See also:

• FIBRES
• FIBRES (or FIBERS, in American spelling; from Lat. fibra, apparently connected either with filum, thread, or findere, to split)

FIBRES (or FIBERS, in See also:

• AMERICAN

American spelling; from See also:

• LAT

Lat. fibra, apparently connected either with filum, See also:

• THREAD (0. Eng. praed, literally, that which is twisted, prawan, to twist, to throw, cf. " throwster," a silk-winder, Ger. drehen, to twist, turn, Du. draad, Ger. Draht, thread, wire)

thread, or findere, to split)  , the See also:

• GENERAL
• GENERAL (Lat. generalis, of or relating to a genus, kind or class)

general See also:

• TERM

term for certain structural components of See also:

• ANIMAL
• ANIMAL (Lat. animalis, from anima, breath, soul)

animal and See also:

• VEGETABLE

vegetable See also:

• TISSUE (Fr. tissu, tissue, participle of tisser, Lat. texere, to weave)

tissue utilized in manufactures, and in respect of such uses, divided for the See also:

• SAKE

sake of See also:

• CLASSIFICATION (Lat. classis, a class, probably from the root cal-, cla-, as in Gr. icaMce, clamor)

classification into textile, See also:

• PAPER
• PAPER (Fr. papier, from Lat. papyrus)

paper-making, See also:

• BRUSH (from Fr. brosse, which, like the English word, means both the undergrowth of a wood and the instrument; if the word in both these meanings is ultimately the same, then the origin is from a bundle of brushwood used as a brush or broom, but this is h
• BRUSH, GEORGE DE FOREST (1855– )

brush and See also:

• MISCELLANEOUS

miscellaneous See also:

• FIBRES
• FIBRES (or FIBERS, in American spelling; from Lat. fibra, apparently connected either with filum, thread, or findere, to split)

fibres . I . Textile Fibres are mostly products of the organic See also:

• WORLD

world, elaborated in their elongated See also:

• FORM (Lat. forma)

form to subserve protective functions in animal See also:

• LIFE

life (as See also:

• WOOL, WORSTED AND WOOLLEN MANUFACTURES

wool and epidermal hairs, &c.) or as structural components of vegetable tissues (See also:

• FLAX

flax, See also:

• HEMP (in O. Eng. henep, cf. Dutch hennep, Ger. Hanf , cognate with Gr. Kavval3er, Lat. cannabis)

hemp and See also:

• WOOD, ANTHONY A2 (1632-1695)
• WOOD, JOHN GEORGE (1827—1889)
• WOOD, MRS HENRY [ELLEN] (1814—1887)
• WOOD, SEARLES VALENTINE (1798—188o)

wood cells) . It may be noted that the inorganic world provides an exception to this general statement in the fibrous See also:

• MINERAL

mineral See also:

• ASBESTOS

asbestos (q.v.), which is spun or See also:

• TWISTED

twisted into coarse textiles . Other silicates are also transformed by artificial processes into fibrous forms, such as " See also:

• GLASS
• GLASS (O.E. glees, cf. Ger. Glas, perhaps derived from an old Teutonic root gla-, a variant of glo-, having the general sense of shining, cf. " glare," " glow ")
• GLASS, STAINED

glass," which is fused and See also:

• DRAWN

drawn or spun to a continuous fibre, and various " slags " which, in the fused See also:

• STATE
• STATE, GREAT OFFICERS OF

state, are trans-formed into " slag wool." Lastly, we See also:

• NOTE
• NOTE (Lat. nota, mark, sign, from noscere, to know)

note that a number of metals are drawn down to the finest dimensions, in continuous lengths, and these are See also:

• WOVEN

woven into See also:

• CLOTH

cloth or See also:

• GAUZE

gauze, such metallic cloths finding valuable applications in the arts . Certain metals in the form of See also:

• FINE

fine See also:

• WIRE (A.S. wir, a wire; cf. Swed. vire, to twist, M.H.G. wiere, a gold ornament, Lat. viriae, armlets, ultimately from the root wi, to twist, bind)

wire are woven into textile fabrics used as See also:

• DRESS (from the Fr. dresser, to set out, arrange, formed from Lat. directus, arranged, dirigere, to direct, arrange)

dress materials . Such exceptional applications are of insignificant importance, and will not be further considered in this See also:

• ARTICLE (from Lat. articulus, a joint)

article . The See also:

• COMMON

common characteristics of the various forms of See also:

• MATTER

matter comprised in the widely diversified See also:

• GROUPS
• GROUPS, THEORY

groups of textile fibres are those of the colloids . Colloidal matter is intrinsically devoid of structure, and in the See also:

• MASS (O.E. maesse; Fr. messe; Ger. Messe; Ital. messa; from eccl. Lat. missa)
• MASS, IN

mass may be regarded as homogeneous; whereas crystalline matter in its proximate forms assumes definite and specific shapes which See also:

• EXPRESS (through the French from the past participle of the Lat. exprimere, to press out, by transference used of representing objects in painting or sculpture, or of thoughts, &c. in words)

express a complex of See also:

• INTERNAL

internal stresses . The properties of matter which See also:

• CONDITION (Lat. condicio, from condicere, to agree upon, arrange; not connected with conditio, from condere, conditum, to put together)

condition its See also:

