Chapter IV: Preface (4)

=Pony Skin.=--As a textile term, it is used to describe a pile fabric which is made to imitate the true Russian Pony Skin fur. Always dyed a solid black, this fabric has a mohair pile which has been laid and fixed by heat. The density of the pile and the lustre are the best guides to value. Like many imitation fur fabrics, it came into the market owing to the vogue of the real fur it imitates. Average width, 48 to 50 inches; length, 30 to 33 yards per piece.

=Poplin.=--A fabric having a silk warp and a wool weft, with a corded surface. Goods in which a similar effect is produced, but made in all silk, all wool, or cotton, are also called Poplins.

It is a warp-ribbed fabric with a plain weave and was originally made with a fine silk warp and a comparatively thick gassed worsted weft which gave the ribbed effect, with the silk warp threads thrown to the surface and completely hiding the worsted weft. It is similar to, but generally softer finished than, Repp or Rep.

=Printed.=--This term, when used with reference to textiles, indicates that the fabric has been submitted to a process whereby certain designs, either simple or complex, have been impressed on the surface of the fabric in either one or more colours. Calico is perhaps the most typical of printed fabrics. The printing of fabrics is generally done by the aid of a machine, its main feature being a revolving cylinder on which the design has been stamped or cut out. The cloth in passing through the machine comes in contact with the impression cylinder. The cylinder revolving in a colour trough takes up the colour and leaves the impression of the design on the cloth. When fabrics are printed by hand from blocks, the design never joins so perfectly that it cannot be detected, and, if looked for, certain marks will be found that are used as "guides" to show the operator where the next impression with the block is to be made. Roller-printed designs, being continuous, show no such marks or irregularities.

A recent process known as the "Lithographic" or transfer process has been introduced, and it is a modified form of block printing, an engraved stone being used as for lithographic work.

A fabric that is printed will not show continuous coloured threads, but threads coloured in places and not in others; whereas in fabrics having the pattern woven the coloured threads are continuous.

An "indigo print" is distinguished from a regular print by having a printed figure on a solid indigo blue ground, whereas the ground of an ordinary print-cloth pattern is white or of a light colour. An indigo-print pattern is obtained either by indigo block printing, indigo discharge printing, or indigo resist printing.

=Printed Balzarines.=--The general structure and appearance of Balzarines is given under that heading. The cotton variety would be an all-cotton fabric having a gauze weave and net-like appearance. The printed variety would consist of similar fabrics which had been subjected to a process whereby certain simple or complex designs had been impressed upon the surface of the fabric in either one or more colours. The fabric would approximate 30 inches in width and probably from 28 to 30 yards in length per piece.

=Printed Calico.=--This fabric is described under "Calico."

=Printed Cambrics.=--As the name shows, Printed Cambrics are Cambrics which have been submitted to a process whereby certain simple or complex designs in either one or more colours have been impressed on their surface.

Cambric being a light-weight, soft-finish, plain-weave fabric of linen or cotton, the term Printed Cambric is therefore applicable to either a linen or cotton fabric. The more correct designation would be either Printed Linen Cambric or Printed Cotton Cambric. The majority of Cambrics met with are Cotton Cambrics, and, unless specially designated, a Printed Cambric would be a cotton fabric. Whereas in the plain white a Cambric is finer than a Lawn, Printed Cambrics, on the other hand, are coarser than Lawns.

=Printed Chintzes.=--This fabric is essentially a multicoloured printed cotton fabric. It is the style of printing and the large bright and gay coloured patterns of flowers and other subjects used for ornamentation of the fabric that are the distinctive features of this material, which is mainly used for curtains and furniture coverings. Chintz is but a plain-woven fabric elaborately ornamented with designs by means of the printing machine. After printing, the fabric is passed through a calender press, the rolls of which are well heated and tightly set, which gives the glazed finish which the fabric in most cases possesses.

=Printed Cotton Drill.=--A strong all-cotton warp-faced or warp sateen faced fabric which, after leaving the loom, has been suitably prepared for and subjected to a process whereby certain ornamentation in the form of simple or complex designs in either one or more colours has been impressed on its surface. For particulars of weave, _see_ Drills; Florentine Drills; Satin Drill.

=Printed Cotton Italians.=--This name is given to an all-cotton fabric woven generally with a weft-faced satin weave having an even, close, smooth surface, upon which--for the purpose of ornamentation and to enhance the value of the fabric--certain simple or complex designs in either one or more colours have been impressed. Whilst the name of this fabric does not indicate whether it is a grey, white, or dyed one, nevertheless, as an Italian Cloth itself is a dyed cotton fabric, so a Printed Cotton Italian is a dyed and printed cotton fabric.

=Printed Cotton Lastings.=--This fabric is essentially a plain all-cotton twill or kindred weave fabric firmly woven from hard-twisted yarns, piece-dyed after leaving the loom, and subsequently subjected to a printing process whereby certain designs, whether simple or complex, are impressed upon the surface of the cloth in either one or more colours.

=Printed Crapes.=--Any all-cotton Crape Cloth, which has been ornamented by having certain designs or patterns impressed upon its surface in one or more colours, is termed a Printed Crape. The crinkled appearance--which is the distinctive feature of Crape Cloth--remains unchanged in the Printed Crape. The various methods of obtaining this crinkled effect is given under "Crape Cloth, Plain."

=Printed Crimp Cloth.=--Any all-cotton Crimp Cloth which has been ornamented by having certain designs or patterns impressed upon its surface in one or more colours is known as a Printed Crimp. The "cockled" stripes--which are the distinctive feature of Crimp Cloth--remain unchanged in the Printed Crimps. The method of obtaining these "cockled" stripes is given under "Crimp Cloth, Plain."

