,,the ,,industrial ,,readers ,book ,,iii ,,makers ,,of ,,many ,,things ,,by ,,eva ,,march ,,tappan1 ,,ph4,d4 ,author of ,england's ,story1 ,american ,hero ,stories1 ,old ,world ,hero ,stories1 ,story of the ,greek ,people1 ,story of the ,roman ,people1 etc4 ,editor of ,the ,children's ,hour4 ,illustration ,,houghton ,,mifflin ,,company ,,boston ,,new ,,york ,,chicago ,,copyright1 #aiaf1 ,,by ,,eva ,,march ,,tappan ,,all ,,rights ,,reserved ,the ,riverside ,press ,,cambridge 4 ,,massachusetts ,u 4 ,s 4 ,a ,,preface ,the four books of this series have been written not merely to provide agreeable reading matter for children1 but to give them information4 ,when a child can look at a steel pen not simply as an article furnished by the city for his use1 but rather as the result of many interesting processes1 he has made a distinct growth in intelligence4 ,when he has begun to apprehend the fruitfulness of the earth1 both above ground and below1 and the best way in which its products may be utilized and carried to the places where they are needed1 he has not only acquired a knowledge of many kinds of industrial life which may help him to choose his life-work wisely from among them1 but he has learned the dependence of one person upon other persons1 of one part of the world upon other parts1 and the necessity of peaceful intercourse4 ,best of all1 he has learned to see4 ,wordsworth's familiar lines say of a man whose eyes had not been opened1-- ,a primrose by a river's brim ,a yellow primrose was to him1 ,and it was nothing more4 ,these books are planned to show the children that there is something more2 to broaden their horizon2 to reveal to them what invention has accomplished and what wide room for invention still remains2 to teach them that reward comes to the man who improves his output beyond the task of the moment2 and that success is waiting1 not for him who works because he must1 but for him who works because he may4 ,acknowledgment is due to the ,diamond ,match ,company1 ,hood ,rubber ,company1 ,s4 ,d4 ,warren ,paper ,company1 ,the ,riverside ,press1 ,e4 ,faber1 ,c4 ,howard ,hunt ,pen ,company1 ,waltham ,watch ,company1 ,mark ,cross ,company1 ,i4 ,prouty ,company1 ,cheney ,brothers1 and others1 whose advice and criticism have been of most valuable aid in the preparation of this volume4 ,,eva ,,march ,,tappan4 ,,contents ,i4 ,,the ,,little ,,friction ,,match #a ,,ii4 ,,about ,,india ,,rubber #f ,,iii4 ,,kid ,,gloves #af ,,iv4 ,,how ,,rags ,,and ,,trees ,,become ,,paper #be ,v4 ,,how ,,books ,,are ,,made #cf ,,vi4 ,,from ,,goose ,,quills ,,to ,,fountain ,,pens ,,and ,,lead ,,pencils #df ,,vii4 ,,the ,,dishes ,,on ,,our ,,tables #ef ,,viii4 ,,how ,,the ,,wheels ,,of ,a ,,watch ,,go ,,around #fd ,,ix4 ,,the ,,making ,,of ,,shoes #gc ,x4 ,,in ,,the ,,cotton ,,mill #hb ,,xi4 ,,silkworms ,,and ,,their ,,work #ib ,,the ,,industrial ,,readers ,,book ,,iii ,,makers ,,of ,,many ,,things ,i ,,the ,,little ,,friction ,,match ,i remember being once upon a time ten miles from a store and one mile from a neighbor2 the fire had gone out in the night1 and the last match failed to blaze4 ,we had no flint and steel4 ,we were neither ,indians nor ,boy ,scouts1 and we did not know how to make a fire by twirling a stick4 ,there was nothing to do but to trudge off through the snow to the neighbor a mile away and beg some matches4 ,then was the time when we appreciated the little match and thought with profound respect of the men who invented and perfected it4 ,it is a long way from the safe and reliable match of to-day back to the splinters that were soaked in chemicals and sold together with little bottles of sulphuric acid4 ,the splinter was expected to blaze when dipped into the acid4 ,sometimes it did blaze1 and sometimes it did not2 but it was reasonably certain how the acid would behave1 for it would always sputter and do its best to spoil some one's clothes4 ,nevertheless1 even such matches as these were regarded as a wonderful convenience1 and were sold at five dollars a hundred4 ,with the next kind of match that appeared1 a piece of folded sandpaper was sold1 and the buyer was told to pinch it hard and draw the match through the fold4 ,these matches were amazingly cheap--eighty-four of them for only twenty-five cents6 ,there have been all sorts of odd matches4 ,one kind actually had a tiny glass ball at the end full of sulphuric acid4 ,to light this1 you had to pinch the ball and the acid that was thus let out acted upon the other chemicals on the match and kindled it--or was expected to kindle it1 which was not always the same thing4 ,making matches is a big business1 even if one hundred of them are sold for a cent4 ,it is estimated that on an average each person uses seven matches every day4 ,to provide so many would require some seven hundred million matches a day in this country alone4 ,it seems like a very simple matter to cut a splinter of wood1 dip it into some chemicals1 and pack it into a box for sale2 and it would be simple if it were all done by hand1 but the matches would also be irregular and extremely expensive4 ,the way to make anything cheap and uniform is to manufacture it by machinery4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,endless ,,match ,,machine ,the match splints are set in tiny holes like pins in a pincushion1 and the belt revolves1 passing their heads through various chemicals4 ,the first step in making matches is to select some white-pine plank of good quality and cut it into blocks of the proper size4 ,these are fed into a machine which sends sharp dies through them and thus cuts the match splints4 ,over the splint cutter a carrier chain is continuously moving1 and into holes in this chain the ends of the match splints are forced at the rate of ten or twelve thousand a minute4 ,the splints remain in the chain for about an hour1 and during this hour all sorts of things happen to them4 ,first1 they are dipped into hot paraffin wax1 because this will light even more easily than wood4 ,as soon as the wax is dry1 the industrious chain carries them over a dipping-roll covered with a layer consisting partly of glue and rosin4 ,currents of air now play upon the splint1 and in about ten minutes the glue and rosin on one end of it have hardened into a hard bulb4 ,it is not a match yet by any means1 for scratching it would not make it light4 ,the phosphorus which is to make it into a match is on another dipping-roll4 ,this is sesqui-sulphide of phosphorus4 ,the common yellow phosphorus is poisonous1 and workmen in match factories where it was used were in danger of suffering from a terrible disease of the jaw bone4 ,at length it was discovered that sesqui-sulphide of phosphorus would make just as good matches and was harmless4 ,our largest match company held the patent giving them the exclusive right to certain processes by which the sesqui-sulphide was made2 and this patent they generously gave up to the people of the ,united ,states4 ,after the splints have been dipped into the preparation of phosphorus1 they are carried about on the chain vertically1 horizontally1 on the outside of some wheels and the inside of others1 and through currents of air4 ,then they are turned over to a chain divided into sections which carries them to a packing-machine4 ,this machine packs them into boxes1 a certain number in each box1 and they are slid down to girls who make the boxes into packages4 ,these are put into wooden containers and are ready for sale4 ,as in most manufactures1 these processes must be carried on with great care and exactness4 ,the wood must be carefully selected and of straight grain1 the dipping-rolls must be kept covered with a fresh supply of composition1 and its depth must be always uniform4 ,even the currents of air in which the splints are dried must be just warm enough to dry them and just moist enough not to dry them too rapidly4 ,the old sulphur matches made in card and block can no longer be bought in this country2 the safety match has taken their place4 ,one kind of safety match has the phosphorus on the box and the other igniting substances on the match1 so that the match will not light unless it is scratched on the box2 but this kind has never been a favorite in the ,united ,states4 ,the second kind1 the one generally used1 may be struck anywhere1 but these matches are safe because even stepping upon one will not light it2 it must be scratched4 ,a match is a little thing1 but nothing else can do its work4 ,,ii ,,about ,,india ,,rubber ,when you pick a dandelion or a milkweed1 a white sticky milk oozes out2 and this looks just like the juice of the various sorts of trees1 shrubs1 and vines from which ,india rubber is made4 ,the rubber plant which has been such a favorite in houses is one of these2 in ,india it becomes a large tree which has the peculiar habit of dropping down from its branches bush-ropes1 as they are called4 ,these take root and become stout trunks4 ,there is literally a rubber belt around the world1 for nearly all rubber comes from the countries lying between the ,tropic of ,cancer and the ,tropic of ,capricorn4 ,more than half of all that is brought to market is produced in the valley of the ,amazon ,river2 and some of this ,para rubber1 as it is called1 from the seaport whence it is shipped1 is the best in the world4 ,illustration3 ,courtesy ,general ,rubber ,co4 ,,tapping ,,rubber ,,trees ,,in ,,sumatra ,the plantation on which this photograph was taken has #de1jjj acres of planted rubber trees1 and employs #ad1jjj coolies4 ,the juice or latex flows best about sunrise1 and so the natives who collect it have to be early risers4 ,they make little cuts in the bark of the tree1 stick on with a bit of clay a tiny cup underneath each cut1 and move on through the forest to the next tree4 ,sometimes they make narrow ,v-shaped cuts in the bark1 one above another1 but all coming into a perpendicular channel leading to the foot of the tree4 ,later in the day the collectors empty the cups into great jugs and carry them to the camp4 ,when the rubber juice reaches the camp1 it is poured into a great bowl4 ,the men build a fire of sticks1 and always add a great many palm nuts1 which are oily and make a good deal of smoke4 ,over the fire they place an earthen jar shaped like a cone1 but without top or bottom4 ,now work begins4 ,it is fortunate that it can be done in the open air1 and that the man can sit on the windward side1 for the smoke rises through the smaller hole thick and black and suffocating4 ,the man takes a stick shaped like a paddle1 dips it into the bowl1 and holds it in the smoke and heat1 turning it rapidly over and over till the water is nearly dried out of the rubber and it is no longer milky1 but dark-colored4 ,then he dips this paddle in again and again4 ,it grows heavier at each dipping1 but he keeps on till he has five or six pounds of rubber4 ,with a wet knife he cuts this off1 making what are called biscuits4 ,after many years of this sort of work1 some one found that by resting one end of a pole in a crotched stick and holding the other in his hand1 a man could make a much larger biscuit4 ,for a long time people thought that rubber trees could not be cultivated4 ,one difficulty in taking them away from their original home to plant is that the seeds are so rich in oil as to become rancid unusually soon4 ,at length1 however1 a consignment of them was packed in openwork baskets between layers of dried wild banana leaves and slung up on deck in openwork crates so as to have plenty of air4 ,by this means seven thousand healthy little plants were soon growing in ,england1 and from there were carried to ,ceylon and the ,east4 ,on the rubber plantations collecting juice from trees standing near together and in open ground is an altogether different matter from cutting a narrow path and forcing one's way through a ,south ,american or ,african jungle4 ,the bark of the trees is cut in herringbone fashion4 ,the collector simply slices a thin piece off the bark and at once milk begins to ooze out4 ,on the great plantations of the ,east the rubber is collected chiefly by ,chinese and ,indians4 ,they are carefully taught just how to tap the trees4 ,they begin four or five feet from the ground1 and work down1 cutting the thinnest possible slice at each visit4 ,when they have almost reached the ground1 they begin on the opposite side of the trunk2 and by the time they have reached the ground on that side the bark on the first side has renewed itself4 ,the latex is strained and mixed with some acid1 usually acetic1 in order to coagulate or thicken it4 ,it is then run between rollers1 hung in a drying house1 and generally in a smokehouse4 ,the rubber arrives at the factory in bales or cases4 ,first of all it must be thoroughly washed in order to get rid of sand or bits of leaves and wood4 ,a machine called a washer does this work4 ,it forces the rubber between grooved rolls which break it up2 and as this is done under a spray of water1 the rubber is much cleaner when it comes out4 ,another machine makes it still cleaner and forms it into long sheets about two feet wide4 ,having thoroughly wet the rubber1 the next step is to dry it thoroughly4 ,the old way was to hang it up for several weeks4 ,the new way is to cut it into strips1 lay it upon steel trays1 and place it in a vacuum dryer4 ,this is kept hot1 and whatever moisture is in the rubber is either evaporated or sucked out by a vacuum pump4 ,it now passes through another machine much like the washer1 and is formed into sheets4 ,the square threads from which elastic webbing is made may be cut from these sheets1 though sometimes the sheet is wound on an iron drum1 vulcanized by being put into hot water1 lightly varnished with shellac to stiffen it1 then wound on a wooden cylinder1 and cut into square threads4 ,boiling these in caustic soda removes the shellac4 ,to make round threads1 softened rubber is forced through a die4 ,rubber bands are made by cementing a sheet of rubber into a tube and then cutting them off at whatever width may be desired4 ,toy balloons are made of such rubber4 ,two pieces are stamped out and joined by a particularly noisy machine1 and then the balloon is blown out by compressed air4 ,early in the nineteenth century it was known that rubber would keep out water1 but it was sticky and unmanageable4 ,after a while a ,scotch chemist named ,mc,intosh succeeded in dissolving rubber in naphtha and spreading it between two thicknesses of cloth4 ,that is why his name is given to raincoats made in this way4 ,overshoes1 too1 were made of pure rubber poured over clay lasts which were broken after the rubber had dried4 ,these overshoes were waterproof1--there was no denying that2 but they were heavy and clumsy and shapeless4 ,when they were taken off1 they did not stand up1 but promptly fell over4 ,in hot weather they became so sticky that they had to be kept in the cellar2 and in winter they became stiff and inelastic1 but they never wore out4 ,how to get rid of the undesirable qualities and not lose the desirable ones was the question4 ,it was found out that if sulphur was mixed with rubber1 the disagreeable stickiness would vanish2 but the rubbers continued to melt and to freeze by turns until an ,american named ,charles ,goodyear discovered that if rubber mixed with sulphur was exposed to about #cjj ,f4 of heat for a number of hours1 the rubber would remain elastic1 but would not be sticky and would no longer be affected by heat or cold4 ,this is why you often see the name ,goodyear on the bottom of rubbers4 ,rubber overshoes were improved at once4 ,as they now are made1 the rubber is mixed with sulphur1 whiting1 litharge1 and several other substances4 ,an honest firm will add only those materials that will be of service in making the rubber more easy to mould or will improve it in some way4 ,unfortunately1 substances are often added1 not for this purpose1 but to increase the weight and apparent value of the articles4 ,that is why some rubber overshoes1 for instance1 wear out so much faster than others4 ,to make an overshoe1 the rubber is run through rollers and formed into thick sheets for soles and thinner sheets for uppers4 ,another machine