GREAT BRITAIN. 295 



slowly passes across a bed-place which extends before the screen, the 

 second web moving horizontally as to its own surface and at right 

 angles to the direction in which the screen swings. 



As a consequence of these movements the web from the screen is de- 

 livered flat upon the second web as the latter unrolls from its place at 

 the side of the machine, and, moving across the bed-place, takes the 

 portions deposited from the screen along with it. 



Thence this double web goes underneath a third roll or bat lying 

 parallel to the side of the bed-place, and unwinding in the same direc- 

 tion as that in which the material passing under it goes. 



This third web is thus deposited together with and on top of the other 

 two combined, with which it forms a threefold strip of incipient felt. 



In the process just described an advantage arises with reference to 

 the next step which is to be taken to wards con verting the raw wool into 

 a felted fabric. The advantage is derived from the fact that during 

 the process of carding the wool fibers have become aligned more or less 

 regularly in the direction of the length of the band or strip, which, as 

 indicated, comes directly from the surface of the card-cyliuders on to 

 the accumulator, whence it is rolled into the bats with which we are 

 now dealing. 



As the result, therefore, of depositing a layer from one bat (that from 

 the screen) on the surface of the second unrolling before it, which in 

 turn carries the first with itself beneath the third, and taking up the 

 third becomes one thickness of three folds, we find, since the upper 

 and lower folds have the fibers lying in the direction of their length, 

 while the intermediate fold sets its fibers transversely to the other two, 

 that the separate layers as regards the fibers composing them are ar- 

 ranged in the most convenient manner for furthering the next step, 

 viz., that of felting. 



This method of combining the several layers into one web, which is 

 quite automatic, facilitates also the use in order to obtain a cheaper 

 product of material inside the fabric different in character from what 

 is shown on the exterior. 



Tow, for example, in some of the lower classes of goods may be em- 

 ployed to make the interior layer, or an inferior grade of wool may be 

 put in for mass and weight, but at much less cost. 



At the stage where we have now arrived we have a broad baud of 

 carded wool (intermixed material not now reckoned with) which, as we 

 have seen, is composed as follows : First, the thin film from the cards 

 folded several times upon itself by being reeled off the card cylinder 

 face on to the accumulator. Next the material taken from the accu- 

 mulator and formed into a roll or bat, and of these bats three combined 

 by superimposition, as already explained. So that the thickness of the 

 band of material as it now stands is made up of three layers ; each of 

 these layers combines several thinner ones in form as the stuff came 

 from the cards arid further the wool fibers in the three final layers are 



