TT 
 
 
 THE TEXTILE WORLD RECORD 
 KINK BOOKS 
 
 Kinks for Knitters 
 
 No. 3 
 
 LORD & NAGLE COMPANY 
 
 Publishers 
 Boston, Mass., TJ. S. A* 
 
The Philadelphia Textile Machinery Company 
 Proctor Dryers 
 
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 Copyright^ 
 
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 COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT; 
 
 THE PHILADELPHIA TEXTILE MACHINERY CO. 
 PHILADELPHIA 
 
 Providence, R.I. Chicago, 111. Charlotte, N. C. 
 
"THE BANNER" 
 
 Hemphill's Latest 
 
 FULL AUTOMATIC MACHINES 
 
 Over 21,000 machines in use. Present production 
 over 100 machines per week. 
 
 Built for Either Plain or Split Foot 
 Work, Single or Double Feed. 
 
 Adapted to Manufacture Hose with Linen 
 
 or Mercerized heel or toe 
 
 ALSO FOR 
 
 Plaited Goods, Silk 
 and String Work 
 
 High Splice and Double Sole 
 
 I 
 
 Five Superior Points 
 
 Largest Production 
 
 More Yarn Changes 
 
 Highest Speed 
 
 Simplest 
 Least Repairs 
 
 i 
 
 PRODUCES A SUPERIOR QUALITY OF 
 WORK 
 
 Hemphill Mfg. Co. 
 
 131 Clay Street, Pawtucket, R. I. 
 
Patented 
 Knitting 
 Machinery 
 
 for 
 
 Under* 
 
 wear 
 
 Established 1865 
 
 Scott & Williams, Inc 
 
 88 Pearl Street 
 BOSTON, MASS., U. S. A. 
 
 New York 
 
 Utica 
 
~[ £.* -h' I «• WOK.U 
 
 THE TEXTILE WORLD RECORD 
 KINK BOOKS 
 
 Kinks for Knitters 
 
 No. 3 
 
 From the 
 
 QUESTIONS and ANSWERS DEPARTMENT 
 
 of the 
 
 TEXTILE WORLD RECORD 
 
 Compiled by 
 
 CLARENCE HUTTON 
 
 LORD & NAGLE COMPANY 
 
 Publishers 
 Boston, Mass., U. S. A. 
 

 Copyright, 1915 
 LORD & NAGLE COMPANY 
 
 Boston, Mass. 
 
 SEMc.,15 
 
 CLA410741 
 
PREFACE 
 
 The success which attended the publication 
 of Kinks for Knitters, Cost Finding in Knit- 
 ting Mills, Kinks for Knitters No. 2, and Ho- 
 siery and Knit Goods Bleaching, Dyeing and 
 Finishing, large editions of the first three hav- 
 ing been exhausted, has led us to compile this 
 book of practical experiences in knit goods 
 manufacturing. 
 
 The editors of the Textile World Record are 
 at all times face to face with the problem of 
 securing practical information. For years its 
 subscribers have been invited to make free use 
 of its columns in asking questions relating to 
 textile manufacturing, and it occurred to us 
 that if some of the most important and most 
 interesting of the practical questions that have 
 been answered were gathered together in a 
 handy form for quiqk reference it would meet 
 a widespread want. . 
 
 This book contains information which has 
 been supplied by manufacturers, superintend- 
 ents and overseers from their private record 
 books and their stores of knowledge gained by 
 experience. Many questions are answered and 
 much information given, but subscribers 
 should remember that' if there is any informa- 
 tion they desire which is not given in tjhis vol- 
 ume, it is their privilege to ask the Questions 
 
O PREFACE 
 
 and Answers Department of the Textile World 
 Record and every effort will be made to pub- 
 lish the information they want, provided the 
 question is one of general interest to the trade. 
 
 No effort has been made to group the ques- 
 tions and answers relating to similar opera- 
 tions in any part of the book. The index has 
 been carefully prepared, however, and its use 
 should enable anyone to secure the informa- 
 tion he seeks in the shortest possible time. 
 
 Grateful acknowledgment is due to the men 
 who have supplied the information and if 
 "Kinks for Knitters No. 3" should benefit any 
 of the large number of men for whom it is 
 intended, both they and the publishers will 
 feel that its mission has been accomplished. 
 TEXTILE WORLD RECORD, 
 
 Lord & Nagle Company. 
 
