
 paper, and be attached by a guard made, 
 as shown at fig. 74, B ; or if on very heavy 
 paper, by a double guard, as shown at 
 
 FIG. 74. 
 
 fig. 74, C. Torn edges of letters may be 
 strengthened with thin Japanese paper. 
 
 Thin paper, written or printed only on 
 one side, may be mounted on a page of 
 the book. It is better to attach these by 
 
 179
 
 Scrap-Books their extreme edges only, as if pasted 
 down all over they may cause the leaves 
 to curl up. 
 
 Letters or any writing or drawing in 
 lead pencil should be fixed with size before 
 being inserted. 
 
 Silver prints of photographs are best 
 mounted with some very quick-drying 
 paste, such as that sold for the purpose 
 by the photographic dealers. If the leaf 
 on which they are mounted is slightly 
 damped before the photograph is pasted 
 down, it will be less likely to cockle. If 
 this is done, waterproof sheets should be 
 put on each side of the leaf while it dries. 
 If photographs are attached by the edges 
 only, they will not be so liable to draw 
 the paper on which they are mounted ; 
 but sometimes they will not lie flat them- 
 selves. 
 
 In cases where very thick letters or 
 papers have to be pasted in, a few more 
 leaves of the book should be cut out, to 
 make a corresponding thickness at the 
 back. 
 
 VELLUM BINDINGS 
 
 Vellum Vellum covers may be limp without 
 Bindings boards, and merely held in place by the 
 1 80
 
 slips being laced through them, or they Vellum 
 may be pasted down on boards in much Bindings 
 the same way as leather. 
 
 If the edges of a book for limp vellum 
 binding are to be trimmed or gilt, that 
 should be done before sewing. For the 
 ends a folded piece of thin vellum may 
 replace the paste-down paper. The sewing 
 should be on strips of vellum. The back 
 is left square after glueing, and headbands 
 are worked as for leather binding, or may 
 be worked on strips of leather, with ends 
 left long enough to lace into the vellum 
 (see p. 151). The back and headbands 
 are lined with leather, and the book is 
 ready for the cover. 
 
 A piece of vellum should be cut out 
 large enough to cover the book, and to 
 leave a margin of an inch and a half all 
 round. This is marked with a folder on 
 the under side, as shown at fig. 75, A. 
 Spaces i and 1 are the size of the sides of 
 the book with surrounding squares ; space 
 3 is the width of the back, and space 4 
 the width for the overlaps on the fore-edge. 
 The corners are cut, as shown at 5, and 
 the edges, are folded over, as at B. The 
 overlap 4 is then turned over, and the 
 back folded, as at C. The slips are now 
 
 181
 
 Vellum laced through slits made in the vellum. 
 
 Bindings 
 
 A 
 
 B 
 
 FIG. 75. 
 
 A piece of loose, toned paper may be put 
 182
 
 inside the cover to prevent any marks on 
 the book from showing through ; and 
 pieces of silk ribbon of good quality are 
 laced in as shown, going through both 
 cover and vellum ends, if there are any, 
 and are left with ends long enough to tie 
 (see fig. 76). 
 
 Vellum 
 Bindings 
 
 FIG. 76. 
 
 If paper ends are used, the silk tape need 
 only be laced through the cover, and the 
 end paper pasted over it on the inside. 
 
 Another simple way of keeping a vellum 
 book shut is shown at fig. 77. A bead is 
 attached to a piece of gut laced into the 
 vellum, and a loop of catgut is laced in 
 the other side, and looped over the bead 
 as shown. 
 
 If the book is to have stiff boards, and 
 
 183
 
 Vellum the vellum is to be pasted to them, it is 
 Bindings best to sew the sections on tapes or vellum 
 slips, to back the book as for leather, and 
 to insert the ends of the slips in a split 
 board, leaving a French joint, as 
 described for library bindings. 
 Vellum is very stiff, and, if it is 
 pasted directly to the back, the 
 book would be hard to open. 
 ''' It is best in this case to use what 
 is known as a hollow back. 
 
 To make a hollow back, a piece of stout 
 paper is taken which measures once the 
 length of the back and three times the 
 width. This is folded in three. The 
 centre portion is glued to the back and 
 well rubbed down, and the overlapping 
 edges turned back and glued one to the 
 other (fig. 78). This will leave a flat, hollow 
 casing, formed by the single paper glued to 
 the back of the book and the double paper 
 to which the vellum may be attached. Or 
 it is better to line up the back with leather, 
 and to place a piece of thick paper the size 
 of the back on to the pasted vellum where 
 the back will be when the book is covered. 
 When the book is ready for covering, 
 the vellum should be cut out and lined 
 with paper. In lining vellum the paste 
 184
 
 must be free from lumps, and great care 
 must be taken not to leave brush marks. 
 To avoid this, when the lining paper has 
 been pasted it can be laid, paste down- 
 wards, on a piece of waste paper and quickly 
 pulled up again ; this 
 should remove surplus 
 paste and get rid of 
 any marks left by the 
 brush. When the vellum 
 has been lined with paper, 
 it should be given a light 
 nip in the press between 
 blotting-paper, and while 
 still damp it is pasted, the 
 book covered, and the 
 corners mitred. A piece 
 of thin string is tied 
 round the head-caps and 
 pressed into the French 
 joint. 
 
 Waterproof sheets are placed inside the 
 covers, and the book then nipped in the 
 press and left to dry under a light weight. 
 If the vellum is very stiff and difficult to 
 turn in, it may be moistened with a little 
 warm water to soften it. 
 
 Books with raised bands have sometimes 
 been covered with vellum, but the back 
 
 185 
 
 Vellum 
 Bindings 
 
 FIG.
 
 Vellum becomes so stiff and hard, that this method, 
 Bindings though it looks well enough, cannot be 
 recommended. Vellum is a durable 
 material, and can be had of good quality, 
 but it is so easily influenced by changes of 
 temperature, that it is rather an unsuit- 
 able material for most bindings. 
 
 BOOKS COVERED WITH EMBROIDERY 
 AND WOVEN MATERIAL 
 
 Books To cover a book with embroidered 
 
 Covered material bind it with split boards, a 
 . French joint, and a hollow back, as de- 
 an Woven scriDe d for vellum (see fig. 78). Glue the 
 Material back of the book with thin glue well 
 worked up, and turning in the head and 
 tail of the embroidery, put the book down 
 on it so that the back will come exactly in 
 the right place. Press down the em- 
 broidery with the hand to make sure that 
 it sticks. When it is firmly attached to 
 the back, first one board and then the other 
 should be glued, and the embroidery laid 
 down on it. Lastly, the edges are glued 
 and stuck down on the inside of the board, 
 and the corners mitred. Velvet or any 
 other thick material can be put down in 
 the same way. For very thin material 
 186
 
 that the glue would penetrate and soil, Books 
 the cover should be left loose, and only Covered 
 attached where it turns in. A loose lining J^J* 
 of good paper may be put between the ai ^j Woven 
 book and the cover. Material 
 
 The inside corners where the cover has 
 been cut should be neatly sewn up. The 
 edges of the boards and head-caps may be 
 protected all round with some edging 
 worked in metal thread. It is well in 
 embroidering book covers to arrange for 
 some portion of the pattern to be of raised 
 metal stitches, forming bosses that will 
 protect the surface from wear. 
 
 Should any glue chance to get on the 
 surface, the cover should be held in the 
 steam of a kettle and the glue wiped off, 
 and the cover again steamed. 
 
 187
 
 CHAPTER XIV 
 
 Decoration Tools Finishing Tooling on 
 Vellum Inlaying on Leather 
 
 DECORATION OF BINDING TOOLS 
 
 Decoration THE most usual, and perhaps the most 
 
 of Binding characteristic, way of decorating book 
 
 -Tools covers i s by tooling." Tooling is the 
 
 impression of heated (finishing) tools. 
 
 Finishing tools are stamps of metal that 
 
 J 
 
 FIG. 79. 
 
 have a device cut on the face, and are 
 held in wooden handles (fig. 79). 
 
 Tooling may either be blind tooling, 
 that is, a simple impression of the hot tools, 
 or gold tooling, in which the impression 
 of the tool is left in gold on the leather. 
 
 Tools for blind tooling are best "die- 
 sunk," that is, cut like a seal. The 
 " sunk " part of the face of the tool, 
 which may be more or less modelled, 
 forms the pattern, and the higher part 
 
 188
 
 Tools 
 
 depresses the leather to form a ground. Decoration 
 In tools for gold tooling- the surface of of Binding 
 
 T_ _! 
 
 the tool gives the pattern. 
 
 Tools may be either complex or simple 
 in design, that is to say, each tool may 
 form a complete 
 design with en- 
 closing border, as 
 the lower ones on 
 
 page 323, or it may 
 be only one element 
 of a design, as at 
 fig. 100. Lines may 
 be run with a fillet 
 (see fig. 88), or 
 made with gouges 
 or pallets. 
 
 Gouges are 
 curved line tools. 
 They are made in 
 sets of arcs of con- 
 
 B 
 
 FIG. 80. 
 
 centric circles (see fig. 80, A). The portion 
 of the curves cut off by the dotted line C 
 will make a second set with flatter curves. 
 Gouges are used for tooling curved lines. 
 A " pallet " may be described as a seg- 
 ment of a roll or fillet set in a handle, and 
 used chiefly for putting lines or other orna- 
 ments across the backs of books (see fig. 
 
 189
 
 Tools 
 
 Decoration 81). A set of one-line pallets is shown at 
 of Binding fig. 80, B. 
 
 Fillets are cut with two or more lines 
 on the edge. Although the use of double- 
 line fillets saves time, I have found that a 
 few single-line fillets with edges of different 
 gauges are sufficient for running all straight 
 lines, and that the advantage 
 of being able to alter the dis- 
 tances between any parallel 
 lines is ample compensation 
 for the extra trouble involved 
 by their use. In addition to 
 the rigid stamps, an endless 
 pattern for either blind or 
 gold tooling may be engraved 
 on the circumference of a roll, 
 and impressed on the leather 
 by wheeling. 
 
 The use of a roll in finishing dates from 
 the end of the fifteenth century, and some 
 satisfactory bindings were decorated with 
 its aid. The ease with which it can be 
 used has led in modern times to its abuse, 
 and I hardly know of a single instance of 
 a modern binding on which rolls have been 
 used for the decoration with satisfactory 
 results. The gain in time and trouble is 
 at the expense of freedom and life in the 
 190 
 
 FIG. 81.
 
 design ; and for extra binding it is better Decoration 
 to build up a pattern out of small tools of of Binding 
 simple design, which can be arranged in Tools 
 endless variety, than to use rolls. 
 
 Tools for hand-tooling must not be too 
 large, or it will be impossible to obtain 
 clear impressions. One inch square for 
 blind tools, or three-quarters of an inch 
 for gold tools, is about the maximum size 
 for use with any certainty and comfort. 
 Tools much larger than this have to be 
 worked with the aid of a press, and are 
 called blocks. 
 
 FINISHING 
 
 The first thing the finisher does to a Finishing 
 book is to go over the back with a 
 polisher and smooth out any irregularities. 
 
 Two forms of polisher are shown at 
 fig. 82. The lower one is suitable for 
 polishing backs and inside margins, and 
 the upper for sides. Polishers must be 
 used warm, but not too hot, or the 
 leather may be scorched, and they must 
 be kept moving on the leather. Before 
 using they should be rubbed bright on 
 a piece of the finest emery paper, and 
 polished on a piece of leather. New 
 
 191
 
 Finishing polishers often have sharp edges that 
 would mark the leather. These must 
 be rubbed down with files and emery- 
 paper. 
 
 Leathers with a prominent grained sur- 
 face, such as morocco, seal or pig skin, 
 may either have the grain rough or 
 crushed flat. If there is to be much 
 finishing, the grain had better be crushed, 
 but for large books that are to have only 
 
 FIG. 82. 
 
 a small amount of finishing, the grain is 
 best left unflattened. 
 
 If the grain of the leather is to be 
 " crushed," it may be done at this stage. 
 To do this, one board at a time is damped 
 with a sponge and put in the standing- 
 press, with a pressing plate on the grained 
 side, and a pad of blotting-paper, or some 
 such yielding substance, on the other 
 (see fig. 83). The press is then screwed 
 up tight, and the board left for a short 
 
 192
 
 time. For some leathers this operation is 
 best done after the binding has been 
 finished and varnished, in which case, of 
 course, the boards cannot be damped 
 before pressing. No flexibly sewn book 
 should be subject to great pressure after 
 it has been covered, or 
 the leather on the back 
 may crinkle up and 
 become detached. 
 
 The next thing will 
 be to decide what 
 lettering and what 
 decoration, if any, is 
 to be put on the vol- 
 ume. The lettering 
 should be made out first (see page 215). 
 If the book is to be at all elaborately de- 
 corated, paper patterns must be made out, 
 as described in Chapter XVI. 
 
 For tooling the back, the book is held 
 in the finishing press between a pair of 
 backing boards lined with leather (see 
 fig. 84), and the paper pattern put across 
 the back, with the ends either slightly 
 pasted to the backing boards, or caught 
 between them and the book. 
 
 For the sides, the pattern is very slightly 
 pasted on to the leather at the four 
 13 193 
 
 Finishing
 
 Finishing corners. The book is then put in the 
 finishing press, with the board to be tooled 
 open and flat on the cheek of the press, 
 unless the book is a large one, when it is 
 easier to tool the sides out of the press. 
 
 The selected tools, which should be 
 ready on the stove (see fig. 85), are one 
 at a time cooled on a wet pad, and then 
 pressed in their former impressions upon 
 the paper. The degree of heat required 
 
 FIG. 84. 
 
 varies a good deal with the leather used, 
 and will only be learned by experience. 
 It is better to have the tool too cool than 
 too hot, as it is easy to deepen impressions 
 after the paper is removed ; but if they are 
 already too deep, or are burnt, it will be 
 impossible to finish clearly. Generally 
 speaking, tools should hiss very slightly 
 when put on the cooling pad. In cooling, 
 194
 
 Finishing 
 
 FIG. 85. Finishing Stove 
 
 care must be taken to put the shank of 
 the tools on to the wet pad, as, if the end
 
 Finishing only is cooled, the heat is apt to run 
 down again, and the tool will still be too 
 hot. 
 
 Before removing the paper, one corner 
 at a time should be lifted up, and the 
 leather examined to see that no part of 
 the pattern has been missed. 
 
 In some patterns where the design is 
 close, or in which the background is 
 dotted in, it will not be necessary to blind 
 in every leaf and dot through the paper. 
 If the lines with perhaps the terminal 
 leaves are blinded in, the rest can be better 
 worked directly through the gold. This 
 method implies the " glairing in " of the 
 whole surface. It is not suitable for open 
 patterns, where the glaire might show on 
 the surface of the leather. 
 
 If the book is only to have lines, or 
 some simple straight line pattern, it is 
 often easier to mark it up without the 
 paper, with a straight-edge and folder. In 
 panelling a back, the side lines of all the 
 panels should be marked in at the same 
 time with a folder, working against the 
 straight-edge, held firmly at the side of 
 the back. If the panels are worked sepa- 
 rately, it is difficult to get the side lines 
 squarely above each other. The lines at 
 
 196
 
 the top and bottom of the panel may be Finishing 
 marked in with a folder, guided by a 
 piece of stiff vellum held squarely across 
 the back. If there are lines to be run 
 round the board, they can be marked in 
 with a pair of dividers guided by the edge 
 of the board, except those at the back. 
 These must be measured from the fore- 
 edge of the board and run in with straight- 
 edge and folder. 
 
 When straight lines occur in patterns 
 that are blinded through the paper, it will 
 be enough if the ends only are marked 
 through with a small piece of straight line, 
 and the lines completed with straight-edge 
 and folder, after the paper has been re- 
 moved. 
 
 Unless the finisher has had considerable 
 experience, it is best to deepen all folder 
 .lines by going over them in blind with a 
 fillet or piece of straight line. 
 
 When the pattern has been worked in 
 blind, either through a paper pattern or 
 directly on to the leather with the tools, 
 and any inlays stuck on (see page 213), the 
 cover should be well washed with clean 
 water. Some finishers prefer to use 
 common vinegar or diluted acetic acid for 
 washing up books. If vinegar is used it 
 
 197
 
 Finishing must be of the best quality, and must not 
 contain any sulphuric acid. Cheap, crude 
 vinegar is certain to be injurious to the 
 leather. Porous leather, such as calf or 
 sheep skin, will need to be washed over 
 with paste-water, and then sized. 
 
 Paste-water is paste and water well 
 beaten up to form a milky liquid, and is 
 applied to the leather as evenly as possible 
 with a sponge. When the paste-water is 
 dry, the leather should be washed with size. 
 Size can be made by boiling down vellum 
 cuttings, or by dissolving gelatine or isin- 
 glas in warm water. 
 
 For the less porous leathers, such as 
 morocco, seal, or pig skin, no paste-water 
 or size is necessary, unless the skin happens 
 to be a specially open one, or the cover 
 has been cut from the flank or belly. 
 Then it is best to put a little paste in the 
 vinegar or water used for washing up. 
 When the leather is nearly, but not quite, 
 dry the impressions of the tools must be 
 painted with glaire. Finishers' glaire may 
 be made from the white of eggs well beaten 
 up, diluted with about half as much vinegar, 
 and allowed tt> settle. Some finishers 
 prefer to use old, evil-smelling glaire, but 
 provided it is a day old, and has been well 
 
 198
 
 beaten up, fresh glaire will work quite Finishing 
 well. 
 
 The impressions of any heavy or solid 
 tools should be given a second coat of 
 glaire when the first has ceased to be 
 " tacky," and if the leather is at all 
 porous, all impressions had better have a 
 second coat. 
 
 As glaire is apt to show and disfigure 
 the leather when dry, it is best to use it as 
 sparingly as possible, and, excepting where 
 the pattern is very close, to confine it to 
 the impressions of the tools. It is not at 
 all an uncommon thing to see the effect 
 of an otherwise admirably tooled binding 
 spoilt by a dark margin round the tools, 
 caused by the careless use of glaire. Glaire 
 should not be used unless it is quite liquid 
 and clean. Directly it begins to get thick 
 it should be strained or thrown away. 
 
 The finisher should not glaire in more 
 than he can tool the same day. When the 
 glaire has ceased to be " tacky," the gold 
 is laid on. 
 
