TEXTILE FIBRES
Under the term "textile" are included the fibrous substances that can be
spun into threads, and woven or felted into cloth. Some of these, like
the covering of the sheep, goat, and llama, or the cocoon of the
silk-worm, are of animal origin; others, like cotton furze, the husk of
the cocoanut, and the bast of the flax-plant are vegetable products.
Their use in the manufacture of cloth antedates the period at which
written history begins; it probably begins with the time when primitive
man gradually ceased to have the hairy covering necessary to protect him
from the conditions of climate and weather.
As body coverings all these substances are dependent on a single
principle, namely--they are poor conductors of heat; that is, they do
not permit the natural heat of the body to pass away quickly, nor do
they allow sudden changes of the temperature to reach the body quickly.
In other words, because of the artificial covering which mankind alone
requires, bodily heat is not dissipated more rapidly than it is created;
if it were, the covering would be worthless. A suit of clothes made of
steel wire, for instance, because it conducts heat so rapidly, might
chill, or perhaps heat the body more quickly than the open air.
With respect to warming qualities wool surpasses all other textiles. It
is employed for clothing in every part of the world and by nearly all
peoples. Cotton is used mainly also for body coverings, but it is
inferior to wool for protection against cold. It is used by practically
all peoples, savage and civilized, outside of the frigid zones. Linen
is inferior both to cotton and wool for clothing; its use is also
restricted by its great cost. Silk is used mainly for ornamental cloths.
Hemp is used mainly for cordage, and the use of ramie, jute, and sisal
hemp is confined mainly to the manufacture of very coarse cloths and
rugs.
=Cotton.=--The cotton fibre of commerce is the lint surrounding the seeds
of several species of _Gossypium_, plants belonging to the same natural
order as the marshmallow and the hollyhock. The cultivated species have
been carried from India to different parts of the world, but
cotton-bearing plants are also native to the American. A native
tree-cotton, known as Barbados cotton, occurs in the West Indies; a
herbaceous cotton-plant is known to have been cultivated in Peru long
before the discovery of Columbus.
[Illustration: COTTON-PRODUCING REGIONS]
More than four hundred years before the Christian era Herodotus
describes it and mentions a gin for separating the lint from the seed.
Nearchus, an admiral serving under Alexander the Great, brought to
Europe specimens of cotton cloth, and in the course of time it became an
article of commerce among Greek and Roman merchants.
The cotton-plant requires warmth, moisture, and a long season. It also
thrives best near the sea. It grows better, on the whole, in subtropical
rather than in tropical regions, and the difference is due probably to
the longer days and higher temperature of the subtropical latitudes. In
the United States the northern limit is approximately the thirty-eighth
parallel. The seeds are planted, as a rule, during the first three weeks
of April and the first two of May. The plants bloom about the middle of
June; the boll or pod matures during July, and bursts about the first of
August. The picking begins in August.
[Illustration: COTTON IN THE UNITED STATES]
The yield and the quality of the textile depend not only on conditions
of the soil, but on locality. In the river flood-plains of the southern
United States the yield is about two bales per acre; on the bluff lands
it is but little more than one, unless unusual care is taken in the
preparation of the land. The islands off the Carolina coast produce a
very fine long-staple variety, commercially known as _sea island
cotton_. A district in China produces a good fibre of brownish color
known as _nankeen_, named for the city of Nanking, whence formerly it
was exported. The valley of Piura River, Peru, produces varieties of
long-staple cotton that in quality closely resemble silk.
The fibre of ordinary American cotton is about seven-eighths of an inch
long; it is made into the fabrics commercially known as "domestics" and
"prints," or calico. If the fibre averages a little longer than the
common grades it is reserved for canvas. Ordinary Peruvian cotton has a
fibre nearly two inches long; it is used in the manufacture of hosiery
and balbriggan underwear, and also to adulterate wool. The long-staple
cotton of the Piura Valley is bought by British manufacturers at a high
price, and used in the webbing of rubber tires and hose. Egyptian cotton
is very fine and is used mainly in the manufacture of thread and the
finer grades of balbriggan underwear. Sea island fibre is nearly two
inches long and is used almost wholly in the making of thread and lace.
