Cotton and Its Treatment in the Various Processes of Opening, Carding, and Spinning (Volume 4); Being a Full Report of Four Papers Read Under the Ausp

This historic book may have numerous typos, missing text or index. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. 1881. Not illustrated. Excerpt: ...----HEN reading my last paper I promised to introduce the present one by taking up the subject of the microscopic and mechanical structure of cotton fibre. The author to whom I referred in my remarks on this subject, though treating it very ably, made no distinction between different classes of cotton as to the degree of lustre they would show if the filaments were kept in one direction of parallelism. It is a fact, however, that there are many kinds of cotton now grown that have little or no natural lustre, but a dull, dead appearance. Such cottons as these would never finish bright and glossy, however much the parallelism of the filaments were retained. If a cotton finishes bright and glossy it possesses that quality in the pod, unless it is imparted to it in some of the processes of manufacture by artificial means, and this has often been done with varied success. I hold in my hand a pocket handkerchief made from cotton which is got up to imitate silk. I do not know how the glossy appearance in this handkerchief is produced, but, from what I can read, cotton goods, in the early days of their manufacture, possessed this pearly lustre in a considerable degree when they left the loom. I shall, however, have more to say of this presently. Among the many artificial modes adopted to give cotton this silky appearance, it was rumoured some time ago that a person had invented and patented a process of dissolving silk, and with the solution he could coat fibres of cotton so effectually that few could tell the goods from proper silk by the naked eye. How far this plan was successful I am unable to say. It nevertheless proves how desirable it is in the manufacture of certain classes of cotton fabrics to secure those kinds of cotton that are susceptible of a high degree o...