To dye skein cotton yellow—On dyeing and re-dyeing cotton furniture yellow—To dye cotton skein a duck's wing green and olive—Of browns, maroons, coffee colours, &c.—Observations on silk—On ungumming and boiling silk—Whitening—Sulphuring—On aluming silk—Skein silk for yellow—Preparation of annatto, for aurora, orange, moidore, gold colour, and chamois—To dye silk aurora or orange—To dye moidore—Process for orange—To dye silk poppy or coquelicot—A cheaper poppy with annatto and Brazil wood—On dyeing silk a fine crimson—Composition for dyeing silk scarlet or crimson, with cochineal—Another process for crimson—Crimson by Brazil wood—Of fine violet—Observations on crimson and scarlet upon silk—On dyeing silk green—On olives—On dyeing silk grey—Nut-Grey—Black greys—Iron greys—On dyeing silk of a Prussian blue colour—Chromate of lead for yellow on silk or cotton—Conclusion.

We have in several preceding chapters treated of both cotton and silk; we shall here treat of certain processes and colours relative to both these substances, which are most conveniently arranged in this chapter.

The simpler processes for cotton will be found in the second chapter, the more complex in the fifth; the simpler processes for silk are given in the third chapter, the more complex in the fifth; the remaining processes for both in the present chapter, will conclude the work.

To dye skein cotton YELLOW.

The same operations as those in the first common red dye are to be used here; to one pound of cotton four ounces of roche alum, and from one to four pounds of weld.

When dyed the cotton is to be worked in hot, but not boiling, liquor, consisting of four ounces of sulphate of copper to every pound of cotton; it is then to be boiled for three hours in a solution containing four ounces of soap to every pound of cotton.

When a dark or jonquil colour is wanted, no alum is used; of weld take two pounds and a half, very little verdigris, or a little alum in its stead, but nothing else. For brightening, however, boiling in a solution of soap is in all cases necessary.

On dyeing and re-dyeing cotton furniture YELLOW.

If the furniture, such as rough or finished cotton or cambric, intended for yellow linings for bed or window curtains, be in a perfectly bleached state, which is now generally the case, according to the number of the pieces, so must the size of the copper be to boil the weld in for the yellow dye. A small copper holding four or five pails would do for three pieces of twenty eight yards each. The weld may be purchased by the half bundle, the bundle, or the load. Half a bundle would be enough for the above quantity of cotton, if a moderate yellow is wanted. The weld must be increased or decreased according as the pattern approaches a straw, a canary, a lemon, or towards a gold colour or orange.

The weld must be boiled about twenty minutes, the liquor then strained off into a proper tub, and the weld boiled again. While the boilings are going on, three tubs, being wine pipes cut in two, must be got ready and made particularly clean, being also previously seasoned for the work. One is to receive the boiled weld with some cold water to regulate it to the heat which the hand will bear; the other is for water, and as much alum liquor as will colour it and make it taste strong; and the third is to contain clear water to wash the furniture off.

Whatever yellow is in fashion (or indeed any fashionable colour,) has commonly a fashionable name. But if the dyer can, by his experience, proportion his drugs to the weakest, and from that to the strongest shade, let the name be what it may, after he has a set of patterns of his own dyeing, he will see, upon the first sight of any colour, how to set about it.

In the present instance let the pattern be a moderately pale colour of yellow; then put all the first boiling of the weld in the first tub, and cool down as above directed. Two or three persons should then work the pieces quick from end to end by the selvages, that they may be even, two may do this; one of whom must be an expeditious hand to work them and keep them even. When they have been edged over six or seven times, they are to be folded out upon a board laid over the tub, and wrung as dry as possible by two persons. When they are all out, they are passed in the same manner through the tub of alum, and, after six or seven turns, they are to be taken out of the alum liquor, wrung as before, and then washed off.

By this time the second weld liquor will be boiled; some of the first must be thrown away, and the second weld liquor added in its place. The goods are then passed through as before, and wrung out; the alum liquor being strengthened, they are passed through it, wrung out as before, and then washed off: the water in the wash tub having been changed.

In some instances verdigris is used instead of alum; and in other cases it is used in addition to the alum. For some shades old fustic is used instead of weld, and sulphate of copper instead of verdigris.

The alum solution, and the sulphate of copper, and the verdigris, or acetate of copper should be always ready. It is necessary to have a tub for each, in size proportioned to the work to be done; but larger for the alum than for the other two.

