The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-09-16

but is also the head of the largest manu-
featuring house IN his line in this country.
On ascOunt of his labOr-saVlng machinery
he can compete successfully with all for
eign manufacturers. He claims to have
the highest class of machinery in the
world engaged in the silk industry, and is
the inventor of several machines that
have been revolutionary in their opera
ton, the most notable of which is a knit
ting machine, capable of l40 revolutions
minute and on which the finest silk vail
ing is made. In silk laces and vailings
Mr.. Jennings acknowledges no superior.
To follow a thread of silk from IT'S raw
state through its course of preparation to
| be worked up into delicate lace by the
maryelously ingenious machinery, Is an
exceedingly Interesting occupation. The
silk is received in this country in bales,
shipped from Italy, China and Japan.
1t is in skeins in the raw state, either
greenish white or yellow in color. The
finest silk comes from Italy. The thread
is like a hair, and is as long as the skein
The first operation is to throw 1t, or in
other words bring as many threads to-
gether as may be required in very fine or
heavy fabrics. When the thread is of
the desired thickness it is boiled to re-
move the gum which is natural to it, and
when dry 1t is wound on spools holding
several thousand yards each This is
done by machines of from sixty to ninety
spOols.
The spools are then put on jack, or
frames of pins, on which they revolve,
and from which the silk is fed on drum
or warping mill through brass plates,
more or less perforated with holes, &C
cording to the number of threads to be
placed in the warp. An ingenious device
registers the yards as they run on the
drum, so that when the desired length
has been wound, the machine is stopped
The warps vary in width according to the
work in which they are used. The next
operation is to run the warps on the warp
beams. These beams are steel rollers of
various thickness, and in widths running
as high as l54 inches. Transferring the
warp from the drum to the beam is a repe-
tition of the operation from the spool to
the drum. To every machine there is a
main warp which forms the groundwork
of the pattern, supplemented by several
auxiliary warps of various size threads,
with which thepattern is perfected The
main warp may be several thousand
yards, long, while the auxiliary warps
are shorter, and are replaced from time
to time
When the skein is wound on the spools
part of it goes in another direction, where
the silk is run from the spools on to bob
bins. The bobbins are the instruments
that in lace making form the design of
the pattern by twisting around the warp
threads At this stage the machine is
armed with the material ready to be
worked up. Ana this is the point at
which art enters. A corp of draughts-
men are employed making new designs
and laying out the work. The design be-
ing acceptable, a draughtsman's pattern
is drawn to scale, one copy of which goes
to the operator on the machine, who
threads it accordingly by running the
threads from the wharp beams which set
at the bottom of the machine through a
sley cloth and perforated steel bars and
fastened on the roller at the top.
This operation of the most eXacting
character, and the greatest care must be
exercised, and thetmisplacing of a single
thread will bring disaster TO the most
elaborate and carefully worked out
design. Each thread is handled separate
ly, and many hours are required to
thread a machine of l54 inches in width.
Within that space the pattern is repeated
as many times as the width will allow,
so that when the fabric is turned out of
the machine, as many as thirty strips
may be found Another copy of the
draughtsman's pattern is sent to the
jacquard puncher, or what may be
called piano machine, where the pattern
is punched on heavy cardboard on the
anne principle as the music rolls of an
orchestrion, but with the difference that
each piece of card-about two and half
by eighteen inches-contains the designs
of a Single movement of the lace machine.
# there are 800 stitches in pattern
there will be 300 of there cards strung
together.
The machine being threaded, the cards
are adjusted to the jacquard attachment,
without which lace might better be made
oy hand. The design cards operate drop
pers in the attachment bars, through
which the threads pass and weave the
pattern. each movement being complete
and perfect On a machine l54 inches In
width as many as 10000 threads are used.
The description Of the working Of one ma
chine covers all. When the desired length
mas been run of. it goes to the examining
room, where skilled women 90 over it and