The Progress of the Marbling Art Part 5

With hair-veined edges, where colors are thrown on the size only in very small quant.i.ties, this wetting may be omitted; but with comb, peac.o.c.k and bouquet edges, for which four to six colors are used, it is unavoidably necessary to prepare the edges with alum water because the glycocholate aluminium formed by the color while in connection with the alum water is essential to fix the color in such quant.i.ties.

Therefore, if it is desired to produce clean and l.u.s.trous edges in which the white lines appear without a trace of color, then this advice is to be followed, the small trouble being amply repaid by the beauty of the edges.

Ordinary earth and several of the lake-colors take without wetting of edges with alum water, but these colors leave much to be desired in their divisibility and fineness and always appear rugged.

A much finer fixing medium is the acetate of aluminium which can be easily produced.

Dissolve 1 pound of alum in 3 quarts of warm water, prepare another solution with the same quant.i.ty of soda, mix these two, whereupon the hydrate of aluminium is precipitated. Allow the latter to settle, pour the water above carefully off, and filter; the white body which remains consists of hydrate of aluminium which is readily dissolved by a little acetic acid, into a clear fluid and can be diluted with the same volume of water. Then heat the whole liquid, when the excess of acetic acid is evaporated, we have the desired acetate of aluminium which can be used in the same way as alum water.

Edges and paper which are to be marbled should only be moistened with alum water or aluminium acetate shortly before the marbling and should stand not longer than a half-hour after the sizing of the edges, because later on, an insoluble layer is formed which only takes color with great difficulty. It is therefore best to prepare the colors before commencing the sizing of the edges. If there are a large number of books, it is better to divide them into two or three lots.

The Preparation of the Colors for Marbling.

THE PREPARATION OF THE COLORS FOR MARBLING.

The want of knowledge of colors gave me the greatest trouble when I began their manufacture as I had no information as to why this or that color was unfit for marbling.

The numberless experiments I made to this end remained without results.

It was an exceedingly great trial to my patience, but by the pertinacity with which I clung to my investigations, I, at last, succeeded in making the important discovery, that the real value of color for marbling purposes is its body and that the color itself, which is bound to the body either naturally or chemically, is of less importance. By this discovery every difficulty that I had so long experienced was cleared away and it was made manifest, why it had been impossible for the marbling art to become sufficiently popular.

From this time on I had a foundation, upon which to continue my investigations with greater surety. Finally I succeeded in finding that the colors named later on are good and useful marbling colors.

When we look over the different special branches of our trade, we find everywhere great progress, which is even noticeable in the smallest workshop. Already, these wonderful achievements have become common property, only the art of marbling stood still on account of insufficient instruction and it has not made any progress in the last decade. This was due to a large number of men in our trade using mechanical marblers to avoid those obstacles, which had hitherto offered themselves in marbling.

The expectations which were placed on the mechanical marblers were not fulfilled, because, after a short use, and when not carefully kept clean, they became sticky from dust and color mixing so that they gave but very indifferent productions. The necessity of continually cleaning these mechanical marblers and their lack of uniformity are by no means recommendable properties.

Mechanical marblers should be retired to small book-binderies for use upon single books, where they are eminently in the right place, driving away the primitive sprinkled or starched edges.

The interest which was shown in mechanical marblers is a proof that all members of our trade, who use them, possess a liking for the marbling art and would be zealous friends of the same, if they but knew of the methods of marbling, that would give beautiful results without great difficulty.

To judge rightly the value of a new invention, we have only to see, whether it is introduced into the wholesale trade and is in continual use. This is the best test of inventions and the only proper basis, upon which to judge them correctly. We find the mechanical marblers exclusively in the small shop, because they do not answer the demands of the wholesale manufacturer in any way.

What the marbling art is able to offer, a person can only judge, who has seen exemplary edges and to whom marbling is not a stranger. No kind of edge, to which color is applied, can be compared to the effective splendor of marbled edges. In thousands of variations it imitates nature and delights the eye by its products. Although marbling has hardly reached the middle rung of the ladder of its development, it to-day stands unrivalled.

It is clear, that such an art should be fostered and nursed, if it is to grow to its full development. But here the investigation of one man is insufficient, a general interest is demanded and I hope, that this will be aroused by my work. After this slight diversion I will now begin to treat my real subject, the preparation of colors, and for that purpose, I will divide the marbling art into three important parts: the size, the color and the technical application.

The size and the technical application of the colors demand great attention and practice; on the other hand, the preparation of colors but labor. The colors are divided into two groups, mineral and lake colors.

In the lake colors, if they are good and strong, the coloring matter bound to the metallic oxides is equal to one-half of the whole weight of the color, therefore they can be prepared as good marbling colors without adding anything but gall. On the other hand, in mineral colors, which in a natural or chemical way are bound to bodies, the body weighs much more than the coloring substance and even if the metallic oxide is the real coloring substance, as is the case with ferric hydrate, the organic coloring matters derived from the vegetable or animal kingdom are preferable to the inorganic substances.

