2,900 serrations in the inch; medium fine wools are from 300 to 700 inch in diameter, and contain from 2,000 to 2,500 serrations per inch. Coarse wools include all below 3 in diameter, and a corresponding diminution of the

serrations.

The knowledge acquired during the progress of the art of cotton manufacturing has resulted in establishing certain general principles or truths relating to the art which cannot be disregarded when it is desired that the best possible results should be the outcome of the operation. These may be briefly summarized as follows

:

That the selected cotton should be as uniform in quality as possible—that is, in the length, strength, diameter, and convolutions of the fibre,—and should be uniform in softness and colour. When, from economical considerations, it is advisable to mix different varieties in order to lessen the cost, regard must still be had to this principle, in order to secure the most perfect combination of the fibres, the greatest product in yarn, the least in waste, and the thread of the yarn uniformly solid, round, even, and strong.

Cotton should be thoroughly "mixed," even when only one class is used that is, the contents of the different bales should be spread in thin alternate layers upon each other, in order to modify any accidental difference in the bales arising from any cause, such, for instance, as careless or wilfully false packing. When several varieties are used, this is absolutely necessary, in order to secure thorough incorporation, and a uniform condition in the blend.

The raw material must be thoroughly "opened," and cleaned from impurities—that is, the matted fibres must be disentangled, freed from sand, dust, seed, leaf, unripe fibres, and any extraneous substance that may by accident or otherwise have been introduced.

The fibres must next be laid in parallel order, and so conducted through the successive stages of preparation. until that of spinning is reached. This must be accom

plished without the fibre being strained, doubled, broken, rolled, or otherwise injured. When cotton is strained, its convolute form is to a great extent destroyed, the power of the fibres to interlock with each other when being spun is greatly diminished, and the strength of the yarn correspondingly lowered.

The strength of a fibre of cotton is measured by the weight it will raise without breaking. The maximum possible strength of a yarn is the aggregate strength of the fibres which compose it, as shown in a section. This, however, can never be obtained in practice, it being a wellknown fact that torsion does not increase, but greatly diminishes the strength of fibres to which it is applied. This fact teaches us that yarn should not be twisted more than is necessary to secure the proper cohesion of its fibres when under tension, if it be desired to obtain its maximum of strength.

These are the scientific principles of cotton-spinning, as demonstrated by all past experience, and the highest form of the art is that in which they are most perfectly embodied in practice. There are, however, few, if any, instances in which the best result attainable is ever directly sought. The economic question is always intruded, and the problem resolves itself into one of how to make the best article possible, consistent with securing a profitable sale for the product. This, it will be obvious, is a very different matter from the preceding one; and as it constantly confronts the practical spinner in the conduct of his establishment, it ought to be thoroughly comprehended, and its importance fully appreciated by the student of the art, and the working men employed in each branch of the trade.

CHAPTER III.

THE MILL.

Essentials of successful spinning.-Divisions of the trade.-Selection of locality; supply of operatives; proximity to markets for purchase of raw materials and disposal of productions.-Site of mill; sheltered position, humidity, soil, water.-Roads; advantages of proximity to residences of workpeople.—Materials decided by circumstances.-Systems of construction.-Illustration. Fire-proof mill; points of importance in structure.-Arrangement of interior.-Engines; transmission of power to machinery; gearing, belting, ropes, advantages and disadvantages.—Arrangement of machinery.—Steam and water power.— Boilers and their adjuncts.-Care against corrosion.-Incrustations; their variety, danger, and wastefulness; soda, sometimes a remedy; economical heating.

C

OMPETITION in the cotton trade is now so severe, both at home and abroad, that anyone newly adventuring therein cannot afford to neglect the slightest matter that may be conducive to success. If possible the beginner should start with a sufficiency of capital to secure a perfectly new establishment, well found in every respect, and have a balance left large enough to conduct its commercial operations with advantage. Without a level beginning, the chances of success are proportionately diminished. The locality must be well chosen, the site of the mill carefully selected, the mill well constructed, the machinery must be of the best for its particular purpose, the management must be skilful, economical, and thoroughly honest. The manager must be perfectly versed in the practical details of his business, and able to manage men as well as machines. The commercial division of the business must be conducted with skill, prudence, foresight, and a fair share of enterprise. Old methods of procedure must not be re

tained from an excess of conservative sentiment when it is obvious that they have been superseded by improvements; and machinery must not be retained in work, though intrinsically in good condition, when mechanical invention has rendered it virtually obsolete. Anyone not willing to recognize and act upon these truisms had better not invest his means in the cotton trade. Technical, scientific and commercial knowledge, combined with steady industry and prudent enterprise, are required to ensure

success.

The following pages will be devoted to an exposition of the means whereby, from the materials employed, the highest quality and the greatest quantity of production may be obtained at the smallest cost. This task will be rendered all the more easy by the fact that there is no antagonism in the methods: what conduces to one result being equally favourable to the other.

The mechanical treatment of cotton-the processes it undergoes in its transformation into yarn-take place in the mill. This, to most readers of the present essay, will be a familiar edifice, though all may not be acquainted with the essential qualities of a good or first-class mill, nor with the conditions by which it should be surrounded.

Cotton-spinning is divisible into three or four branches : the fine trade, chiefly located in Manchester and immediate neighbourhood, in which the finest cotton yarns are produced; the medium fine trade, of which Bolton is the great centre, and which is also found to some extent in Chorley and Preston; the medium trade, which constitutes the great bulk of the cotton industry, and is principally located in South-east Lancashire, and to a considerable extent in the weaving districts of East Lancashire; the coarse trade which has its seat mainly in Oldham, Rochdale, Todmorden, and the Rossendale Valley districts, and the waste trade spinning up the refuse material of the preceding branches, which is almost concentrated in Oldham.

Having decided which branch to follow, this will, to some extent, decide the selection of the locality; this in all cases ought to be a place in which an abundant supply of trained and experienced hands can be had. Consistently with this, it should be in near proximity to the principal markets for the purchase of raw materials, and the sale of the produce; the cost of carriage inward and outward, rather than distance merely, being the point on which a favourable decision should hinge. The first is necessary to success, as without it the production will be less than it ought to be, thereby being burdened with a heavier proportion of the fixed expenses of the establishment than is that which comes from competing mills which yield a high average; the quality of the article produced will be inferior, and will therefore sell for less money; the amount of waste will be excessive, and the depreciation of the working plant unduly rapid. The important character of these considerations, which relate mainly to the internal economy of the establishmeut, will be obvious without further remark. The second is connected chiefly with the commercial conduct of the business, and is important, on the ground that carriage charges for material or product should not be a tax upon the profits; but its chief value consists in affording facile access to the markets in order that the persons charged with the duty of buying and selling may always be on the spot to take advantage of momentary phases of weakness or strength that may pass over the market: the former offering advantages in buying, the latter in selling. If other circumstances than these decide the selection of locality, care should be taken to see that they fully compensate for the loss that will arise from the absence of these advantages. The satisfactory determination of these points is extremely important, because it can easily be demonstrated that it would be more profitable to plant a mill in a locality possessing skilled labour and in proximity to the markets, paying full prices for buildings and machinery, and providing a sufficiency of