 Publishers. 
 
Kinks for Knitters 
 
 Knitting Artificial Silk 
 
 Please give me information regarding the 
 running of artificial silk on a hosiery frame. 
 Is there any way of softening the yarn? What 
 is the best way to run this kind of yarn for 
 making hosiery? Calais (2164). 
 
 I would suggest that "Calais" get his silk 
 on small cones and have his machines fitted 
 with stop motions. In knitting this class of 
 stock it is also necessary to have a slight 
 tension on the yarn. The knots in the silk 
 play an important part in the knitting as the 
 cones are all universal wound and almost 
 every knot catches the yarn and as it is hard 
 and of a woody nature will break the end 
 every time unless a stop motion is used to 
 offset the breaking. He will also find it neces- 
 sary to run machines slower than on cotton 
 or spun or thrown silk. I have made knitted 
 scarfs of the stockinet pattern which is prac- 
 tically the same fabric and found considerable 
 trouble until adopting the above measures. 
 
 As for a softener, there is nothing better 
 that I found than running the silk over oiled 
 pieces of cloth. There appears to be not so 
 much trouble with the yarn itself as there is 
 Avith the needles. The needles become dry 
 and apparently a little roughed and the loops 
 
IO KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 seem to hang and tear and by oiling the yarn 
 as stated above seems to be the only practical 
 way of keeping the needles lubricated and 
 perfectly smooth. It is also very necessary to 
 watch needles for the least roughness of latch 
 or rivet, as each little roughness will show a 
 woolly streak or wale in the fabric. 
 
 Cipango. 
 
 Production and Costs in Manufacturing 
 Union and Two Piece Suits 
 
 Please inform me how the production of 
 union suits is supposed to compare with that 
 of two piece goods. Some mills estimate that 
 •one dozen suits are equal to two dozen two- 
 piece goods. Please let me know if this is 
 right. Palmer (2435). 
 
 It has been claimed by men well up in the 
 trade that the difference would be as two to 
 one, two union suits to one each of pants and 
 vests. It has even been said that the show- 
 ing would be even better than two to one. 
 When the time spent on one dozen ladies' 
 pants, against a dozen of the same size union 
 suits is considered, the difference will be un- 
 derstood. The difference will be more on the 
 better grades where hand made bands are put 
 on. The difference in prices paid is also quite 
 noticeable; that is, 24 cents for ladies' pants, 
 12 cents for vests, total 34 cents, while the 
 price of a union suit is 17 to 20 cents. These 
 prices are for finishing only. Prices vary ac- 
 cording to style of finish or kind of band 
 
KIXKS FOR KNITTERS II 
 
 Uied. Taking everything into consideration, I 
 believe the comparative production under or- 
 dinary conditions should show better than two 
 to one. Trenton. 
 
 Keeping Track of Goods 
 
 Please give me a system for keeping track 
 of knit goods as they go through a mill? 
 
 Manufacturer (2156). 
 
 No doubt "Manufacturer" when he states he 
 wants a system for keeping track of goods as 
 they go through the mill, means a system for 
 locating goods on an order. The usual way 
 is to have the work checks numbered consec- 
 utively. For example, John Smith & Co.'s 
 order for 100 dozen came in on January 1st 
 and happened to be the first one picked up on 
 that date. The girl that stamps the checks 
 will stamp all the one hundred checks of 
 various sizes wanted, No. 1. Other orders will 
 follow as No. 2, 3, 4, etc., until the end of the 
 year. The cutters tie these checks to the 
 dozens, cutting off the cutters' coupon at- 
 tached. The goods are now ready to start 
 through the mill, each operator cutting off a 
 coupon that corresponds with her work, until 
 the last coupon is reached, which the folder 
 cuts off. It is a comparatively easy matter to 
 follow this system and rush or stop goods aa 
 required. Trenton. 
 
12 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 Estimating Cost of Hosiery 
 
 I would like to have an explanation as to 
 how the cost of hosiery is estimated in a mill 
 buying the yarn. Knitter (2209). 
 
