e. It is all very carefully sorted--the imperfect
sheets being thrown out--counted and packed in wooden cases, or done
up with strong wrapping paper in bundles, ready to be sent to the
printer.

PRESSWORK

By Walter J. Berwick.

Books are printed in "forms," or sheets, of four, eight, twelve,
twenty-four, or thirty-two pages at a time, the number being
determined to a great extent by the size of the type page and by the
class of the work.

An ordinary twelvemo book, without illustrations in the text, is
usually printed in forms of thirty-two pages, on what is known as a
single-cylinder flat-bed press, which prints only one side of the
paper at an impression. For large editions, the size of the sheet of
paper is sometimes doubled and sixty-four pages printed at a time. The
class of work in question may also be printed on perfecting presses
which print both sides of the paper at one time, and in this way as
many as one hundred and twenty-eight pages are frequently printed on
one sheet, there being sixty-four pages on each side. Large editions
of books having small pages, such as small Bibles, are often printed
two hundred and fifty-six pages (one hundred and twenty-eight on each
side) at one time.

High grade, illustrated books are always printed on one side of the
sheet at a time, the reverse side being printed after the first
impression has dried properly. Thus a smooch, or "offset," the result
of handling the paper before the ink has become dry, is prevented.

For convenience, I shall describe the process of printing a book from
electrotype plates on a press which prints thirty-two pages at a time
and on only one side of the paper.

Before ordering his paper, the publisher must first determine the size
of the paper page of his proposed book, and from this arrive at the
necessary size of the sheets of paper. He must also determine the
thickness of the paper needed to give the finished book its proper
bulk.

If the book is to be trimmed on top, bottom, and front, about
one-eighth of an inch must be allowed on top and front for the binder
to trim off, and about one-fourth of an inch on the bottom. The
dimensions from back to front, including the amount left for the
"trim," should be multiplied by eight; and the page dimension the
other way, including the trim, by four. This would give the size of
paper needed. As an illustration, if the trimmed size of a book is
7-7/8 x 5-3/8 inches, the paper should b