Sulphate of iron is also used in some dark greys, browns, slates, and in all blacks; this will require a tub as large or larger than that for alum.

When the yellows are dyed and wrung as dry as possible, they should be taken into a close room or stove to dry, particularly in London, because of the smoke, especially in winter. A German, or other stove, should be placed in the room, the size of which, as well as the number of the stoves, must be regulated by the quantity of the work. When the goods are dry they must be sent to the callenderers, if directed to be callendered; but the general and better way is to stiffen them with starch after they are dyed, and before they are dry; and when dry they should be sent to the glazers, instead of the callenderers, except when both branches are carried on by the same person.

When furniture, originally yellow, has become faded, it may be re-dyed thus: In this case it should be dyed rather of a fuller shade than the original. A large flat tub, such as described above, is to be filled three parts full of water, to which sufficient sulphuric acid must be added to make it taste strongly sour. After being well stirred, the pieces are to be put in, and worked in this sour liquor; and the yellow dye in consequence is stripped off. If the acid liquor be not strong enough more acid must be added, with the precaution of well mixing it with the water, and the goods must be passed through the liquor again: by these means the yellow is discharged. They are then to be taken out on a board upon the tub and wrung by two persons; then to be washed off and wrung, washed and wrung again, when they are fit to be dyed.

It is still to be remembered that any faded or worn out colour, or that goods more or less decayed, seldom become so bright as the colour which a new piece of goods receives from the same dye.

Some cloths for re-dyeing require the application of oxymuriate or chloride of lime to discharge their colours, particularly when madder or galls, &c. form the constituent parts of the dye. In this case if a bleacher be near it might be best to let him perform the process with the oxymuriate of lime; not only from the pernicious nature, but also from the expense of it, which, unless the business be upon a large scale, will not pay the dyer for his trouble.

However, if the dyer thinks proper to perform this operation, then the oxymuriate of lime or bleacher's ashes, &c. may be obtained at the dry salters and dissolved in a cask, and the clear liquor used in proportion to the quantity of goods, the colour of which is intended to be discharged, which, when done, should be washed off in two waters at least before they are dyed.

To dye cotton skein a DUCK'S WING GREEN and OLIVE.

This is performed by a blue ground, next galling, dipping in the black vat, then in the weld dye, then in verdigris, remembering to wash off previously to performing each process.

Olive is to be performed with weld or old fustic, verdigris, and Brazil wood.

Of BROWNS, MAROONS, COFFEE-COLOURS, &c.

It would answer little purpose to enlarge this treatise with a detail of all the possible methods of producing the various shades of these several colours, the whole consisting in the use of galls, verdigris, sulphate of copper, weld, and madder.

By welding a stuff previously maddered for red you may produce a gold colour; and by dipping the same red in a blue vat you obtain a plum colour.

Observations on SILK.

Silk, as it is obtained from the cocoons of the worm, is generally of an orange or yellow colour, more or less dark; in the South of France it is generally very dark: its natural shade is unfavourable to almost all other colours. It is also imbued with a kind of varnish or gum, which makes it stiff and hard; this stiffness is improper in the fabrication of most silk stuff, it is therefore ungummed, as it is called, by the following processes.

On ungumming and boiling silk.

Observe, that throughout the following processes for silk white soap is directed to be used; and, generally speaking, we believe it will be found the best, more especially for the more delicate operations. Yet Mr. M'Kernan, in his process for ungumming silk, directs yellow soap and soft soap in equal parts, and of the same weight as the silk to be used: he adds, however, that different sorts of silk require more or less soap; the best rule he finds, nevertheless, is the same weight of soap as of silk: and he says also, that yellow soap and soft soap of the best quality he finds the best for this purpose.

The silk is divided into hanks, each hank is tied with a string, several of these are tied together (a handful of them) by putting a piece of string through each separate skein, and tying the piece of string in a long tie to slip easily when they are wanted to be untied.

A liquor is prepared of thirty pounds of white soap to a hundred pounds of silk; the soap is cut into small pieces and boiled in water, when it is dissolved the fire is damped.

While the liquor is preparing the skeins of silk are put on rods; as soon as the soap liquor becomes a little below boiling heat (for it should not boil, as boiling would tangle the silk) the silk is to be put into it in an oblong copper, being nearly full; it is to remain in the liquor till its gummy matter has left it, which will be seen by its whiteness and flexibility. It is then turned end for end on the rods, that the part above the liquor may undergo the same operation. As soon as this is accomplished the silk is taken out of the copper, the hanks which were first turned being soonest done.

