PROCESSES
The processes of bookbinding have been so fully covered in the books of Messrs. Cockerell, Zaehnsdorf, Crane, and others, that the need of further material of a similar character is not readily apparent. The only excuse the writer has to offer for discussing the matter of processes at any length is that there seems to exist nowhere any description of the processes that are used in the best library binderies. Mr. Dana in his "Notes on bookbinding for libraries" touches only certain points of the processes here and there. Mr. Stephen in Coutts and Stephen's "Manual of library binding" has a chapter on hand bookbinding, but confines himself closely to the general processes that have been in vogue for years; the modifications used in library binding are not touched upon. In other words the works of Cockerell, Zaehnsdorf, Crane and others are too full, while descriptions in books devoted to library binding are not full enough.
It is the purpose of this chapter to cover somewhat in detail the main processes as they are carried out in the best library binderies. Explanations of the technical terms used will be found in the list of technical terms at the end of the book.
Without discussing the composition of paper it is necessary to state that the paper of a book has a very important effect upon its binding. Its thickness, tensile strength, firmness, toughness, strength after being sawed or perforated for sewing, and strength after folding, all have an effect on its durability. Especial emphasis must be laid upon strength after folding, for it must be remembered that it is through the fold that the book is sewed. If a crease or a fold in a piece of paper weakens that piece of paper, it will be impossible to make a strong book by sewing in the ordinary way. If a fold has very little effect upon the strength of the paper ordinary sewing may be satisfactory. The folding of paper in 95 per cent of fiction and juvenile books weakens it at the fold over 50 per cent. In a good piece of paper the fold weakens it not over 5 per cent.
The problem of paper is a modern one, due to the use of wood pulp and other short-fibred materials in paper manufacture. All binders complain bitterly of the impossibility of binding it properly. The librarian, however, should know the way in which it can be bound to give the maximum amount of service and should not allow a binder to blame the paper for faults which are due to his ignorance or to poor workmanship.
While the customs of library binders vary somewhat according to the prejudices of the different men, the following description covers the binding processes carried out at most binderies.
After the books have been checked with the statement of the librarian to see that the correct number has been received, each one is taken apart carefully and all old threads, glue, paste, etc., removed from the back. If the book is in a regular machine sewed publisher's cover it will be comparatively easy to remove old threads and glue from the back. If in an old hand sewed one, it may be a little more difficult.
The book is first removed from the cover. The first signature is then turned back and threads cut with a sharp knife. Generally this will loosen the signature so that it can be separated easily from the rest of the volume. If it is still held by glue and there is danger of injuring the back of the signature, a bone folder is used. If the book had a tight back and the leather, back-lining paper and glue form a very firm back not easily separated in the manner described, the glue may be softened with paste or warm water, with care necessary to prevent the dampness from penetrating the book.
2. Collation
The book should then be collated. The best library binders make themselves responsible for page collation but they do not bother to see that all plates, illustrations, maps, etc., which may be called for by the table of contents, are in proper place. In the case of periodicals they do not always discover the fact that certain parts, not included in the main paging, are missing. Their collation is that of main paging only. Periodicals must, therefore, have title page, table of contents and index in their proper places. Books with two or more main pagings or many unpaged illustrations must be collated at the library. (See Preparing for the bindery, [p. 125.])
3. Knocking Down
(a) Backs of signatures are then pounded down so that they may be as nearly as possible the same thickness as the front of the signatures. Care must be taken to have a clean hammer and to let it fall evenly on the paper. If the backs are not properly pounded down there is likely to be too much swell in the back of the book when it is finally sewed. In all the first processes of binding the question of undue swelling of the back must be taken into consideration.
(b) If the book must be overcast when it comes to be sewed, the back is not only pounded down at this stage, but it is also put under the knife and entirely cut off, leaving single leaves instead of folded sections. If it is not pounded it cannot be cut properly. The success of overcasting depends largely on the amount of margin at the back, so that care must be taken not to cut more than is absolutely necessary.
