COTTON. 



483 



tion is to teaze it, either by the Inud or rake, nnd even some- 

 times by a machine, called the willow, which consists of a rp. 

 volving- cylinder, with studs on its surface, which tear the 

 cotton, and take away the sand and part uf the seeds. As this 

 machine injures the staple of the wool, tne former method 

 is generally preferred. The cotton being- teased is carried to 

 the scutching machine, the use of which is to open up the wool. 

 This was formerly done by switching the cotton on a table, the 

 sand and seeds falling to the ground between cords stretched 

 over it. 

 A plan and elevation of the scutching machine are given in 



Rlate XX. n is the driving pulley giving motion to the first 

 inner C, and motion is communicated from the same shaft to 

 the second fanner C, k. The pulley at k drives the shaft m. 

 The scntchers B, B are driven by belts from the fanners C, C. 

 The shaft m passes through the machine and gives motion to 

 the upright, shaft R by bevel geering. This shaft R communi- 

 cates motion also by bevel geer to the lying shaft O seen in the 

 side view. The shaft O gives motion to the three bevelled 

 wheels S, S, S, which drive the feeding rollers to the first scutch, 

 er A, A , and those to the second E, E, as likewise tiie delivering 

 rollers T. The. cotton is first spread by the attendant on an 

 endless cloth, whose upper side moves continually to the feed- 

 ing rollers by means of two wooden rollers round which it is 

 sewed. The cotton enters the machine at the feeding rollers 

 A, A, and is beat by the first scutcher, the battens of which 

 beat out the ginns and sand, which fall through a wire sieve at 

 the bottom. The cotton is now passed to the perforated cy- 

 linder H, the under part of which communicates to the fanner 

 C. The suction caused hy the motion of the fanners draws the 

 cotton as delivered from the scutchers equally upon every part 

 of the cylinder. The cylinder, travelling at a slow rate, car- 

 ries the cotton to the rollers E, which deliver it to the 

 s.-roud scutcher B (in the plan), where it is treated in a similar 

 way, and is passed out of the machine at the delivering rollers 

 T. It will be seen, in the side view, that the rollers are press- 

 ed down by the loaded levers t, t, t. v, v are glasses in the co- 

 vers to enable one to see the interior machinery. 



When the cotton has passed through the scutching machine 

 rt is carried through the spreading machine, in order that a 

 jriven weight of cotton may be spread out to a given length and 

 breadth. The cotton is carefully weighed before it is put to 

 this machine, in order to produce an uniform fleece, so that the 

 yarn which is produced in the succeeding operation may all he 

 of the same grist. It will be seen by the following description 

 thu the operations of the scutching and spreading machine are 

 very similar. Two views of a spreading frame are given in 

 plate XXII. A represents the driving pulley, hxed on 

 the shaft of the fanner, which pulley gives motion to the 

 shaft D, by means of a belt passing round the pulley oil that 

 shaft. From the shaft D motion is given by means of bevelled 

 wheels at the other side of the machine, to the upright shaft F, 

 which again is connected by bevel geer to the shaft i. The 

 scutcher L is driven by a belt from the fanner M, fixed on 

 the driving shaft, w, the table on which the cotton is spread 

 somewhat similar to the feeding cloth described in the scutch- 

 ing machine, 'i he cotton is carried by the feeding rollers V to 

 the scutcher. N is a perforated cylinder, and M tanners simi- 

 lar to those in the scutching machine. The fanners having 

 drawn the cotton equally over the perforated cylinder, it then 

 passes through the calender rollers and is taken up by the lap 

 roller X, winch is moved by friction on the wooden roller S. 

 n is a slip coupling on the shaft i, which may be put out and in 

 geer by the lever P. r, r, two calender rollers carrying the 

 cotton to the lap. When it is put out of geer the rollers at 

 once stop, and every part of the machine except the scutcher 

 and fanner. The coupling is thrown out of geer before stop- 

 ping the machine, and when changing a lap roll in order that 

 the cotton remaining in the machine may he put in motion by 

 th- scutcher, and fall properly on the cylinder, t is a weight on 

 the calender rollers for pressing them down, d is a weight on 

 the lap roller. When the roller is full, the lever k is pressed 

 down by the foot, and by a rod the lap roller saddles are raised, 

 the lap being then thrown into the gap g. 



When the cotton has passed turough the spreading machine, 

 it may be regarded as sufficiently cleaned, and the next process 

 is to lay the fibres parallel to each other, and prepare it to be 

 turned into thread. The carding machine performs all that the 

 common hand cards do in this respect, and delivers the fleece m 

 one thick, soft, continuous thread ; and this may be regarded as 

 the commencement of the spinning, properly so called, for 

 all the future operations are directed to compress, stretch, 

 and twist the end or thread delivered by the carding machine. 

 A side elevation of the carding machine is given in plate 

 XXII. A is the pinion on the main cylinder, which commu- 

 nicates motion by means of intermediate wheel work to the 

 dotfer B ; C is the pinion on the delivering roller. D the 

 wheel on the feeding roller, driven by intermediate wheel-, 

 lead from the pinion on axle A. E is the roller which drives 

 the lickers in, and is driven by a small pulley at its end, which 

 -.-reives its motion from a band passing round the driving 

 pulley. The same band is made to cross, and, being carried 

 forward, drives the crank hy which the comb F is kept in mo- 

 tion. G is a f.crew for setting the dotfer, and H the lap of cot- 

 ton entering the machine. The cotton from the stretching 

 'ramp being introduced to the feeding rollers by the lii kers in, 

 is taken up by the main cylinder of the card and carried up to 

 the tops, whose teeth, being opposed to those of the main cy- 

 linder, stretch the cotton and straighten its fibres. It is then 

 delivered to the differ, and carried round to the comb, which 

 takes it off nnd delivers it to the conductor, from whence it 

 passes into the delivering hall, and goes into the can in a thick, 

 toft, continuous thread. 



