The Andrew County Republican. [volume] (Savannah, Mo.) 1871-1876, 1874-10-16
Dressing n Book.

This dressing takes place in a fifth
story, and you'd never suspect it to be
a clothing establishment either. In
fact, i furnishes clothes to books only,
and is called a bindery.
Here are brought the loose sheets of
printing, Just as they come from the
press, in bundles as big as rolls of car
peting. Funny-looki1g sheets they
are, too, covered with square blocks
of printing. arranged something like
the panes of glass in a wi2dow-sash.
If you'll take one OF those newspapers
which need the leaves cut before YOU
can read them, open it wide, and lay it
on the floor, you'll see just how the
book-sleets look.
The first thing to be done is to fold
them into book shape, so that each
block 81 printing shall be a page and
have a margin. This is done by a live
lyset Of girls called "~folders," and then
the sheets are run between hydraulic
presses 70 press them very close and
fat.
o. course there are a good many
sheets IL each book, and they have to
be careful to get III of every kind in,
and to get them in the right order. If
they left out one sheet ii would spoil
the book. So the sheets are laid in
piles, and the books are made up by
taking one from each pile.
Then they go to a sewing-machine-
which does sound a little like a dress
makers shop, don't it? But it don't
look a bit like it, for it's the d~rollest
sewing-machine you ever saw. In fact,
the stupid machine don't sew at all-it
only holds three or four bands up tight,
while a girl sitting before it sews the
leaves 70 the bands with a needle.
Take q nicely bound book-some big
heavy book from the library-and you'll
lind on its back several ridges. They
stand up quite high, and are ornament
ed with a gilt vine or something.
These ridges are to cover the bands
that hold the book together. In some
books the bands don't stick out, be-
cause the package of sheets folded for
a book went to a saw and had notches
cut in the back, and the bands are
drawn into the notches to be sewed.
Wien all the leaves are sewed on the
ends Of the bands are left hanging to
the book.
Now the dressing really begins.
First the end papers are put on. Those
are the colored leaves which line the /
cover and form the first and last pages
Of the book.
The glue-pot is next called on, the
back gets a good coat of glue, and IA
good pounding TO round it up. Then
II goes into press, betweent boards,
to dry.
Cutting the edges of the leaves is the
next operation, and a very fascinating
one to see. You feel, when you watch
IT, as though you could stand all day
and see that sharp knife come down
anu cut through The whole at one blow.
nu' you can't, for the poor book still
nas nc outside wrap, and we all know
Tue outside is extremely important.
after the leaves are squared of, the
IAiooard covers are glued on. Mill
board is what makes the covers stiff,
anc 1t is glued to the ends of the bands
winch hold the leaves.
What sort of a dress shall our new
"ook have? Shall it wear elegant
morocco, trimmed with a beautiful pat
tern IN gilt ? or shall it have morocco
oAck and stylish paper over skirts ? or
"ouia you like a pretty colored cotton
ufess SO dainty trimmed with black
and gilt that you almost fancy it is
morocco?
Whatever 1t is, the edges of the E.
leaves must correspond. If the dress is I
morocco, they must be gilded is sub I
o'AH'iai call or morocco and paper, they I
must be marbled or coIored rod or I