A Dictionary of Occupational Terms Based on the Classification of Occupations used in the Census of Population, 1921.
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ORDER XVI.—MAKERS OF AND WORKERS IN PAPER; PRINTERS, BOOKBINDERS, PHOTOGRAPHERS, ETC.

Sub-order 3.—Makers of Stationery, Cardboard boxes and Other Workers in Paper

558.—Other Skilled Workers



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borderer, black borderer, envelope black borderer
arranges envelopes or note paper, using small bone instrument, so that only border is exposed; applies black varnish with brush.
Braille writer ; embosser to the blind
inserts stereotyped plates of Braille type in an embossing machine and feeds sheets of paper, to be embossed, into machine; switches on and off power-drive of machine and removes finished sheets.
bust maker ; tailor's dummy maker
breaks up strawboard into small pieces and mixes it with flour paste to required consistency; spreads this evenly over iron or aluminium model or mould by hand and with small hand scoop; sets to dry and then cuts sections away from mould; pastes sections together to form complete bust or dummy; may also paint or varnish bust; sometimes specifically designated, e.g. coat bust maker, dressmaker's bust maker, tailor's bust maker.
candle ornament maker
cuts out fancy paper covers or shades for candles, with a punch.
carbon paper coater, carbon paper machine minder ; typewriting carbon maker
fixes reels of paper to spindles of one or more machines which, by a system of rollers, coat paper with dope, i.e., a special ink compound; guides end of paper over or between various rollers to re-reeling end of machine; fills ducts, or troughs, with dope from a can; regulates steam-heating of rollers by turning taps or valves; controls power-drive of machine; supervises coating process; watches re-reeling end of machine to note breaking or creasing of paper; if such occurs, stops machine and repairs or adjusts paper, (by hand; removes reel of coated paper from re-reeling end of machine.
card beveller, card finisher
(i) hand bevelling or finishing; arranges a pile of cards so that edge of pile slopes at required bevel angle; places pile in nipping press and scrapes sloped edge with sharp knife; finishes with sand paper and, if required, applies gold leaf, afterwards burnishing with agate stone;
(ii) machine bevelling; places pile of cards in press of machine and manipulates lever on machine which causes rotary knives to cut bevels on cards; applies gold leaf, if required, and burnishes by hand.
card maker
passes card sheets into a roller machine which pastes separate sheets together.
carton pierre worker
undertakes all processes of manufacture of carton pierre; mixes materials used, i.e., paper pulp, china clay, glue and , whiting; works material into mould by hand; dries it by artificial heat.
checker
see counter.
cloth slitter (typewriter ribbons)
see cutter, cloth (typewriter ribbons).
coater (typewriter stencil paper)
see waxer (typewriting) stencil paper.
compactum maker, compendium maker (stationery)
assembles strawboard, tape, paper, etc., already cut to size and appropriately scored for bending; makes case by hand, pasting covers over strawboard and pasting paper sections to contain envelopes; glues pad of paper to case; inserts envelopes, etc., and finishes off.
cornerer
see cutter, corner.
counter ; checker
checks numbers of stamped revenue envelopes, etc., in packets.
cutter ; cutter-man, cutter-out, cutter-up
set gauges according to size required; places paper, pasteboard, card, etc., on table of rotary cutting machine, or guillotine; controls descent of knife or knives by means of lever; sometimes further designated by the article cut out, the material used, or by machine operated, e.g., alphabet cutter, box cutter, envelope cutter, index cutter, label cutter etc.; or card cutter, notepaper cutter, paper cutter, etc.; or guillotine cutter, machine cutter, rotary cutter, shears cutter, etc.
cutter, cloth (typewriter ribbons) ; cloth slitter, ribbon cutter
places, with assistance of labourers, roll of cloth on spindle of machine; adjusts cutters of machine according to width of ribbons required, using measuring gauges; guides end of cloth between rollers of machine; switches on power-drive of machine, causing cutters to slit cloth in continuous ribbons; removes spools of ribbon from spindle at re-reeling end of machine; in some cases, also seals edges of ribbon on spools by spraying composition on them, with a hand-operated aerograph machine, to prevent fraying.
cutter, corner ; cornerer, slotter
places cardboard under cutters of power machine and controls cutting knives by means of lever; may cut out corners with hand machine by pulling down cutting knife with hand lever; stacks cut cards.
cutter, mount; picture mount cutter
cuts mounts from boards of standard size and cuts aperture of necessary size, using bevelled hand knife or mount-cutting machine.
cutter (paper collars, cuffs or fronts)
places a small pile of stiff prepared white paper on bed of power-driven cutting press; places cutter in position in upper part of press, and switches on power, which causes cutter to descend and cut paper to required shape; if cutting out articles with imitation stitching or other impressions, passes paper into machine one sheet at a time.
cutter, ribbon
see cutter, cloth.
