THE TRUNK-MAKER.
1. The manufacture of trunks is equally simple with that of making harness. In common cases, it consists chiefly in lining the inside of a wooden box with paper, or some kind of cloth, and covering the outside with a skin, or with leather, which is fastened to the wood by means of tacks. Narrow strips of leather are fastened upon hair trunks with brass nails, by way of ornament, as well as to confine the work.
2. Instead of a wooden box, oblong rims of iron, and very thick, solid pasteboard, fastened together by means of strong thread, are used in the best kinds of trunks. The frame or body, thus formed, is covered with some substantial leather, which is first stuck on with paste, and then secured by sewing it to the pasteboard with a waxed thread. Over the whole, are applied strips of iron, fastened with brass or copper nails with large heads. The lines and figures on the leather, added by way of ornament, are produced by a crease, a tool made of wood, ivory, or whalebone. Its form is much like that of the blade of a common paper-folder.
3. How long trunk-making has been a separate trade, cannot be exactly ascertained. The trunk-makers in France were incorporated into a company, in 1596. In the United States, this branch of business is very commonly united with that of the saddler and harness-maker.
