Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1888-07-13
HEAD-GEAR.
A DESCRIPTION OF THE WAY
MEMS HATS ARE MADE.
Tho Method OF Making tho Fol,
from Fur-Shaping the Body
Various Other Processes
Making Silk Hats.


Commencing with the derby. which il
tho hat of the multitude end which il
made OF fine felt, otherwise known u,
fur, the question not unnaturally arises =
What is felt? How is 1t made and wha
is it made FRONT
Felt then is fabric without warp oil
wool, made by hair interlocking together
and forming a solid sheet, more imperv.
tous to air and water than any woven
fabric. How is this done? by simply
Shaking the hairs together. 1t looks easy
when written about, but the shaking re.
quires skill and special machinery
Any person who takes the trouble To
pull a hair out of his head will find, il
he has u delicate sense of touch, by pass
ing it through his fingers first one way
and then the other, that when pulling it
in ono direction there is slight resist
ancc, while if pulled in the other dircc-
ton it glidcs smoothly. This is because
In nearly all hairs, particularly short,
tine, soft, hairs, there are minute barbs.
a hair sometimes gets iuto the fabric of
a garment and travels all round it occa
Sionally. This is because it can only 20
one way. BY brushing or putting on or
oil the garment the HAIR is pushed along
ton, because the barbs prevent it get
Ting back. This is the reason why mat
ted hair is so difficult to siraighten out.
The barbs become intcrlockcd
Fclting hair or fur is producing n
fabric by causing the hairs to intcrlock
closely. Derby hats of the best kind,
called fur hats, are made of the fur OF
certain animals, notably the Russian
hare, the nutria, which is found in the
Andes in South America, the beaver and
the cony. The fur Of these animals is
particularly well adapted for telling"
There arc three colors and qualities of
FUR on each Of these animals When II
manufactures is going to make fur hats,
either high or derby. he makes mixture
composed of fixed proportions of six or
seven different kinds Of fur. The first
operation is to put the mixture through
blowing machine in order To clear it
from long hairs which do not felt readi-
ly. Some manufacturers buy the skins
and cut off the fur themselves, but n
great many have the hairs supplied
them.
After the fur has passed through tie
blowing machine and is ready to he
fused the quantity for each hat to be
manufactured is weighed out TO make
the hat, whether high or derby, the
fur first passes through the forming
machine, in which is n revolving table.
The fur is fed TO this table, which passes
into the blower, where it is blown upon
u revolving cone, forming what is tech
nically known rs II "body."
The body or cone is lifted oil and
dipped into caldron Of boiling vitriol
and water. This Gone" which is to be
the hat when completed, is about four
times the size of u finished hat and of
the ftimslest texture, something like
gray wadding torn apart. The bath OF
vitriol and water gives it its first sizing.
IL then goes to II very skilful workman,
called the hardcncr, who first carefully
fills every hole by throwing in spare fur
and then puts it through machine
which causes the fur TO shrink clio ely to.
gethcr. Then it goes 10 the sizing ma
chine, in which are Il number of rollers
which partially clear it of loose down
and where it is reduced in size by com
preston
From the sizing room it goes to the
stlfieninS room, where it passes through
Il bath, in which shellac is the principnl
ingredient. The specific ingredients OF
when the bath is composed and the pro.
porto oil each are various, nearly every
workman having formula OF his own.
1t energies from the bath dirty gray
color and IS sent to the colorcr, who nuts
II, with other hats, into large vat con
tanning the dye, where it remains two
days.
The colorcr sends il to the blocking
room, where it assumes the first approyi'
nation to the shape of hat. 1t is then
in shape like one Of the beaver hats worn
IN London during the reign of George
". S'
From the blocking machine il GOES ia
The finishing room, Where it is soItcnnd
1y steamed and rcblocked again into The
shape 1t is designed TO appear in for sale
FULLY sand papcred.
INC hats after passing through tho
nhishing room, are sorted out in dozen
.ols' and tho foreman OF the finishing
room examines them very carefully, law.
ing as,uc any imperfect hats, whicl, mic
kert Tor knock downs" as they arc
hat. ' "
The curl of the brim intended for the
style OF hat required has then to lie given
sometimes they are curel by hand but
generally the curling is done by
machinery.
Alter they are ourlcd they receive the
set, being either rolled uD on the side
OF dipped front and back as ordered.
me hats next 60 TO the binders, the
binding being generally done by girls. II
IS IN most cases done by hand, although