Handmade paper

“ For machine-made papers the addition of a small proportion enables them to take a very good finish. The amount of china clay present in the finished paper should not exceed 10 per cent, of the total weight.
Hand-made and mould-made printings are tub-sized and plate-rolled, without giving a high glaze to the paper. Machine-made printings are engine-sized, hard or soft according to the use to which the paper is to be put, and sometimes the surface will govern the sizing, some papers being hard-sized and super-calendered, others soft-sized and with only machine finish. ”

“ China clay, having no cohesion, does not assist in felting the paper in any way, but tends to weaken its resistance to wear. That weakness or tenderness is one feature of imitation art papers. After leaving the paper machine the paper is super-calendered, receiving a water finish, that is, the paper is just wetted on the surface immediately before entering the rolls of the calender. The loading is thus brought to the surface, and a very smooth level sheet is produced, only a little inferior, as a printing surface, to art paper. ”

“ Transfer or carbon papers so much used in making several copies of an article on the typewriter are made by coating paper with starch, flour, gum, and coloring matter. Paper can be used for shoes and hats, ties, collars, and even for "rubbers." It has been successfully used for sails for light vessels, and is excellent made into light garments for hospital use because it is so cheap that it can be burned after wearing. Wood pulp can be run through fine tubes into water and made so pliable that it can be twisted into cord or spun and woven into "silk." ”

“ Whatever material may be used for making into paper it has to undergo stages of preparation which can be divided into removing all foreign matter and dirt, reduction to fibrous state, bleaching, beating, and lastly converting what is the pulp into paper. If the material has already been manufactured, as in the case of rags, ropes, sails, sacking, and other textiles, the first process is somewhat simpler than in the case of really raw materials, such as esparto, bamboo, or wood. ”

“ For copies produced by the same process, where a signature has to be appended, or when the form serves as a blank for written additions, a half-sized paper is obtainable in similar qualities and tints.
Tissue papers are strong, thin papers, the best quality being made from hemp or rag fibre, well beaten, with no loading or sizing, made in blue or cream, usually double crown in size; other qualities are made from mixtures of rag, chemical wood, and straw, in various proportions and in various weights. ”

“ These fibres are chiefly used for papers which require strength rather than whiteness of colour, such as wrapping papers, &c.
"Broke" paper is a term applied to paper which has been imperfectly formed on the paper machine or damaged while passing over the drying cylinders. Imperfect sheets when they are not sold as retree, and clean waste paper, also come under this designation and are re-converted into pulp after undergoing the treatment described below. ”

“ Yet if machine-made paper must be used, it should not profess fineness or luxury, but should show itself for what it is: for my part I decidedly prefer the cheaper papers that are used for the journals, so far as appearance is concerned, to the thick, smooth, sham-fine papers on which respectable books are printed, and the worst of these are those which imitate the structure of hand-made papers. ”

“ Featherweight papers are made entirely of esparto, very little sizing is added, no loading is used, the paper is treated so that the wire and felt marks are not easily visible, and the drying and finishing are carried out so as to retain the bulkiness of paper. It must always be remembered that all papers made under such conditions are not durable, and therefore should never be used for work which must withstand any considerable handling. ”

“ For ordinary use, common book or print papers are employed, but these are usually given extra care and attention in the course of their manufacture; the stock is so manipulated as to not only secure the desired quality and finish, but also to counteract the tendency of the paper to stretch, which if not overcome is apt to destroy the register and injuriously affect the quality of the work. The better grades of lithographing-paper are made by applying a clay coating especially prepared to bring about the desired results. ”

“ Machinemade drawing papers are made of similar materials with similar treatment, but papers of very fair quality, made entirely of chemical wood and engine-sized, are on the market. Cartridge papers are frequently used as substitutes for ordinary machine-made drawing papers. ”

“ Writing papers, formerly made entirely from rags, now are likely to contain either chemical or even ground-wood pulp unless the specifications prohibit it. Without doubt, many paper manufacturers have maintained certain papers up to a fixed standard for a long series of years, but it is equally true that competition has lowered the standard of a great many papers, some of which had acquired a distinctive recognition. ”

“ Wood, being stiff and liable to split, can only be moulded into comparative form. Paper, since it can be rendered perfectly pliable, can be pressed into any shape desirable; hence, any wished-for fineness of lines can be given to the model, and the paper will assume the identical shape, after which it can be water-proofed, hardened, and polished. Paper neither swells, nor shrinks, nor cracks, hence it does not leak, is always ready for use, always serviceable. ”

“ Machine-made paper is good, retree, and outsides, the prices being 10 and 20 per cent. less for the second and third qualities respectively. Paper is usually supplied in inside reams of 480 sheets, that is, all good paper, but the papermaker may supply mill reams of 480 sheets, but with a quire of outsides at the top and bottom. The ream of 480 sheets is also known as the stationer's ream—writing, drawing, cartridge, and fancy papers being packed in that quantity. ”

“ High-grade printing papers are produced from a mixture of rag and esparto fibres, a soft paper, taking a good finish, being produced. A blend of chemical wood and esparto, skilfully manufactured, produces a very good printing paper for all ordinary purposes, and papers composed entirely of chemical wood may be good or indifferent according to the treatment and skill devoted to their production. ”

“ It is essential that all the water should be dried out of the paper, and the paper is sometimes reeled almost bone-dry, but if the paper is to be super-calendered it is damped before reeling, and left until the paper mellows before calendering. Many papers are cut and packed without much opportunity for maturing, that is, as regards paper, attaining a degree of stability which should be maintained during its manipulation by the printer, and, it is hoped, during the remainder of its career. ”

