WEAVING. 



is univerfally acknowledged in the cotton manufafture ; but 

 in thofeof lilk, linen, and woollen, it is ilill difputed by other 

 countries. 



Loom. — Weaving is performed by the aid of a machine 

 called a loom. The common loom for plain cloth is a very 

 fi.mple machine; but fome of the varieties which are ufed 

 for weaving ornamental and figured cloth are very curious : 

 ftill there are parts common to all. The principal of thefe 

 are as follows. 



I. The yarn-beam, which is a round wooden roller, on 

 which is wound or rolled the warp, or yarns that are to 

 form the length of the piece of cloth. 2. The cloth-beam 

 is a fimilar roller, on which the cloth is rolled up when 

 woven. The yarns of the warp are extended in parallel 

 lines, between the yarn-roll and the cloth-roll, fo as to 

 form a horizontal plane, or ftieet, and are combined toge- 

 ther by the crofs-threads, or weft. 3. The fhuttle, which 

 has a hollow to contain a bobbin or pirn of the weft. 

 4. The heddles, which are threads with loops or eyes, 

 through which the yarns of the warp pafs : the heddles are 

 connefted with the treadles, upon which the weaver places 

 his feet, to draw down one fet of heddles and raife up 

 another, fo as to open and feparate the warp into two 

 divifions, and allow a paffage, called the (hed, for the 

 fhuttle between them. 5. The reed, which is a frame 

 containing a row of parallel fhreds of reeds or cane, and 

 the yarns of the warp pafs between them, as it were be- 

 tween the teeth of a comb. 6. The reed is fixed in a 

 frame, called the lay or lathe, which fwings upon centres 

 of motion. The ufe of the reed and lay is to comb or pufh 

 the threads of the weft clofe to each other, and make the 

 cloth clofe and denfe. 



The operation of weaving or working the loom for plain 

 cloth confifts of three very fimple movements, viz. I. Open- 

 ning the fhed in the warp alternately, by preffing the 

 two treadles with his feet in oppofite direftions. z. Driv- 

 ing or throwing the (huttle through the fhed when opened. 

 This is performed by the right-hand, when the fly-fliuttle 

 is ufed, and by the right and left alternately, in the common 

 operation, wherein the fhuttle is thrown from one hand and 

 caught in the other. 3. Pulling forward the lay or batten 

 to ftrike home the woof, and again pufhing it back nearly 

 to the heddles. This is done by the left-hand with the 

 fly-fhuttle, or by each hand fucceflively in the old way. 



There are feveral different ways of fetting up a loom 

 for weaving plain cloth ; but the principal parts are always 

 made the fame. We fhall firll defcribe that which is 

 ufed for weaving plain filks : it is fhewn in perfpeftive in 

 Plate II. Weaving. In this A is the yarn-roll or beam, 

 on which the thread to form the warp is regularly wound ; 

 B, the cloth-beam, or breaft-roll, on which the finifhed 

 cloth is wound up ; D E, the treadles, on which the weaver 

 preffes his feet ; dd, ee, are the heddles, or harnefs. Thefe 

 are each compofed of two fmall rods d d and e e, connefted 

 together by feveral threads, forming a fyftem of threads, 

 which is caUed a heddle ; ee '■» another heddle, behind the 

 former. In the middle of each thread of the heddle is a 

 loop, through which a yarn of the warp is paffed, every 

 other yarn going through the loops of the heddle e e, and 

 the intermediate v:.ins paffing between the threads of that 

 heddle, and r.iterwards through the eyes or loops of the 

 other hed,*'.e dd. 



The l\.o heddles, dd^xiA. ee, are connefted together by 

 two ill all cords going over pulleys, fufpended from the 

 top rf the loom, fo that when one heddle is drawn down, 

 the other will be raifed up. The heddles receive their 



motion from the levers or treadles D E, moved by the 

 weaver's feet. The yarns of the warp being paffed alter- 

 nately through the loops of the two heddles, by prefling 

 down one treadle, as E, all the yarns belonging to the 

 heddle e e are drawn down ; and by means of the cords and 

 pulleys, the other heddle dd, with all the yarns belonging 

 to it, are raifed up ; leaving a fpace, called the fhed, of 

 about two inches between the yarns, for the paffage of the 

 fhuttle. 



F, G G, H, [Jig. 2.) is a frame, called the batten or lay, 

 fufpended by the bar F, from the upper rails of the loom, 

 fo chat it can fwing backwards and forwards, as on a centre 

 of motion ; the bottom bar H is much broader than the 

 rails G G, and projefts before the plane about an inch 

 and a half, forming a fhelf, called the fhuttle-race. The 

 ends of the fhuttle-race H have boards nailed on each fide, 

 to form two fhort troughs or boxes I I, in which pieces of 

 wood or thick leather k k, called peckers or drivers, traverfe. 

 The peckers are guided by two fmall wires, fixed at one end 

 to the uprights G G, and at the other to the end-pieces 

 of the troughs I I. Each pecker has a firing faftened to 

 it, tied to the handle y, which the weaver holds in his right- 

 hand when at work, and with which he pulls, or rather 

 fnatches, each pecker either to the right or left alternately. 



R is the reed : it is a fmall frame, fixed upon a fhuttle- 

 race H, containing a number of fmall pieces of fplit reeds 

 or canes ; or elfe of pieces of flat wire, of fteel or brafs ; 

 but the cane is moft common, although the frame is called 

 the reed. When_/?_f. 2. is in its place in the loom, the yarns 

 of the warp pafs between the canes or dents of the reed. 

 In Jig. 2. the reed is reprefented without the top or piece 

 which covers it, and which is called the lay-cap. It is a rail 

 of wood with a longitudinal groove along its lowermoil fide, 

 for the purpofe of fuftaining the upper edge of the reed. 

 The lay -cap is that part of the machine on the middle of 

 which the weaver lays hold with his left-hand when in the 

 aft of weaving. 



The fhuttle (fee Plate I. ) is a fmall piece of wood pointed 

 at each end, from three to fix inches long. It has an ob- 

 long mortife in it, containing a fmall bobbin or pirn, on 

 which is wound the yarn which is to form the weft ; and 

 the end of this yarn runs through a fmall hole in the fhuttle, 

 called the eye. The fhuttle has two little wheels on the 

 under fide, by which it runs eafily upon the fhuttle-race H. 



Operation. — The weaver fits on the feat M, [Jg. I.) 

 which hangs by pivots at its ends, that it may adapt itfelf 

 to the eafe of the weaver when he fits upon it. It is lifted 

 out when the weaver gets into the loom, and he puts it in 

 again after hira. He leans hghtly againft the cloth-roll B, 

 and places his feet upon the treadles D E. In his right- 

 hand he holds the handle jj [Jg. 2.), and by his left he lays 

 hold of the rail, called the lay-cap, which croffes the batten 

 or lay G G, and ferves to fupport the upper edge of the 

 reed R. He commences the operations by preffing down 

 one of the treadles with his foot : this depreffes one-half of 

 the yarns of the warp, and raifes the other, as before- 

 defcribed. The fhuttle is previoufly placed in one of 

 the troughs I, againft the pecker K, belonging to that 

 trough. By the handle of the pecker, with a fudden jerk, 

 he drives the pecker againft the fhuttle, fo as to throw it 

 acrofs the warp upon the fhuttle-race, into the other 

 trough I, leaving the yarn of the weft, which was wound 

 on the bobbin after it, in the fpace between the divided 

 yarns. With his left-hand he pulls the lay towards him ; 

 and, by means of the reed, the yarn of the weft, which before 

 was lying loofe between the warp, is diiven up towards 



• the 