The introduction of cotton cultivation resulted in very far-reaching
consequences both from a political as well as an economic stand-point.
The invention of the steam-engine by Watt gave England an enormous
mechanical power. To utilize this the cotton industry was wrested from
Hindustan; the mills were concentrated in Manchester and Lancashire; the
cotton-fields were transferred to the United States.
As a result, the plains of Hindustan were strewn with the bodies of
starved weavers and spinners, but a great industry grew into existence
in England. The invention of spinning machinery by Arkwright, Crompton,
and Hargreaves, and the gradual improvement of the power-loom, greatly
reduced the cost of making the cloth and, at the same time, enormously
increased the demand for it.
[Illustration: COTTON PRODUCTION]
In the United States the consequences were far more serious. The
invention of the engine or "gin" for separating the lint from the seed
made cotton cultivation highly profitable.[31] The negro slaves, who had
been scattered throughout the colonies and the States that succeeded
them, were soon drawn to the cotton-growing States to supply the needed
field-labor; and, indeed, white workmen could not stand the hot, moist
climate of the cotton-fields.
The cotton-mills grew up in the Northern manufacturing States. The
Northern manufacturer needed a tariff on imported goods to protect him
from European competition; the Southern cotton-planter who purchased
much of his supplies abroad was hurt by the tariff. After about sixty
years of strained relations between the two sections there occurred the
Civil War which wiped out nearly one million lives, and rolled up a
debt, direct and indirect, of nearly six billions of dollars.
The world's cotton-crop aggregates from twelve million to fifteen
million bales yearly, of which the United States produces, as a rule, a
little more than three-fourths. Egypt is rapidly taking an important
place among cotton-producing countries, and, with the completion of the
various irrigating canals, will very soon rank next to the United
States. India ranks about third; China and Korea produce about the same
quantity. There are a few cotton-cloth mills in these states, but in
Japan the manufacture is increasing, the mills being equipped with the
best of modern machinery. Brazil has a small product, and Russia in Asia
needs transportation facilities only to increase largely its growing
output.
[Illustration: COTTON]
The cotton-crop of the United States is quite evenly distributed;
one-third is manufactured at home; one-third is purchased by Great
Britain; and the remaining third goes mainly to western Europe. In the
past few years China has become a constantly increasing purchaser of
American cotton. New Orleans, Galveston, Savannah, and New York are the
chief ports of shipment. The imported Egyptian and Peruvian cotton is
landed mainly at New York. Most of the cotton manufacture is carried on
in the New England States, but there is a very rapid extension of cotton
manufacture in the South.
=Wool.=--The wool of commerce is a term applied to the fleece of the
common sheep, to that of certain species of goat, and to that of the
camel and its kind. There is no hard-and-fast distinction between hair
and wool,[32] but, in general, wool fibres have rough edges, much
resembling overlapping scales which interlock with one another; hair, as
a rule, has a hard, smooth surface. If a mass of loose wool be spread
out and beaten, or if it be pressed between rollers, the fibres
interlock so closely that there results a thick, strong cloth which has
been made without either spinning or weaving.
This property, known as "felting," gives to wool a great part of its
value, and is its chief distinction from hair. Some kinds of hair,
however, have a slight felting property, and if sufficiently fine may be
spun and woven. The hair of the common goat is worthless for this
purpose, but that of the Cashmere and Angora species have the properties
of wool. The hair of the Bactrian camel, and also that of the llama,
alpaca, and vicuña is soft and fine, possessing felting qualities that
make it very superior as a textile.
[Illustration: WOOL PRODUCING REGIONS]
The quality of wool varies greatly according to the conditions of soil,
climate, and the character of the food of the animal. In commerce,
however, the fleeces are commonly graded as "long-staple,"
"short-staple," "merino," and "coarse."
In long-staple wools the fibres are from four to eight inches long;
they are more easily separated by a process much like combing, and are
therefore called "combing" wools. The cotswold, cheviot, and most of the
wools of the British Isles are of this kind; indeed, in fairly moist
lowland regions such as Canada and the United States, there is a
tendency toward the development of a long-staple product. The English
long-staple wools are largely made into worsted cloth, the Scotch
cheviot into tweeds, and the French into the best dress cloth.