coats with gum the cloth used for lining and stays4 ,rubber and rubber-lined cloth go to the cutting-room1 where all the different parts of the shoes are cut out4 ,they are then put together and varnished4 ,while still on the last1 they are dipped into a tank of varnish and vulcanized--a very simple matter now that ,goodyear has shown us how1 for they are merely left in large1 thoroughly heated ovens for eight or ten hours4 ,the rubber shoe or boot is now elastic1 strong1 waterproof1 ready for any temperature1 and so firmly cemented together with rubber cement that it is practically all in one piece4 ,during the last few years there have been frequent calls from various charities for old rubber overshoes1 pieces of rubber hose1 etc4 ,these are of considerable value in rubber manufacturing4 ,they are run through a machine which tears them to shreds1 then through a sort of fanning-mill which blows away the bits of lining4 ,tiny pieces of iron may be present from nails or rivets2 but these are easily removed by magnets4 ,this reclaimed rubber is powdered and mixed with the new1 and for some purposes the mixture answers very well4 ,imitation rubber has been made by heating oil of linseed1 hemp1 maize1 etc41 with sulphur2 but no substitute for rubber is a success for all uses4 ,illustration3 ,courtesy ,u4 ,s4 ,tire ,co4 ,,how ,,rubber ,,goes ,,through ,,the ,,factory ,splitting ,para biscuits1 mixing the rubber1 rolling the rubber fabric on cylinders1 and building tires on the tire machines4 ,there are many little conveniences made of rubber which we should greatly miss1 such as the little tips put into pencil ends for erasing pencil marks4 ,these are made by filling a mould with rubber4 ,rubber corks are made in much the same manner4 ,tips for the legs of chairs are made in a two-piece mould larger at the bottom than at the top1 and with a plunger that nearly fits the small end4 ,often on chair tips and in the cup-shaped eraser that goes over the ends of some pencils you can see the fin1 as the glassworkers call it1 where the two pieces of the mould did not exactly fit4 ,rubber cannot be melted and cast in moulds like iron1 but it can be gently heated and softened1 and then pressed into a mould4 ,rubber stamps are made in this way4 ,the making of rubber heels and soles is now a large industry2 hose for watering and for vacuum and ,westinghouse brakes is made in increasing quantities4 ,the making of rubber tires for automobiles and carriages is an important industry4 ,the enormous and increasing use of electricity requires much use of rubber as an insulator4 ,rubber gloves will protect an electrical workman from shock and a surgeon from infection4 ,rubber beds and cushions filled with air are a great comfort in illness4 ,rubber has great and important uses2 but we should perhaps miss quite as much the little comforts and conveniences which it has made possible4 ,rubber and gutta-percha are not the same substance by any means4 ,both of them are made of the milky juice of trees1 but of entirely different trees4 ,the gutta-percha milk is collected in an absurdly wasteful manner1 namely1 by cutting down the trees and scraping up the juice4 ,when this juice reaches the market1 it is in large reddish lumps which look like cork and smell like cheese4 ,it has to be cleaned1 passed through a machine that tears it into bits1 then between rollers before it is ready to be manufactured4 ,it is not elastic like rubber2 it may be stretched2 but it will not snap back again as rubber does4 ,it is a remarkably good nonconductor of electricity1 and therefore it has been generally used to protect ocean cables1 though recently rubber has been taking its place4 ,it makes particularly excellent casts1 for when it is warm it is not sticky1 but softens so perfectly that it will show the tiniest indentation of a mould4 ,it is the best kind of splint for a broken bone4 ,if a boy breaks his arm1 a surgeon can put a piece of gutta-percha into hot water1 set the bone1 bind on the softened gutta-percha for a splint1 and in a few minutes it will be moulded to the exact shape of the arm1 but so stiff as to keep the bone in place4 ,another good service which gutta-percha renders to the physician results from its willingness to dissolve in chloroform4 ,if the skin is torn off1 leaving a raw surface1 this dissolved gutta-percha can be poured over it1 and soon it is protected by an artificial skin which keeps the air from the raw flesh and gives the real skin an opportunity to grow again4 ,,iii ,,kid ,,gloves ,there is an old proverb which says1 ,for a good glove1 ,spain must dress the leather1 ,france must cut it1 and ,england must sew it4 ,many pairs of most excellent gloves have never seen any one of these countries1 but the moral of the proverb remains1 namely1 that it takes considerable work and care to make a really good glove4 ,the first gloves made in the ,united ,states were of thick buckskin1 for there was much heavy work to be done in the forest and on the land4 ,the skin was tanned in ,indian fashion1 by rubbing into the flesh side the brains of the deer--though how the ,indians ever thought of using them is a mystery4 ,later1 the white folk tried to tan with pigs' brains2 but however valuable the brains of a pig may be to himself1 they do not contain the properties of soda ash which made those of the deer useful for this purpose4 ,illustration3 ,,cutting ,,hides ,,into ,,gloves ,the hides are kept in racks1 and before cutting are stretched by hand4 ,then the steel die cuts out the shape of the glove4 ,notice the curiously shaped cut for the thumb4 ,years ago1 when a man set out to manufacture gloves1 usually only a few dozen pairs1 he cut out a pattern from a shingle or a piece of pasteboard1 laid it upon a skin1 marked around it1 and cut it out with shears4 ,pencils were not common1 but the glovemaker was fully equal to making his own4 ,he melted some lead1 ran it into a crack in the kitchen floor--and cracks were plentiful--and then used this plummet1 as it was called1 for a marker4 ,after cutting the large piece for the front and back of the glove1 he cut out from the scraps remaining the fourchettes1 or forks2 that is1 the narrow strips that make the sides of the fingers4 ,smaller scraps were put in to welt the seams2 and all this went off in great bundles to farmhouses to be sewed by the farmers' wives and daughters for the earning of pin-money4 ,if the gloves were to be the most genteel members of the buckskin race1 there was added to the bundle a skein of silk1 with which a slender vine was to be worked on the back of the hand4 ,the sewing was done with a needle three-sided at the point1 and a stout waxed thread was used4 ,a needle of this sort went in more easily than a round one1 but even then it was rather wearisome to push it through three thicknesses of stout buckskin4 ,moreover1 if the sewer happened to take hold of the needle too near the point1 the sharp edges were likely to make little cuts in her fingers4 ,after a while sewing machines were invented1 and factories were built1 and now in a single county of the ,state of ,new ,york many thousand people are at work making various kinds of leather coverings for their own hands and those of other folk4 ,better methods of tanning have been discovered1 and many sorts of leather are now used1 especially for the heavier gloves4 ,deer are not so common as they used to be1 and a buckskin glove is quite likely to have been made of the hide of a cow or a horse4 ,kid generally comes from the body of a sheep instead of that of a young goat4 ,our best real kidskin comes from a certain part of ,france1 where the climate seems to be just suited to the young kids1 there is plenty of the food that they like1 and1 what is fully as important1 they receive the best of care4 ,it is said that to produce the very finest kidskin1 the kids are fed on nothing but milk1 are treated with the utmost gentleness1 and are kept in coops or pens carefully made so that there shall be nothing to scratch their tender skins4 ,glovemakers are always on the lookout for new kinds of material1 and when1 not many years ago1 there came from ,arabia with a shipment of ,mocha coffee two bales of an unknown sort of skin1 they were eager to try it4 ,it tanned well and made a glove that has been a favorite from the first4 ,the skin was found to come from a sheep living in ,arabia1 ,abyssinia1 and near the headwaters of the river ,nile4 ,it was named ,mocha from the coffee with which it came1 and ,mocha it has been ever since4 ,the ,sude glove has a surface much like that of the ,mocha4 ,its name came from ,swede1 because the ,swedes were the first to use the skin with the outside in4 ,most of our thinner kid gloves are made of lambskin2 but dressing the skins is now done so skillfully in this country that homemade gloves are in many respects fully as good as the imported2 indeed1 some judges declare that in shape and stitching certain grades are better4 ,when sheepskins and lambskins come to market from a distance1 they are salted4 ,they have to be soaked in water1 all bits of flesh scraped off1 and the hair removed1 generally by the use of lime4 ,after another washing1 they are put into alum and salt for a few minutes2 and after washing this off1 they are dried1 stretched1 and then are ready for the softening4 ,nothing has been found that will soften the skins so perfectly as a mixture of flour1 salt1 and the yolk of eggs--custard1 as the workmen call it4 ,the custard and the skins are tumbled together into a great iron drum which revolves till the custard has been absorbed and the skins are soft and yielding4 ,now they are stretched one way and another1 and wet so thoroughly that they lose all the alum and salt that may be left and also much of the custard4 ,now comes dyeing4 ,the skin is laid upon a table1 smooth side up1 and brushed over several times with the coloring matter2 very lightly1 however1 for if the coloring goes through the leather1 the hands of the customers may be stained and they will buy no more gloves of that make4 ,the skins are now moistened and rolled and left for several weeks to season4 ,when they are unrolled1 the whole skin is soft and pliable4 ,it is thick1 however1 and no one who is not an expert can thin it properly4 ,the process is called mooning because the knife used is shaped like a crescent moon4 ,it is flat1 its center is cut out1 and the outer edge is sharpened4 ,over the inner curve is a handle4 ,the skin is hung on a pole1 and the expert workman draws the mooning knife down it until any bit of dried flesh remaining has been removed1 and the skin is of the same thickness1 or1 rather1 thinness throughout4 ,all this slow1 careful work is needed to prepare the skin for cutting out the glove2 and now it goes to the cutter4 ,there is no longer any cutting out of gloves with shears and pasteboard patterns1 but there is a quick way and a slow way nevertheless4 ,the man who cuts in the quick way1 the block-cutter1 as he is called1 spreads out the skin on a big block made by bolting together planks of wood with the grain running up and down4 ,he places a die in the shape of the glove upon the leather1 gives one blow with a heavy maul1 and the glove is cut out4 ,this answers very well for the cheaper and coarser gloves1 but to cut fine gloves is quite a different matter4 ,this needs skill1 and it is said that no man can do good table-cutting who has not had at least three years' experience2 and even then he may not be able to do really first-class work4 ,he dampens the skin1 stretches it first one way and then the other1 and examines it closely for flaws or scratches or weak places4 ,he must put on his die in such a way as to get two pairs of ordinary gloves or one pair of elbow gloves out of the skin if possible1 and yet he must avoid the poor places if there are any4 ,no glove manufacturer can afford to employ an unskilled or careless cutter1 for he will waste much more than his wages amount to4 ,there used to be one die for the right hand and another for the left1 and it was some time before it occurred to any one that the same die would cut both gloves if only the skin was turned over4 ,illustration3 ,,closing ,,the ,,glove ,when sewing time comes1 the glove goes from hand to hand down the workroom1 each stitcher doing a certain seam or seams4 ,illustration3 ,,where ,,the ,,glove ,,gets ,,its ,,shape ,after inspection the glove goes to a row of men who fit it on a steam-heated brass hand1 giving it its final shape and finish4 ,now comes the sewing4 ,count the pieces in a glove1 and this will give some idea of the work needed to sew them together4 ,notice that the fourchettes are sewed together on the wrong side1 the other seams on the right side1 and that the tiny bits of facing and lining are hemmed down by hand4 ,notice that two of the fingers have only one fourchette1 while the others have two fourchettes each4 ,notice how neatly the ends of the fingers are finished1 with never an end of thread left on the right side4 ,the embroidery must be in exactly the right place1 and it must be fastened firmly at both ends4 ,this embroidery is not a meaningless fashion1 for the lines make the hand look much more slender and of a better shape4 ,sewing in the thumbs needs special care and skill4 ,there must be no puckering1 and the seam must not be so tightly drawn as to leave a red line on the hand when the glove is taken off4 ,no one person does all the sewing on a glove2 it must pass through a number of hands1 each doing a little4 ,even after all the care that is given it1 a glove is a shapeless thing when it comes from the sewing machines4 ,it is now carried to a room where stands a long table with a rather startling row of brass hands of different sizes stretching up from it4 ,these are heated1 the gloves are drawn upon them1 and in a moment they have shape and finish1 and are ready to be inspected and sold4 ,the glove is so closely associated with the hand and with the person to whom the hand belongs that in olden times it was looked upon as representing him4 ,when1 for instance1 a fair could not be opened without the presence of some noble1 it was enough if he sent his glove to represent him4 ,to throw down one's glove before a man was to challenge him to a combat4 ,at the coronation of ,queen ,elizabeth1 as of many other sovereigns of ,england1 the ,queen's champion1 a knight in full armor1 rode into the great hall and threw down his glove1 crying1 ,if there be any manner of man that will say and maintain that our sovereign ,lady1 ,queen ,elizabeth1 is not the rightful and undoubted inheritrix to the imperial crown of this realm of ,england1 ,i say he lieth like a false traitor1 and therefore ,i cast him my gage4 ,,iv ,,how ,,rags ,,and ,,trees ,,become ,,paper ,it was a great day for the children on the farm when the tin peddler came around4 ,he had a high red wagon1 fairly bristling with brooms1 mop-handles1 washtubs1 water-pails1 and brushes4 ,when he opened his mysterious drawers and caverns1 the sunshine flashed upon tin pans1 dippers1 dustpans1 and basins4 ,put away rather more choicely were wooden-handled knives1 two-tined forks1 and dishes of glass and china2 and sometimes little tin cups painted red or blue and charmingly gilded1 or cooky-cutters in the shape of dogs and horses4 ,all these rare and delightful articles he was willing to exchange for rags4 ,is it any wonder that the thrifty housewife saved her rags with the utmost care1 keeping one bag for white clippings and one for colored8 ,these peddlers were the great dependence of the paper mills1 for the finest paper is made from linen and cotton rags4 ,when the rags reach the factory1 they are carefully sorted4 ,all day long the sorters sit before tables whose tops are covered with coarse wire screens1 and from masses of rags they pick out buttons1 hooks and eyes1 pins1 bits of rubber1 and anything else that cannot possibly be made into paper4 ,at the same time they sort the rags carefully into different grades1 and with a knife shaped like a small sickle fastened upright to the table they cut them into small pieces4 ,some of the dust falls through the screen2 but to