 It is usually the custom for a manufacturer 
 starting in business, especially the manufac- 
 turing business, to inquire of some practical 
 man how he figures his cost. This is an im- 
 portant point. In hosiery manufacture the 
 first question is, what will the yarn cost? All 
 yarns are as a rule quoted f. o. b. destination, 
 consequently there is no freight to be added. 
 Under head of mill expenses are included heat, 
 light, rent, interest on capital, insurance, sta- 
 tionery, office help, salaries, fixed wages, re- 
 pairs, etc. This expense will vary according 
 to the production and locality. Following are 
 the items of cost: 
 
 Yarn, weight per dozen, 
 
 Waste, 
 
 Knitting, 
 
 Inspecting, 
 
 Mending, 
 
 Looping, 
 
 Dyeing, 
 
 Boarding and pressing, 
 
 Pairing, folding, stamping and boxing, 
 
 Paper boxes, 
 
 Seconds, 
 
 Mill expenses, 
 
 Packing cases, 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 1 3 
 
 Commissions, 
 Discounts, 
 
 Such items as knitting, looping, inspecting, 
 mending, pairing and folding are usually piece 
 work and paid by the dozen. The price varies 
 according to location and competition, and 
 prices will have to be arranged as conditions 
 demand. Garhwal. 
 
 Eliminating Unnecessary Work in the 
 Sewing Room 
 
 BY HAWICK 
 
 When going through the sewing room some 
 weeks ago I noticed there was considerable 
 time lost because some of the operatives had 
 the habit of leaving their places. The ship- 
 ping and stock room was on the first floor, 
 as were the presses and packing tables, while 
 the second and third floors were occupied by 
 the sewing rooms. We had cut hole? in the 
 floor at the ends of the sewing rooms ana lined 
 them with smooth boards, making chute? 
 through which the work was dropped to the 
 pressing and packing room. Some of the gar- 
 ments would be finished at the center of tbe 
 room and the finished product would have to 
 be carried, sometimes ten to twenty yards to 
 these chutes. This caused a waste of time 
 and also encouraged the operatives to stop 
 and talk on the way back to their machines. 
 I hired a boy to carry this work, but as this 
 
14 
 
 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 did not keep him busy, he also lost a lot of 
 time. 
 
 I finally decided to arrange some kind of a 
 carrier. On each end of two pieces of shaft- 
 ing we put wooden pulleys about 10 inches 
 in diameter. On these pulleys we nailed 
 thin boards, as shown at Fig 1. A is 
 the upright shaft holder; B, boards nailed 
 to wooden pulleys; C, bed made of heavy 
 
 canvas; D, wooden pulley; FJ, showing man- 
 ner of holding belt together; F, showing 
 pulley by which the belt is run. This formed 
 a wooden pulley 17 inches wide and 10 inches 
 in diameter. We then placed these pulleys in 
 upright hangers at each end of the machine 
 tables and made a belt by taking heavy can- 
 vas duck 24 inches wide and doubling each 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 1 5 
 
 side under so that it would meet in the middle 
 on the under side. This was held in place by 
 rivets and thin boards on the top side. The 
 belt was then made to revolve by placing a 
 pulley, F, Fig. 1, and running a belt from the 
 machine shafting. This belt or carrier has 
 proved very serviceable and revolves when the 
 machines are running. It has saved a great 
 deal of time. 
 
 Duplicating a Sweater Fabric 
 
 We are enclosing two swatches of sweater 
 cloth. We wish to imitate as nearly as pos- 
 sible the blue swatch, but have not been able 
 to do so. The grey swatch is made on a 14- 
 inch machine with 156 needles, with the head 
 set as far ahead as possible with a long draw 
 on the dial needles of about 1/S inch, the cyl- 
 inder needles raised as high as practical and 
 the whole weight of the cloth and stitch being 
 on the dials. This was made on a Snyder ma- 
 chine, especially cammed for sweater work. 
 Can you give us any information as to what 
 kind of a machine the blue swatch was made . 
 on, or if it is possible to copy it on the ma- 
 chine we have described? You will note that 
 the grey sample is not as firm between the 
 wales as the blue one, nor does the stitch seem 
 to lay out as wide on the wales. This was 
 made of 2/ 6s cotton fed into the guide double, 
 which would equal a Xo. 3 yarn and on the 
 tuck feeds we used two ends of 2/ 20s wor- 
 sted. Knitter (2352). 
 
 After examining the samples carefully I find 
 that by using two ends of l/5s cotton on both 
 feeds, which I think the blue swatch is made 
 
l6 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 of, you will be able to duplicate the fabric on 
 a Snyder machine. I would advise drawing a 
 slightly longer tuck stitch and tighten a little 
 on the dial stitch. A very good duplicate of 
 the sample could be made on the Leighton 
 sweater machine by using four ends of l/5s 
 cotton. Hawick. 
 
