With this press is used the "plough," a small apparatus of beech wood, shown at Fig. 5. This consists of two flat cheeks, which can be brought together by turning the screw. The light cheek of the plough is furnished with a sharp pointed knife, secured by a screw. When the book is tightly screwed up in the cutting-press, with one of its edges slightly protruding, the binder places the plough with its left cheek in the groove, takes the plough by the handle in the right hand, resting, meanwhile, his left on the other end of the screw, screws up the right cheek, until the point of the knife just touches the book, then begins to push the plough along the groove backwards and forwards, turning the screw a little every time the plough travels from him. The knife, by this method, gradually passes over and through the entire edge of the book, removing, in a series of shavings, the surplus portion of it that projects above the level of the press. There are various minutiae which will be described particularly when we come to the section accorded to “cutting edges," the fore-going brief description being only intended to elucidate the uses of the press and plough.

Plough-knives must be kept very sharp, and require some care in grinding. They are kept in two principal forms, the common knife, shown at Fig. 5 (C), and the Scotch, or sliding, at Fig. 5 (D). The first has a square hole in its butt, through which the plough screw passes, as shown at E (Fig. 5), while the Scotch knife has beveled edges, and the end of the plough screw has a channel, G (Fig. 5), formed in it, in which the knife slides, as shown at F (Fig. 5). Either knife is good, but our personal predilection is for the ordinary form, which, moreover, takes less grinding than the sliding one.

The press can be had in various sizes, at different prices. The amateur will not require the largest size, and may get one to suit him, with plough and pin complete, at from 30s. to £2 2s. These two tools the amateur must have.

The tub" (Fig. 6) is a rectangular wooden frame, upon which the laying-press rests, whichever side is in use. The ancient bookbinders used a veritable tub for the purpose, hence the present name. This should be strongly mortised and tenoned together, and can be made by any local joiner, or by the amateur himself, if handy with carpenter’s tools. It is best to put a bottom to it and board up the sides for 1ft. 6in. or 2ft., to keep

the shavings in. The stuff of an egg-box or two is very suitable for this purpose.

We must here mention that in a large establishment the cutting of edges, "out of boards," is seldom done with the plough, but is accomplished by the" guillotine cutting machine," in which, by lever power, a horizontal knife is brought forcibly down, and will pass through a pile of books at one stroke. As the machine is expensive, and not at all in the amateur's line, we merely allude to it to render our list of tools complete.

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