89 



coarse ends (called satines) require much more killing. 

 To produce good silk, these require, 1st, less drying; 

 2nd, less heating. 



If care is not taken in sorting, there would be fine and 

 very coarse ends in the same basin, and some cocoons more 

 dried than others. It would be, as we have already stated, 

 more difficult to reel evenly (or with a regular thread), and 

 in addition to this the silk would be irregular in strength, 

 which would be fatal to one of the chief properties of silk. 



The threshing ("battage") of the cocoons is done by 

 means of the " escoubette " or besom by moving this 

 over the cocoons already prepared until their outer 

 covering sticks to it. (This outer covering is termed 

 "frisons.") The thread or end then becomes fine and 

 clear, and constitutes good quality raw. According to the 

 " titre " required, the ends coming from 4, 5, or 6 cocoons 

 are run together. The temperature of the water in the 

 basin should be from 85 to 90 degrees centigrade. Winding 

 too cold causes the silk to lack tenacity. 



The cocoons being sorted, put them into the basin (the 

 water should be boiling) to prepare them ; an operation which 

 lasts some minutes, and of which the duration varies accord- 

 ing to the nature of the cocoons. The cocoons being prepared 

 and cleared, — that is, threshed with the besoms in such 

 a manner that the fibre of the cocoons remains attached 

 to it, — all the ends from the cocoons are attached together 

 to the frisons-hook, which is found in front of the platetage ; 

 you then detach 8 or 10 cocoons and join the threads 

 together by fours or fives, and pass each of these united 

 threads {i.e., four or five ends put together) into the two 

 ends of the drawplate, or of the drawplate carrier, to the 

 hinge F, placed at the back of the basin. You then 

 lay these two threads across together by means of the 

 " croiseur " H, attaching the two ends of the fork of the 

 said "croiseur." The two ends are then separated in 

 coming from the " croiseur," and are each passed to one 

 of the end carriers G, passing them on each side of the 

 guider placed at the regie E, so that the} T rnay be only 

 twisted one half turn in front of the guider, so that if 

 one of the threads should break, the other remaining 

 comes out of the blade of the " asple " to go winding 

 itself up on the shaft. This operation accomplished, the 

 " asple " is turned until a break-down occurs, in which 

 case the winder stops the " asple " or " tour " (wheel) by 

 means of the throw-off D. This " ddbarquage " D may be 

 worked by the foot. 



