Sewing.
Modern books are fastened together by sewing; as a rule thread is used, and always in sewing good books. Thread sewing is very much better than wire stitching. In the first place, thread has not the disadvantage of rusting, to which wire is always subject; secondly, thread does not break the paper in the back, as so frequently happens when cheap paper containing much wood fibre is wire-stitched. The greatest advantage of thread sewing over wire lies in the flexibility of the spun thread; with sharp pressure it lies flat in the sheet, whilst wire does not give at all. Besides, it is flexible the whole length, and this adds greatly to the life of the book.
All thread sewing is now done by machinery and is really satisfactory. Only the very smallest job shops sew their books by hand.
The principle of sewing is to fasten each sheet to several cords or bands by means of a long thread running right along the inside of the sheet. These cords give the book its hold to the cover; therefore the more cords used, the more firmly is the book secured to its cover. There are now two methods of fastening the sheets on the cords; first, there is the older method of passing the thread along and out of the sheet, around the cord, and again into the sheet, and repeating the same movement at the next band.
Fig. 21—Arrangement of threads in old style of sewing.
Nowadays, this method is almost entirely discarded. When for special reasons, or on account of its greater strength, it is desired to imitate the old method, the sewing is done on double cords; that is to say, for every cord two cords are stretched alongside each other and regarded as one. This sewing is more tedious, as the thread must take up each cord as shown in Fig. 22.
Fig. 22—Arrangement of threads with double cords.
These somewhat elaborate modes of sewing have been simplified in recent years by making saw-cuts in the back, in which the cords are laid. By this means the sewing thread never actually passes out of the sheet, but is drawn behind the cord lying in the saw-cut and thus holds it.
That is why we "saw-in" our books. The sawing-in is done with a broad saw; the so-called "tenon saw" being the one most generally used. The saw-cut must correspond exactly to the thickness of the cord to be used, should be less deep than wide, and should not take up too much glue when glueing up, as this might easily turn brittle. By inclining the saw to right and left alternately during sawing, the resulting cut will be something like this ¯¯¯¯¯/__\¯¯¯¯¯; this is the best and most usual form. The common practice of widening the cut by means of a coarse file gives a triangular cut like this ¯¯¯¯¯\/¯¯¯¯¯ which is objectionable, as the groove gets filled with glue, thus rendering the thread liable to break. As many cuts must be made in the book as there are cords to be used, besides the so-called kettle stitch at head and tail by which the thread is passed from one sheet to the other. Dividing the back for sawing-in is done by marking off 1 cm. from the head and twice as much from the tail and dividing the rest into equal portions with the dividers. An octavo should never be sewn on less than four cords, and a folio on six. If obliged to use less through low prices, then three must be taken as the minimum number, and that only in exceptional cases. If the books are very small—as, for instance, prayer-books and hymn-books less than 7 cm. in height—it may then be permissible to sew on two cords. The division for the different sizes for sawing-in is made as shown in Fig. 23.
| 6 cords = 9 divisions. | |
| 4 cords = 7 divisions. | |
| 3 cords = 6 divisions. | |
| 2 cords = 5 divisions. |
Fig. 23—Divisions for sawing-in.
The saw-cuts at the kettle stitch are less deep and quite narrow; they only mark the place where the thread is to pass in and out.
It may be wondered why the distances between the cords, when using four or six, are unequal; the reason for this will be explained when we come to the sewing of such sizes.
In sawing-in, the batch to be sawn is knocked up head and back and put between two boards—if the volumes are thin, several may be laid together—so that the back projects about 1/2 cm. beyond the edges of the boards. The first and last sheet of each volume have previously been laid aside, as these, with one exception, are not sawn-in.
Books and boards are now clamped in a small hand-press, which is screwed up by hand only. For convenience of working, the press with the screws is laid flat upon the table, so that the nuts are against the table edge. The press is propped up at the back by the press-jack. The divisions for the cords are marked on the back with a lead pencil after measuring with the dividers, and the cuts made according to the markings. If several volumes of the same size are to be sawn-in, the top sheet of the first batch sawn is used as a guide for marking the others, thus saving the work of measuring each one with the dividers. Where much sawing-in is done, a sawing-in machine is employed. The sheets are placed, backs downwards, in a moveable box, which is led over a system of circular saws.
After the work of sawing-in, the first and last sheets are replaced, the volumes again collated, and the end papers put in place; the sheets are now ready for sewing.
End papers are the blank leaves which the binder places at the beginning and end of a book. They vary according to the style of the book. Every end paper consists of a "fly leaf" (this lies over the title page in the book), the "paste-down," and in most cases of a "tear-off." For the stronger end papers and in half-leather bindings a cloth joint is used. Whilst dealing with these end papers, we must not forget the narrow guard; it is worked on the prepared end paper (as will be shown later) by folding over, and serves to enclose the title or end page with which it is sewn. The words joint, guard, and swell may here be more clearly explained, as they are used very frequently in the bindery. In the first place, we call the part where back and cover are joined by a sort of hinge "the joint," also strips of leather, cloth, &c., used for making this part are called "joints"; secondly, the slightly raised part of the back, caused by pressing or sewing, is shortly called "the swell"; and any strips of linen or paper fastened into the back of the book for hingeing maps, plates, &c., are called "guards."
For use as end papers, a paper must be selected which suits in quality and tone the printed paper. Nothing shows lack of taste more than the use of a blue end paper with a paper of yellow tone. For both back and front a double sheet is necessary and is cut the required size. A paper guard, about the width of three fingers, is made from a piece of stout waste paper and pasted on a narrow margin at the back of the double leaf, in order to protect it in the joint and also for fastening on the cover. If there are single leaves to be used up, two of these might be pasted to each other narrowly on the back and upon this the guard; this is the so-called double end paper.
If instead of these only a single leaf is taken, then we have a single end paper; this is used for cheap school books and generally at the back only.
The accompanying sketch shows both these end papers with the small guard already folded. This folding of the guard is not very easy for the beginner. The leaf is placed face upwards, square in front of the worker, and a very narrow margin at the back edge bent upwards about 3 mm. in width, the forefinger and thumb of both hands shaping and bending the guard, working from the centre to the ends.
Fig. 25—Suggestions for single and double end papers.
Should the sheet from which the end papers are made be a little wider than required for the end papers, the tear-off may be folded at the same time; with double end papers, the leaf which is to be pasted down later is inserted between fly leaf and tear-off, and therefore is called "insertion."
Fig. 26—Suggestion for double end paper with tear-off.