• ADAPTATION (from Lat. adaptare. to fit to)

adaptation to structural functions, first as a constituent of a living individual, and afterwards as a textile fibre, are homogeneous continuity of substance, with a high degree of interior cohesion, and associated with an irreducible minimum of See also:

• ELASTICITY

elasticity or extensibility . The colloids show an See also:

• INFINITE (from Lat. in, not, finis, end or limit; cf. findere, to deave)

infinite diversity of See also:

• VARIATIONS
• VARIATIONS, CALCULUS
• VARIATIONS, CALCULUS OF

variations in these essential properties: certain of them, and notably See also:

• CELLULOSE

cellulose (q.v.), maintain these characteristics throughout a See also:

• CYCLE
• CYCLE (Gr. KUK)^os, a circle)

cycle of transformations such as permit of their being brought into a soluble plastic form, in which condition they may be drawn into filaments in continuous length . The artificial silks or lustra-celluloses are produced in this way, and have already taken an established position as See also:

• STAPLE

staple textiles .

For a more detailed See also:

• ACCOUNT
• ACCOUNT (through O. Fr. acont, Late Lat. comptum, cornputare, to calculate)

account of these products see CELLULOSE . The animal fibres are composed of nitrogenous colloids of which the typical representatives are the albumens, fibrines and gelatines . They are of highly complex constitution and their characteristics have only been generally investigated . The vegetable fibre substances are celluloses and derivatives of celluloses, also typically colloidal bodies . The broad distinction between the two groups is chiefly evident in their relationship to alkalis . The former See also:

• GROUP

group are attacked, resolved and finally dissolved, under conditions of See also:

• ACTION

action by no means severe . The celluloses, on the other See also:

• HAND
• HAND (a word common to Teutonic languages; cf. Ger. Hand, Goth. handus)
• HAND, FERDINAND GOTTHELF (1786-185r)

hand, and therefore the vegetable fibres, are extraordinarily resistant to the action of alkalis . The animal fibres are relatively few in number but of See also:

• GREAT

great See also:

• INDUSTRIAL

industrial importance, They occur as detached See also:

• UNITS, DIMENSIONS OF
• UNITS, PHYSICAL

units and are of varying dimensions; See also:

• SHEEP
• SHEEP (from the Anglo-Saxon sceap, a word common in various forms to Teutonic languages; e.g. the German Schaf)

sheep's wool having lengths up to 36 in., the fleeces being shorn for textile uses at lengths of 2 to 16 in.; See also:

• HORSE (a word common to Teutonic languages in such forms as hors, hros, ros; cf. the Ger. ross)

horse See also:

• HAIR (a word common to Teutonic languages)

hair is used in lengths of 4 to 24 in., whereas the silks may be considered as being produced in continuous length, " reeled silks " having lengths measured in hundreds of yards, but " spun silks " are composed of See also:

• SILK

silk fibres purposely broken up into See also:

• SHORT, FRANCIS JOB (1857– )

short lengths . The vegetable fibres are extremely numerous and of very diversified characteristics . They are individualized units only in the See also:

• CASE
• CASE, JOHN (d. 1600)

case of See also:

• SEED (from the root seen in Lat. serere, to sow)

seed hairs, of which See also:

• COTTON
• COTTON (Fr. coton; from Arab. qutun)
• COTTON, CHARLES (163o–1687)
• COTTON, GEORGE EDWARD LYNCH (1813–1866)
• COTTON, JOHN (1585–1652)
• COTTON, SIR ROBERT BRUCE

cotton is by far the most important; with this exception they are elaborated as more or less complex aggregates . The bast tissues of dicotyledonous annuals furnish such staple materials as flax, hemp, See also:

• RHEA

rhea or See also:

• RAMIE (RHEA, CHINA-GRASS)

ramie and jute . The bast occurs in a peripheral See also:

• ZONE (Gr. 'WV77, a girdle, from 'wvvLvay to gird)

zone, See also:

• EXTERNAL

external to the wood and beneath the cortex, and is mechanically separated from the See also:

• STEM (O. Eng. staefn, stemn, cf. Du. stain, Ger. Stamm, &c., probably related to " staff ")

stem, usually after steeping, followed by drying .

The commercial forms of these fibres are elongated filaments composed of the elementary bast cells (ultimate fibres) aggregated into bundles . The number of these as any See also:

• PART

part of the filament may vary from 3 to 20 (see See also:

• FIGS

figs.) . In the processes of refinement preparatory to the See also:

• SPINNING (from O. Eng. spinnen, to spin, cf. Ger. spinnen, &c., the Teut. root is seen, to draw out, cf. span, spider)

spinning (hackling, scutching) and in the spinning See also:

• PROCESS

process itself, the fibre-bundles are more or less sub-divided, and the divisibility of the bundles is an See also:

• ELEMENT (Lat. elementum)

element in the textile value of the raw material . But the value of the material is rather determined by the length of the ultimate fibres (for, although not the spinning unit, the tensile strength of the See also:

• YARN

yarn is ultimately limited by the cohesion of these fibres), qualified by the important See also:

• FACTOR (from Lat. facere, to make or do)

factor of uniformity . Thus, the ultimate fibre of flax has a length of 25 to 35 mm.; jute, on the other hand, 2 to 3 mm.; and this disparity is an essential condition of the difference of values of these fibres . Rhea or ramie, to cite another typical instance, has an ultimate fibre of extraordinary length, but of equally conspicuous variability, viz. from 50 to 200 mm . The variability is a serious impediment in the preparation of the material for spinning and this defect, together with See also:

