Textiles Part 22

By holding fabrics before the light dressing will be recognized, and such goods, if rubbed between the fingers, will lose their stiffness.

Loading is revealed by the production of dust on rubbing, and by the aid of the magnifying gla.s.s it can be easily ascertained whether the covering or dressing is merely superficial or penetrates into the substance of the fabric.

=The tests of permanence of dyes on fabrics are as follows:=

=Was.h.i.+ng Fastness.= Fabrics should stand mechanical friction as well as the action of soap liquor and the temperature of the was.h.i.+ng operation. In order to test the fabric for fastness a piece should be placed in a soap solution similar to that used in the ordinary household, and heated to 131 degrees F. The treatment should be repeated several times. If the color fails to run it is fast to was.h.i.+ng.

=Fastness Under Friction.= Stockings, hosiery yarns, corset stuffs, and all fabrics intended to be worn next to the skin must be permanent under friction, and must not rub off, stain, or run, that is, the dyed materials must not give off their color when worn next to the human epidermis (skin), or in close contact with colored articles of clothing, as in the case of underwear.

The simplest test is to rub the fabric or yarn on white unstarched cotton fabric. In comparing the fastness of two fabrics it is necessary to have the rubbing equal in all cases.

=Resistance to Perspiration.= With fabrics coming in contact with the human skin it is necessary in addition to fastness under friction that they should withstand the excretions of the body. The acids of perspiration (acetic, formic, and butyric) often become so concentrated that they act on the fiber of the fabric.

In order to test the fabric for resistance, place the sample in a bath of 30 per cent dilute acetic acid (one teaspoonful to a quart of water) warmed to the temperature of the body, 98.6 degrees F. The sample should be dipped a number of times, and then dried without rinsing between parchment paper.

=Fastness against Rain.= Silk and woolen materials for umbrella making, raincoats, etc., are expected to be rainproof. These fabrics are tested by plaiting with undyed yarns and left to stand all night in cold water.

=Resistance to Street Mud and Dust.= Ladies' dress goods are expected to withstand the action of mud and dust. In order to test a fabric for this resistance the sample should be moistened with lime and water (10 per cent solution), dried, and brushed. Or sprinkle with a 10 per cent solution of soda, drying, brus.h.i.+ng, and noting any changes in color.

=Fastness to Weather, Light, and Air.= Various people have attempted to set up standard degrees of fastness--for every shade of color is affected by the action of sun, light, and air--and as a result fabrics that remain without appreciable alteration for a month of exposure to direct summer sunlight are cla.s.sified as "fast," and those undergoing slight appreciable change under the same conditions as "fairly fast."

"Moderately fast" colors are those altering considerably in fourteen days; and those more or less completely faded in the same time (fourteen days) are designated as "fleeting."

=Directions for testing fastness of Color in Sunlight.= Cover one end of the sample of cloth with a piece of cardboard. Expose the fabric to the sunlight for a number of days and examine the cloth each day in the dark and notice whether the part exposed has changed in color when compared with the part covered. Count the number of days it has taken the sunlight to change the color.

Brown in woolen materials is likely to fade. Brown holds its color in all gingham materials.

Dark blue is an excellent color for woolens and ginghams. Light blues on the other hand usually change.

Black, gray, and black with white. These colors are very satisfactory for woolen materials.

Black is not a color which wears very well with cotton fabrics, as it shows the starch (sizing) and often fades.

Red is an excellent color for all woolen materials. It looks attractive and wears well.

Red is a very poor color for cotton. It loses its brilliancy and frequent was.h.i.+ng spoils it.

A deep pink is an excellent color for all ginghams for it fades evenly and leaves a pretty shade.

Green is a poor color for both cotton and woolen materials unless it is high priced.

Lavender fades more than any other color in textiles.

HISTORY OF TEXTILES

The three fundamental industries that have developed from necessity are the feeding, sheltering, and clothing of the human race. These primary wants were first gratified before such conveniences as transportation and various lines of manufacture were even considered.

Next to furnis.h.i.+ng our food supply, the industry of supplying clothing is the oldest and the most widely diffused. It is in the manufacture of textiles--including all materials used in the manufacturing of clothing--that human ingenuity is best ill.u.s.trated.

The magnitude of the textile industry in the United States is evident when we consider that it gives employment to a round million of people, paying them nearly five hundred million dollars annually in wages and salaries, producing nearly one and three-quarters billion dollars in gross value each year, and giving a livelihood to at least three millions of our population.

Wool, cotton, flax, and silk have been used since early times. Even in the earlier days these fibers were woven with great skill. It is not known which fiber was the first to be used in weaving. It is probable, however, that the possession of flocks and herds led to the spinning and weaving of wool before cotton, flax, or silk fibers were thus used.

=Wool.= The date at which prehistoric man discarded the pelt of skins for the woven fabric of wool marks the origin of the textile industry.

Primitive sheep were covered with hair and the wool which now characterizes them was then a downy under-coat. As time went on and the art of spinning and weaving developed, the food value of sheep decreased, while the wool value increased. The hairy flocks were bred out, and the sheep with true wool, like the merino, survived. Sheep were bred princ.i.p.ally for the wool and not for the mutton. Woolen fabrics were worn by the early inhabitants of Persia and Palestine.

The Persians were noted for the excellent fabrics they wove from wool.

Even the Hebrews of an early date were very skilful in weaving woolens.

The early Romans were a race of shepherds and the women of the higher cla.s.ses wove the cloth in their own homes. When Caesar invaded England, he found in the southern part of the island people acquainted with the spinning and weaving of wool and linen. With the downfall of Rome, the art of weaving cloth in Europe was almost lost, and people again wore furs and skins.

