The Dyeing of Woollen Fabrics

The Dyeing of Woollen Fabrics is by Franklin Beech, a practical colourist and chemist, with thirty-three illustrations. The preface says the author has endeavoured to supply the dyer of woollen fabrics with a conveniently arranged handbook dealing with the various branches of the wool dyeing industry. The text says the exact nature of the action which occurs is not properly understood, but there is reason for thinking that the wool fibre has the capacity of assimilating both the acid and the basic constituents of the salt employed.

The text says that excessive treatment with many metallic salts tends to make the wool harsh to the feel. The text says that if wool be boiled in water for a considerable time it will be observed that it loses much of its beautiful lustre and feels harsher to the touch. A recipe for Red Navy Blue gives a mordant of 4 lb. bichromate of potash, 2 lb. tartar, and 1-1/2 oz. sulphuric acid, and a dye of 6 lb. Alizarine Cyanine R R R double.