Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, IA [i.e. Ind.]) 1839-1854, 1848-11-29

Grape ShaN2s.

line silks. SaflnS and grapes OF China
are most beautiful; but they are too costly.
and TOO much priced in China. TO form ar
tcles of any considerable trade with other
countries. Ii is curious. that though the
silks and satins surpass the looms otGrea at
Britain and France both from beauty OF
color and durability of texture. vet the
silk velvets are far inferior 10 those pro-
duced in England. The Chinese silk
velvets. although possessing much sub
stance. have the peculiarly dead hue OF an
English cotton velvet. and are totally void
of the silky .ustre OF those manufactured
a. Genoa and Lyons.
The Canton Grape Shawls are very
beautiful. but the real Chinese are not 50
plenty in our markets as some suppose
Plenty of shawls sold for real Canton Grape
are made in Paisley. Scotland. and they
succe ssfully rival the best productions OF
the Oriental loom. There are many who
nav not know how the Canton Grape is
made. and short sketch will no, be oGt
Of place.
When the Grape shawl comes from the
weaver's loom, it is perfectly smooth and
resembles gum silk cloth. But the threads
of which this cloti, is formed are made
with one thread harder than the other.
and for deeper craping the warp is harder
twisted than the weft.-The difference ot
twist in the warp and wett as the grapes
are twilled. forms all the crimping OF the
Grape. bat not until it undergoes the pro-
cess of boiling. This IS done by boiling
the shawls in fine white soap for a consi-
derable time. which removes the gum from
the silk and by the warp swelling more
than the wetf, the shawlS come out of the
boiler with that fine crisp SO much admir-
ed. All this crisp can be taken out again
by stretching the shawls on stenters--hence
in the dressing operation care must be
exercised not 10 stretch them too much
The embroidery of these shawis per-
formed after the gum is removed. For
this purpose the pattern is printed on the
shawls with fugitive blue and the flowers
are then wrought with the needle. After
this the shawls are sent to the dyer 10
be dyed and dressed. Sometime they
are embroidered before the gum is boiled
off, but this is not good method, as silk
is deterlorated in lustre by boiling in soap
any longer than merely 20 remove tne gum.
and 10 embroider with spun silk on the
eummcd fabric, would require the embroi-
derry silk to receive too much boiling. and
thus dim its lustre. DR.. IRE i'll his excel
lent work, says the sha"ls are dyed in the
gun.niy or ratc state. This is a mistake
except for very few coiors, it is impos-
sblc to dye gummed silk. and besides, the
natural lusire of the silk is not exhibited
till the gum is removed. More than this.
suppose the color to be dyed on the silk
in the raw state, the boiling to raise the
crisp or Grape would destroy all the color
on the silk The whole article in DIR.
Tres Dictionary relating 10 the dyeing
and dressing of Grape, is entirely errone-
Gus.
The use Of soap TO remove the gum Of
raw silk cannot be recommended. but i, is
the best and the cheapest with which we
are acquainted. Many of our fair ones
will no doubt be surprised to be told. that
their Grape shawls have been boiled for
two or three hours in soap. Many suppose
that boiling in soap would utterly destroy
any silk fabric. This in measure is
true-thc operation is nice one--but
there is not silk dress worn in our city.
that has not in the yarn beer boiled in
soap.
The reason why the Chinese finished
silks have finer lustrc than the English
and French, is owing TO the gum being
removed by tedious and expensive pro-
cess Of sleeping the silks in a cold spiritu
Gus liquor. In the raw state, before the
gum is removed, the Grape is Of dirty
yellow color, but the boiling in soap re-
moves the yellow gum and the wh,ish
silk appears. But still il is not yet white.
1t has TO be dyed for this purpose.-Some
may think this strange. but it is prac-
teal fact. 1t takes red. blue and yellow
rays of light to form white rav-a tri
unity. like the great Author who created
what Milton terms
='' holy light.
Offspring of Heavens first dawn
The dyer to make his Grape shawls
white uses in clean soap for that purpose
little archil and fine indigo trained
through a cloth. These colors mingling
with the yellow Of the shawl. forms a white.
which is further cleared up by the shawl's
being washed out of the soap in cold wa
ter, and afterwards submitted to the fumes
Of sui phur in close room.
Grape wells are very expensive. and con-
tanning as they do, so little sis-this seems
unreasonable-but the fine Grape manu-
facture is in the hands of few foreign
houses, and the art of dressing the Grape
is both tedious and troublesome pro-
cess.
In the last volume of the Scientific
American, patent process for dressing
fine Grape shawls was described. twas
TO use small quantity OF dissolved gum
copal and borax along with liquid glue to
s,iffen the crape.-This composition. if
tightly made and applied, we have reason
10 know. is good, and is worthy the attep-
ton OF those in this and other cities of our
country whose business is 10 redress
damaged Grape.
Hon. m. II. GENTRY.
The Memphis Eagle says that Col