 At first it will be found difficult to 
 manage gold leaf. The essential condi- 
 tions are, that there should be no draught, 
 and that the cushion and knife should be 
 quite free from grease. The gold cushion 
 
 199
 
 Finishing and knife are shown at fig. 86. A little 
 powdered bath - brick rubbed into the 
 cushion will make it easier to cut the 
 gold cleanly. The blade of the gold knife 
 should never be touched with the hand, 
 and before using it, both sides should be 
 rubbed on the cushion. A book of gold 
 is laid open on the cushion, and a leaf of 
 gold is lifted up on the gold knife, which 
 is slipped under it, and turned over on to 
 the cushion. A light breath exactly in 
 
 FIG. 86. 
 
 the centre of the sheet should make it lie 
 flat, when it may be cut into pieces of any 
 size with a slightly sawing motion of the 
 knife. The book with the pattern ready 
 prepared, and the glaire sufficiently dry 
 (not sticky), is rubbed lightly with a small 
 piece of cotton-wool greased with a little 
 cocoanut oil. The back of the hand is 
 greased in the same way, and a pad of 
 clean cotton-wool is held in the right hand, 
 and having been made as flat as possible by 
 200
 
 being pressed on the table, is drawn over Finishing 
 the back of the hand. This should make 
 it just greasy enough to pick up the gold, 
 but not too greasy to part with it readily 
 when pressed on the book. As little grease 
 as possible should be used on the book, as 
 an excess is apt to stain the leather and to 
 make the gold dull. After experiment it 
 has been found that cocoanut oil stains the 
 leather less than any other grease in com- 
 
 FIG. 87. 
 
 mon use by bookbinders, and is more 
 readily washed out by benzine. 
 
 If the gold cracks, or is not solid when 
 pressed on the book, a second thickness 
 should be used. This will stay down if 
 the under piece is lightly breathed upon. 
 
 For narrow strips of gold for lines, a 
 little pad covered with soft leather may 
 be made, as in fig. 87. 
 
 It will be found of advantage to first 
 use the bottom leaf of gold in the book 
 
 20 1
 
 Finishing anc j then to begin at the top and work 
 through, or else the bottom leaf will 
 almost certainly be found to be damaged 
 by the time it is reached. The gold used 
 should be as nearly pure as it can be got. 
 The gold-beaters say that they are unable 
 to beat pure gold as thin as is usual for 
 gold leaf; but the quite pure gold is a 
 better colour than when alloyed, and the 
 additional thickness, although costly, re- 
 sults in a more solid impression of the 
 tools. 
 
 The cost of a book of twenty-four leaves 
 three and a half inches square of English gold 
 leaf of good ordinary quality is from is. 3d. 
 to is. 6d., whereas the cost of a book of 
 double thick pure gold leaf is 35. to 35. 6d. 
 For tooled work it is worth paying the in- 
 creased price for the sake of the advantages 
 in colour and solidity ; but for lines and 
 edges, which use up an immense amount 
 of gold, the thinner and cheaper gold may 
 quite well be used. 
 
 Besides pure gold leaf, gold alloyed with 
 various metals to change its colour can be 
 had. None of the alloys keep their colour 
 as well as pure gold, and some of them, 
 such as those alloyed with copper for red 
 gold, and with silver for pale gold, tarnish 
 
 202
 
 very quickly. These last are not to be Finishing 
 recommended. 
 
 For silver tooling aluminium leaf may 
 be used, as silver leaf tarnishes very quickly. 
 
 When the gold is pressed into the im- 
 pressions of the tools with the pad of 
 cotton-wool, they should be plainly visible 
 through it. 
 
 The pattern must now be worked 
 through the gold with the hot tools. 
 The tools are taken from the stove, and 
 if too hot cooled on a pad as for blinding- 
 in. The heat required to leave the gold 
 tooling solid and bright and the impres- 
 sions clear will vary for different leathers, 
 and even for different skins of the same 
 leather. For trial a tool may be laid on 
 the pad until it ceases to hiss, and one or 
 two impressions worked with it. If the 
 gold fails to stick, the heat may be slightly 
 increased. 
 
 If the leather is slightly damp from the 
 preparation the tools will usually work 
 better, and less heat is required than if it 
 has been prepared for some time and has 
 got dry. 
 
 Before using, the faces of all tools must 
 be rubbed bright on the flesh side of a 
 piece of leather. It is impossible to tool 
 
 203
 
 Finishing brightly with dirty tools. A tool should 
 be held in the right hand, with the thumb 
 ' on the top of the handle, and steadied with 
 the thumb or first finger of the left hand. 
 The shoulder should be brought well 
 over the tool, and the upper part of the 
 body used as a press. If the weight of 
 the body is used in finishing, the tools 
 can be worked with far greater firmness 
 and certainty, and with less fatigue, than if 
 the whole work is done with the muscles 
 of the arms. 
 
 Large and solid tools will require all 
 the weight that can be put on them, and 
 even then the gold will often fail to stick 
 with one impression. Tools with small 
 surfaces, such as gouges and dots, must 
 not be worked too heavily, or the surface 
 of the leather may be cut. 
 
 To strike a large or solid tool, it should 
 first be put down flat, and then slightly 
 rocked from side to side and from top to 
 bottom, but must not be twisted on the 
 gold. 
 
 A tool may be struck from whichever 
 side the best " sight " can be got, and press 
 and book turned round to the most con- 
 venient position. 
 
 It is difficult to impress some tools, 
 
 204
 
 such as circular flower tools, twice in Finishing 
 exactly the same place. Such tools should 
 have a mark on one side as a guide. This 
 should always be kept in the same position 
 when blinding-in and tooling, and so make 
 it possible to impress a second time with- 
 out " doubling." An impression is said 
 to be " doubled " when the tool has been 
 twisted in striking, or one impression does 
 not fall exactly over the other. 
 
 The hot tool should not be held hover- 
 ing over the impression long, or the pre- 
 paration will be dried up before the tool 
 is struck. Tooling will generally be 
 brighter if the tools are struck fairly 
 sharply, and at once removed from the 
 leather, than if they are kept down a long 
 time. 
 
 To " strike " dots, the book should be 
 turned with the head to the worker, and 
 the tool held with the handle inclining 
 slightly towards him. This will make 
 them appear bright when the book is held 
 the right way up. 
 
 Gouges must be " sighted " from the 
 inside of the curve, and struck evenly, 
 or the points may cut into the leather. 
 Short straight lines may be put in with 
 pieces of line, and longer ones with a fillet. 
 
 205
 
 Finishing A one line fillet is shown at fig. 88 ; 
 the space filed out of the circumference 
 is to enable lines to be joined neatly at the 
 corners. That the lines may be clearly 
 visible through the gold, the book should 
 be placed so that the light comes from the 
 left hand of the worker and across the 
 line. It is well to have a basin of water 
 in which to cool fillets, as there is so 
 
 FIG. 88. 
 
 much metal in them, that the damp sponge 
 or cotton used for cooling tools would 
 very rapidly be dried up. When the fillet 
 has been cooled, the edge should be rubbed 
 on the cleaning pad, and the point exactly 
 adjusted to the corner of the line to be 
 run (see fig. 88). The fillet is then run 
 along the line with even pressure. 
 
 For slightly curved lines, a very small 
 fillet may be used. 
 
 206
 
 When all the prepared part of a pattern Finishing 
 has been tooled, it is well rubbed to re- 
 move the loose gold with a slightly greasy 
 rag, or with a piece of bottle indiarubber 
 which has been softened in paraffin. After 
 a time the rubber or rag may be sold to 
 the gold-beater, who recovers the gold. 
 To prepare indiarubber for cleaning off 
 gold, a piece of bottle rubber is cut into 
 small pieces and soaked in paraffin for some 
 hours. This should cause the pieces to 
 reunite into a soft lump. This can be used 
 until it is yellow with gold throughout. 
 
 When all free gold is rubbed off, 
 the finisher can see where the tooling is 
 imperfect. Impressions which are not 
 " solid " must be reglaired, have fresh gold 
 laid on, and be retooled. But if, as will 
 sometimes happen with the best finishers, 
 the gold has failed to stick properly any- 
 where, it is best to wash the whole with 
 water or vinegar, and prepare afresh. 
 
 As an excess of grease is apt to dull 
 the gold and soil the leather, it is better 
 to use it very sparingly when laying on 
 fresh gold for mending. For patching, 
 benzine may be used instead of grease. 
 When the gold is picked up on the 
 cotton-wool pad, rapidly go over the 
 
 207
 
 Finishing leather with wool soaked in benzine, and 
 at once lay down the gold. Benzine will 
 not hold the gold long enough for much 
 tooling, but it will answer for about half- 
 an-hour, and give plenty of time for 
 patching. 
 
 Imperfect tooling arises from a variety 
 of causes. If an impression is clear, but 
 the gold not solid, it is probably because 
 the tool was not hot enough, or was not put 
 down firmly. If only one side of an impres- 
 sion fails to stick, it is usually because the 
 tool was unevenly impressed. If an im- 
 pression is blurred, and the gold has a 
 frosted look, it is because the leather has 
 been burned, either because the tool was 
 too hot, or kept down too long, or the 
 preparation was too fresh. 
 
 To mend double or burnt impressions 
 the leather should be wetted and left to 
 soak a short time, and the gold can be 
 picked out with a wooden point. When 
 nearly dry the impressions should be put 
 in again with a cool tool, reglaired and 
 retooled. 
 
 It is very difficult to mend neatly if the 
 leather is badly burnt. Sometimes it may 
 be advisable to paste a piece of new leather 
 over a burnt impression before retooling. 
 
 208
 
 If a tool is put down in the wrong Finishing 
 place by mistake, it is difficult to get the 
 impression out entirely. The best thing 
 to do is to damp the leather thoroughly, 
 leave it to soak for a little while, and 
 pick up the impression with the point of a 
 pin. It is best not to use an iron point for 
 this, as iron is apt to blacken the leather. 
 
 Leather is difficult to tool if it has not 
 a firm surface, or if it is too thin to give 
 a little when the tool is struck. 
 
 When the tooling is finished, and the 
 loose gold removed with the rubber, the 
 leather should bewashed with benzine, to re- 
 move any grease and any fragments of gold 
 that may be adhering by the grease only. 
 
 The inside margins of the boards are 
 next polished and varnished, and the end 
 papers pasted down. Or if there is a 
 leather joint, the panel left on the board 
 may be filled in (see Chapter XVII). 
 
 When the end papers are dry, the sides 
 and back may be polished and varnished. 
 
 It is important that the varnish should 
 be of good quality, and not too thick, or 
 it will in time turn brown and cause the 
 gold to look dirty. Some of the light 
 French spirit varnishes prepared for book- 
 binders answer well. Varnish must be 
 14 209
 
 Finishing used sparingly, and is best applied with a 
 pad of cotton-wool. A little varnish is 
 poured on to the pad, which is rubbed on 
 a piece of paper until it is seen that the 
 varnish comes out thinly and evenly. It 
 is then rubbed on the book with a spiral 
 motion. The quicker the surface is gone 
 over, provided every part is covered, the 
 better. Varnish will not work well if it 
 is very cold, and in cold weather both the 
 book and varnish bottle should be slightly 
 warmed before use. Should an excess of 
 varnish be put on in error, or should it be 
 necessary to retool part of the book after 
 it has been varnished, the varnish can be 
 removed with spirits of wine. Varnish 
 acts as a preservative to the leather, but 
 has the disadvantage, if used in excess, of 
 making it rather brittle on the surface. 
 It must, therefore, be used very sparingly 
 at the joints. It is to be hoped that a 
 perfectly elastic varnish, that will not tar- 
 nish the gold, will soon be discovered. 
 
 As soon as the varnish is dry the boards 
 may be pressed, one at a time, to give the 
 leather a smooth surface (see fig. 83), leav- 
 ing each board in the press for some hours. 
 
 After each board has been pressed sepa- 
 rately the book should be shut, and pressed 
 
 2IO
 
 Finishing 
 
 FIG. 89.
 
 Finishing again with pressing plates on each side of 
 it, and with tins covered with paper placed 
 inside each board. Light pressure should 
 be given to books with tight backs, or the 
 leather may become detached. 
 
 If, on removing from the press, the 
 boards will not keep shut, the book should 
 be pressed again with a folded sheet of 
 blotting-paper in each end. The blotting- 
 paper should have the folded edge turned 
 up, and be placed so that this turned-up 
 edge will be in the joint behind the back 
 edge of the board when the book is shut. 
 
 A small nipping-press suitable for giv- 
 ing comparatively light pressure, is shown 
 at fig. 89. 
 
 TOOLING ON VELLUM 
 
 Tooling on Most covering vellum has a sticky 
 Vellum surface, that marks if it is handled. This 
 should be washed off with clean water 
 before tooling. The pattern is blinded in 
 through the paper as for leather, excepting 
 that the paper must not be pasted directly 
 to the vellum, but may be held with a 
 band going right round the board or book. 
 It is best to glaire twice, and to lay on 
 a small portion of gold at a time with 
 
 212
 
 benzine. As vellum burns very readily, Tooling on 
 the tools must not be too hot, and some Vellum 
 skill is needed to prevent them from slip- 
 ping on the hard surface. 
 
 Vellum must not be polished or var- 
 nished. 
 
 INLAYING ON LEATHER 
 
 Inlaying or onlay ing is adding a dif- Inlaying on 
 ferent leather from that of the cover, as Leatner 
 decoration. Thus on a red book, a panel 
 or a border, or other portion, may be 
 covered with thin green leather, or only 
 flowers or leaves may be inlaid, while a 
 jewel-like effect may be obtained by dots, 
 leaves, and flowers, tooled over inlays of 
 various colours. Leather for inlaying 
 should be pared very thin. To do this 
 the leather is cut into strips, wetted, and 
 pared on a stone with a knife shaped 
 somewhat as at fig. 60, B. When the 
 thin leather is dry the inlays of the leaves 
 and flowers, &c., may be stamped out with 
 steel punches cut to the shape of the 
 tools ; or if only a few inlays are needed, 
 the tools may be impressed on the thin 
 leather, and the inlays cut out with a 
 sharp knife. The edges of the larger 
 
 213
 
 Inlaying on inlays should be pared round carefully. 
 Leather F O r inlaying a panel or other large sur- 
 face, the leather is pared very thin and 
 evenly with a French knife, and a piece 
 of paper pasted on to the grained side 
 and left to dry. When dry, the shape 
 of the panel, or other space to be inlaid, 
 is marked on it through the paper pattern, 
 and leather and paper cut through to the 
 shape required. The edges must then be 
 carefully pared, and the piece attached 
 with paste, and nipped in the press to 
 make it stick. When the paste is dry, 
 the paper may be damped and washed 
 off. The object of the paper is to pre- 
 vent the thin leather from stretching 
 when it is pasted. 
 
 For white inlays it is better to use 
 Japanese paper than leather, as white 
 leather, when pared very thin, will show 
 the colours of the under leather through, 
 and look dirty. If paper is used, it should 
 be sized with vellum size before tooling. 
 
 When many dots or leaves are to be 
 inlaid, the pieces of leather, cut out with 
 the punch, may be laid face downwards 
 on a paring stone, and a piece of paper, 
 thickly covered with paste, laid on it. 
 This, on being taken up, will carry with 
 
 214
 
 it the " inlays," and they can be picked Inlaying on 
 up one at a time on the point of a fine Leather 
 folder, and stuck on the book. 
 
 "Inlays" of tools are attached after 
 the pattern has been " blinded " in, and 
 must be again worked over with the 
 tool, in blind, when the paste is nearly 
 dry. 
 
 On vellum an effect, similar to that of 
 inlays on leather, can be obtained by the 
 use of stains. 
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 Lettering Blind Tooling Heraldic Ornament 
 LETTERING ON THE BACK 
 
 LETTERING may be done either with Lettering on 
 separate letters, each on its own handle, the Back 
 or with type set in a type-holder and 
 worked across the back as a pallet. Al- 
 though by the use of type great regularity 
 is ensured, and some time saved, the use 
 of handle letters gives so much more 
 freedom of arrangement, that their use 
 is advocated for extra binding. Where 
 a great many copies of the same work 
 
 215
 
 Lettering on have to be lettered, the use of type has 
 the Back obvious advantages. 
 
 A great deal depends on the design of 
 the letters used. Nearly all bookbinders' 
 letters are made too narrow, and with too 
 great difference between the thick and 
 thin strokes. At fig. 90 is shown an 
 alphabet, for which I am indebted to the 
 
 ABCDEFGHIJKL 
 
 MNOPQRSTUV 
 
 WXYZcSr 12345 
 
 67890 
 
 FIG. 90. 
 
 kindness of Mr. Emery Walker. The 
 long tail of the Q is meant jLo go under 
 the U. It might be well to have a second 
 R cut, with a shorter tail, to avoid 
 the great space left when an A happens 
 to follow it. I have found that four sizes 
 of letters are sufficient for all books. 
 
 To make out a lettering paper for the 
 back of a book, cut a strip of good thin 
 
 216
 
 paper as wide as the height of the panel Lettering on 
 to be lettered. Fold it near the centre, the Back 
 and mark the fold with a pencil. This 
 should give a line exactly at right angles 
 to the top and bottom of the strip. Then 
 make another fold the distance from the 
 first of the width of the back ; then bring 
 the two folds together, and make a third 
 fold in the exact centre. The paper 
 
 
 
 
 B 
 B 
 E 
 E 
 E 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 FIG. 91. 
 
 FIG. 92. 
 
 should then be as shown at fig. 91. Sup- 
 posing the lettering to be THE WORKS 
 OF ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON, 
 select the size of letter you desire to use, 
 and take an E and mark on a piece of 
 spare paper a line of E's, and laying your 
 folded paper, against it, see how many 
 letters will go in comfortably. Suppos- 
 ing you find that four lines of five letters 
 of the selected size can be put in, you 
 must see if your title can be conveniently 
 cut up into four lines of five letters, or 
 less. It might be done as shown at fig. 
 93. But if you prefer not to split the 
 
 217
 
 Lettering on name STEVENSON, a smaller letter 
 the Back must be employed, and then the letter- 
 ing may be as at fig. 94. 
 
 To find out the position of the lines 
 of lettering on a panel, the letter E is 
 again taken and impressed five times at 
 the side of the panel, as shown at fig. 92, 
 leaving a little greater distance between 
 the lowest letter and the bottom of the 
 panel, than between the letters. The 
 
 WORKS 
 OF R.L 
 STEV/ 
 ENSON 
 
 THE WORKS 
 
 OF 
 ROBERT 
 
 LOUIS 
 STEVENSON 
 
 FIG. 93. 
 