If the end papers are to have a cloth joint it must be placed within the two leaves or, better, pasted in face inwards. Double cloth joints are no longer used in printed books, as they make the end papers too thick, and in the subsequent rounding the first sheet is apt to break. The joint is here also folded on as before.
Formerly, when linen joints were used, the end paper was simply made by inserting the strip of cloth and hingeing on the outside leaf about 1 cm. from the fold. This, however, has many disadvantages, therefore the end papers are made as explained, then carefully tearing off the outside leaf in the back in pasting down and cutting it as required it is pasted on to the board, as will be more fully explained under "pasting down."
The French paste a double leaf before the first and last sheets after having pasted a covering leaf around these.
For extra work, the following style of end paper is the best; it is used in England for all high-class work, and in Germany also it has been adopted by all the first-class firms.
The end papers consist merely of single leaves the size of the sheet. These are fanned out at the back to make a small margin and pasted. The first leaf is then pasted down on the end-paper sheet so as to leave a margin of about 2 mm.; the second leaf is pasted level with the back. All end papers are proceeded with in the same way.
If these are to have a cloth joint it must be pasted on the outside also only 2 mm. wide. When the end papers are dry, they must be stitched down along the back, 2 mm. from the edge, with the sewing-machine adjusted to its longest stitch. It is unnecessary to knot the ends of the thread—they are cut clean off. When there is no sewing-machine, the volumes must be overcast by hand. This overcasting is done by inserting a fine needle near the back of the knocked-up sheets from above and drawing the thread almost quite through, the second and following stitches all being made from above. The thread would then appear as in Fig. 27.
Fig. 27—Overcast end paper.
These end papers are made up before sawing-in and sawn in with the book, and when it is not possible to stitch them with the machine they must be sawn in before overcasting, or the sawing would cut the threads.
Now for the sewing. We stretch the requisite number of cords, which are secured to the hooks at the top by a simple loop which is easily undone as soon as it is taken off the hook. At the bottom a double loop is made, through which a key is passed so as to hold the stretched cord underneath the moveable board.
| Fig. 28—Loops for attaching to frame hooks. | Fig. 29—Loops for taking frame keys. |
The length of the cords is regulated by the thickness of each book, and as it is possible to sew a number of books at the same time when they are all sewn the same way, the length of the cords is regulated accordingly; it also depends upon the kind of books to be sewn. Cheap books get 3 cm. for every cord on each side more than the thickness of the book, that is 6 cm. plus the thickness of the book. School books get still shorter cords. For extra work, where the ends of the cords are laced through the boards, one should allow double. It is easy to calculate the length required for a single volume, but rather difficult for a batch of books varying in thickness; it is then better to measure. For example, suppose we have to sew a batch of six books, all differing in thickness but measuring in all 25 cm. high; we would allow for cheap work: 6 vols., each taking 6 cm. extra lengths = 36 cm. + total height, 25 cm., making 61 cm.; for extra work: 6 vols., each taking 12 cm. extra lengths = 72 cm. + 25 total height = 97 cm. length of cord.
The collated batch of books is laid on the bed of the sewing frame as in holländering ([Fig. 17]), the sheets taken hold of in the same way, and laid open for sewing. Of course the cords are adjusted to the saw-cuts, and it is better to push them more to the right than to the left, so as to give the left arm full play. Here also, as in holländering, the left hand does the work behind the cords inside the sheet, whilst the right inserts the needle from the front and again brings it out.
Fig. 30—Suggestion for sewing on four cords.
Fig. 31—Suggestion for sewing on six cords.
The first and last sheets—called end sheets—are sewn a little differently from the others, as the needle is here not inserted and drawn out exactly at the cord but at a little distance from it so as to allow them to be adjusted afterwards. Sewing[1] with us is invariably begun with the last sheet at the right, working on to the left, and reversing the process with the following sheet, and so to the end, so that the thread one way passes from and the other to the worker. With all other sheets, excepting the end sections, the thread is inserted at the kettle stitch and brought out at the next cord, round the cord, and inserted at the same hole, to be brought out again at the next cord, and so on till the thread comes out at the other kettle stitch and is inserted in the next sheet to go through the same process. With books sewn on four cords, it is allowable to skip one of the two middle cords alternately, so that each time the thread passes on to the right the right middle cord is skipped, and the left is skipped when the thread passes in the opposite direction. This facilitates and shortens the work without taking away from durability or quality. Books on 6 cords may be treated in the same way; the right and left of each pair of cords may be skipped alternately. It was for this reason that we paid attention to the distribution of the cords on the back when sawing-in (see [Fig. 23]).
[1] In England, France, and part of Holland, sewing is begun with the title page.
This method of sewing is known as "end to end," in contradistinction to "two sheets on." The former is the better method and is essential for valuable books, unless the sections are exceptionally thin. The latter is "good enough" (i.e., not worth much) for the trade and cheap work. As far as strength is concerned it would do, but a book sewn in this way does not swell sufficiently in the back to make a proper backing groove.
It is an old rule in bookbinding that each sheet after it has been sewn should be pressed down with the needle so that the backs of the sheets lie close and firm together; this is called "pressing down." Should this, however, not be sufficient, the back must be knocked firm from time to time with the dividers or a rule.
The first and last sheets must be fastened to the one following and preceding respectively; but in the course of the sewing this enchaining to the preceding sheets—the so-called kettle stitch—is only necessary in the case of very thick sections. It is done by passing the needle through and bringing it out between the two preceding sheets at each end and thus chaining on the then top sheet to the one lying underneath.
The two-sheets-on sewing is done by laying open the second sheet on top of the first after making the first stitch in the first sheet and then passing the needle through the second sheet, then the third stitch is made in the first sheet and the fourth in the second sheet. One length of thread is used for the two sheets. Where the sheets have not been cut open, the left hand lightly takes the sheets in turn where they have been cut, a folder is placed in the middle and is shifted from one to the other as required. The process is the same whether there are only three cords or even six.
Fig. 32—Suggestion for sewing two-sheets-on.
It has already been said that several volumes of the same kind can be sewn on top of each other on the sewing frame; in this case the volumes must be separated from each other after the sewing is completed.
The free ends of the cords are untwisted so that they may be scraped open more easily afterwards, and then one volume after another is drawn along the cords to the ends until they are twice the length of the free cords away from each other, which, of course, will vary according to the subsequent style of binding.
