WEAVING. 



from the circumftance, that they will communicate motion 

 in both direftions ; whereas a camm will only pufh a lever 

 in one direftion, and the return of the motion mull be made 

 by a fpring or counterweight. Now, if this counterweight 

 is too large, it makes unneceffary lofs of power and fric- 

 tion ; and if it is too fmall, there is feme uncertainty in the 

 return of the lever. 



Mr. Todd of Boulton had 'a patent, in 1803, for im- 

 provements in power-looms. 



Mr. Horrocks of Stockport had three fucceflive patents 

 for this kind of machinery, in 1803, 1805, and 1813. The 

 machine defcribed in the latter is a crank-loom ; that is, the 

 lay is aftuated by a crank to beat up the weft. The prin- 

 cipal improvement confifts in a fyftem of levers, which 

 tranfmit the aftion of this crank to the lay, and fo modify 

 it, that the lay will advance quickly, and give an effeftive 

 ftroke to the weft, and then withdraw quickly to a fta- 

 tionary pofition, in which it will remain whilft the (huttle is 

 thrown. The advantages which are ftated are, that a large 

 Ihuttle may be ufed, fuflicient to hold a full-fized cop of 

 weft : the wafte and lofs of time by renewing the cop will, 

 therefore, be lefs. From the fmartnefs of the flroke, lefs 

 weight will be required on the yarn-beam, and this will 

 occafion the heddles to work more lightly, fo as to break 

 fewer threads. From the fame caufe, more threads of the 

 weft may be laid in an inch, and make clofer work. 



Mr. Johnfon of Prefton had a patent in 180J, and 

 another in 1807, for a power-loom, in which the warp is 

 ftretched on a vertical plane, inftead of horizontal, as in 

 former machines. The advantages of this are ftated to be, 

 I ft, that it takes lefs fpace ; zd, the reed ferves for the 

 Ihuttle-race, becaufe the (huttle rtms upon the reed itfelf, 

 and, therefore, makes no friftion upon the yarns ; 3d, alfo 

 in dreffing, picking, and clearing the warp, the attendant 

 always remains in front of the machine, and can continue to 

 watch the machine ; whereas, in the other looms, he muft 

 quit his poft in front, and go round behind the looms for 

 thefe operations. When the drefling is to be applied to the 

 warp, whilft it is in the loom, that part of the warp is con- 

 duced horizontally for that purpofe, and a fan is applied 

 to dry the warp. 



The lateft inventions of power-looms are Mr. Peter E wart's 

 patent, 1813 ; and Mr. Duncan's loom, which he calls a 

 vibrating loom. 



The Indian Loom This is a ftriking contraft to our power- 

 looms ; it confifts merely of two bamboo rollers, one for 

 the warp, and the other for the finifhed cloth ; and a pair of 

 heddles. The fhuttle performs the double office of ftiuttle 

 and reed : for this purpofe, it is made like a large netting- 

 needle, and of a length fomewhat exceeding the breadth of 

 the piece of clotli which is to be woven. 



This apparatus the weaver carries to any tree which 

 affords a (hade moft grateful to him : under this he digs a 

 hole large enough to contain his legs, and the lower part of 

 the geer or heddles ; he then ftretches his warp, by fatten- 

 ing his bamboo rollers at a due diftance from each other on 

 the turf, by wooden pins ; the balances of the geer or 

 heddles he fallens to fome convenient branch of the tree over 

 his head ; and two loops underneath the geer, in which he 

 inferts his great toes, fcrve inftead of treadles ; his long 

 fliuttle, which performs alfo the office of a batten, draws 

 the weft, throws the warp, and afterwards ftrikes it up 

 clofe to the web. In fuch looms as this are made thofe ad- 

 mirable muffins, whofe delicate texture the Europeans can 

 never equal, with all their complicated machinery. 



The weaving, even of their fineft muffins, is thus con- 

 du£led in the open air, expofed to all the intenfe heat of 



their climate. We know well that this would be imprafti- 

 cable with fine work in this country, even in an ordinary 

 fummer day, on account of the fudden drying of the drelT- 

 ing. It is not known what is the fubftance which the 

 Indian weavers employ for dreffing their warps. It might 

 be of ufe to our manufafturers, were this inveftigated in a 

 fatisfaftory manner. It is faid to be a decoftion of rice, 

 formed by boiling the rice in a fmall quantity of water, and 

 expreffing the juice : when this is cool, it forms a thick 

 glutinous fubftance, which undergoes fome kind of fer- 

 mentation before it is ufed. 



Figure-iueaving. — Having given an account of the nature 

 and procefs of plain weaving, we muft notice the fanciful 

 and ornamental parts of the bufinefs. The extent to which 

 this fpecies of manufafture is carried renders it an objeft of 

 very great national importance, and deferving a more minute 

 defcription than our limits will admit. 



Figures or patterns are produced in cloth, by employing 

 threads of different colours, or of different appearance, in 

 the warp, or in the weft. By the weaving, the threads 

 muft be fo difpofed, that fome colours will be concealed 

 and kept at the back, whilft others are kept in the front ; 

 and they muft occafionally change places, fo as to (hew as 

 much of each colour, and as often as it is neceffary, to make 

 out the figure or pattern. 



The weaver has three means of effefting fuch changes of 

 colour : Firil, by ufing different coloured threads in the 

 warp, or threads of different fizes and fubftances ; thefe are 

 arranged in the warping, and require no change in the man- 

 ner of weaving. This is confined to ftriped patterns, the 

 ftripes being in the direftion of the length of the piece. 



Secondly, by employing feveral ffiuttles charged with 

 threads of different colours or fubftances, and changing one 

 for another every time a change of colour is required. This 

 makes ilripes aerofs tlie breadth of the piece ; or, when it 

 is combined with a coloured warp, it makes chequered and 

 fpotted patterns of great variety. 



Thirdly, by employing a variety of heddles, inftead of 

 two, as we have hitherto defcribed ; each heddle having a 

 certain portion of ihe warp allotted to it, and provided with 

 a treadle. When this treadle is depreffed, only a certain 

 portion of yarns which belong to that heddle will be drawn 

 up, and the reft will be depreffed ; confequently, when the 

 weft is thrown, all thofe yarns which are drawn up will ap- 

 pear on the front or top of the cloth ; but in the intervals 

 between them, the weft muft appear over thofe threads 

 which are depreffed. The number of threads which are 

 thus brought up may be varied as often as the weaver 

 choofes to prefs his foot upon a different treadle, and by 

 this he produces his pattern. 



All thefe means may be combined together, and give the 

 weaver the means of reprefenting the moft complicated 

 patterns. 



The principal varieties of woven cloth, including only 

 thofe which require a different procefs for their fabrication, 

 are the following : 



Stripes are formed upon the cloth either by the warp or 

 by the woof. When the former of thefe ways is prac- 

 tifed, the variation of the procefs is chiefly the bufinefs of 

 the warper ; but in the latter cafe, it is that of the weaver, 

 as he muft continually change his (huttle. 



By unravelling any ffired of ftriped cloth, it may eafily 

 be difcovered whether the ftripes have been produced by the 

 operation of the warper or thofe of the weaver. 



When the fly-(huttle is ufed, the changing of the ffiuttle 

 is very readily effefted by a fimple contrivance. One of the 

 /huttle-boxes of troughs, as we have before called them, 



{Pia/f 