 FIG. 94. 
 
 paper is then folded on the centre fold, 
 and, with dividers set to the average 
 distance between the head of one letter 
 and the head of the next, five points are 
 made through the folded paper. The 
 paper is opened, turned over, and the 
 points joined with a fine folder worked 
 against the straight - edge. It should 
 leave on the front five raised lines, up 
 to which the head of the letters must 
 be put. 
 218
 
 The letters in the top line are counted, Lettering on 
 and the centre letter marked. Spaces be- the Back 
 tween words are counted as a letter ; thus 
 in "THE WORKS," " W" will be the 
 centre letter, and should be put on the 
 paper first, and the others added on each 
 side of it. Some thought is needed in 
 judging where to put the centre, as the 
 difference in the width of such letters as 
 " M " and " W " and " I " and " J " have 
 to be taken into account. 
 
 As a general rule, lettering looks best 
 if it comfortably fills the panel, but of 
 course it cannot always be made to do 
 this. The greatest difficulty will be found 
 in making titles of books that consist of a 
 single word, look well. Thus if you have 
 "CORIOLANUS" to place on a back 
 which is not more than -inch wide, if it 
 is put across as one word, as at fig. 95 (i), 
 it will be illegible from the smallness of 
 the type, and will tell merely as a gold 
 line at a little distance. If a reasonably 
 large type is used, the word must be 
 broken up somewhat, as at (2), which is 
 perhaps better, but still not at all satis- 
 factory. The word may be put straight 
 along the back, as at fig. (3), but this 
 hardly looks well on a book with raised 
 
 219
 
 Lettering on bands, and should be avoided unless 
 the Back necessary. 
 
 The use of type of different sizes in 
 lettering a book should be avoided when 
 possible, and on no account whatever 
 should letters of different design be intro- 
 duced. Occasionally, when the reason for 
 it is obvious, it may be allowable to make 
 
 
 
 
 
 CORIOLANUS 
 
 CORIOLANUS 
 
 CORI- 
 OLA" 
 NUS 
 
 
 
 2 
 
 FIG. 95. 
 
 a word shorter by putting in a small 
 letter, supposing that only thus could 
 reasonably large type be used. It is 
 especially allowable in cases where, in a 
 set of volumes, there is one much thinner 
 than the others. It is generally better to 
 make some compromise with the lettering 
 of the thin volume, than to spoil the 
 220
 
 lettering of the whole set by using too Lettering on 
 small a letter throughout (see fig. 115). the Back 
 
 On very thin books it is sometimes 
 hardly possible to get any lettering at all 
 on the back. In such cases the lettering 
 is best put on the side. 
 
 In the case of some special books that 
 are to have elaborately decorated bindings, 
 and are on that account sufficiently dis- 
 tinct from their neighbours, a certain 
 amount of freedom is permissible with 
 the lettering, and a little mystery is not 
 perhaps out of place. But in mos't cases 
 books have to be recognised by their titles, 
 and it is of the utmost importance that 
 the lettering should be as clear as possible, 
 and should fully identify the volume. 
 
 For lettering half-bindings and other 
 books on which much time cannot be 
 spared, it would take too long to make 
 out a paper, as described for extra bind- 
 ings, nor is there on such work much 
 occasion for it. For such books the let- 
 tering should be written out carefully, 
 the whole panel -prepared and glaired in, 
 and the gold laid on. Then with a piece 
 of fine silk or thread lines may be marked 
 across the gold as a guide to the finisher, 
 and the letters worked from the centre 
 
 ' 221
 
 Lettering on outward, as described for making out the 
 the Back paper pattern. Of course this method 
 does not allow of such nice calculation 
 and adjustment as when a paper pattern 
 is made out ; but if a general principle of 
 clear lettering is recognised and accepted, 
 very good results may be obtained. 
 
 BLIND TOOLING 
 
 Blind At the end of the book characteristic 
 
 Tooling examples of blind-tooled books are given 
 
 FIG. 96. 
 
 (pages 321-25). It will be seen that most 
 of the tools form complete designs in them- 
 selves. Although the use of detached die- 
 sunk tools was general, there were also 
 simple tools used, which, when combined, 
 
 222
 
 made up more or less organic designs, 
 and allowed more freedom to the finisher 
 (see figs. 96 and 97). 
 
 Some use may also be made of inter- 
 laced strap-work designs, either worked 
 with gouges, or a small fillet. A book 
 
 Blind 
 Tooling 
 
 FIG. 
 
 bound in oaken boards, with a leather 
 back with knotted decoration, is shown at 
 page 330. I have found that such binding 
 and decoration is more satisfactory in 
 scheme for old books, than most forms of 
 modern binding. 
 
 223
 
 Blind If a design is simple, the cover is marked 
 
 Tooling U p with dividers, and the tools impressed 
 direct upon the leather ; or, if it is elabo- 
 rate, a paper pattern is made out, and 
 the tools blinded through the paper, as 
 described for gold tooling. The leather is 
 then damped with water, and the impres- 
 sions retooled. 
 
 The panel lines on most of the bindings 
 before 1 500 show evidence of having been 
 put in with a tool which has been pushed 
 
 .. along the leather, and not with a 
 wheel. I have found that a tool 
 
 LJ guided by a straight-edge, and 
 " jiggered " backwards and for- 
 9 ' wards, makes by far the best lines 
 for blind-tool work. It should be borne 
 in mind that the line is formed by the 
 raised portion of leather, and so the tool 
 should be cut somewhat as at fig. 98. 
 This should leave three ridges on the 
 leather. Blind tooling may be gone over 
 and over until it is deep enough, and may 
 be combined with various other methods 
 of working. For instance, in tooling such 
 a spray as is shown at fig. 99, the leaf 
 would be formed by five impressions of 
 the second tool, shown at A, the extremity 
 of the impressions could be joined with 
 
 224
 
 gouges, the stalk and veining could either 
 be run in with a fillet or worked with 
 gouges. The grapes would best be worked 
 with a tool cut for the purpose. One 
 edge of all gouge or fillet impressions can 
 be smoothed down with 
 some such tool as shown 
 in section at B. This 
 has to be worked round 
 the gouge lines with a 
 steady hand, and may 
 be fairly hot if it is 
 kept moving. At C is 
 shown a section of a 
 gouge impression before 
 and after the use of this 
 tool. The ground can 
 be dotted in, or other- 
 wise gone over with 
 some small tool to 
 throw up the pattern. 
 
 Blind tooling can 
 sometimes be used in 
 combination with gold 
 tooling. 
 
 In the fifteenth century the Venetian 
 binders used little roundels of some gesso- 
 like substance, that were brightly coloured 
 cr gilt, in combination with blind tooling 
 15 225 
 
 Blind 
 Tooling 
 
 FIG
 
 Blind (see p. 325). This is a method that 
 Tooling might be revived. 
 
 What is known as " leather work " is 
 a further development of blind tooling. 
 This method of decoration has been revived 
 lately, but not generally with success. 
 " Leather work " may be divided into two 
 branches ; in one the surface of the leather 
 is cut to outline the pattern, and in the 
 other the leather is embossed from the 
 back, while wet, and the pattern outlined 
 by an indented line. Sometimes the two 
 methods are combined. As embossing 
 from the back necessitates the work being 
 done before the leather is on the book, it 
 is not very suitable for decorating books. 
 Leather first decorated and then stuck on 
 the book, never looks as if it was an integ- 
 ral part of the binding. The cut leather 
 work, which may be done after the book 
 is bound, and leaves the surface compara- 
 tively flat, is a better method to employ 
 for books, provided the cuts are not too 
 deep, and are restricted to the boards, so 
 as not to weaken the leather at the back 
 and joints. Much of the leather used for 
 " leather work " is of very poor quality, 
 and will not last ; for modelling it must 
 be thick on the side of the book, and for 
 
 226
 
 the book to open it must be pared thin at Blind 
 the joint, thus making it necessary to use a Tooling 
 thick skin very much pared down, and con- 
 sequently weakened (see p. 155). Another 
 very common fault in modelled " leather 
 work " is, that the two sides and the back 
 are often worked separately and stuck 
 together on the book, necessitating a join, 
 and consequently a weak place in the 
 hinge, where strength is most wanted. 
 Again, in most modern " leather work," 
 those who do the decoration do not, as a 
 rule, do the binding, and often do not 
 understand enough of the craft to do 
 suitable work. 
 
 All those engaged in leather work are 
 advised to learn to bind their own books, 
 and to only use such methods of decora- 
 tion as can be carried out on the bound 
 book. 
 
 HERALDRY ON BOOK COVERS 
 It IS an old and good CUStom tO put Heraldry on 
 
 the arms of the owner of a library on the Book Covers 
 covers of the books he has bound. The 
 traditional, and certainly one of the best 
 ways to do this, is to have an arms block 
 designed and cut. To design an arms 
 
 227
 
 Heraldry on block, knowledge of heraldry is needed, 
 Book Covers an d a l so some clear idea of the effect to 
 be aimed at. A very common mistake in 
 designing blocks is to try and get the 
 effect of hand tooling. Blocks should be 
 and look something entirely different. In 
 hand tooling much of the effect is got from 
 the impressions of small tools reflecting 
 the light at slightly different angles, giv- 
 ing the work life and interest. Blocked 
 gold being all in one plane, has no such 
 lights in it, and depends entirely on its 
 design for its effect. 
 
 Provided the heraldry identifies the 
 owner, it should be as simply drawn as 
 it can be ; the custom of indicating the 
 tinctures by lines and dots on the charges, 
 generally makes a design confused, obscur- 
 ing the coat it is intended to make clear. 
 In designing heraldic blocks it is well to 
 get a good deal of solid flat surface of 
 gold to make the blocked design stand 
 out from any gold-tooled work on the 
 cover. 
 
 Another way of putting armorial bear- 
 ings on covers, is to paint them in oil 
 paint. In the early sixteenth century the 
 Venetians copied the Eastern custom of 
 sinking panels in their book covers, and 
 
 228
 
 painted coats of arms on these sunk Heraldry on 
 portions very successfully. The ground- Book Covers 
 work of the shield itself was usually 
 Braised a little, either by something under 
 the leather, or by some gesso-like sub- 
 stance on its surface. 
 
 Arms blocks should be placed a little 
 above the centre of the cover. Generally, 
 if the centre of the block is in a line with 
 the centre band of a book with five bands, 
 it will look right. 
 
 Blocks are struck with the aid of an 
 arming or blocking press. The block is 
 attached to the movable plate of the press 
 called the " platen." To do this some 
 stout brown paper is first glued to the 
 platen, and the block glued to this, and 
 the platen fixed in its place at the bottom 
 of the heating-box. In blocking arms on 
 a number of books of different sizes, some 
 nice adjustment of the movable bed is 
 needed to get the blocks to fall in exactly 
 the right place. 
 
 For blocking, one coat of glaire will be 
 enough for most leathers. The gold is 
 laid on ,as for hand tooling. The block 
 should be brought down and up again 
 fairly sharply. The heat needed is about 
 the same as for hand tooling. 
 
 229
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 
 Designing for Gold-Tooled Decoration 
 DESIGNING TOOLS 
 
 Designing ]7 OR g O ld tooling, such tools as gouges, 
 dots, pieces of straight line, and fillets are 
 
 Vr, ? j 
 
 Decoration to 
 
 ready-made at most dealers. 
 Other tools are best designed and cut to 
 order. At first only a few simple forms 
 will be needed, such as one or two flowers 
 of different sizes, and one or two sets of 
 leaves (see fig. 100). 
 
 FIG. 100 (reduced) 
 
 In designing tools, it must be borne in 
 mind that they may appear on the book 
 many times repeated, and so must be 
 simple in outline and much convention- 
 alised. A more or less naturalistic draw- 
 ing of a flower, showing the natural 
 irregularities, may look charming, but if a 
 
 230
 
 tool is cut from it, any marked irregularity Designing 
 becomes extremely annoying when repeated f r Gold- 
 several times on a cover. So with leaves, 
 unless they are perfectly symmetrical, there 
 should be three of each shape cut, two 
 curving in different directions, and the 
 third quite straight (see fig. 101). To have 
 only one leaf, and to have that curved, pro- 
 duces very restless patterns. The essence 
 of gold-tool design, is that patterns are made 
 up of repeats of impressions of tools, and 
 
 * ft 
 
 1 2 3 
 
 FIG. 101. 
 
 that being so, the tools must be so de- 
 signed that they will repeat pleasantly, 
 and in practice it will be found that any 
 but simple forms will become aggressive 
 in repetition. 
 
 Designs for tools should be made out 
 with Indian ink on white paper, and they 
 may be larger than the size of the re- 
 quired tool. The tool-cutter will reduce 
 any drawing to any desired size, and will, 
 from one drawing, cut any number of 
 tools of different sizes. Thus, if a set of 
 
 231
 
 Designing 
 for Gold- 
 Tooled 
 Decoration 
 
 five leaves of the same shape is wanted, it 
 will only be necessary to draw one, and to 
 indicate the sizes the others are to be in 
 some such way as shown at fig. 102. 
 
 It is not suggested that special tools 
 should be cut for each pattern, but the 
 need of new tools will naturally arise 
 from time to time, and so the stock be 
 gradually increased. It is better to begin 
 with a very few, and add a tool or two as 
 
 FIG. 102. 
 
 occasion arises, than to try to design a 
 complete set when starting. 
 
 Tools may be solid or in outline. If 
 in outline they may be used as " inlay " 
 tools, and in ordering them the tool-cutter 
 should be asked to provide steel punches 
 for cutting the inlays. 
 
 Combining COMBINING TOOLS TO FORM PATTERNS 
 
 form It is we ll f r tne student to begin with 
 
 Patterns patterns arranged on some very simple 
 232
 
 plan, making slight changes in each sue- Combining 
 ceeding pattern. In this way an in- Tools to 
 dividual style may be established. The form 
 usual plan of studying the perfected styles 
 of the old binders, and trying to begin 
 where they left off, in practice only leads 
 to the production of exact imitations, or 
 poor lifeless parodies, of the old designs. 
 Whereas a pattern developed by the stu- 
 dent by slow degrees, through a series of 
 designs, each slightly different from the 
 one before it, will, if eccentricities are 
 avoided, probably have life and individual 
 interest. 
 
 Perhaps the easiest way to decorate a 
 binding is to cover it with some small re- 
 peating pattern. A simple form of diaper 
 as a beginning is shown at fig. 104. To 
 make such a pattern cut -a piece of good, 
 thin paper to the size of the board of a 
 book, and with a pencil rule a line about 
 an eighth of an inch inside the margin all 
 round. Then with the point of a fine 
 folder that will indent, but not cut the 
 paper, mark up as shown in fig. 103. 
 The position of the lines A A and B B 
 are found by simply folding the paper, 
 first side to side, and then head to tail. 
 The other lines can be put in without any 
 
 '
 
 form 
 Patterns 
 
 Combining measurement by simply joining all points 
 Tools to where lines cross. By continual re-cross- 
 ing, the spaces into which the paper is 
 divided can be reduced to any desired size. 
 If the construction lines are accurately 
 put in, the spaces will all be of the same 
 size and shape. It is then evident that a 
 
 * 
 
 
 FIG. 103. 
 
 repeating design to fill any one of the spaces 
 can be made to cover the whole surface. 
 
 In fig. 104, it is the diagonal lines only 
 that are utilised for the pattern. To avoid 
 confusion, the cross lines that helped to 
 determine the position of the diagonals 
 are not shown. 
 
 234
 
 Combining 
 Tools to 
 
 *..' ' -. / \ _ / \ _ / form 
 
 Patterns 
 
 N / ' 
 
 , *. S ^ _*A*-/ \ 
 
 m/K> v=aE ^3fc5 <&l 
 
 % / 
 
 li^ ^ ^ ^ktl^ 
 
 v / \ / \ / 
 >' X 
 
 \ t \ * v 
 
 \ ' % * ** 
 
 \ ' \ / \ / 
 
 y 
 
 *\ 
 
 ' \ * \ / \ / \ 
 
 / \ / v / \ / \ / \ / \ 
 
 ' v r , / / \ / 
 
 V V a ^ -^ j 
 
 FIG. 104 (reduced)
 
 Combining The advantage of using the point of a 
 Tools to folder to mark up the constructional 
 
 ,- i 
 
 t0] lines of a pattern instead of a pencil, is 
 that the lines so made are much finer, do 
 not rub out, and do not cause confusion 
 by interfering with the pattern. Any 
 lines that will appear on the book, such 
 as the marginal lines, may be put in with 
 a pencil to distinguish them. 
 
 Having marked up the paper, select a 
 flower tool and impress it at the points 
 where the diagonal lines cross, holding it 
 in the smoke of a candle between every 
 two or three impressions. When the 
 flower has been impressed all over, select 
 a small piece of straight line, and put a 
 stalk in below each flower; then a leaf put 
 in on each side of the straight line will 
 complete the pattern. 
 
 A development of the same principle is 
 shown at fig. 105, in which some gouges 
 are introduced. Any number of other 
 combinations will occur to any one using 
 the tools. Frequently questions will arise 
 as to whether a tool is to be put this way 
 or that way, and whether a line is to curve 
 up or down. Whenever there is such an 
 alternative open, there is the germ of 
 another pattern. All-over diaper patterns 
 
 236
 
 iM/ j W* ! w 
 
 Combining 
 Tools to 
 
 form 
 Patterns 
 
 FIG. 105 (reduced)
 
 Combining may be varied in any number of ways. 
 Tools to One way is to vary the design in alternate 
 form spaces. If this is done one of the designs 
 should be such that it will divide down 
 the centre both ways and so finish off the 
 pattern comfortably at the edges. The 
 pattern may be based on the upright and 
 the cross-lines of the marking up, or the 
 marking up may be on a different principle 
 altogether. The designer, after a little 
 practice, will be bewildered by the infinite 
 number of combinations that occur to 
 him. 
 
 The diaper is selected for a beginning, 
 because it is the easiest form of pattern 
 to make, as there is no question of getting 
 round corners, and very little of studying 
 proportion. It is selected also because it 
 teaches the student the decorative value of 
 simple forms repeated on some orderly 
 system. When he has grasped this, he 
 has grasped the underlying principle of 
 nearly all successful tooled ornament. 
 Diapers are good practice, because in a 
 close, all-over pattern the tools must be 
 put down in definite places, or an appalling 
 muddle will result. In tooling; a repeat 
 of the same few tools, is the best possible 
 practice, giving as it does the same work 
 
 238
 
 Combining 
 Tools to 
 
 form 
 Patterns 
 
 FIG. 106 (reduced)
 
 form 
 Patterns 
 
 FIG. 107. 
 