remove the rest of it1 the cut-up rags are tossed about in a wire drum4 ,sometimes they are so dusty that when they come out of the drum they weigh only nine tenths as much as when they go in4 ,the dust is out of them1 but not the dirt4 ,to remove that1 they are now put into great boilers full of steam2 and here they cook and turn over1 and turn over and cook for hours4 ,lime and sometimes soda are put with them to cleanse them and remove the coloring material2 but when they are poured out1 they look anything but clean1 for they are of a particularly dirty brown2 and the water that is drained away from them looks even more uninteresting4 ,of course the next step is to wash this dirty brown mass2 and for at least four hours it is scrubbed in a machine which beats it and rolls it and chops it and tumbles it about until the wonder is that anything is left of it4 ,all this while1 the water has been flowing through it1 coming in clean and going out dirty2 and at length the mass becomes so light a gray that making white paper of it does not seem quite hopeless4 ,it is now bleached with chloride of lime1 and washed till it is of a creamy white color and free from the lime1 and then beaten again4 ,if you fold a piece of cheap paper and tear it at the fold1 it will tear easily2 but if you do the same thing with paper made of linen and cotton1 you will find it decidedly tough4 ,moreover1 if you look closely at the torn edge of the latter1 you will see the fibers clearly4 ,it is because of the beating that the fibers are so matted together and thus make the paper tough4 ,while the pulp is in the beater1 the manufacturer puts in the coloring matter1 if he wishes it to be tinted blue or rose or lavender or any other color4 ,no one would guess that this white or creamy or azure liquid had ever been the dirty rags that came into the mill and were sorted on the wire tables4 ,besides the coloring1 a filler is usually added at this time1 such as kaolin1 the fine clay of which china is made4 ,this fills the pores and gives a smoother surface to the finished paper--a good thing if too much is not put in4 ,a little sizing is also added1 made of rosin4 ,save for this sizing1 ink would sink into even the finished paper as it does into blotting paper4 ,after this1 more water is added to the pulp and it is run into tanks4 ,now the preparation is completed1 and the pulp is pumped to large and complicated machines which undertake to make it into paper4 ,it first flows through screens which are shaken all the while as if they were trembling4 ,this shaking lets the liquid and the finer fibers through1 but holds back the little lumps1 if any remain after all the beating and straining and cutting that it has had4 ,the pulp flows upon an endless wire screen4 ,rubber straps at the sides keep it in1 but the extra water drops through the meshes4 ,the pulp is flowing onward1 and so the tiny fibers would naturally straighten out and flow with it1 like sticks in a river2 but the wire screen is kept shaking sideways1 and this helps the fibers to interlace1 and the paper becomes nearly as strong one way as the other4 ,if you hold a sheet of paper up to the light1 it will show plainly what is next done to it4 ,sometimes you can see that it is marked by light parallel lines running across it close together1 and crossed by other and stouter lines an inch or two apart4 ,sometimes the name of the paper or that of the manufacturer is marked in the same way by letters lighter than the rest of the sheet4 ,sometimes the paper is plain with no markings whatever4 ,this difference is made by what is called the dandy1 a cylinder covered with wire4 ,for the first1 or laid paper1 the small wires run the length of the cylinder and the stouter ones around it4 ,wherever the wires are1 the paper is a little thinner4 ,in some papers this thinness can be seen and felt4 ,for the second kind of paper the design1 or watermark1 is formed by wires a little thicker than the rest of the covering4 ,for the third1 or wove paper1 the dandy is covered with plain woven wire like that of the wire cloth2 so there are no markings at all4 ,this work can be easily done because at this point the paper is so moist4 ,the paper is now not in sheets1 but in a long web like a web of cloth4 ,it passes between felt-covered rollers to press out all the water possible1 then over steam-heated cylinders to be dried1 finally going between cold iron rollers to be made smooth1 and is wound on a reel1 trimmed and cut into sheets of whatever size is desired4 ,the finest note papers are not finished in this way1 but are partly dried1 passed through a vat of thin glue1 any excess being squeezed off by rollers1 then cut into sheets1 and hung up to dry thoroughly at their leisure4 ,paper made of properly prepared linen and cotton is by far the best1 but there are so many new uses for paper that there are not rags enough in the world to make nearly what is needed4 ,there are scores of newspapers and magazines where there used to be one2 and as for paper bags and cartons and boxes1 there is no limit to their number and variety4 ,a single manufacturer of pens and pencils calls for four thousand different sorts and sizes of boxes4 ,school-children's use of paper instead of slates1 the fashion of wrapping ,christmas gifts in white tissue1 and the invention of the low-priced cameras have increased enormously the amount of paper called for4 ,in the attempt to supply the demand all sorts of materials have been used1 such as hemp1 old rope1 peat1 the stems of flax1 straw1 the ,spanish and ,african esparto grass1 and especially wood2 but much more paper is made of wood than of all the rest together4 ,poplar1 gum1 and chestnut trees1 and especially those trees which bear cones1 such as the spruce1 fir1 balsam1 and pine are used4 ,there are two methods of manufacturing wood pulp2 the mechanical1 by grinding up the wood1 and the chemical1 by treating it chemically4 ,by the mechanical method the wood is pressed against a large grindstone which revolves at a high speed4 ,as fast as the wood is ground off1 it is washed away by a current of water1 and strained through a shaking sieve and a revolving screen which drives out part of the water by centrifugal force4 ,in a great vat of pulp a drum covered with wire cloth revolves1 and on it a thin sheet of pulp settles4 ,felting1 pressed against this sheet1 carries it onward through rolls4 ,the sheets are pressed between coarse sacking4 ,such paper is very poor stuff4 ,in its manufacture the fiber of the wood is so ground up that it has little strength4 ,it is used for cardboard1 cartons1 and packing-papers4 ,unfortunately1 it is also used for newspapers2 and while it is a good thing for some of them to drop to pieces1 it is a great loss not to have the others permanent4 ,when we wish to know what people thought about any event fifty years ago1 we can look back to the papers of that time2 but when people fifty years from now wish to learn what we thought1 many of the newspapers will have fallen to pieces long before that time4 ,illustration3 ,courtesy ,s4 ,d4 ,warren ,co4 ,,where ,,rags ,,become ,,paper ,the vat where the rags cook and turn over1 and the big room where the web of finished paper is passed through rollers and cut into a neat pile of trimmed sheets4 ,there is1 however1 a method called the sulphite process1 used principally in treating the coniferous woods1 by which a much better paper can be made4 ,in all plants there is a substance called cellulose4 ,this is what gives strength to their stems4 ,the wood is chipped and put into digesters large enough to hold twenty tons1 and is steam-cooked together with bisulphite of magnesium or calcium for seven or eight hours4 ,another method used for cooking such woods as poplar and gum1 is to boil the wood in caustic soda1 which destroys everything except the cellulose4 ,wood paper of one kind or another is used for all daily papers and for most books4 ,whether the best wood paper will last as long as the best rag paper1 time only can tell4 ,the ,government of the ,united ,states tests paper in several ways before buying it4 ,first1 a single sheet is weighed2 then a ream is put on the scales to see if it weighs four hundred and eighty times as much4 ,this shows whether the paper runs evenly in weight4 ,many sheets are folded together and measured to see if the thickness is regular4 ,to test its strength1 a sheet is clamped over a hole one square inch in area1 and liquid is pressed against it from below to see how much it will stand before bursting4 ,strips of the paper are pulled in a machine to test its breaking strength4 ,a sheet is folded over and over again to see whether holes will appear at the corners of the folds4 ,it is examined under the microscope to see of what kind of fibers it is made and how much loading has been used in its manufacture4 ,to test blotting paper1 strips are also put into water to see how high the water will rise on them4 ,besides writing and wrapping papers and the various kinds of board1 there are many sorts which are used for special purposes4 ,india paper1 for instance1 is light1 smooth1 and strong1 so opaque that printing will not show through it1 and so lasting that if it is crumpled1 it can be ironed out and be as good as new4 ,this is used for books that are expected to have hard wear but must be of light weight4 ,there are tissue papers1 crpe papers for napkins1 and tarred paper to make roofs and even boats water-tight4 ,if tar is brushed on1 it may make bubbles which will break afterwards and let water in2 but if tar is made a part of the paper itself1 it lasts4 ,paper can easily be waxed or paraffined1 and will then keep out air and moisture for some time4 ,better still1 it can be treated with oil and will then make a raincoat that will stand a year's wear1 or even1 if put on a bamboo frame1 make a very good house1 as the ,japanese found out long ago4 ,paper coated with powdered gum and tin is used for packing tea and coffee4 ,transfer or carbon papers so much used in making several copies of an article on the typewriter are made by coating paper with starch1 flour1 gum1 and coloring matter4 ,paper can be used for shoes and hats1 ties1 collars1 and even for rubbers4 ,it has been successfully used for sails for light vessels1 and is excellent made into light garments for hospital use because it is so cheap that it can be burned after wearing4 ,wood pulp can be run through fine tubes into water and made so pliable that it can be twisted into cord or spun and woven into silk4 ,not only water but also fire can be kept out by paper if it is treated with the proper substances4 ,an object can be covered with a paste of wood pulp1 silica1 and hemp2 and when this is dry1 a coat of water-glass will afford considerable protection4 ,there has been some degree of success in making transparent paper films for moving pictures2 and if these are coated with water-glass1 they will not burn4 ,paper can be so treated that it will either conduct electricity or become a nonconductor1 as may be desired4 ,in ,germany1 a sandwich paper has been made by pressing together four layers--felt1 pulp1 cotton1 pulp--which is cheap and strong and useful for many purposes4 ,when we come to papier mach1 there is no end to the kinds of articles that are made of it4 ,the papier mach1 or paper pulped1 is made by kneading old newspapers or wrapping papers with warm water into a pulp4 ,clay and coloring are added and something of the nature of glue2 and it is then put into a mould4 ,sometimes to make it stronger for large mouldings1 bits of canvas or even wire are also used4 ,the best papier mach is made of pure wood cellulose4 ,the beautiful boxes and trays covered with lacquer which the ,japanese and ,chinese make are formed of this2 but it has many much humbler uses than these4 ,paper screws are employed in ornamental wood work1 and if a hole is begun for such a screw1 it will twist its way into soft wood as well as steel would do4 ,barrels of paper reinforced with wire are common4 ,gear wheels and belt pulleys are made of papier mach1 and even the wheels of railroad coaches2 at least the body of the wheels is made of it1 although the tire1 hub1 and axle are of cast-steel4 ,circular saws of pulp are in use which cut thin slices of veneer so smoothly that they can be used without planing4 ,papier mach is used for water pipes1 the bodies of carriages1 hencoops1 and garages4 ,indeed1 it is quite possible to build a house1 shingle it1 decorate it with elaborate mouldings and cornices1 finish it with panels1 wainscoting1 imitation tiling1 and furnish it with light1 comfortable furniture covered with imitation leather1 silk1 or cloth1 and spread on its floors soft1 thick carpets or rugs woven in beautiful designs--and all made of wood pulp4 ,even the window panes could be made of pulp2 and if they were not perfectly transparent1 they would at least let in a soft1 agreeable light1 and they would not break4 ,pails1 washtubs1 bathtubs1 and even dishes of paper can be easily found4 ,there are not only the paper cups provided on railroad trains and the cheap picnic plates and saucers1 but some that are really pretty4 ,ice cream is sometimes served in paper dishes and eaten with paper spoons4 ,milk bottles are successfully made of paper1 with a long strip of some transparent material running up and down the side to show how much--or how little--cream is within4 ,napkins and tablecloths made of paper thread woven into cloth are cheaper than linen and can be washed as easily4 ,paper towels and dishcloths are already common2 but when paper shall fully come to its own1 it is quite possible that there will be little washing of dishes4 ,they can be as pretty as any one could wish1 but so cheap that after each meal they can be dropped into the fire4 ,indeed1 there are few things in a house1 except a stove1 that cannot be made of some form of paper1--and perhaps that too will be some day4 ,v ,,how ,,books ,,are ,,made ,the first step in making ready to print a manuscript is to find out how many words there are in it1 what kind of type to use1 how much leading or space between the lines there shall be1 and what shall be the size of the page4 ,in deciding these questions1 considerable thinking has to be done4 ,if the manuscript is a short story by a popular author1 it may be printed with wide margins and wide leading in order to make a book of fair size4 ,if it is a lengthy manuscript which will be likely to sell at a moderate but not a high price1 it is best to use only as much leading as is necessary to make the line stand out clearly1 and to print with a margin not so wide as to increase the expense of the book4 ,the printer prints a sample of the page decided upon1 any desired changes are made1 and then the making of the book begins4 ,illustration3 ,courtesy ,the ,riverside ,press4 ,,where ,,this ,,book ,,was ,,set ,,up ,the monotype girl wrote these words on her keyboard1 where they made tiny holes in a roll of paper4 ,the roll went to the casting-room where it guided a machine to make the type much as a perforated music-roll guides a piano to play a tune4 ,the type is kept in a case at which the compositor stands4 ,this case is divided into shallow compartments1 each compartment containing a great many e's or m's as the case may be4 ,the upper case contains capitals2 the lower case1 small letters4 ,those letters which are used most often are put where the compositor can reach them most readily4 ,he stands before his case with a composing stick in his hand4 ,this stick is a little iron frame with a slide at the side1 so that the line can be made of any length desired4 ,the workman soon learns where each letter is1 and even an apprentice can set the type in his stick reasonably rapidly4 ,on one side of every piece of type there is a groove1 so that he can tell by touch whether it is right side up or not4 ,he must look out especially to make his right-hand margins regular4 ,you will notice in books that the lines are all of the same length1 although they do not contain the same number of letters4 ,the compositor brings this about by arranging his words and spaces skillfully4 ,the spaces