4. Mending
Leaves are mended with thin tough paper. The librarian should not, however, expect binders to mend books which have a large number of torn leaves without making an extra charge.
Books which are to be overcast and which have had the backs cut off are slightly glued to hold the leaves together. A sufficient number can then be taken off and handled as a section without coming apart.
6. Fly Leaves Guarded
Fly-leaves, made of kraft or manila paper running about 60 pounds to the ream, which have previously been guarded with cloth are added to the book. In guarding, a strip of cloth is pasted around the back of the folded fly-leaf covering about one quarter of an inch on each side. When the book is sewed the needle passes through the cloth as well as the paper. Different binders use different materials for guarding fly-leaves, end papers and signatures. It must, however, be a cloth of close weave, strong, and light in weight. The English cloth called jaconet, used by some binders, is probably as satisfactory as any.
This is one part of library binding which differs radically from the custom in ordinary hand work. Old-fashioned binders, unless properly instructed, will simply fold a piece of paper, and tip it on to the first and last signatures with paste, thus forming an element of weakness instead of strength. When the fly-leaves are guarded and properly sewed they become an integral part of the book and no tipping is necessary.
7. Sections Guarded
At this point it is also necessary to guard the first and last signatures of books which are to be sewed in the regular way. Overcast books do not need such guards.
Guarding of first and last signatures is another of the distinctive features of library binding. In the case of books bound in the regular fashion the sewing invariably first gives way at the first and last signatures. Guarding with jaconet prevents the threads which lie in the middle of the signatures from pulling through the paper. This method is essential if it is supposed that the book will be much used. It is not essential for books which will be used only occasionally.
8. Illustrations Guarded
Illustrations are guarded with a thin, tough paper, not with cloth. The guard folds around an adjoining signature and is sewed through.
9. Sawing
If the book is not to be overcast, it is screwed tightly into the backing-press and sawed to make the grooves in which the bands or twines are laid when the book is sewed. Grooves for three bands must be made for books eight inches high, four for twelve-inch books and five for fifteen-inch books. For fiction two bands are used. There must also be two additional grooves, much shallower than the others, about one half inch from the head and tail of the book for the kettlestitch.
After the grooves for kettlestitch have been sawed the two grooves for bands will divide the rest of the back into three equal parts. For fine work it is necessary to measure the book carefully and mark with a pencil; but in most library work measurement by the eye alone is sufficient. In sawing, care must be taken not to saw too deeply, since too deep a cut allows the signature to play back and forth and is plainly visible inside.
There are some good library binders who overcast books in the modern way, and yet who sew on bands. Such binders will at this point saw all books. There are also some good library binders who use no bands when overcasting and who sew all other books on tapes. These binders omit sawing.
10. End Papers Added
At this point it is best to add end papers. These are always guarded on the outside of the fold and sometimes on the inside. They should be made of good, strong paper somewhat heavier than that used for fly-leaves. Some binders have special papers made to order with a design which serves as a trade mark. End papers, in the same way as fly-leaves, are prepared with guards in quantity and simply need to be trimmed to the size of the book. They are not added at the same time as fly-leaves because they must not be sawed. If this is done the holes show through after the end paper is pasted down.
11. Sewing
Regular or Bench Sewing. When the signatures are ready for sewing, twines (or "bands" as they are commonly called) are stretched taut on the sewing bench and adjusted so that they will fit into the saw-cuts in signatures. (Fig. 1.)
Figure 1.—Sewing bench showing bands adjusted.
Figure 2.—Sewing on sunken cords. Based on illustration in Report of the Committee on Bookbinding. Edited for Society of Arts, London, 1905.