By the end of the eleventh century English cloth manufacturing had begun to revive. In the northern part of Italy certain Italians had flocks of sheep and obtained very fine wool, and the people of Flanders continued to develop skill in weaving during the Dark Ages.

In the twelfth century the woolen manufacturers of Flanders had grown to be of great importance, and some of the finest goods were s.h.i.+pped from there to many countries.

In England, up to the time of Edward III, in the fourteenth century, the wool produced was exported to the Netherlands, there to be woven into cloth. Edward III invited many of the Flemish weavers to come to England to teach the English people how to make their own clothes.

Edward was called the "Royal Wool Merchant" and also the "Father of English Commerce." During Elizabeth's reign in the sixteenth century the chief article of export was woolen cloth. In 1685 the Huguenots, who were driven from France, went to England to settle. These people were noted for their skill in weaving.

Patient effort in care and breeding of sheep showed a steady increase in the quant.i.ty and quality of wool until 1810, and the proportion of sheep to the population was then greater than at the present time.

Our own climate is highly favorable for sheep breeding, and it is certain that the American sheep has no superior in any wool growing country, in const.i.tutional vigor and strength of wool-fiber, and no wools make more durable or more valuable clothing.

The obstacles to sheep husbandry in certain parts of the United States, like New England, are mainly climatic. The natural home of the only races of sheep which can be herded in large flocks is an elevated tableland, like the steppes of Russia and the great plains of Asia, Argentina, Montana, Wyoming, and others of our western states where an open air range is possible for nearly twelve months in the year. In these elevated lands there are gra.s.ses which are more nutritious in winter than in summer. The climate of New England does not permit the growth of such gra.s.ses. Every gra.s.s which will grow in New England becomes in the cold months frozen wood fiber. Then again there is the frigid and penetrating atmosphere which necessitates housing the sheep in winter, and these animals cannot be closely housed without engendering a variety of parasitic diseases.

=Cotton.= Long before history was written, cotton was used in making fabrics in India and China. Cotton has been for thousands of years the leading fabric of the East. The Hindoos have for centuries maintained almost unapproachable perfection in their cotton fabrics. It was the Arabian caravans that brought Indian calicoes and muslins into Europe.

Cotton was first cultivated in Europe by the Moors in Spain in the ninth century. In 1430 it was imported into England in large quant.i.ties. The section of England about Manchester became in time the seat of the great cotton industry; this was due to the settlement of spinners and weavers from Flanders.

During the reign of Elizabeth, the East Indies Trading Company was established. Not only was cotton imported, but also India muslins.

This caused trouble because of the decrease in the demand for woolen goods manufactured in England. A law was pa.s.sed prohibiting the importing of cotton goods and later the manufacturing of them, but this law was repealed on account of the great demand for cotton materials.

Columbus found cotton garments worn by the natives of the West Indies.

Later Cortez found that cotton was used in Mexico; hence, cotton is indigenous to America. In 1519 Cortez made the first recorded export of cotton from America to Europe.

In 1734 cotton was planted in Georgia. Bales of cotton were sent to England, and the manufacturing of cloth was soon under way. While the colonies were trying to gain independence, England imposed a fine on anyone sending cotton machinery to America, and restrictions were put on manufacturing and imports of any kind. After the War of Independence many of the southern states began to raise cotton in larger quant.i.ties.

The invention of the cotton-gin by Eli Whitney was one of the great inventions of the age. While only two pounds of cotton could be seeded by hand by one person in a day, the gin made it possible to do several hundred pounds. At the time of the Civil War the greater part of the cotton used by English manufacturers was imported from the southern states. The closing of the southern ports during the war affected the cotton industry throughout the world. Large mills in England were closed, and thousands of people were out of employment. Steps were then taken to encourage people of India, Egypt, Central and South America to increase their production of cotton, and from that time on, cotton from these countries has been found in the general market.

Cotton is now cultivated in nearly all countries within the limits 45 north and 35 south of the equator.

At the present time the United States ranks first in the production and export of cotton. Of all the states, Texas and Georgia produce the largest amount. About one-third of the entire crop is used in our own mills; $250,000,000 worth of cotton is annually exported, princ.i.p.ally through New Orleans, New York, Savannah, and Galveston. Three-fifths of this quant.i.ty goes to mills in England; Germany, France, and Switzerland take a large part of the remainder.

The value of cotton is shown by the fact that about one-half the people of the earth wear clothing made entirely of cotton, and the other half (with the exception of some savage tribes) use it in part of the dress.

=Linen.= Linen has always been held in great esteem. The garments of the Egyptian, Hebrew, Greek, and Roman priests were made of the finest linen.

During the Middle Ages, Italy, Spain, and France were celebrated for their linen fabrics. Religious intolerance in France drove 300,000 of her best textile workers into England, Ireland, and Scotland. Irish linen weaving began as early as the eleventh century.

Linen has never been largely woven in America except in the coa.r.s.er forms of crash and toweling, although linen weaving was one of the Puritan domestic industries. The reason America has not been able to equal Europe in its production of fine linens is because the process for separating the fiber from the stalk requires the cheapest form of labor to make it profitable, hence most of the American-grown flax is raised only for seed.

=Silk.= Silk was used in the East as a fabric for the n.o.bility. It was first used in China and later in India. It was brought into Europe about the sixth century. Up to that time the Chinese had a monopoly of the industry. By the tenth and eleventh centuries silk fabrics were made in Spain and Italy. At the close of the sixteenth century silk was being produced at Lyons, France. It was afterwards introduced into England, and the English silk for a long time replaced the French in the European market.