• LOW, SETH (1850- )
• LOW, WILL HICOK (1853- )

low See also:

• DRAWING

drawing or spinning quality, limits the applications of this fibre to the See also:

• LOWER

lower See also:

• COUNTS

counts or grades of yarn . The monocotyledons yield still more complex fibre aggregates, which are the fibro-vascular bundles of leaves and stems . These complex structures as a class do not yield to the See also:

• MECHANICAL

mechanical treatment by which the bast fibres are subdivided, nor is there any true spinning quality such as is conditioned by bringing the ultimate fibres into See also:

• PLAY

play under the drawing process, which immediately precedes the twisting into yarn . Such materials are therefore only used for the coarsest textiles, such as See also:

• STRING

string or rope . An exception to be noted in passing is to be found in the See also:

• PINE (Lat. Pinus, Gr. srlrur)

pine See also:

• APPLE (a common Teut. word, A.S. aepl, aeppel, O.H.G. aphul, aphal, apfal, mod. Ger. Apfel)

apple (Ananassa Saliva) the fibres of which are worked into yarns and cloth of the finest quality . The more important fibres of this class are See also:

• MANILA

manila, sisal, See also:

• PHORMIUM

phormium .

A heterogeneous mass of still more complex fibre aggregates, in many cases the entire stem (cereal straws, See also:

• ESPARTO, or SPANISH GRASS

esparto), in addition to being used in plaited form, e.g. in hats, chairs, mats, constitute the staple raw materialfor paper manufacturers, requiring a severe chemical treatment for the separation of the ultimate fibres . In this class we must include the See also:

• WOODS, LEONARD (1774-1854)
• WOODS, SIR ALBERT (1816-1904)

woods which furnish wood pulps of various classes and grades . Chemical processes of two types, (a) See also:

• ACID (from the Lat. root ac-, sharp; acere, to be sour)

acid and (b) alkaline, are also employed in resolving the wood, and the See also:

• RESOLUTION

resolution not only effects a See also:

• COMPLETE

complete See also:

• ISOLATION

isolation of the wood cells, but, by attacking the hydrolysable constituents of the wood substance (lignocellulose), the cells are obtained in the form of cellulose . These cellulose pulps are known in See also:

• COMMERCE
• COMMERCE (Lat. commercium, from, cum, together, and rnerx, merchandise)

commerce as " sulphite pulps " and " soda pulps " respectively . In addition to these raw materials or " See also:

• HALF

half stuffs " the paper-maker employs the rejecta of the vegetable and textile See also:

• INDUSTRIES

industries, scutching, spinning and cloth wastes of all kinds, which are treated by chemical (boiling) and mechanical means (beating) to See also:

• SEPARATE

separate the ultimate fibres and reduce them to the suitable dimensions (0.5-2•o mm.) . These papermaking fibres have also to be reckoned with as textile raw materials, in view of a new and growing See also:

• INDUSTRY (Lat. industria, from indu-, a form of the pre, position in, and either stare, to stand, or struere, to pile up)

industry in " pulp yarns " (Papierstoffgarn), a coarse textile obtained by treating paper as delivered in narrow strips from the paper See also:

• MACHINE
• MACHINE (through Fr. from Lat. form machina of Gr. µnxavil)

machine; the strips are reeled, dried to retain 30-40% moisture, and in this condition subjected to the twisting operation, which confers the cylindrical form and adds considerably to the strength of the fibrous See also:

• STRIP

strip . The following are the essential characteristics of the economically important fibres . Animal.—A . Silk . (a) The true silks are produced by the Bombyx Mori, the See also:

• WORM

worm feeding on the leaves of the mulberry . The fibre is extruded as a viscous liquid from the glands of the worm, and solidifies to a cylindrical See also:

• THREAD (0. Eng. praed, literally, that which is twisted, prawan, to twist, to throw, cf. " throwster," a silk-winder, Ger. drehen, to twist, turn, Du. draad, Ger. Draht, thread, wire)

thread . The cohesion of these threads in pairs gives to raw silk the form of a dual See also:

• CYLINDER (Gr. KvAwSpos, from KvXivaety, to roll)

cylinder (See also:

• PLATE

Plate I. fig .

2) . For textile purposes the thread is reeled from the cocoon, and several units, five and upwards, are brought together and suitably twisted . (b) The " See also:

• WILD, JONATHAN (c. 1682-1725)

Wild " silks are produced by a large variety of See also:

• INSECTS

insects, of which the most important are the various See also:

• SPECIES

species of Antherea, which yield the Tussore silks . These silks differ in form and See also:

• COMPOSITION
• COMPOSITION (Lat. compositio, from componere, to put together)

composition from the true silks . While they consist of a " dual " thread, each unit of these is complex, being made up of a number of fibrillae . This unit thread is quadrangular in See also:

• SECTION
• SECTION (Lat. sectio, cutting, secare, to cut)

section, and of larger See also:

• DIAMETER (from the Cr. &a, through, µErpov, measure)

diameter than the true silk, the mean breadth being 0.052 mm., as compared with o•oi8, the mean diameter of the true silks . The variations in structure as well as in dimensions are, however, very considerable . B . Epidermal hairs . Of these (a) wool, the epidermal protective covering of sheep, is the most important . The varying species of the animal produce wools of characteristic qualities, varying considerably in fineness, in length of staple, in composition and in spinning quality . Hence the classing of the fleeces or raw wool followed by the elaborate processes of selection, i.e .

