COMMERCIAL LIXT 145 



resistance to impact, and that his comparisons were made 

 for such resistance per equal weight of lint. The grader's 

 decision as to fineness is really a decision as to hair 



strength, while his decision as to strength is 

 Interpreta- 

 tions of largely a decision as to the uniformity of 



Grader's strength from fibre to fibre, Into this latter 

 ns * decision there enter other considerations, but 

 it will suffice to leave the matter at this point, until one 

 of the Graders shall also attempt to write a book on the 

 subject. But it might be mentioned that the slipperiness 

 of the lint has to be considered; it is almost impossible 

 to break tufts of very " strong " fine cottons, because the 

 hands cannot hold them firmly enough, but if the ends of 

 the tuft are fastened with sealing-wax they can be broken 

 with no more difficulty than any other cotton. Such 

 slipperiness is partly due to the fineness of the individual 

 fibres, but much more, in all probability, to the uni- 

 formity and frequency of the twist. Whatever the 

 ultimate analysis may show, it is quite clear that the 

 grader of cotton by hand is necessarily integrating a 

 number of separate things under the name of strength, 

 and we can now begin to see why graders' opinions are 

 not always realized in the spinning-mill. 



In addition to this, it may be well to call attention to 

 the fact that many of the features on which the grader 

 Familiar bases his opinion are associative. Certain 

 Associations features of a cotton sample indicate that 

 of Features. fa e crO p was badly cultivated, and there- 

 fore the sample will possess certain other features. The 

 substitution of pure-strain lint for commercial lint has 



10 