 Combining over and over again under precisely the 
 Tools to same conditions, and concentrating, on one 
 book cover, the practice that might be 
 spread over several backs and sides 
 more sparingly decorated, when variety 
 of conditions would confuse the 
 student. 
 
 When the principles of the 
 diaper have been mastered, and 
 the student has become familiar 
 with the limitations of his 
 tools, other schemes of de- 
 coration may be attempted, 
 such as borders, centres, or 
 panels. 
 
 A form of border connected with cross- 
 lines is shown at fig. 106. This is made 
 up of a repeat of the spray built up of 
 three tools and four gouges shown at 
 fig. 107, with slight modification at the 
 corners. Other schemes for borders are 
 those in which flowers grow inwards from 
 the edge of the boards, or outwards from 
 a panel at the centre, or on both sides of 
 a line about half an inch from the edge. 
 A pattern may also be made to grow all 
 round the centre panel. Borders will be 
 found more difficult to manage than 
 simple diapers, and at first, are best 
 240
 
 built up on the same principle the repeat Combining 
 of some simple element. Tools 10 
 
 The decoration may be concentrated on p m 
 parts of the cover, such as the centre or 
 corners. A design for a centre is shown 
 at fig. 1 08, and below is shown the way to 
 construct it. A piece of paper is folded, 
 as shown by the dotted lines, and an eighth 
 of the pattern drawn with a soft pencil 
 and folded over on the line A, and trans- 
 ferred by being rubbed at the back with 
 a folder. This is lined in with a pencil, 
 and folded over on the line B and rubbed 
 off. This is lined in and folded over on 
 A and C, rubbed off as before, and the 
 whole lined in. The overs and unders of 
 the lines are then marked, and gouges 
 selected to fit. Of course it will take 
 several trials before the lines will interlace 
 pleasantly, and the tools fit in. Another 
 centre, in which a spray is repeated three 
 times, is shown at fig. 109, and any num- 
 ber of others will occur to the student 
 after a little practice. A change of tools, 
 or the slight alteration of a line, will give 
 an entirely new aspect to a pattern. At 
 P a g e 334 is shown an all-over pattern 
 growing from the bottom centre of the 
 board. In this design the leather was 
 16 241
 
 Combining 
 Tools to 
 
 form 
 Patterns 
 
 A 
 
 FIG. 1 08 (reduced)
 
 dark green, with a lighter green panel Combining 
 in the centre. The berries were inlaid Tools to 
 in bright red. Although at first glance it p form 
 seems an intricate design, it is made up 
 like the others of repetitions of simple 
 forms. 
 
 When the student has become pro- 
 ficient in the arrangement of tools in 
 
 FIG. 109 (reduced) 
 
 combination with lines, a design consist- 
 ing entirely, or almost entirely, of lines 
 may be tried. This is more difficult, 
 because the limitations are not so obvious ; 
 but here again the principle of repetition, 
 and even distribution, should be followed. 
 At fig. no is shown a design almost en- 
 tirely composed of lines, built up on the 
 same principle as the centre at fig. 108. 
 The ends of the bands form a very 
 
 243
 
 Combining pleasant starting-place for patterns. At 
 
 Tools to 
 
 form 
 Patterns 
 
 FIG. no (reduced) 
 
 pp. 330, 3326 are shown ways of utilising 
 244
 
 this method. To look right, a pattern Combining 
 must be consistent throughout. The tools Tools to 
 
 and their arrangement must have about _ orm 
 .1 r /->. 11 Patterns 
 
 the same amount or convention. Cjold 
 
 tooling, dealing, as it does, with flat forms 
 in silhouette only, necessitates very con- 
 siderable formality in the design of the tools 
 and of their arrangement on the cover. 
 Modern finishers have become so skilful, 
 that they are able to produce in gold 
 tooling almost any design that can be 
 drawn in lines with a pencil, and some 
 truly marvellous results are obtained by 
 the use of inlays, and specially cut gouges. 
 As a rule, such patterns simply serve to 
 show the skill of the finisher, and to make 
 one wonder who could have been foolish 
 enough to select so limited and laborious 
 a method as gold tooling for carrying 
 them out. 
 
 Generally speaking, successful gold- 
 tooled patterns show evidence of having 
 been designed with the tools ; of being, in 
 fact, mere arrangements of the tools, and 
 not of having been first designed with a 
 pencil, and then worked with tools cut to fit 
 the drawing. This does not of course apply 
 to patterns composed entirely of lines, or 
 to patterns composed of lines of dots.
 
 form 
 Patterns 
 
 Combining If artists wish to design for gold tool- 
 Tools to ing without first mastering the details, 
 probably the safest way will be for them 
 to design in lines of gold dots. Some 
 successful patterns carried out in this 
 way were shown at the Arts and Crafts 
 Exhibition some years ago. . 
 
 Designs for gold-tooled binding should 
 always be constructed on some geometri- 
 cal plan, and whatever pattern there is, 
 symmetrically distributed over the cover. 
 
 If lettering can be introduced, it will 
 be found to be most useful when arrang- 
 ing a pattern. It gives dignity and pur- 
 pose to a design, and is also highly 
 decorative. Lettering may be arranged 
 in panels, as at page 332, or in a border 
 round the edge of the board, and in many 
 other ways. It may either consist of the 
 title of the book, or some line or verse 
 from it or connected with it, or may 
 refer to its history, or to the owner. 
 Anything that gives a personal interest 
 to a book, such as the arms of the owner, 
 the initials or name of the giver or receiver 
 of a present, with perhaps the date of the 
 gift, is of value. 
 
 The use of the small fillet makes it 
 possible to employ long, slightly-curved 
 
 246
 
 lines. Gold-tooled lines have in them- Combining 
 selves such great beauty, that designers Tools to 
 are often tempted to make them meander p form 
 about the cover in a weak and aimless 
 way. As the limitations enforced by the 
 use of gouges tend to keep the curves 
 strong and small, and as the use of the 
 small fillet tends to the production of 
 long, weak curves, students are advised 
 
 l 
 
 FIG. in. 
 
 at first to restrict the curved lines in their 
 patterns to such as can be readily worked 
 with gouges. 
 
 It must be remembered that a gouge 
 or fillet line is very thin, and will look 
 weak if it goes far without support. For 
 this reason interlaced lines are advocated. 
 
 Gouge lines are easier to work, and 
 look better, if a small space is left where 
 the gouges end. This is especially the 
 
 247
 
 form 
 Patterns 
 
 Combining case where lines bearing leaves or flowers 
 Tools to branch from the main stem (see fig. in). 
 Gouges and fillets need not always be 
 of the same thickness of line, and two or 
 three sets of different gauges may be kept. 
 A finisher can always alter the thickness 
 of a gouge with emery paper. 
 
 One method of arranging gold-tooled 
 
 FIG. 112. 
 
 lines is to treat them in design as if they 
 were wires in tension, and knot and twist 
 them together. Provided the idea is con- 
 sistently adhered to throughout, such a 
 pattern is often very successful. 
 
 A simple arrangement of straight lines 
 will be sufficient ornamentation for most 
 books. Three schemes for such orna- 
 mentation are shown. In fig. 112 the 
 
 248
 
 " tie downs " may be in " blind " and Combining 
 the lines in gold. The arrangement Tools 
 
 to 
 
 form 
 Patterns 
 
 FIG. 114. 
 
 shown at fig. 113 leaves a panel at the 
 top which may be utilised for lettering. 
 
 249
 
 Combining 
 Tools to 
 
 form 
 Patterns 
 
 WORKS 
 OF RALPH 
 
 WALDO 
 EMERSON 
 
 MISCELLA' 
 NIES 
 
 1896 
 
 WORKS 
 OF RALPH 
 
 WALDO 
 
 EMERSON 
 
 ESSAYS 
 
 '. 
 
 FIG. 115. 
 
 WORKS 
 
 OF RALPH 
 
 WALDO 
 
 EMERSON 
 
 POEMS
 
 WORKS 
 
 OF RALPH 
 
 WALDO 
 
 EMERSONl 
 
 ENGLISH 
 TRAITS 
 REPRES' 
 
 ENTATIVE 
 MEN 
 
 99. 
 
 WORKS 
 
 OF RALPH 
 
 WALDO 
 
 EMERSON 
 
 CONDUCT 
 OF LIFE 
 SOCIETY 
 AND 
 
 SOLITUDE 
 
 WORKS 
 
 OF 
 
 RW EM 
 ERSON 
 
 TETTER 5 
 AND 
 
 SOCIAU 
 AIMS 
 
 FIG. 115. 
 
 Combining 
 Tools to 
 
 form 
 Patterns
 
 Combining 
 Tools to 
 
 _ DESIGNING FOR BACKS 
 
 Patterns 
 
 The decoration of the back of a book 
 is difficult owing to the very small space 
 usually available in the panels. The first 
 consideration must be the lettering, and 
 when that has been arranged, as described 
 in Chapter XV, a second paper is got out 
 for the pattern. The back panel should 
 generally be treated in the same style and, 
 if possible, with the same tools as the 
 sides, if they are decorated. It will often 
 be found far easier to design a full-gilt 
 side than a satisfactory back. 
 
 A design may be made to fit one panel 
 of the book and repeated on all those not 
 required for lettering (see pages 332-34), 
 or it may be made to grow up from panel 
 to panel (see fig. 115). In the case of sets 
 of books in which the volumes vary very 
 much in thickness, some pattern must be 
 made that can be contracted and expanded 
 without altering the general look of the 
 back (see fig. 1 15). 
 
 252
 
 DESIGNING FOR INSIDE OF BOARDS 
 
 The inside margins of the board permit 
 of a little delicate decoration. At fig. 116 
 are shown two ways of treating this part 
 of the binding. The inside of the board 
 is sometimes covered all over with leather, 
 and tooled as elaborately, or more elabo- 
 rately, than the outside. If there are 
 
 Combining 
 Tools to 
 
 form 
 Patterns 
 
 FIG. 1 1 6. 
 
 vellum ends, they may be enriched with 
 a little tooling. 
 
 The edges of the boards may have a 
 gold line run on them, and the headcap 
 may be decorated with a few dots. 
 
 253
 
 CHAPTER XVII 
 
 Pasting down End Papers Opening Books 
 PASTING DOWN END PAPERS 
 
 Pasting WHEN the finishing is done, the end 
 down End papers should be pasted down on to the 
 
 Papers board ; or if there is a leather joint, the 
 panel left should be filled in to match the 
 end paper. 
 
 To paste down end papers, the book 
 is placed on the block with the board 
 open (see fig. 117, A), the waste sheets 
 are torn off, the joints cleared of any 
 glue or paste, and the boards flattened, as 
 described at page 171 for pasting down 
 leather joints. One of the paste-down 
 papers is then stretched over the board 
 and rubbed down in the joint, and the 
 amount to be cut off to make it fit into 
 the space left by the turn-in of the leather 
 is marked on it with dividers, measuring 
 from the edge of the board. A cutting 
 tin is then placed on the book, the paste- 
 down paper turned over it, and the edges 
 trimmed off to the divider points with a 
 254
 
 knife and straight-edge, leaving small Pasting 
 pieces to cover the ends of the joint down End 
 (fig. n 7 ,A,c). 
 
 The cutting and pasting down of these 
 small pieces in the joint are rather difficult; 
 
 they should come exactly to the edges of 
 the board. 
 
 When both paste-down papers are 
 trimmed to size, one of them is well 
 pasted with thin paste in which there 
 
 2 55
 
 Pasting are no lumps, with a piece of waste paper 
 
 down End under it to protect the book. The joints 
 
 Papers should also be pasted, and the paste rubbed 
 
 in with the ringer and any surplus removed. 
 
 The pasted paper is then brought over 
 on to the board, the edges adjusted exactly 
 to their places, and rubbed down. The 
 joint must next be rubbed down through 
 paper. It is difficult to get the paper to 
 stick evenly in the joint, and great nicety 
 is needed here. All rubbing down must 
 be done through paper, or the " paste- 
 down " will be soiled or made shiny. 
 
 Some papers stretch very much when 
 pasted, and will need to be cut a little 
 smaller than needed, and put down 
 promptly after pasting. Thin vellum 
 may be put down with paste in which 
 there is a very little glue, but thicker 
 vellum is better put down with thin glue. 
 In pasting vellum, very great care is 
 needed to prevent the brush-marks from 
 showing through. If the vellum is thin, 
 the board must be lined with white or 
 toned paper with a smooth surface. 
 This paper must be quite clean, as any 
 marks will show through the vellum, and 
 make it look dirty. 
 
 When one side is pasted down the book 
 
 256
 
 can be turned over without shutting the Pasting 
 board, and the other board opened and down Encl 
 pasted down in the same way (see fig. 117, Pa p ers 
 B). In turning over a book, a piece of 
 white paper should be put under the newly- 
 pasted side, as, being damp, it will soil very 
 readily. When both ends have been pasted 
 down the joints should be examined and 
 rubbed down again, and the book stood up 
 on end with the boards open until the end 
 papers are dry. The boards may be held 
 open with a piece of cardboard cut as 
 shown at fig. 71. 
 
 If there are cloth joints they are put 
 down with glue, and the board paper is 
 placed nearly to the edge of the joint, 
 leaving very little cloth visible. 
 
 In the process of finishing, the boards 
 of a book will nearly always be warped a 
 little outward, but the pasted end papers 
 should draw the boards a little as they dry, 
 causing them to curve slightly towards the 
 book. With vellum ends there is a danger 
 that the boards will be warped too much. 
 
 OPENING NEWLY BOUND BOOKS 
 
 Before sending out a newly bound book 
 the binder should go through it, opening 
 17 257
 
 Opening it here and there to ease the back. The 
 Newly volume is laid on a table, and the leaves 
 Bound opened a short distance from the front, 
 and then at an equal distance from the 
 back, and then in one or two places nearer 
 the centre of the book, the leaves being 
 pressed down with the hand at each open- 
 ing. If the book is a valuable one, every 
 leaf should then be turned over separately 
 and each opening pressed down, beginning 
 from the centre and working first one way 
 and then the other. In this way the back 
 will be bent evenly at all points. When 
 a book has been opened, it should be 
 lightly pressed for a short time without 
 anything in the joints. 
 
 If a book is sent out unopened, the first 
 person into whose hand it falls will prob- 
 ably open it somewhere in the centre, 
 bending the covers back and " breaking " 
 the back ; and if any leaves chance to 
 have been stuck together in edge-gilding, 
 they are likely to be torn if carelessly 
 opened. A book with a " broken " back 
 will always have a tendency to open in the 
 same place, and will not keep its shape. 
 It would be worth while for librarians to 
 have newly bound books carefully opened. 
 An assistant could " open " a large number 
 
 258
 
 of books in a day, and the benefit to the Opening 
 bindings would amply compensate for the Newly 
 
 small trouble and cost involved. Bound 
 
 Books 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 Clasps and Ties Metal on Bindings 
 CLASPS AND TIES 
 
 SOME books need to be clasped to keep Clasps and 
 the leaves flat. All books written or 
 printed on vellum should have clasps. 
 Vellum unless kept flat is apt to cockle, 
 and this in a book will force the leaves 
 apart and admit dust. If a book is 
 tightly wedged in a shelf the leaves will 
 be kept flat, but as the chance removal of 
 any other book from the row will remove 
 the pressure, it is much better to provide 
 clasps for vellum books. 
 
 Very thick books, and those with a great 
 many folded plates, are better for having 
 clasps to prevent the leaves from sagging. 
 As nearly all books are now kept in book- 
 shelves, and as any projection on the side 
 of a book is likely to injure the neigh- 
 
 259
 
 Clasps and bouring volume, a form of clasp should 
 Ties be used that has no raised parts on the 
 boards. 
 
 At fig. 1 1 8 is shown a simple clasp 
 suitable for small books with mill-board 
 sides, with details of the metal parts, made 
 N of thick silver wire 
 below. Double boards 
 must be " made," and the 
 flattened ends of the 
 silver catch inserted be- 
 tween the two thicknesses, 
 and glued in place. 
 About one-eighth of an 
 inch of the end should 
 <^\ / ^ N project. In covering, the 
 
 leather must be pierced 
 FIG. 1 1 8. an d carefully worked 
 
 round the catch. To 
 make the plait, three strips of thin 
 leather are slipped through the ring, and 
 the ends of each strip pasted together. 
 The three doubled strips are then plaited 
 and the end of the plait put through 
 a hole in the lower board of the 
 book about half an inch from the edge, 
 and glued down inside. A groove may be 
 cut in the mill-board from the hole to the 
 edge before covering, to make a depres- 
 260
 
 sion in which the plait will lie, and a Clasps and 
 depression may be scooped out of the Ties 
 inner surface of the board to receive the 
 ends. 
 
 At fig. 1 1 9 is a somewhat similar clasp 
 with three plaits 
 su i t a b 1 e f o r 
 large books. 
 The metal end 
 and the method 
 of inserting it 
 into wooden 
 boards are shown 
 below. The 
 turned-down end 
 should go right 
 through the 
 board, and be 
 riveted on the 
 
 inside. When the three plaits are worked, 
 a little band of silver may be riveted on 
 just below the ring. 
 
 A very simple fastening that is some- 
 times useful is shown at fig. 77. A very 
 small bead is threaded on to a piece of 
 catgut, and the two ends of the gut 
 brought together and put through a 
 larger bead. The ends of the gut with 
 the beads on them are laced into the top 
 
 261 
 
 FIG.
 
 Clasps and board of the book, with the bead pro- 
 Ties jecting over the edge, and a loop of gut 
 is laced into the bottom board. If the 
 loop can be made exactly the right length, 
 this is a serviceable method. 
 
 Silk or leather ties may be used to keep 
 books shut, but they are apt to be in 
 the way when the book is read, and as 
 hardly anybody troubles to tie them, they 
 are generally of very little use. 
 
 METAL ON BINDINGS 
 
 Metal on Metal corners and bosses are a great 
 Bindings protection to bindings, but if the books 
 are to go into shelves, the metal must 
 be quite smooth and flat. A metal shoe 
 on the lower edge of the boards is an 
 excellent thing for preserving the binding 
 of heavy books. 
 