If the fibres are materially less than four inches in length, the
product is classed as a short-staple or "carding" wool. By far the
greater part of the wool of the United States, Canada, and Europe is of
this class. It is disposed of according to its fineness or fitness for
special purposes, the greater part being made into cloths for the medium
grades of men's clothing.
The finest and softest wool as a rule is grown in arid, plateau regions,
and of this kind of staple the merino is an example. The fibres are fine
as silk, and the goods made from them are softer. The Mission wool of
California is the product of merino sheep, and, indeed, the conditions
of climate in southern California and Australia are such as to produce
the best merino wool. The famous Electoral wool of Saxony is a merino,
the sheep having been introduced into that country from Spain about
three hundred years ago. The merino wools, as a rule, are used in the
most highly finished dress and fancy goods.
The coarse-staple wools are very largely used for American carpets,
coarse blankets, and certain kinds of heavy outer clothing. The Russian
Donskoi wool, some of the Argentine fleeces, such as the Cordoban, and
many of those grown in wet lowlands are very coarse and harsh. The
quality is due more to climatic conditions and food than to the species
of sheep; indeed, sheep that in other regions produce a fine wool, when
introduced to this locality, after a few generations produce coarse
wool.
[Illustration: SHEEP FEEDING ON ALFALFA]
[Illustration: SHEEP RANGE, UTAH]
[Illustration: SHEEP IN FEEDING YARD
THE WOOL-GROWING INDUSTRY]
The rug wools grown in Persia, Turkestan, Turkey in Asia, and the
Caucasus Mountains are also characteristic. They vary in fineness, and
because they do not readily felt they are the best in the world for rug
stock. The "pile" or surface of the rug remains elastic and stands
upright even after a hundred years of wear. This quality is due mainly
to conditions of climate and soil.
[Illustration: WOOL PRODUCTION]
In some instances the wool is obtained by a daily combing of the
half-grown lambs. This process, however, is employed in the rug-making
districts only; in general, the fleeces are clipped either with shears
or machine clippers. In the United States the latter are generally
employed, and but little attempt is made either to sort the fleeces or
to separate the various qualities of wool in the same fleece.
The raw wool always contains foreign matter such as burs and dirt; it is
also saturated with a natural oil which prevents felting. The oil,
commonly called "grease," or "yolk," is an important article of
commerce; under the name of "lanolin" (_adeps lanæ_) it is used in
medicine and pharmacy as a basis for ointments.
The world's yearly clip is a little more than two and one-half billion
pounds, of which the United States produces about one-eighth. In Europe
and the United States, owing to the increasing value of the land, the
area of production is decreasing; in Australia, South Africa, and
Argentina, where land is cheap, it is increasing. From these three
regions wool is exported; most European countries and the United States
buy it. In the latter country the consumption is about six pounds for
each person.
[Illustration: WOOL]
The wools of the Mediterranean countries--France, Spain, Italy, Algiers,
Egypt, etc.--are the best for fine cloths; those of central Asia for
rugs and shawls; the others are used mainly in medium and low grade
textiles.
=Other Wools.=--The Angora goat, originally grown in Anatolia (Asia
Minor), and the Iran States (Persia, Afghanistan, and Baluchistan),
furnishes a beautiful white wool, commercially known as "mohair." Smyrna
is an important market for it, and England is the chief buyer. The
Angora goat has been introduced into South Africa and California, where
it is successfully grown. From the former country there is a large
export of mohair.
Cashmere wool is a fine, downy undercovering, obtained by combing the
fleece of a goat native to the Kashmir Valley in India. A single animal
yields scarcely more than an ounce or two, and the best product is worth
about its weight in gold. It is used in the manufacture of the famous
Cashmere shawls, which are sold at prices varying from five hundred to
five thousand dollars. They are made in Persia and India.
Llama and alpaca wool are fine textile obtained from animals of the
camel kind native to South America. The wool is either black or brown in
color. A considerable part is used for native-made articles, such as
saddle-blankets, etc., but much of it is exported to England.
