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From: dalj@utgpu.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.unix.wizards
Subject: Re: TRIVIA QUESTION!
Message-ID: <1987Apr6.195522.19865@gpu.utcs.toronto.edu>
Date: Mon, 6-Apr-87 18:55:22 EST
Article-I.D.: gpu.1987Apr6.195522.19865
Posted: Mon Apr  6 18:55:22 1987
Date-Received: Mon, 6-Apr-87 23:58:22 EST
Organization: University of Toronto Computing Services
Lines: 25
Checksum: 28392

Summary The edge of the paper is the selvage 
References: <6428@brl-adm.ARPA>
Reply-To: dalj@gpu.utcs.UUCP (David Lloyd-Jones)
Followup-To: error in New York Times threatens to spread on the net. 
Keywords: "perfory" selvage 

In article <6428@brl-adm.ARPA> 44-28csh@braggvax.arpa writes:
>What is the tractor fed portion of continous fed paper called??  (The part
>you tear off and feed the hamsters!)
>
>The Mystic..
>
>|Michael Guido|44-28csh@braggvax|1-919-396-4935, AV:236|


According to Safire's column in the Sunday New York Times some twit 
has held a competition to dream up a neoterism, and the winner was
"perfory".

Of course it is obvious that the correct term is selvage -- used for
hundreds of years in the cloth trades and for several generations by
wallpaper makers to desribe the edge you tear off the roll.
  
              Cheers,
                      -dlj.