TEXTILE MANUFACTURES. 



classes ^primes, seconds, and thirds being the gra- 

 dations generally used. To free the wool from 

 the animal grease, and enable it to take on the 

 dye, it is scoured. The dyeing either takes place 

 at this stage, or is deferred till the cloth is woven : 

 when the latter is the case, it is termed piece-dyed, 

 when the former, -wool-dyed. 



The wool is now subjected to the action of the 

 willow much resembling in arrangement and 

 operation the machine of like name in the cotton 

 manufacture. The wool is opened up and pro- 

 jected from the machine in a loose open condition. 

 It is afterwards picked, to free it from all burrs 

 and extraneous matter, and to separate the locks 

 which differ in colour. A machine has been 

 recently introduced, named the burring-machine, 

 which effectually frees the wool from all burrs, &c. 

 Previous to passing through this machine, the 

 wool is well oiled, to render its working more 

 easy. If the burring-machine is not used, the 

 wool, after being picked by hand, is oiled, and 

 passed through the willow a second time. After 

 this is done, it is passed to the scribbling-machine, 

 which is very similar to the breaker carding-engine 

 used for cotton. In the carding-engine, the next 

 machine in sequence, the card-teeth are placed in 

 the main cylinder in the form of narrow strips. 

 The wool is thus passed from the machine in the 

 form of long narrow bands. Each band, as it 

 issues from the machine, passes between a fluted 

 roller and a semicircular case which embraces it ; 

 by which means it is rubbed round into the shape 

 of hollow tubes, equal in length to the breadth of 

 the band of wool from which they are cut. The 

 tubes of wool, termed cardings, are next passed to 

 the ' slubbing-billy,' the operation of which is 

 similar to that of the cotton roving-machine. The 

 rolls, or tubes of wool, are placed lengthways on a 

 sloping board in front of the machine, and are 

 taken up by the drawing-rollers. The tubes of 

 wool being all of a determinate length, it is neces- 

 sary to add new lengths to the ends of those 

 passing through the rollers, in order to maintain 

 the continuity of the sliver of wool. To maintain 

 the supply is the duty of the little attendants called 

 ' pieceners.' The wool is finally wound upon the 

 bobbins or spindles, ready for the mule, where it 

 is spun into yarn for weaving. The three pre- 

 liminary processes are thus seen to be scribbling, 

 carding, and slubbing. By means of a machine 

 known as Mason's (of Rochdale) condenser, intro- 

 duced some years ago, and now being rapidly 

 extended in use, a vast deal of labour is saved in 

 the way of ' piecening,' and the three operations 

 of feeding, piecing, and slubbing are effected by 

 one machine. 



The yarn prepared by the mule is then woven 

 into cloth, and ready to be put through the suc- 

 ceeding operations, as follows : The oily matter is 

 removed from the cloth by scouring, in order to 

 restore the roughness to the fibres, preparatory to 

 the subsequent process of milling. In articles 

 made of long wool, the texture is complete when 

 the stuff issues from the loom. The pieces are 

 subsequently dyed, and a gloss is communicated 

 to them by passing them between heated metallic 

 surfaces. But in cloths made of short wool, which 

 is generally dyed before being spun, the weaving 

 cannot be said to complete the texture. When 

 the web is taken from the loom, it is too loose and 

 open, and consequently requires to undergo another 



operation, called fulling or milling. This is per- 

 formed by a fulling-mill, in which the cloth, being 

 first freed from its oil by the use of fullers-earth 

 and other detergents, is immersed in water, and 

 subjected to repeated compressions by the action 

 of large beaters, formed of wood, which repeatedly 

 change the position of the cloth, and cause the 

 fibres to felt, and combine more closely together. 

 By this process, the cloth is reduced in its dimen- 

 sions, and the beauty and stability of the texture 

 materially improved. 



The process of milling is now rendered much 

 more speedy and economical by the use of the 

 milling-machine, which does the same amount of 

 work at a less expense of detergent material. In 

 this machine, the cloth is fastened together so 

 as to form an endless rope, as it were, and sub- 

 jected to the action of weighted rollers, which 

 press it against the sides of the trough or case 

 in which they work ; soap is passed to the cloth 

 through doors made in the machine for this 

 purpose. 



This tendency to become thickened by fulling, 

 is peculiar to wool and hair, and does not exist in 

 the fibres of cotton or flax. It depends on the 

 fibres or hairs being barbed or serrated, so as 

 to admit of motion in one direction, but not in 

 another. There thus results an entanglement of 

 the fibres, which serves to shorten and thicken the 

 woven fabric. 



The nap, or downy surface of broadcloths, is 

 raised by a process which, while it improves the 

 appearance, tends somewhat to diminish the 

 strength of the texture. It is produced by carding 

 the cloth with the barbed or hooked fruit-cone of 

 the common teasel (Dipsacus fullonutn), which is 

 cultivated in England for the purpose. This 

 operation extricates a portion of the wool, and 

 lays it in a parallel direction on the right surface 

 of the fabric. Teaseling was at one time per- 

 formed by hand, a number of the heads being 

 placed in a small frame ; machinery is now em- 

 ployed, the teasels being arranged on a revolving 

 cylinder, with which the cloth is made to pass in 

 contact in a direction contrary to that of its 

 revolution. The nap thus formed is then cut off 

 to an even surface by the process of shearing. 

 This is performed in various ways ; but in one of 

 the most common methods, a large spiral blade 

 revolves rapidly in contact with another blade, 

 while the cloth is stretched over a bed or support, 

 just near enough for the projecting filaments to be 

 cut off at a uniform length, while the main texture 

 remains uninjured. 



The cloth is finally prepared for market by a 

 series of finishing processes, as hot-pressing, boil- 

 ing, and steaming. In the former, the cloth is 

 subjected to enormous pressure between hot plates. 

 Boiling consists of immersing the cloth, tightly 

 wound upon a roller, in warm water, after which 

 it is dried in a hot room while tightly stretched 

 out. In steaming, the cloth is wound upon per- 

 forated rollers, into which steam is admitted. 

 After all this, it is closely examined, to take out 

 all unevennesses, and to make up any minute 

 holes in the fabric ; and, finally, it is cold-pressed, 

 and made up into bales, when it is ready for the 

 market. 



The second branch of the woollen trade is the 

 worsted or long-wool manufacture. The principal 

 operations in this department being analogous to 