Even when the cotton has passed through the cards it 

 fibres have not been sufficiently straightened, and to com- 

 plete this part of the process, which is necessary to the for- 

 mation of good yarn, it is next carried to the drawing frame 

 which likewise doubles the ends that have come from the 

 carding engine. The drawing frame acts on a very simple 

 and ingenious principle. Two or more ends are taken from 

 the cards and passed through between a pair of rollers in 

 motion, and, being carried forward, are passed through an- 

 other pair revolving at a greater velocity, and being collected 

 and passed in one mass through another pair, are delivered in 

 one thread at the other end of the machine. Now the velocity 

 of the second pair of rollers being greater than that of the first, 

 they would take up more cotton than is delivered to them, in 

 consequence of which the whole is stretched, and, as in the ma- 

 chine described below, four ends are combined and 'delivered 

 no thicker in grist than any of those first introduced into the 

 machine. This doubling of the ends is repeated several time?, 

 depending on the nature of the fibre, its great use being to 

 equalize the thickness of the thread, but it must not be too often 

 repeated, for it cannot be doubled without it be at the samp 

 time drawn, and too frequent drawing injures the staple. 

 The doubling is a most essential part of the process ; the num 

 her of doublings at the drawing frame may be about ten thou- 

 sand, and throughout the whole process about forty thousand. 



Plate XX contains a plan and elevation of the drawing 

 frame. The rove is drawn out of the cans H,H,H,H, and 

 passed over G, being led through the four rows of rollers 

 seen at E, E. The front rollers move at a greater speed than 

 the back ones, so that the roving is drawn outby the front roll- 

 ers, and passed in this state to the mouth piece at C, and the 

 four ends being all joined, pass through the rollers at B, and 

 the four plies are thus delivered in one end to the can A, being 

 so much drawn out that it is no thicker than one of the ends in 

 the cans H, H, H, H. In the elevation A, A is the frame of 

 the machine, the roving L is seen coming out of the cans N, M, 

 and passing through the rollers driven by the wheel work 

 I, K, H, O, C, F, E, C, I), on its way to the receiving can seen 

 at A in the plan. 



When the end has been thus doubled, and drawn by the 

 drawing frame, it is carried to a machine called the fly 

 frame, in order that it may be further drawn, and receive 

 a slight twist. This is one of the most ingenious machines 

 in the whole range of the cotton manufacture, and has to- 

 tally superseded the con, skeleton, and jack frames, the use of 

 all which machines was to continue the stretching, or rather 

 drawing of the cotton a little further, and to give it a slight 

 twist. All these are called slabbing or roving frames, and 

 the stream of cotton that they deliver is called slab or rove. 



The principle of the fly frame will be 

 understood by the accompanying cut. 

 The rove is supposed to come through be- 

 tween the rollers at A, and is made to 

 pass through an eye at the top of the 

 forked tube D, which revolves with the 

 shaft A, B. The rove passes through only 

 one of the less of the forked tube L), call- 

 ed the flyer, and is delivered upon a bobbin 

 at E, and by the rapid revolution of the 

 flyer the roving receives a slight twist, 

 and is prepared to be taken to the stretch- 

 ing frame. It will be seen that the rov- 

 ing, in being wound upon the bobbin, must 

 always be kept at an equal degree of ten- 

 sion. That the bobbin E may be built re- 

 gularly, it is necessary that it should 

 move up and down on the spindle A, B, 

 which is effected by a contrivance con- 

 nected with the machinery. Ivery time 

 that the bobbin moves up or down, its 

 thickness is increased by a new layer of 

 roving, and it will thus require a longer 

 line of the cotton delivered by the flyer to 

 go round it. The flyer would therefore 

 require to increase in speed as the bobbin 

 fills^ and at the same time decreases the 



speed of the upward and down ward motion of the bobbin. Th 

 principal part of this portion of the machine may he understood 

 by an inspection of the figure of a fly frame, plate XXIII. An 

 upright shaft in the centre of the figure carries two pulleys, 

 S and T. The pulley T gives off the belt that puts in motion 

 the pulleys that carry the bobbins, and the pulley S gives off a 

 belt, b, b, that passes round a small wheel, and over the conical 

 drum, a, a, which revolves on the horizontal shaft A. This 

 cone, a, a, is attached to the lerer W, which is connected with 

 the lever D, called the traverse. The traverse works in the 

 rack N, in such a manner that at every rise or fall of the hob 

 bins it is moved one tooth forward towards the cone, and 

 moves the cone forward. Now the belt, b, b, passes over the 

 cone, and when it is moved forward the belt will of course pass 

 over a thicker part, and by this means increase gradually the 

 speed of the pulley S, Hint consequently that ot the bobbin. 

 While the velocity of the bobbin's rotation increases,the vel.x-ity 

 of its rising and falling must be diminished, to effect which 

 there is a friction pulley, E, on the top of the shaft G, which is 

 supported at C by the traverse rod I). The friction pulley F 

 rubs aeainst the friction plate .1, which gives motion to the 

 shaft F by intermediate heel work. There is a pinion at the 

 end of the shaft F, which drives a mangle wheel fixed on the 

 end of the shaft P. The pinion is so contrived that it sets upon 

 each side of the wheel alternately, thus causing it to move b< K 

 after it has made a revolution forward, and by this means the 

 bobbin rail is alternate!) raised and depressed. The friction 

 2 II 2 



