To the Editor of the "Nonri-Ciina Day News"
Sm—The reasons for premature deterioration of leather bookbindings fare so many and varied that one hesitates to offer suggestions to "LY.S." without examining the books to which he refers, The "dried and frayed" condition of his bindings may be due to simple rot caused by the presence of free sulphuric neid in the oather (a frequent source of trouble even with expensive Levant moroccos), or to careless "tooling" and finishing on the part of a book. binder. Or, again, the local "elimal may. be responsible, Extremes of hheat and cold, dryness and humidity fare devastating to most standard Teather' book casings, Brittloness or loss of flexibility arising from the latter cause can be remedied by occasional applications of a dressing composed of equal parts of white vaseline, glycerine and castor li. Care must be taken, of course, that the dressing docs not got on the fend papers and leaves of the books treated.
may get rid of the "bookworms" (a misnomer, by the way, for these insects are in no Way peculiar to books and are oquatly home in bookshelves and wooden floors) by putting his books in an air Aight box and packing around them colton wool freely sprinkled with ether. This treatment should be repeated twice at intervals of one, week. Camphor on the old-fashioned "Keat-Ing's" will assist. in driving the Me sects from bookcases, Tue Unavensiry Pness.
(per J. A.B. S-B,)
Shanghai, July 25,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.