Most of the "camel's hair" of commerce was originally worn by goats,
being called by its commercial name because of a similarity in texture
to that of the camel's hair. The camel of Turkestan, however, furnishes
a silky textile that is much used. The brown wool often found in Hamadan
rugs is natural camel's hair, and a considerable amount mixed with
sheep's wool is used in certain textiles. The camel's hair of China is
made into artists' brushes.
=Silk.=--The silk of commerce is the fibre spun by the larvæ or
caterpillars of a moth, _Bombyx mori_, as they enter the chrysalis stage
of existence. The silk-growing industry includes the care and feeding of
the insect in all its stages. The leaves of the white mulberry-tree
(_morus alba_) are the natural food of the insect, and silk-growing
cannot be carried on in regions where this tree does not thrive. Not all
areas that produce the mulberry-tree, however, will also grow the
silk-worm; the latter cannot exist in regions having very cold winters,
and therefore the industry is restricted by climate.
The moth, shortly after emerging from the chrysalis stage, lays from two
or three hundred to seven hundred eggs. These are "hardy"--that is, they
will remain fertile for a long time if kept in a cool, dry place;
moisture will cause them to putrify, and heat to germinate. If well
protected, they may be transported for distances.
In rearing the silk-worm, as soon as the latter is hatched, it is placed
on mulberry-leaves, and for five weeks it does nothing but eat, in that
time consuming many times its weight of food.[33] Then it begins to spin
the material that forms its chrysalis case or cocoon. The outer part of
the case consists of a tough envelope not unlike coarse tissue-paper;
the inner part is a fine thread about one thousand feet long that has
been wound around the body of the worm. This thread or filament is the
basis of the silk textile industry.
[Illustration: _Copyright, 1898, by Nature Study Pub. Co._
SILK INDUSTRY
1. Silkworm Eggs
2. Fourth-stage Worm
3. Pupa in Cocoon
4. Cocoon
5. Male Moth
6. Female Moth
7. Unspun Silk
8. Raw Manufactured Silk
9. Manufactured Silk]
[Illustration: SILK PRODUCING REGIONS]
At the proper time the cocoons are gathered and, if immediately to be
used, are plunged into hot water. This not only kills the chrysalids but
softens the cocoons as well, so that the outer cases may be removed. The
cases removed, the rest of the cocoon is soaked in warm water until the
gummy matter is softened and the fibres are free enough to be reeled. In
the latter process the ends of a number of cocoons, varying from five to
twenty, are caught and loosely twisted into a single strand. The silk
thus prepared forms the "raw silk" of commerce. Sometimes a number of
strands of raw silk are twisted into a coarse thread, thereby forming
"thrown silk." For convenience in handling, both raw and thrown silk
are made into large skeins called hanks, and most of the silk product is
exported in this form.
A given quantity of cocoons yields scarcely more than one-tenth its
weight in good raw silk. The remaining part, consisting of broken fibres
and cases, is shredded and spun into silk thread of inferior quality.
This material, commonly called "husks" or "knubs," forms an important
item in silk manufacture, and much of it is exported to Europe and
America.
[Illustration: SILK PRODUCTION]
According to traditions, not wholly trustworthy, eggs of the silk-worm
were smuggled to India in the head-dress of a Chinese princess. Thence
sericulture slowly made its way westward to Persia, Asia Minor, and the
Mediterranean countries. Wild silk, a coarse but strong product, is
grown in many of these countries, but mainly in China, where it forms an
important export. The Chinese product is commercially known as "tussar"
silk. Of the product of raw silk, about thirty-five million pounds,
China yields about two-fifths, Japan and Italy each one-fifth. The
remainder is grown in the Levant, Spain, and France.
Most of the raw silk of China is exported from Shanghai and Canton; that
of Japan is shipped mainly from Yokohama. Among European countries Italy
is the first producer of raw silk, and France the chief manufacturer.
By the operation of a heavy tariff a considerable manufacture of silk
textiles has grown up in the United States. New York City and Paterson,
N.J., are the chief centres of the industry.
The southern part of the United States offers an ideal locality for
sericulture. Various attempts at silk-worm breeding have failed from
lack of training, but not on account of geographic conditions.
