AN INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION 



works at a frame covered with wire-netting which al- 

 lows the dirt and dust to fall through, picking out the 

 separate qualities and throwing them into the proper re- 

 ceptacles. He also removes all foreign substances such as 

 straws or burrs, so that each particle of wool as it comes 

 from his table is practically free from coarser fragments. 



When thus sorted, the wool is ready for scouring. 

 This is a very important process, and the quality of 

 the resulting manufactured product, such as the taking 

 of the dye colors evenly, is largely dependent upon the 

 careful and complete manner of doing it. The water 

 used should be pure and soft, and the soap of good 

 quality, or the resulting product will be rough and harsh 

 to the touch, and take the dyes unevenly. The older 

 method was to place the wool in hot soap-suds in a 

 large vat, keeping it stirred constantly with long poles 

 until the grease was dissolved and the dirt thoroughly 

 separated. It was then drained, washed with a stream 

 of water, and dried. Many substances were used in 

 the place of soap, but in recent years a specially pre- 

 pared potash soap is used almost exclusively. The op- 

 eration is now hastened by mechanical means, and a 

 much smaller quantity of soap used than formerly, by 

 first steeping the wool in pure water, or by blowing 

 steam through it. This not only removes mechanical 

 impurities, but softens the fibers and hastens the scour- 

 ing process. The wool is then passed on to machines 

 that agitate it gently so as not to ball it, and it is finally 

 squeezed between rollers and sent to the dyeing- 

 machines. 



This is also a delicate process, which must be done 