 Bosses and other raised metal work 
 should be restricted to books that will 
 be used on lecterns or reading desks. 
 The frontispiece is from a drawing of an 
 early sixteenth-century book, bound in 
 white pigskin, and ornamented with brass 
 corners, centres, and clasps; and at page 
 323 is shown a fifteenth-century binding 
 with plain protecting bosses. On this book 
 262
 
 there were originally five bosses on each Metal on 
 board, but the centre ones have been lost. Bindings 
 
 Bindings may be entirely covered with 
 metal, but the connection between the 
 binding and the book is in that case 
 seldom quite satisfactory. The most 
 satisfactory metal-covered bindings that 
 I have seen are those in which the metal 
 is restricted to the boards. The book 
 is bound in wooden boards, with thick 
 leather at the back, and plaques of metal 
 nailed to the wood. The metal may be 
 set with jewels or decorated with enamel, 
 and embossed or chased in various ways. 
 
 Jewels are sometimes set in invisible 
 settings below the leather of bindings, 
 giving them the appearance of being set 
 in the leather. This gives them an in- 
 secure look, and it is better to frankly 
 show the metal settings and make a deco- 
 rative feature of them. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX 
 
 Leather 
 LEATHER 
 
 OF all the materials used by the book- Leather 
 binders, leather is the most important 
 
 263
 
 Leather and the most difficult to select wisely. 
 It is extremely difficult to judge a leather 
 by its appearance. 
 
 " We find now, that instead of leather 
 made from sheep, calf, goat, and pig- 
 skins, each having, when finished, its own 
 characteristic surface, that sheepskins are 
 got up to look like calf, morocco, or 
 pigskin ; that calf is grained to resemble 
 morocco, or so polished and flattened as 
 to have but little character left ; while 
 goatskins are grained in any number of 
 ways, and pigskin is often grained like 
 levant morocco. So clever are some of 
 these imitations, that it takes a skilled 
 expert to identify a leather when it is 
 on a book." 
 
 There have been complaints for a long 
 time of the want of durability of modern 
 bookbinding leather, but there has not 
 been until lately any systematic investi- 
 gation into the causes of its premature 
 decay. 
 
 By permission, I shall quote largely from 
 the report of the committee appointed by 
 the Society of Arts to inquire into the 
 subject. There are on this special com- 
 mittee leather manufacturers, bookbinders, 
 librarians, and owners of libraries. The 
 
 264
 
 report issued is the result of an immense Leather 
 amount of work done. Many libraries 
 were visited, and hundreds of experi- 
 ments and tests were carried out by the 
 sub-committees. There is much useful 
 information in the report that all book- 
 binders and librarians should read. The 
 work of the committee is not yet finished, 
 but its findings may be accepted as con- 
 clusive as far as they go. 
 
 The committee first set themselves to 
 ascertain if the complaints of the pre- 
 mature decay of modern bookbinding 
 leather are justified by facts, and on this 
 point report that : 
 
 " As regards the common belief that 
 modern binding leather does decay pre- 
 maturely, the sub - committee satisfied 
 themselves that books bound during the 
 last eighty or hundred years showed far 
 greater evidence of deterioration than 
 those of an earlier date. Many recent 
 bindings showed evidence of decay after so 
 short a period as ten, or even five years. 
 The sub-committee came to the conclu- 
 sion that there is ample justification for 
 the general complaint that modern leather 
 is not so durable as that formerly used. 
 To fix the date of the commencement 
 
 265
 
 Leather of this deterioration was a difficult matter; 
 but they came to the conclusion that while 
 leather of all periods showed some signs 
 of decay, the deterioration becomes more 
 general on books bound after 1830, while 
 some leathers seem to be generally good 
 until about 1860, after which date nearly 
 all leathers seem to get worse. The 
 deterioration of calf bindings at the 
 latter end of the i9th century may be 
 attributed as much to the excessive thin- 
 ness as to the poor quality of the 
 material." 
 
 The committee endeavoured to ascertain 
 the relative durability of the leathers used 
 for bookbinding, and after visiting many 
 libraries, and comparing bindings, they 
 report as follows : 
 
 " As to the suitability of various 
 leathers, the sub-committee came to the 
 conclusion that of the old leathers (i5th 
 and 1 6th century), white pigskin, probably 
 alum f tanned/ is the most durable, but 
 its excessive hardness and want of flexibility 
 renders this leather unsuitable for most 
 modern work. Old brown calf has lasted 
 fairly well, but loses its flexibility, and 
 becomes stiff" and brittle when exposed to 
 light and air. Some of the white tawed 
 
 266
 
 skins of the I5th and i6th century, other Leather 
 than white pigskin, and probably deerskin, 
 have lasted very well. Some I5th and 
 1 6th century sheepskin bindings have 
 remained soft and flexible, but the surface 
 is soft, and usually much damaged by 
 friction. Vellum seems to have lasted 
 fairly well, but is easily influenced by 
 atmospheric changes, and is much affected 
 by light. Early specimens of red morocco 
 from the i6th to the end of the i8th 
 century were found in good condition, and 
 of all the leathers noticed, this seems to 
 be the least affected by the various condi- 
 tions to which it had been subjected. In 
 the opinion of the committee, most of this 
 leather has been tanned with sumach or 
 some closely allied tanning material. 
 Morocco bindings earlier than 1860 were 
 generally found to be in fairly good con- 
 dition, but morocco after that date seems 
 to be much less reliable, and in many cases 
 has become utterly rotten. During the 
 latter part of the i8th century it became 
 customary to pare down calf until it was 
 as thin as paper. Since about 1 830 hardly 
 any really sound calf seems to have been 
 used, as, whether thick or thin, it appears 
 generally to have perished. Sheepskin 
 
 267
 
 Leather bindings of the early part of the century 
 are many of them still in good condition. 
 Since about 1860 sheepskin as sheepskin 
 is hardly to be found. Sheepskins are 
 grained in imitation of other leathers, and 
 these imitation-grained leathers are gene- 
 rally found to be in a worse condition than 
 any of the other bindings, except, perhaps, 
 some of the very thin calfskin. Undyed 
 modern pigskin seems to last well, but 
 some coloured pigskin bindings had entirely 
 perished. Modern leathers dyed with the 
 aid of sulphuric acid are all to be con- 
 demned. In nearly every case Russia 
 leather was found to have become rotten, 
 at least in bindings of the last fifty 
 years." 
 
 On the question of the causes of the 
 decay noticed and the best methods of 
 preparing leather in the future, I may 
 quote the following : 
 
 " The work of a sub-committee, which 
 was composed of chemists specially con- 
 versant with the treatment of leather, was 
 directed specially to the elucidation of the 
 following points : an investigation of the 
 nature of the decay of leather used for 
 bookbinding ; an examination of the 
 causes which produced this decay ; a re- 
 
 268
 
 search into the best methods of preparing Leather 
 leather for bookbinding ; and a considera- 
 tion of the points required to be dealt 
 with in the preservation of books. 
 
 " Taking these points in order, the 
 first one dealt with is the question of 
 the nature of the decay of leather. To 
 arrive at their conclusions on this subject, 
 the sub-committee made a number of 
 tests and analyses of samples of decayed 
 leather bookbindings, as well as of leathers 
 used for binding. The committee found 
 that the most prevalent decay was what 
 they term a red decay, and this they 
 think may be differentiated into old and 
 new, the old red decay being noticeable 
 up to about 1830, and the new decay 
 since that date. In the old decay, the 
 leather becomes hard and brittle, the sur- 
 face not being easily abraded by friction. 
 The older form is specially noticeable in 
 calf-bound books, tanned presumably with 
 oak bark. The new form affects nearly 
 all leathers, and in extreme cases seems 
 absolutely to destroy the fibres. Another 
 form of deterioration, more noticeable in 
 the newer books, renders the grain of the 
 leather liable to peel off when exposed to 
 the slightest friction. This is the most 
 
 269
 
 Leather common form of decay noted in the more 
 recent leathers. In nearly all samples of 
 Russia leather a very violent form of red 
 decay was noticed. In many cases the 
 leather was found to be absolutely rotten 
 in all parts exposed to light and air, so 
 that on the very slightest rubbing with 
 a blunt instrument the leather fell into 
 fine dust. . . . 
 
 " The second point is the cause of the 
 decay. An extensive series of experiments 
 was carried out with a view of determining 
 the causes of the decay of bindings. The 
 sub-committee find that this is caused by 
 both mechanical and by chemical influ- 
 ences. Of the latter, some are due to 
 mistakes of the leather manufacturer and 
 the bookbinder, others to the want of 
 ventilation, and to improper heating and 
 lighting of libraries. In some cases in- 
 ferior leathers are finished (by methods 
 in themselves injurious) so as to imitate 
 the better class leathers, and of course 
 where these are used durability cannot 
 be expected. But in the main the injury 
 for which the manufacturer and book- 
 binder are responsible must be attributed 
 rather to ignorance of the effect of the 
 means employed to give the leather the 
 270
 
 outward qualities required for binding, Leather 
 than to the intentional production of an 
 inferior article. . . . Leathers produced 
 by different tanning materials, although 
 they may be equally sound and durable 
 mechanically, vary very much in their 
 resistance to other influences, such as 
 light, heat, and gas fumes. 
 
 " For bookbinding purposes, the sub- 
 committee generally condemn the use of 
 tanning materials belonging to the cate- 
 chol group, although the leathers pro- 
 duced by the use of these materials are 
 for many purposes excellent, and indeed 
 superior. The class of tanning materials 
 which produce the most suitable leather 
 for this particular purpose belong to the 
 pyrogallol group, of which a well known 
 and important example is sumach. East 
 Indian or 'Persian' tanned sheep and 
 goat skins, which are suitable for many 
 purposes, and are now used largely for 
 cheap bookbinding purposes, are con- 
 sidered extremely bad. Books bound in 
 these materials have been found to show 
 signs of decay in less than twelve months, 
 and the sub-committee are inclined to 
 believe that no book bound in these 
 leathers, exposed on a shelf to sunlight 
 
 271
 
 Leather or gas fumes, can ever be expected to 
 last more than five or six years. Em- 
 bossing leather under heavy pressure to 
 imitate a grain has a very injurious effect, 
 while the shaving of thick skins greatly 
 reduces the strength of the leather 
 by cutting away the tough fibres of the 
 inner part of the skin. The use of 
 mineral acids in brightening the colour 
 of leather, and in the process of dyeing, 
 has a serious effect in lessening its resist- 
 ance to decay. A good deal yet remains 
 to be learned about the relative per- 
 manency of the different dyes." 
 
 On analysis free sulphuric acid was 
 found to be present in nearly all book- 
 binding leather, and it is the opinion of 
 the committee that even a small quantity 
 of this acid materially lessens the dura- 
 bility of the leather. 
 
 "It has been shown by careful experi- 
 ment, that even a minute quantity of 
 sulphuric acid used in the dye bath to 
 liberate the colour is at once absorbed 
 by the leather, and that no amount of 
 subsequent washing will remove it. In a 
 very large proportion of cases the decay 
 of modern sumach-tanned leather has been 
 due to the sulphuric acid used in the dye 
 
 272
 
 bath, and retained in the skin. We have Leather 
 examined very many samples of leather 
 manufactured and sold specially for book- 
 binding purposes, from different factories, 
 bought from different dealers, or kindly 
 supplied by bookbinders and by librarians, 
 and have found them to contain, in a 
 large number of cases, free sulphuric acid, 
 from 0.5 up to 1.6 per cent." 
 
 The publication of the report should 
 tend to fix a standard for bookbinding 
 leather. Hitherto there has been no re- 
 cognised standard. Bookbinders have 
 selected leather almost entirely by its 
 appearance. It has now been shown that 
 appearance is no test of durability, and 
 the mechanical test of tearing the leather 
 is insufficient. Sound leather should tear 
 with difficulty, and the torn edges 
 should be fringed with long, silky fibres, 
 and any leather which tears very easily, 
 and shows short, curled-up fibres at the 
 torn edges, should be discarded. But 
 though good bookbinding leather will 
 tear with difficulty, and show long fibres 
 where torn, that is in itself not a suffi- 
 cient test ; because it has been shown 
 that the leather that is mechanically the 
 strongest, is not necessarily the most 
 
 18 273
 
 Leather durable and the best able to resist the 
 adverse influences to which books are 
 subject in libraries. 
 
 The report shows that bookbinders 
 and librarians are not, as a general rule, 
 qualified to select leather for bookbind- 
 ing. In the old days, when the manufac- 
 ture of leather was comparatively simple, 
 a bookbinder might reasonably be expected 
 to know enough of the processes employed 
 to be able to select his leather. But now 
 so complicated is the manufacture, and so 
 many are the factors to be considered, that 
 an expert should be employed. 
 
 "The committee have satisfied them- 
 selves that it is possible to test any leather 
 in such a way as to guarantee its suita- 
 bility for bookbinding. They have not 
 come to any decision as to the desirability of 
 establishing any formal or official standard, 
 though they consider that this is a point 
 which well deserves future consideration." 
 
 It is to be hoped that some system 
 of examining and hall-marking leather 
 by some recognised body, may be insti- 
 tuted. If librarians will specify that the 
 leather to be employed must be certi- 
 fied to be manufactured according to the 
 recommendations of the Society of Arts 
 
 274
 
 Committee, there is no reason why leathers Leather 
 should not be obtained as durable as any 
 ever produced. This would necessitate 
 the examining and testing of batches of 
 leather by experts. At present this can 
 be done more or less privately at various 
 places, such as the Yorkshire College, 
 Leeds, or the Herolds* Institute, Ber- 
 mondsey. In the near future it is to 
 be hoped that some recognised public 
 body, such as one of the great City 
 Companies interested in leather, may be 
 induced to establish a standard, and to test 
 such leathers as are submitted to them, 
 hall-marking those that come up to the 
 standard. This would enable bookbinders 
 and librarians, in ordering leather, to 
 be sure that it had not been injured 
 in its manufacture. The testing, if done 
 by batches, should not add greatly to the 
 cost of the leather. 
 
 On the question of the qualities of an 
 ideal bookbinding leather the committee 
 report : 
 
 " It is the opinion of the committee, 
 that the ideal bookbinding leather must 
 have, and retain, great flexibility. . . . (It) 
 must have a firm grain surface, not easily 
 damaged by friction, and should not be 
 
 275
 
 Leather artificially grained. . . . The committee is 
 of opinion that a pure sumach tannage 
 will answer all these conditions, and that 
 leather can, and will, be now produced 
 that will prove to be as durable as any 
 made in the past." 
 
 The committee has so far only dealt 
 with vegetable - tanned leather. I have 
 used, with some success, chrome-tanned 
 calfskin. Chrome leather is difficult 
 to pare, and to work, as it does not 
 become soft when wet, like vegetable- 
 tanned leather. It will stand any reason- 
 able degree of heat, and so might perhaps 
 be useful for top-shelf bindings and for 
 shelf edging. It is extremely strong 
 mechanically, but without further tests 
 I cannot positively recommend it except 
 for trial. 
 
 While the strength and probable dura- 
 bility of leather can only be judged by a 
 trained leather chemist, there remains for 
 the binders selection, the kind of leather 
 to use, and its colour. 
 
 Most of the leather prepared for book- 
 binding is too highly finished. The 
 finishing processes add a good deal to the 
 cost of the leather, and are apt to be in- 
 jurious to it, and as much of the high 
 
 276
 
 finish is lost in covering, it would be Leather 
 better for the bookbinder to get rougher 
 leather and finish it himself when it is on 
 the book. 
 
 The leathers in common use for book- 
 binding are : 
 
 Goatskin, known as morocco. 
 
 Calf, known as calf and russia. 
 
 Sheepskin, known as roan, basil, skiver, 
 &c. 
 
 Pigskin, known as pigskin. 
 
 Sealskin, known as seal. 
 
 Morocco is probably the best leather for 
 extra binding if properly prepared, but 
 experiment has shown that the expensive 
 Levant moroccos are nearly always ruined 
 in their manufacture. A great many 
 samples of the most expensive Levant 
 morocco were tested, with the result that 
 they were all found to contain free sul- 
 phuric acid. 
 
 Calf. Modern vegetable - tanned calf 
 has become a highly unsatisfactory ma- 
 terial, and until some radical changes 
 are made in the methods of manufactur- 
 ing it, it should not be used for book- 
 binding. 
 
 Sheepskin. A properly tanned sheep- 
 skin makes a very durable, though rather 
 
 277
 
 Leather soft and woolly, leather. Much of the 
 bookbinding leather now made from sheep- 
 skin is quite worthless. Bookbinders 
 should refuse to have anything to do 
 with any leather that has been artificially 
 grained, as the process is apt to be highly 
 injurious to the skin. 
 
 Pigskin. Pigskin is a thoroughly good 
 leather naturally, and very strong, especi- 
 ally the alumed skins ; but many of the 
 dyed pigskins are found to be improperly 
 tanned and dyed, and worthless for book- 
 binding. 
 
 Sealskin is highly recommended by one 
 eminent librarian, but I have not yet had 
 any experience of its use for bookbind- 
 ing. 
 
 The leather that I have found most 
 useful is the Niger goatskin, brought 
 from Africa by the Royal Niger Com- 
 pany ; it is a very beautiful colour and 
 texture, and has stood all the tests tried, 
 without serious deterioration. The diffi- 
 culty with this leather is that, being a 
 native production, it is somewhat care- 
 lessly prepared, and is much spoiled by 
 flaws and stains on the surface, and many 
 skins are quite worthless. It is to be 
 hoped that before long some of the manu- 
 
 278
 
 facturers interested will produce skins as Leather 
 good in quality and colour as the best 
 Niger morocco, and with fewer flaws. 
 
 Much leather is ruined in order to 
 obtain an absolutely even colour. A 
 slight unevenness of colours is very pleas- 
 ing, and should rather be encouraged than 
 objected to. That the want of interest 
 in absolutely flat colours has been felt, is 
 shown by the frequency with which the 
 binders get rid of flat, even colours by 
 sprinkling and marbling. 
 
 On this point I may quote from the com- 
 mittee : " The sprinkling of leather, 
 either for the production of ' sprinkled ' 
 calf or * tree ' calf, with ferrous sulphate 
 (green vitriol) must be most strongly 
 condemned, as the iron combines with and 
 destroys the tan in the leather, and free 
 sulphuric acid is liberated, which is still 
 more destructive. Iron acetate or lactate 
 is somewhat less objectionable, but prob- 
 ably the same effects may be obtained 
 with aniline colours without risk to the 
 leather." 
 
 279
 
 CHAPTER XX 
 
 Paper Pastes Glue 
 
 PAPER 
 
 Paper PAPER may be made by hand or machinery, 
 and either " laid " or " wove." " Laid " 
 papers are distinguished by wire marks, 
 which are absent in " wove " paper. 
 
