Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-11-21

twisted inner ana growing smaller and
smaller. until it at last is of about the size
of fishing line. Feel 1t now. It Is still
soft. Another strand Of the same size,
which has been reduced from another rope.
Is united with it. and the two are twisted
and retwisted by machinery until they are
Of the size of the finest cotton thread
The rope Of an inch in thickness is now
SO small that it would thread q needle.
The f1bers have been doubled several hun
dred times. and they are now down to the
strength and size needed for the making OF
cloth. AS they come from the machine
they are rolled upon spindleS or long spools
and are ready for the weaving room An
other set Of threads are wound upon roll
ers of the width of the cloth. These are
to make the long threads of the cloth. The
splndles are to move in and out between
the long threads and make the short
threads which GO across the piece of cloth.
In the weaving room there are thousands
on thousands of these spindles flying to
anu fro back and forth, through the cloth.
Each loom is attended by girl or man,
and great factory-like din fills the room.
Thread by thread the great rolls of cloth
are turned out. but the spindes work so
fast that thousands of yards are woven
every day. and the shuttle flies from one
side of the loom to the other about one
hundred and fifty times every minute. The
cloth has to be cleaned and smoothed up
after 1t is finished. 1t is then packed up
IN bales. much like cotton bales and is
shipped to South America and Asia, and
even to Europe
Shipping Cotton.
1t is important in preparing cotton for the
foreign market that it be put in certain
kinds of packages. Some of that which
goes to South America has to be shipped
so that it can be carried over the noun
tans on the backs of mules and the fac
tories find that each country has it's own
special kinds of cloth and special bundles
We study the foreign markets less than
any other ration, and l am told that our
raw cotton goes to Europe in worse shape
than that of any other country. The cover
ing OF the bales is SO coarse that the cot
ton often comes in full of dust and a per-
centage has often to be deducted for loss
The Indian cotton is shipped in well-pack-
ed bales, and Egypt sends its product out
in beautiful shape. Our consul at Trieste
lately sent to the State Department pic
lures of the different cotton bales as they
cocae to the markets of Germany. These
pictures show that the American cotton is
the worst packed of all.
Cotton Seed Oil.
There are cotton seed oil mills now to be
found in all parts of the south. There is
one here at Spartanburg run in connec-
ticn with a large cotton gin. Until a few
years ago the cotton seed went to
waste. 1t was burnt up or thrown
away as useless. Now it is one of
the most valuable products of the
duct is worth more than one hundred mil
lion dollars a Year. Much of it is used in
making oil. The seeds are ground up and
the oil squeezed out of them. After this 1t
is refined, and is used for all sorts of manu-
features. Some of it goes into soap. A
large amount is used in making oleomar-
Earine and different kinds of patent but
tcrs, and large part Of the salad oil which
is sold under the name of olive oil is in
reality made from cotton seeds. Experts
testified before the tariff commission in
1NSl that 30 per cent of the oil sold in the
United States was really cotton seed OIL
ant the use of such oil for salads and cook
ing is increasing every day. 1t is said to be
better than lard for cooking, and when
properly made, it is hard to distinguish it
IRON the best olive oil. The oil mills are
often run by companies with a large capt.
TAI, and there is already, | am told a cot
ton seed oil trust. AT first the oil was Shin
ped in barrels. but now there are tank cars
winch carry 1t from one part of the country
to another, and not a bit of if is allowed
10 go TO waste.
Inc refined cotton seed oil Is worth from
20 to Is cents gallon, while the crude
OIL IS worth only about ~ cents | am told
tnat the people who use this oil like ii
fully as we'll as the olive oil and that the
la5orers who are employed in the oil mills
grow fat upon it. They no longer bring
meat with them for their dinners. but mt
their dry bread under the Oil press, where
the sweet, warm fresh oil is trickliny ont
and eat it with relish. Cotton seed oil
costs only about half as much as olive OIL
and it Is cheaper than lard or bacon After
the oil is pressed out of the seeds the
ground refuse, or cotton seed meal, is
pressed into cakes. to be used for feeding
stock, and the hulls of the seed are OF
value for manure. Today the south is
getting more out of its cotton crop than
ever before. Inventors are now working
on machines which will take the cotton
stalks and grind them up into fbers to
be used in the making OF coarse cloth, and
the day will soon come when every atom
of a cotton plant, from the bark to the
seed, will be turned into money.
FRANK G. CARPENTER.