=Printed Furnitures.=--This name, like many others used with reference to textiles, denotes more a class of goods than any given fabric. Chintz, Cretonne, and any other printed cotton fabrics which enter into the manufacture of chair or sofa coverings, curtains, hassocks, screens, etc., may be termed Printed Furnitures. This name, however, seems to be unknown to both manufacturer and distributor, and it is not in use in any of the many branches of commerce concerned with textile fabrics. As a generic term it has its value; but if it was ever used as the name of any given fabric, it is so used no longer.

=Printed Lawns.=--As the name shows, Printed Lawns are Lawns which have been submitted to a process whereby certain simple or complex designs in either one or more colours have been impressed on their surface. Lawn being a light-weight, soft-finished, plain-weave fabric woven from cotton yarns varying from 1/40's to 1/100's or from a linen yarn, the term Printed Lawn is therefore applicable to either a cotton or linen fabric. The more correct designation would be either Printed Cotton Lawn or Printed Linen Lawn. The majority of Lawns met with are Cotton Lawns, and unless specially designated, a Printed Lawn would be a cotton fabric. Whereas a plain White Lawn is coarser than a White Cambric, a Printed Lawn, on the other hand, is finer than a Printed Cambric. It varies in width from 27 to 45 inches.

=Printed Leno.=--When a Leno has been submitted to a process whereby certain simple or complex designs in either one or more colours have been impressed on its face, it is then known as a Printed Leno.

=Printed Muslin.=--As the name shows, Printed Muslins are Muslins which have been submitted to a process whereby certain simple or complex designs in either one or more colours have been impressed on their surface. Muslin, like Lawn and Cambric, is an open, plain-weave, light-weight, soft-finished cotton fabric. The better qualities of Muslin may be recognised by their evenness of weave and fineness of yarn, whilst in the lower grades occasional warp or weft threads will be irregular, having the appearance of being thicker in some parts than in others.

=Printed Reps.=--As the name indicates, this class of fabric is essentially of rep construction, _i.e._, having as a predominant feature a rep or rib running transversely across the face of the cloth, which is described in detail under "Rep." When a cloth or fabric of rep construction has had its face ornamented by having certain designs or patterns impressed on it in either one or more colours, it is known as a Printed Rep. This class of fabric is generally met with as an all-cotton fabric, and unless specially designated, the material so described would be a printed plain (in the sense of not figured) cotton fabric.

=Printed Sateens.=--These are essentially light-weight cotton fabrics finished to imitate Silk Satin, and the common Italian Cloth is a sateen fabric. The ornamentation of Printed Sateens is the result of a printing process whereby certain designs are impressed on the surface in contradistinction to Coloured Sateens, in which the ornamentation is produced by combination of coloured warp and filling threads. _See also_ Sateens; Satin.

=Printed Satinets.=--An imitation of the true Satin in mercerised cotton or other yarns which has been printed after leaving the loom. The four-shaft satin weave, which does not fulfil the conditions of the real Satin as regards order of intersections, is known as a satinet weave and is the basis of this class of fabric. Similar to Sateen, but somewhat lighter in weight.

=Printed Sheetings.=--This name is given to an all-cotton fabric woven either as a four-shaft two-and-two twill or with a plain weave, as in the case of low-grade sheetings, in which waste and condenser wefts are used. The actual fabric is woven as described under "Grey Sheeting," then "singed," "bleached," and "calendered" to prepare it for the process of printing, which consists of impressing on the face of the material certain designs in either one or more colours. This term is very seldom met with in the trade and is considered a misnomer.

=Printed Shirtings.=--Printed Shirtings are essentially an all-cotton fabric woven with a plain weave, having the warp and weft approximately of the same count, which have had their surface ornamented by being submitted to a process whereby certain simple or complex designs in either one or more colours have been impressed upon them. Printed Shirtings, like all other cotton fabrics, undergo a process of "singeing," "bleaching," and "calendering" prior to being printed. The first process removes the surface hairs, which form a sort of nap to the surface of the cloth, which if allowed to remain would interfere with the uniform application of the colours, and the other two processes further prepare the fabric for printing.

=Printed T-Cloth.=--This fabric is an all-cotton plain-woven fabric, generally woven from poor-quality yarn, which, after leaving the loom, has been bleached and printed. This fabric answers the description of a Printed Calico and would by many be known under that name. Beyond the actual manufacturer, the jobber or exporter, and those merchants in such markets as Manchester and China where the term is currently used, few even in the textile business would know the value of the term _T_-Cloth.

=Printed Turkey Reds.=--Fabrics designated as Printed Turkey Reds are essentially all-cotton fabrics of good quality dyed turkey red (_see_ Dyed Real Turkey Reds) and subsequently ornamented by having certain designs impressed on their surface in either one or more colours. They are usually plain woven or of small twill weave.

=Printed Twills.=--This term is applied to all cotton fabrics of twill weave, having the diagonal effect or twill running across the face of the fabric, which subsequent to being woven have been ornamented by having certain designs, either simple or complex, impressed on their surface in either one or more colours.

=Printed Velvet (Cotton).=--Like a Plain Cotton Velvet, this fabric is virtually a Velveteen, _i.e._, an all-cotton pile fabric, which has been ornamented by having certain designs or patterns impressed on its face in either one or more colours.

=Printed Velveteen (Cotton).=--This fabric, like all true Velveteens, is an all-cotton pile fabric which has been ornamented by having certain designs, whether simple or complex, impressed on its surface in either one or more colours.

=Printers.=--Plain-woven cotton cloths either exported plain or more often used for printing. Burnley Printers, or "Lumps," are usually 32 inches wide by 116 yards in length and 16 square, _i.e._, 16 ends and 16 picks to the quarter inch. Glossop or Cheshire Printers are about 36 inches by 50 yards and average 19 ends and 22 picks to the quarter inch. Printers are generally well woven from pure yarns of good quality. A variety woven from low-grade yarns is also manufactured.