 A sheet of hand-made paper has all 
 round it a rough uneven edge called the 
 " deckle," that is a necessary result of 
 its method of manufacture. The early 
 printers looked upon this ragged edge as 
 a defect, and almost invariably trimmed 
 most of it off before putting books into 
 permanent bindings. Book-lovers quite 
 rightly like to find traces of the " deckle " 
 edge, as evidence that a volume has not 
 been unduly reduced by the binder. But 
 it has now become the fashion to admire 
 the " deckle " for its own sake, and to 
 leave books on hand-made paper ab- 
 solutely untrimmed, with ragged edges 
 that collect the dirt, are unsightly, and 
 troublesome to turn over. So far has 
 this craze gone, that machine-made paper 
 280
 
 is often put through an extra process to Paper 
 give it a sham deckle edge. 
 
 Roughly speaking, paper varies in qual- 
 ity according to the proportion of fibrous 
 material, such as rag, used in the manu- 
 facture. To make paper satisfactorily by 
 hand, a large proportion of such fibrous 
 material is necessary, so that the fact that 
 the paper is hand-made is to some extent 
 a guarantee of its quality. There are 
 various qualities of hand-made paper, 
 made from different materials, chiefly 
 linen and cotton rags. The best paper is 
 made from pure linen rag, and poorer 
 hand-made paper from cotton rag, while 
 other qualities contain a mixture of the 
 two or other substances. 
 
 It is possible to make a thoroughly 
 good paper by machinery if good ma- 
 terials are used. Some excellent papers 
 are made by machinery ; but the enor- 
 mous demand for paper, together with 
 the fact that now almost any fibrous 
 material can be made into paper, has 
 resulted in the production, in recent 
 years, of, perhaps, the worst papers that 
 have ever been seen. 
 
 This would not matter if the use of 
 the poor papers were restricted to news- 
 
 281
 
 Paper papers and other ephemeral literature, 
 but when, as is often the case, paper of 
 very poor quality is used for books of 
 permanent literary interest, the matter is 
 serious enough. 
 
 Among the worst papers made are the 
 heavily loaded " Art " papers that are pre- 
 pared for the printing of half-toned pro- 
 cess blocks. It is to be hoped that 
 before long the paper makers will pro- 
 duce a paper that, while suitable for 
 printing half-toned blocks, will be more 
 serviceable, and will have a less unplea- 
 sant surface. 
 
 Several makers produce coloured hand- 
 made papers suitable for end papers. 
 Machine-made papers can be had in end- 
 less variety from any number of makers. 
 
 The paper known as "Japanese Vellum" 
 is a very tough material, and will be 
 found useful for repairing vellum books ; 
 the thinnest variety of it is very suitable 
 for mending the backs of broken sections, 
 or for strengthening weak places in paper. 
 
 The following delightful account of 
 paper making by hand is quoted from 
 "Evelyn's Diary, 1641-1706." 
 
 " I went to see my Lord of St. Alban's 
 house at Byflete, an old large building. 
 
 282
 
 Thence to the paper mills, where I found Paper 
 them making a coarse white paper. They 
 cull the raggs, which are linnen, for white 
 paper, woollen for brown, then they stamp 
 them in troughs to a papp with pestles or 
 hammers like the powder-mills, then put 
 it into a vessell of water, in which they 
 dip a frame closely wyred with a wyre as 
 small as a haire, and as close as a weaver's 
 reede ; on this they take up the papp, 
 the superfluous water draining thro' 
 the wyre ; this they dextrously turning, 
 shake out like a pancake on a smooth 
 board between two pieces of flannell, then 
 press it between a greate presse, the flan- 
 nell sucking out the moisture ; then tak- 
 ing it out they ply and dry it on strings, 
 as they dry linnen in the laundry ; then 
 dip it in alum-water, lastly polish and 
 make it up in quires. They put some 
 gum in the water in which they macerate 
 the raggs. The mark we find on the 
 sheets is formed in the wyre." 
 
 The following are the more usual sizes 
 of printing papers 
 
 Inches. 
 
 Foolscap . . . . 17 x 13^ 
 Crown .... 20 x 15 
 Post 19^ x 15^ 
 
 283
 
 Paper Inches. 
 
 Demy 22^ x 17^ 
 
 Medium .... 24 x 19 
 
 Royal 25 x 20 
 
 Double Pott . . . 25 x 15 
 
 Foolscap . 27 x 17 
 
 Super Royal . . 27 x 21 
 
 Double Crown . . 30 x 20 
 
 Imperial . . . . 30 x 22 
 
 Double Post . . . 31^ x 19* 
 
 The corresponding sizes of hand-made 
 papers may differ slightly from the above. 
 
 Although the above are the principal 
 sizes named, almost any size can be made 
 to order. 
 
 The following is an extract from the 
 report of the Committee of the Society 
 of Arts on the deterioration of paper, 
 published in 1898: "The committee 
 find that the paper-making fibres may 
 be ranged into four classes : 
 
 A. Cotton, flax, and hemp. 
 
 B. Wood, celluloses (a) sulphite 
 
 process, and (b] soda and sul- 
 phate process. 
 
 C. Esparto and straw celluloses. 
 
 D. Mechanical wood pulp. 
 
 In regard, therefore, to papers for 
 284
 
 books and documents of permanent value, Paper 
 the selection must be taken in this order, 
 and always with due regard to the fulfil- 
 ment of the conditions of normal treat- 
 ment above dealt with as common to all 
 papers." 
 
 " The committee have been desirous of 
 bringing their investigations to a practical 
 conclusion in specific terms, viz. by the 
 suggestion of standards of quality. It is 
 evident that in the majority of cases, there 
 is little fault to find with the practical 
 adjustments which rule the trade. They 
 are, therefore, satisfied to limit their 
 specific findings to the following, viz., 
 Normal standard of quality for book papers 
 required for publications of permanent value. 
 For such papers they would specify as 
 follows : 
 
 " Fibres. Not less than 70 per cent, of 
 fibres of Class A. 
 
 " Sizing. Not more than 2 per cent, 
 rosin, and finished with the normal 
 acidity of pure alum. 
 
 "Loading. Not more than 10 per cent, 
 total mineral matter (ash). 
 
 " With regard to written documents, it 
 must be evident that the proper materials 
 are those of Class A, and that the paper 
 
 285
 
 Paper should be pure, and sized with gelatine, 
 and not with rosin. All imitations of 
 high-class writing papers, which are, in 
 fact, merely disguised printing papers, 
 should be carefully avoided." 
 
 PASTES 
 
 Pastes To make paste for covering books, 
 &c., take 2 oz. of flour, and oz. of 
 powdered alum, and well mix with enough 
 water to form a thin paste, taking care to 
 break up any lumps. Add a pint of cold 
 water, and heat gently in an enamelled 
 saucepan. As it becomes warm, it should 
 be stirred from time to time, and when it 
 begins to boil it should be continually 
 stirred for about five minutes. It should 
 then form a thick paste that can be 
 thinned with warm water. Of course 
 any quantity can be made if the propor- 
 tions are the same. 
 
 Paste for use is best kept in a wooden 
 trough, called a " paste tub." The paste 
 tub will need to be cleaned out from 
 time to time, and all fragments of dry 
 paste removed. This can easily be done 
 if it is left, overnight, filled with water. 
 
 286
 
 Before using, the paste should be well Pastes 
 beaten up with a flat stick. 
 
 For pasting paper, it should have about 
 the consistency and smoothness of cream ; 
 for leather, it can be thicker. For very 
 thick leather a little thin glue may be 
 added. Paste made with alum will keep 
 about a fortnight, but can be kept longer 
 by the addition of corrosive sublimate in 
 the proportion of one part of corrosive 
 sublimate to a thousand parts of paste. 
 Corrosive sublimate, being a deadly poison, 
 will prevent the attack of bookworms or 
 other insects, but for the same reason 
 must only be used by responsible people, 
 and paste in which it is used must be kept 
 out of the way of domestic animals. 
 
 Several makes of excellent prepared 
 paste can be bought in London. These 
 pastes are as cheap as can be made, and 
 keep good a long time. 
 
 Paste that has become sour should never 
 be used, as there is danger that the pro- 
 ducts of its acid fermentation may injure 
 the leather. 
 
 Paste tubs as sold often have an iron 
 bar across them to wipe the brush on. 
 This should be removed, and replaced by 
 a piece of twisted cord. Paste brushes 
 
 287
 
 Pastes should be bound with string or zinc ; 
 copper or iron will stain the paste. 
 
 WHITE PASTE FOR MENDING 
 
 White A good paste for mending is made from 
 Paste for a teaspoonful of ordinary flour, two tea- 
 Mending spoonsful of cornflour, half a teaspoonful 
 of alum, and three ounces of water. These 
 should be carefully mixed, breaking up 
 all lumps, and then should be heated in a 
 clean saucepan, and stirred all the time 
 with a wooden or bone spoon. The paste 
 should boil for about five minutes, but 
 not too fast, or it will burn and turn 
 brown. Rice-flour or starch may be sub- 
 stituted for cornflour, and for very white 
 paper the wheaten flour may be omitted. 
 Ordinary paste is not nearly white enough 
 for mending, and is apt to leave unsightly 
 stains. 
 
 Cornflour paste may be used directly 
 after it is made, and will keep good under 
 ordinary circumstances for about a week. 
 Directly it gets hard or goes watery, a 
 new batch must be made. 
 
 288
 
 GLUE 
 
 It is important for bookbinders that Glue 
 the glue used should be of good quality, 
 and the best hide glue will be found to 
 answer well. To prepare it for use, the 
 glue should be broken up into small 
 pieces and left to soak overnight in 
 water. In the morning it should be 
 soft and greatly swollen, but not melted, 
 and can then be put in the glue-pot and 
 gently simmered until it is fluid. It is 
 then ready for use. Glue loses in quality 
 by being frequently heated, so that it is 
 well not to make a great quantity at a 
 time. The glue-pot should be thoroughly 
 cleaned out before new glue is put into 
 it, and the old glue sticking round the 
 sides taken out. 
 
 Glue should be used hot and not too 
 thick. If it is stringy and difficult to 
 work, it can be broken up by rapidly 
 twisting the brush in the glue-pot. For 
 paper the glue should be very thin and 
 well worked up with the brush before 
 using. 
 
 The following is quoted from " Cham- 
 bers' Encyclopaedia " article on Glue : 
 19 289
 
 Glue " While England does not excel in the 
 
 manufacture, it is a recognised fact that 
 Scottish glue . . . ranks in the front of 
 the glues of all countries. A light- 
 coloured glue is not necessarily good, 
 nor a dark-coloured glue necessarily bad. 
 A bright, clear, claret colour is the natural 
 colour of hide glue, which is the best and 
 most economical. 
 
 " Light-coloured glues (as distinguished 
 from gelatine) are made either from bones 
 or sheepskins. The glue yielded by these 
 materials cannot compare with the strength 
 of that yielded by hides. 
 
 " A great quantity is now made in 
 France and Germany from bones. It is 
 got as a by-product in the manufacture 
 of animal charcoal. Although beautiful 
 to look at, it is found when used to be 
 far inferior to Scottish hide glue." 
 
 290
 
 PART II 
 
 CARE OF BOOKS WHEN 
 BOUND 
 
 CHAPTER XXI 
 
 Injurious Influences to which Books are Subjected 
 
 Gas Fumes. The investigation of the 
 Society of Arts Committee shows that 
 
 " Of all the influences to which books 
 are exposed in libraries, gas fumes no 
 doubt because of the sulphuric and sul- 
 phurous acid which they contain are 
 shown to be the most injurious." 
 
 The injurious effects of gas fumes on 
 leather have been recognised for a long 
 time, and gas is being, very generally, 
 given up in libraries in consequence. If 
 books must be kept where gas is used, 
 they should not be put high up in the 
 
 291 
 
 Injurious 
 Influences 
 to which 
 Books are 
 Subjected
 
 Subjected 
 
 Injurious room, and great attention should be paid 
 Influences to ventilation. It is far better, where 
 to which p OSS ibi ej to avoid the use of gas at all 
 
 Books are 1-1 
 
 in libraries. 
 
 Light. The committee also report that 
 " light, and especially direct sunlight and 
 hot air, are shown to possess deleterious 
 influences which had scarcely been sus- 
 pected previously, and the importance of 
 moderate temperature and thorough venti- 
 lation of libraries cannot be too much 
 insisted on." 
 
 The action of light on leather has a 
 disintegrating effect, very plainly seen 
 when books have stood for long periods 
 on shelves placed at right angles to 
 windows. At Oxford and Cambridge 
 and at the British Museum Library the 
 same thing was noticed. The leather 
 on that side, of the backs of books, 
 next to the light, was absolutely rotten, 
 crumbling to dust at the slightest friction, 
 while at the side away from the light it 
 was comparatively sound. Vellum bind- 
 ings were even more affected than those of 
 leather. 
 
 The committee advise that library 
 windows exposed to the direct sunlight 
 should be glazed with tinted glass. 
 
 292
 
 " Some attempts have been made to 
 determine the effect of light transmitted 
 through glasses of different colours, and 
 they point to the fact that blue and 
 violet glass pass light of nearly as deleteri- 
 ous quality as white glass ; while leathers 
 under red, green, and yellow glasses were 
 almost completely protected. There can 
 be no doubt that the use of pale yellow 
 or olive-green glass in library windows 
 exposed to direct sunlight is desirable. 
 A large number of experiments have been 
 made on the tinted c cathedral ' glasses of 
 Messrs. Pilkington Bros., Limited, with 
 the result that Nos. 812 and 712 afforded 
 almost complete protection during two 
 months' exposure to sunlight, while Nos. 
 704 and 804 may be recommended where 
 only very pale shades are permissible. 
 The glasses employed were subjected to 
 careful spectroscopic examination, and to 
 colour-measurement by the tintometer, 
 but neither were found to give precise 
 indications as to the protective power of 
 the glasses, which is no doubt due to the 
 absorption of the violet, and especially 
 of the invisible ultra-violet rays. An easy 
 method of comparing glasses is to expose 
 under them to sunlight the ordinary sen- 
 
 293 
 
 Injurious 
 Influences 

 
 to which 
 Books are 
 
 Subjected 
 
 Injurious sitised albumenised photographic paper. 
 Influences Those glasses under which this is least 
 darkened are also most protective to 
 leather." 
 
 Tobacco. Smoking was found to be 
 injurious, and it is certainly a mistake to 
 allow it in libraries. 
 
 " The effect of ammonia vapour, and 
 tobacco fumes, of which ammonia is one 
 of the active ingredients, was also ex- 
 amined. The effect of ammonia fumes 
 was very marked, darkening every descrip- 
 tion of leather, and it is known that in 
 extreme cases it causes a rapid form of 
 decay. Tobacco smoke had a very similar 
 darkening and deleterious effect (least 
 marked in the case of sumach tanned 
 leathers), and there can be no doubt that 
 the deterioration of bindings in a library 
 where smoking was permitted and the 
 rooms much used, must have been partly- 
 due to this cause." 
 
 Damp. Books kept in damp places 
 will develop mildew, and both leather 
 and paper will be ruined. 
 
 Where possible, naturally dry rooms 
 should be used for libraries, and if not 
 naturally dry, every means possible should 
 be taken to render them so. It will some- 
 
 294
 
 times be found that the only way to keep Injurious 
 the walls of an old house dry is to put in Influences 
 a proper dampcourse. There are various * hlc * 
 other methods employed, such as lining g ^. , 
 the walls with thin lead, or painting them 
 inside and out with some waterproofing 
 preparation : but as long as a wall re- 
 mains in itself damp, it is doubtful if any 
 of these things will permanently keep the 
 damp from penetrating. 
 
 Bookshelves should never be put against 
 the wall, nor the books on the floor. 
 There should always be space for air to 
 circulate on all sides of the bookshelves. 
 Damp is specially injurious if books are 
 kept behind closely-fitting doors. The 
 doors of bookcases should be left open 
 from time to time on warm days. 
 
 Should mildew make its appearance, the 
 books should be taken out, dried and 
 aired, and the bookshelves thoroughly 
 cleaned. The cause of the damp should 
 be sought for, and measures taken to 
 remedy it. Library windows should not 
 be left open at night, nor during damp 
 weather, but in warm fine weather the 
 more ventilation there is, the better. 
 
 Heat. While damp is very injurious 
 to books on account of the development 
 
 295
 
 Injurious 
 Influences 
 to which 
 Books are 
 Subjected 
 
 of mildew, unduly hot dry air is almost 
 as bad, causing leather to dry up and 
 lose its flexibility. On this point the 
 Chairman of the Society of Arts Com- 
 mittee says : 
 
 " Rooms in which books are kept should 
 not be subject to extremes, whether of 
 heat or cold, of moisture or dry ness. It 
 may be said that the better adapted a 
 room is for human occupation, the better 
 for the books it contains. Damp is, of 
 course, most mischievous, but over-dry- 
 ness induced by heated air, especially when 
 the pipes are in close proximity to the 
 bookcases, is also very injurious." 
 
 Dust. Books should be taken from the 
 shelves at least once a year, dusted and 
 aired, and the bindings rubbed with a pre- 
 servative. 
 
 To dust a book, it should be removed 
 from the shelf, and without being opened, 
 turned upside down and flicked with a 
 feather duster. If a book with the dust 
 on the top is held loosely in the hand, and 
 dusted right way up, dust may fall be- 
 tween the leaves. Dusting should be done 
 in warm, dry weather ; and afterwards, 
 the books may be stood on the table 
 slightly open, to air, with their leaves 
 
 296
 
 loose. Before being returned to the Injurious 
 shelves, the bindings should be lightly Influences 
 rubbed with some preservative prepara- ' which 
 
 Books are 
 
 tion (see chap. XXII). Any bindings that 
 are broken, or any leaves that are loose 
 should be noted, and the books put on 
 one side to be sent to the binder. It 
 would be best when the library is large 
 enough to warrant it, to employ a work- 
 ing bookbinder to do this work ; such a 
 man would be useful in many ways. He 
 could stick on labels, repair bindings, and 
 do many other odd jobs to keep the books 
 in good repair. 
 
 A bookbinder could be kept fully em- 
 ployed, binding and repairing the books of 
 a comparatively small library under the 
 direction of the librarian. 
 
