SILK. 



twitted round each other. Each reel ferves to take up the 

 thread from feveral fpindles which are fituated beneath it : 

 thus, in a mill of fifteen feet diameter, there will be fis 

 fpindles beneath each reel. 



To explain this machine more clearly, we will give a de- 

 fcription of one of thirteen feet diameter, which has four 

 large wheels and ilages of fpindles, two of which are for 

 giving the fir'l preparation to the organzine : the fpindles 

 revolve in a direftion from right to left. The fpindles of 

 the other two ftages are for the finithing the twilt, and alfo 

 for twilling the fingle threads vs'hich are to be ufed for 

 warp or for itocking-weaving : they revolve in a contrary 

 direftion to the former. The frame of the machine confifts 

 of two wooden circles of thirteen feet diameter, one placed 

 upon the floor of the mill, and the other at a height of 

 fifteen feet above, the two being united by fourteen upright 

 pillars of wood, which altogether compofe a large cylin- 

 drical frame or lantern. Each ftage contains eighty-four iron 

 fpindles, placed vertically, and fupported in the ftage, 

 which is formed of two wooden circles, extended round 

 between the fourteen uprights of the lantern, and fixed one 

 above the other, at about a diftance of four inches afunder, 

 fo as to fupport the fpindles between them, in the fame man- 

 ner as the pieces, G, H, of the oval laft defcribed. 



The circles of the ftage are of a rather lefs diameter than 

 the two circles which compofe the top and bottom of the 

 lantern ; fo that the fpindles will be rather within the circle 

 of the frame of the lantern, and admit the wheels of the 

 central axis to aft upon them. For this purpofe, each of the 

 circles of the ftage is made up by fourteen fegments fixed 

 between the uprights, and each fegment fupports fix fpin- 

 dles, making up the number of eighty-four in the whole 

 circle. The fpindles, like thofe of the oval, are fliarp- 

 pointed at the lower end, and the points reft in fmall holes 

 made in pieces of glafs, which are let into the lower circle of 

 the ftage, whilft the upper circle fuftains the fpindle at a 

 height of four or five inches above the point, leaving full 

 one-third of the length of the fpindle projefting above, for 

 the purpofe of fitting the bobbin upon it. The upper circle 

 of the ftage is rather fmaller than the lower, becaufe the 

 fpindles do not pafs through it, but through holes in 

 fmall pieces of hard wood, which projeft from it, fo as 

 to be exaftly above the pieces of glafs which fuftain the 

 points of the fpindles. Each fpindle has a fmall roller 

 fixed upon it in the fpace between the two cu'cles of the 

 ftage, and it is the contaft of the rim of the great wheel 

 upon thefe that caufes the revolution of the fpindles when 

 the wheel revolves. In order to make the contaft certain, 

 the exterior rim of the great central wheel is made in feve- 

 ral fegments, and each fegment has a conftant tendency to 

 recede from the central axis by the aftion of a weight, and 

 thus prefs againft the rollers of the fpindles. In order to 

 give the reverfe movement of the fpindles, which we have 

 before fpoken of in the defcription of the oval, the great 

 wheels for two of the ftages are made differently from thofe 

 which we have juft defcribed, fo that the fegments of the 

 rim will aft upon the outfides of the rollers of the fpindles, 

 inftead of the infides : for this purpofe the wheels are made 

 larger than the ftages in which the fpindles are placed, and 

 from the rim of the wheel fmall pillars rife up to fupport the 

 fegments, which aft upon the rollers of the fpindles in front 

 or withoutfide of the circles, inftead of the infide, as is the cafe 

 with the other ftages, in confequence of which the fpindles of 

 thefe ftages turn in oppofite direftions. The reels are placed 

 over the bobbins, to take up the threads when twitted ; and 

 the rollers of the different fpindles are made fmaller or 

 larger, as is required, to give more or lefs twift to the filk 



operated upon by them ; for the velocity with which the 

 fpindles revolve, compared with the rate at which the reels 

 take up the thread, determines the degree of twift which 

 the thread will have ; and to render this equable, the reels 

 which draw off the filk from the bobbins of the fpindles are 

 turned regularly with the motion of the machine by means of 

 wheel- work, which is more eafily conceived than defcribed : 

 it is fuflicient to ftate that it receives its motion from the 

 central vertical axis. There is alfo a layer adapted to each 

 reel, with a wire-eye to receive each thread ; and the layers 

 having a flowly reciprocating motion, diftribute the threads 

 regularly upon the reels, in a fimilar manner to that firft de- 

 fcribed for the oval. One of thefe reels is placed between 

 each of the uprights of the machine, fo as to make fourteen 

 reels in the whole circle of each ftage, and every reel ferves 

 to take the filk from the bobbins of fix fpindles. The 

 whole machine in the four ftages contains 336 fpindles. 



A machine of four ftages is fo high, as to reach through 

 two floors of the mill, and for this purpofe the upper floor 

 is made with a large round opening, to admit the machine : 

 this floor ferves the people who attend the machine, and 

 change the bobbins when exhaufted, and alfo remove the 

 finifhed filk from the reels. 



The fpindles in the upper ftages are ufually devoted to 

 the firft twifting of the fingle threads for the organzine, 

 and therefore turn the reverfe way, as before mentioned ; 

 and as the filk is afterwards to be thrown, or re-twifted, 

 they are drawn off from the bobbins by large bobbins of 

 three inches diameter, and four inches long, inftead of the 

 reels. Thefe bobbins are ftuck fix together upon a long 

 fpindle, fituated horizontally, and turned by fimilar wheel- 

 work to that which aftuated the reels ; they have fimilar 

 layers to conduft the filk regularly upon the bobbins fronv 

 one end to the other, fo that the operation is not at all 

 different. 



In many of the beft filk-mills, they have abandoned the 

 original method of turning the fpindles, for the preparation: 

 of organzine, the reverfe way, by making the aftion of the 

 wheels upon the outfide, inftead of the infide, of the circle 

 of fpindles. Inftead of them they employ two different 

 machines, one for the firft operation on organzine, and the 

 other for the fecond operation, both of them conftrufted 

 with the vpheels withinfide : but the motion of the two 

 machines is reverfed to each other. 



Fig. 5. reprefents a fingle fpindle of a throwfting ma- 

 chine, which, though the fame in its aftion as the great 

 mill, is different in its conftruftion. G and H reprefent 

 portions of the rails or circles of the ftage which fupport 

 the fpindle, and a a is a. part of the rim of the great wheel 

 of the central axle. This wheel is not made in fegments, 

 as before defcribed, but is made very truly circular, and 

 covered with leather on the edge, that it may aft with 

 more force to turn the roller, I, of the fpindle. The point 

 of the fpindle refts in a glafs cap, fupported by the rail G, 

 and the roller, i, is always made to prefs againft the rim 

 of the great wheel, a a, by a fmall lever, d, and a ftring, 

 which, after turning over a pulley, has the weight, c, made 

 faft to it, to prefs the fpindle always towards the wheel. 

 In this machine, inftead of the reel, the thread is taken up 

 by a bobbin, K, is put into a frame, m, which moves on 

 pivots, and by a weight, n, is preffed down fo as to make 

 the bobbin bear upon the edge of a wheel, h, which is kept 

 in conftant and regular motion, by the fame kind of move- 

 ment which turns the reels of the great machine. The 

 intention of this is, that the aftion of the wheel, />, to 

 turn the bobbin, being communicated by preffure againft 

 the part upon which the Jilk is to wint^ will be con- 

 ftant. 