=Pure Silk Plush.=--A pile fabric, not often met with woven entirely from silk, _i.e._, having both pile face and back warp threads of silk. Woven as a Velvet but with a somewhat longer pile. Most branches of the trade consider a Pure Silk Plush to be a fabric having an all-silk pile, irrespective of whether the foundation fabric is silk or not.

Paul H. Nystrom, in his book, "Textiles," states that Velvets and Plushes are so generally part cotton that a Silk Velvet or a Silk Plush should be considered as having a cotton back unless it is definitely stated that it is "silk backed." The term "pure silk" when applied to a plush qualifies the pile of the fabric and not the fabric as a whole; it does not mean that the fabric is composed entirely of silk.

=Pure Silk Velvet.=--An all-silk pile fabric, not often met with woven entirely from silk, similar to an all-silk Plush, from which it differs only in length of pile. The pile of Velvet is shorter than that of Plush. A Pure Silk Velvet is generally understood to be a pile fabric having an all-silk pile, irrespective of the nature of the foundation fabric. Velvets are so generally part cotton that a Silk Velvet should be considered as having a cotton back unless it is definitely stated that it is "silk backed." "Silk," or "pure silk," refers to the pile and the pile only, in the general acceptance of the trade, and not to the fabric as a whole; it does not mean a fabric composed entirely of silk.

=Raised Back Cloths.=--Fabrics requiring a "raised back" are usually warp faced and weft backed. By constructing the cloth in this manner, the raising machine, in the subsequent processes, partially disintegrates the weft fibres and gives that soft and woolly feel which one is accustomed to in such cloths as Swansdown, Cotton Trouserings, and some classes of fabrics used for dressing-gowns, pyjamas, etc.

=Raised Cotton Cloth.=--Any material woven in all cotton and having either one or both sides "raised" or "napped" would be a Raised Cotton Cloth. The "raising" or "napping" of the cloth is a process which the fabric is put through with the view of giving it a soft "woolly" feel. By passing the fabric, whilst it is tightly stretched, over a revolving cylinder which has its surface covered with small steel hooks or teasels, the surface of the fabric is scratched and the short fibres of the yarn used in the weaving are opened up and raised, resulting in a nap covering the whole of the surface. Raised Cotton Cloths allow of the use of coarse inferior yarns and are better looking than had they not been raised. The raising hides defects of weave and produces a warmer, better-looking cloth than could be produced by any other process at the price. Raised Cloths, like certain Flannelettes, are sometimes chemically rendered "fireproof."

=Ramie, Rhea, China Grass.=--A fibre obtained from a plant of the nettle family which grows in India and China. The fibre is strong and lustrous and lends itself to the weaving of various materials, especially underclothing, and it is used also in the manufacture of incandescent gas mantles.

The diameter of ramie and china grass fibres is from two to three times that of flax. Ramie and china grass are not absolutely identical, the latter containing 78 per cent. of cellulose as compared with 66 per cent. in ramie. When spun into threads they produce a lustrous effect. Effects resembling silk-woven textures are produced with the finest yarns, and when dyed in delicate shades they give a brilliancy comparable with silk.

=Ratine.=--A wool material similar to a Chinchilla, but having smaller tufts with wider spacings between. This material is always plain woven and is of comparatively recent creation; it can be described as a very rough surface dress fabric, properly in part of wool, but now also made entirely of cotton. The characteristic rough surface is caused by the use of special fancy weft threads which are composed of two or more different size yarns so twisted together as to produce knob effects at intervals in the thread. A more expensive fabric is made of filling threads composed of braided yarns. The trade now applies the name to imitation effects produced by terry weaves, Turkish Towelling fabrics, bouclé and bourette effects.

=Rayé.=--This is the French term for "striped" and is applied to patterns running longitudinally with the warp in textile fabrics, produced by employing a special weave or two or more colours of warp specially arranged.

=Reed and Pick= are terms applied in the cotton industry to the number of threads in a given space--usually ¼ inch or 1 inch--in the warp and weft respectively. These terms are not generally employed, however, in all textile districts; the term "make" or "ends and picks per inch" is applied to worsted cloths, whilst "sett" and "shots" are used with the same meaning in the linen industry.

The word "counts," which refers to the number or thickness of yarn, is sometimes erroneously used in this connexion, probably owing to the fact that the expression "counts to the 1-inch glass" is also used in reference to reed and pick.

=Rembrandt Rib.=--Applied to women's stockings having groups of five drop-stitches, separated by 1 inch of plain knitting running the full length.

=Rep.=--The name Rep is used to designate certain fabrics that have as a predominant feature a rep or rib running transversely across the face of the cloth. The term may also be applied to the actual weft rib which appears in the material.

Reps are what is known as warp-ribbed fabrics, _i.e._, fabrics with the rib or rep running weftways, and for that reason may be considered the opposite of cords. The term "warp-ribbed" might at first sight appear to designate a rib running warpways, that is to say, in the longitudinal direction of the cloth, whereas a warp rib is a warp surface weave in which, owing to the thickness of the weft picks or to the grouping of a number of weft picks together, the warp threads are made to bend round them, and being thus thrown to the surface produce a ribbed appearance across the piece. Reps, unless specially designated, are dyed plain cotton fabrics with an average width of 32 inches and a length of 32 yards per piece.

=Resist or Reserve Printing.=--This style of printing is a process used to obtain white figures on a coloured ground by means of printing the designs in substances that are impervious to the dye into which the cloth so printed is subsequently placed. The cloth is dyed, but all parts of it which were covered by the resist agent remain white.