 Standard Measurements For Hosiery- 
 Please give the standard lengths for misses' 
 hose and men's half hose. Knitter (2460). 
 
 The length of misses' hose should be three 
 times the size of the foot. In some instances 
 the standard manufacturers vary this one 
 inch. In other words, a 9-inch hose for 
 misses should measure 26 to 27 inches. Many 
 manufacturers do not have machines to make 
 every individual size of children's or misses' 
 Iiose. They have machines that make even 
 sizes and they board out the uneven sizes. The 
 consequence is that the length of 5 and 5 1/2, 
 for example, might be the same. 
 
 The standard measurements for half hose 
 are as follows: 
 
 8 and 8 1/2 in. foot has a 6 1/2 inch body. 
 
 9 inch foot has a 7 inch body. 
 
 9 1/2 and 10 inch foot has a 7 1/2 inch body. 
 
 10 1/2 and 11 inch foot has a 8 1/2 inch body. 
 
 11 1/2 inch foot has a 9 inch body. 
 
 The rib top on all sizes should be the same, 
 5 1/2 inches.- Arclmore. 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 1/ 
 
 Hosiery Sizes 
 
 Please advise us the standard length of the 
 foot im ladies' hose from size 8 to 10, and in 
 men's half hose from size 9 1/2 to 11 1/2 in- 
 clusive. Also advise us if measuring from the 
 top of the reinforcement yarn in the heel to 
 the top of the toe is the correct way to meas- 
 ure hose. Saxon (2350). 
 
 The standard length of the foot in both 
 women's and men's hosiery is in inches, just 
 as indicated by the size. For instance, size 
 8 1/2 should measure 8 1/2 inches and 9 1/2 
 should measure 9 1/2 inches. The manner of 
 measuring is as follows: 
 
 On seamless goods measure from the point 
 on a line with the continuation of the heel 
 seam to the point on a line with the continu- 
 ation of the toe seam. On fashioned goods, 
 measure from the end of the seam on the bot- 
 tom of the heel to the top of the toe. The 
 standard leg lengths of women's hose are as 
 follows: No. 8, 26 in.; 8 1/2, 26 3/2 in.; 9, 
 27 in.; 9 1/2, 27 1/2 in.; 10, 28 in. 
 
 Filmore. 
 
 Percentage of Seconds in Manufacturing 
 Union Suits 
 
 What is the average percentage of seconds 
 in manufacturing union suits from spring and 
 latch needle cloth among the better mills? We 
 cut up all of our cloth regardless of holes and 
 ""if the holes up for seconds. 
 
 Clayton (2244). 
 
15 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 We referred this question to a number of 
 the leading knitting mills making union suits 
 and have received the following replies: 
 
 No. 1. We cannot say definitely what would 
 be a fair allowance for seconds in manufactur- 
 ing union suits. Much deepnds on the quality 
 of the stock, method of handling, also the 
 standard of quality of the finished product. 
 Part of our production is made on what is 
 known as automatic tuck stitch machinery. In 
 this department the average is about 6 per 
 cent, of seconds. The part of our production 
 made from 1 and 1, or plain stitch goods 
 shows an average less than one-half of 1 per 
 cent, of seconds. 
 
 No. 2. We have not had any experience 
 in making up goods by cutting the cloth re- 
 gardless of holes. It has been my experience 
 for many years that the most economical plan 
 is to have careful cutters who will cut the 
 cloth, turning the holes to advantage in the 
 different parts of the garment where they 
 could be worked in. We could not say what 
 the average percentage of seconds would be 
 with the method of cutting described. We do 
 not make union suits for men and women, our 
 product being confined entirely to children's 
 goods. We would consider in this class of 
 goods from 3 to 5 per cent, about the average, 
 depending of course on the quality of the yarn 
 and class of goods running. Bleached white 
 goods will make a larger percentage of sec- 
 onds than unbleached. 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 19 
 
 No. 3. The seconds in manufacturing in 
 both our mills averaged one-half of one per 
 cent, for the year 1913. 
 