The hanks are now to be taken from the rods to the peg, disentangled, and nine or ten of them put on one cord, this cord passing through the string that tied each hank. When the whole is corded it is put into pockets of coarse strong white linen fifteen inches wide and five feet long, closed at each end and on one side; when the silk is put in, the pocket is sewed all along the other side with packthread, and fastened with a knot; four pockets will hold the whole hundred pounds.

The pockets being thus ready another liquor is prepared like the first. When ready, and the boiling checked with cold water, the pockets are put in and boiled well for a quarter of an hour, checking with cold water in order to prevent its boiling over; it is necessary also to turn the bags about often with a pole, or rather let two persons have a pole each for this purpose. This operation is called boiling.

In addition to the processes of boiling with soap, as above directed, Mr. M'Kernan recommends that the silk should be winched through a copper of water at the heat of 160°, having two pounds of soda (barilla) dissolved in it, then winch or wash in water, and wring and dry.

In the boiling of silks for common colours twenty pounds of soap will do for a hundred weight of silk; but, as in this case, the silk is not ungummed, it should boil for three hours and a half, adding water to supply the evaporation.

The silks intended for the greatest degree of white, either to remain white, or for the fabrication of white stuff, are boiled twice in soap and water; those that are to be dyed of different colours are boiled but once, and with a smaller quantity of soap, because the little remaining redness is by no means prejudicial to many colours. Different quantities of soap are, however, necessary for different colours.

Silk designed for blue, iron grey, brimstone, or any other colour requiring a very white ground, should be done according to the preceding process, and have thirty pounds of soap.

When the silk is boiled it is taken out of the copper by two men with poles, and placed in a clean barrow; they are then taken to a long shallow trough, from which the water may run away, the pockets are opened, and the silks examined; such as have yellow or lemon colour spots remaining are boiled again for some time, till the spots are removed. After unpocketing, the whole is dressed on the pegs.

Silk loses from twenty-five to twenty-eight per cent. of its weight in ungumming and whitening. The bags of silk should never be suffered to lie long together before they are emptied after being boiled, as their doing so would make the silk hard.

White silk, as before observed, is distinguished into five principal shades, namely, China white, India white, thread or milk white, silver white, and azure white.

The three first are prepared and boiled as has already been shewn. Silver and azure white in the preparation or ungumming thus: take fine powdered indigo, put it into water boiling hot, when settled the liquor is called azure.

To azure the silk it is taken from the ungumming copper after it is dressed and put into a trough of water; after it is worked, drained, and again dressed, it is ready for the

Whitening.

Put into a copper with thirty pails of water half a pound of soap; when it boils, and the soap dissolved, add for China white a little prepared annatto, (of which hereafter.) The silk, being on rods, is now to be put into the copper and kept turning end for end without intermission till the shade is uniform. For India white a little azure is added, to give the blue shade: for thread white and others a little azure is also to be added. Observe, the liquor should be very hot, but not boiling; the turnings five times repeated, by which the shade is made even. When finished it is taken out, wrung, Spread on poles to dry, and that part of it required for sulphuring must be put upon rods or slight poles.

Sulphuring.

The hanks, being upon poles seven or eight feet from the ground, in an appropriate room, one pound and a half or two pounds of roll brimstone will sulphur a hundred weight of silk.

Put the brimstone, coarsely powdered, into an earthen pipkin with a little charcoal or small coal at bottom. Light one of the bits with a candle, which will kindle all the rest.

The room should be close, the chimney, if any, being closed up; the sulphur should burn under the silk all night. The next morning the windows should be opened to let out the smoke and admit the air, which, in summer, will be sufficient to dry the silk; but in winter, as soon as the sulphurous fumes are dissipated, the windows must be shut and a fire kindled in the stove or stoves to dry the silk.

Observe, if the room for sulphuring does not admit of openings sufficient for the dissipation of the sulphuric fumes, the work-people will be in danger of suffocation.

When the sulphur is consumed it leaves a black crust which will light the future sulphur like spirit of wine.

If, in dressing, the silk sticks together, it is not sufficiently dry. Silk, which has been sulphured, has a rustling, which, for some things, is esteemed; but this would not do for silk to be watered. If silk, which has been sulphured is to be dyed, it must, for many colours, be unsulphured.

Silks for lace, gauze, &c. are neither boiled nor ungummed; silks which are naturally the whitest are the best for those articles. It is sufficient to dip the silks in warm water, and wring them; then sulphur them, afterwards azure them, again wring them, sulphur them a second time, or soak them in soap and water, those for whitening hot enough to bear the hand, adding azure, if necessary, and turning and re-turning the silk in this liquor.