=Reversible Cretonnes.=--The salient features of Cretonnes are the bold type of highly coloured designs with which the fabric is ornamented through printing. The weave employed for this style of fabric is either plain, twill, satin, or oatmeal weave; the width of the material varies from 25 to 50 inches. Sometimes, though rarely, a small brocaded effect of fancy weave is introduced. Reversible Cretonnes differ from ordinary Cretonnes in that they are printed on both sides of the fabric. A recent variety of Reversible Cretonne, called a Shadow Cretonne, is purely a warp-printed fabric, sometimes containing yarn-dyed threads. A Cretonne printed with the same design on face and back would be known as a Reversible Cretonne, whilst the same fabric printed with one pattern on the face and a different pattern on the back would be known as a Duplex Printed Cretonne.

=Rib.=--The name given to any kind of cord effect or to a weave in which either, owing to the interlacing or to the yarns used, warp or weft is the stronger and remains comparatively straight while the weaker does all the bending. Thus, in warp ribs the weft is the stronger and causes the warp to bend and form a warp surface rib running from selvedge to selvedge, while in weft ribs the warp is the stronger and develops a weft surface rib running lengthways of the piece.

=Rib Crape Effect.=--This term is used to designate the effect produced by breaking up the regular order of weave so as to produce a warp-rib effect on a fabric which is of the Crape variety, the crape weave being distinguishable by the interlacing of warp and weft in a more or less mixed or indiscriminate order, so as to produce an appearance of a finely broken character. Rib crape effect is found in fabrics known as Crepoline.

=Richelieu Rib.=--Applied to women's plain stockings having a single drop-stitch at intervals of three-quarters of an inch running the full length of the stocking.

=Right and Wrong Side of Fabrics.=--In certain goods it is difficult to tell the right from the wrong side. In plain worsteds the diagonal ought always to run from right to left, that being the right side. In all textiles which are not reversible, but are similar on both sides, the right side can be detected by the quantity of down, which is less on the right side than the wrong side. To determine this it is often necessary to hold the cloth under examination to the light. When both sides are well finished, but with different patterns, it is the neater of the two which is generally the right side. In a comprehensive way, shaving and neatness indicate the right side.

=Ring-spun Yarn.=--Ring-spun cotton yarn is generally a harder spun thread than mule-twist, which is more fibrous and more elastic. Ring-spun yarn will not take up as much "size" as the more fibrous and softer spun thread of the mule.

Ring-spun yarn is rounder than a mule-spun thread. Ring-spinning differs from mule-spinning in this essential: the former is spun on the "continuous system" upon spindles that are fixed, whereas in mule-spinning the spindles are mounted on a carriage which moves backwards and forwards for a distance of some 5 feet. When the spindles reach their greatest distance the rolls producing the yarn are automatically stopped, and the thread that has been spun during the outward move of the carriage is wound on the spindles while the carriage is being moved back toward the rolls.

=Robes.=--A name given to printed twill cotton fabrics made from 64-square printing cloth. Originally made for use as wraps, they were made in Cashmere effects. Now, although made in large bright-coloured furniture coverings, curtains, etc., they still retain the name Robes when made from 64-square printing cloth.

=Russian Cloth (Woollen).=--An all-wool fabric, plain woven from a wool weft and wool warp, the weave being a plain one-over and one-under weave. Owing to the finish of the cloth, the weave is non-apparent. It varies in width from 54 to 74 inches and in length from 19 to 36 yards. It does not differ materially from Broad, Medium, and Habit Cloth. Average value for period 1904 to 1914, 4_s._ 3_d._ per yard.

=Russian Prints.=--This class of fabric does not differ materially from any other print. They originate in Odessa, whence they come by steamer to Chinese ports or to Vladivostock, from which points the majority are brought overland into Manchuria. Many of the designs on Russian Prints are similar to those on American prints. Measuring 24/25 or 26 inches wide, 88 by 68 or 88 by 64 ends and picks, and 30 yards per piece, they are generally packed 30, 40, and sometimes 60 pieces to a bale. On the whole, Russian Prints are not a high-grade material.

=Samples and their Classification.=--Unless some definite system, which provides means for ready reference to any of the individual samples forming part of the collection, is adopted from the very start, sample collections are of comparatively small value. The successive pasting into a book of samples which represent fabrics of different materials, different weaves, and different finishes--and under the heading "finishes" would be included dyeing, printing, embossing, etc.--is of no great value, for it becomes impossible after a time to readily turn up any given sample. Even with an index to the collection so formed it is only possible to turn up a sample of material the name of which is known. A person wishing to turn up in such a collection a sample of a certain type of fabric the name of which he did not know at the time could not do so, and the more specimens or samples were added to the collection the more difficult it would become to turn up a given sample, and the value of the collection would lessen instead of increase.

If fabrics are divided into 17 headings representing the main divisions into which they may be classed, and each division or section is subdivided into numbered sub-sections, the task becomes simpler, and there results therefrom a series of key-numbered collections each containing samples of fabrics of a similar type but of varying quality and value. Each collection (or sub-section) becomes known by a combination of two numbers, one of which is the main division or section number and the other the number of that particular sub-section. These numbers precede the name of the division and the name of the subdivision.

The 17 main divisions or groups, together with their respective subdivisions, which will in practice be found to be ample are as follow:--

SECTION NUMBER. SUB-SECTION NUMBER.
---- ----
{ 1. Shirtings and Sheetings.
{ 2. Drills and Jeans.
1. Grey Cottons { 3. Shirtings and Sheetings, Native.
{ 4. Drills and Jeans, Native.
{ 5. Not specially enumerated.

{ 1. Plain.
{ 2. Plain (with finish).
{ 3. Brocades.
{ 4. Brocades (with finish).
{ 5. Striped or Spotted Shirting.
2. White Cottons. { 6. Striped or Spotted Shirting
{ (with finish).
{ 7. Crimps and Crapes.
{ 8. Crimps and Crapes (with
{ finish).
{ 9. Lenos.
{ 10. Not specially enumerated.

