[ 175 ] 170 



the frame; so that the staples 4 4, &c. in the rails, can be adjusted op 

 positetothe groove in theperiphery of the draw-boy; 6 6 are 2 thin rails, 

 or false tail boards, which are also fixed on the upper side of the frame 

 R R, and parallel to the rails W and X ; the strings r r, being made fast 

 to the rail Y, and passed through their respective staples 4 4, &c. have 

 anotherset of strings tied to them at 10 10, called the false tails, which are 

 passed over and through guide staples on the upper side of tv.'o smooth 

 round rods, or arms 8 8, and then passed through the holes in the rails 

 (3 6; and to the ends of the strings are appended small leaden weights, 

 or lingots, 9 9, &c. which draw the strings rr, &c. so as always to keep 

 them straight; one of the rods, or arms 8 8, is attached to the upper 

 part of the frame of the loom, and the other ends are suspended by 

 strings from the ceiling of the room; to the upper ends of each of 

 the strings?';', at 11 11, is tied another series of smaller strings or lashes 

 12 12, the upper ends of which are also tied to certain horizontal 

 strings d d, &c. which pass over the pulleys in the table G, and have 

 the lambs or headles suspended from them: by this arrangement, it will 

 be seen, that when one of the strings r, which is fastened to the rail Y, 

 is pulled down, (by the action of the draw-boy, or bow, on the upper 

 side of the string r,) it draws one of 10, lifts one of the weight 9, and 

 raises such an arrangement of the lambs, or headles, as is proper to 

 produce the figure which is to be woven. 



When the draw-boy T, and axle S, are returned to the situation, 

 as shown in fig. 5, the weights / / /, which are suspended from the 

 Iambs, and those at 9 9 will replace the lambs, lashes, &c. in their 

 former situation. 



In weaving heavy silks, or what is termed three, four, or more 

 doubles, that is, so many double threads between each split of the 

 reed, the power required to depress the treadles is so great that the 

 weaver was obliged to have the assistance of a boy to turn a winch, 

 which was fixed on the end of the axle S, which passed through the 

 end frame of the draw-boy. 



The application of the winch to the draw-boy, was the invention 

 of John Sholl, who was rewarded by the Society of Arts, &c. in the 

 year 1810. 



Mr. Richards, being a machine or loom maker, observed the great 

 difficulty of getting boys to attend their work, together with the ex- 

 pense, which caused him to- turn his attention to the subject, and he 

 has been successful in making the machine so perfect and powerful as 

 to supersede the necessity of a boy. 



The following are Mr. Richards' improvements on the draw-boy: 

 The power which is to be applied to the treadles 0, is commu- 

 nicated to the treadles P P, by the cords 13 13, and from the treadles 

 P JMo Q Q, by the cords 14 14; and from the treadles Q Qto the 

 pulley 2, (which is represented by 'the dotted circle) by the cords 

 15 15, which are tied to the treadles Q Q, and passed over two small 

 guide pulleys, the frames of which are affixed to a cross bar of the 

 frame R R; then one of the cords is passed under, and the other over 

 the pulley 2, and fixed to the heads of two screwed nails, which srr 



