The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1900-03-25
FROM COTTON 10 QlI
New Process for Treatin, :.
ton That VIII RevoIe
tionize Dress
x<HHAT is mercerir,nr-- ,
SIX manufacturer. ~
lie laughsf ..sn-.


" lie laughed. -Sou....
has mesmerizet vor,~s ~
io0r question comes to ~ ! isac
small wonder that wors,
about this new wrinkle m sa'i7a
every SHOP naunts before ,helr $50
eeriKed waists, mercerired l,n,r.s = M
ized pongee and much else ,sss a'r'cF
cerized. The markets arr fpy, ~ me-
derfui material thar il cofta,, ~. ~ -
that is silk in ulster ana russla ~ !. 'ssay
is stronger by far than el,hs.e ~ vNal
The birth OF mercerizinw .,.,.
S S,u WIZ oo SO much to revclu,sor,,.. ~, n
ess y, Women Is due IN realty IA - ~
500 housewife would cali ss,s,..A
,s, Long years sso, as far 49, !.
- sohn Mercer' manager OF 49,.
llria IN England, wanted to filter -
esus''e acid A Piece OF co,ton a. NJ
oy ana was used for the yurpo<s -
ward being thrown around ror a. 80
no reason excepting that John Ms-s.N. "
nov billed with that spirit OF neat,ss. y, "
VII hsreor no hlots on the perta,, ~
ilnees OF room. BY ard By NJ 49,.
oy accident to splash the cotton ~
eve. which Il took IN a secndls 49,
trely different from ordinary co.ta,. NJ; y Z
ied 70 an Investigation. ana ,Ass -, "
Mercer discovered thar the trea,ss ~. ~
among It's other charms, had . s, .s.s
iar beyond that Of ordinary eos,a. \
even OF silk. But he aid not 49,. sa !. :
properly treated, the cation wopls ".
on the ulster OF silk. Tha, iissavr,x
reserved for later period.
SO mercerixing began. We, ,h.
much TO be done. for while Ian, ~
believed fortune awaited h,rs :
new invention and refused an on, - -
600 from French firm. he d,.,s,. 49,
quickly that under the. new nraras' n
cotton shrank one-uuarter, making ! s-
expensive 10 he practicable He sr,,, =.
rest or hts years trying to aisccysr y.
10 make cotton take caustic arid ,sh,s.
shrinking. and died an emb,,tyysA ~.
with no results from the new prncs- !.
cep' the hollow honor OF having /, p,s.s
for him.
But others were interested In the sch.~.
that would make cotton twice 4 90
and beautiful, simply by putting |, ,S,nu,.
a bath OF acid that was chsap a ~.
Others stood ready when John. ysn.,
died. taking up the work az be lei Il ~
ana Thomas and Provost, ~ German
simultaneously solved the difienlty. NJ
the solution is so simple that the voo6&,
Is that Mercer did not think Of Il yses.
before. and reap the reward hy w>&
mercerixed cotton a staple article u
world round.
why not stretch tho cotton h<foS ~.
ting II In the csiistic hath~' VA II
query that entered the minds of the ~
csssful men. and this seemed swh ~,
konablc suggestion that they set ahssi i
try &C. The threads Of the cotton I'M
stretched between two sticks and m
secped in the soda. They came opt ma,
out the slightest shrinkage. and what ~
Mercer had striven for years 10 attain ~
accomplished In moment
But the most wonderful part In I'll N
new invention atill awaited these fxtns
ate men, for II was Just here they tlsspv.
cred that tho cotton was not af9ze<
alone, but that II had the iuster u -
In other words by stretrhinx cotton ~
treating II with the inoxpensisc acid, ~
turned,it into silk Ordinarily cotton 49,
are nat and duh. but increasing nsI4
them to pun and round theHweisse -
Seersncker. with crinkled siks'rSH |!
one OF tho most effective mater1sas talM
out under the new process. rnstFsscna
the cotton is run through rnaehine ~
laws the caustic acid in parallels s'fye
upon II. These stripes thus srQuirs -
effect. and since there IL no tens>as "
soda shrinkr them, making them fsiHx9.
Thus BY thla process the fnanuf1cl9es
are enabled 20 sell at a remarkahJ ~
,,rs... :, .,,afnrial that ~any,tnstv II tut H.