This is an interesting department. Here all the bed sheets, towels,
tablecloths of the ship, and the linen of passengers are washed,
dried, and ironed by machinery.
The linen is put into a circular "drum" full of soapy water and
whirled round and round till well washed.
It is then partly dried by being put into another metal tub, which is
whirled round by electricity at such a pace that the water flies out
of the clothes. These are then put into a kind of mangle between hot
steel rollers, which squeeze out any water that remains, and at the
same time so heats the things that they come out quite dry and ironed
into the airing-room, where they receive a final drying in hot air.
The ironing of small articles like shirts and blouses is done by a few
laundrymaids using flat-irons heated by electricity.
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