cutter-down (typewriter ribbons)
cuts typewriter ribbons, after they have been coated with ink, into lengths, by feeding into cutting machine; sometimes also winds them on spools, when not done automatically by cutting machine.
cutterman
see cutter.
cutter-out, cutter-up
see cutter.
cutter and creaser, cutter and scorer (cardboard boxes)
builds up and fits into cutting and creasing machine shaped knives or cutters; usually done by mechanic (245) q.v.; may also do work of layer-on q.v.
damper, dipper
see waxer.
drawing mounter
mounts drawings, photographs, prints, etc., on cardboard, by hand, using mountant or paste.
dress pattern maker ; paper pattern modeller, pattern modeller (paper patterns)
cuts out, by hand, paper dress patterns from which knives are made to be used by dress pattern stamper (552) q.v.
edger
affixes paper edging, by machine or hand brush, to ribbons cut from cloth, for use in typewriters.
embosser to the blind
see Braille writer.
envelope designer
prepares designs for envelopes to size and shape required by customers, from which cutting knife used by paper puncher (552) q.v. is made.
examiner (carbon paper)
inspects sheets of carbon paper before they are packed, to detect defects; in some cases, examines paper, when it is unwound from reels to be cut, and performs cutting.
examiner (music rolls)
examines perforated sheets, compares them with original and marks incorrect notations.
fibre can riveter, fibre can stitcher
rivets together, by machine, edges of long strip of vulcanised fibre to form sliver can.
fibre can turner-over
softens end of sliver can, made of vulcanised fibre, with a heated iron; puts steel or wooden ring over top of can, to strengthen top, and turns back softened fibre to cover ring; often also rivets turned over top of can in a power-riveting machine, or passes can to fibre can-riveter q.v. to be riveted.
fibre worker
(i) general term for any person engaged in manufacture or part manufacture of articles made of vulcanised fibre, i.e., chemically treated compressed paper, including driller, sawyer, turner, riveter, assembler, puncher, etc.;
(ii) makes i articles of vulcanised fibre throughout; in either case, processes and machinery used, similar to woodworkers (481, 485, 498, 499) q.v.
finisher (music rolls)
combines work of fixer and of fronter (559)q.v.; also marks sheet with lines indicating variations in time, in volume of tone, etc.
finisher (paper collars, cuffs or fronts)
puts collars, cuffs, or fronts, after they have been cut out by cutter (paper collars, cuffs or fronts) q.v., under a power-driven or treadle-driven punch, which makes buttonholes or stud-holes therein; for collars, also folds collars, by hand, following lines already impressed on articles by cutter; for fronts, also creases front, by hand, down centre, to form a pleat, and glues neck band, with small piece of linen to top edge of front.
finisher (parchment containers)
passes container, which has been rolled and pasted by roller girl (559) q.v., into finishing machine; machine turns over edges at top and bottom, makes groove into which cover fits and presses bottom in place; controls machine, which is set by mechanic (245) q.v., by means of levers; takes finished containers off machine and stacks them.
fireplace ornament maker
makes decorative screens for fireplaces by folding and gumming together pieces of fancy paper and cardboard.
fixer (music rolls)
rectifies mistakes in perforated music sheets pointed out by examiner q.v. by enlarging perforated slits (if too short) with scissors, or patching them (if too long) with paper and glue.
flong maker
makes flong used as matrix in stereotyping by pasting together layers of blotting paper and tissue paper with a special paste called stereo composition.
label maker ; tag maker
general term covering any worker engaged in the manufacture of labels, including label cutter, label puncher (552), and eyelet machinist (559) q.v.
lamp shade maker
makes paper lamp shades, largely by hand, from thin cardboard or fancy paper, on a wire frame.
layer-on (cardboard boxes)
places sheets of cardboard on platen of cutting and creasing machine; controls by means of lever, revolving knives which cut and crease sheet to required size and shape; removes cut sheet and stacks it; work sometimes done by cutter and creaser (552) q.v.
manifold paper maker
soaks Japanese paper in oil and interleaves it with tissue paper; places whole in press and thus saturates tissue paper with oil.
metal edger
folds sides of box and places it on a right-angled anvil; controls levers of power-driven machine which binds edges with tooth-edged strip of metal; usually also sets gauge which controls length of metal edging to be cut off.
moistener
see waxer.
mount binder
see passe partout binder.
mount maker
pastes white paper centres on cardboard and decorates edges by lines or stamping.
music roll maker
perforates paper rolls for pianolas, player pianos, etc., by machine.
notepaper folder
folds sheets of notepaper by hand or by machine.
paper blind maker
makes paper blinds, by hemming edges of paper, received from paper mills cut to size, and machining lace on lower edge.
paper collar maker, paper cuff maker, paper front maker
general terms covering cutter (paper collars, cuffs or fronts) and finisher (paper collars, cuffs or fronts) q.v.