So then we allow 6 and 12 cm. according to circumstances; but this length is curtailed to 3 cm. in the cheap school books, because the shorter the cords the quicker they are scraped open. Every cord is cut in the middle between the books with the shears, thus separating each volume from the other. The strands of the loose ends of the cords are now completely untwisted by inserting the cord in the groove of the scraper and repeatedly rubbing it up or down with the back of a knife.
After scraping the cords, the end-paper guards are always pasted down; the book is laid with the back to the front edge of the table, the first sheet with the end paper is turned downwards, the end-paper guard is bent up a little so that it stands away from the sheet, paste it neatly and carefully, close the section and adjust it so that the sheet in the end paper is level with the others, but not the end paper itself—this must project a little at the back. When only one finger is required for pasting it must be the middle finger, so that the forefinger is free from paste and ready to take hold of anything.
If stitched end papers are used for extra work, a sheet of paper is laid on the second sheet so as to leave 3 mm. free, paste this strip and bring down upon it the once-more closed first sheet, taking care to square it at the outside with the body of the book.
The folder should be brought down firmly over the outer sheets after pasting down so as to ensure the paste sticking.
If the pasting-on of the joints is not properly carried out, the result will be that in most cases the book opens badly when finished.
In half-cloth or other simple bindings, the scraped cords may be pasted on at once. Bring a little paste (about the size of a pea) upon the point of a folder under the slightly raised cord, pasting the latter evenly and neatly upon the paste-down of the end paper so that the pasted-down strands of the cord lie like a feather. To prevent the pasted cords sticking to each other, the books are piled up back and front until dry. In extra work, the cords—which are also longer—must by no means be pasted on; a piece of waste paper or a cover the size of the sheet is pasted outside the sections under the cords, level with the backs. This serves partly as a protection for the end papers and partly to make a good joint when covering.
The volumes so prepared are now glued up. They must be knocked up at head and back; they are then placed with the backs outwards on a board specially kept for this work—the glueing board—with the fore-edge of which they must be exactly level. On top must be placed a smaller board or a heavy piece of iron, likewise level with the book. The book backs are thus held firmly between the glueing boards, the left hand holding them firmly by pressing on the top, the right hand glueing the backs with very hot but not thick glue; rub this well in with the point of a hammer, and after having firmly squeezed the glue out of the brush, use it for taking off the surplus glue from the backs. An old trick of the bookbinder is to heat the hammer for this work. It is a bad plan to give the back a thick coating of glue and then allow it to dry, because it at once becomes brittle. Some experienced workers place the books between the glueing boards so as to leave about 1 cm. projecting, as it is thought that the glue thereby gets better between the sheets; but this method is out of date and is of no special value. It is, however, of great importance that the glued book should be laid so that it is truly square at the head as well as the back, for if this is neglected no amount of trouble will save the book from being cut out of shape.
Before passing on to the next chapter we have still to mention the mechanical contrivances for sewing. For small as well as large binderies, machines have been invented both for wire stitching and thread sewing; the former are more generally used, the latter not being sufficiently perfect in construction to meet all demands for speed and accuracy. Then also the method of fastening the book in the cover differs so much from the traditional method that we must still hope for improvement. When this comes to pass, this machine will then supersede the wire-stitching machine, with all its unavoidable disadvantages. The working of the machines is so simple that they are attended to almost entirely by girls. We refrain from giving descriptions of mechanical appliances within the limits of a short treatise, as any day may bring forth new inventions which are certain to effect great changes in this department. Besides these costly appliances there are also simpler sewing-machines for small shops, by which books are sewn in very simple fashion over steel needles, by means of which the cords may afterwards be drawn along.
As these machines demand very large saw-cuts, they can only be used for trade work and any cheap lines. We only mention them to draw attention to their existence. Unprinted paper and music are sewn on tapes as well as cords. This method of sewing is described in Chapter IX.
CHAPTER III.
Cutting, Rounding, Backing.
In nearly all cases the book is trimmed after glueing, and it is best to do this before the glue is quite set. Even in extra work books are nowadays trimmed on three sides, that is, before the book is rounded each side is cut one after the other. This method has the advantage that it is quicker, that the top and bottom corners of the round fore-edge cannot break, and that it is easy to treat every side during the process of marbling.
Of course, in the best work the book is first cut at the front, rounded, pressed, and then cut top and bottom.
Under present conditions we might completely abandon the old method of trimming with the plough, for, although this is a most valuable tool, it would not pay to use it now, and the shops where it is still in use are few and far between; besides, our German machines now do the work so thoroughly and accurately that we are able to execute the highest class of work by their aid.
The machines worked by a lever are very suitable for small shops and small books. Rotary action is for heavier work and is more suitable where both heavy and light work have to be done.
The fore-edge is generally trimmed first; the back of the book is carefully adjusted to the "back gauge," the back gauge is so adjusted by moving backwards and forwards that the knife comes exactly upon the point marked beforehand. The first principle to be observed in trimming is that as little as ever possible should be taken off the book. Measuring and marking for trimming are done with the dividers; the latter is called "marking for cutting." When the back gauge has been adjusted so that the points lie directly under the knife, the clamp which holds the book in position is screwed down and the machine set in motion. The book must be cut smooth and quite free from any jaggedness, and if this has not been accomplished the knife must be ground or, at least, well sharpened.
Something must be done in trimming top and bottom to prevent the groove at the back from receiving too much pressure. The simplest means is to glue a thick board on the under side of the clamp. If a piece of stout cloth has been pasted to this board, it will afterwards be easily removed from the clamp if it is lightly glued on at two places only. If cloth is not used, pieces of the board will adhere to the clamp and cause no little inconvenience.
Instead of this, there are metal plates sold which are fastened to the clamp in a simple way, either by screws or springs, and they are just as simply removed.
The bottom edge has to be cut first, as one is thus able to adjust the head—which, of course, must be rectangular—against the back gauge and then to make the bottom edge parallel. After cutting this edge, the book is turned round and the bottom edge adjusted on the back gauge so as to get the top edge ready for cutting. Whilst doing this, care must always be taken that the book is placed under the clamp so that the arrangement made for saving the groove from pressure is effective.
Fig. 37—Top edge arranged for trimming when trimming three edges.
As our machines are made to cut from left to right, the book back must be on the left.
Very often a book contains so many folded plates that it is considerably thinner in some places than at others. These thin places must be properly packed with paper or strips of board, otherwise the knife is sure to tear or jag, no matter how sharp it may be. This packing may be left in the book until the book is quite finished and then taken out.
If any fibrous matter has stuck to the bottom sheets through cutting on a much-used bed, it must be removed with a very sharp knife.