 Subjected 
 
 BOOKWORMS 
 
 The insects known as bookworms are Bookworms 
 the larvae of several sorts of beetles, most 
 commonly perhaps of Antobium domesti- 
 cum and Niptus bololencus. They are not 
 in any way peculiar to books and will in- 
 fest the wood of bookshelves, walls, or 
 floors. A good deal can be done to keep 
 " worms " away by using such substances 
 
 297
 
 Bookworms as camphor or naphthaline in the bookcase. 
 Bookworms do not attack modern books 
 very much ; probably they dislike the alum 
 put in the paste and the millboards made 
 of old tarred rope. 
 
 In old books, especially such as come 
 from Italy, it is often found that the 
 ravages of the bookworms are almost 
 entirely confined to the glue on the backs 
 of the books, and it generally seems that 
 the glue and paste attract them. Pro- 
 bably if corrosive sublimate were put in 
 the glue and paste used it would stop 
 their attacks. Alum is said to be a pre- 
 ventive, but I have known bookworms to 
 eat their way through leather pasted on 
 with paste containing alum, when, in re- 
 covering, the old wooden boards containing 
 bookworms have been utilised in error. 
 
 When on shaking the boards of an old 
 book dust flies out, or when little heaps 
 of dust are found on the shelf on which 
 an old book has been standing, it may be 
 considered likely that there are bookworms 
 present. It is easy to kill any that may be 
 hatched, by putting the book in an air-tight 
 box surrounded with cotton wool soaked 
 in ether ; but that will not kill the eggs, 
 and the treatment must be repeated from 
 
 298
 
 time to time at intervals of a few Bookworms 
 weeks. 
 
 Any book that is found to contain 
 bookworms should be isolated and at once 
 treated. Tins may be put inside the boards 
 to prevent the " worms " eating into the 
 leaves. 
 
 Speaking of bookworms, Jules Cousin 
 says : 
 
 " One of the simplest means to be em- 
 ployed (to get rid of bookworms) is to 
 place behind the books, especially in the 
 place where the insects show their presence 
 most, pieces of linen soaked with essence 
 of turpentine, camphor, or an infusion of 
 tobacco, and to renew them when the smell 
 goes off. A little fine pepper might also 
 be scattered on the shelf, the penetrating 
 smell of which would produce the same 
 effect." 
 
 Possibly Keating's Insect Powder would 
 answer as well or better than pepper. 
 
 RATS AND MICE 
 
 Rats and mice will gnaw the backs of Rats and 
 books to get at the glue, so, means should 
 be taken to get rid of these vermin if 
 they should appear. Mice especially will 
 
 299
 
 Rats and nibble vellum binding or the edges of 
 Mice vellum books that have become greasy 
 with much handling. 
 
 COCKROACHES 
 
 Cockroaches Cockroaches are very troublesome in 
 libraries, eating the bindings. Keating's 
 Insect Powder will keep them away from 
 books, but only so long as it is renewed at 
 short intervals. 
 
 PLACING THE BOOKS IN THE SHELVES 
 
 Placing the The Chairman of the Society of Arts 
 Books in the Special Committee says on this point : 
 Shelves j t j s i m p Or tant that a just medium 
 should be observed between the close and 
 loose disposition of books in the shelves. 
 Tight packing causes the pulling off of 
 the tops of book-backs, injurious friction 
 between their sides, and undue pressure, 
 which tends to force off their backs. But 
 books should not stand loosely on the 
 shelves. They require support and moder- 
 ate lateral pressure, otherwise the leaves 
 are apt to open and admit dust, damp, and 
 mildew. The weight of the leaves also in 
 300
 
 good-sized volumes loosely placed will Placing the 
 often be found to be resting on the shelf, Bo ks ' m the 
 making the backs concave, and spoiling Shelves 
 the shape and cohesion of the books. 
 
 "In libraries where classification is at- 
 tempted there must be a certain number 
 of partially filled shelves. The books in 
 these should be kept in place by some such 
 device as that in use in the British Museum, 
 namely, a simple flat angle piece of galvan- 
 ised iron, on the lower flange of which the 
 end books rest, keeping it down, the up- 
 right flange keeping the books close and 
 preventing them from spreading." 
 
 He also speaks of the danger to bindings 
 of rough or badly-painted bookshelves : 
 
 " Great care should be exercised when 
 bookcases are painted or varnished that 
 the surface should be left hard, smooth, 
 and dry. Bindings, especially those of 
 delicate texture, may be irreparably rubbed 
 if brought in contact with rough or 
 coarsely-painted surfaces, while the paint 
 itself, years after its original application, 
 is liable to come off upon the books, leav- 
 ing indelible marks. In such cases paste- 
 board guards against the ends of the 
 shelves are the only remedy." 
 
 301
 
 CHAPTER XXII 
 
 To Preserve Old Bindings Re-backing 
 TO PRESERVE OLD BINDINGS 
 
 To Preserve IT is a well-known fact that the leather of 
 Old Bindings bindings that are much handled lasts very 
 much better than that on books which 
 remain untouched on the shelves. There 
 is little doubt that the reason for this is 
 that the slight amount of grease the 
 leather receives from the hands nourishes 
 it and keeps it flexible. A coating of 
 glair or varnish is found to some extent 
 to protect leather from adverse outside 
 influences, but, unfortunately, both glair 
 and varnish tend rather to harden leather 
 than to keep it flexible, and they fail just 
 where failure is most serious, .that is at 
 the joints. In opening and shutting, any 
 coat of glair or varnish that has become 
 hard will crack, and expose the leather of 
 the joint and back. Flexibility is an 
 essential quality in bookbinding leather, 
 for as soon as the leather at the joint of a 
 binding becomes stiff it breaks away when 
 the boards are opened. 
 302
 
 It would add immensely to the life of To Preserve 
 old leather bindings if librarians would have Old Bindings 
 them treated, say once a year, with some 
 preservative. The consequent expense 
 would be saved many times over by the 
 reduction of the cost of re-binding. Such 
 a preservative must not stain, must not 
 evaporate, must not become hard, and 
 must not be sticky. Vaseline has been 
 recommended, and answers fairly well, 
 but will evaporate, although slowly. I 
 have found that a solution of paraffin wax 
 in castor oil answers well. It is cheap and 
 very simple to prepare. To prepare it, 
 some castor oil is put into an earthenware 
 jar, and about half its weight of paraffin 
 wax shredded into it. On warming, the 
 wax will melt, and the preparation is 
 ready for use. 
 
 A little of the preparation is well 
 worked into a piece of flannel, and the 
 books rubbed with it, special attention 
 being paid to the back and joints. They 
 may be further rubbed with the hand, and 
 finally gone over with a clean, soft cloth. 
 Very little of the preparation need be 
 used on each book. 
 
 If bindings have projecting metal cor- 
 ners or clasps that are likely to scratch the 
 
 303
 
 To Preserve neighbouring books, pieces of millboard, 
 Old Bindings w hich may be lined with leather or good 
 paper, should be placed next them, or they 
 may have a cover made of a piece of mill- 
 board bent round as shown at fig. 120, and 
 strengthened at the folds with linen. This 
 may be slipped into the shelf with the 
 book with the open 
 end outwards, and 
 will then hardly be 
 seen. 
 
 Bindings which 
 have previously had 
 metal clasps, &c., 
 often have project- 
 ing fragments of the 
 old nails. These 
 should be sought for 
 and carefully re- 
 moved or driven in, 
 
 as they may seriously damage any bindings 
 with which they come in contact. 
 
 To protect valuable old bindings, cases 
 may be made and lettered on the back 
 with the title of the book. 
 
 Loose covers that necessitate the bend- 
 ing back of the boards for their removal 
 are not recommended. 
 
 FIG. 1 20. 
 
 304
 
 RE-BACKING 
 
 Bindings that have broken joints may Re-backing 
 be re-backed. Any of the leather of the 
 back that remains should be carefully 
 removed and preserved. It is impossible 
 to get some leathers off tight backs with- 
 out destroying them, but with care and 
 by the use of a thin folder, many backs 
 can be saved. The leather on the boards 
 is cut a little back from the joint with a 
 slanting cut, that will leave a thin edge, 
 and is then lifted up with a folder. New 
 leather, of the same colour is pasted on 
 the back, and tucked in under the old 
 leather on the board. The leather from 
 the old back should have its edges pared 
 and any lumps of glue or paper removed 
 and be pasted on to the new leather and 
 bound tightly with tape to make sure that 
 it sticks. 
 
 When the leather at the corners of the 
 board needs repairing, the corner is glued 
 and tapped with a hammer to make it 
 hard and square, and when it is dry a 
 little piece of new leather is slipped under 
 the old and the corner covered. 
 
 When the sewing cords or thread of a 
 20 305
 
 Re-backing book have perished it should be rebound, 
 but if there are any remains of the original 
 binding they should be preserved and 
 utilised. If the old boards have quite 
 perished, new boards of the same nature 
 and thickness should be got out and the 
 old cover pasted over them. Such places 
 as the old leather will not cover, must 
 first be covered with new of the same 
 colour. Generally speaking, it is desirable 
 that the characteristics of an old book 
 should be preserved, and that the new 
 work should be as little in evidence as 
 possible. It is far more pleasant to see 
 an old book in a patched contemporary 
 binding, than smug and tidy in the most 
 immaculate modern cover. 
 
 Part of the interest of any old book 
 is its individual history, which can be 
 gathered from the binding, book-plates, 
 marginal notes, names of former owners, 
 &c., and anything that tends to obliterate 
 these signs is to be deplored. 
 
 306
 
 SPECIFICATIONS
 
 SPECIFICATIONS 
 
 These specifications will require modification in special 
 
 
 I. 
 For Extra Binding suitable for 
 Valuable Books. Whole Leather. 
 
 II. 
 For Good Binding for 
 Books of Reference, Cat- 
 alogues, &c., and other 
 heavy Books that may 
 have a great deal of use. 
 Whole or Half Leather. 
 
 SHEETS. 
 
 To be carefully folded, or, if 
 an old book, all damaged leaves 
 to be carefully mended, the backs 
 where damaged to be made sound. 
 Single leaves to be guarded round 
 the sections next them. All 
 plates to be guarded. Guards to 
 be sewn through. No pasting on 
 or overcasting to be allowed. 
 
 As No. I., excepting 
 that any mending may 
 be done rather with a 
 view to strength than 
 extreme neatness. 
 
 END PAPERS. 
 
 To be sewn on. To be of good 
 paper made with zigzag, with 
 board papers of self-coloured paper 
 of good quality, or vellum. Or 
 to be made with leather joint. 
 
 To be of good paper 
 made with zigzag, with 
 board papers of self-col- 
 oured paper of good 
 quality. Large or heavy 
 books to have a cloth 
 joint. To be sewn on. 
 
 PRESSING. 
 
 Books on handmade paper not 
 to be pressed unduly. 
 
 Same as No. I. 
 
 EDGES. 
 
 To be trimmed and gilt before 
 sewing. To be uncut. 
 
 To be cut and gilt in 
 boards or coloured, or 
 to be uncut. 
 
 SEWING. 
 
 To be with ligature silk, flex- 
 ible, round five bands of best sew- 
 ing cord. 
 
 To be with un- 
 bleached thread, flex- 
 ible, round five bands 
 of best sewing cord. 
 
 BACK. 
 
 To be kept as flat as it can be 
 without forcing it and without 
 danger of its becoming concave 
 in use. 
 
 Same as for No. I. 
 
 308
 
 FOR BOOKBINDING. 
 
 cases, and are only intended to be a general guide. 
 
 III. 
 
 For Binding for Libraries, for Books in 
 current use. Half Leather. 
 
 IV. 
 For Library Bindings of Books of little 
 Interest or Value, Cloth or Half Linen. 
 
 Same as No. II. 
 
 Any leaves damaged at the back or 
 plates to be overcast into sections. 
 
 To be of good paper, sewn on, made 
 with zigzag. 
 
 Same as No. III. 
 
 Same as No. I. 
 
 
 To be uncut, or to be cut in guillo- 
 tine and gilt or coloured, or to have top 
 edge only gilt. 
 
 May be cut smooth in guillotine. 
 
 To be with unbleached thread across 
 not less than four unbleached linen 
 tapes. 
 
 With unbleached thread over three 
 unbleached linen tapes. 
 
 Same as for Nos. I. and II. 
 
 Back to be left square after glueing 
 up. 
 
 309
 
 SPECIFICATIONS FOR 
 
 
 I. 
 For Extra Binding suitable for 
 Valuable Books. Whole Leather. 
 
 II. 
 
 For Good Binding for 
 Books of Reference, Cat- 
 alogues, &c., and other 
 heavy Books that may 
 have a great deal of use. 
 Whole or Half Leather. 
 
 BOARDS. 
 
 To be of the best black mill- 
 board. Two boards to be made 
 together for large books, and all 
 five bands laced in throu . two 
 holes. 
 
 Same as No. I., or 
 may be of good grey 
 board. 
 
 HEADBANDS. 
 
 To be worked with silk on 
 strips of vellum or catgut or cord, 
 with frequent tie-downs. The 
 headbands to be " set * * by pieces 
 of good paper or leather glued at 
 head and tail. The back to be 
 lined up with leather all over if 
 the book is large. 
 
 Same as No. I. 
 
 COVERS. 
 
 Goat-skin (morocco), pigskin 
 or seal-skin manufactured accord- 
 ing to the recommendations of 
 the Society of Arts' Committee 
 on Leather for Bookbinding. 
 Whole binding ; leather to be at- 
 tached directly to the back. 
 
 Same as No I., ex- 
 cepting that properly 
 prepared sheepskin may 
 be added. Half-binding, 
 leather only at back. 
 Corners to be strength- 
 ened with tips of vellum. 
 Sides covered with good 
 paper or linen. 
 
 LETTERING. 
 
 To be legible and to identify 
 the volume. 
 
 Same as No. I. 
 
 DECORATION. 
 
 To be as much or as little as 
 the nature of the book warrants. 
 
 To be omitted, or 
 only to consist of a few 
 lines or dots or other 
 quite simple ornament. 
 
 
 All work to be done in the best 
 manner. 
 
 Work may be a little 
 rougher, but not care- 
 less or dirty. 
 
 310
 
 BOOKBINDING (continued'). 
 
 III. 
 
 For Binding for Libraries, for Books in 
 current use. Half Leather. 
 
 IV. 
 For Library Bindings of Books of little 
 Interest or Value, Cloth or Half Linen. 
 
 To be split grey boards, or straw- 
 board with black board liner, with ends 
 of tapes attached to portion of waste 
 sheet, inserted between them. Boards 
 to be left a short distance from the joint 
 to form a French joint. 
 
 To be split boards, two straw- 
 boards made together and ends of slips 
 inserted. French joint to be left. 
 
 To be worked with thread or vellum 
 or cord, or to be omitted and a piece of 
 cord inserted into the turn in of the 
 leather at head and tail in their place. 
 
 No headbands. 
 
 Same as Nos. I. and II., but skins 
 may be used where there are surface 
 flaws that do not affect the strength. 
 Leather to be used thicker than is 
 usual, there being French joints. 
 Leather at back only ; paper sides ; 
 vellum tips. 
 
 Whole buckram or half linen and 
 paper sides. 
 
 Same as Nos. I. and II. 
 
 Same as Nos. I. II. and III. 
 
 To be omitted. 
 
 To be omitted. 
 
 Same as No. II. 
 
 Same as No. II. 
 
 3 11
 
 GLOSSARY 
 
 Arming press, a small blocking press used for striking Glossary 
 
 arms-blocks on the sides of books. 
 Backing boards, wedge-shaped bevelled boards used in 
 
 backing (see Fig. 40). 
 Backing machine, used for backing cheap work in large 
 
 quantities ; it often crushes and damages the backs 
 
 of the sections. 
 Bands, ( I ) the cords on which a book is sewn. 
 
 (2) The ridges on the back caused by the bands 
 
 showing through the leather. 
 
 Band nippers, pincers with flat jaws, used for straight- 
 ening the bands (see Fig. 61). For nipping up 
 
 the leather after covering, they should be nick- 
 
 elled to prevent the iron staining the leather. 
 Beating stone, the "stone" on which books were 
 
 formerly beaten ; now generally superseded by 
 
 the rolling machine and standing press. 
 Blind tooling, the impression of finishing tools without 
 
 gold. 
 Blocking press, a press used for impressing blocks such 
 
 as those used in decorating cloth cases. 
 Board papers, the part of the end papers pasted on to 
 
 the boards. 
 Bodkin, an awl used for making the holes in the boards 
 
 for the slips. 
 
 Bolt, folded edge of the sheets in an unopened book. 
 Cancels, leaves containing errors, which have to be
 
 Glossary discarded and replaced by corrected sheets. Such 
 
 leaves are marked by the printer with a star. 
 Catch-word, a word printed at the foot of one page 
 
 indicating the first word of the page following, as 
 
 a guide in collaring. 
 Cutting boards, wedge-shaped boards somewhat like 
 
 backing boards, but with the top edge square ; 
 
 used in cutting the edge of a book and in edge- 
 gilding. 
 Cutting in boards, cutting the edges of a book after the 
 
 boards are laced on. 
 Cutting press, when the lying press is turned, so that 
 
 the side with the runners is uppermost, it is called 
 
 a cutting press (see Fig. 46). 
 Diaper, a term applied to a small repeating all-over 
 
 pattern. From woven material decorated in this 
 
 way. 
 Doublure, the inside face of the boards, especially 
 
 applied to them when lined with leather and 
 
 decorated. 
 End papers, papers added at the beginning and end of 
 
 a book by the binder. 
 
 Extra binding, a trade term for the best work. 
 Finishing, comprises lettering, tooling, and polishing, &c. 
 Finishing press, a small press used for holding books 
 
 when they are being tooled (see Fig. 84). 
 Finishing stove, used for heating finishing tools. 
 Folder, a flat piece of ivory or bone, like a paper 
 
 knife, used in folding sheets and in various other 
 
 operations. 
 Foredge (fore edge), the front edge of the leaves. 
 
 Pronounced "forrege." 
 
 Forwarding, comprises all the operations between sew- 
 ing and finishing, excepting head-banding. 
 Gathering, collecting one sheet from each pile in a 
 
 printer's warehouse to make up a volume. 
 
 3H
 
 Glair e, white of eggs beaten up, and used in finishing Glossary 
 and edge gilding. 
 
 Half binding, when the leather covers the back and only 
 part of the sides, a book is said to be half bound. 
 
 Head band, a fillet of silk or thread, worked at the 
 head and tail of the back. 
 
 Head cap, the fold of leather over the head band 
 (see Fig. 67). 
 
 Head and tail, the top and bottom of a book. 
 