The fine silk of Nankin requires no whitening.

On aluming silk.

We have treated of this before at the commencement of the third chapter, but a few more observations may be useful.

The silk being first well washed and beetled, and the hanks tied loose so that every thread may take alike, should be turned and re-turned in the alum liquor and worked, cooled in it, at intervals, from morning till night, afterwards taken out, beetled, and rinsed.

The above proportion of alum will do for a hundred and fifty pounds of silk, before you need replenish it; when this is necessary add twenty-five pounds more of alum, as at first directed in Chapter III., and so continue to replenish it till it gets a bad smell. When this is the case you may dip for browns, maroons, &c.; and afterwards throw the liquor away; the trough is then to be rinsed for a fresh liquor.

Remember always to alum cold or you will spoil the lustre of the silk.

Skein silk for YELLOW.

This is to be boiled with about twenty pounds of soap for every hundred pounds of silk. When boiled it is to be washed and alumed, and again washed, dressed, and put on the rod, seven or eight ounces to a rod, and then dipped and re-turned in the yellow liquor, in the proportion of two pounds of weld to one pound of silk.

The liquor is not to be hotter than the hand can bear while the silk is in it. The silk, when in the vessel for dyeing, should cause the liquor to float within two inches of the edge. The silk must be taken out and the liquor strengthened, if the pattern is to be very full; when full enough, one pound of pearl-ash for every twenty pounds of silk must be dissolved in some warm water; about a quarter of this liquor is put into the dye bath: take the silk out while you put in the liquor, stir the mixture well. Put in the silk and work it, turning and re-turning it as at first. After seven or eight re-turns, one of the hanks is to be taken out, wrung, and tried at the peg, and, if sufficiently full and bright, all is well; if not enough so, some more pearl-ash liquor must be added, and the silk worked as before, till the shade required is obtained.

For jonquil it may be necessary to add some annatto when you put in the pearl-ash. To make the light shades, such as canary or lemon, perfectly white, they must be boiled with thirty pounds of soap to a hundred of silk; and if these be not azured to be dyed, they must have a little of the blue vat, and a little of the weld liquor in water, (the whole mixture being as hot, but no hotter than the hand will bear,) and the silk ready on rods, must be quickly worked through and out. For deeper lemons the same process must be used as for the fuller yellows; only less weld, and twenty pounds of soap will do for a hundred pounds of silk in whitening it.

The blue of the vat is only used for such articles as are to have a green cast, and that extremely light; the aluming also should be in a weaker alum liquor: for light lemons it should be prepared in a separate liquor.

Preparation of annatto for AURORA, ORANGE, MOIDORE, GOLD COLOUR and CHAMOIS.

You must have a colander proportioned to the size of the copper in which you boil the annatto. To every pound of annatto put from twelve ounces to one pound of pearl-ashes, which last dissolve in water, and add the solution, by degrees, to the solution of annatto as it boils and dissolves, for which purpose the annatto must be suspended in the colander over the copper by a flat stick about six inches broad, run through a flat handle on each side of the colander, by which means the colander is kept sunk in the water with the annatto in it, till it is all dissolved, except some little foreign matters. The holes in the colander should be moderately small. Dissolved in this manner the annatto, if kept clean, will keep as long as you please.

To dye silk AURORA or ORANGE.

These require but twenty pounds of soap for boiling white. To dye aurora the silk must be prepared the same as for yellow.

Annatto prepared (as directed in the last article) and settled, is then put into a copper of hot water, in quantity according to the shade required; having mixed it well, the liquor being as hot as the hand will bear, put the silk into it; when one hank is tried, as in the yellow, if it be not full enough, the liquor must be strengthened till the colour is brought to the shade required. When finished the whole must be washed twice and beetled. The aurora serves as a ground for moidore.

To dye MOIDORE.

As fustic and logwood are to form part of this dye upon the annatto ground, the silk must be alumed, then washed from the alum, in order that the superflux of the alum may not render the dye uneven. A fresh liquor is then prepared, rather hot, to which must be added a little of the decoction of logwood, and of the decoction of young fustic. The silk is re-turned in this liquor, but if apparently too red, you may put in a very little of solution of sulphate of iron, which will make it sufficiently yellow.

When the silk is dyed with the gum, in the raw state, the annatto must be used nearly cold, or the elasticity of the silk will be destroyed.