Textiles and Clothing | Page 3

on the Spindle, Continuous in Action; Capacity Seven Times That of
Hand Spindle.]
[Illustration: DUTCH WHEEL
Spinner Sits in Front of the Wheel Spinning Flax at Hull House.]
[Sidenote: Distaff]
Later the distaff was used for holding the bunch of wool, flax, or other
fibers. It was a short stick on one end of which was loosely wound the
raw material. The other end of the distaff was held in the hand, under
the arm or thrust in the girdle of the spinner. When held thus, one hand
was left free for drawing out the fibers.
[Illustration: Graphic Diagram Showing Time During which Different
Methods of Spinning Has Been Used.]
[Sidenote: Wheel Spinning]
On the small spinning wheel the distaff was placed in the end of the
wheel bench in front of the "fillers"; this left both hands free to manage
the spindle and to draw out the threads of the fibers.
[Illustration: SYRIAN SPINNING
Spinner Sits on the Floor, Wheel Turned by a Crank; Spindle Held in
Place by Two Mutton Joints Which Contain Enough Oil for
Lubrication. At Hull House.]

The flax spinning wheel, worked by means of a treadle, was invented in
the early part of the sixteenth century and was a great improvement
upon the distaff and spindle. This it will be seen was a comparatively
modern invention. The rude wheel used by the natives of Japan and
India may have been the progenitor of the European wheel, as about
this time intercourse between the East and Europe increased. These
wheels were used for spinning flax, wool, and afterwards cotton, until
Hargreaves' invention superseded it.
WEAVING
Someone has said that "weaving is the climax of textile industry." It is
an art practiced by all savage tribes and doubtless was known before
the dawn of history. The art is but a development of mat-making and
basketry, using threads formed or made by spinning in place of coarser
filaments.
[Illustration: PUEBLO WOMAN WORKING HEDDLE IN
WEAVING A BELT]
[Illustration: A NAVAJO BELT WEAVER]
[Illustration: ZUNI WOMAN WEAVING CEREMONIAL BELT]
[Illustration: PRIMITIVE HEDDLES]
[Sidenote: The Heddle]
In the beginning of the art the warp threads were stretched between
convenient objects on the ground or from horizontal supports. At first
the woof or filling threads were woven back and forth between the
warp threads as in darning. An improvement was the device called the
"heald" or "heddle," by means of which alternate warp threads could be
drawn away from the others, making an opening through which the
filling thread could be passed quickly. One form of the heddle was
simply a straight stick having loops of cord or sinew through which
certain of the warp threads were run. Another form was a slotted frame
having openings or "eyes" in the slats. This was carved from one piece

of wood or other material or made from many. Alternate warp threads
passed through the eyes and the slots. By raising or lowering the heddle
frame, an opening was formed through which the filling thread, wound
on a rude shuttle, was thrown. The next movement of the heddle frame
crossed the threads over the filling and made a new opening for the
return of the shuttle. At first the filling thread was wound on a stick
making a primitive bobbin. Later the shuttle to hold the bobbin was
devised.
[Illustration: NAVAJO LOOM
One on the Earliest Types of Looms. At Hull House.]
[Illustration: SIMPLE COLONIAL LOOM]
[Sidenote: The Reed]
Before the "reed" was invented, the filling threads were drawn evenly
into place by means of a rude comb and driven home by sword-shaped
piece of wood or "batten." The reed accomplished all this at one time.
[Illustration: A JAPANESE LOOM.]
[Illustration: A FOUR HARNESS HAND LOOM
Weaving Linen in the Mountains of Virginia. (Photograph by C. R.
Dodge).]
[Illustration: TYPICAL COLONIAL HAND LOOM
Two Harnesses in Use; Weaving Wool at Hull House.]
[Illustration: DIAGRAM OF A HAND LOOM
A--Warp Beam; B--Cloth Beam; DD--Lees Rods; H--Harness;
T--Treddle.]
[Sidenote: Definition of a Loom]

It is probable that the European looms were derived from those of India
as they seem to be made on the same principle. From crude beginnings,
the hand loom of our grandmothers' time developed. A loom has been
defined as a mechanism which affects the following necessary
movements:
1. The lifting of the healds to form an opening, or shed, or race for the
shuttle to pass through.
2. The throwing of the weft or filling by means of a shuttle.
3. The beating up of the weft left in the shed by the shuttle to the cloth
already formed. This thread may be adjusted by means of the batten,
needle, comb, or any separate device like the reed.
4 & 5. The winding up or taking up of the cloth as it is woven