must be as nearly as possible of the same length1 and yet the line must be properly filled4 ,if a line is too full1 he can sometimes place the last syllable on the following line2 if it is not full enough1 he can borrow a syllable1 and he can at least divide his space so evenly that the line will not look as if it were broken in two4 ,not many years ago all type was set in this manner2 but several machines have now been invented which will do this work4 ,in one of the best of them the operator sits before a keyboard much like that of a typewriter4 ,when he presses key a1 for instance1 a mould or matrix of the letter a is set free from a tube of a's1 and slides down to its place in the stick4 ,at the end of the line1 the matrices forming it are carried in front of a slot where melted type metal from a reservoir meets them4 ,thus a cast is made of the matrices1 and from this cast the printing is done4 ,this machine is called a linotype because it casts a whole line of type at a time4 ,most book work is done on the monotype machine4 ,when a manuscript goes to the press to be set up in this way1 the copy is given to the keyboard operator who sets it up on a machine which looks much like a typewriter4 ,instead of writing letters1 however1 the machine punches tiny holes in a strip of paper which is wound on a roll4 ,when the roll is full it goes to the casting room where it is put on another machine containing hot type metal and bronze matrices from which the letters of the words are to be cast4 ,the holes in the paper guide the machine to make the type much as a perforated music roll guides a piano to play a tune4 ,the reason why the machine is called a monotype is that the letters are made one at a time1 and monos is the ,greek word for one4 ,by the linotype and monotype machines type can be set in a galley1 a narrow tray about two feet long1 with ledges on three sides4 ,when a convenient number of these galleys have been filled1 long slips are printed from them called galley proofs4 ,these have wide margins1 but the print is of the width that the page of the book will be4 ,they are read by the proof-readers1 and all such mistakes as the slipping in of a wrong letter1 or a broken type1 the repetition of a word1 or the omission of space between words are corrected4 ,then the proof goes to the author1 who makes any changes in his part of the work which seem to him desirable2 and it is also read by some member of the editorial department4 ,if there are many changes to be made1 another proof is usually taken and sent to the author4 ,the reason for this extreme carefulness is that it costs much less to make changes in the galley proof than in the page proof4 ,this latter is made by dividing the galley into pages1 leaving space for the beginnings of chapters and for pictures1 if any are to appear on the printed pages1 and setting up the numbers of the pages and their running titles4 ,page proof also goes to proof-readers and to the author4 ,corrections on page proof are more expensive than on galley proof because adding or striking out even a few words may make it necessary to change the arrangement on every page to the end of the chapter4 ,years ago all books were printed directly from the type2 and some are still printed so4 ,after printing1 the letters were returned to their compartments4 ,if a second edition was called for1 the type had to be set again4 ,now1 however1 books are generally printed not from type1 but from a copper model of the type4 ,to make this1 an impression of the page of type is made in wax and covered with graphite1 which will conduct electricity4 ,these moulds are hung in a bath of copper sulphate1 where there are also large plates of copper4 ,a current of electricity is passed through it1 and wherever the graphite is1 a shell of copper is deposited1 which is exactly like the face of the type4 ,this shell is very thin1 but it is made strong by adding a heavy back of melted metal4 ,from these plates the books are printed4 ,a correction made in the plate is more expensive than it would have been if made in the galley or in the page1 because sawing out a word or a line is slow1 delicate work2 and even if one of the same length is substituted1 the types spelling it have to be set up1 a small new plate cast1 and soldered in4 ,illustration3 ,courtesy ,the ,riverside ,press4 ,,where ,,this ,,book ,,was ,,printed ,the girls are feeding big sheets of paper into the presses1 thirty-two pages being printed at one time4 ,the paper is fed into many modern presses by means of a machine attached to the press4 ,the pressmen see that the printing is done properly4 ,printing one page at a time would be altogether too slow2 therefore the plates are arranged in such a way that sixteen1 thirty-two1 or sometimes sixty-four pages can be printed on one side of the paper1 and the same number on the other side4 ,every page must come in its proper place when the sheet is folded for binding4 ,try to arrange a sheet of even sixteen pages1 eight on each side1 so that when it is folded every page will be in the right place with its printing right side up1 and you will find that it is not very easy until you have had considerable experience4 ,if the sheet is folded into four leaves1 the book is called a quarto1 or #dto2 if into eight1 it is an octavo1 or #hvo2 if into twelve1 a duodecimo1 or #abmo4 ,books are sometimes advertised in these terms2 but they are not definite1 because the sheets of the different varieties of paper vary in size4 ,of late years1 publishers have often given the length and width of their books in inches4 ,after the sheets come from the press1 they are folded to page size4 ,sometimes this is done by hand1 but more often by a folding machine through which the sheet of paper travels1 meeting blunt knives which crease it and fold it4 ,if you look at the top of a book you will see that the leaves are put together in groups or signatures4 ,these signatures usually contain eight1 sixteen1 or thirty-two pages4 ,if the paper is very thick1 not more than eight leaves will be in a signature2 if of ordinary thickness1 sixteen are generally used4 ,the signatures are piled up in order1 and a gatherer collects one from each pile for every book4 ,the book is now gathered and smashed1 or pressed enough to make it solid and firm for binding4 ,next the signatures are sewed and the book is trimmed so the edges will be even4 ,if the edges are to be gilded1 the book is put in a gilding press and a skillful workman covers the edges with a sizing made of the white of eggs4 ,gold leaf is then laid upon them and they are burnished with tools headed with agate and bloodstone or instruments of various sorts until they are bright4 ,sometimes the edges are marbled1 and this is an interesting process to watch4 ,on the surface of a vat of thin sizing the marbler drops a little of many colors of paint4 ,then he draws a comb lightly across the surface1 making all sorts of odd figures1 no two alike4 ,the book is held tight and the edges are allowed to touch the sizing4 ,all these odd figures are now transferred to the edges of the leaves and will stand a vast amount of hard use before they will wear off4 ,thus far the book is flat at the edges of the leaves and at the back4 ,books are sometimes bound in this way1 but the backs are usually rounded into an outward curve1 and the fronts into an inward curve4 ,this is done by a machine4 ,at each end of the outward curve a deep groove is pressed to receive the cover4 ,to make the covers of a cloth-bound book1 two pieces of pasteboard of the right size are cut and laid upon a piece of cloth coated with glue4 ,the edges of the cloth are turned over and pressed down1 as you can often see if the paper lining of the cover is not too heavy4 ,the cover needs now only its decorations to be complete4 ,a die is made for these1 and the lettering and ornamentation are stamped on in colors4 ,if more than one color is used1 a separate die has to be made for each4 ,if this work is to be done in gold1 the design is stamped on lightly and sizing made of white of eggs is brushed on wherever the gold is to come4 ,gold leaf is laid upon this sizing1 and the cover is stamped again4 ,the same die is used1 but this time it is hot enough to make the gold and egg stick firmly to the cover4 ,to put the cover on1 a piece of muslin called a super is glued to the back of the book with its ends projecting over the sides1 and a strip of cartridge paper is glued over the super4 ,then the book is pasted into the cover4 ,it is now kept under heavy pressure for a number of hours until it is thoroughly dry and ready to be sent away for sale4 ,so it is that a well-made cloth-bound book is manufactured4 ,leather-bound books are more expensive1 not only because their materials cost more1 but also because the greater part of the work of binding and decorating has to be done by hand4 ,if a book is to be illustrated1 this must also be attended to1 the number and style of the pictures decided upon1 and the artist engaged before the book is put in press1 in order that there may be no delay in completing it4 ,many publishers do not print at all1 but have their work done at some printing establishment4 ,where all the making of a book1 however1 from manuscript to cover1 is in the hands of one firm1 there is a certain fellow-feeling among the different departments1 and a wholesome pride in making each one of our books as excellent as possible in every detail4 ,as one of the women workers in such an establishment said to me1 ,i often think that we become almost as interested in a book as the author is4 ,,vi ,,from ,,goose ,,quills ,,to ,,fountain ,,pens ,,and ,,lead ,,pencils ,whenever there was a convenient goosepond on the way to school1 the children of less than one hundred years ago used to stop there to hunt for goose quills4 ,they carried these to the teacher1 and with his penknife--which took its name from the work it did--he cut them into the shape of pens4 ,the points soon wore out1 and ,teacher1 will you please mend my pen8 was a frequent request4 ,when people began to make pens of steel1 they made them as nearly like quill pens as possible1 with pen and holder all in one4 ,these were called barrel pens4 ,they were stiff1 hard1 and expensive1 especially as the whole thing was useless as soon as the pen was worn out1 but they were highly esteemed because they lasted longer than quills and did not have to be mended4 ,after a while separate pens were manufactured that could be slipped into a holder2 and one improvement after another followed until little by little the cheap1 convenient writing tool that we have to-day was produced4 ,a pen is a small thing1 but each one is worked upon by twenty to twenty-four persons before it is allowed to be sold4 ,the material is the best steel4 ,it comes in sheets five feet long and nineteen inches wide1 and about one fortieth of an inch thick1 that is1 three times as thick as the finished pen4 ,the first machine cuts the sheet crosswise into strips from two to three inches wide1 varying according to the size of the pen to be made4 ,these strips are put into iron boxes and kept at a red heat for a number of hours to anneal or soften them4 ,then they pass between heavy rollers1 a process which not only helps to toughen them1 but also stretches the steel so that it is now fifty inches long instead of nineteen4 ,at least six or seven people have handled the material already1 and even now there is nothing that looks like pens2 but the next machine cuts them out1 by dies1 of course4 ,the points interlap2 and the cutting leaves odd-shaped openwork strips of steel for the scrap-heap4 ,this part of the work is very quick1 for the machine will cut thousands of pens in an hour4 ,now is when the little hole above the slit is punched and the side slits cut4 ,to make the steel soft and pliable1 it must be annealed again1 kept red hot for several hours1 and then cooled4 ,thus far it has looked like a tiny fence paling1 but at length it begins to resemble a pen1 for it is now stamped with whatever letters or designs may be desired1 usually the name of the maker and the name and number of the variety of pen1 and it is pressed between a pair of dies to form it into a curve4 ,the last annealing left the metal soft so that all this could be done1 but too soft to work well as a pen2 and it has to be heated red hot again1 and then dropped into cold oil to harden it4 ,centrifugal force1 which helps in so many manufactures1 drives the oil away1 and the pens are dried in sawdust4 ,they are now sufficiently hard1 but too brittle4 ,they must be tempered4 ,to do this1 they are placed in an iron cylinder over a fire1 and the cylinder revolved till the pen is as elastic as a spring4 ,the pen is of the correct shape1 is tough and elastic2 and now it is put into tumbling barrels which revolve till it is bright and ready for the finishing touches4 ,if you look closely at the outside of a steel pen just above the nib1 you will see that across it run tiny lines4 ,they have a use1 for they hold the ink back so that it will not roll down in drops1 and they help to make the point more springy and easier to write with4 ,the pen must be slit up from the point4 ,this is done by a machine1 and a most accurate one1 for the cut must go exactly through the center of the point and not reach beyond the little hole that was punched4 ,only one thing is lacking now to make the pen a useful member of society1 ready to do its work in the world2 and that is to grind off the points and round them in order to keep them from sticking into the paper4 ,after so much careful work1 it does seem as if not one pen out of a thousand could be faulty2 but every one has to be carefully examined to make sure that the cutting1 piercing1 marking1 forming1 tempering1 grinding1 and slitting1 are just what they should be4 ,these pens carry the maker's name1 and a few poor ones getting into the market might spoil the sale of thousands of boxes2 therefore the examiner sits before a desk covered with black glass and looks at every pen4 ,the faulty ones are heated so that they cannot be used1 and they go to the scrap-heap4 ,now the pens are ready so far as usefulness goes1 but people have preferences in color4 ,some prefer bronze1 some gray1 and some black2 so off the pens go to the tempering-room1 their last trip1 and there are heated in a revolving cylinder till the right color appears2 then they are chilled and lacquered1 put into boxes1 labeled1 packed1 and sold for such low prices that the good folk of a century ago1 who paid from twenty-five to fifty cents for a pen1 would have opened their eyes in amazement4 ,when the typewriter was invented1 some people said1 ,that will be the death of the steel pen2 but as a matter of fact1 it has greatly increased its sale4 ,the typewriter makes writing so easy and so quick that many more letters are written than formerly4 ,all these letters have to be answered1 and few people compared with the whole number own typewriters1 and therefore the pen still holds its place4 ,the lacquer on a steel pen protects it until it has been used for a while4 ,after that1 it will rust1 if it is not wiped1 and it will wear out whether it is wiped or not4 ,all that the gold pen asks is not to be bent or broken1 and it will last almost forever4 ,it has the flexibility of the quill1 but does not have to be mended4 ,gold pens are made in much the same way as are steel pens2 but just at the point a tiny shelf is squeezed4 ,upon this shelf a bit of the alloy of two exceedingly hard metals1 iridium and osmium1 is secured by melting the gold around it2 and it is this bit which stands all the wear of rubbing on the paper4 ,when gold pens were first made1 tiny bits of diamonds or rubies were soldered on for points2 but they were expensive1 and they had a disagreeable fashion of falling off4 ,a century ago1 writers would have thought it the height of luxury to have a gold pen2 but now they are not satisfied unless they can be saved the trouble of dipping it into an inkstand1 and they look upon the fountain pen as their special friend4 ,the fountain pen carries its supplies with it4 ,the pen itself is