" sorting " and preparation, which precede the actual spinning or twisting of the yarn . These consist in entirely freeing the fibres and sorting them mechanically (combing, &c.), thereafter forming them into continuous lengths of parallelized units . This is followed by the spinning process which consists in a simultaneous drawing and twisting, and a continuous See also:

• PRODUCTION (Lat. productionem, from producere, to pro-duce)

production of the yarn with the structural characteristics of worsted yarns . The shorter staple—from 5 to 25% of See also:

• AVERAGE

average fleeces—is prepared by the " See also:

• CARDING

carding " process for the spinning operation, in which drawing and twisting are simultaneous, the length spun being then See also:

• WOUND (O. Eng. wund,connected with a Teutonic verb, meaning to strive, fight, suffer, seen in O. Eng. winnan, whence Eng. " win ")

wound up, and the process being consequently intermittent . This section of the industry is known as " woollen spinning " in contrast to the former or " worsted spinning." (b) An important group of raw material closely allied to the wools are the epidermal hairs of the See also:

• ANGORA, or ENGURI

Angora See also:

• GOAT (a common Teut. word; O. Eng. gat, Goth. gaits, Mod. Ger. Geiss, cognate with Lat. haedus, a kid)

goat (See also:

• MOHAIR

mohair), the See also:

• LLAMA

llama, See also:

• ALPACA

alpaca . Owing to their form and the nature of the substance of which they are composed, they possess more lustre than the wools . They See also:

• PRESENT

present structural See also:

• DIFFERENCES, CALCULUS OF (Theory of Finite Differences)

differences from sheep wools which See also:

• INFLUENCE (Late Lat. influentia, from influere, to flow in)

influence the processes by which they are prepared or spun, and the See also:

• CHARACTER (Gr. xapareri7p, from xap&crew, to scratch)

character of the yarns; but the differences are only of subordinate moment . (c) Various animal hairs, such as those of the cow, See also:

• CAMEL (from the Arabic Djemal or the Heb. Gamal)

camel and See also:

• RABBIT

rabbit, are also employed; the latter is largely worked into the class of fabrics known as felts . In these the hairs are compacted together by taking See also:

• ADVANTAGE

advantage of the peculiarity of structure which causes the imbrications of the See also:

• SURFACE

surface . (d) Horse hair is employed in its natural form as an individual filament or monofil.' Vegetable Fibres.—The subjoined See also:

• SCHEME (Lat. schema, Gr. oxfjya, figure, form, from the root axe, seen in exeiv, to have, hold, to be of such shape, form, &c.)

scheme of classification sets out the morphological structural characteristics of the vegetable fibres: Produced from See also:

• DICOTYLEDONS

Dicotyledons . Monocotyledons . A .

Seed hairs . D . Fibro-vascular bundles . B . Bast fibres . E . Entire leaves and stems . C . Bast aggregates . In the See also:

• LIST (O.E. lisle, a Teutonic word, cf. Dut. lust, Ger. Leiste, adapted in Ital. lista and Fr. lisle)
• LIST, FRIEDRICH (1789-1846)

list of the more important fibrous raw materials subjoined, the See also:

• CAPITAL (i.e. capital stock or fund)
• CAPITAL (Lat. caput, head)

capital See also:

• LETTER (through Fr. lettre from Lat. littera or litera, letter of the alphabet; the origin of the Latin word is obscure; it has probably no connexion with the root of linere, to smear, i.e. with wax, for an inscription with a stilus)

letter immediately following the name refers the individual to its position in this classification . In reference to the important question of chemical composition and the actual nature of the fibre substance, it may he premised that the vegetable fibres are composed of cellulose, an important representative of the group of carbohydrates, of which the cotton fibre substance is the chemical prototype, mixed and combined with various derivatives belonging to the subgroups, (a) Carbohydrates . (b) Unsaturated compounds of benzenoid and furfuroid constitutions .

(c) " See also:

• FAT (O.E. fdett; the word is common to Teutonic languages, cf. Dutch vet, Ger. Fett, &c., and may be ultimately related to Greek Irian, and =apos, and Sanskrit pivan)

Fat and See also:

• WAX

wax " derivatives, i.e. groups belonging to the fatty See also:

• SERIES (a Latin word from serere, to join)

series, and of higher molecular dimensions —of such See also:

• COMPOUND
• COMPOUND (from Lat. componere, to combine or put together)

compound celluloses the following are the prototypes: (a) Cellulose combined and mixed with " pectic " bodies (i.e. pecto-celluloses), flax, rhea . (b) Cellulose combined with unsaturated groups or ligno- celluloses, jute and the woods . (c) Cellulose combined and mixed with higher fatty acids, See also:

• ALCOHOLS
• ALCOHOLS, ALDEHYDES AND
• ALCOHOLS, BENZYL ALCOHOL, BUTYL ALCOHOLS, METHYL ALCOHOL

alcohols, See also:

• ETHERS

ethers, cuto-celluloses, protective epidermal covering of leaves . The letters a, b, c in the table below and following the capitals, which have reference to the structural basis of classification, indicate the See also:

• MAIN (from the Aryan root which appears in " may " and " might," and Lat. magnus, great)
• MAIN (Lat. Moenus)

main characteristics of the fibre substances . (See also CELLULOSE.) Miscellaneous.—Various species of the See also:

• FAMILY

family Palmaceae yield fibrous products of value, of which mention must be made of the following . Raffia, epidermal strips of the leaves of Raphia ruffa (See also:

• MADAGASCAR

Madagascar), R. taedigera (See also:

• JAPAN

Japan), largely employed as binder twine in See also:

• HORTICULTURE
• HORTICULTURE (Lat. hortus, a garden)

horticulture, replacing the " bast " (See also:

• LINDEN

linden) formerly employed . See also:

• COIR (from Malay Kayar, cord, Kayaru, to be twisted)

Coir, the fibrous envelope of the See also:

• FRUIT (through the French from the Lat. fructus; frui, to enjoy)

fruit of the Cocos nucifera, extensively used for See also:

• MATTING

matting and other coarse textiles . Carludovica palmata (Central See also:

• AMERICA

America) yields the raw material for See also:

• PANAMA

Panama hats, the Corypha australis (See also:

• AUSTRALIA

Australia) yields a similar product . The leaves of the date See also:

• PALM (Lat. palma, Gr. iraX6.jn )
• PALM, JOHANN PHILIPP (1768-1806)

palm, See also:

• PHOENIX
• PHOENIX (Gr. 4oivt )

Phoenix dactylif era, are employed locally in making baskets and mats, and the fibro-vascular bundles are isolated for working up into coarse twine and rope; similarly, the leaves of the Elaeis guineensis, the fruit of which yields the " palm oil " of commerce, yield a fibre which finds employment locally (See also:

• AFRICA
• AFRICA, ROMAN

Africa) for See also:

• SPECIAL

special purposes . Chamaerops humilis, the See also:

• DWARF (A.S. dweorg, D. dwerg, Icel. dvergr)

dwarf palm, yields the well-known " Crin d'Afrique." Locally (See also:

• ALGIERS (Fr. Alger, Arab. Jezair, i.e. The Islands)

Algiers) it is twisted into See also:

• ROPES, JOHN CODMAN (1836–1899)

ropes, but its more general use, in See also:

• EUROPE

Europe, is in upholstery as a stuffing material . The cereal straws are used in the form of See also:

• PLAIT (through O. Fr. pleit, from Lat. plicitum, folded, plicare, to fold)

plait in the making of hats andmats . Esparto grass is also used in the making of coarse mats .

The processes by which the fibres are transformed into textile fabrics are in the main determined by their structural features . The following are the distinctive types of treatment . A . The fibre is in virtually continuous lengths . The textile yarn is produced by assembling together the unit threads, which are wound together and suitably twisted (silk; artificial silk) . B . The fibres in the form of units of variable short dimensions are treated by more or less elaborate processes of scutching, hackling, combing, with the aim of producing a mass of See also:

• FREE

free parallelized units of See also:

• UNIFORM

uniform dimensions; these are then laid together and drawn into continuous bands of sliver and roving, which are finally drawn and twisted into yarns . In this group are comprised the larger number of textile products, such as Botanical Identity . See also:

• COUNTRY (from the Mid. Eng. contre or contrie, and O. Fr. cuntree; Late Lat. contrata, showing the derivation from contra, opposite, over against, thus the tract of land which fronts the sight, cf. Ger. Gegend, neighbourhood)

Country of Origin . Dimensions of Ultimate . Textile Uses . Genus and See also:

• ORDER
• ORDER (through Fr. ordre, for earlier ordene, from Lat. ordo, ordinis, rank, service, arrangement; the ultimate source is generally taken to be the root seen in Lat. oriri, rise, arise, begin; cf. " origin ")
• ORDER, HOLY

Order .

Cotton, A.a . Gossypium — Tropical and subtropical 12-40 mm . 0.019-0.025 . Universal . Also as a raw material See also:

• MALVACEAE

Malvaceae countries Av . 28 mm. in chemical industries, notably See also:

• EXPLOSIVES

explosives, celluloid . Flax, B.a . . . Linum Temperate (and subtropical) 6-6o mm . 0.011-0.025 . General . Special effects in lustre Linaceae countries, chiefly See also:

• EUROPEAN

European Av .

28 mm. damasks . In See also:

• INDIA
• INDIA, FRENCH

India and America See also:

• PLANTS

plants grown for seed (See also:

• LINSEED

linseed) . Hemp, B.a . . Cannabis Temperate countries, chiefly 5-55 mm . 0.016-o.o50 . Coarser textiles, See also:

• SAIL

sail-cloth, rope and Cannabineae Europe Av . 22. mm . Av . 0.022 twine . Ramie, B.a . . Boehmeria Tropical countries (some 60-200 mm . 0.03-o.o8 .

Coarse textiles . Cost of preparation Urticaceae temperate) Av . 120 mm . Av . 0.050 for fine textiles prohibitive . Jute, B.b . Corchorus Tropical countries, chiefly 1.5-5 mm . 0.020-0.025 . Coarse textiles, chiefly " Hessians " Tiliaceae India Av . 2.5 mm . Av . 0.022 and sacking .