{ 1. Plain.
{ 2. Plain (with finish).
{ 3. Furnitures.
{ 4. Crapes.
{ 5. Crimps.
3. Printed Cottons. { 6. Muslins, Lawns, and Cambrics.
{ 7. Lenos and Balzarines.
{ 8. Duplex or Reversible.
{ 9. Blue and White _T_-Cloth.
{ 10. Not specially enumerated.

{ 1. Plain.
{ 2. Plain (with finish).
{ 3. Crimps.
{ 4. Crimps (with finish).
{ 5. Drills, Twills, and Jeans.
4. Dyed Plain Cottons. { 6. Lawns, Muslins, and Cambrics.
{ 7. Hongkong-dyed.
{ 8. Lenos and Balzarines.
{ 9. Native.
{ 10. Native (with finish).
{ 11. Not specially enumerated.

{ 1. Figured.
{ 2. Figured (with finish).
5. Dyed Figured Cottons { 3. Native.
{ 4. Native (with finish).
{ 5. Not specially enumerated.

{ 1. Plain.
{ 2. Dyed.
{ 3. Printed.
{ 4. Duplex Printed.
6. Raised Cottons. { 5. Dyed and Printed.
{ 6. Dyed and Duplex Printed.
{ 7. Yarn-dyed.
{ 8. Figured White.
{ 9. Not specially enumerated.

{ 1. Plain.
{ 2. Plain (with finish).
{ 3. Figured.
{ 4. Figured (with finish).
7. Coloured Woven { 5. Crimps.
(_i.e._, yarn-dyed) { 6. Crimps (with finish).
Cottons { 7. Plain Native.
{ 8. Plain Native (with finish).
{ 9. Figured Native.
{ 10. Figured Native (with finish).
{ 11. Not specially enumerated.

{ 1. Plain.
{ 2. Plain (with finish).
{ 3. Crimps.
{ 4. Crimps (with finish).
8. Dyed and Printed Cottons { 5. Figured.
{ 6. Figured (with finish).
{ 7. Native.
{ 8. Not specially enumerated.

{ 1. Plain.
{ 2. Printed or Embossed.
9. Velvets and Velveteens { 3. Embroidered.
(Cotton). { 4. Dyed Cords and Corduroys.
{ 5. Undyed Moleskins.
{ 6. Not specially enumerated.

{ 1. Plain Pure Silk.
{ 2. Figured or Embossed.
{ 3. Silk Seal (with cotton back).
{ 4. Silk with cotton back.
10. Plushes and Velvets { 5. Silk mixed with other fibrous
{ materials (with cotton
{ back).
{ 6. All-cotton Plush (including
{ with finish).
{ 7. Not specially enumerated.

{ 1. Plain.
{ 2. Figured.
{ 3. Plain Native.
11. Silk Piece Goods { 4. Figured Native.
{ 5. Ribbons (all silk and mixtures).
{ 6. Not specially enumerated.

12. Silk and Cotton Fabrics { 1. Plain.
{ 2. Figured.

{ 1. Plain.
{ 2. Figured.
{ 3. Poncho Cloth.
13. Woollen and Cotton { 4. Spanish Stripes.
Mixtures { 5. Union Cloth.
{ 6. Plain Lustres.
{ 7. Figured Lustres.
{ 8. Not specially enumerated.

{ 1. Habit, Medium, Russian, and
{ Broad Cloth.
{ 2. Bunting.
{ 3. Camlets, Dutch.
14. Woollen Fabrics { 4. Camlets, English.
{ 5. Flannel.
{ 6. Lastings (all kinds).
{ 7. Spanish Stripes.
{ 8. Long Ells.
{ 9. Not specially enumerated.

15. Linen and Linen Unions { 1. Plain.
{ 2. Figured.

16. Hemp and Hemp Mixtures { 1. Plain and Figured.
{ 2. Yarn-dyed.

17. Miscellaneous.

Whether the loose-leaf system with folders to contain the samples is used or whether they are entered into special books is a matter for the individual, but the loose-leaf or card-index system with folder is infinitely preferable, admitting of the removal of any given sample for reference or comparison. The index to such a collection of samples would be alphabetical (even though not absolutely so), and if a sample of Italian (of the plain variety) were added to the collection, it would be added under section 4, Dyed Plain Cottons. If the sample of Italian thus added to the collection was the fifth sample of Dyed Plain Cottons (with finish), it would appear in the index to the sample collection under 1 and would be entered as follows:--

NAME OF FABRIC. SECTION SUB-SECTION SAMPLE
NUMBER. NUMBER. NUMBER.
---- ---- ---- ----
Italian 4 2 5

A sample of Bunting, on the other hand, would be filed under section 14, sub-section 2; and if it were the thirty-first sample filed under that sub-section, it would be indexed under the letter B as Bunting, 14: 2: 31.

This decimal system of numbering and classifying samples lends itself to a refinement of subdivision unattainable in any other.

Generally speaking, samples, unless accompanied by certain descriptive information, are of little value, and care should be taken to describe briefly any salient feature connected with the fabric. This information may concern either the trade-mark, the importer, the value, or the date when the sample was entered into the collection, and brief particulars of the shipment of which it is a sample. This kind of information is of material value where the sample concerns a class, style, or quality of fabric not hitherto met with. With a comparatively small amount of trouble it would be possible to get together very valuable collections of samples. And if the individual would but give a little time and thought to the question of textile samples, and but a tithe of the time devoted to any hobby he may have, he will be amply repaid by the added knowledge he will acquire. All samples should be of uniform size (7 inches by 4 inches will be found a very useful size) and should invariably be in duplicate--one to use in obtaining all particulars necessary for classification and the other for the actual sample collection. Weave structure, nature of yarns, etc., may be studied and tests for components made and recorded.