 No. 4. We would say that one per cent., 
 that is one dozen suits out of every hundred 
 dozen manufactured, is the limit that any 
 manufacturer should permit to be made into 
 seconds. There is no good reason for making 
 more than this. To get this result it is neces- 
 sary to have good yarn, good knitting, careful 
 bleaching and dyeing and extra good cutting. 
 "Clayton" states that he cut up his cloth re- 
 gardless of holes and then sews up the holes 
 for seconds. We think more seconds will re- 
 sult from this method than when the cutter 
 inspects each length before it is cut. If holes 
 cannot be turned out it may prove to be a 
 good practice to cut off a short length contain- 
 ing the holes and use this short length for 
 gussets and shoulder straps. This will in- 
 crease the cost for cutting, but the saving in 
 seconds will more than cover this extra cost. 
 A few seconds are made in the dye house and 
 the finishing room, but with proper care they 
 should not amount to more than one-tenth of 
 one per cent. 
 
 No. 5. If the holes could be cut out there 
 would be about 4 or 5 per cent, of seconds, 
 but when cutting without regard to holes the 
 number of seconds depends entirely upon how 
 the cloth is running, and 10 per cent, might 
 not be excessive. 
 
20 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 No. 6. We inspect our fabric before cut- 
 ting and eliminate most of the seconds in that 
 way. Our percentage of cutting waste under 
 these conditions is about 12 per cent., but this 
 includes the legitimate cutting waste as well 
 a« defective fabric. Our percentage of sec- 
 onds in finished garments is very small. We 
 have no figures at hand, but it is considerably 
 less than 1 per cent. 
 
 Oiling" Yarn 
 
 What is the most approved method of oiling 
 the yarn before knitting? We have tried 
 paraffining by hand, but it is too slow. We 
 have tried oiling it with liquid petroleum and 
 found it gave satisfaction when we could get 
 it on the yarn with any degree of uniformity. 
 We used sight feed oil cups which dripped on 
 to a sponge over which the yarn ran on the 
 spooling machine. We found this satisfactory 
 up to a certain point. The sponge would wear 
 out and get clogged with dirt and we could 
 not depend on the operators to keep the oil 
 regulated properly. Is there no attachment 
 for winders for oiling or waxing yarn in a sat- 
 isfactory manner? Hastings (1288). 
 
 A good method of oiling is that of running 
 the yarn over a roll which revolves slowly 
 in a trough containing emulsion. The speed 
 of the roll as related to the linear speed of 
 the yarn, the size of the roll, the length of 
 the yarn in contact with the angle of contact 
 and also the height of emulsion in the trough 
 are all determining factors as regards the 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 21 
 
 moistening of the yarn. Jacob K. Altemus of 
 Philadelphia makes automatic paraffine wax- 
 ing attachments for winders. The proper con- 
 ditioning of the yarn is very important and 
 the amount of moisture to be used should be 
 determined by careful experiments. Undoubt- 
 edly one of the reasons why American made 
 goods do not have the soft finish of the im- 
 ported is because we do not often soften our 
 yarns before knitting. No amount of labor in 
 finishing will ever even the lengths of stitches 
 which have been unevenly drawn in knitting. 
 
 Elibank. 
 
 Uneven Lengths in Ladies' Hosiery 
 
 We are making ladies' hosiery from peeler 
 and mercerized yarns and are having trouble 
 in getting the length of the stockings uniform. 
 Is this variation caused in the knitting process 
 or to uneven shrinkage in dyeing. 
 
 Halifax (2149). 
 
 Uneven lengths of ladies' hosiery can be 
 caused by a number of things. In the first 
 place the cause may be the cutting from the 
 machine. Again it may be trimming too 
 much off after turning the welt. I would sug- 
 gest that "Halifax" get one machine right and 
 use a weaver's pick glass to get all the other 
 machines to make the same number of 
 stitches to the inch. Then have the same 
 number of links in all parts of the chain. 
 After doing this there should be no reason for 
 
22 ' KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 variation other than the slight variation in 
 the yarn. If the peeler goods are made on 
 the same machine that is used for mercerized 
 yarn and the same size yarn is used without 
 changing the machine, it will be found that 
 the peeler goods will shrink more than the 
 mercerized goods. Cipango. 
 