paper pattern modeller
see dress pattern maker.
papier mache boilerman
feeds old or scrap paper, previously disintegrated, into stationary or rotary boiler, where paper is boiled to a pulp.
papier mache dryer
places moulded papier mache articles on shelves in heated room to dry.
papier mache hand (theatrical properties)
builds clay band round base of model received from theatrical property moulder and completely encloses it; usually greases model and clay bank to facilitate removal of mould; pours liquid plaster of Paris into space between bank and model; when set removes mould, greases inside and pours into papier mache or lines inside with papier mache; leaves paste to dry and turns or pulls out when cast or shell is hard enough; sometimes done by theatrical property maker (688) q.v.
papier mache liner ; papier mache moulder
(i) forces wet papier mache, by hand, into plaster mould made by mould maker (118) q.v.;
(ii) (in manufacture of large quantities), operates hydraulic press to press papier mache into a metal mould; sometimes also places moulded articles in heated room to dry.
papier mache mixer
mixes pulp with turpentine, whiting, resin, china clay, and glue or starch paste, in mixing and grinding machine.
papier mache moulder
see papier mache liner.
papier mache worker
general term for workers engaged in working papier mache, including papier mache boilerman, mixer, liner, moulder.
passe partout binder, passe partout maker ; mount binder
assembles glass, picture, mount and back board, and binds edges with gummed paper tape; affixes rings to back with adhesive paper or with metal tag.
pattern card beveller
a card beveller q.v. who bevels pattern cards.
pattern case maker
makes case for holding patterns of fabrics, etc., by pasting together cardboard, paper, imitation leather, etc.
pattern modeller (paper patterns)
see dress pattern maker.
post card examiner
inspects completed post cards for faulty cutting, printing, etc.
sheet paster
pastes sheets of paper together to form visiting, correspondence, playing cards, mounting boards, railway tickets, etc., either by hand or, much more generally, by machine.
slitter (cardboard boxes)
places roll of paper on spindle in slitting machine and passes end of paper through rollers of machine and fastens to rewinding spindle; controls by means of levers slitting knives which cut the thin cardboard or paper into narrow strips for binding boxes or for reeling into tubes.
sliver can maker (fibre)
general term covering all persons engaged in making sliver cans of compressed fibre, including fibre can cutter, riveter, turner-over, varnisher (559) q.v.
slotter
see cutter, corner.
spooler (music rolls)
attaches ends of perforated sheets to spool, with glue, by hand; winds sheet round spool by machinery.
spool maker (music rolls)
fastens thimble on to end of dowel, i.e. wooden core to cardboard spool with a pin, by machine; bores hole through thimble and dowel, by machine, to receive pin which secures flange to dowel; fixes flange on to thimble and dowel, and inserts flange, complete with thimble and dowel, into cardboard spool.
stamp examiner
examines stamps to detect defects and. variations in colour.
stencil paper examiner
examines stencil paper to detect irregular coating or other defects.
stove ornament maker
makes decorative screens for stoves, by folding and gumming together pieces of fancy paper and cardboard.
tag maker
see label maker.
tailor's dummy maker
see bust maker.
transfer slide maker
makes magic lantern slides by pressing printed paper transfers between glass mounts and binding edges with black paper.
typewriting carbon maker
see carbon paper coater.
typewriting ribbon inker, typewriting ribbon machine minder
places spool of ribbon on spindles of one or more machines; guides end of ribbon between rollers of machine to re-reeling end; switches on and off power-drive of machine; fills ink ducts with ink from a can; removes inked spools from machine.
vulcanised fibre machine minder
fixes, with assistance, reel of special absorbent paper to machine; guides end of paper between rollers; switches on power-drive of machine, causing paper to pass slowly between rollers and through a bath of chloride on to a cylinder, on which it is automatically wound; watches paper during process, to ascertain that necessary coating is being obtained; when desired thickness has accumulated, cuts off sheets of material, i.e., vulcanised fibre, with a knife to sizes as instructed.
waxer ; damper, dipper, moistener
coats boards with wax or soap solution by dipping in molten wax or soap solution, prior to pressing into cardboard boxes by machine press.
waxer (typewriting stencil paper), stencil paper waxer ; coater (stencil paper)
passes sheets of tissue or other paper into a roller machine, which coats them with liquid wax.
winder (typewriter ribbons), ribbon winder
winds typewriter ribbon on to spools, by hand or in small power machine; sometimes also cuts it to required lengths.
writing pad maker
assembles strawboard, cover, pad of writing paper and tape; glues top edges of pad to tape and fixes cover and strawboard back by same means.

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From: A Dictionary of Occupational Terms Based on the Classification of Occupations used in the Census of Population, 1921,
Ministry of Labour, 1927. Digitised by Peter Christian, August, 2016.   This text is in the Public Domain.