Nothing will give a better idea of relative values of fabrics than knowledge of components, style of weave, etc. This, of course, does not apply to extrinsic values, _i.e._, values due to fashion, exclusive designs, or proprietary articles. There is nothing to go by in such cases better than market values; but in the plainer staples knowledge of construction, finish, etc., means ability to classify fabrics and estimate their approximate relative values.

Provisions for an index to sample collection have been made at the end of this book, enabling the ready adoption of the system now advocated.

=Sateens.=--This material is a light-weight cotton fabric finished to imitate Silk Satin. In weaving Cotton Sateens the same style of weave is adopted as in weaving Silk Satin, the object aimed at being an even, close, smooth surface and one capable of reflecting light to the best advantage. In a "warp sateen" weave the warp only appears on the surface, the filling or weft threads being effectually and completely hidden by the warp threads. In passing over the filling the warps do not interweave at regular, but at irregular, intervals--thus they may pass over five, eight, ten, twelve, or sixteen, then under one and over eight more, and so on. Sateens average 30 inches wide and from 30 to 60 yards in length per piece.

Sateens are woven on the same principle as Italians. The common Sateen cloth is produced on a "five threads and picks" system. Sateens are woven either as "Warp Sateen" or "Weft Sateen"; the peculiarities of these weaves are given under those headings.

=Satin.=--A term applied to silk goods woven on the same principle as Sateens, either Warp Sateens or Weft Sateens. In weaving most silk fabrics the warp and weft, or filling, are made to intersect each other every alternate time (as in plain weaving) or every third or fourth time in regular order (as in ordinary or plain twill weaving). In weaving Satin the same style of weave is adopted as in weaving Cotton Sateens, the object aimed at being an even, close, smooth surface and one capable of reflecting light to the best advantage. In a warp-weave Satin the warp only appears on the surface, the filling or weft threads being effectually and completely hidden. In passing over the filling the warps do not interweave at regular intervals; thus, they may pass over five, eight, ten, twelve, or sixteen, then under one and over eight more, and so on. Common Satin is what is technically known as an eight-leaf twill, the order in which the filling thread rises being once in eight times. The filling in the better qualities of Satin is of silk, whilst in the lower grades of this fabric cotton is generally used for the filling. Rich Satins may be woven on almost any number from five to twenty leaf twills. Satin at the time of leaving the loom has a somewhat flossy and rough surface--this is removed by passing the fabric over heated metal cylinders, which destroy the minute fibrous ends and increase the brilliance of the silk. Black Satins are often woven with a selvedge which is of a different colour to the piece.

=Satin Drill.=--When a Drill is woven with a warp-faced sateen weave it is known as a Satin Drill, to distinguish it from a Drill woven with a twill weave, which is known as a Florentine Drill.

=Satin Weave.=--In weaving a satin design the filling thread is made to pass under one and over eight, ten, twelve, or a greater or lesser number of warp threads, and the order in which this is done is irregular. The filling by this process is thus placed practically all on the face of the cloth, and this style of weave is sometimes called a filling-face satin weave. By reversing the process and bringing practically all the warp to the surface or face of the cloth a warp-face satin is produced. Cloth produced by this system of weave has a close, smooth surface reflecting light to a high degree and giving it the appearance of Satin Cloth, a fabric which is best described as a cloth made of silk woven with a satin weave.

=Satinet or Satinette.=--An imitation of the true or Silk Satin woven from mercerised cotton or other yarns. It is similar to Sateen, but somewhat lighter in weight. The term is used to describe the four-shaft satin weave, which does not fulfil the conditions of the real Satin as regards the order of intersection of warp and weft.

=Schreiner Finish.=--This, like all other special finishes, is the result of a process through which a fabric is passed with the view of rendering its face more lustrous, _i.e._, capable of better reflecting light and hence having a more silky appearance. A Schreiner finish is given to a woven cloth by means of a specially engraved steel roller. This roller is engraved with minute lines running parallel to each other. When this roller has been suitably heated and set with the right amount of pressure the cloth is run between it and a plain backing roller. The engraved roller which comes in contact with the cloth impresses on it minute lines, which can readily be distinguished by means of a counting-glass.

In America a Schreiner finish is often known as a "milled" finish.

=Scribbled.=--When any two or more kinds of fibres have been thoroughly mixed together prior to being spun into a thread they are said to be "scribbled."

=Seamless.=--Applied to hosiery knitted in one piece on a circular machine, leaving an opening at the toe to be looped together. The shaping of the leg, heel, and toe is done by steaming and then drying on boards of proper form.

=Seamless Bags.=--All-cotton bags woven on looms which automatically measure the length of what is practically a tubular cloth required for each bag. What are virtually two cloths are "condensed" and woven together to form the bag bottom. In forming the body of the bag the loom weaves two fabrics, one over the other, and in weaving the bottom these are combined into one.

=Selvedge.=--The edge of any piece of woven fabric. The term is synonymous with "list." The warp threads which go towards the weaving of selvedges are in some cases made of a stronger material than that used for the bulk of the fabric. Folded yarns are often used for this purpose, because during the process of weaving single selvedge yarns are liable to break out oftener than any other, generally on account of the pulling action of the weft thread in the shuttle as it is "picked" across. This is more particularly the case with cottons. Selvedges are that part of the fabric by which it is held out in a stretched position in many of the stages of finishing. In the textile trade generally it is often stated that "a good selvedge shows a good cloth." Velvets and Velveteens that are mounted on iron frames, to which they are attached by means of series of hooks penetrating the selvedges, have these selvedges reinforced by stronger warp threads.

