INTERNATIONAL LIBRARY OF TECHNOLOGY. [Technical Reference Volume]. Scranton: International Textbook Company, 1922.

Single volume, 8vo (9" x 6"), 13 chapters of varying pagination. Publisher’s half red morocco-grained cloth over green cloth boards, gilt-stamped spine and decorative gilt borders. All edges stained red; marbled green and gold endpapers. Very good condition. The covers and edges show light rubbing, with corners lightly bumped and slightly frayed at the points. The headcap and tailcap are slightly worn. The text block remains tight, and the pages are remarkably clean. Laid in is a vintage Christmas card and a photograph coupon used as a bookmark.

The International Library of Technology was a landmark in American vocational education, serving as the core curriculum for the International Correspondence Schools (ICS) of Scranton. At its height, the ICS was the largest private educational institution in the world, catering to the "mechanic and the clerk" who sought professional advancement during the Second Industrial Revolution. This 1922 volume demonstrates the publisher's transition into a standardized "library" binding intended to convey professional authority and durability. A unique bibliographical feature of this series is its sectional pagination; by paginating each of the 13 chapters independently, the International Textbook Company could update specific technical modules to keep pace with rapid industrial changes without re-indexing the entire volume. This copy is a quintessential example of the "worker's library" that defined early 20th-century American self-improvement.