r 175 ] 12 



On the subject of the manufaoiure of silk, all the information ha!> 

 been given which it was possible to obtain from books and other 

 sources. It is now known, that very great improvements in the ma- 

 chinery for the preparation of the raw material, have been recently 

 made; but an account of some of them could not be obtained suffi- 

 ciently definite to authorize their insertion. Fanshaw's improvement,* 

 of which a copy has been taken from a recent English publication, is 

 spoken of in the highest terms by " the trade." To this are added, 

 plates and descriptions of a new tramming machine, and of two looms, 

 bothofwhichreceived premiums from the London Society forthe Encou- 

 ragement of Arts: one of them shows the improvements it contains, in 

 connexion with the whole apparatus for weaving silk, as now employed 

 in Spitalfields. The whole machinery for the manufacture of silk, 

 is given in the French Encyclopaedia, published at the commence- 

 ment and during the early part of their revolution, and is contained 

 in one hundred and thirty-one quarto plates, and upwards of four hun- 

 dred figures, some of which occupy a whole page: the letter press 

 fills one hundred and seventy-two pages. Much of this machinery is 

 novv laid aside for others of a more simple nature; but the work may 

 still be consulted with advantage by those who intend to engage in 

 the business, from the minute accuracy of the figures of those parts 

 which are still retained. It would have been impossible to copy these 

 plates; and even the insertion of all the recent patents and improve- 

 ments would have been inconsistent wuth the object of this Manual. 

 They have, therefore, in part, been omitted, and references made to 

 them, which manufacturers may find it their interest to consult. 



The subject of dying silk, although not expressly mentioned, was 

 nevertheless considered as included in the spirit of the resolution of 

 the House of Representatives. Accordingly, directions to prepare 

 the raw material for various tints, and observations connected with 

 the art, with receipts for different colors, have been given. It is hoped 

 they will be found useful, as great pains were taken to collect and 

 select them from the latest and most approved writers. Care has 

 been taken to avoid repeating what has been said by Dr. Cooper, in 

 his treatise on dying, as that work is to be easily procured. 



Upon the whole, the compiler can truly say, that he has endeavored 

 to accomplish the task with which he has been charged, to the best of 

 his abilities, and with all the zeal which a firm convection of the im- 

 portance of the silk culture could inspire. 



* For spinning, doubling, and twisting", or throwing silk. London Journal of 

 \rts and Sciences, for .Tuly, 1827. 