=Flax.=--The flax of commerce, the basis of linen cloth, is the bast or
inner bark-fibre of an annual plant (_Linum usitalissimum_, _i.e._, most
useful fibre), native probably to the Mediterranean basin. It ranks
among the oldest known textiles. Bundles of unwrought fibre have been
found in the lake dwellings of Switzerland, and linen cloth constituted
a part of the sepulture wrappings of the ancient Egyptian dead.
Flax has a very wide range, thriving in the colder parts of Europe as
well as in tropical Asia; it does equally well in the dry summers of
California or the moist regions of the Mississippi Valley. The chief
requisite is a firm soil that contains plenty of nutrition.
After the stalks have passed maturity they are pulled up by hand;
"rippled," or deprived of their seeds and leaves; "retted," or moistened
in soft water until the bast separates; "broken" and "scutched" by a
machine which gets rid of the woody fibres; and finally the loosened
bast fibre is "hetcheled" or combed in order to separate the long, or
"line," threads from the "tow" or refuse.
Russia produces more than one-half the world's crop, but the finest and
choicest is that known as Courtrai fibre, which is grown in Belgium.
This is thought to be due to the quality of the water in the Lys River.
A considerable amount of flax grown elsewhere in Europe is sent to this
part of Belgium to be retted. Ireland and Germany produce considerable
amounts, and a small quantity is grown in the United States.
The prepared flax is used in the manufacture of linen cloth, and the
latter is almost exclusively used for table-cloths, napkins,
shirt-bosoms, collars, cuffs, and handkerchiefs. France is noted for the
manufacture of linen lawns and cambrics, and Belfast, Ireland, for
table-cloths and napkins. Nearly the whole linen product is consumed in
the United States, Canada, and western Europe; indeed, linen is a mark
of western civilization. Great Britain handles the greater part of the
linen textiles.
=Hemp.=--The true hemp of commerce is the bast or inner bark of a plant,
_Cannabis sativa_, belonging to the nettle order. It is an annual plant
having a very wide range; it occurs in pretty nearly every country of
North America, Europe, and Asia. In Europe the chief countries producing
it for commercial uses are Russia, France, Italy, and Hungary; in the
United States it is grown in California and the central Mississippi
Valley. Russia produces the largest crop; Italy the finest quality of
fibre, the best coming from the vicinity of Bologna.
The stalks grow three feet or more in height. When cultivated for the
fibre they are pulled from the ground, stripped of their leaves and
soaked until the fibre is free. They are then "retted," or beaten, and
the fibre is removed. After preparation the fibre is used mainly for the
manufacture of wrapping-twine, cordage, and a coarse canvas. Great
Britain is the chief purchaser and manufacturer.
=Manila Hemp.=--Manila hemp is the name given to a fibre obtained from the
leaves of a plant, _Musa textilis_, belonging to the banana family. The
best fibres are from six to nine feet in length, of light amber color,
and very strong. The leaves, torn into narrow strips by hand, are
afterward scraped by hand until the fibre is free of pulp. The long and
coarser fibres are made into rope; the shorter fibres are beaten and
hetcheled in the same manner as flax, until fine enough to weave into
mats, carpets, and fine cloth. The fibres that have served their
usefulness as rope are pulped and manufactured into manila paper.
Practically all the manila fibre of commerce--which is not hemp at
all--is grown in the Philippine Islands, and since peace has prevailed,
the growth and production is increasing. The crude fibre is prepared by
hand, by Filipino or by Chinese labor. The manufacture of cordage and
paper is done mainly in the United States and Great Britain. Fine
hand-made textiles are made by a few Filipino natives, but most of the
goods of this character are manufactured in France. Very fine fibre is
sometimes used as an adulterant of silk. Great Britain and the United
States are the chief purchasers.
=Sisal Hemp.=--Sisal hemp, or henequen, is a stout, stringy fibre obtained
from the thick leaves of several species of agave, to which the maguey
and century-plant belong. The cultivated species, from which most of the
commercial product is obtained, is the _Agave sisalina_, which much
resembles the ordinary century-plant.
