BOOKBINDING is the art of securing together a number of separate leaves into one book, and is of very great antiquity, the invention being generally attributed to one of the kings of Pergamus, to whom we are also said to be indebted for the invention of parchment. Bookbinding, properly so called,. includes the binding of all printed books ; while vellum-binding is the term applied to the binding of every description of account books. The two branches are quite distinct, and seldom, if ever, successfully practised by the same ; we shall therefore describe each branch separately, beginning with bookbinding. Although the limits of this work preclude the possibility of entering minutely into all the practical details of the subject, yet it is hoped that the following account will be found to contain a clear and connected view of the nature of each process, and of the tools employed, with a brief notice of some of the more striking attempts at improvement.
In binding printed books, they are generally received by the binder in sheets, which are folded into quartos, octavos, duodecimos, &c., as the case may be. This process is assisted by certain catch-marks or signatures, printed at the bottom of each sheet, by attending to which, and keeping the folio of one page on the folio of another, and at the same time preserving the necessary corre spondence between the foot of each page, the work will be properly folded, and an uniformity of margin preserved throughout the work. The book having been folded and pressed, is next beaten on a large smooth stone, with a cast iren bell-shaped hammer, weighing from twelve to fourteen pounds. This beating requires great care and skilfulness on the part of the workman, and various attempts have been made, at different periods to supersede the process, by the use of hydraulic and other powerful presses; these, however, have proved unfit for the purpose, generally creasing and disfiguring the work. Mr. Burn, of Hatton Garden, has, however, succeeded in rendering books extremely compact and solid, by passing the sheets, when folded, between a pair of powerful rollers; and this method will eventually supersede the old laborious and imperfect one of hammer-beating. The apparatus of Mr. Burn consists of two iron cylinders, about 12 inches in diameter, adjustable in the usual manner by screws, and worked by manual labour applied to one or two cranked handles. A boy sits in front of the press, who gathers the sheets into packets by placing two or more upon a piece of tin plate of the same size, and covering them with another piece, and thus proceeding, by alternating tin plates and bundles of sheets, till a sufficient quantity have been put together, which will depend greatly on the thickness and hardness of the paper, &c. The packet so formed is then passed between the rollers, and is received by the man who turns the winch, and who has time to lay the sheets on one side, and band over the tin plates, by the time that the boy has prepared a second packet. The time occupied in this process is about one-twentieth of that requisite for beating. It is not merely a saving of time, however, that is gained by using the rolling press, for the paper is rendered much smoother, and the compression of the book is one-sixth greater than could have been obtained by heating. The Society of Arts presented Mr. Burn with their silver Vulcan medal for his invention, which is now in very general and extensive use. Newly-printed works will not admit of beating or rolling, and books which are only to be boarded, do not require more than a good pressing. After beating or rolling, the book is collated, and the plates (if any) put in their respective places. It is then put in the standing press, and after remaining there a short time, is taken out, and the waste leaves added at the beginning and end. The book is then taken up between the extended fingers of each hand, and the back and head knocked up nice and one side of the book is then laid upon a pressing board as large as the book itself, beyond which the back must project about half an inch ; a second pressing-board, corresponding in size and position with the former, is placed upon the upper side, and the board being firmly grasped with the left hand, the book is lowered into the cutting-press, which is screwed up tight, and a certain number of grooves, according to the size of the book, are cut in the back with a tenon saw, for the reception of the cords on which the book is to be sewed. After sawing, the sections are parted by passing a folding stick up and down between them. The book is then taken to the sewing-press of which the accompanying is a representation. It consists of a stout tlai board a a, and two upright screws b b, with a long opening between them. A top rail c rises and falls upon the screws by means of two nuts d d. Several cords, suited in size and number to the kind of books which are to be sewn, are attached to the rail c, and set to correspond with the sawed grooves in the back of the book; the cords being carried down through the aperture in the bed of the press, are fastened underneath by means of brass keys, of which e is a representation. The number and distances of the bands are quite arbitrary, and are disposed according to the fancy of the workman ; it may, however, in general, be regulated as follows: 32mos. three bands ; 18mos., 12mos , 8vos., and two-leaf 4tos. four bands ; royal 8vos. and whole-sheet 4tos. five bands ; and folios from five to seven bands. In sawing the back two extra grooves are made, one at each end of the book, for the catch or kettle-stitch. The book