like any other gold pen1 but the barrel is full of ink4 ,a little tube carries the ink to the point1 and the slight bending back of the pen as one writes lets it run out upon the paper4 ,at the end of the slit1 at the back of the pen1 is a hole to let air into the barrel as the ink runs out4 ,a perfect fountain pen ought to be prepared to write--without shaking--whenever the cap is taken off1 and not to refuse to work so long as a drop of ink remains in the barrel4 ,it should never drop ink at the point and1 whether the point is up or down1 it should never leak there or anywhere else4 ,the stylographic pen is quite a different article4 ,there is no pen to it2 the writing is done with the end of a needle which projects through a hole at the point4 ,the barrel and point are full of ink2 but even if the pen is held point down1 it will not leak because the needle fills up the hole4 ,when you press the point on paper to write1 the needle falls back just enough to let out what ink is needed4 ,the flow stops the instant the pen ceases to touch the paper4 ,the special advantage of the stylographic is that the mere weight of the pen is sufficient pressure1 and therefore many hours of writing do not tire the muscles of the hand4 ,the advantage of the fountain pen is that it has the familiar action of the gold pen1 and that it will adapt itself to any style of handwriting4 ,a pen of almost any kind is a valuable article1 but for rough-and-ready use we should find it hard to get on without its humble friend1 the lead pencil4 ,a lead pencil1 by the way1 has not a particle of lead in it4 ,the lead is all graphite1 or plumbago4 ,years ago sticks of lead were used for marking1 and made a pale-gray line4 ,when graphite was introduced1 its mark was so black that people called it black lead1 and the name has stuck4 ,no one who has ever tried to use a pencil of real lead could fail to appreciate graphite1 and when a graphite mine was discovered in ,england1 it was guarded by armed men as watchfully as if it had been a mine of diamonds4 ,that mine was exhausted long ago1 but many others have been found4 ,the best graphite in the world comes from ,ceylon and ,mexico4 ,when graphite was first used for pencils1 it was cut into slabs and these slabs into small strips4 ,the broken and powdered graphite was not used until it was discovered that it could be mixed with clay and so made into sticks4 ,in a lead pencil there are only three substances1 graphite1 clay1 and wood1 but a really good one must be manufactured with as much care as if it were made up of twenty4 ,first of all1 the graphite is ground and ground and ground1 until1 if you take a pinch of it between your thumb and finger1 you can hardly feel that anything is there4 ,it is now sifted through fine silk and mixed with water and finely powdered clay1 and becomes a wet1 inky mass4 ,this clay comes from ,austria and ,bohemia and is particularly smooth and fine4 ,the amount put in is carefully weighed4 ,if you have a hard pencil1 it was made by using considerable clay2 if your pencil is soft1 by using very little2 and if it is very soft and black1 it is possible that a little lampblack was added4 ,this inky mass is ground together between millstones for several weeks4 ,then it goes between rollers1 and at length is squeezed through a die and comes out in soft1 doughy black strings4 ,these are the leads of the pencils4 ,they have been thoroughly wet1 and now they must be made thoroughly dry4 ,they are laid on boards1 then taken off1 cut into pieces the length of a pencil1 and put into ovens and baked for hours in a heat twenty times as great as that of a hot summer day4 ,they certainly ought to be well dried and ready for the wood4 ,the red cedar of ,florida1 ,tennessee1 ,georgia1 and ,alabama is the best wood for pencils because it is soft and has a fine1 straight grain4 ,it is cut into slabs about as long as one pencil1 as wide as six1 and a little thicker than half a pencil4 ,every piece must be examined to make sure that it is perfect1 and it must be thoroughly seasoned and kiln-dried to free it from oil4 ,then it goes through a grooving-machine which cuts out a groove half as deep as the lead4 ,the lead is laid into one piece1 another is glued on top of it2 and there is a pencil ready for work4 ,illustration3 ,courtesy ,joseph ,dixon ,crucible ,co4 ,,how ,,the ,,lead ,,gets ,,into ,a ,,pencil 7#a7 ,the cedar slab4 7#b7 ,planed and grooved4 7#c7 ,the leads in place4 7#d7 ,covered with the other half of the slab4 7#e7 ,the round pencils cut out4 7#f7 ,the pencil separated and smoothed4 7#g7 ,the pencil varnished and stamped4 ,such a pencil would be useful1 but to sell well it must also be pretty2 and therefore it goes through machinery which makes it round or oval or six-sided1 as the case may be1 rubs it smooth1 and varnishes it1 and then1 with gold leaf or silver leaf or aluminum or ink1 stamps upon it the name of the maker1 and also a number or letter to show how hard the lead is4 ,the pencil is now ready for sale1 but many people like to have an eraser in the end1 and this requires still more work4 ,these erasers are round or flat or six-sided or wedge-shaped4 ,they are let into the pencil itself1 or into a nickel tip1 or drawn over the end like a cap1 so that any one's special whim may be gratified4 ,indeed1 however hard to please any one may be1 he ought to be able to find a pencil to suit his taste1 for a single factory in the ,united ,states makes more than six hundred kinds of pencils1 and makes so many of them that if they were laid end to end they would reach three times across the continent4 ,there are many exceedingly cheap pencils1 but they are expensive in the end1 because they are poorly made4 ,the wood will often split in sharpening1 and the lead is of poor materials so badly mixed that it may write blacker in one place than another1 and is almost sure to break4 ,good pencils bearing the name of a reliable firm are cheapest4 ,,vii ,,the ,,dishes ,,on ,,our ,,tables ,if any one should give you a lump of clay and ask you to make a bowl1 how should you set about it8 ,the first thing would be1 of course1 to put it on a table so you could work on it with both hands4 ,you would make a depression at the top and push out the sides and smooth them as best you could4 ,it would result in a rough1 uneven sort of bowl1 and before it was done1 you would have made one discovery1 namely1 that if the table only turned around in front of you1 you could see all sides of the bowl from the same position1 and it would be easier to make it regular4 ,this is just what the potter's wheel does4 ,it is really two horizontal wheels4 ,the upper one is a disk a foot or two in diameter4 ,this is connected by a shaft with the lower one1 which is much larger4 ,when the potter was at work at a wheel of this sort1 he stood on one foot and turned the lower wheel with the other1 thus setting the upper wheel in motion4 ,this was called a kick-wheel4 ,as wheels are made now1 the potter sits at his work and turns the wheel by means of a treadle4 ,almost any kind of clay will make a dish1 but no one kind will make it so well that the addition of some other kind would not improve it4 ,whatever clays are chosen1 they must be prepared with great care to make sure that not one grain in them is coarser than any other4 ,sometimes one will slip through1 and you can see on the finished dish what a bad-looking place it makes4 ,even for the coarsest earthenware1 such as flower-pots1 the moist clay is forced down a cylinder and through a wire sieve2 and for stoneware and porcelain it has to go through several processes4 ,when flint and feldspar are used1 they are ground fine at the quarry4 ,on reaching the factory1 they are mixed with the proper quantities of other clays--but in just what proportions is one of the secrets of the trade4 ,then they go into plungers or blungers1 great round tanks with arms extending from a shaft in the center4 ,the shaft revolves and the arms beat the clay till all the sand and pebbles have settled on the bottom1 and the fine clay grains are floating in the water above them4 ,these pass into canvas bags4 ,the water is forced out through the canvas1 and on every bag there is left a thin sheet of moist clay4 ,if this is to be used for the finest work1 it is ground and pounded and washed still more1 until it is a wonder that any of it survives2 then it is sifted through a screen so fine that its meshes are only one one hundred and fiftieth of an inch across4 ,now it becomes slip1 and after a little more beating and tumbling about1 it is ready to go to the man at the wheel4 ,this man is called the thrower1 because he lifts the lump of clay above his head and throws it down heavily upon the center of the wheel4 ,the things that happen to that lump of clay when he touches it and the wheel revolves seem like the work of magic4 ,he presses his thumbs into it from above and draws the walls up between his thumbs and fingers4 ,he clasps his hands around it1 and it grows tall and slender4 ,he lays his finger on the top of the little column of clay1 and it flattens in a moment4 ,he points his finger at it1 barely touching it1 and a little groove appears1 running around the whole mass4 ,he seems to be wasting considerable time in playing with it1 but all the while he is making sure that the clay is perfectly uniform and that there are no bubbles of air in it4 ,he holds a piece of leather against the outside surface and a wet sponge against the inside1 to make them perfectly smooth2 and in a moment he has made a bowl4 ,he holds his bent finger against the top of the bowl1 and it becomes a vase4 ,with another touch of his magical finger the top of the vase rolls over into a lip4 ,if he makes a cup or a mug1 he models a handle in clay and fastens it in place with slip4 ,when it is done1 he draws a wire deftly between the article and the table1 and puts it on a board to dry4 ,when you watch a potter at work1 it all looks so simple and easy that you feel sure you could do it2 but see how skillfully he uses his hands1 how strong they are1 and yet how lithe and delicate in their movements4 ,see into what odd positions he sometimes stretches them2 and yet these are plainly the only positions in which they could do their work4 ,see how every finger does just what he wishes it to do4 ,notice all these things1 and you will not be so certain that making pottery is the easiest thing in the world4 ,no two pieces of hand work are exactly the same2 and skillful as the potter is1 his pieces are not precisely alike4 ,many of them therefore are passed over to the turner for finishing4 ,he uses an ordinary lathe1 and with this he thins any place that may be a little too thick1 rounds the edge1 and smooths it4 ,the article is partly dried when he takes it1 and so its walls can be cut thinner4 ,when it leaves his lathe1 all signs of hand work have vanished1 but the dish is exactly like the others of the set1 and this is what the greater number of people want4 ,in some potteries there is hardly a throwing wheel in use1 and articles are formed in plaster of ,paris moulds4 ,there are two ways of using these moulds4 ,by one method1 the mould is put upon a jigger1 a power machine which keeps it revolving1 and clay is pressed against its walls from within4 ,above the mould is a piece of iron cut in the shape of the inside curve of the bowl or whatever is being made4 ,this skims off all the extra clay from the inside of the walls4 ,plates and saucers are made on a jigger4 ,the mould used for this work is a model of the top of the plate4 ,the workman makes a sort of pancake of clay and throws it upon the mould4 ,a second mould1 shaped like half of the bottom of the plate1 is brought down close and revolves1 cutting off all the extra clay and shaping the bottom of the plate4 ,when the very finest ware is to be made1 the mould is used in quite another fashion4 ,if a pitcher1 for instance1 is to be cast1 the mould is made in two sections and tied tightly together4 ,then the slip is poured into it and left for a while4 ,the plaster of ,paris absorbs the water and a layer of clay is formed all about the walls4 ,when this is thick enough1 the liquid is poured out1 and after the pitcher has dried awhile1 the mould is carefully opened and the pitcher is very gently taken out4 ,the handle is made in a little mould of its own and fastened on with slip4 ,eggshell porcelain is made in this way4 ,the clay shell becomes smaller as it dries1 so there is no trouble about removing it from the mould--if one knows how4 ,if a large article is to be cast1 the mould is made in sections4 ,of course this fine ware must all be made by hand1 especially as machines do not work well with the finest clays2 but cheap dishes are all made by machinery4 ,after any clay article is thrown1 or moulded1 or cast1 it is passed through a little doorway and set upon a shelf in a great revolving cage4 ,the air in this cage is kept at about #he ,f42 but this heat is nothing to what is to follow2 and after the articles are thoroughly dry1 they are placed in boxes of coarse fire-clay1 which are called saggers1 piled up in a kiln1 the doors are closed1 and the fires are lighted4 ,for a day and night1 sometimes for two days and two nights1 the fires burn4 ,the heat goes up to #bjjj or #bejj ,f4 ,every few hours test pieces1 which were put in for this purpose1 are taken out4 ,when they are found to be sufficiently baked1 the fire-holes are bricked up and the furnace is left for two days longer to cool4 ,the ware is then called biscuit4 ,biscuit is dull and porous4 ,it is soon to be glazed1 but first whatever underglaze decorating is desired may be done4 ,sometimes the decorations are painted by hand1 and sometimes they are printed on thin paper1 laid upon the ware1 and rubbed softly till they stick fast4 ,after a while the paper is pulled off1 but the colors remain4 ,gold must be applied over the glaze1 and the article fired a second time4 ,after this decorating1 the ware is generally passed to a man who stands before a tub of glaze1 and dips in each article1 though sometimes he stands before the pieces of ware and sprays them with an air brush4 ,many different kinds of glaze are used1 made of ground flint1 feldspar1 white clay1 and other substances4 ,common sea salt works exceedingly well1 not in liquid form1 but thrown directly into the fire4 ,the chief thing to look out for in making a glaze is to see that the materials in it are so nearly like those in the ware that they will not contract unevenly and make little cracks4 ,this glaze is dried in a hot room1 then looked over by trimmers1 who scrape it off from such parts as the feet of cups and plates1 so that they will not stick to the saggers in firing4 ,besides this1 little props of burned clay are used to hold the dishes up and keep them from touching one another4 ,these props have fanciful names1 such as spurs1 stilts1 cockspurs1 etc4 ,often you can see on the bottom of a plate the marks made by these supports4 ,illustration3 ,,in ,,the ,,pottery ,pieces of coarse pottery being delivered to the kiln for firing4 ,the articles now are sent to a kiln to be fired4 ,when they come out there is another chance for decorating1 for colors may be put on1 and another firing will make them look like underglaze painting ,if the decorator wishes the ware to have the appearance of being ornamented with masses of gold1 he can trace his design in yellow paste1 fire it1 cover it with gold1 and fire it again4 ,to make the gilt-band china so beloved by the good housewives of the last century1 the decorator puts the plate upon a horizontal wheel1 holds his brush full of gold against it1 and turns the wheel slowly4 ,sometimes the outlines of a design are printed and the coloring put in by hand4 ,when broad bands of color are desired to be put around a plate or other article1 the decorator sometimes brushes on an adhesive oil where the color is to go1 and paints the rest of the plate with some water-color and sugar2 then when the oil is partly dry1 he dusts on the color in the form of powder4 ,a plunge into water will wash away the water-color and leave the oil with the powder