Waco evening news. (Waco, Tex.) 1888-1889, 1888-12-20
OLD SPINNING WHEELS.
OUR cRANDMOTHERs' METHOD or
PREPARING WOOL FOR LOOMS.

Minute Description OF the Little Old Ma
chino which Has Been an Inspiration
to Poets and Composcrs-"Things Aint
jest as They Used to Be."
Spinning-that is, homo spinning-has
Just as much gone out Of fashion in the
New England and eastern states as sui
phur matches, and for just the same
reason-thero Is no need Of either now
that something better has taken their
place. There are, however, plenty Of
good wives who once on time were
learned practitioners in the domestic
arts Of spinning and dyeing, and it is
from the lips Of one Of these that gath
cred tho following information, which l
should imagine would be of interest to
your western hearers:
1.-THE first thing, you see," said this
good lady, "is to pick the wool. No.
faint either" she said, interrupting her.
self; "the first thing is to wash and shear
the sheep, but as that's done now just as
1t always was, don't need tell you any
thing about it. When the wool was
sheared and washed we used to take it
and pull it all apart, getting out all the
tangles and burrs and dirt that was left.
When it was oil picked it had to be
creased, and to do this we put a plate
with lard on it in front Of us and heap
Of the picked wool to tho left side. We
then rubbed bit of lard on both palms,
took up fleck Of wool and worked it
between our hands until every bit was
creased. When there was enough wool
creased the old man or ono Of the farm
hands would take 1t right away to the
cardipg mills"
"W6en the wool came back from the
carders it was in bundles about two feet
long, and made up humber of tight
pressed rolls the size Of my little finger,
each roll jest the length Of the bundle
When we want to use the wool we'd
take the bundle, give it shake, pick out
roll and then begin spinning. / don't
know as ever you've seen q wheel, but ef
you amt theirs mine in the setting room,
and p'raps I can best explain how we
worked it eff you'll como in there"
| A stout wooden horse with sloping
body formed the base Of the machine.
At either end was inserted an upright,
the Cre at the higher end stationary and
supporting tho wheel; that ut the lower
end movable and holding the "head,"
the vacant space between tho two being
used to hold the rolls Just spoken of. The
wheel was fully four feet in diameter,
Of oak, with rounded spokes springing
from solid hub, and joining Tyre
two inches wide, in which was sunk
groove to receive the driving band.
This "a stout cord - passed round q
sharply grooved barrel in the "head"
Of two inches In diameter, and
| - -
ingly rapid revolution, which was still
wheel of four inches in diameter set on
the same axis as the barrel driven by the
main wheel. The band over the second
wheel encircled still smaller one from
which the spindle sprang. The spindle
was of iron, three inches long and with
o half thread at the end; the bearings
were of plated corn husks, and the
whole was attached to a tapering wooden
peg fitting into socket drilled into the
second or movable upright. BY wooden
screen at its base the upright was worked
back to give the driving band its proper
tension. 1t will be easily understood,
trust, that single turn Of the big wheel
would set the spindle revolving at such q
rate that it would actually hum, and it
was to the humming Of such wheels that
the old housewives of lang syne spun the
thread from which stockings, carpets,
coverlets and blankets were afterwards
made by their tireless hands.
"Lemme see," said my delightful old
informant, "if can't find speck of wool
somewhere so as can show you jest how
we worked" Then she went out on the
she called "feck."
| OHTaint roCd wool che cold ssh,,t I
guess twill do"
Setting the wheel in motion with q
light touch of her right hand, she held
the end Of the wool to the spindle with
the left. It caught at once, and walking
quickly backward and slightly from the
wheel, but always keeping within its
easy reach, q twisted thread seemed to
grow out from between her practiced
finger and thumb, even throughout and
fine enough, il not to sew at least to darn
with. When the thread grew long the
spinner rapidly advanced toward the
| spindle, carrying her hand near the
wheel, q motion that instantly wound up
tho thread around 1.-THE spindle. So
the operation was repeated, until in o
very few minutes the wool was ex-
hausted.
my fingers amt quite what they
| USED 10 De, SAID the old lady, but as
sured her-as was the fact-that had
never seen any one spin better thread.
The oldy lady smiled and went on:
"When this spindle is full, you see, it
has to be wound OIL, and that is done on
the reel over yonder."
The reel thus pointed out was simple
arrangement Of two cross pieces Of wood
set so as to make four revolving arms,
and furnished at every end with a long
peg.
''The reel" said my informant, lis
placed beside the spinning wheel jest
under tho spendle here, the band is
thrown of, and by turning the reel the
thread is wound of from the spendle.
From the reel it was made up into skeins
and laid away for use. We've still got
the old loom out in the carriage house
that my mother used to weave on, and
| got SO far on with it as to be able to lay
out q blanket. Then tho mills were built
ct the falls and the loom was laid away.
We still used the wheel, however, for
spinning thread for knitting with, and