Just to add one more ... Stationers used to sell a "sleeve guard" that accountants and other ink-stained wretches could use to protect their cuffs from the drying ink used with steel pens in Blind Alfred Reed's day, and quills earlier. Those guards were, at a guess, made of celluloid possibly, or some other impervious material, or even dark-colored stiff linen or other fabric that wouldn't show the stain perhaps. Those sleeve guards were as much a part of the premodern era white-collar worker's attire as green eyeshades to protect those hard-workin' eyes (12-hour days at the writing-desk) from the glaring light from windows or naked-bulb overhead fixtures. Bob
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