being placed with the back towards the sewer, and the title uppermost, the fly leaf or end paper is first laid upon the press and sewed to the cords, by passing the needle in the first right-hand groove or catch-stitch mark, with the right hand; the left hand being kept in the middle of the section, receives the needle and draws it through, leaving two or three inches of the thread undrawn. The needle is then returned out on the head side of the band, received by the right hand, and passed through on the other side of the band, by which the thread is conducted round each band in succession. The needle being carried along the inside of the section, and led round each band in this manner, is at last brought out of the last groove or left hand catch-stitch mark. The first section of the book is then taken and sewed to the bands in the same way ; when the needle comes out at the catch-stitch mark, over the end of the thread left out of the fly-leaf in the first sewing, the thread is tied to it in a knot. The remaining sections are then sewn, the thread being fastened through the catch-stitch of each preceding section. Care must be taken not to draw the thread of the catch-stitches too tight, but to keep the back equally swelled. A number of books may be sewed one on another, till the press is three parts full, care being taken to finish off the sewing of each book, and not to catch-stitch them together. The proper number of books being sewed, the strings are cut from the rail, and unfastened at the bottom ; the books are then separated and the bands cut apart, leaving about two inches on each side of the book. After sewing, the back of the book is glued; and when that is dry, the ends of the bands are opened and scraped. If the book is to be lined, which is customary with all half-extra and other superior work, it is now done, either with fine coloured or marble paper. If with marble paper, the sheet is folded with the plain side outwards, one half of it being pasted ; it is laid between the fly-leaves, into the fold of which it is closely worked ; the other half is then pasted, and the next fly-leaf rubbed down upon it, any superfluous edges being cut off with the shears. This done, the back is next to be rounded, which is effected by laying the book on the press cheek, with the fore-edge towards the workman, who presses the fingers of his left hand upon the book, and at the same time draws it towards him, gently tapping the back up and down with a hammer, alternately changing the sides until the book is uniformly and effectually rounded. The back is then squeezed in the cutting press for a few minutes, which sets it, and the book is then ready for backing. This consists in forming a projection of the back on each side of the book, sufficient to cover the boards, and is done by placing cutting boards on each side of the book, within about a quarter of an inch of the back, or according to the size of the book, care being taken that the boards are parallel with the back, and at equal distances from it. The boards being tightly grasped by the left band, are lowered into the cutting-press and screwed tight ; the back is then hammered gently and uniformly all over, which causes it to spread over the boards so as to form the required ledge or projection. If any roughness appears on the back, it is removed by scraping, and cleaned off with paste and paper shavings. The boards for the cover, which are brown milled boards, having been cut to the required size with shears, or ploughed in the cutting press, two holes are pricked with a bodkin for each band, one of them directly opposite the band, the other about an inch beyond it. The first, for 8vos , should be about half an inch from the edge of the board, the others about an inch, or for larger works still forwarded. The bands are then drawn through the outer side of the board, and passed through the other hole to the outside again, where the ends are spread and pasted. Each board is then opened, and laid separately on a smooth piece of iron, and the strings hammered flat. The boards, which should not be put on too tightly, having been properly adjusted, and the back examined to see that it has not been deranged, and the defects, if any, remedied with the backing hammer, the next step is cutting the fore-edge. For this purpose the boards are thrown out of the grooves or ledges, and then brought to a perfect level with the back by knocking on the cheeks of the press ; a cuaing-board (of oak or beech, and rather wedge-shaped) is then placed on the left hand side of the book, and another, called a runner, on the right ; the whole is then placed in the cutting-press, the runner being brought even with the right cheek of the press, and when properly adjusted, the press is screwed up, and the fore-edge ploughed. After cutting the fore edge, the book is taken out, and the back rounded as before, when a corresponding groove will be formed in the front. The head is next cut by knocking the boards straight up with it, keeping them in the ledge produced by backing ; the cutting-board and runner are then applied as before, and the head ploughed. For cutting the opposite end, the boards are slipped below the head as much again as it is intended they shall project, which should be rather less than on the fore-edge. A small piece is then taken off the Inner corner of each board; and the boards being replaced, there will be found a suffi cient projection for both ends.