226 



CLOTHING AND ITS USES 



after a process of curing and softening they are manufac- 

 tured into shoes, gloves, and other useful articles. We 

 have gone much further than primitive man in the mak- 

 ing of clothes, for we have come to use parts of plants as 

 well as the wool and other materials taken from animals. 

 The cotton plant, linen, from flax, and other fibers such 



Sheep are a great asset to the wealth of our nation. 



as jute, hemp, ramie, and yucca, as well as that most 

 beautiful fabric of all, silk, which is taken from the 

 cocoon of the silkworm, have all been put to man's best 

 uses. 



Wool. Prehistoric man domesticated sheep because 

 he found he could use them for food and the skins for 

 clothes. Later the wool was carded, spun, and woven by 

 hand. Our woolen materials are woven in factories. The 