sticking to it4 ,shaded groundwork is made with an atomizer4 ,indeed1 there are almost as many methods of decorating wares of clay as there are persons who work at it4 ,the results are what might be expected from the prices2 some articles are so cheap and gaudy that any one will soon tire of them4 ,others are really artistic and will be a joy forever--until they break4 ,,viii ,,how ,,the ,,wheels ,,of ,a ,,watch ,,go ,,around ,if an electric automobile could be charged in fifteen seconds and then would run for forty hours without recharging1 it would be looked upon as a great wonder2 but to wind a watch in fifteen seconds and have it run for forty hours is so common that we forget what a wonder it is4 ,when you wind your watch1 you put some of the strength of your own right hand into it1 and that is what makes it go4 ,every turn of the key or the stem winds up tighter and tighter a spring from one to two feet long1 but so slender that it would take thousands to weigh a pound4 ,this is the main spring4 ,it is coiled up in a cup-shaped piece of metal called a barrel2 and so your own energy is literally barreled up in your watch4 ,the outer end of this spring is held fast by a hook on the inside of the barrel2 the inner end is hooked to the hub of a wheel which is called the main wheel1 and around this hub the spring is coiled4 ,this spring has three things to do4 ,it must send the short hand1 or hour hand1 around the dial or face of the watch1 once in twelve hours2 it must send the long hand1 or minute hand1 around once an hour2 and it must also send the little second hand around its own tiny circle once a minute4 ,to do this work requires four wheels4 ,the first or main wheel is connected with the winding arrangements1 and sets in motion the second1 or center wheel1 so called because it is usually in the center of the watch4 ,this center wheel revolves once an hour and turns the minute hand4 ,by a skillful arrangement of cogs it also moves the hour hand around the dial once in twelve hours4 ,the center wheel moves the third wheel4 ,the chief business of the third wheel is to make the fourth turn in the same direction as the center wheel4 ,the fourth wheel revolves once a minute1 and with it turns the tiny second hand4 ,suppose that a watch has been made with only the main spring1 the four wheels1 and the three hands1 what would happen when it was wound8 ,you can tell very easily by winding up a mechanical mouse or a train of cars or any other toy that goes by a spring4 ,it will go fast at first1 then more and more slowly1 then it will stop4 ,this sort of motion might do for a mouse1 but it would not answer for a watch4 ,a watch must move with steadiness and regularity4 ,to bring this about1 there is a fifth wheel4 ,its fifteen teeth are shaped like hooks1 and it has seven accompaniments1 the balance wheel1 the hair spring1 and five others4 ,this wheel1 together with its accompaniments1 is able to stop the motion of the watch five times a second and start it again so quickly that we do not realize its having been stopped at all4 ,a tiny arm holds the wheel firmly1 and then lets it escape4 ,therefore1 the fifth wheel and its accompaniments are called the escapement4 ,this catching and letting go is what makes the ticking4 ,a watch made in this way would run very well until a hot day or a cold day came2 then there would be trouble4 ,heat makes metals expand and makes springs less elastic4 ,therefore in a hot day the watch would go more slowly and so lose time2 while in a cold day it would go too fast and would gain time4 ,this fault is corrected by the balance1 a wheel whose rim is not one circle1 but two half-circles1 and so cunningly made that the hotter this rim grows1 the smaller its diameter becomes4 ,in the rim of the wheel are tiny holes into which screws may be screwed4 ,by adding screws or taking some away1 or changing the position of some of them1 the movement of the watch can be made to go faster or slower4 ,all this would be difficult enough to manage if a watch was as large as a cart wheel1 with wheels a foot in diameter2 but it does seem a marvel how so many kinds of wheels and screws and springs1 one hundred and fifty in all1 can be put into a case sometimes not more than an inch in diameter1 and can find room to work2 and it is quite as much of a marvel how they can be manufactured and handled4 ,remembering how accurate every piece must be1 it is no wonder that in ,switzerland1 where all this work used to be done by hand1 a boy had to go to a watch school for fourteen years before he was considered able to make a really fine watch4 ,he began at the beginning and was taught to make1 first1 wooden handles for his tools1 then the tools themselves1 such as files1 screw drivers1 etc4 ,his next work was to make wooden watchcases as large as dinner-plates4 ,after this1 he was given the frame to which the various wheels of a watch are fastened and was taught how and where to drill the holes for wheels and screws4 ,after lessons in making the finer tools to be used1 he was allowed to make a watch frame4 ,all this took several years1 for he had to do the same work over and over until his teachers were satisfied with it4 ,then he was promoted to the second room4 ,here he learned to adjust the stem-winding parts1 to do fine cutting and filing1 and to make watches that would strike the hour and even the minute4 ,room three was called the train room1 because the wheels of a watch are spoken of as the train4 ,the model watch in this room was as large as a saucer4 ,the young man had to study every detail of this1 and also to learn the use of a delicate little machine doing such fine work that it could cut twenty-four hundred tiny cogs on one of the little wheels of a watch4 ,in the fourth room he learned to make the escapement wheel and some other parts2 and he had to make them1 not merely passably1 but excellently4 ,in the fifth and last room1 he must do the careful1 patient work that makes a watch go perfectly4 ,there are special little curves that must be given to the hair spring2 and the screws on the balance wheel must be carefully adjusted4 ,if the watch ran faster when it was lying down than when it was hanging up1 he learned that certain ones of the bearings were too coarse and must be made finer4 ,in short1 he must be able to make a watch that1 whether hanging up or lying down1 and whether the weather was hot or cold1 would not vary from correct time more than two and a half seconds a day at the most4 ,then1 and not till then1 was the student regarded as a first-class watchmaker4 ,the graduate of such a school knew how to make a whole watch1 but he usually limited his work to some one part4 ,every part of a watch was made expressly for that watch1 but sometimes a hundred different persons worked on it4 ,the very best of the ,swiss watches were exceedingly good2 the poorest were very bad1 and much worse to own than a poor ,american watch because it costs more to repair a ,swiss watch than an ,american watch4 ,illustration3 ,courtesy ,waltham ,watch ,co4 ,,where ,,watches ,,are ,,made ,once a single man made a whole watch by hand4 ,now one watch may be the product of a hundred hands1 each man doing his particular part4 ,even though in ,america the parts of watches are made by machinery1 an apprentice has to undergo just as careful and just as extended training here as in ,switzerland4 ,a poor watch is worse than none at all1 and careless work would not be tolerated in any watch factory4 ,of late even ,switzerland has been importing ,american machinery in order to compete with the ,united ,states4 ,these machines do such careful1 minute1 intricate work that1 as you stand and watch them1 you feel as if they must know what they are about4 ,one of them takes the frame1--that is1 the plates to which the wheels are fastened1--makes it of the proper thinness1 cuts the necessary holes in it1 and passes it over to the next machine1 which is reaching out for it4 ,the feeder gives the first machine another plate2 and so the work goes on down a whole line of machines4 ,at length the plate is taken in hand by a machine1 or rather a group of machines1 which can do almost anything4 ,before they let it go1 they actually perform one hundred and forty-two different operations1 each bringing it nearer completion4 ,these machines are automatic1 but nevertheless they must be constantly watched by expert machinists to keep them in order and make sure of their turning out perfect work4 ,while one line of machines has been perfecting the plate1 others have been at work on screws and wheels and springs4 ,as many of these as are needed for one watch are put into a little division of a tray and carried to another room for its jewels and the rest of its outfit4 ,the jewels1 which are pieces of rubies1 sapphires1 garnets1 or even diamonds1 are very valuable to a watch4 ,when you know that the little wheels are in constant motion1 and that the balance wheel1 for instance1 vibrates eighteen thousand times an hour1 it is plain that a vast amount of wear comes upon the spot where the pivots of these wheels rest4 ,no metal can be made smooth enough to prevent friction1 and there is no metal hard enough to prevent wear4 ,the jewels are smoother and harder4 ,they are sawed into slabs so thin that fifty of them piled up would measure only an inch4 ,these are stuck to blocks to be polished1 cut into disks flat on one side but with a little depression on the other to receive oil1 bored through the center1 and placed wherever the wear is greatest--provided the purchaser is willing to pay for them4 ,a full-jeweled watch contains twenty-three jewels2 that is1 in twenty-three of the places where the most severe wear comes1 or where friction might prevent the watch from going with perfect smoothness1 there will be practically no wear and no friction4 ,a low-priced watch contains only seven jewels1 but if you want a watch to last1 it pays to buy one that is full-jeweled4 ,and now these plates and wheels and screws are to be put together1 or assembled1 as this work is called4 ,this is a simple matter just as soon as one has learned where the different parts belong1 for they are made by machinery and are sure to fit4 ,after the assembling comes the adjusting of the balance wheel and the hair spring4 ,there is nothing simple about this work1 for the tiny screws with the large heads must be put into the rim of the balance wheel with the utmost care1 or else all the other work will be useless1 and the watch will not be a perfect time keeper2 that is1 one that neither loses nor gains more than thirty seconds a month4 ,it is said that the earliest watches made in ,europe cost fifteen hundred dollars and took a year to make4 ,there has always been a demand for a cheap pocket timepiece1 and of late this demand has been satisfied by the manufacture of the dollar watch4 ,properly speaking1 this is not a watch at all1 but a small spring clock4 ,it has no jewels1 and its parts are stamped out of sheets of brass or steel by machinery4 ,the hair springs are made in coils of eight and then broken apart2 and the main springs are made by the mile4 ,twenty holes are drilled at a time1 and the factory in which dollar watches were first manufactured is now able to turn out fifteen thousand a day4 ,,ix ,,the ,,making ,,of ,,shoes ,did you ever stop to think how many different qualities you expect in a shoe8 ,you want the sole to be hard and firm so as to protect your feet in rough walking2 and also soft and yielding so as to feel springy and not board-like4 ,you want the upper leather to keep the cold air from coming in2 and also porous enough to let the perspiration out4 ,your feet are not exactly like those of any one else2 and yet you expect to find at any shoe store a comfortable shoe ready-made4 ,you expect that shoe to come close to your foot1 and yet allow you to move it with perfect freedom4 ,you expect all these good qualities1 and what is more remarkable1 it does not seem difficult for most people to get them4 ,there is an old saying1 ,to him who wears shoes1 the whole earth is covered with leather2 and although many different materials have been tried in shoemaking1 leather is the only one that has proved satisfactory1 for the sole of the shoe at least4 ,of late1 however1 rubber and rubber combinations and felts and felt combinations have been used4 ,most hides of which soles are made come from the large beef packing-houses or from ,south ,america4 ,goatskins come from ,africa and ,india4 ,the greater part of a hide is made up of a sort of gelatine4 ,this easily spoils1 and therefore it has to be tanned2 that is1 soaked in tannin and water4 ,when a man set out to build a tannery1 he used to go into the woods where he could be sure of enough oak trees to supply him for many years with the bark from which tannin is made2 but it has been found that the bark of several other kinds of trees1 such as larch1 chestnut1 spruce1 pine1 and hemlock1 will tan as well as that of oak4 ,tannin is now prepared in the forest and brought to the tanners1 who put their tanneries where they please1 usually near some large city4 ,the hides are first soaked in water1 and every particle of flesh is scraped away4 ,they are laid in heaps for a while1 then hung in a warm room till the hair loosens and can be easily removed1 then soaked in tannic extract and water4 ,the tannin unites with the gelatine2 and thus the hide becomes leather4 ,this process requires several months4 ,hides are also tanned by the use of chemicals1 in what is called chrome tanning4 ,this process requires only a few hours1 but it is expensive4 ,in earlier times the shoemaker used to go from house to house with his lapstone1 waxed end1 awl1 and other tools4 ,the farmer provided the leather1 which he had tanned from the hides of his own cattle4 ,now1 however1 manufacturers can buy the soles of one merchant1 the heels of another1 the box toe and stiffenings of another1 and so on4 ,in the ,united ,states there are many factories which do nothing but cut soles1 or rather stamp them out with dies1 a hundred or more in a minute4 ,these soles and also the less heavy inner soles go through machines that make all parts of them of a uniform thickness4 ,the traveling shoemaker always hammered his sole leather to make it wear better2 but now a moment between very heavy rollers answers the same purpose4 ,another machine splits the inner sole for perhaps a quarter of an inch all the way around1 and thus makes a little lip to which to sew the welt4 ,a number of layers or lifts of leather are cemented together for the heel1 and are put under heavy pressure4 ,the upper parts of a shoe1 the uppers1 as they are called1 are the vamp or front of the shoe1 the top1 the tip1 and 7in a laced shoe7 the tongue4 ,nearly all the upper leather that shows when a shoe is on is made from the hides of cattle1 calves1 goats1 and sheep2 but besides the parts that show there are stiffeners for the box toe and the counters to support the quarters over the heel2 there are linings1 and many other necessary findings1 forty-four parts in all in an ordinary shoe4 ,much experimenting and more thinking have gone into every one of these forty-four parts2 and much remembering that shoes have harder wear than anything else in one's wardrobe4 ,the cotton linings1 for instance1 must be woven in a special way in order to make them last and not rub up when they are wet with water or perspiration4 ,they are bleached with the utmost care not to weaken them1 and they are singed between red-hot copper plates to remove all the nap4 ,then1 too1 a good deal of metal is used in making a shoe1 not only the ornamental buckles on dress shoes and the heavy1 useful buckles on storm boots1 but various pieces that help to make the shoe strong and enduring4 ,there are nails1 shanks to strengthen the arch of the shoe1 metal shanks to the buttons1 and eyelets4 ,not many years ago1 eyelets soon wore brassy1 and then the shoe looked old and cheap4 ,they are now enameled1 or the top of them is made of celluloid in a color to match the shoe4 ,the tags on lacings and the hooks for holding lacings are also enameled4 ,a box-toe gum is used