In air-through dryers for wet sheet-like material, such as paper, textiles, etc., the moist sheet-like material is subjected to an air pressure differential across the same so that heated or unheated air is caused to be engaged against one side of the sheet-like material and pass therethrough to the other side thereof to remove moisture from such sheet-like material as the air passes therethrough, such moisture being removed by a pushing out of the moisture by the air and/or by air entrainment. A belt means of this invention comprising a perforated flexible wall carrying felt fabric or other similar material on one side thereof is utilized in a manner to engage against the moist sheet-like material to compress the same during the passage of air through the perforated flexible wall and through the moist sheet-like material to assist in the water removal thereof by tending to cause the retained moisture of the sheet-like material to continuously fill the voids thereof and be more readily swept away by the air flow than when no compressing of the moist sheetlike material takes place.