Why this is the case we shall see further on. In those coloring substances, which I have recommended as good marbling colors, the aggregate state of the body is amorphous and admits of the greatest divisibility. If such a coloring substance is ground in the finest way possible, the division of the body is a very great one, but an intimate union of the particles can never take place because first, the color is insoluble in water and, second, because the division (diminution) of a body has its limits. For this reason particles are isolated and lay loosely alongside of each other.

If a mineral color is mixed with the necessary amount of water and gall and thrown upon the size the drop expands to a round disc, which upon close investigation, is found to consist of numberless small dots. When such coloring stuffs are used, the union of the particles must be brought about by some glutinous matter. This is unnecessary with lake colors, where the coloring matter is as heavy as the body to which it is bound, as all organic substances possess a sufficient quant.i.ty of glutinous matter to form a union of the particles.

The clearest proof of the correctness of my allegations we find in a mineral color, in which the metallic oxide was precipitated by a semi organic salt, I mean French blue, which without any substance unites the particles quite well if the washing of the precipitate after the blueing, was a perfect one.

The glutinous matter used with mineral colors must be entirely free of any acids as the smallest particle of acid, which in warm weather is often formed after long standing causes an isolation of the coloring matter in such a way, that it will become curdled when thrown upon the size. The best glutinous matter, that can be used, is dissolved isingla.s.s or parchment-glue with gum tragacanth. As the first two named materials are expensive they can be replaced by fine gum arabic free of acid. Take 4/6 of an ounce of gum tragacanth let it swell in 1 pint of water and dissolve fully by boiling. In this way we obtain a glutinous ma.s.s, which is mixed by stirring with a thick solution of gum-arabic.

This mixture is used to unite the particles of the body of mineral colors.

To grind the colors use a very smooth marble slab, a roller and a palette knife, of wood or horn, as those of steel produce some change upon red colors.

The colors which are sold in the market are either in the form of grooved pieces, little cones, or powder. If the color is in pieces or little cones, it is first ground to powder in a dry state and is then mixed with a little water and from 10 to 15 drops of ox-gall to a thick paste. If a mineral color, add a piece of the glutinous matter the size of a nut, if, on the contrary, we have a lake color, the addition of water and gall is fully sufficient.

Now commences the grinding. With a muller you continually run in a circular motion over the color using a moderate pressure of the hands.

After about two or three hours have elapsed the color will have the requisite fineness which is shown by its greasy, lacquer-l.u.s.trous appearance. During the grinding, move the color from time to time into the center of the marble with the palette knife and at the same time the adhering color is removed from the roller.

When the color is ground fine it must be diluted with water in a gla.s.s vessel and is then ready for use. Bottle tightly and keep it in a cool place, best in the cellar.

For grinding the colors and diluting the same, river or rain water should be used, of course, proportionately to the quant.i.ty of color so that the latter will not become too thin.

The grinding of a color is done mostly by apprentices as the time of a journeyman would be too valuable. In most cases this part of the preparation gives the greatest trouble, since the colors are seldom gotten to that fineness necessary to marbling. This is easily explained as the grinding demands practice and a certain perseverance. From the point of view that time is money, the majority of book-binders concluded to use ready ground colors and this was profitable to them as they could buy them better and finer ground and much cheaper. But, even here, we sometimes find articles, which leave much to be desired, but which, in most cases, can be used.

For fifteen years I have been carrying on the manufacture of marbling colors and must always endeavor to keep pace with the progress of the chemistry of the colors as new products are continually offered for sale superior to the old in quality and beauty.

To give to the trade an idea of the manufacture of marbling colors I will briefly describe it.

It is a well known fact that among the great number of colors produced by a factory, there are always several, which excel by their especially good quality. I selected, therefore, from among the colors of several factories, those which were especially excellent and I now control an a.s.sortment, which hardly any single factory is able to supply.

In preparing them 20 pounds are always ground at once. The color is ground upon a large marble slab with water and gall, to mineral colors the necessary glutinous matter is added and this is formed to a thick paste and then ground in the color-mill. The grinding in the mill is essential to obtain a h.o.m.ogeneous ma.s.s and then this paste is ground twice on a color grinding machine with three porphyry rollers in the finest possible way.

The color having been diluted is then prepared on a size, which is gotten up for this purpose and then preserved in stone jugs.

It is easily explainable, that the best results must be obtained with such a carefully and excellently prepared color, I, therefore recommend to my fellow marblers, the marbling colors manufactured by me.[A]

[A] The publisher of this book, having accepted the sole agency for the United States and Canada of these colors, pledges the closest and most prompt attention to all orders, despatch in delivery and most reasonable prices.

See price list at the end of this book.

Before using, the color must always be well shaken and there must only be taken from the bottle enough necessary to one marbling process. The remaining portion of the color must not be poured back into the bottle, because if this be repeated several times the whole color would be spoiled by the gall.

A small quant.i.ty of, say from 40 to 50 drops of color, is sufficient for marbling the edges of even a large number of books, the colors must always be kept tightly bottled up as they may be spoiled by being exposed to the air for a longer period.

The Marbling of Book Edges and Paper.

THE MARBLING OF BOOK EDGES AND PAPER.