Merino-Ilyeland Breed of Sbcep. 5 1 5 



sort of fork in each liand, having short, distant, and crooked fingers of metal. 

 A tolerably adroit workrrmn will finish all these operations on an entire fleece in 

 3 or 4 minutes at farthest. 



The wool is then thrown into one or more tubs, proportioned in size to the 

 quantity which is to be washed. When they are full, the wool may be well pressed 

 or trodden in, and water is to be poured on it, heated to about the 144th degree 

 of Fahrenheit's thermometer, till it reaches the top of the vessel. In this manner 

 the wool must steep for at least 8 or 10 hours; or it may remain even 24 hours, 

 if convenience require it. 



The water thus impregnated with yolk is not to be thrown away, but is essen- 

 tial to the operation of washing. When, therefore, the wool is taken out, as much 

 of it as possible should be allowed to drain back into the tub. 



One or two boilers, according to the quantity of wool to be washed, are now 

 filled about two-thirds full of this yolk-water ; which is gradually warmed till it 

 reaches about 150 or 160 degrees of Fahrenheit. Less than 144 degrees are in- 

 sufficient, and more than 167 are found to make the wool hard, crisp, and friable. 

 The proper degree of heat is that, which begins to be too great for the hand to 

 bear. 



At this heat, a quarter or half of a fleece is thrown in, according to the size of 

 the boiler. The less there is at once, the more perfect will be the scouring. Then 

 for 3 or 4 minutes the wool ought to be moved, by continually lifting it up with a 

 small fork of wood, so as to separate the portions as much as possible. If it were 

 turned, it would entangle, which would not only prevent it from being thoroughly 

 cleaned, but render it less fit for the subsequent operations which it is to undergo. 



The water being now at such a temperature that the hand can bear it, the wool 

 is to be taken out either with the hands or with the fork, and is put into a basket, 

 which is held for a moment over the boiler, in order to save the yolk water. It 

 is then carried to the water in which it is to be rinsed. 



In proportion as the water in the boiler wastes, the loss is repaired by the gra- 

 dual addition of fresh yolk-water, as every portion of wool is taken out ; so that the 

 heat may be kept up to the same uniform standard. When the yolk-water, by 

 successive immersions of new wool, becomes thick and muddy, the boiler is 

 emptied, and the bath is entirely renewed. 



The water employed for the purpose of rinsing should be as soft as possible. A 



SUa 