The trimmed volumes are "rounded," i.e., they are rounded and the groove made at the back to which the boards have to be fitted. For this reason the grooves must be made to suit the thickness of the boards to be used.
Fig. 38—Rounding the book.
To round a book, slightly damp its glued back, place it on a firm stone or metal bed, and knock it round with a hammer. Properly speaking the process is as follows: The left hand takes hold of the back of the book lying flat before the worker and works it into a round form, the right hand helping all the time by beating it along the back from one end to the other.
In this way each side is treated alternately until the back is evenly rounded. The rounding of the fore-edge should be equal to one-third of a circle.
Books that have been hammered so much that they fall straight from the centre towards both sides are called "over rounded"; if, on the contrary, the book is round at the sides and almost straight in the middle the book is called "flat rounded." The latter occurs when the thread used in sewing has been too thin or held down too much (see page 37). Great care must be taken to avoid what is called springing a section—this is generally caused by a break in the glued back; but it is almost impossible to round a book perfectly if the sections are very thick or if it contains many pasted-in plates.
There are now very useful machines for rounding books, also hand machines. The work connected with these consists simply in turning the book a few times, pushing the back up to the rollers each time.
When the book is properly rounded, it is "backed," that is, it is so placed between backing boards that they are away from the back just as much as is required for the groove, the width of the latter depending upon the thickness of the boards; a small thin volume gets thin boards and therefore a small groove; a thicker volume requires thick boards, and, of course, a deeper groove. The made groove should be a little deeper than the board set in it. The book and backing boards are placed in a wooden press, screwing up by hand and once more carefully adjusting. To do this, the press is first placed lengthwise on the table so that one end projects a little over the front edge of the table; the evenness of the rounding is then perfected—one hand at the back and the other at the front edge pushing and adjusting. The better and truer the book has been rounded before laying in the boards the less there will be to do when placed in the press. If the rounding is correct, the head and tail must be examined to see that they are exactly rectangular, for the book may have been knocked untrue, and the evenness of the grooves—which are easily disturbed—is also examined.
Backing and rounding is the most important work as far as regards the appearance of the book when finished; it must be done with the greatest exactitude and requires much practice. Although it is hardly perceptible, yet the great difficulty lies in the book itself being so very easily shifted.
When the book is placed in the press without a fault it is screwed up as tightly as possible with the screw key, and through this the grooves already project over the edges of the backing boards; but a sharp groove can only be obtained by the help of the hammer.
The hammer, however, must not be used blindly on the back, but by lightly knocking, blow by blow, the first and last 4-6 sheets must be brought over the edges of the boards. This done, the whole of the back is well pasted, and after remaining thus a short time it is then rubbed with the point of the hammer along the sheets until all superfluous glue is soaked and scraped off. With a handful of paper cuttings the back is rubbed smooth and clean. The use of a toothed cachir iron is strictly forbidden, but the round side of this tool may be used instead of the hammer.
For backing, we have also a useful machine—the backing machine. For small shops it is made for clamping only, and the making of the groove is done with the ordinary hammer. For large shops this machine has a roller going right across the back which forms the groove down each side.
Valuable books are either trimmed at the front and at once backed or they may be backed before trimming. This is generally done with bulky books, as they are liable to throw out a section, and this danger is lessened by backing first. The work of backing remains the same. If the fore-edge has already been trimmed, care must be taken that the grooves do not suffer during trimming after backing. One way of effecting this is to lay the book on a special cutting board with the edge up to the groove, or by making use of the arrangement on the clamp already described, and adjusting the groove of the book to the blocks fixed on the clamp.
Should the fore-edge not have been cut, the book must again be knocked straight after backing; to do this a strong cord is tied round the book about 1-1/2 cm. from the back, the book is then laid upon a firm bed, and the back again knocked straight; this work is called "tying up."
Fig. 42—Backed book arranged for trimming.
It facilitates the work if the book is taken up and lightly held in the left hand whilst the right holds the hammer and knocks the round inwards until the book is once more square.
The squared book is now trimmed, and it is not until the trimming is finished that the cord is loosened.
In pressing, several volumes of the same size can be done in the hand press at one and the same time.
CHAPTER IV.
Marbling, Gilding, &c., the Edges and Headbanding.
The edges of a book are nearly always finished off in some way or another, as the plain white edges would quickly become soiled. As a matter of fact, the binder always uses a covering of gold or colour for this purpose, and care should be taken that this way of treating the edges is decorative and not the reverse.
In small binderies the edge is most usually sprinkled. A small brush with a handle (such as is used for blacking shoes) is dipped into a very thin coloured liquid and rubbed over a fine sieve which is fixed in a frame. The sieve is kept at sufficient distance from the edges of the book to allow the little drops of colour to fall like a fine rain. For this work the book is screwed up in the press (which is laid flat) by means of the press-jack. As a sprinkling colour, nut-wood stain thinned with water is used, or indigo, carmine, Prussian blue, mahogany brown, green cinnabar, all well diluted with water, with the addition of a little paste and borax or a few drops of dilute carbolic to prevent the paste turning sour; aniline dyes have a common appearance. The sprinkle must fall very finely upon the edges, therefore the first large drops should be taken out of the brush by giving it a few preliminary rubs over the sieve.
A few variations are made in sprinkled edges by scattering damp sawdust, sand, or bran on the edges before sprinkling, thus producing a coarser kind of sprinkling. Similarly rice, barley, even starch or drops of wax are used. All these edges are out of date and in really good workshops are every day falling more and more into disuse, preference being given to marbling upon a sized ground.
For the production of even marbling an edge-marbling roller has recently been brought out.
Rubber rollers—one or two—together with the automatic colouring rollers bearing aniline dyes mixed with glycerine, are made up into a handy contrivance by means of which smooth coloured edges can be rolled over. These edges are passable only when carefully and skilfully executed; as a rule they look coarse and common and are taken up only by badly equipped shops. Marbling rollers can be used for comb marbling as well as for small veined marbling.
We may say that the coloured edge is the oldest style.
Earth colours which cover well—cinnabar[2] (red or green), carmine, chrome yellow, graphite, bismuth, and also other colours that cover well, indigo, carmine, and Prussian blue—are ground to a fine powder and thoroughly mixed with water and a little paste or gelatine so that the edges may be evenly covered.
[2] Cinnabar if not red must be a preparation with other colour.—Trans.
Only printed books are put in the press, and in this case they must first be rubbed down with alum water. After about five minutes the colour may be laid on. Hog's-hair brushes are used for this. Recently, eosin has been used to colour red and picric acid for yellow, both well diluted with water.
