The San Francisco call., 1897-03-28
ABOUT BOOkBINDING.

II the statement were made at random that
the book printing houses and binderies of
New York have the capacity to produce 100,-
600 frst-class library volumes per week, it
would be taken extravaganza. Itwould
be within the truth, nevertheless. Another
10000 of ordinary schoolbooks, or the
cheaply made volumes for departmentstore
trade, could be added to these figures, and
still there would be no interfe renee with the
regular output of briefs, tracts, patent medi-
cine almanacs and the like, which scarcely
line under the head of book printing, says the
New York Times.
The trade or art of bookmaking has devel-
oped 80 rapidly and reached such stupendous
proportions that there is no such thing as
keeping statistical record of it. Compared
to newspaper making, 1t is still slow business,
but the binderies of the United States have
reached point where they are able to pro-
duce every book that is required for the trade
of the American continent, good, bad and In
different
Book publishers are looking forward to the
time when importations will cease except of
course, In the matter Of special editions, an
tiQuated or rare volumes They are demon
strating every day that they can meet the
highest requirements of the domestic trade
both as regards quality and number. If books
are produced more cheaply anywhere in the
world than here, it is because labor is paid
less. 1t is not because there are better
equipped establishments abroad than in this
country.
Binding is the slow part of the bookmaking
trade. II has appeared to come toward per-
lection much more leisurely than printing
Even with the latest improvements in ma
chinery great deal of the work has to be
done by hand. Another explanation is that
the work in bindery has to go through GER
tain processes which machinery cannot
hurry. The drying, pressing and turning and
the fitting of backs are comparatively slow
operations at best. Where different colors are
used on the covers day more must be al
lowed for one to dry before the next is put on.
In comparison with the speed of printing, the
binding of books is a slow process; yet in the
aggregate of weeks production the result is
surprisingly large.
American genius is to be credited with the
modern book binding machinery, but England
has always stood first in the superiority of
hand neutrality-suspicious. does to-day--but she
has had to come to the United States for ma
chinery with which to keep her bindery equip
ments abreast with the developments OF the
time. In this particular, as in the pro-
duction OF printing presses. America leads
the world. It is often commented on
as peculiar fact that Germany, which
invented printing, lags behind France,
England and the United States in the produc-
tion Of books; that is, in artistic covers and
good inding. France has been at the front
in the matter OF taste and finish, but has
never equaled England in the strength and
general excellence of binding. Neither coun-
try equals the United States In the develop
ment OF facilities. 1t is not too much to say
that for speed and general effectiveness the
United States leads all nations.
There are over 100 bookbinderies In New
York, and nearly half the number are
equipped with appliances for the highest class
Of work. The capacity OF these binderies is
wonderful. There is an instance on record
where New York publishing -house-and not
the largest-took an order on Monday Tor a
coth-covered limo volume OF $50 pages and
actually shipped 1000 copies of the book on
the following Wednesday. The type was set
(by machinery for the entire $50 pages before
work stopped Monday night Electrotype
plates were made SO rapidly that on Tuesday
morning several printing presses were set in
motion. In the ntime covers were being
made in the bindery and By Wednesday morn
ing the binders had the book in hand Two
Thousand volumes were completed that day,