Part 6 (2/2)

No cloth which is suitable for library use is perfectly satisfactory because it has not the strength of good leather, cannot be used advantageously on very heavy books, soils easily and with use grows soft and flabby, especially along the joints. But on the other hand even those not suitable for libraries which are used by the publisher on cheap books are much better than poor grades of leathers, such as skiver, bock, buffing, etc.

The requisite qualities of a good cloth are:

(_a_) Endurance when folded back and forth in the same place, so that it may withstand the wear at the joint caused by opening the book.

(_b_) Smoothness, so that there will be a comparatively small amount of friction when withdrawing a book from between two others on the shelf.

(_c_) Ability to withstand constant rubbing back and forth on tables.

(_d_) Color that is fast when exposed to light; if possible it should be fast to water also, though this is less important.

(_e_) Color should be dyed in the piece, not pressed in by machinery.

Many cloths have some of these qualities but few have all of them. So far as is known to the writer only the grade of cloth described on page 77 has the last qualification.

Practically all cloth used in the United States is made of cotton. The best cloths are manufactured by The Holliston Mills, Norwood, Ma.s.s.; The Interlaken Mills, New York City; The Joseph Bancroft & Sons Company, Wilmington, Del., and by the Winterbottom Company and the Manchester Book Cloth Company in England. Since a number of grades are made in several different patterns and a great number of shades for each grade and each pattern, a variety of choice is permitted. As a matter of fact, however, most librarians select a good grade with a regular weave and confine themselves to a few standard shades, such as dark green, brown, red, dark blue, and tan.

Since the strength of the warp is much greater than that of the weft, it is advisable when possible to cover books with the warp running across the cover. This, however, may entail some hards.h.i.+p on the binder for it may frequently happen that in order to cut his cover economically he must make the warp run lengthwise of the book. If a strong cloth is used the advantage is not great enough to be insisted upon.

Each of the American firms mentioned makes three distinct grades, all of which libraries may use. Each firm uses a different name for each grade.

In other words, there are no general names which can be used for the corresponding grade in all makes. Therefore for the purposes of this chapter these cloths will be considered under the heads of Grades 1, 2 and 3, but it must be remembered that this is an arbitrary designation not known to the trade. Under each grade will be given the specific names used by the three manufacturers.

GRADE 1

Grade one of cloth, the cheapest that a librarian may use, is not made of the best quality of cotton thread and should never be used under any circ.u.mstances for full binding. It may be used on the sides of books bound in leather; if this be done the corners should be covered with vellum, for this cloth does not withstand hard usage and is likely to fray at the corners. It is a cloth commonly used by publishers, but should be used sparingly by the librarian. ”Art vellum” made by the Interlaken Mills, ”Aldine vellum” made by the Holliston Mills, and ”Linen finish” made by the Joseph Bancroft & Sons Company, come within this grade.

GRADE 2

(_a_) Grade two is made of a better grade of cotton and with a closer weave than the preceding, but is not sufficiently strong to be used for full binding. It can be used more satisfactorily than the preceding on the sides of books bound in leather or duck. In common with all cloths, except the buckram made according to the government specifications (which will be discussed later), the different colors are not made, as one might suppose, by dyeing the cloth after it is woven, but by mixing the color with the sizing or starch which is used in finis.h.i.+ng the cloth, and pressing it into the cloth by machinery. As a natural result the color rubs off with wear and the natural gray of the original cloth as first woven appears. ”Art canvas” made by the Interlaken Mills, ”Cla.s.sic buckram” made by the Holliston Mills, and ”Polished buckram,”

by the Joseph Bancroft & Sons Company come within this grade.

(_b_) _Buckram._ Under the name of buckram various grades of cloth are manufactured which resemble to a greater or less degree those mentioned under Grade 2 (_a_). Generally it is a coa.r.s.ely woven cloth stiffened with glue or sizing, and the term originally indicated that the cloth was made of linen. At the present time linen buckram made in England can be obtained, but all that is manufactured in the United States is made of cotton. Linen buckram costs much more than cotton and it is doubtful if it is any more serviceable. All of the three manufacturers mentioned make buckrams.

GRADE 3

Prior to 1907 the Congressional set of government doc.u.ments distributed to the depository libraries had been bound in sheepskin and the leather on the volumes had disintegrated so much as to make the set a hard one to care for. In 1907 the Congressional Printing Investigation Commission asked librarians of depository libraries to suggest, without considering cost, suitable binding materials for Government Doc.u.ments. The number of replies received was 124, embodying suggestions as follows: full sheep, 11; half-russia, 78; cloth, 25; buckram, 70; linen duck, 20; canvas, 19.

Some librarians expressed more than one preference, so that the total number of preferences was greater than the total of those replying. Most of those who favored sheep did so because of their desire for uniformity. Those who favored half-russia undoubtedly desired half American russia, or cowhide. 134 expressed preference for some form of cloth.

After receiving the replies from librarians the Printing Investigation Commission obtained samples of cloth from various cloth manufacturers in the United States and the Bureau of Standards made a series of chemical and physical tests to determine the durability of these cloths. Chemical tests were made to discover whether the colors were fast when exposed to light. It is to be regretted perhaps that no tests were made to determine whether the cloths were fast to water and that this qualification was not included in the final specifications. Admitting, however, that a cloth which is fast to sun and water both is a valuable cloth for bookbinding, it is evident that the quality of fastness to water is not a vitally important one for cloth used in the United States. The total number of books injured by water is so small as to make insistence upon this quality entirely unnecessary. If books become so soiled that they need to be washed they should be bound in waterproof cloth.

Because many volumes of Government Doc.u.ments are sent to Porto Rico and the Philippines where insects eat almost anything of an animal or vegetable character, the desirability of the cloth as an article of diet for insects, was also tested.

The physical tests indicated:

_a._ Number of threads per inch of warp and weft.

_b._ Absorption of moisture.

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