“ On the whole, a small book should be printed on paper which is as thin as may be without being transparent. The paper used for printing the small highly ornamented French service-books about the beginning of the sixteenth century is a model in this respect, being thin, tough, and opaque. However, the fact must not be blinked that machine-made paper cannot in the nature of things be made of so good a texture as that made by hand. ”

“ News.—Common printing papers, containing 60 to 80 per cent, of mechanical wood, a small amount of loading, and very little sizing. Suitable for news and other work of an ephemeral nature. Supplied in reels or sheets.
Non-curling Gummed Paper.—Specially prepared gummed paper, the body paper being made as nearly free from stretch as possible, and the coating of gum, when dry, is broken into fine particles by drawing the finished paper over a steel bar. This prevents the film of gum from acting as a single surface, and only when the particles again cohere is the non-curling property destroyed. ”

“ Ledger or account book papers may be hand- or machine-made, and are usually azure or blue laid. If machine-made, the characteristics of the hand-made papers are as far as possible retained: strength, hard tub-sized surface, opacity, moderate finish, both sides alike in surface. To attain these qualities the same materials are employed, an all-rag furnish with a fair proportion of strong linen, prolonged beating to draw out the fibres, a shake to ensure good felting, slow drying to allow gradual contraction, tub-sizing, air-drying over skeleton drums will attain the desired end. ”

“ The material generally used for this class of paper is poplar chemical fibre and waste paper to the extent of 50 per cent., and even up to 75 and 80 per cent. of the total fibre, the balance being rags, or, in cheaper qualities, sulphite wood pulp; the stuff is all mixed together in large beaters, holding from 800 lbs. up to 1,500 lbs. of pulp, where it is about half beaten, and then finished in one or other form of refining-engine.
"The Americans have, I think, more thoroughly studied the question of super-calendering paper than we, and in this respect get better results and better work. ”

“ High-class marbled papers are made a sheet at a time in the following manner: a trough of gum is prepared, the colours for the pattern are sprinkled and dropped upon the surface, patterns are made by combing or some other means of regularising the design. The body paper is let down carefully to the gum, the colour adheres to the paper, and the sheets are hung to dry. Intricate machines are employed to make marbled papers, depositing the colours for transference to the paper. ”

“ It must be remembered, however, that most modern printing is done by machinery on soft paper, and not by the hand press, and these somewhat wiry letters are suitable for the machine process, which would not do justice to letters of more generous design. ”

“ Writing papers must be smooth and hard-sized to fulfil their purpose of bearing writing ink, and other qualities will depend upon the use for which they are destined. The fibres used include rag, chemical wood, esparto, and in the poorest qualities, which but few printers or stationers will stock, mechanical wood. Writing papers of the highest class are all-rag, tub-sized, air-dried, and plate-glazed. Every variety of writing paper may be wove or laid without alteration in quality ”

“ There are many patterns of marbling, the favourites being the Spanish, shell, and nonpareil designs, carried out in reds, blues, and greens. Fancy marbled papers are sold, but binders are conservative in their tastes. Cheap marbled papers are produced by lithography.
Metallic Paper is a coated paper for special uses, such as note-books for indelible writing, in which case writing with a metal stylus or indelible pencil is easily made, but cannot be erased; for indicator diagrams for various instruments where a light touch only can be given, but the diagram is faithfully recorded. ”

“ Chemical wood pulp of the best quality makes an excellent product, and is largely used for both print and book paper; it is frequently mixed with rag pulp, making a paper that can scarcely be distinguished from that made entirely from fine rags, though it is not of the proper firmness for the best flat or writing papers. All ordinary newspapers, as well as some of the cheaper grades of book and wrapping paper, are made entirely from wood, the sulphite or soda process supplying the fiber and ground wood being used as a filler. ”

“ These philanthropic people who require a million of stamps are often difficult to find; and they might as well give the money at once.
C. Brown.—To fix prints upon wood, and remove the paper, care must be taken that the surface of the latter be perfectly smooth. Then moisten a piece of thick drawing-paper, and apply a layer of thin glue on its surface; leave it to dry; give it two or three more coats, leaving each to dry separately. Coat the paper then with several layers of spirit varnish, and prepare the wood in the same way ”

“ Looking at my adventure from this point of view then, I found I had to consider chiefly the following things: the paper, the form of the type, the relative spacing of the letters, the words, and the lines; and lastly the position of the printed matter on the [2] page. It was a matter of course that I should consider it necessary that the paper should be hand-made, both for the sake of durability and appearance. It would be a very false economy to stint in the quality of the paper as to price: so I had only to think about the kind of hand-made paper. ”

“ Papers are manufactured not only for writing and printing, but for hats, umbrellas, lanterns, clothing, dolls’ dresses, twine, candle-wick, and an endless variety of useful or ceremonious purposes. An anonymous author has wisely remarked: “When a people contrive to make saucepans that are used over charcoal fires, fine pocket-handkerchiefs, and sailors’ water-proof overcoats out of paper, they may be considered as having pretty thoroughly mastered the subject.” ”

“ Other colours are required in the manufacture of papers of different tints, and with one or two exceptions they must be mixed with the pulp in the beater.
There are two distinct processes of producing the finished paper from the pulp, known respectively as “hand-made” and “machine-made.” The expense of manufacture of hand-made paper and the consequent high price render it too costly for ordinary use; the entire process on the machine occupies a few minutes, while in the ordinaryPaper Machine. ”

“ In the latter part of the eighteenth century some manufacturers in Europe had learned to make white paper from white rags, and as good in quality, and some think better, than is made at the present day. The essentials of paper making by hand from rags and raw vegetable fibres, the soaking of fibres in water and boiling them in lyes, the beating, rolling, smoothing, sizing and polishing of the paper, were then known and practised. ”