 Imperfections, sheets rejected by the binder and re- 
 turned to the printer to be replaced. 
 
 India proofs, strictly first proofs only of an illustration 
 pulled on "India paper," but used indiscrim- 
 inately for all illustrations printed on India paper. 
 
 Inset, the portion of a sheet cut off and inserted in 
 folding certain sizes, such as duodecimo, &c. (see 
 
 Fi g- 4)- 
 Inside margins, the border made by the turn in of 
 
 the leather on the inside face of the boards (see 
 
 Fig. 1 1 6). 
 Joints, ( I ) the groove formed in backing to receive 
 
 the ends of the millboards. ( 2 ) The part of the 
 
 binding that bends when the boards are opened. 
 
 (3) Strips of leather or cloth used to strengthen 
 
 the end papers. 
 " Kettle stitch,' 1 '' catch stitch formed in sewing at the 
 
 head and tail. 
 Lacing in, lacing the slips through holes in the boards 
 
 to attach them. 
 Lying press, the term applied to the under side of the 
 
 cutting press used for backing, usually ungram- 
 matically called "laying press." 
 Marbling, colouring the edges and end papers in various 
 
 patterns, obtained by floating colours on a gum 
 
 solution. 
 Millboard machine, machine used for squaring boards ; 
 
 315
 
 Glossary should only be used for cheap work, as an edge 
 
 cut by it will not be as square as if cut by the 
 plough. 
 
 Mitring, ( I ) lines meeting at a right angle without 
 overrunning are said to be mitred. ( 2 ) A join 
 at 45 as in the leather on the inside of the 
 boards. 
 
 Overcasting, over-sewing the back edges of single 
 leaves or weak sections. 
 
 Peel, a thin board on a handle used for hanging up 
 sheets for drying. 
 
 Plate, an illustration printed from a plate. Term often 
 incorrectly applied to illustrations printed from 
 woodcuts. Any full-page illustration printed 
 on different paper to the book is usually called a 
 plate." 
 
 Pressing plates, plates of metal japanned or nickelled, 
 used for giving finish to the leather on a book. 
 
 Press pin, an iron bar used for turning the screws of 
 presses. 
 
 Proof, edges left uncut as "proof" that the book has 
 not been unduly cut down. 
 
 Register, (i. ) when the print on one side of a leaf falls 
 exactly over that on the other it is said to re- 
 gister, (ii. ) Ribbon placed in a book as a marker. 
 
 Rolling machine, a machine in which the sheets of a 
 book are subject to heavy pressure by being passed 
 between rollers. 
 
 Sawing in, when grooves are made in the back with a 
 saw to receive the bands. 
 
 Section, the folded sheet. 
 
 Semee or Semis, an heraldic term signifying sprinkled. 
 
 Set off, print is said to "set off" when part of the ink 
 from a page comes off on an opposite page. This 
 will happen if a book is pressed too soon after 
 printing. 
 316
 
 Sheet, the full size of the paper as printed, forming a Glossary 
 section when folded. 
 
 Signature, the letter or figure placed on the first page 
 of each sheet. 
 
 Slips, the ends of the sewing cord or tape that are at- 
 tached to the boards. 
 
 Squares, the portion of the boards projecting beyond 
 the edges of the book. 
 
 Start, when, after cutting, one or more sections of the 
 book come forward, making the fore edge ir- 
 regular, they are said to have started. 
 
 Straight edge, a flat ruler. 
 
 Tacky, sticky. 
 
 T.E.G., top-edge gilt. 
 
 Trimmed. The edges of a book are said to be 
 trimmed when the edges of the larger (or pro- 
 jecting) leaves only have been cut. 
 
 Tub, the stand which supports the lying press. Origi- 
 nally an actual tub to catch the shavings. 
 
 Uncut, a book is said to be uncut when the edges of 
 the paper have not been cut with the plough or 
 guillotine. 
 
 Unopened, the book is said to be unopened if the bolts 
 of the sheets have not been cut. 
 
 Waterproof sheets, sheets of celluloid such as are used 
 by photographers. 
 
 Whole binding, when the leather covers the back and 
 sides of a volume. 
 
 Wire staples are used by certain machines in the place 
 of thread for securing the sections. 
 
 Groove, that part of the sections which is turned over 
 in backing to receive the board. 
 
 317
 
 REPRODUCTIONS OF BINDINGS 
 
 I., II., AND III. 
 
 FIFTEENTH CENTURY BLIND-TOOLED BINDINGS 
 
 IV. 
 
 SIXTEENTH CENTURY BINDING WITH SIMPLE GOLD- 
 TOOLING 
 
 V., VI., VII., AND VIII. 
 MODERN BINDINGS DESIGNED BY THE AUTHOR
 
 I. German Fifteenth Century. Pigskin. Actual size, 8}" x 6\".
 
 II. German Fifteenth Century. Calf. Actual size, izj" x 8J".
 
 
 III. Italian Fifteenth Century. Sheepskin, with coloured roundels. 
 Actual size, ni" x 8J".
 
 IV. Italian Sixteenth Century. Actual size, i2.$"x 8J". Goatskin.
 
 V. Half Niger morocco, with sides of English oak. 
 Actual size, i7"xnj".
 
 VI. Niger morocco, inlaid green leaves. Actual size, 8}"
 
 VIII. Niger morocco, executed by a student of the Central 
 School of Arts and Crafts. Actual size, ii|" x gj".
 
 INDEX
 
 INDEX 
 
 Index ARMING PRESS, 229, 313 
 Arms blocks, 228 
 Art paper, 48, 282 
 Autograph letters, 179 
 
 BACKING, 117 
 
 Backing hammer, 123 
 
 Back, lining up, 152 
 
 Band nippers, 160, 163 
 
 Bands, 313 
 
 Bandstick, 1 60 
 
 Beating, 90 
 
 Beating stone, 90, 313 
 
 Benzine, 207, 209 
 
 Binding, decoration of, 21, 30, 
 
 188,233 
 Binding, collotype reproductions 
 
 of, 321-336 
 
 Binding, embroidered, 186 
 Binding early printed books, 
 
 3i, 46, "3 
 Binding, extra, 308 
 Binding, jewelled, 263 
 Binding, library, 27, 173, 308 
 Binding, manuscripts, 31, 108, 
 
 113, 125, 135, 223 
 Binding, metal-covered, 263 
 Binding, vellum, 180 
 Binding very thin books, 177 
 Blind tooling, 1 88, 222 
 Blocking press, 229, 313 
 Blocks, striking, 229 
 
 338 
 
 Boards, 124 
 
 Boards, attaching, 132 
 
 Boards, cutting, 125 
 
 Boards, tilling in, 170 
 
 Boards, lining, 129 
 
 Boards, pressing, 193, 210 
 
 Boards, split, 28, 175, 311 
 
 Bodkin, 114 
 
 Bookbinding as a profession, 32 
 
 Books in sheets, 34 
 
 Bookworms, 297 
 
 Borders, designing, 240 
 
 Borders, inside, 253 
 
 CALF, 27, 277 
 Cancelled sheets, 43 
 Cased books, 19, 49 
 Castor oil, 303 
 Catch stitch, 99 
 Catch words, 314 
 Celluloid, sheets of, 161 
 Centres, designing, 241 
 Chrome leather, 276 
 Clasps and ties, 183, 259 
 Cleaning off back, 137 
 Cloth casing, 19, 49 
 Cloth joints, 86, 257 
 Cobden-Sanderson, T. J., xii., 
 
 22 
 
 Cockroaches, 300 
 Cocoanut oil, 200 
 Collating, 43
 
 Colouring edges, 144 
 
 Combining tools to form pat- 
 terns, 232 
 
 Compasses, 131 
 
 Cord sewing, ill 
 
 Corners, mitring, 165, 1 68 
 
 Cousin, Jules, 74, 299 
 
 Covering, 23, 159, 176, 310 
 
 Crushing the grain of leather, 
 192 
 
 Cutting in boards, 139 
 
 Cutting millboards, 124 
 
 Cutting press, 128 
 
 DAMP, effect of, on bindings, 
 
 294 
 Decoration of bindings, 21, 30, 
 
 188, 233 
 
 Designing tools, 230 
 Diaper patterns, 236 
 Dividers, 51 
 Dots, striking, 205 
 Doubluves, 253, 314 
 Dressing for old bindings, 302 
 Dust and dusting, 296 
 
 EARLY printed books, binding, 
 
 31, 46, 113 
 Edge colouring, 144 
 Edge gauffering, 144 
 Edge gilding, 95, 144 
 Edge sizing, 95, 146 
 Edges, painted, 146 
 Embroidered bindings, 1 86 
 End papers, 80, 254 
 End, painted, 83 
 End, vellum, 84 
 Ends, silk, 84 
 Entering, 33 
 
 Evelyn's Diary (quotation), 282 
 "Extra" binding, 308, 314 
 
 FALSE bands, 26 
 Fillet, 190, 206 
 
 Fillet, small, 206, 246 
 Filling in boards, 1 70 
 Finishing, 191 
 Finishing press, 194 
 Finishing tools, 188 
 Finishing stove, 195 
 Flattening vellum, 65 
 Folder, 164 
 Folding, 36 
 Fraying out slips, 114 
 French joint, 1 76 
 French paring knife, 156 
 French standing press, 91 
 
 GAS fumes, effect of, 291 
 
 Gathering, 35 
 
 Gauffering edges, 144 
 
 Gelatine, 70 
 
 Gilding edges, 95, 144 
 
 Gilt top, 92 
 
 Glaire, 97, 198 
 
 Glass, tinted, for libraries, 292 
 
 Glossary, 313 
 
 Glue, 289 
 
 Glueing up, 115 
 
 Goatskin, 277 
 
 Gold cushion, 200 
 
 Gold leaf, 199 
 
 Gold knife, 200 
 
 Gold, net for, 96 
 
 Gold, pad for, 201 
 
 Gold tooling, 188, 191 
 
 Gouges, 189, 205, 247 
 
 Groove (see Joint) 
 
 Guarding, 42, 53 
 
 Guarding plates, 50, 56, 316 
 
 HAMMER, backing, 123 
 Hand-made paper, 280 
 Headbanding, 108, 147, 176 
 Headcaps, 156, 166 
 Heat, effect of, on bindings, 
 
 295 
 Heraldry on bindings, 227 
 
 339 
 
 Index
 
 Index Hinging plates, 57 
 
 Hollow backs, 25, 185 
 
 IMPERFECTIONS, 35 
 India proofs, soaking off, 62 
 India proofs, mounting, 63 
 Indiarubber for gold, 207 
 Inlaying leather, 213, 232, 
 
 243 
 
 Inlaying leaves or plates, 64 
 Inset, 40, 315 
 Inside margins, 253 
 
 JACONET, 60, 64 
 Japanese paper, 282 
 Japanese vellum, 282 
 Jewelled bindings, 263 
 Joint, 165, 169 
 Joint, cloth, 86, 257 
 Joint, French, 176 
 Joint, knocking out, 53 
 Joint, leather, 86, 171 
 
 KETTLE stitch, 49, 99, 105 
 Keys, sewing, 101 
 Knife, mountcutters', 54 
 Knife, French paring, 156 
 Knife, gold, 200 
 Knife, plough, 129, 139 
 Knocking down iron, 53, 134 
 Knocking out joints, 5 3 
 Knot, 100, 1 06 
 
 LACING in slips, 132 
 
 Lay cords, 100 
 
 Laying press (see Lying press) 
 
 Leather, 27, 263 
 
 Leather, chrome, 276 
 
 Leather, crushing grain of, 192 
 
 Leather, inlaying, 213, 232, 
 
 243 
 
 Leather joints, 86, 171 
 Leather, paring, 154 
 Leather, polishing, 191 
 
 340 
 
 Leather, sprinkling and mar- 
 bling, 27, 279 
 
 Leather, stretching, 23, 161 
 
 Leather, testing, 274 
 
 Leather work, 226 
 
 Leaves, inlaying, 64 
 
 Lettering, 28, 215, 246 
 
 Letters, autograph, 179 
 
 Library binding, 27, 173, 308 
 
 Light, effect of, on leather, 
 292 
 
 Lining up back, 152 
 
 Lithographic stone, 157, 160 
 
 Loose covers, 304 
 
 Lying press, 128 
 
 MANUSCRIPTS, binding of, 31, 
 
 108, 113, 125, 135, 223 
 Manuscripts, collating, 46 
 Maps, throwing out, 60 
 Marbled paper, 83 
 Margins, inside, 253 
 Marking up, 98 
 Materials for sewing, III 
 Mending, 76 
 Mending tooling, 208 
 Mending vellum, 79 
 Metal on bindings, 262 
 Millboards, 124 
 Millboard machine, 127, 315 
 Millboard shears, 126 
 Mitring comers, 165, 1 68 
 Morocco, 277 
 Morocco, " Persian," 271 
 Mount-cutters' knife, 54 
 Mounting India-proofs, 63 
 Mounting very thin paper, 63 
 
 NET for gilding edges, 96 
 Niger morocco, 278 
 Nipping press, 211 
 Nippers, band, 160, 163 
 
 OIL, cocoanut, 200
 
 Opening newly-bound books, 
 
 Press, finishing, 194 
 
 257 
 
 Press, lying, 128 
 
 Overcasting, 51 
 
 Press, nipping, an 
 
 " Overs," 35 
 
 Press pin, 316 
 
 Oxalic acid, use of, 173 
 
 Press, sewing (see Sewing 
 
 
 frame) 
 
 PAD for gold, 201 
 
 Press, standing, 88 
 
 Paging, 44 
 
 Pressing boards, 193, 2IO 
 
 Painted edges, 146 
 
 Pressing in boards, 138 
 
 Painted end papers, 83 
 
 Pressing plates, 192, 316 
 
 Pallets, 189 
 
 Pressing sections, 87 
 
 Paper, 280 
 
 "Proof," 316 
 
 Paper, art, 48, 283 
 
 Publishers' binding, 20 
 
 Paper, hand-made, 280 
 
 Pulling to pieces, 46 
 
 Paper, Japanese, 282 
 
 
 Paper, marbled, 83 
 
 QUARTER sections, 42 
 
 Paper, sizes of, 36, 283 
 
 Quires, books in, 34 
 
 Paper, sizing, 67 
 
 
 Paper, splitting, 63 
 
 RATS and mice, 299 
 
 Paper, washing, 71 
 
 Re-backing, 305 
 
 Paraffin wax, 303 
 
 Re-binding, 1 8, 306 
 
 Paring leather, 154 
 
 Re-folding, 51 
 
 Paring paper, 6 1 
 
 Register of printing, 52, 316 
 
 Paring stone, 157, 1 60 
 
 Representations of bindings, 
 
 Pastes, 286 
 
 321-336 
 
 Paste water, 198 
 
 Roll, 190 
 
 Pasting down end papers, 254 
 
 Rounding, 117 
 
 Patterns, 232 
 
 
 "Peel," 316 
 
 SAWING in, 20, 25, 100, 108 
 
 Permanent binding, 19 
 
 Scrap books, 178 
 
 "Persian" morocco, 271 
 
 Sealskin, 278 
 
 Pigskin, 278 
 
 Sections, pressing, 87 
 
 Plates, detaching, 48 
 
 Sewing, 100 
 
 Plates, guarding, 56 
 
 Sewing cord, III 
 
 Plates, hinging, 57 
 
 Sewing frame, loo 
 
 Plates, inlaying, 64 
 
 Sewing keys, 101 
 
 Plates, trimming, 40 
 
 Sewing on tapes, 26, III, 174 
 
 Plough, 128 
 
 Sewing on vellum slips, III,' 
 
 Plough knife, 129, 139 
 
 til 
 
 Polishing, 191 
 
 Sewing silk, 112 
 
 Preserving old bindings, 302 
 
 Sewing, tape for, 112 
 
 Press, arming, 229, 313 
 
 Sewing thread, 112 
 
 Press, blocking, 229, 313 
 
 Sheepskin, 277-308 
 
 Press, cutting, 128 
 
 Sheets, books in, 34 
 
 341 
 
 Index
 
 Index Sheets, waterproof, 161 
 
 Signatures, 34, 43 
 
 Silk ends, 84 
 
 Silk sewing, 112 
 
 Sizes of paper, 36, 283 
 
 Sizing, 67 
 
 Sizing edges, 95-146 
 
 Sizing leather, 198 
 
 Sizing paper, 67 
 
 Slips, 317 
 
 Slips, fraying out, 1 14 
 
 Slips, lacing in, 132 
 
 Soaking off India proofs, 62 
 
 Society of Arts, Report of 
 Committee on Leather for 
 Bookbinding, 22, 264 
 
 Society of Arts, Report of 
 Committee on Paper, 284 
 
 Specifications, 308 
 
 Split boards, 28, 175, 311 
 
 Splitting paper, 63 
 
 Sprinkling leather, 27, 279 
 
 Squares, 131, 153, 317 
 
 Standing press, 88 
 
 Standing press, French, 89, 
 
 9' 
 
 Staples, wire, 49 
 
 " Starred " sheets, 43 
 
 Stove, finishing, 195 
 
 Stone, lithographic, 157, 160 
 
 Striking dots, 205 
 
 Striking tools, 204 
 
 TAPE, sewing on, 26, 112, 
 
 74 
 
 Temporary binding, 20 
 Testing leather, 274 
 
 Thin books, binding, 177 
 Thin paper, mounting, 63 
 Thread, sewing, 112 
 Throwing out maps, 60 
 Ties and clasps, 183, 259 
 Tobacco smoke, effect of, on 
 
 binding, 294 
 Tooling, blind, 188, 222 
 Tooling, gold, 24, 1 8 8, 191 
 Tooling on vellum, 212 
 Tools, designing, 188, 230 
 Tools, finishing, 188, 230 
 Training for bookbinding, 32 
 Trimming before sewing, 93 
 Trimming machine, 94 
 Trimming plates, 40 
 Tub, 317 
 Tying up, 167 
 
 VARNISH, 209 
 Vellum binders, 26 
 Vellum bindings, 180 
 Vellum ends, 84 
 Vellum, flattening, 65 
 Vellum, Japanese, 282 
 Vellum, mending, 79 
 Vellum slips, sewing on, ill, 
 
 183 
 Vellum tooling on, 212 
 
 WALKER, Emery, 216 
 Washing, 71 
 Waterproof sheets, 161 
 Weaver's knot, 1 06 
 Wooden boards, 32, 135, 223, 
 
 330 
 Worm holes, 78, 297 
 
 (3) 
 
 342
 
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