RURAL LIFE IN LITCHFIELD COUNTY 



ready for carding — a constant evening occupation. The 

 hand cards were simply light, handled boards, of conve- 

 nient size, on which was firmly fixed a piece of leather 

 stuck full of fine wire teeth. These cards were usually 

 the product of the farmer's leisure hours in the long 

 winter evenings. 



The manipulator of the cards would hold one in her 

 left hand resting on her knee with the handle from her. 

 With her right hand she would detach from the fleece 

 enough of the uncombed wool to make a roll, catch it 

 lightly back and forth on the card, then seize the other 

 card in her right hand and deftly comb it until the 

 tangled fibers were straightened; then by a dexterous 

 movement she would coax it into a light, fluffy roll ready 

 for the wheel. It was fascinating work to watch, 

 though monotonous to do, and the finished product was 

 always a joy to the children, who had often to be re- 

 proved for slyly pinching or fondling the fleecy rolls. 



The establishment of carding mills was about the 

 first step toward lightening the labor of the home. 

 For many years the more conservative of the women 

 refused to send out the wool to be carded, claiming that 

 the rolls were more uneven and harder to run into a 

 firm, even yarn than the hand-made rolls, yet by 1870 

 hand-carding was almost a lost art. 



This date may seem a very recent one, and some 

 may wonder if the home manufacture of woolen prod- 



1:92] 



