74 
a mixture of slaked lime and caustic soda. The effect 
of this on the wool itself is sufficiently injurious, for 
the selling price of South African wool to be mate- 
rially affected, and endless trouble introduced in sub- 
sequent manufacturing processes. 
It is said that the breaking strength tests show a 
loss of 18 per cent. in the treated wool. Although 
wool buyers and English chambers of commerce have 
protested since 1899 against this treatment, it is still 
carried on, and the directions, issued in the Govern- 
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Fic. .—Artificial cellulos fabric (natural size)- 
ment Journal of the Union of South Africa so recently 
as March, 1913, still recommend its use, and give par- 
ticulars of its preparation. 
This example must be’the only one which can be 
discussed on the present occasion. Many of the 
methods used to determine certain differences in the 
nature of raw materials which count in the subsequent 
‘manufacture, as they have been noted, or even con- 
trolled, by chemists, are considered to be of a more 
or less secret nature. 
Although we are not directly concerned with the 
rebleaching of goods, the use of electrolytic bleaching 
liquors may be strongly recommended for the laundry 
trade. As the sodium hypochlorite leaves the electrolyser 
it gives better bleaching with weak solutions than the 
Fic. 4.—Artiticial silk thread (xX 80). 
older bleaching liquor does with strong ones. Two 
of the best-known types of electrolysers are those of 
Kellner, and that sold by Messrs. Mather and Platt. 
In the modern type, the original salt or brine solution 
passes in a serpentine course between the platinum 
or carbon electrodes. The salt employed in the solu- 
tion is never entirely converted on grounds of economy, 
and care has to be taken to adjust the cost of current 
to that of the salt to secure economical results. Under 
NO: 2206) V.@ie es 
NATURE 
[Marcy 19, 1914 
present conditions, the cost of electrical energy must 
be low, but in view of the many advantages which the 
use of the sodium salt gives the bleacher, the new 
process will obviously be put to more extended use. 
It is a mistake, however, to imagine that the 
chemist’s work in the textile industry is chiefly con- 
Fic. 5 —Crépe de Chine, satisfactory finish (xX 30). 
cerned with the adulteration of material and supply- 
ing the public with something which is not what it 
appears to be. Such work is mainly constructive, and 
its influence has been for good. Extraordinary results 
have been achieved in the last twenty years in the 
direction of actual improvements in manufacture as 
well as in the cheapening of production. 
The manufacture of artificial fabrics direct from a 
solution of cellulose is a case in point (see Fig. 3), or 
that of artificial silk as shown in Fig. 4. 
The use made of the microscope is seen in Figs. 5 
Fic. 6.—Same material, unsatisfactory finish (x 30). 
and 6, where the difference in certain finishing opera- 
tions is clearly disclosed and explained. 
It will be gathered from the 
generally in these lectures that 
moisture, in its relation to the many opera- 
tions of finishing adopted in this industry, is 
paramount. It is probably the most important influ- 
ence which the investigator has to consider. The 
presence of moisture in a fibre gives rise to many 
conditions, which seem to indicate that it is present 
in more than one condition. This materially adds to 
remarks made 
the influence of 