to support the box-toe stiffening4 ,cement covers the stitches2 and many sorts of blacking are used in finishing the work4 ,it is by no means a simple operation to make a pair of shoes4 ,at a busy shoe factory it is always tag day1 for when an order is received1 the first step in filling it is to make out a tag or form stating how the shoe is to be made up and when it is to be finished4 ,these records are preserved1 and if a customer writes1 ,send me #ajj pairs of shoes like those ordered ,october #aj1 #aiaj1 the manufacturer has only to read the record in order to know exactly what is wanted4 ,illustration3 ,courtesy ,united ,shoe ,mchy4 ,co4 ,,the ,,goodyear ,,pulling-,,over ,,machine ,this machine cost #a1ejj1jjj and five years of experiment to perfect4 ,it shapes the forepart of the upper of a shoe over a wooden last4 ,next1 the leather is selected1 first grade or second grade1 according to the price to be paid4 ,the patterns for the uppers are now brought into play--and1 by the way1 it is no small matter to prepare the hundreds of patterns needed for a new line of shoes in all the different widths and sizes4 ,in some factories the cutting is done by machinery2 in others the upper cutter lays the leather on a block and cuts around the pattern with a small but very sharp knife4 ,it needs skill and judgment to be a cutter2 for a careless workman can easily waste the skins badly by not laying the patterns on to the best advantage4 ,while this work is going on1 the linings1 trimmings1 soles1 and other parts are also being prepared1 and all these many pieces now meet in the stitching-room4 ,at the first glance1 it does not seem as if the right ones could ever come together1 even though they are marked1 and sometimes it does happen that a #d;a vamp1 for instance1 is put with #e;a quarters1 and nobody knows the difference until the experienced eye of the foreman notices that something is wrong with the shoe4 ,the uppers of the shoe are now stitched up1 and after a careful inspection1 they are sent on to the lasting-room4 ,the last of the earlier times was roughly whittled out1 and it was the same for both feet2 but the last of to-day is almost a work of art1 so carefully is it made and polished4 ,the shoe manufacturers jokingly declare that lasts must be changed three times a day in order to keep up with the fashions4 ,feet do not change in form1 save when they have been distorted by badly shaped shoes2 but in spite of this1 people insist upon having their shoes long and narrow1 or short and wide1 with high heels or with low heels1 with broad toes or with pointed toes1 as the whim of the moment may be4 ,it really is a big problem for the shoe manufacturers to suit people's fancies and yet give them some degree of comfort4 ,while the uppers are being stitched1 the soles and inner soles and counters have been made ready and brought to the lasting-room4 ,the toe stiffeners and also the counters are now cemented into their places4 ,the inner sole is tacked to the last1 and the uppers are put in place and held there by a tack at the heel4 ,this is done by machines2 but their working is simple compared with that of the machine which now takes charge of the half-made shoe4 ,this machine puts out sturdy little pincers which seize the edge of the uppers1 pull it smoothly and evenly into place1 and drive a tack far enough in to keep it from slipping4 ,now comes the welting4 ,a welt is a narrow strip of leather which is sewed to the lower edge of the upper all the way around the shoe except at the heel4 ,this brings the upper1 the lip of the inner sole1 and the welt together4 ,the inside of the shoe is now smooth and even1 but around the outside of the sole is the ridge made by the welt and the sewing1 and within the ridge a depression that must be filled up4 ,tarred paper or cork in a sort of cement are used for this4 ,the shank is fastened into its place and the welt made smooth and even4 ,the outer sole is coated with rubber cement1 put into position under heavy pressure to shape it exactly like the sole of the last1 and then sewed to the welt4 ,if it was not for the welt1 the outer sole would have to be sewed directly to the inner sole4 ,the nailing and pegging of the old-fashioned shoemaker are also reproduced by the modern machine4 ,the shoe is still open at the heel2 but now the heel parts of both sole and uppers are fastened together2 the edges have been nicely trimmed1 and next the heels are nailed to the shoe by another machine which does the work at a blow1 leaving the nails standing out a little below the lowest lift4 ,another lift is forced upon these2 and that is why the heel of a new shoe shows no signs of nails4 ,the heel is trimmed1 and then come the final sandpapering and blackening4 ,the bottom of a new shoe has a peculiar soft1 velvety appearance and feeling2 and this is produced by rubbing it with fine emery paper fastened upon a little rubber pad4 ,a stamping-machine marks the sole with the name of the manufacturer4 ,last of all1 the shoe is put upon a treeing machine1 where an iron foot stretches it into precisely the shape of the wooden last on which it was made4 ,this is the method by which large numbers of shoes are made1 but there are many details which differ4 ,laced shoes must have tongues as well as eyelets1 while buttoned shoes must have buttons and buttonholes4 ,turned shoes have no inner sole1 but uppers and outer sole are sewed together wrong side out and then turned4 ,in shoemaking1 as in all other business1 if a manufacturer is to succeed1 he must see that there is no waste4 ,he has of course no use for a careless cutter1 who would perhaps waste large pieces of leather2 but even the tiniest scraps are of value for some purpose4 ,they can be treated with chemicals1 softened by boiling1 and pressed into boards or other articles or made into floor coverings4 ,at any rate1 they must be used for something4 ,no business is small enough or large enough to endure waste4 ,x ,,in ,,the ,,cotton ,,mill ,if you ravel a bit of cotton cloth1 you will find that it is made up of tiny threads1 some going up and down1 and others going from right to left4 ,these threads are remarkably strong for their size4 ,look at one under a magnifying glass1 in a brilliant light1 and you will see that the little fibers of which it is made shine almost like glass4 ,examine it more closely1 and you will see that it is twisted4 ,break it1 and you will find that it does not break off sharp1 but rather pulls apart1 leaving many fibers standing out from both ends4 ,cotton comes to the factory tightly pressed in bales1 and the work of the manufacturer is to make it into these little threads4 ,the bales are big1 weighing four or five hundred pounds apiece4 ,they are generally somewhat ragged1 for they are done up in coarse1 heavy jute4 ,the first glance at an opened cotton bale is a little discouraging1 for it is not perfectly clean by any means4 ,bits of leaves and stems are mixed in with the cotton1 and even some of the smaller seeds which have slipped through the gin4 ,there is dust1 and plenty of it1 that the coarse burlap has not kept out4 ,the first thing to do is to loosen the cotton and make it clean4 ,great armfuls are thrown into a machine called a bale-breaker4 ,rollers with spikes1 blunt so as not to injure the fiber1 catch it up and tear the lumps to pieces1 and beaters toss it into a light1 foamy mass4 ,something else happens to the cotton while it is in the machine1 for a current of air is passing through it all the while1 and this blows out the dust and bits of rubbish4 ,this current is controlled like the draft of a stove1 and it is allowed to be just strong enough to draw the cotton away from the beater when it has become light and open1 leaving the harder masses for more beating4 ,when it comes out of the opener1 it is in sheets or laps three or four feet wide and only half an inch thick4 ,they are white and fleecy and almost cloudlike2 and so thin that any sand or broken leaves still remaining will drop out of their own weight4 ,in this work the manufacturer has been aiming1 not only at cleaning the cotton and making it fluffy1 but also at mixing it4 ,there are many sorts of cotton1 some of longer or finer or more curly or stronger fiber than others1 some white and some tinged with color2 but the cloth woven of cotton must be uniform2 therefore all these kinds must be thoroughly mixed4 ,even the tossing and turning and beating that it has already received is not enough1 and it has to go into a scutcher1 three or four laps at a time1 one on top of another1 to have still more beating and dusting4 ,when it comes out1 it is in a long roll or sheet1 so even that any yard of it will weigh very nearly the same as any other yard4 ,the fibers1 however1 are lying every which way1 and before they can be drawn out into thread1 they must be made to lie parallel4 ,this is brought about in part by carding4 ,when people used to spin and weave in their own houses1 they used hand cards4 ,these were somewhat like brushes for the hair1 but instead of bristles they had wires shaped much as if wire hairpins had been bent twice and put through leather in such a way as to form hooks on one side of it4 ,this leather was then nailed to a wooden back and a handle added4 ,the carder took one card in each hand1 and with the hooks pointing opposite ways brushed the cotton between them1 thus making the fibers lie parallel4 ,this is just what is done in a mill1 only by machinery1 of course4 ,instead of the little hand cards1 there are great cylinders covered with what is called card clothing2 that is1 canvas bristling with the bent wires1 six or seven hundred to the square inch4 ,this takes the place of one card4 ,the place of the other is filled by what are called flats1 or narrow bars of iron covered with card clothing4 ,the cylinders move rapidly1 the flats slowly1 and the cotton passes between them4 ,it comes out in a dainty white film not so very much heavier than a spider's web1 and so beautifully white and shining that it does not seem as if the big1 oily1 noisy machines could ever have produced it4 ,in a moment1 however1 it is gone somewhere into the depths of the machine4 ,we have seen the last of the fleecy sheet1 for the machinery narrows it and rounds it1 and when it comes into sight again1 it looks like a soft round cord about an inch thick1 and is coiled up in cans nearly a yard high4 ,this cord is called sliver4 ,illustration3 ,,in ,a ,,cotton ,,mill ,the sliver coming through the machine1 and the roving being twisted and wound on bobbins4 ,the sliver is not uniform2 even now its fibers are not entirely parallel1 and it is as weak as wet tissue paper4 ,it now pays a visit to the drawing-frame4 ,four or six slivers are put together and run through this frame4 ,they go between four pairs of rollers1 the first pair moving slowly1 the others more rapidly4 ,the slow pair hold the slivers back1 while the fast one pull them on4 ,the result is that when the sliver comes out from the rollers1 its fibers are much straighter4 ,this process is repeated several times2 and at last when the final sliver comes out1 although it looks almost the same as when it came from the carding-machine1 its fibers are parallel4 ,it is much more uniform1 but it is very fragile1 and still has to be handled with great care4 ,it is not nearly strong enough to be twisted into thread2 and before this can be done1 it must pass through three other machines4 ,the first1 or slubber1 gives it a very slight twist1 just enough to suggest what is coming later1 and of course in doing this makes it smaller4 ,the cotton changes its name at every operation1 and now it is called roving4 ,it has taken one long step forward1 for now it is not coiled up in cans1 but is wound on bobbins1 or great spools4 ,the second machine1 the intermediate speeder1 twists it a very little more and winds it on fresh bobbins4 ,it also puts two rovings together1 so that if one happens to be thin in one place1 there is a chance for it to be strengthened by a thicker place in the other4 ,the third machine1 the fine speeder1 simply makes a finer roving4 ,all this work must be done merely to prepare the raw cotton to be twisted into the tiny threads that you see by raveling a piece of cotton cloth4 ,now comes the actual twisting4 ,if you fasten one end of a very soft string and twist the other and wind it on a spool1 you will get a spool of finer1 stronger1 and harder-twisted string than you had at first4 ,this is exactly what the ring-spinner does4 ,imagine a bobbin full of roving standing on a frame4 ,down below it are some rolls between which the thread from the bobbin passes to a second bobbin which is fast on a spindle4 ,around this spindle is the spinning-ring1 a ring which is made to whirl around by an endless belt4 ,this whirling twists the thread1 and another part of the machine winds it upon the second bobbin4 ,hundreds of these ring-spinners and bobbins are on a single spinning-frame and accomplish a great deal in a very short time4 ,the threads that are to be used for the weft or filling go directly into the shuttles of the weavers after being spun2 but those which are to be used for warp are wound first on spools1 then on beams to go into the loom4 ,little children weave together strips of paper1 straws1 and splints1--over one1 under one1--and the weaving of plain cotton cloth is in principle nothing more than this4 ,the first thing to do in weaving is to stretch out the warp evenly4 ,this warp is simply many hundreds of tiny threads as long as the cloth is to be1 sometimes forty or fifty yards4 ,they must be stretched out side by side and close together4 ,to make them regular1 they are passed between the teeth of a sort of upright comb2 then they are wound upon the loom beam1 a horizontal beam at the back of the loom4 ,here they are as close together as they will be in the cloth4 ,with a magnifying glass it is easy to count the threads of the warp in an inch of cloth4 ,some kinds of cloth have a hundred or even more to the inch4 ,in order to make cloth1 the weaver must manage in some way to lower every other one of these little threads and run his shuttle over them1 as the children do the strips of paper in their paper weaving4 ,then he must lower the other set and run the shuttle over them4 ,drawing in makes this possible4 ,after the threads leave the beam1 they are drawn through the harnesses4 ,these are hanging frames1 one in front of the other1 filled with stiff1 perpendicular threads or wires drawn tight1 and with an eye in each thread4 ,through these eyes the threads of the warp are drawn1 the odd ones through one1 and the even through the other4 ,then1 keeping the threads in the same order1 they pass through the teeth of a reed1--that is1 a hanging frame shaped like a great comb as long as the loom is wide2 and last1 they are fastened to the front beam1 which runs in front of the weaver's seat and on which the cloth is to be rolled when it has been woven4 ,each harness is connected with a treadle4 ,the weaver puts his foot on the treadle of the odd threads and presses them down4 ,then he sends his shuttle1 containing a bobbin full of thread1 sliding across over the odd threads and under the even4 ,he puts his foot on the treadle of the even threads and sends the shuttle back over the even and under the odd4 ,at each trip of the shuttle1 the heavy reed is drawn back toward the weaver to push the last thread of the woof or filling firmly into place4 ,this is the way cloth is woven in the hand looms which used to be in every household4 ,the power loom used in factories is1 even in its simplest form1 a complicated machine2 but its principle is exactly the same4 ,if colors are to be used1 great care is needed in arranging warp and woof4 ,if you ravel a piece of checked gingham1 you will see that half the warp is white and half colored2 and that in putting in the woof or filling1 a certain number of the threads are white and an equal number are colored4 ,if you look closely at the weaving of a tablecloth1 you will see that the satin-like figures are woven by bringing the filling thread not over one and under one1 but often over