The paste edge is a variety of the coloured edge; it is produced by loading paste with a very strong colour so that it covers well when laid on. With the blunt point of a stick, a bluntly pointed cork, or even the finger-tip, figures may be traced in the colour when laid on, and then the figures may be brought out better by going over the lines with a pointed stick. The work demands a skilled draughtsman if a good effect or something more than the very simplest design is desired.
The book must be pressed for pasting the edges, and the paste colour must not be laid on too thickly or it will spring off when dry.
Coloured as well as paste edges will take gold tooling and afford considerable scope to the skilful and thoughtful workman.
The finest way of finishing edges and the one allowing greatest variety of treatment is known as marbling; this is a special process.
Formerly regarded as a secret art, it is now an easily acquired branch of our work, thanks to the careful experiments and excellent demonstrations of the master bookbinder, Herr Joseph Halfer, of Buda Pesth.
The whole process of marbling depends upon the peculiarity possessed by colours of floating upon a sized surface when they are mixed with oxgall, and a colour containing more gall forcing off the one first applied. Besides, the colours may be drawn about with a pencil or stick without their mixing. If the smooth edges of a book are brought into contact with such a floating surface-colour they will take up the colours completely.
Ground and colour must each have certain fixed degrees of consistency, and the atmosphere both in and out of doors has also a great influence upon the work.
The prepared body, shortly known as "the body," is at present always composed of boiled Carrageen moss. To every litre[3] of water exactly 12 g. are added and the liquid is put in a saucepan, which is never used for any other purpose, and placed on the fire, great care being taken to catch it just at boiling point or it will all boil over. At the right moment take the saucepan from the fire and strain the contents through a hair sieve, what remains being thrown away as useless. The body may be used the next day, but for figured edges it is better after having been kept three days, and for veined marbling five days. The vessel containing the body must be kept covered so as to exclude all dust.
[3] Not quite a quart.
Gum tragacanth (known as "gum dragon") can also be used as a body, but Halfer's colours are not intended to be used with this.
A marbling trough to contain the body is used whilst working; it is made of zinc plate, is about 15 cm. in width, 50 cm. in length, and 3 cm. in depth, and has a sloping partition soldered near one end, and the colour not taken up is drawn into the division thus made.
A bowl, about 6 cm. across the top, is kept for each colour, and also a hog's-hair brush and a birch-twig brush.
A small bundle of birch twigs is tied round with thread, leaving about 4 cm. of the twigs free, the thickness of the lowest part tied not exceeding 1 cm. The bristles of the brush are tied back so as to form loops and held awhile in boiling water so that they retain their shape after drying and untying. With a brush made up in this way, drops may be laid on anywhere.
For all drawn-out edges only bristle brushes are used, whilst for all other edges a brush is used only for laying on the first colour. For some edges a wide brush is used, so that the whole trough can be filled at one blow; a carpet brush with a short handle is most convenient to use.
A little stick for tracing the colours is also necessary—a butcher's skewer is as good as anything. Besides this, the colours are drawn by combs of various widths; these are easily made by glueing pins with their heads at fixed distances between two strips of mill-board: the result is a tool resembling a comb. All requisites can be conveniently kept in a little wooden box together with the colours. Nowadays only Halfer's ready-made colours are used.
Any one wishing to learn the process of marbling edges would be wise not to attempt all the styles at once, but should be content to learn one before proceeding to another. We will commence with "comb" marbling, also known as "feather" marbling.
When marbling is to be done, the colours must always be tested first. A little colour is shaken into each bowl and its brush placed with it, and one or two drops of prepared oxgall added to each colour so as to make the colour float on the surface.
One prepares one's own oxgall. An ox gall in the gallbladder is procured from a butcher, a glass funnel is placed in a bottle which has been weighed beforehand, and the bottom of the gall bladder is pierced so that the bladder empties its contents into the bottle. After finding the weight of the gall, add to the weight of the gall alone one-sixth and pour into it spirit of wine until the weight is equalized; shake thoroughly and strain the mixture, which will now be quite clear and ready for use.
The colours, with their brushes, are placed in the order in which they are to be used, beginning with the darkest and finishing with the lightest.
s—black; b—blue; r—red; yellow in centre.
A drop of colour is let fall from the black brush upon the body, the surface of which had previously been drawn off with a strip of paper; the surface of this drop must be about the size of a crown piece. If part of the colour sinks to the bottom, the body is too thin or the colour too thick, or the drop was too large and could not spread quickly enough; in the latter case the surplus colour will be seen lying at the bottom and will have no connection whatever with the colour on the surface; but if a cloudy connection can be traced from the surface to the bottom then the body has already become sour and in most cases unfit for use. If the colour does not retain its smooth outlines and becomes jagged, it also shows that the body is too old. If, however, the drop extends as desired and shows none of the faults above mentioned, a drop of blue colour is let fall in the centre of the first, which drives out the first drop in the form of a ring; when it has not this effect, but strongly contracts again, a drop of gall must be added, the colours wiped off to the sloping partition, and the whole process repeated. If the action of the colour was too strong, a little undiluted colour must be added. If the result is satisfactory, a drop of red is added to the blue. The colour scheme is seen in the accompanying drawing. Lastly, yellow is dropped into red, and black is thereby reduced to a very thin ring.
Before each new sprinkling, the old layer of colour must be wiped off. To do this, cut strips of stout waste paper about two fingers in width and a little longer than the trough is wide. The edge of the strip is placed slantingly at the end of the tank in the surface of the body and the surface colour drawn off, at the same time lightly pressing the ends of the strip against the sides of the trough.
When the colours are satisfactory, the little stick is traced in and out amongst them. If too much colour follows the stick, the body is too thick; only a narrow line of colour must follow the stick.
If the colours are thus correctly prepared, the whole trough is sprinkled in the following manner: Along the middle of the trough the darkest colour is sprinkled in what we might call links, that is, each drop is linked to the one preceding.
Fig. 44—Suggestion for sprinkling colour.
The second colour is sprinkled on in the same way; one circle, however, is on the right and the other on the left of the centre colour. Into each drop of the second colour let a drop of the third and then of the fourth colour fall.
The colours must then be traced crosswise with the stick in this form and then likewise with the comb. Neither stick nor comb should be dipped more than about 2 mm. below the surface, otherwise the body is set in motion and the colours disarranged.
