The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1882-05-31
Tub-Washed Wool.

Tub-washed wool is wool that has
been washed in the fleece after it has
left the sleeps back. 1t is practiced to
some extent, but not very much IN the
West. No machinery is employed, so
far as we have learned except at wooden
mills. There, all wool is secured, Chow
ever well it may have been washed pre-
viously,) facilities being provided and
experts employed to perform the work
in the best possible manner.
When growing in its natural state,
wool is lu6ricated and preserved by ma
ture with q sticky substance generally
called ssgrease." This grease forms q
very considerable part Of the weight of
unwashed wool, the lowest proportion
being about so per cent, and the high
est about IS per cent. 1t consists of a
kind of fatty soap, composed largely of
potash, no soda being present. When
wool is washed, either on the sleeps
back or in a tub, a portion of this grease
is removed; and more, of course, is
taken out when the washing is fairly
done in tub than in a stream or tank,
and thus the wool should bring higher
price.
But as rule manufacturers prefer to
buy wool not tub-washed, for reasons
that will presently appear. Before wool
can be used for spinning, the grease
must be removed, and in order not to
injure the fiber, as well as to preserve
its natural bright color, methods are
employed with which people generally
are not familiar. Sometimes the deli
cate fiber and fine luster of excellent
wool are destroyed by being washed
with soap utterly unadapted to the pur-
pose, and by persons who are not in
formed how the washing should be
done. Soda soap is unsuited to it, for
wool washed with it is inclined TO be
harsh and brittle, with q yellow tinge or
color. A good potash soap is best
adapted to the purpose. Nature points
out what is best in preserving the wool
with fatty potash substance; and in
such matters man finds that nature is
always correct. A suitable potash soap
must, therefore, be preferable to soda
soap for removing the natural preserv-
ing substance. We may reasonably
conclude, then, that strong alkali, such
as soda ash, soda crystal, or still worse
than either of them, lime, should by no
means be used.
Seen under the microscope, wool is
found to be q most delicate fiber, each
hair or filament being composed OF
cOnCeuIrlC Iln25 SURROUNDING auu ONci'
tapping each other similar to scales on
the back of fish. A strong alkali, used
alone, removes every trace of lubrica-
ton from beneath the covering of these
minute scales, completely destroying
the luster, besides unnecessarily dimin-
ishing the weight of the wool. But the
effect of neutral potash soap-a soap
containing neither free or uncom.
hinad alkali NOR an exeess of tallOW--is
only to remove superfuous greasy mat
ter from the wool adhering to the out
side of the fiber, while the internal
condition remains undisturbed.
This will explain why the mills
generally prefer wool that has not been
tub-washed. With well constructed
machines, the use of suitable soap, and
with experts in washing, "grease" WOO
is thoroughly cleansed with minimum
amount of labor, and the wool is moi
damaged either in fiber or color. The
subject of washing sheep will be taken
up at another time.-Prdirie Farmer.