198 On Improvements in lleacking 



has left the mere bleacher of cotton cloth little to achieve." 

 Mr. Dufly indeed, in a postscript to his letter, mentions his 

 having heard a report that the bleachers o^ fine linens had 

 discontinued the use of the lime or potash liquors, fearing 

 their influence on the texture. I can positively state, how- 

 ever, from actual experience, that such a report is quite un- 

 founded. In the neighbourhood of Belfasi (the fine linen 

 countvj there are few bleach greens in which those liquors 

 are not at present employed to a greater or less extent, as 

 may be consistent with the comparative expenses of the 

 old and new methods. Having been inyself familiarized 

 for the greater part of ten years with the bleaching opera- 

 tions as carried on in the north of Ireland, in some bf the 

 principal greens, having first attended to cliemisiry with a 

 view to this art, and been called as evidence upon more 

 than one occasion before the Linen Board, during their in- 

 vestigations respecting the new mode of bleaching, — I caa 

 safely state it as the legitimate conclusion from these in- 

 quiries and my own experience, that there are no grounds 

 whatover for rejecting the oxymuriatic salts in bleaching, 

 except those anting from the gross ignorance of most of 

 the foremen bleachers, who being altogether unacquainted 

 with the most simple principles of chemistry, cannot possi- 

 bly have skill sufficient to apply any new agent possessed 

 of much efficacy to their art, without almost the certainty 

 of doing some damage to the goods. The accidents which 

 happened at the first introduction of oxymuriatic acid 

 arose principally from this cause, in conjunction with the 

 blunders of ignorant and designing foreigners who pre- 

 tended to teach the bleachers. 



It strenothens my own opinion materially upon this sub- 

 ject, to find that I coincide in opinion exactly with a- gen- 

 tleman of much knowledge and experience upon the sub- 

 ject, and who ha-; been fur a series of years employed by 

 the Trustees of the Linen Manufacture to inspect and di- 

 rect all the chemical operations of the bleachers. Mr. 

 Higgins also inioruis ine, that not less than sixteen years ago 

 he tried the bleaching powers of the ox,/muriate of mag- 

 nsiia, found them interior to the salt of lime, and at once 

 saw the ab.-urditv of proposing a substance so much beyond 

 the reach of the bleacher. 



Nothing can be more harmless than to say, that if Sir 

 Hunipbrv gives us magnesia for a penny per pound, we 

 will make atrial of his proposal. We niav also say, that ?/ he 

 gives us sillier or potoisiiim or sodium at the same price, we 

 will apply them to many valuable purposes in the arts; 



that. 