The combs should not be made too fine, 30 to 35 teeth for every 10 cm. is the best width and sufficient for most cases. If the comb is drawn back again from the other end it produces drawn-back marbling; this is rarely applied.
The finished comb marbling can be still further varied if figures are traced in it with the stick as shown in Fig. 46.
Fig. 45—Comb marbling.
Fig. 46—Suggestion for curl marbling.
If a double comb is made—one that allows two combs to pass each other, their teeth being 2 cm. apart—bouquet or peacock and eye marbling can be produced. The double comb is drawn over the length of the trough, at the same time moving the two combs up and down evenly. This motion causes the colours to assume the form shown in the accompanying illustration.
Bouquet or peacock marbling is produced by drawing the double comb through the finished comb marble design, and if the double comb is used immediately after the cross tracing with the stick, eye marbling is the result.
With a little thought it would be easy to invent other fancy designs, but these are better applied to paper, as trimmed edges are more beautiful and effective when the marbling is of simpler design.
Fig. 47—Bouquet or peacock marbling.
Fig. 48—Eye marbling.
Large marble, called also Turkish marble, is produced as follows, using the same arrangement of colours. Only the first colour is laid on ringwise; all other colours are scattered in smaller drops from brushes. A darker colour is chosen for the last—brown, blue, olive, grey—to which is added a few more drops of gall and as much spirit of soap (spiritus saponatus), as sold by the druggists. This last colour is prepared in a larger and shallow basin. The largest brush is taken with the hand and dipped, shaken out a little, and then lightly knocked on the left hand so as to sprinkle the colour. The drops will fall in a dense shower, and, owing to their extra impetus, will drive together the preceding ones, and yet they will form the principal colour in the design. If it is desired to have veins of white in the design, a few drops of gall should be added to a little water in a bowl and used as any other colour; the same applies when using white in comb marbling. In a similar manner the so-called Kremser style of marbling is produced, but fewer colours are then used, generally only black and red, red and blue, brown and blue, green and red, at the end sprinkling a little of the strong principal colour to which, besides the spirit of soap, a drop of pure stone oil—not petroleum—from the chemist has been added. As last colour, blue grey (black with a little blue), brown, or grey is used.
Recently, a sort of paper termed Trichinal marble has been very prominent on the market. Black and light brown or red and light brown or black, red, and light brown, or white, are all sprinkled on with a brush, length (not cross) wise drawn through, and then grey with a few drops of turpentine (but very driving) is sprinkled on with a small brush. The single drops have ragged edges and produce a peculiar effect.
Thin-veined or French marbling is done upon the same ground, though it can also be done on a somewhat thinner body. The colours, however, are diluted by 50% water, and, consequently, more gall is added. As a rule, only two colours are used; blue, red; brown, blue; brown, green; black, red; black, blue. The first colour is laid on in rings with a brush and must be strong enough to spread over two-thirds the width of the trough; the second colour is sprinkled over with a little birch broom in drops that spread out to the size of a half-crown. Lastly, the so-called sprinkling-water is sprinkled over with one dash from the large brush as already explained. Sprinkling-water consists of two parts water and one part spirit of soap. The small veins must be driven quite close together and the eyes made by the sprinkling-water must not be larger than a small pea.
It should be observed that for this kind of marbling only the darker shade of red is to be taken, as the light carmine lake colour sinks and does not give a fine effect. India red is best of all.
The sprinkled colours are first tested with strips of paper; cuttings of clean note-paper are saved for this purpose. The edges of a book can be marbled only when the book is level or straight, therefore they must be marbled either before rounding or the book already rounded must be levelled by knocking it on a stone or metal slab. In all cases the marbling is done—both with papers and books—by dipping from one corner to the other diagonally opposite, but never deeper than just sufficient to take off the layer of colour. To prevent the colour from getting between the leaves, the edges are held between zinc plates, which must be dried each time after using. To make the paper or edges take the colours more readily and to prevent any subsequent running off, the edges are lightly washed down with alum water. This wash is made by boiling 100 g. of alum in 1/2 litre of water and using it solely for this work.
The alum solution is laid on with a sponge, with which the edges are washed over. The moisture must have thoroughly soaked in, therefore it is necessary to do it 10 minutes before marbling.
If, however, the edges have become thoroughly dry they will take the colours badly. This occurs in from 20 to 30 minutes, according to the temperature. Marbling can only be done in a warm room where the temperature is equable and where there is no dust.
The marbling bath must be of the same temperature as the room. The body must be skimmed each time before sprinkling the colours, but the colours must be sprinkled on immediately afterwards.
An excellent treatise on the work of marbling edges has appeared under the title: [4]Fortschritte der Marmorirkunst. Von Joseph Halfer. William Leo, Stuttgart.
[4] The Development of the Art of Marbling.
Gilding edges takes up most time when only occasional books are to be done. The fore-edge can be treated either flat or round. In every case the book must be placed in the press within boards. These boards are narrow strips, about 1/2 cm. thick and up to 5 cm. in width; they must be of equal thickness and bevelled only on long side, the edge itself must be rounded.
Many makers send out boards bevelled right from one side to the other. This kind is very unsuitable and has many disadvantages. The boards must not be made from wood of very open grain, and firs and oaks must not be used. The boards are to be somewhat longer than the edge about to be treated, so that the edge may be as firm and tight as possible and at the same time easy to work upon; two outer boards are added to those regularly used, as shown in Figs. 49 and 50.
The inner boards are quite flush with the book: the latter must on no account stand back. The outer boards are about 3 mm. behind the others; the book is so placed in the press, and here again the book and boards must be exactly level with the press cheeks. The press is then screwed up as tight as possible. If the inner boards have not perfectly straight edges they must be planed down.
Figs. 49 and 50—Arrangement of flat and rounded edges.
The edges are to be scraped down quite smooth with a scraper or, if necessary, with a knife; the scraper must not be sharpened for this purpose as the carpenter sharpens his tools, that is, not to a cutting edge but as though it were for carving, until a bevel (or turned edge) of about 3 mm. has been ground. The edge thus gets a turned edge, with which the book is scraped. If it should cease to "take," the old edge is rubbed down with a steel and a new one made by a few firm strong rubbings. The edge should be wetted a little to prevent its heating. Flat edges are scraped with a flat scraper, rounded edges with one suitably rounded. In this case the round of the blade must be more decided than that of the edges, as it would otherwise be impossible to get into all parts of the edges. Scraping with pieces of glass is an antiquated, clumsy method.
