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About The west shore. (Portland, Or.) 1875-1891 | View Entire Issue (March 1, 1880)
78 THE WEST SHORE. March, 1880. HOW SILK 18 HEELED. Our readers may be interested to know tho process by whioh silk ii obtained from the co coon of the (ilk worm. The thread of silk aa it unwinds from tbo 0000011 ia valueless for manufacturing purposes, several of them oombined going to make the staple of oommerce. Tho persons employed in unwinding silk aro mostly women, one stand ing or sitting before each basin, of which she baa entire charge. The liasin is made of copper, nud, in tho large ostablishmonts, the water in each basin is heated by steam, at the control of the oporator. The cocoons aro plunged into the water, win 11 it ia near the boiling point,and moved bout so that the gum which faatcnatho threads becomes uniformly and thoroughly softened, Thoy are then beaten with a small birchen broom, having the tipa split, so that tho loose threads readily fasten to them. After beating a short timo, the oporator gets the ooooons fastened, and, taking tho bundlo of threads, ahakea the cocoons till each hangs but by a single one. Hho now takes up live or more threads, acoording to the quality of the ilk wanted, unites them, and introduces the oombined staple or strand into a little glass eyo on one aido of the basin. Hho then forms a second similar strand and introduces it into a eoond eye on the other side, Tho strands sre then brought togother, twisted several times, separated above the twist, anil introduced into two other glass eyos or ringlets through which they are led, one to each end of the reel or tamlmur, which is kept revolving in a steady, rapid manner, and to which is also given a cer tain back anil forth aido motion, Tho great object in reeling is to get tho throads uniform, rounded, well joined, properly frond from moist ure, and so crossed on the roel that they will not atick or glaxo, as it is termed. These ob jects aro attained by tho twisting and tho to and fro lateral movement of the reel, as also by properly regulating the diatanoo between reel and basin. The uniformity of tho thread do onda on the akill of the operator, who must supply a new thread aa soon as ono liogius to give out In order to bettor illustrato those principles, wo have introduced a tlguro of a reel. The following ia the description of its parts: a. Tin basin with copper bottom for holding the water in which the cocoona are boiled, littmg tightly over the tray b. b. Nquaro tin tray for rocop tion of coooous, etc. c Short stick inserted in holder, on which tho ends of tho cocoons aro wound, so aa to be ready for use. c Cook to let off water from the liaain. This should be dona every night after uae. , Door of furnace lined with tii e In nli, wherein tho charcoal tire ia lighted to heat the water in a. g. Flue p,,. to carry off fumes, h h. Illasa eyos on wile holders, through which the threads from the ooooona paaa upward to the pulleys at k. i. A former arrangement for twistiug the threads ono upon the other; this is now disooutinuod as unnooaeaary, since the twist given to the threads at k and continued downward to the point It effeota iU purpose with a minimum of motion, and produeoa a superior thread. This twist ia effected by the very simple method of pasaing oaa thread round the other, aa shown in the small drawing of the pulley k. k k. Hollers or pulleys revolving on bent-wiro stands, over which the throads pas, i L I'oroolaiu tubes on wire holder, between which the threads pass to reach 0. Glass eyea may bo substituted for the lint pair of those tubes with equal advant age, n A grooved arrangement by means of which the long guider working to and fro dis tribute the thread to the reel " in the oroaa." Unless the thread is thns wound "on the cross," it oannot be unwound at the mills when required to he thrown, and is, therefore, unsalable, ... The top of the reel on which the ailk ia wonnd. One of the arms is furnished with the screw- hinge attached, by means of which tho length of the arm ia diminished to tako off the silk. The adult reeler sits on the stool in front of the cocoons, and the other stool is occupied by the child who turns the crank. Floating Ihi.and. Among the many natural curiosities of Tuolumne county it is not gener ally known that there is a "floating island." Up in the "Siskiyous," lying liko a pearl in the great mountain chain, is Squaw lake, a beauti ful aheet of water now utilized by a mining company as a reservoir. For many years the lake has been a favorite and delightful resort for fishing parties, and contained nearly in its center an island, comprising about an acre of ground covered with luxuriant grass and a growth of willow and alder. It was never dreamed that tho pretty little island was not terra lirma, but when the bulkhead across the nutlet of the lake dammed up its waters, the island rose slowly until it had been elevated fully Hi feet above its original level. It would lie a question for the naturalist rather than the geologist to determine the age of this floating island, aa it is ovidently made up entirely of THE EFFECT OF LABOR-SAVING MACHINERY. The statement is frequently made that labor saving machines deprive workiugmen of employ, ment. That they take the means of earning an existence from those who have to work for a liv ing. The immense number of yards of fabrics which the cotton mills turn out annually are frequently made the basis of specious arguments to sustain the views of those who hold to that opinion. They state that if the cotton clothes were woven by hand looms, their manufacture would give employment to tens of thousands of operatives. There is no denying the fact that if tho same number of yards of those goods that are now woven by steam or water power were made by muscular labor, that it would be as stated. But would the same quantity of goods be made in the latter case ? Most certainly not. There could not be a supply of raw material placed in the reach of so many individuals to meet the manufacture. Or if we admit that such could be the case, the cost of production and transportation would be so great that they IMPROVED LOMBARDY REEL READY FOR WORK. decayed vegetation. Perhaps at somo remoto period the roots of a tree, upturn by the mount ain storm, drifting out in tho lake, formed the nucleus from which the inland has grown, but it seems singular that it should have remained anchored and unchangeable in its position. The locality is much frequented by pleasure seekers who will hereafter notice the increased eleva Hon. JathomHUt C'aL) Sentinel, A UatS run a Man. Somo interesting results havo just been published of cxgieriments made in France, in regard to this question, which are practically new. The maximum load for a moderate distance was found to be 319 pounds; but for a long distance, say a soldier marching on lovel around, he could not carry more than 132 pounds, distributed over the body as knap sack, cartridge -box, musket, cto. If he carries this seven or eight miles for a day, it is equiva lent to a good day's work. This is equivalent to 1,518 pounds carried a distance of 8,900 feet for a day a work. Hut if he ascends a ladder, like a hod-oarrier, he can only carry 120 pounds continual v. and will in a day carry only I "30 pounds 3,200 foot high. A Maryland genius has invented a flexible lining for kerosene lamps, which, it is claimed, greatly diminishes danger in case of breakage, and renders the lamp less liable to explosion. J would amount to prohibition of the consump- uoo. i oe i c uuuiu noi oo iouna purcnaaers enough who would be able to indulge in their use. There would consequently be a rapid de crease in the demand; the produotion would also meet with a like effect, and thousands of producers would be thrown out of employment. Nor would the producers only be forced into idleness. All the vast array of workers in every department of labor who now aid in the acces sory spheres of action, which the raising and transporting of the cotton require, would find their ranks rapidly thinned out. Commeroe would be suspended; the working of metals now used in the machinery, in the means of production and transit, would cease; and there ia not a branch of human industry but that would suffer. All this evil would be created upon the annihila tion of even the one item of cotton manufacture by labor-saving machinery. Look where we may, into any department of labor, and unless mechanical means are called to its aid it presents but a sorry aspect, holds but a trivial position, and counts but a very limited number of employees. But no sooner is machinery employed than its growth is rap idly extended and its ranks of workers greatly augmented. Labor-aaving machinery not only increases the production, but it also opens a widor held for employment Sir Jamm Fkrouhon has been appointed Governor of Bombay.