Wool, The World's Comforter; A Survey Of The Wool Industry From The Raw Material To The Finished Product, Including Descriptions Of Manufacturing And Marketing Methods And A Dictionary Of Wool Fabrics

WOOL; THE WORLDS COMFORTER SURVEY OF THE WOOL INDUSTRY FROM THE RAW MATERIAL TO THE FINISHED PRODUCT, INCLUDING DESCRIPTIONS OF MANUFACTURING AND M A R K E T I N G M, ETHODS AND A DICTIONARY OF WOOL FABRICS - 1922 - C O N T E N T S - PAGE AN INTRODUCT . I ON B y Ernest C . Hastings. Managing Editor. Dry Goods Economist .......................... 6 CHAPTER VII-SPINNING WOOLEN A ND WORSTEDY ARNS . . 57 CHAPTER VIII-THE WEAVINGP ROCE. SS . E . S .. ............. 63 I n t r o d u c t i o n T is safe to say that, while wool is the oldest of all our textiles, the public knows less about it than about silk, cotton or linen. Folks realize in a general way that woolen fibers come from the backs of sheep, yet they have little or no conception of the vast difference that exists between wool as it comes from sheep in various parts of the world, for example. Most people think that wool suits or hats or socks are all alike, whereas there is often a very tremendous difference in those articles that may appear exactly alike. One may be of virgin wool and the other of wool that has been worked over many, many times. Wool is the one textile for which no substitute has been found. We have fibre silk and materials made of various fibres that answer the purpose of cotton or linen, but NO material has been discovered that will take the place of wool. So--called imitation wools may look, feel and appear like wool, but the body refuses to react to these in the same way it does to real wool. Selling or buying woolen materials or products of any kind involves more than the sale of just the item. What the buyer wants is comfort or protection. The salesman who fails to realize this is missing a big opportunity. That all may know the properties and kinds and types of woolens the DRY GOODS ECONOMIS h T a s had prepared one of the most complete brief treatises on wool ever attempted. We doubt if any volume of its size gives in condensed form so much vital information about the oldest of our materials. Als is usual in MT. Darbys writings, the book is free from technicalities so that it is easily understood by a layman. Whether you buy or sell woolens youll get greater pleasure from the handling of them if you are familiar with the facts contained in this book. May the reading of it be a great pleasure. ERNEST C. HASTINGS, Managing Editor, DRY GOODS ECONOMIST. WOOL THE WORLDS COMFORTER I T is probable that wool was the first fiber used by man for clothing. It is certain that wool shares with flax the distinction of being the most ancient of the textile fibers but the origin of both of them goes so far back into prehistoric times that it is impossible to say which came . first. In the beginning men used skins to clothe their bodies, and sheepskins no doubt were used widely for this purpose by primitive peoples. As far as we know, the pastoral stage always has pre ceded the agricultural sta, ge in the development of civilization. Men lived nomadic lives and counted their wealth in flocks and herds for . ages before they began to settle down and cultivate the earth. And unquestionably the woolly skins of sheep that died or were killed for food must hlave been deemed especially suitable for clothing. Just when men first began to shear off the wool and to spin and weave it into cloth is another matter...