Selvedges, or lists, of a colour different but of a material similar to that of the bulk of the fabric denote that the fabric has been woven of dyed yarns and that it has not been piece-dyed. Obviously, if piece-dyed, the selvedge would be of the same colour as the bulk of the fabric. Distinctive styles of selvedges have given rise to special names of fabrics, such as Spanish Stripes. The actual quality of a fabric cannot be always told by the selvedge, but other conditions being equal, it then becomes a good guide to quality. A silk selvedge thread or threads, or the initials of the manufacturer in silk, appearing on the selvedge of an all-wool fabric generally denotes a superior quality of fabric. The following, from a work dealing with cotton fabrics, shows the generally accepted value of selvedges as an indication of quality: "Advertising has educated the retail dealers and consumers to the fact that cotton warp goods with a white selvedge, the ground being of colour, are more to be depended upon not to crock than similar cloths of solid colour."

=Serge (Cotton).=--All all-cotton fabric woven with a decided twill and having a special finish imitating wool; usually printed with hair-line stripes to imitate woven effects.

=Shadow Cretonne.=--A fabric of comparatively recent creation having as a distinctive feature the design printed on the warp threads. The filling is generally white, but is sometimes yarn-dyed to a shade approximating the general tone of the large floral decorations which are generally used in this class of fabric. The warp threads take the colouring matter in such a way that when woven the design or pattern appears equally on both sides of the fabric in somewhat blurred and softened tones. From the fact that the fabric is reversible, _i.e._, shows a design on both sides, it has sometimes been called a Reversible Cretonne, but the true Reversible Cretonne is the result of printing on a woven fabric and not on the warp threads only prior to weaving. The blurred effect, resembling that of a fabric which might have run in the washing, is at times intensified by the introduction here and there of yarn-dyed warp threads of solid colour. They are not always an all-cotton fabric; flax enters sometimes into their composition.

=Shantung.=--The real Shantung is a Chinese silk fabric of the Pongee class. This fabric has now been imitated in cotton yarns suitably finished. The yarns used in imitation Shantung are spun with thick soft places at irregular intervals in the yarn; this irregularity is more noticeable in the filling yarns.

=Sheeting.=--A light or medium weight plain-woven all-cotton fabric woven from coarse or medium yarns. The name applies to both bleached and unbleached cloth. Under the heading "Grey Sheeting" will be found a description of the two distinct varieties of fabric known as Sheeting. In the trade it would appear that, should a Sheeting be dyed or printed, it is never sold as a Sheeting, but under some other name.

=Shirtings.=--A generic term applied to any material originally and usually employed for the making of shirts and covering such varieties as Grey, Harvard, Oxford, Zephyr, Sateen, Grandelle, etc. The term Shirting, if used by itself, would in most instances be used with reference to the Grey Shirting so largely exported from England and America. This Grey Shirting is a plain-woven cloth of low-quality and heavily sized yarns which has not been bleached.

=Short Stick.=--This term implies a yard of precisely 36 inches, in opposition to the term "long stick," which is by trade custom a yard of 36½ inches in length.

=Shot.=--A weaving term having the same value as "pick." When a fabric is described as having so many "shots" to the inch it means that there are so many weft threads to the inch. When used to describe a colour effect in fabrics, it applies to fabrics which are woven with different coloured warp and weft, and which, according to the way they are held when looked at, appear to change in colour.

=Sicilienne.=--A Mohair of heavy weight.

=Silence Cloth.=--A heavy all-cotton backed fabric, used to cover the table under the linen cloth, to withstand heat or to prevent damage to the finish of the table. Made in widths from 54 to 64 inches. The fabric is a double fabric, reversible, and made from coarse yarns; it is also known as Table Felting.

=Silesia.=--A cotton fabric woven with a twill or sateen weave, usually printed in stripes and highly finished. The high finish found in this class of fabric is often a "Beetle" finish imparted to the fabric after weaving by subjecting it to a rapid succession of elastic blows from a series of hammers whilst the fabric is wound upon a cast-iron beam. Generally woven as a three-shaft twill from single 30's to 40's in warp and filling so as to produce a 45-degree right-hand twill. Silesia is essentially a tailoring fabric used for linings. A variety of yarn-dyed striped Silesia is also on the market.

=Silk Beaver.=--Silk Beaver is a pile fabric woven so as to imitate the prepared fur of the beaver. Like many other fabrics of this style the pile is all silk and the foundation cloth or back is all cotton. This fabric appears to be dyed invariably a rich brown, and this differentiates it from such similar fabrics as Silk Seal, which are dyed black. The quality of Silk Beaver depends upon the depth and closeness of pile. If looked at from behind, the pile threads will distinctly show as small shiny spots where they are bound into the back. The closer these little silk dots are to each other the heavier the pile and the better the quality. The value prior to 1914 ranged from 5_s._ to 12_s._ per yard but has since increased. The pile may have a length of as much as half an inch in the best grades. Generally framed in lengths of from 30 to 33 yards. As this is bulky material when framed, the landed cost in the East is greatly increased. Average width, 48 to 50 inches.

=Silk Gingham.=--This class of fabric is similar to Gingham, Madras, Madras Gingham, Zephyr, etc., except that the fabric contains more or less silk in the filling. It sometimes happens that through inadvertence such material is found described simply as a Gingham, hence the presence of silk should be looked for in goods so described.

=Silk Mull.=--Like Mull, this fabric is a plain-woven, soft-finished material, but is made from cotton warp and silk filling and is generally finished undyed. Silk Mull is finer in texture than Cotton Mull. The silk filling used in this fabric is raw silk, viz., tram silk.

=Silk Pongee.=--A light-weight fabric made of the silk produced by wild silkworms that feed on oak leaves.

Pongee is a soft, unbleached, washable silk, shipped from China to Europe in large quantities, where it is bleached, dyed, and ornamented in various styles of designs. The name is also applied to a variety of dress goods made in Europe woven with a wild-silk warp and a fine worsted weft. This material is of comparatively recent make and is made mostly with narrow stripes, produced by the insertion of certain yarn-dyed threads.

=Silk Seal (Cotton Back).=--This is an imitation fur fabric made in a range of quality, length, and closeness of pile. In this fabric the pile only is of silk, the foundation cloth being all cotton.