When scraping, the press should lie flat on the table edge, the other end being supported by the press-jack. In scraping, the blade is held in both hands, scraping away from the worker, the scraper sloping forwards. The press must be made immovable. Scraping is continued until all places have been gone over and the whole is perfectly smooth and even. When this is accomplished, the edges are thinly coated with paste, which is well rubbed in along the sheets with a bundle of waste paper until the edges look as if burnished. It is advisable to damp the edges before scraping, as the blade then takes hold more uniformly.
Then bolus is mixed with glair as a body colour, laid on sparingly, very evenly, and free from streakiness, using a thick hair brush for the purpose. Bolus is sold to the trade ready prepared under the name "Poliment." Some time before using, it should be scraped into a suitable vessel and mixed with glair. The latter is prepared by adding the white of an egg to 1/4 litre of water and beating to a froth. It is then strained through a piece of linen or, better, through a filtering paper.
After the bolus ground has dried (which takes a few minutes) the gold is laid on. There are various methods of doing this. The surest and quickest way is to lay it on with the gilder's tip.
A row of long badger hairs is glued between two pieces of cardboard; this is drawn a few times over the hair of the head, which makes it take the gold easily. Gilders' tips are to be had at any colour dealer's. Gold is taken from the gold book, laid upon the gold cushion, and cut into suitable strips with the gold knife. The gold cushion consists of a piece of calf stretched raw side out on a board. Between the leather and the board there is placed a pad of cotton wool, and over the wool a pad of blotting-paper. The gold knife is a thin, pliant, two-edged knife without a sharp edge, in fact it is better to blunt the fore-edge from time to time by rubbing it on a polished steel. If the knife is too sharp it will cut the leather cushion. Taking the gold from the book will not be found a very easy task. The top leaf covering the gold is turned back, the book with the uncovered leaf of gold laid on the cushion, and the book slowly lifted up. The gold-leaf remains flat upon the cushion and may be cut with the knife as required. If a draught has turned the gold-leaf over or made it lie unevenly, it may be righted by lightly tapping with the knife on the cushion near the gold; careful breathing on the centre of the leaf will help in more awkward cases—the rest must be learned by practice. Never attempt to take hold of gold-leaf with the fingers; only the experienced workman knows how to carry gold-leaf with a finger.
For gilding the edges the deep red gold is always used, or else the so-called orange gold, which is somewhat lighter in tone, but never the lemon or green gold.
For flat gilt edges the gold is cut about 3 mm. wider than the book and into as many strips as would make up the length of the edge if joined together.
Before laying on the gold, the bolused edge is brushed down with a hard clothes-brush to remove all hair, dust, &c. Glair is now liberally applied with a thick hair brush, laying it on separately for each strip. The gold is now lifted from the cushion with the gilder's tip so that it very slightly projects over the end of the brush and is transferred to the wet edges. The tip is brought to within 1 cm. of the surface of the edges and with a quick motion the whole surface of the gold is at once brought into contact with the glaired edges, which will instantly take it up quite greedily. The gold slightly overlaps on to the inner boards. In this one continues, preparing the edge for each fresh strip and laying on each strip so that it slightly overlaps the other until the whole length is covered with gold. If the gold should be injured in any way, the press must be tilted so as to allow a little glair to run under the gold to the spot and then a larger piece is laid over the faulty place. When it is seen that all parts are completely covered, the press-jack is put aside, the press is taken by the screws between the beams and raised high overhead so that the gilded part is turned downwards. One end is carefully lowered until the glair has run to one side and dripped off. As soon as the greater part of the moisture has been removed, the press is either placed upright with the edge to the wall and head downwards or it is laid across the table where it will not be disturbed, with the head of one screw on the table edge. In this way the moisture runs off quicker, as the whole length of the edge drains together. When dry, the edges are burnished, and it is in seizing the right moment to do this that the clever finisher shows his skill. The first test is made on the boards. If the gold comes off on scratching the portion on the inner board with the finger-nail, the edge is still too damp; if the scratching makes it shine, it will be all right. The experienced worker can trace the progress of drying with more certainty by breathing on the edges; the slowness or rapidity with which the breath disappears points to the dry or moist state of the edges.
When it is believed that the proper degree of dryness has been obtained, the edge is polished with a burnisher. A piece of tracing paper which has been waxed on the upper side—that is, the side next the burnisher—is laid on the fresh edge to protect it from injury. The burnisher is then worked crosswise, stroke by stroke, over the paper (through which the edge can be observed) the length of the edge; if it is noticed that gold and moisture adhere to the paper near to the boards, the work must be laid aside to wait a little longer. If, however, the whole process has gone on satisfactorily, the edge is gone over with a linen rag and a little beeswax. It is not at all better to use a silk rag instead of linen, for it happens too easily that tiny threads stick to the gold unnoticed and are afterwards rubbed into the edge. After going over the edge with the waxed rag, the bare edges may take a greater pressure in burnishing, and if no flaws are now perceptible there need be no hesitation in burnishing with very strong pressure. The burnisher must be held quite level, the long handle fixed against the shoulder and the lower end firmly gripped with both hands just above the metal fastening. The fore-edge of the burnisher is not to be held parallel to the sheets, but must be at a slight angle; it thus slips better over the paper and there is less danger of making rills and furrows, and the polish is obtained more rapidly. Flat edges are always burnished crosswise, but at the end a broad burnisher may be used for going over the edges lengthwise with a few slow, firm strokes, so as to ensure a very level surface.
Quick burnishing must always be avoided; it heats the gold, which rubs off under the burnisher, and causes holes which can never be remedied.
As soon as one length has been burnished, the waxed cloth must be applied before proceeding further.
Slight flaws in the gold itself, or due to bubbles in the glair, may be put right by touching the faulty places with a small brush dipped in rectified spirit and immediately laying on a piece of gold; if the edges had not yet been gone over with the waxed rag, it would be sufficient to breathe on the place, lay on the gold, and burnish under paper. This need only stand a few minutes, as it quickly evaporates, and may then be burnished again at once, first with, then without, the tracing paper. It must be observed that such faulty places must be burnished in the direction of the sheets, never crosswise.
Rounded edges are more difficult to work; the scraping alone being more troublesome. Each piece of gold is halved, laying on each time a little beyond the deepest part of the round. The press is so lowered as to give a decided slope to the half of the edge to be operated upon. The gold is cut to a little more than half width, and only the under side to a little beyond the middle is glaired, which in this case must be done very freely. The strips of gold-leaf are laid on as before. When one side has been covered with gold, the press is turned and the other half of the round similarly treated. Care must be taken that there is always a liberal supply of glair in the depth of the round. To drain off the superfluous glair the press is placed so that the glair runs off on the long side; the gold is in consequence better taken up in the round.
