ctavo, London 1905.

Now as to the practical application of his knowledge of bookbinding. He
will have realised at the outset of his career that unless a book be
strongly bound in leather at the first, much use will quickly reduce it
to the condition of a wreck. The British Museum authorities, recognising
this, wisely rebind in leather certain volumes published in cloth covers
which are to be placed on the shelves of the Reading Room. Where much use
is accorded to the volumes doubtless the ideal way, if one were possessed
of sufficient means, would be to purchase new books in quires only, and
to have them bound in vellum, pigskin or morocco straight away. With
regard to second-hand books (by which I mean old-time literature) these
would be rebound, similarly, before they were assigned places on the
shelves.

Fortunately, however, in the private library our volumes are immune from
that careless handling usually accorded to books by those who love not
learning for learning's sake, but look upon it as a necessary part of
their worldly education. Usually there is no need to rebind these
ancient tomes whose 'joints' are so delicately described by the
bookseller as 'tender': their very infirmity will ensure that they be
accorded careful handling. But there comes a time when the old fellow
succumbs to his arthrodial trouble, and there is nothing for it but to
send him to the binder that he may acquire a second youth. Then it is
that the collector's learning in the art of binding will prove of the
greatest use. He will take the patient in his hands, examine him
minutely, and write a long prescription which he will slip into the
volume opposite the title-page, before proceeding to wrap him up for the
journey. It will run something like this:

M. PASQUIER'S 'Recherches de la France'
Fo: Paris 1633.
To be bound in full Niger, dark brown (as I usually have it).
Solid back, big round bands.
All edges untouched.
Old marbled endpapers, cloth joints.
Blind panel and lozenge tooling on sides
(like the pattern you have of my big Menestrier).
On the back a broad gold line either side of each band.
Panels plain.
To be lettered (thick fount)
RECHERCHES
DE LA FRANCE
and in the middle panel
PASQUIER.
The engraved portrait facing the title-page to be washed and sized.
Tears on pp. 721, 723 to be mended.

Pigskin, vellum, and morocco (by which I intend