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by Joseph W. Zaehnsdorf
Published in London 1897
The boards having been squared, they are to be attached to the book by lacing the ends
of the cord through holes made in the board. The boards are to be laid on the book with
their backs in the groove and level with the head; they must then be marked either with
a lead pencil or the point of a bodkin exactly in a line with the slips, about half an inch
down the board. On a piece of the wood the mill board is placed, and holes are pierced
by hammering a short bodkin through on the line made, at a distance from the edge in
accordance with the size of the book. About half an inch away from the back is the right
distance for an octavo. The board is then to be turned over, and a second hole made
about half an inch away from the first ones. The boards having been holed, the slips
must be scraped, pasted slightly, and tapered or pointed. Draw them tightly through the
hold first made and back through the second. Tap them slightly when the board is down
to prevent them from slipping and getting loose. When the cords are drawn through, cut
the ends close to the board with a knife, and make the board close on the slips and hold
them tight. The slips should be well and carefully hammered, as any projection will be
seen with great distinctness when the book is covered. The hammer must be held
perfectly even, for the slips will be cut by the edge of it used carelessly.
into the standing press. With all books, a tin should be placed between the millboard and
book, to flatten the slips, and prevent their adherence. The tin is placed right up the
groove, and serves also as a guide for the pressing board. Pressing boards, the same
size as the book, should be put flush with the groove, using the pressing tin as guide,
and the book or books placed in the centre of the press directly under the screw, which is
to be tightened as much as possible. In pressing books of various sizes, the largest book
must always be put at the bottom of the press, with a block or a few pressing boards
between the various sizes, in order to get equal pressure on the whole, and to allow the
screw to come exactly on the centre of the books.
The backs of the books are now to be pasted, and allowed to stand for a few minutes to
soften the glue. Then with a piece of wood or iron, called a cleaning-off stick (wood is
preferable), the glue is rubbed off, and the backs are well rubbed with a handful of
shavings and left to dry. Leave them as long as possible in the press, and if the volume
is rather a thick one a coat of past or thin glue should be applied to the back. Paste is
preferable If the book is very thick a piece of thin calico may be pasted to the back and
allowed to dry, the surplus being taken away afterwards.
being moist will break, or the paper being wet will tear, or the bands may become shifted. The cleaning-off stick may
be made of any piece of wood; an old octavo cutting board is as good as anything else, but a good workman will
always have one suitable and at hand when required for use.
When the volumes have been pressed enough (a day’s pressing is none too much) they are to be taken out, and the
tins and pressing boards put away. The book is then ready for cutting. Of the numerous presses, excepting the
hydraulic, Gregory’s Patent Compound Action Screw Press is to my mind the best, and I believe it to be one of the
most powerful presses yet invented; sixty tons pressure can be obtained by it.
In olden times, when our present work-tools did not exist and material aids were scarce, a sharp knife and straight
edge formed the only implements used in cutting. Now we have the plough and cutting machine, which have
superseded the knife and straight edge; and the cutting machine is now fast doing away with the plough. There are
very few shops at the present moment where a cutting machine is not in use, in fact I may say that, without speaking
only of cloth books, for they must always be cut by machinery owing to the price not allowing them to be done other
wise, there are very few books, not even excepting extra books, that have escaped the cutting machine.
way. The plough running over the press,
its left cheek running between two guides
fastened on the left cheek of the press.
By turning the screw of the plough the
right cheek is advanced towards the left;
the knife fixed on the right of the plough is
advanced, with the point cuts gradually
through the boards or paper secured in
the press, as already described in
preparing the boards. These are two
kinds of ploughs in use – in one the knife
is bolted, in the other the knife slides in a
dovetail groove – termed respectively “bolt
knife” and “slide knife.” The forwarder will
find that the latter is preferable, on
account of its facility of action, as any
length of knife can be exposed for cutting.
cutting or squaring mill-boards, or such work, before it can be used with the truth necessary for paper. To cut a book
properly it must be quite straight and the knife must
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