The essential feature in the economic production of sisal hemp is
machinery for separating the fibre from the pulp of the leaf. The fibre
is whiter, cleaner, and lighter than jute; moreover, in strength it
ranks next to the best quality of manila hemp. It is used mainly in the
manufacture of grain-sacks, and the twine used on self-binding
harvesters. Nearly all the fibre of commerce is grown in the Mexican
state of Yucatan and consumed in the United States. The cultivation of
this material has made Yucatan one of the most prosperous states of
Mexico.
=Jute.=--Jute is a fibre obtained from the inner bark of a tropical plant,
_Corchorus olitorius_, belonging to the same order as the linden-tree.
The plant is an annual, growing in various moist, tropical countries,
but is extensively cultivated in India and parts of China for commercial
purposes. The fibre is prepared for manufacture in much the same manner
as hemp and flax. In India it is used mainly for the manufacture of a
coarse textile known as gunny cloth, used as bale-wrappers, and sacks
for coffee and rice. On the Pacific coast states it is used for
wheat-sacks. Calcutta is the chief centre of manufacture, but jute-sacks
are extensively manufactured by the Chinese in California and China.
=Ramie.=--This fibre, also known as China grass, is the best of two or
more species of nettles, prepared in the same manner as hemp fibre. It
is finer and stronger than jute, and will take dye-stuffs in a superior
manner. With the introduction of machinery for separating and handling
the fibre, the cultivation of the ramie-plant has spread from China to
India, Japan, and the United States. Fine textiles are now manufactured
from it, the most important being carpets, mattings, and American
"Smyrna" rugs. The last are generally sold as jute-rugs, and they are
nearly as durable as woollen floor-covers.
=Other Economic Fibres.=--The fibre of _cocoanut husk_ is largely employed
in the manufacture of coarse matting. A part of this is obtained from
tropical America, but it is a regular export of British India, where it
is known as _coir_.
The mid-rib of the _screw pine_ growing in the forests of tropical
America furnishes the material of which "Panama" hats are made. The hats
are made in various parts of Ecuador, Venezuela, and Colombia, and were
formerly marketed in Panama. Hats made of a score of grasses and fibres
are also sold as Panamas.
A plant (_Phormium tenax_) having leaves somewhat like those of the iris
or common flag furnishes the material of which New Zealand flax is
prepared. It is used mainly in the manufacture of cordage.
_Plaiting straw_, used in the manufacture of hats and bonnets, is grown
extensively in northern Italy and in Belgium. For this product spring
wheat is very thickly sown in a soil rich in lime. The thick sowing
produces a long, slender stalk; the lime gives it whiteness and
strength. Plaiting straw is also exported from China and Japan. British
merchants handle most of the product.
_Cuba bast_, a fibre readily bleached to whiteness, is exported to the
various establishments in which women's hats are made.
_Esparto grass_, also called _alfa_, grows in Spain and the northern
part of Africa. It was formerly much used in the manufacture of the
cheaper grades of paper, but it has been largely supplanted by wood-pulp
for this purpose. The decline of the esparto grass industry led to no
little unrest among some of the native tribes of northern Africa.
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
What fibres were used in cloth-making in Europe before cotton was
employed?
What textiles are of necessity made of cotton?
What is a spinning jenny?--a Jacquard loom?
What are the specific differences between cotswold and merino wool?
Why were most of the cloth-making mills of the United States built at
first in the New England States?
How is the silk-making industry encouraged in the United States?
What are the chief linen manufacturing countries?
FOR STUDY AND REFERENCE
Obtain specimens of the cotton seed, boll, raw cotton (sea island,
Peruvian, and ordinary), cotton thread, calico, gingham, domestic,
canvas, and some of the fancy textiles such as organdie, lawn, etc.
Obtain specimens of the cocoons of the silk-worm, raw silk gros-grain
cloth, pongee, and tussar silk cloth.
Obtain also specimens of merino cloth, cashmere, cheviot, and other
similar goods; compare them and note the difference.
Examine the fibres of cotton, silk, and wool under a microscope and note
the difference.
[Illustration: BRANCH OF COFFEE TREE, WEST BRAZIL]
[Illustration: COFFEE PLANTATION NEAR JOLO, PHILIPPINE ISLANDS]
[Illustration: COFFEE DRYING FIELD, BRAZIL]