two or three and under one4 ,in drilling or any other twilled goods1 several harnesses have to be used because the warp thread is not lowered directly in line with the one preceding1 but diagonally4 ,such work as this used to require a vast amount of skill and patience2 but the famous ,jacquard machine will do it with ease1 and will do more complicated weaving than any one ever dreamed of before its invention1 for it will weave not only regular figures extending across the cloth1 but can be made to introduce clusters of flowers1 a figure1 or a face wherever it is desired4 ,by the aid of this1 every little warp thread or cluster of threads can be lifted by its own hooked wire without interfering with any other thread4 ,cards of paper or thin metal are made for each pattern1 leaving a hole wherever the hook is to slip through and lift up a thread4 ,after the cards are once made1 the work is as easy as plain weaving2 but there must be a separate card for every thread of filling in the pattern1 and sometimes a single design has required as many as thirty thousand pattern cards4 ,the machines in a cotton mill are the result of experimenting1 lasting through many years4 ,they do not seem quite so human as those which help to carry on some parts of other manufactures2 but they are wonderfully ingenious4 ,for instance1 the sliver is so light that it seems to have hardly any weight1 but it balances a tiny support4 ,if the sliver breaks1 the support falls1 and this stops the machine4 ,again1 if one of the threads of the warp breaks when it is being wound on the beam1 a slender bent wire that has been hung on it falls4 ,it drops between two rollers and stops them4 ,then the workman knows that something is wrong1 and a glance will show where attention is needed4 ,success in a cotton mill demands constant attention to details4 ,a mill manager who has been very successful has given to those of less experience some wise directions about running a mill4 ,for one thing1 he reminds them that building is expensive and that floor space counts4 ,if by rearranging looms space can be made for more spindles1 it is well worth while to rearrange4 ,he tells them to study their machines and see whether they are working so slowly that they cannot do as much as possible1 or so fast as to strain the work4 ,he bids them to keep their gearings clean1 to be clear and definite in their orders1 and to read the trade papers2 but above everything else to look out for the little things1 a little leak in the mill dam1 a little too much tightness in a belt1 or the idleness of just one spindle4 ,herein lies1 he says1 one of the great differences between a successful and an unsuccessful superintendent4 ,weaving as practiced in factories is a complicated business2 but whether it is done with a simple hand loom in a cottage or with a big power loom in a great factory1 there are always three movements4 ,one separates the warp threads2 one drives the shuttle between them2 and one swings the reed against the filling thread just put in4 ,,xi ,,silkworms ,,and ,,their ,,work ,about silk there is something particularly agreeable4 ,there are few people who do not like the sheen of a soft silk1 the sparkle of light on a taffeta1 and the richness of the silk that can stand alone4 ,its delicate rustle is charming1 and the feel of it is a delight4 ,it has not the chill of linen1 the deadness of cotton1 or the scratchiness of woolen4 ,it pleases the eye1 the ear1 and the touch4 ,the caterpillars of a few butterflies and of many moths are spinners of fibers similar to silk4 ,among these last is the beautiful pale-green lunar moth4 ,spiders spin a lustrous fiber1 and it is said that a lover of spiders succeeded1 by a good deal of petting and attention1 in getting considerable material from a company of them4 ,silkworms1 however1 are the only providers of real silk for the world4 ,once in a while glowing accounts are published of the ease with which they can be raised and the amount of money which can be made from them with very small capital4 ,this business1 however1 like all other kinds of business1 requires close attention and skill if it is to be a success4 ,an expert has said that it needs more time to build a spool of silk than a locomotive4 ,the way to begin to raise silkworms is first of all to provide something for them to eat4 ,they are very particular about their bill of fare4 ,the leaf of the osage orange will answer1 but they like much better the leaf of the white mulberry4 ,then send to a reliable dealer for a quarter of an ounce of silkworm eggs4 ,that sounds like a small order1 but it will bring you nine or ten thousand eggs1 ready to become sturdy little silkworms if all goes well with them4 ,put them on a table with a top of wire netting covered with brown paper1 and keep them comfortably warm4 ,in a week or two1 there will appear some little worms about an eighth of an inch long and covered with black hairs4 ,these tiny worms have to become three inches or more in length1 and they are expected to accomplish the feat in about a month4 ,if a boy four feet tall should grow at the silkworm's rate for one month1 he would become forty-eight feet tall4 ,it is no wonder that the worms have to make a business of eating1 or that the keeper has to make a business of providing them with food4 ,they eat most of the time1 and they make a queer little crackling sound while they are about it4 ,they have from four to eight meals a day of mulberry leaves4 ,the worms from a quarter of an ounce of eggs begin with one pound a day1 and work up to between forty and fifty4 ,silkworms like plenty of fresh air1 and if they are to thrive1 their table must be kept clean4 ,a good way to manage this is to put over them paper full of holes large enough for them to climb through4 ,lay the leaves upon the paper2 the worms will come up through the holes to eat1 and the litter on their table can be cleared away4 ,as the worms grow larger1 the holes must be made larger4 ,it is no wonder that their skins soon become too tight for them4 ,they actually lose their appetite for a day or two1 and they slip away to some quiet corner under the leaves1 and plainly wish there were no other worms to bother them4 ,soon the skin comes off1 and they make up for lost time so energetically that they have to drop their tight skins three times more before they are fully grown4 ,wet mulberry leaves must not be given them1 or they will become sick and die1 and there will be an end of the silkworm business from that quarter-ounce of eggs4 ,they must have plenty of room on their table as well as in their skins4 ,at first a tray or table two feet long and a little more than one foot wide will be large enough2 but when they are full-grown1 they will need about eighty square feet of table or shelves4 ,at spinning time1 even this will not be enough4 ,after the worms have shed their skins four times and then eaten as much as they possibly can for eight or ten days1 they begin to feel as if they had had enough4 ,they now eat very little and really become smaller4 ,they are restless and wander about4 ,now and then they throw out threads of silk as fine as a spider's web4 ,they know exactly what they want2 each little worm wants to make a cocoon1 and all they ask of you is to give them the right sort of place to make it in4 ,when they live out of doors in freedom1 they fasten their cocoons to twigs2 and if you wish to give them what they like best1 get plenty of dry twigs and weave them together in arches standing over the shelves4 ,pretty soon you will see one worm after another climb up the twigs and select a place for its cocoon4 ,before long it throws out threads from its spinneret1 a tiny opening near the mouth1 and makes a kind of net to support the cocoon which it is about to weave4 ,the silkworm may have seemed greedy1 but he did not eat one leaf too much for the task that lies before him4 ,there is nothing lazy about him2 and now he works with all his might1 making his cocoon4 ,he begins at the outside and shapes it like a particularly plump peanut of a clear1 pale yellow4 ,the silk is stiffened with a sort of gum as it comes out of the spinneret4 ,the busy little worm works away1 laying its threads in place in the form of a figure eight4 ,for some time the cocoon is so thin that one can watch him4 ,it is calculated that his tiny head makes sixty-nine movements every minute4 ,the covering grows thicker and the room for the silkworm grows smaller4 ,after about seventy-two hours1 put your ear to the cocoon1 and if all is quiet within1 it is completed and the worm is shut up within it4 ,strange things happen to him while he sleeps in the quiet of his silken bed1 for he becomes a dry brown chrysalis without head or feet4 ,then other things even more marvelous come to pass1 for in about three weeks the little creature pushes the threads apart at one end of the cocoon and comes out1 not a silkworm at all1 but a moth with head and wings and legs and eyes4 ,this moth lays hundreds of eggs1 and in less than three weeks it dies4 ,this is what the silkworm will do if it is left alone2 but it is the business of the silk-raiser to see that it is not left alone4 ,about eight days after the cocoon is begun1 it is steamed or baked to kill the chrysalis so that it cannot make its way out and so spoil the silk4 ,the quarter of an ounce of eggs will make about thirty pounds of cocoons4 ,now is the time to be specially watchful1 for there is nothing in which rats and mice so delight as a plump1 sweet chrysalis2 and they care nothing whatever for the three or four thousand yards of silk that is wound about each one4 ,to take this silk off is a delicate piece of work4 ,a single fiber is not much larger than the thread of a cobweb1 and before the silk can be used1 several threads must be united in one4 ,first1 the cocoon is soaked in warm water to loosen the gum that the worm used to stick its threads together4 ,ends of silk from half a dozen or more cocoons are brought together1 run through a little hole in a guide1 and wound on a reel as one thread4 ,this needs skill and practice1 for the reeled silk must be kept of the same size4 ,the cocoon thread is so slender that1 of course1 it breaks very easily2 and when this happens1 another thread must be pieced on4 ,then1 too1 the inner silk of the cocoon is finer than the outer2 so unless care is taken to add threads1 the reeled silk will be irregular4 ,the water must also be kept just warm enough to soften the gum1 but not too hot4 ,the silk is taken off the reel1 and the skeins are packed up in bales as if it were of no more value than cotton4 ,indeed1 it does not look nearly so pretty and attractive as a lap of pure white cotton1 for it is stiff and gummy and has hardly any luster4 ,now it is sent to the manufacturer4 ,it is soaked in hot soapy water for several hours1 and it is drawn between plates so close together that1 while they allow the silk to go through1 they will not permit the least bit of roughness or dirt to pass4 ,if the thread breaks1 a tiny faller1 such as are used in cotton mills1 falls down and stops the machine4 ,the silk must now be twisted1 subjected to two or three processes to increase its luster1 and dyed1--and if you would like to feel as if you were paying a visit to a rainbow1 go into a mill and watch the looms with their smooth1 brilliant silks of all the colors that can be imagined4 ,after the silk is woven1 it is polished on lustering machines1 singed to destroy all bits of free fibers or lint1 freed of all threads that may project1 and scoured if it is of a light color2 then sold4 ,illustration3 ,courtesy ,cheney ,bros4 ,,how ,,spun ,,silk ,,is ,,made ,every manufacturer saves everything he can1 and even the waste silk which cannot be wound on reels is turned into a salable product ,the moth whose cocoon provides most of our silk is called the bombyx mori4 ,there are others1 however1 and from some of these tussah silk1 ,yamamai1 and ,shantung pongee are woven4 ,these wild moths produce a stronger thread1 but it is much less smooth than that of the bombyx4 ,there is also a great amount of wood silk1 or artificial silk1 on the market4 ,to make this1 wood pulp is dissolved in ether and squirted through fine jets into water4 ,it is soon hard enough to be twisted into threads and woven4 ,it makes an imitation of silk1 bright and lustrous1 but not wearing so well as the silk of the silkworm4 ,nevertheless1 for many purposes it is used as a substitute for silk1 and many braids and passementeries are made of it4 ,then1 too1 there are the mercerized goods1 which often closely resemble real silk1 although there is not a thread of silk in them4 ,it was discovered many years ago that if a piece of cotton cloth was boiled in caustic soda1 it would become soft and thick and better able to receive delicate dyes4 ,unfortunately1 it also shrank badly4 ,at length it occurred to some one that the cloth might be kept from shrinking by being stretched out during the boiling in soda4 ,he was delighted to find that this process made it more brilliant than many silks4 ,the threads that fasten the cocoon to the bush and those in the heart of the cocoon are often used1 together with the fiber from any cocoons through which the worms have made their way out4 ,this is real silk1 of course1 but it is made of short fibers which cannot be wound4 ,it is carded and spun and made into fabric called spun silk1 which is used extensively for the heavier classes of goods4 ,then1 too1 silks are often weighted2 that is1 just before they are dyed1 salts of iron or tin are added4 ,one pound of silk will absorb two or three pounds of these chemicals1 and will apparently be a heavy silk1 while it is really thin and poor4 ,moreover1 this metallic weighting rubs against the silk fiber and mysterious holes soon begin to appear4 ,a wise dry cleaner will have nothing to do with such silks1 lest he should be held responsible for these holes4 ,it is this weighting which produces the peculiar rustle of taffeta2 and if women would be satisfied with a taffeta that was soft and thin1 the manufacturers would gladly leave out the salts of iron1 and the silks would wear much better4 ,cotton is seldom mixed with the silk warp thread2 but it is used as filling in a large class of goods with silk warp4 ,the custom has arisen of advertising such goods as silk1 which of course is not a fair description of them4 ,advertisements sometimes give notice of amazing sales of ,shantung pongee1 which has been made in ,american looms and is a very different article from the imported wild silk pongee4 ,with so many shams in the market1 how is a woman to know what she is buying and whether it will wear8 ,there are a few simple tests that are helpful4 ,ravel a piece of silk and examine the warp and woof4 ,if they are of nearly the same size1 the silk is not so likely to split4 ,see how strong the thread is4 ,burn a thread4 ,if it burns with a little flame1 it is cotton4 ,if it curls up and smells like burning wool1 it is probably silk4 ,another test by fire is to burn a piece of the goods4 ,if it is silk1 it will curl up2 if it is heavily weighted1 it will keep its shape4 ,if you boil a sample in caustic potash1 all the silk in it will dissolve1 but the cotton will remain4 ,if the whole sample disappears1 you may be sure that it was all silk4 ,soft1 finely woven silks are safest because they will not hold so much weighting4 ,crpe de chine is made of a hard twisted thread and therefore wears well4 ,taffeta can carry a large amount of weighting1 and is always doubtful2 it may wear well1 and it may not4 ,there is always a reason for a bargain sale of silks4 ,the store may wish to clear out a collection of remnants or to get rid of a line of goods which are no longer to be carried2 but aside from this1 there is usually some defect in the goods themselves or else they have failed to please the fashionable whim of the moment4 ,silk is always silk1 and if you want it1 you must pay for it4 ,transcriber's ,note ,some illustrations have been moved from their original locations to paragraph breaks1 so as to be nearer to their corresponding text1 or for ease of document navigation4