" See also:

• LINE

Line " spun yarns used in See also:

• CRETONNE

cretonne and See also:

• FURNITURE (from " furnish," Fr. fournir)

furniture textiles . B.b . . . Crotalaria India 4.0-12.0 . 0.025-0.050 . Twine and rope . Coarse textiles . See also:

• LEGUMINOSAE

Leguminosae Av.7.5 . Av . 0.022 Hibiscus, B.b Hibiscus Tropical, chiefly India 2-6 mm . 0.014-0.033 . Coarse textiles .

H . Elams has been Av . 4 mm . Av . O•o21 extensively used in making mats . Sida, B.b . . Sida Tropical and subtropical 1.5-4 mm . 0.013-0.02 . Coarse textiles . Appears capable of Malvaceae Av . 2 mm . Av .

0.015 substituting jute . See also:

• LIME
• LIME (O. Eng. lim, Lat. limes, mud, from linere, to smear)

Lime or Linden, Tilia European countries, chiefly 1.5 mm . 0.014-0.020 . Matting and binder twine . C.b Tiliaceae See also:

• RUSSIA
• RUSSIA (Rossiya)

Russia Av . 2 mm . Av . 0.016 Mulberry, C . . Broussonetia Far See also:

• EAST
• EAST, ALFRED (1849- )

East 5-31 mm . 0.02-0.04 . Paper and paper cloths . Monocotyledons See also:

• MORACEAE

Moraceae Av .

15 mm . Av . 0.03 Manila, D . Musa Tropical countries, chiefly 3-12 mm . 0.016-0.032 . Twine and ropes . Produces papers Musaceae Philippine Islands Av . 6 mm . Av . 0.024 of special quality . Sisal, D . . See also:

• AGAVE

Agave Tropical countries, chiefly 1.5-4 mm .

0.020-0.032 . Twine and ropes . Amaryllideae Central America Av . 2.5 . Av . 0.024 See also:

• YUCCA

Yucca do . 0.5-6 mm . O•o1-0.02. do . See also:

• LILIACEAE

Liliaceae Sansevieria East Indies, See also:

• CEYLON

Ceylon, East 1.5-6 mm . 0.015-0.026. do . Liliaceae Africa Av . 3 mm .

Av . 0.020 Phormium, D Phormium tenax New See also:

• ZEALAND (also SEALAND Or SEELAND; Danish Sjaelland)

Zealand 5.0-15 mm . 0.010-0.020 . Twine and ropes . Distinguished by Liliaceae Av . 9 mm . Av. o.o16 high yield of fibre from See also:

• GREEN, A
• GREEN, ALEXANDER HENRY (1832—1896)
• GREEN, DUFF (1791—1875)
• GREEN, JOHN RICHARD (1837—1883)
• GREEN, MATTHEW (1696-1737)
• GREEN, THOMAS HILL (1836-1882)
• GREEN, VALENTINE (1739–1813)
• GREEN, WILLIAM HENRY (.1825–1900)

green See also:

• LEAF (O. Eng. leaf, cf. Dutch loof, Ger. Laub, Swed. lof, &c.; possibly to be referred to the root seen in Gr. Ma-eta, to peel, strip)

leaf . Pine-apple, D . Ananassa Tropical East and See also:

• WEST
• WEST, BENJAMIN (1738-1820)
• WEST, NICHOLAS (1461-1533)

West 3.0-9.0 mm.o•o04-0.008 . Textiles of remarkable fineness . See also:

• BROMELIACEAE

Bromeliaceae Indies Av . 5 .

Av. o See also:

• OOH

ooh Exceptional fineness of ultimate fibre . See also:

• SEA (in O. Eng. sae, a common Teutonic word; cf. Ger. See, Dutch Zee, &c.; the ultimate source is uncertain)
• SEA, COMMAND OF THE

Sea also ALggcn, F1iI,T, MOHAIR, SHQppY and WQOL, cotton, wool, flax and jute, and it also includes at the other extreme the production of coarse textiles, such as twine and rope . C . The fibres of still shorter dimensions are treated in various ways for the production of a fabric in continuous length . The distinction of type of manufacturing processes in which the relatively short fibres are utilized, either as disintegrated units or comminuted See also:

• LONG, GEORGE (1800-1879)
• LONG, JOHN DAVIS (1838– )

long fibres, follows the lines of See also:

• DIVISION (from Lat. dividere, to break up into parts, separate)

division into long and short fibres; the long fibres are worked into yarns by various processes, whereas the shorter fibres are agglomerated by both dry and wet processes to felted tissues or felts . It is obvious, however, that these distinctions do not constitute rigid dividing lines . Thus the principles involved in felting are also applied in the manipulation of long fibre fabrics . For instance, woollen goods are closed or shrunk by milling, the See also:

• WEB (a word common to Teutonic languages, cf. Du. webbe, Dan. vaev, Ger. Gewebe, all from the Teutonic wabh—to weave)

web being subjected to a beating or hammering treatment in an apparatus known as " the See also:

• STOCKS

Stocks," or is continuously run through squeezing rollers, in weak alkaline liquids . Flax goods are " dosed " by the process of beetling, a long-continued process of hammering, under which the ultimate fibres are more or less subdivided, and at the same See also:

• TIME (0. Eng. Lima, cf. Icel. timi, Swed. timme, hour, Dan. time; from the root also seen in " tide," properly the time of between the flow and ebb of the sea, cf. O. Eng. getidan, to happen, " even-tide," &c.; it is not directly related to Lat. tempus)
• TIME, MEASUREMENT OF
• TIME, STANDARD

time welded or incorporated together . As already indicated, paper, which is a web composed of • units of short dimensions produced by deposition from suspension in See also:

• WATER

water and agglomerated by the interlacing of the component fibres in all planes within the mass, is a species of textile . Further, whereas the silks are mostly worked up in the extreme lengths of the cocoon, there are various systems of spinning silk wastes of variable short lengths, which are similar to those required for spinning the fibres which occur naturally in the shorter lengths . The fibres thus enumerated as commercially and industrially important have established themselves as the result of a struggle for survival, and each embodies typical features of ultility .

There are innumerable vegetable fibres, many of which are utilized in the locality or region of their production, but are not available for the highly specialized applications of See also:

• MODERN

modern competitive industry to qualify for which a very complex range of requirements has to be met . These include primarily the factors of production and transport summed up in cost of production, together with the question of regularity of See also:

• SUPPLY (through Fr. from Lat. supplere, to fill up)

supply; structural characteristics, form and dimensions, including uniformity of ultimate unit and adaptability to See also:

• STANDARD
• STANDARD, BATTLE OF THE

standard methods of preparing and spinning, together with tenacity and elasticity, lustre . Lastly, composition, which determines the degree of resistance to chemical disintegrating influences as well as subsidiary questions of See also:

• COLOUR (Lat. color, connected with celare, to hide, the root meaning, therefore, being that of a covering)

colour and relationship to colouring matters . The quest for new fibres, as well as modified methods of production of those already known, require See also:

• CRITICAL (in alphabetical order of authors)

critical investigation from the point of view of established practice . The present See also:

• PERSPECTIVE (Lat. peespicere, to see through)

perspective outline of the group will be found to contain the elements of a See also:

• GRAMMAR (from Lat. grammatica, sc. ars; Gr. ypaµ)

grammar of the subject . But those who wish to pursue the matter will require to amplify this outlined picture by a study of the special See also:

• TREATISES

treatises which See also:

• DEAL

deal with general principles, as well as the separate articles on the various fibres . See also:

• ANALYSIS (Gr. avci and Meta, to break up into parts)

Analysis and See also:

• IDENTIFICATION (Lat. idem, the same)

Identification.—For the analysis of textile fabrics and the ;dentification of component fibre, a special See also:

• TREATISE

treatise must be consulted . The following general facts are to be noted as of importance . All animal fibres are effectively dissolved by ro% See also:

• SOLUTION (from Lat. solvere, to loosen, dissolve)

solution of See also:

• CAUSTIC (Gr. rcavvraubs, burning)

caustic potash or soda . The fabric or material is boiled in this solution for 10 minutes and exhaustively washed . Any See also:

• RESIDUE (through the French, from the Lat. residuum, a remainder, from residere, to remain)

residue will be vegetable or cellulose fibre . It must not be for-gotten that the chemical properties of the fibre substances are modified more or less by association in See also:

• COMBINATION (Lat. combinare, to combine)

combination with colouring matters and mordants .

These may, in many cases, be removed by treatments which do not seriously modify the fibre substances . Wool is distinguished from silk by its relative resistance to the action of sulphuric acid . The See also:

• COLD (in O. Eng. cald and ceald, a word coming ultimately from a root cognate with the Lat. gelu, gelidus, and common in the Teutonic languages, which usually have two distinct forms for the substantive and the adjective, cf. Ger. Kolte, kalt, Dutch koude

cold concentrated acid rapidly dissolves silk as well as the vegetable fibres . The attack on wool is slow, and the epidermal scales of wool make their See also:

• APPEARANCE (from Lat. apparere, to appear)

appearance . The true silks are distinguished from the wild silks by the action of concentrated hydrochloric acid in the cold, which reagent dissolves the former, but has only a slight effect on Tussoresilk . After preliminary resolution by these group reagents, the fabric is subjected to microscopical analysis for the final identification of its component fibres (see H . Schlichter, See also:

• JOURNAL
• JOURNAL (through Fr. from late Lat. diurnalis, daily)

Journal See also:

• SOC

Soc . Chem . Ind., 186o, p . 241) . A scheme for the commercial analysis or assay of vegetable fibres, originally proposed by the author,' and now generally adopted; includes the following operations: a . Determination of moisture .

2 . Determination of ash See also:

• LEFT

left after complete ignition . 3 . See also:

• HYDROLYSIS (Gr. 6Swp, water, Anew, to loosen)

Hydrolysis: (a) loss of See also:

• WEIGHT

weight after boiling the raw fibre with a 1% caustic soda solution for five minutes; (b) loss after boiling for one See also:

• HOUR

hour . 4 . Determination of cellulose: the See also:

• WHITE
• WHITE, ANDREW DICKSON (1832– )
• WHITE, GILBERT (1720–1793)
• WHITE, HENRY KIRKE (1785-1806)
• WHITE, HUGH LAWSON (1773-1840)
• WHITE, JOSEPH BLANCO (1775-1841)
• WHITE, RICHARD GRANT (1822-1885)
• WHITE, ROBERT (1645-1704)
• WHITE, SIR GEORGE STUART (1835– )
• WHITE, SIR THOMAS (1492-1567)
• WHITE, SIR WILLIAM ARTHUR (1824--1891)
• WHITE, SIR WILLIAM HENRY (1845– )
• WHITE, THOMAS (1628-1698)
• WHITE, THOMAS (c. 1550-1624)

white residue after (a) boiling for five minutes with 10/0 caustic soda, (b) exposure to See also:

• CHLORINE (symbol Cl, atomic weight 35`46 (0=16)

chlorine See also:

• GAS

gas for one hour, (c) boiling with basic See also:

• SODIUM [symbol Na, from Lat. natrium; atomic weight 23.00 (0=16)]

sodium sulphite solution . 5 . See also:

• MERCERIZING

Mercerizing: the loss of weight after digestion with a 20 % solution of sodium See also:

• HYDRATE

hydrate for one hour in the cold . 6 . Nitration: the weight of the product obtained after digestion with a mixture of equal volumes of sulphuric and nitric acids for one hour in the cold . 7 . Acid See also:

• PURIFICATION

purification: treatment of the raw fibre with 2o% acetic acid for one See also:

• MINUTE
• MINUTE (Lat. minutes, small; minuere, to make less)

minute, the product being washed with water and See also:

• ALCOHOL

alcohol, and then dried .

8 . Determination of the See also:

• TOTAL

total See also:

• CARBON (symbol C, atomic weight 12)

carbon by See also:

• COMBUSTION (from the Lat. comburere, to burn up)

combustion . II . Paperynaking.-The papermaking industry (see PAPER) employs as raw materials a large proportion of the vegetable fibre products already enumerated, and, for the reasons incident-ally mentioned, they may be, and are, employed in a large variety of forms: in fact any fibrous material containing over 30% " cellulose " and yielding ultimate fibres of a length exceeding r mm. can be used in this industry . Most important staples are cotton and flax; these are known to the paper-maker as " rag" fibres, rags, i.e. cuttings of textile fabrics, new and old, being their main source of supply . These are used for See also:

• WRITING
• WRITING (the verbal noun of " to write," O. Eng. writan, to inscribe)

writing and drawing papers . In the class of " printings " two of the most important staples are wood pulp, prepared by chemical treatment from both pine and foliage woods, and in See also:

• ENGLAND
• ENGLAND, THE CHURCH OF

England esparto cellulose, the cellulose obtained from esparto grass by See also:

• ALKALI

alkali treatment; the cereal straws are also used and are resolved into cellulose by alkaline boiling followed by See also:

• BLEACHING

bleaching . In the class of " wrappings " and miscellaneous papers a large number of other materials find use, such as various residues of manufacturing and preparing processes, scutching wastes, ends of rovings and yarns, flax, hemp and manila rope See also:

• WASTE (O. Fr. wast, guast, gast, gaste; Lat. vastus, vast, desolate)

waste, adansonia bast, and jute wastes, raw (cuttings) and manufactured (See also:

• BAGGING

bagging) . Other materials have been experimentally tried, and would no doubt come into use on their papermaking merits, but as a matter of fact the actually suitable raw materials are comprised in the list above enumerated, and are limited in number, through the influence of a number of factors of value or utility . ' See also:

• COL
• COL (Fr. for " neck," Lat. collum)

Col . Ind . See also:

• EXHIBITION

Exhibition, 1886, Miscellaneous Reports .

used for dusting brushes, is obtained from various species of the Gramineae; the " Mexican Whisk " from Epicampeas macroura; and " See also:

• ITALIAN

Italian Whisk " from Andropogon . The See also:

• COIN
• COIN (older forms of the word are coyne, quoin and coign, all derived through the O. Fr. coing, and cuigne from Lat. cuneus, a wedge)

coin fibre mentioned above in connexion with coarse textiles is also extensively used in brush-making . See also:

• ALOE

Aloe and Agave fibres in their softer forms are also used for plasterers's brushes . Many of the whitewashes and cleansing solutions used in See also:

• HOUSE
• HOUSE (O. Eng. hiss, a word common to Teutonic languages, cf. Dut. huis, Ger. Haus; in Gothic it is only found in gudhiss, a temple; it may be ultimately connected with the root of " hide," conceal)

house decoration are alkaline in character, and for such uses advantage is taken of the specially resistant character of the cellulose group of materials . Stuffing and Upholstery.—Another important use for fibrous materials is for filling or stuffing in connexion with the seats and cushions in upholstery . In the large range of effects required, a corresponding number and variety of products find employment . One of the most important is the floss or seed-hair of the Eriodendron anfractuosum, known as Kapok, the use of which in Europe was created by the Dutch merchants who See also:

• DREW
• DREW, SAMUEL (1765-1833)

drew their supplies from See also:

• JAVA

Java . The fibre is soft, silky and elastic, and maintains its elasticity in use . Many fibres when used in the mass show, on the ,other hand, a tendency to become matted and compressed in use, and to restore them to their See also:

• ORIGINAL

original state the fibre requires to be removed and subjected to a teasing or carding process . This defect limits the use of other " flosses or seed hairs in competition with Kapok . Horse hair is extensively used in this industry, as are also wool flocks and other short animal hairs and wastes . Hats and Matting.—For these manufactures a large range of the fibrous products above described are employed, chiefly in their natural or raw state .