Silk Seal might be mistaken for Silk Beaver if not judged from the point of view of colour. Silk Seal is black, Silk Beaver is brown. There is a variety of this fabric known as a Fancy Silk Seal, similar in construction and components but having stamped in outline by means of rollers a design resembling the irregular scales on a crocodile's skin. Along the lines demarcating these scales the pile has been crushed and fixed down by heat. This fabric is not a true Silk Seal. Quality in this, as in other pile fabrics, depends on the closeness and depth of the pile. There is a possibility of mistaking Silk Seal with cotton back for a Silk Plush with cotton back, but generally the pile of Plush is shorter than that of Silk Seal. Average width, 48 to 50 inches.

=Silk Yarns.=--There are two distinct classes of silk yarns, _i.e._, (_a._) pure, or net, silk and (_b._) spun silk.

(_a._) _Net Silk Yarns._--These are constructed from fibres reeled straight from the cocoon, and in the case of organzine (or warp) yarns three to eight fibres are lightly twisted together; subsequently, two or more of these compound threads ("singles" as they are termed) are folded together to form the silk yarn employed as warp. Weft yarns, known as tram silk, are made from two or more strands, each made from three to twelve cocoon fibres, which have not undergone any preliminary twisting, so that tram silk is much straighter, softer, and more lustrous than organzine.

(_b._) _Waste and Spun Silk Yarns._--The fibre is obtained from "pierced" cocoons, _i.e._, cocoons through which the silk moth has forced a way at the time of emerging from same, also from "wild" cocoons. The low qualities are short-fibred and are only suitable for weft yarns, while the longer drafts produce higher quality yarns well suited for warp.

Counts of spun silk are based upon two distinct systems of numbering. In the French system the number is based on the singles, by metres per kilogramme; two and three cord yarns have one-half, one-third, etc., the length the numbers indicate thus:--

No. 100 singles has 100,000 metres per kilogramme.
" 2/100 " 50,000 " "
" 3/100 " 33,333 " "

The other and more general system is the English. The hank is 840 yards and the number of the hanks in 1 pound avoirdupois is the count of the yarn. It is based on the finished yarn, and singles and two and three cord yarns of the same number have all the same number of yards per pound. Thus:--

No. 50 singles has 42,000 yards per pound.
" 50/2 " 42,000 " "
" 50/3 " 42,000 " "

=Sliver.=--A continuous strand of cotton or other fibre in a loose, untwisted condition, ready for the further process of slubbing or roving, preparatory to being spun.

=Spanish Stripes, Cotton.=--A plain-woven all-cotton fabric, sometimes woven from dyed yarns, but oftenest met with as a piece-dyed material woven with a simple one-over and one-under weave. The selvedge is often woven with black warp threads to the width of about 1 inch. The filling weft threads are soft and full, the warp threads are much finer and hard-twisted. The surface is raised and the general appearance of the fabric is similar to Flannelette. Often met with in bright vermilion. Average width, 56 inches; length, 25 yards per piece; and value (nominal), 7_d._ per yard.

=Spanish Stripes, Woollen.=--Essentially an all-wool fabric, free from any ornamentation of weave, printing, or embossing, this class of fabric is woven with a plain one-over and one-under weave. Soft of handle, Spanish Stripes are generally dyed bright red and have as a distinguishing feature a selvedge of coarser warp threads from 1½ to 2 inches in width, some of which are dyed, prior to weaving, a different colour (generally black) to the rest of the warp threads or weft filling threads. These coloured warp threads go towards making generally three separate coloured stripes in the selvedge and have given rise to the name of this particular fabric. In width measuring up to 62 inches and with a length of 29 to 30 yards per piece, Woollen Spanish Stripes are met with in a limited range of quality and the average price of same taken over the period 1904 to 1914 was 1_s._ 8½_d._ per yard.

=Spanish Stripes, Wool and Cotton.=--This class of fabric, being a mixture and not a union fabric, answers to the description of a Woollen Spanish Stripe but differs from it in that it is woven from yarns which are composed of a mixture of wool and cotton. The "handle" is very nearly that of an all-wool fabric, the average width some 62 inches, and the length per piece 29 to 30 yards. The distinctive selvedge of this class of fabric is maintained in the wool and cotton variety.

=Split Foot.=--Refers to black or coloured hosiery having a white or unbleached sole.

=Sponge Cloth.=--A fine cotton or wool fabric having a surface resembling that of a small sponge.

=Spun Silk.=--Applied to a low grade of silk used in the cheaper lines of silk hosiery. It is made from floss, injured cocoons, husks, and waste from reeling, and bears the same relation to silk as cotton waste to cotton or shoddy to wool.

=Staples.=--Staples is a term used to designate those fabrics which are woven in the same way year after year, varying only in the colouring given to them, which may change in accordance with the demands of fashion and of the buyer.

The principal dress goods staples are Brilliantines, Sicilians, Mohairs, Imperial Serges, Storm Serges, Cheviots, Panamas, Batistes, Taffetas, Voile, Muslins, Nun's Veiling, Cashmere, and Shepherd's Checks.

=Surah.=--A light, soft, twilled silk.

=Swansdown.=--Like Cotton Flannel and Flannelette, Swansdown is a fabric made of cotton with a "raised" or "napped" surface. Being raised but on the back of the cloth, it is "single raised": heavy and closely woven Swansdown is a typical raised cotton cloth. The weave is on the satin-weave principle.

=Swiss Embroidery.=--This process of ornamentation closely resembles lappet spots, but, unlike lappet spots, they are in reality the result of a subsequent process of weaving. The essential difference in the manner of attaching the thread which is used for the figuring to the cloth can readily be seen. In Swiss Embroidery there is an equal amount of floating thread used to form the spot on the face of the cloth and on the back, thus producing what may be termed a solid spot on both sides and therefore reversible.