The book is placed back of the sewing bench with the fore-edge toward the sewer and with the first section on top. The first section (i. e. the end paper) to be sewed is then turned over, opened in the middle by the left hand, and placed on the sewing bench. The sewer, as she faces toward the right, with the right hand passes the needle from the outside through the sawcut for the kettlestitch, where it is taken by the left hand along the inside of the section and passed out on the near side of the first band, then in again on the far side of the first band, along the inside of the section to the second band, where the process is repeated; and so on, bringing the needle out in the far kettlestitch. (Fig. 2.) The thread is pulled tight at each stitch and about two inches of thread is allowed to hang from the first kettlestitch. In some few cases it may be advisable to bring the needle out on the far side of the band and in again on the near side, thus entirely encircling the band with the thread. The next section (i. e. the fly-leaves) is then laid on and the process repeated, except that the sewing proceeds from the far end to the near end. When the thread is brought out of the kettle stitch of the second section the end of the thread left projecting from the first section is securely tied to it, and the sewer proceeds with the third section. This will be the first signature of the book. On reaching the last sawcut at the far end in the third section the needle is put between the second and first sections carrying the thread down in such a way as to form a buttonhole stitch. (Fig. 3.)
Figure 3.—Kettle stitch.
All other signatures are sewed in the same way, the last section sewed being securely fastened to the others. It is possible to sew a number of books one after another without removing them from the sewing-bench. If the back swells unduly the sections can be pounded down with a piece of wood, care being taken not to drive them inward. The sewing should be neither too loose nor too tight. If too loose a firm, compact book cannot be made; if too tight the threads may break in the process of backing. Bands are allowed to project about an inch on each side of the book.
Formerly it was the practice of some binders to sew in a way technically called "two-on." This simply means that the sewer when reaching the middle of the signature, passes the needle into the corresponding sawcut of the signature above and sews through to the other end. This always leaves an end of a signature unsewed. This way of sewing is permissible on books which have a large number of thin signatures, in order to prevent the thread from unduly swelling the back. It is never permissible on other books.
The foregoing account gives a very brief description of ordinary sewing. It is easily understood when once seen. Librarians who have charge of binding should keep the process thoroughly in mind for it is the most important single process in the making of a book. Such sewing will be used on a large number of books which have to be rebound, but a still larger number, practically all fiction and juvenile books, should be sewed in a different manner; that is, with some kind of an overcast stitch.
Overcasting. The modern overcasting stitch resembles in principle the old-fashioned whipstitching, but differs radically in actual performance. It is exceedingly strong, while the old-fashioned whipstitching is not. It has been objected that modern overcasting takes away much of the flexibility of a book and that books once sewed in this way can never be rebound. It is true that an oversewed book is not as flexible as one sewed through the signatures, yet most of them are more flexible than one might suppose. It is also true that the book can never be rebound, but if the overcasting is properly done, the sewing will last until the book is discarded. It is for this reason that it is used on practically all fiction and juvenile books.
According to the old-fashioned method of whipstitching it was the custom to cut off the backs of signatures, glue them slightly, take a few leaves and sew them over and over making five or six stitches to a section, as shown in Figure 4. The next section was then sewed in the same way, but it was not joined in any way to the section beneath except by the kettlestitch and occasionally by a little paste. When sewed in this way the leaves inside of each arbitrary section would open only as far back as the threads of the stitches, while between the sections the book would open to the back of the section. If paste had been used the strain of opening tended to pull the leaves apart. If the book was subjected to hard wear the thread cut into the paper.
Figure 4.—Old-fashioned whipstitching. Each section is sewed separately.
Today every progressive library binder has a special method of overcasting and each claims that his method is the best. Librarians, however, can see many points of resemblance between them, and few points of difference. In actual wearing qualities the sewing of one seems as good as that of another. When properly done the sewing prescribed by all of the methods is still in good condition when the books have to be withdrawn from circulation.