Burnishing is here also done under a piece of paper, and it is better to work crosswise, first one half to the centre of the round and then the other. Only thin books are burnished along the edges with a round burnisher. After the round edges have been burnished crosswise they are burnished with the round burnisher.
Burnishers are made of agate or of bloodstone; the latter is said to produce a higher polish, but this may be due to our being more accustomed to its use. In selecting burnishers the flat ones should not be too wide and the strongest of the curved ones should be taken.
Top and bottom edges undergo the same treatment in gilding as the flat fore-edge, except for a few slight necessary differences in the method of fixing the book. In the first instance, long boards are used instead of the outer boards—these protect the book from injury. The boards (the short sides of cross-boards are often used instead) are laid exactly in the groove at the back, but the outer boards are set back so that they are exactly in a line with the depth of the round edge. If this precaution is neglected, the chances are that little ridges will appear in the fore-edge where pressure has been applied. [Fig. 51] shows the arrangement in the press.
Scraping is done from the back to the fore-edge. As the back is not pressed so solid as the rest of the edge, it frequently happens that it does not get scraped so smooth. In this case recourse may be had to a fine file and fine sand-paper. The rest undergoes the familiar process. Take care that no glair runs on to the fore-edge when applying it or when draining it off. It is convenient to place the press crosswise on the table so that the fore-edge stands at its lower side; the glair then drains off the whole length of the edge more evenly and drains more towards the fore-edge. Many finishers elevate the press, letting it drain towards the fore-edge; there is no danger to the latter if the press is tipped forward from the top. On no account must the glair be allowed to drain towards the back, as this part is very open and all the moisture would gather there.
Fig. 51—Top edge arranged for gilding.
Besides the method of laying on the gold-leaf with the gilder's tip there is another which is specially used in gilding hymn-books; a piece of gauze is stretched across a frame, passed over the hair, and then the gold for the entire length of the edge is at once picked up and laid on. Round edges may be similarly covered by means of a couple of threads or horse-hairs stretched on a frame. The threads can be shifted to the short sides of the frame; they are adjusted to the width of the edge, allowing for the rounding, and are slightly greased by passing over the hair, and thus pick up the strip of gold at the edges. Just before laying on the gold, the threads are adjusted so that the gold fits the shape of the edge. Then plenty of glair is applied and the gold quickly and truly laid on.
This method is not exactly difficult, but it is not quite so safe as laying on with a gilder's tip, especially for very large edges.
The simplest way of laying on for flat edges is by means of strips of paper. This has the advantage of allowing a larger number of gold strips being made ready for laying on at one time. Select a piece of stiff and not too thin paper, cut into strips about the width of the strips of the gold-leaf, draw one side of the paper across the hair, and then take up the leaf so as to allow it to project a little over the edge of the paper strip. After glairing, strip by strip is laid on.
For very cheap work it is often necessary to gild edges with alloyed gold. Such edges are not so carefully and thoroughly prepared; in particular, they are not scraped, but rubbed down with sand-paper. Blood serum is used instead of white of egg; this is prepared by allowing ox-blood to stand a few days and then filtering off the clear liquid.
Aluminium is laid on a gelatine solution: one tablet of gelatine to 1/4 litre of water.
Gilt edges are also frequently tooled or scraped and painted. This work comes within the sphere of the art binder and cannot be dealt with in this book.
All other coloured and marbled edges can be burnished in the same way as gilt edges. In good work this must always be done.
In small shops headbands are made to this day of striped calico, which is cut into strips of 2 cm. wide right across the pattern, and one edge is pasted round a thin cord. After drying, pieces the exact size of the back of the book are cut off. The back of the book at the head is glued with a not too thin glue and the headband glued on so that the pad made by the cord lies on top of the edges and thus covers the place where book and cover join.
Woven headbands are now to be had so cheap that it is no longer necessary for the binder to make his own. The cheaper kinds are woven of cotton, and of these there are bands made which have two pads, each edge having a different colour. This band is cut along the middle for use; for the rest, it is cut into pieces according to the width of the book and then glued on to the back. Better kinds in silk are only woven on one side, therefore the cutting asunder is not necessary. For work in quantities, the headbands are cut the size of the back with the adjustable headband shears.
For extra work the headband is hand-worked in silk. This work can only be learned by practice, although its execution is not difficult; such books are only headbanded after boarding.
To make the filling for the headband, cut into strips pieces of vellum which have been pasted together, between which a piece of tough, thin pasteboard may be pasted to further strengthen. These strips are cut a little less than the height of the squares and a little longer than the width of the back. So as to facilitate the work, the strip is at once curved to the rounding of the back.
Take two silk threads of the kind sold as "Cordonnet" silk, each thread of a different colour. Both threads are threaded in a sewing needle, the threads taken double, the ends of both double threads knotted together. The book is clamped in the ends of a press and stands slanting a little outwards. The needle is inserted in the back groove of the first sheet at the left hand underneath the kettle stitch and the thread drawn out to the knots. Thus one thread is always above and another below. The strip of vellum is now placed upright on the outside edge of the head, the thread is brought over from below, and is stitched from above to below close to the head, with the hanging needle through the first sheet under the kettle stitch outwards. Bring the same thread once more up over the strip, let the needle hang in the hollow of the fore-edge, taking in its stead the other thread which takes up the first, bringing it out underneath the vellum strip. By this, the first thread is firmly drawn as a chain stitch into the headband now beginning. The second thread is now brought upwards but need not again be taken through the sheet; it is taken back under the vellum strip once, and at the second time the needles are changed in the hollow as the first thread one more takes up the second thread and draws it into a chain. Thus the work goes on; after several journeys the thread is once again drawn out through a sheet until both threads are brought out at the other end of the back and pasted down. The first knots must also be undone and the ends pasted so that they do not show on the back. It is essential that the vellum strips should be always firmly and evenly sewn upon the edge, and also that every winding of the thread and the chain lies quite regular.
Fig. 53—Headband working.
It is possible to make a variation by making a few stitches with a third thread of another colour in the centre of the headband. Any vellum projecting at the ends must be cut off flush with the book.
Some books are given a marker; this is made of silk ribbon or of a cheaper kind specially woven for the purpose. It is cut long enough to allow of its projecting a little at the head and pasted there, and at the same time comfortably held by the finger at the corner diagonally opposite. The marker is glued on before headbanding.