The Eureka sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1902-current, 1921-03-12
m SURE YOU GET
RIGHT kind OF CLOTH
.u:o.l Household Methods
Testing Textiles Given
BY Specialists

o-fton. WOOL, siih oAN
lated in so many ways during
.o,nning and weaving that they
fns ,ook and feel like n another
" .nsc,alists Of the United States
r,msnt of Agriculture by way OF
Ns,,on to the housewife. Cotton
,nstance, sometimes resembles
~.ol. silk or linen so closely that
an experienced buyer is de-
go The housekeeper therefore
0..s. TO know some of the simple
...,. for textiles in order to get full
s.,rs for her money when she buys
clothing and household fabrics.
Van 10 Tell Linen from Cotton
pure linen is so scarce and high in
,,,cs nowadays that the housekeeper
...d. to be doubly sure that she is
eating pure linen when she pays for
= Cotton, especially when mercer
,,sd. IL often used to adulterate linen.
INA the high luster makes 1t difficult
! ,e,l the difference. Cotton and lin
an mixtures and m~ercerized cotton
,loue. especially in tablecioths and
towels. are proving a satisfactory sub
,,itute for pure linen. but they should
hs sold for what they are and priced
accordingly.
Whenever possible, lengthwise and
erossvise threads Of the material
.hould be raveled out and examined.
Cotton abers appear short, dull. and
fusy; linen fbers are long; fine. stiff.
and lustrous.
II cotton cloth Is torn. the ends Of
the threads appear fuzzy, while those
Of linen are straight and smooth. Cot
ton feels soft and somewhat warm;
linen feels wiry and cool.
Linen looks transparent IL glycerin
Is dropped on it. while cotton does
not.
Linen dries more rapidly than cot
ton. This quality. of course. makes
il particularly desirable for towels
and handkerchiefs.
Boiling and laundering a sample Of
linen material Is another fairly good
test. Pure linen will be smooth and
lustrous after 1t is ironed, but cotton
will look dull and somewhat fuzzy.
The Test will show also whether the
fabric is firmly or loosely woven or
whether 1t looks fine and strong
merely because OF skilful finishing.
Whenever possible 1t is safer to buy
linen that has little or no sizing-a
sort OF paste used to stiffen the fabric
in Il.
Test for Silk
silk apparently of good quality
sometimes splits or falls apart after
or no wear. Weighing the fbres
with mineral salts Just before dyeing
to give the fabric body Is generally
the cause, and this kind of adultera-
ton has been very common during
the last few years when raw silk has
been exceptionally expensive g.
Weighting silks sometimes give good
but in general pure-dye silks
better.
Burning a sample Of silk Is an easy
way to test for weighing. Pure silk
burns readily. gives of an odor like
hair or feathers. and leaves
ball of ashes. II weighted. only the
fbers burn, and the mineral salts
IRE left sometimes In the very shape
" the sample. Whenever possible,
ilks for hard usuage, as In coat lin
nss or ~petticoats, should be tested In
his way.
Silks are also sometimes adulter-
tied with cotton, and for some pur-
'oses such a mixture is excellent.
however. does not hold dyes
o well as silks. and such fabrics
ometimes soil and wrinkle more
than pure silk.
A mixture of cotton and silk can be
detected by boiling a sample of the
Material for Is minutes In a pint OF
Vater to which has been added 1 to
tablespoons Of household I've or
austic potash. The lye or potash
VII destroy the silk ibers. leaving
ne cotton intact. Mixtures of wool
M cotton may also be tested in this
way, for I've has a similar effect on
Vool. Care should be taken not to
'et any Of the lye solution on the