In overcasting, as in old-fashioned whipstitching, the sewer selects a certain number of sheets for sewing. Bands are placed on the sewing-bench as in regular sewing, though some binders claim that it is not necessary to sew either on bands or tapes. The sections are first perforated by a machine to facilitate the work of the sewer and to insure that all stitches shall be equidistant from the back of the book. So far as is known no machine for this purpose is on the market. It is certain, however, that the best binders have machines for this purpose. They have either designed their own machines or have adapted those made for other purposes. If the book is printed on thick, spongy paper it will increase flexibility if the paper is creased along the line of perforation.
Figure 5.—One kind of modern overcast stitch. There are others equally good. Note that each stitch extends through two sections.
It is difficult to give a description of modern overcasting which can be easily understood by one unfamiliar with sewing processes. The reader will be helped by looking closely at Figure 5 while reading the following description, but one can understand it best by seeing it done or by tearing a book apart and examining the sewing.
The first section of the book is sewed over and over in the same way as in the old-fashioned method of whipstitching, except that a great many more stitches are taken. The second section, when placed on the first, is also sewed over and over but a certain number of stitches are also made which connect the second section with the first. In the same way the third section is sewed to the second and so on through the book, so that when the book is finally sewed it is tight and compact; its weakness lies in the paper itself, not in the sewing. Some binders add three kettlestitches at the end of the book instead of one, believing that when all kettlestitches are placed in one sawcut the swell at the head and tail of the book is too great.
Figure 6.—From "About Public Library Books and Their Binding" by Cedric Chivers.
Figure 7.—Sewing on tapes. Sawcuts made only for kettle stitches. Based on illustration in Report of the Committee on Leather for Bookbinding. Edited for Society of Arts, London, 1905.
Overcasting is the most expensive way of sewing a book, so that it is advantageous to binders to place as large a number of leaves as possible in a section. The more careful binders, however, regulate the number of leaves in a section according to the kind of paper in the book. A larger number of leaves can be taken in books printed on thin paper than in those printed on thick, spongy or heavy papers.
Figure 8.—Stitching.
In deciding how a book ought to be sewed one must consider: (a) The use the book is to receive. If it will not receive hard usage sew through the signatures; otherwise overcast. (b) Paper on which the book is printed. Poor paper should be oversewed. (Fig. 6.)
Tapes. When it does not seem necessary to overcast it may be advantageous to sew on tapes instead of bands. This method eliminates saw-cuts since the narrow tapes are simply laid against the back of the book and the needle passed around them, as indicated in Figure 7. Sewing on tapes makes a book much more flexible than it can be made any other way except by sewing on raised bands. Music should always be sewed in this way. Until recently it was supposed that tapes added strength, but it is certain that they do not if the book is properly bound in other respects. If used at all, tapes should be narrow. Wide ones take up a great deal of surface and when glue is applied this surface remains untouched, unless the sewer has sewed through them instead of around them.
Stitching. Stitching is the process of sewing loose leaves lengthwise on a sewing machine, after which the stitched sections are sewed in the regular way on bands. (Fig. 8.) The objection made to old-fashioned whipstitching, that between the sections the book opens all the way to the back while inside the section it opens only as far as the threads, is equally applicable to a stitched book. Any one who has read a book sewed in this way will remember how difficult it was to hold in the hands. Stitching makes a stronger book than the old-fashioned whipstitching but cannot compare in strength with the modern overcasting. In some few cases it may be used advantageously on the first and last signatures of a book, but its use on the entire book cannot be too strongly condemned.
It may be inferred by what has been said about sewing that it is a comparatively simple matter to sew books properly. It is right at this point, however, that the librarian and the binder who does not understand the requirements of library work will come into conflict. The binder will insist that all books must be sewed on bands. When the backs of sections are very badly worn he will agree to whipstitch, but will use the old method. The librarian will insist not only that nine-tenths of fiction and juvenile books must be overcast, but that a special kind of overcasting must be used. The binders who make a specialty of library work do all this as a matter of course. At least one binder tests the thickness, tensile strength and other qualities of the paper and sews each book in the way that experience has shown to be the best.