woo 



lated on the improvement* of a future age. The exports of 

 woollen goods at the time of this report, (1807,) amounted 

 to fix millions of pounds oiEcial, or nine millions of real 

 value. 



It appeared alfo to be an important conlideration, of which 

 w« fhould never lofe fight, that we are at this day furrounded 

 by powerful and civilized nations, who are intent on culti- 

 vating their manufaAures and puftting their commerce ; and 

 who are more eager to become our competitors in trade, 

 from having witnefled the aftonifhing effeft of our commer- 

 cial profperity. The attempts which have been made to 

 carry our machines and implements over to foreign coun- 

 tries, and to tempt our artifans to fettle in thofe countries, 

 evince the importance of machinery, under the direftions 

 of men of approved fkill, in conftrufting and ufing them. 

 It is needlefs to remark how much thefe attempts would be 

 favoured by our throwing any obftruftions in the way of 

 enterprize and ingenuity, and the free application of capital 

 in this couiitry ; for any machines which fliould be prohibited 

 here would infallibly find their way into foreign nations in 

 a very fhort time. 



Among the attempts to improve the woollen mannfafture, 

 we mult not omit to notice the invention of Mr. Jofeph 

 Booth, for fabricating woollen cloth without fpinning or 

 weaving. This was effitfted by felting wool into a web by 

 the aid of machinery, which operated mechanically upon a 

 tiiTue of carded wool, to entangle and interlace the fabrics 

 together. The inventor took a patent for this in 1793 or 

 1794, but before the time for the enrolment of the fpecifi- 

 cation of his procefs, he obtained an aft of parliament, the 

 preamble of which ftates, that on account of the great im- 

 portance of the art, and the danger of its being carried 

 abroad to the injury of the ftaple manufafture of the king- 

 dom, parliament had determined to keep the fpecification 

 fealed ; hence we are not able to give the details of this 

 machinery. 



We find thefe expeftations have not been realized ; for, 

 although the proceiJs has been repeatedly tried on a large 

 fcale and in the moll complete manner, it has been aban- 

 doned. Three large mills were eftablifhed at Taunton and 

 near Salifbury, by experienced woollen manufafturers of the 

 weft of England ; another mill was converted to the pur- 

 pofe at Lewifham, in Kent ; and the laft mill was erefted 

 at Merton, in Surrey, the property of James Perry, efq* 

 We learn from this gentleman, that he was able to manu- 

 fafture cloth of a fine furface, and of a very even and regular 

 fubftance, but it was rather deficient in ftrength, for want of 

 the threads which form the fubftance of common cloth ; and 

 in refpeft to wear it was lefs durable than common cloth, as it 

 did not long withftand bruftiing ; otherwife the expence of 

 the procefs, which was not one-fourth of the common pro- 

 cefs, would have brought it into general wear. 



There has been a great number of other projefts and 

 patents for the improvement of different branches of the 

 woollen manufafture ; but as we have already noticed moft 

 of thofe which have come into ufe, we (hall not enumerate 

 any more of the unfuccefsful attempts. 



The machinery for manufafturing long combing-wool is 

 defcribed in the article Worsted. 



Woollen Nets, in Gardening, a kind of nets employed 

 as a proteftion in the fetting of the fruit of different forts 

 of tender trees. See Wooden Fratrnt, Sec. 



Woollen Rags, in Jgriculiure. See WobIUh Rags. 



Woollens, Bleaching of. See Bleaching. 



WOOLLEY-WOOLLEY, in Geography, a town of 

 .Africa, in the kingdom of Yani. 



WOOLLI, a kingdom of Africa, bounded by Walli 



12 



WOO 



on the W., by the Gambia on the S., by the fmall river 

 Walli on the N.W., by Bondou on the N.E., and on the 

 E. by the Simbani wildemefs. The country every where 

 rifes into gentle acclivities, which are generally covered with' 

 extenfive woods, and the towns are fituated in the interme- 

 diate valleys. Each town is furrounded by a traft of culti- 

 vated land, the produce of which is thought to be fuificient 

 for fupplying the wants of the inhabitants ; the foil appeared 

 to Mr. Park to be every where fertile, except near the tops 

 of the ridges, where the red iron-ftone and ftunted ffirubs 

 fufficiently marked the boundaries between fertility and bar- 

 rennefs. The chief produftions are, cotton, tobacco, and 

 efculent vegetables j all which are raifed in the valleys, the 

 rifing grounds being appropriated to different forts of corn. 

 The capital is Madina, or Medina, fignifying in the Arabic 

 city. (See Medina.) The inhabitants are Mandingoes, 

 (fee Manding,) who, like moil of the Mandingo nations, 

 are divided into two great fefts, the Mahometans, who are 

 called Bufhreens, and the Pagans, who are denominated indif- 

 criminately Kafirs, t. e. unbelievers, and Sonakies, i. :. men 

 who drink ftrong liquors. Thelatterare the moft numerous, 

 and the government of the country is vefted in them ; for 

 though the Bufhreens are confulted in all matters of import- 

 ance, they are not allowed to take any (liare in the executive 

 government, which refts folely in the Manfa, or fovereign, 

 and great officers of the ftate. Of thefe, the firft in point of 

 rank is the prefumptive heir of the crown, called the Ear- 

 bonna ; and next to him are the Alkaids, or provincial go- 

 vernors, who are more frequently ftyled Keamos. Then 

 follow the two grand divifions of freemen and flaves, the 

 Slatees being confidered as the principal of the former ; but 

 in all claflfis great refpeft is paid to the authority of aged 

 men. Park's Travels, vol. i. 



WOOLLIMA, Ba, a river of Africa, called alfo Wondat 

 which fee. 



WOOLLY-PASTINUM, in Natural Eijlory, a name- 

 given by the Eaft Indians to a fpecies of native red arfenic^ 

 or orpiment, found in that part of the world. 



It is of a paler colour than the red orpiment of Ger- 

 many. 



WOOLMAN, John, in Biography, a minifter of the 

 fociety of Friends in North America, chiefly remarkable 

 as an early and faithful advocate of the rights oftheenflaved 

 Africans, was born at Northampton, in Burlington county. 

 Weft New-Jerfey, in the year 1720. From feme memoirs 

 of his life left by himfelf, it appears that he had ftrong im- 

 preflions of religion in childhood, which being feconded by 

 the care and admonition of pious parents, he arrived at man- 

 hood, after a ftruggle of fome years with youthful levities, 

 with a decidedly rehgious charafter. An incident which 

 befel himi when a child, and which he records as a proof of 

 the early influence of divine grace on the mind, may be men- 

 tioned here, as connefted alfo with his future charafter, and 

 with the firft developement of thofe tender fympathies of the 

 heart which, under the guidance of Chriftian principle, fitted 

 him fo eminently to efpoufe the caufe of the oppreffed ne- 

 groes. Going on an errand to a neighbour's, he obferved 

 that a robin quitted her neft at his approach, and flew about 

 in alarm for her young ones. He ftood and threw ftones at 

 her, till being ftruck, (he fell down dead. " At firft," he 

 fays, " I was pleafed with the exploit, but after a few 

 minutes was feized with horror. I belield her lying dead, 

 and thought thofe young ones, for which (he had been fo 

 careful, muft now periflv for want of their dam to nourifh 

 them : and after fome painful confideratioiis on the fubjeft, 

 I climbed up the tree, took all the young birds, and killed 

 them, fuppofing that better than to leave them to pine 



away, 



