_First to appear among the inventions that sparked the industrial
revolution in textile making was the flying shuttle, then various
devices to spin thread and yarn, and lastly machines to card the
raw fibers so they could be spun and woven. Carding is thus the
important first step. For processing short-length wool fibers its
mechanization proved most difficult to achieve._
_To the United States in 1793 came John and Arthur Scholfield,
bringing with them the knowledge of how to build a successful
wool-carding machine. From this contribution to the technology of
our then infant country developed another new industry._
THE AUTHOR: _Grace L. Rogers is curator of textiles, Museum of
History and Technology, in the Smithsonian Institution's United
States National Museum._
Carding is the necessary preliminary step by which individual short
fibers of wool or cotton are separated and cleaned of foreign materials
so they can be spun into yarn. The thoroughness of the carding
determines the quality of the yarn, while the position in which the
carded fibers are laid determines its type. The fibers are laid parallel
in order to spin a smooth compact yarn, or they are crossed and
intermingled to produce a soft bulky yarn.