 How We Increased Our Floor Space 
 
 B!Y HAWICK 
 
 The cutting room in the mill where I was 
 employed was probably 40 feet wide by 90 feet 
 long. The building was rather old-fashioned, 
 having a ceiling about 20 to 25 feet high. We 
 had three large cutting tables in this room, 
 but our business was rapidly increasing, and 
 we soon needed additional room. It was im- 
 possible to enlarge the room so we found it 
 necessary to utilize all the space we had. We 
 tried several methods of rearrangement, but 
 could not increase the floor space materially. 
 We then tried to devise some plan whereby 
 we could utilize some of the space overhead. 
 
 The building was built with heavy rafters 
 and large posts supporting the roofs, so we 
 decided to make a sort of hanging floor. This 
 we did by getting some very heavy iron rods 
 about 1 1/2 inches in diameter, with a loop 
 at each end and about 12 feet long. We fast- 
 ened these to the large rafters at intervals of 
 four feet and in the center. They were fast- 
 ened to the rafters with heavy bolts with a 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 23 
 
 washer and nut, holding them fast on the end. 
 On the lower end of these rods we hung large 
 rafters about 3 1/2 by 8 inches. These were 
 pieced together so as to extend the length of 
 the room. We fastened these rafters in the 
 same way in which we had fastened the rods 
 to the ceiling. 
 
 Holes were cut in the wall of the building 
 and rafters were extended from these holes to 
 meet the large rafter. These were also placed 
 at intervals of about 4 feet and fastened by 
 means of large spikes and were also hung by 
 means of rods. We then had our framework 
 complete and to this we nailed the flooring. 
 This increased our floor space about one-half. 
 At first we had a stairway going up to this 
 hanging floor, but later built a runway or in- 
 cline. The floor was approved by the building 
 inspector and has been supporting several tons. 
 
 Comparative Yarn Table for Cotton, Spun 
 
 Silk, Artificial Silk and Thrown 
 
 Silk Yarns 
 
 The Sauquoit Silk Manufacturing Co., Phila- 
 delphia, Pa., has compiled the accompanying 
 yarn table, showing the equivalent of denier 
 sizes in yards per pound, dram sizes and cot- 
 ton counts. 
 
 Cotton 2-ply, 3-ply and 4-ply has 1/2, 1/3 
 and 1/4 the number of hanks and yardage per 
 pound, its counts and numbers indicate. 
 
24 
 
 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 g^ 
 
 
 ■ 
 
 — 
 
 
 Cotton 
 
 and Spun Silk 
 
 ARTIFICIAL SILK 
 
 
 THROWN SILK 
 
 ! 
 
 tingles 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 840 Yds. per hank 
 
 Den (pre 
 
 Yds. per lb. 
 
 Drams 
 
 Yds. per Lb. 
 In Gum 
 
 Yds. per Lb. 
 In Boll oil 
 
 No. 
 
 Yds. per lb. 
 
 60 
 
 74,409 
 
 41 
 
 56,889 
 
 75,852 
 
 90 
 
 75,600 
 
 70 
 
 63,779 
 
 51 
 
 47,628 
 
 63,504 
 
 76 
 
 63,840 
 
 80 
 
 55,806 
 
 64 
 
 41,796 
 
 55,728 
 
 66 
 
 55,440 
 
 90 
 
 49,606 
 
 65 
 
 37,236 
 
 49,648 
 
 60 
 
 50,400 
 
 100 
 
 44,645 
 
 73 
 
 33,572 
 
 44,762 
 
 54 
 
 45,360 
 
 110 
 
 40,587 
 
 81 
 
 30,568 
 
 40,757 
 
 48 
 
 40,320 
 
 120 
 
 37,204 
 
 91 
 
 28,055 
 
 37,407 
 
 46 
 
 38,640 
 
 130 
 
 34,342 
 
 91- 
 
 25,924 
 
 34,565 
 
 41 
 
 34,440 
 
 140 
 
 31,890 
 
 10* 
 
 23,814 
 
 31,752 
 
 32 
 
 31,920 
 
 150 
 
 29,764 
 
 111 
 
 22,260 
 
 29,680 
 
 35 
 
 29,400 
 
 160 
 
 27,903 
 
 12* 
 
 20,898 
 
 27,864 
 
 33 
 
 27,720 
 
 170 
 
 26,262 
 
 13 
 
 19,692 
 
 26,256 
 
 31 
 
 26,040 
 
 180 
 
 24,803 
 
 134 
 
 18,618 
 
 24,824 
 
 29 
 
 24,360 
 
 190 
 
 23,497 
 
 141 
 
 17,655 
 
 23,540 
 
 28 
 
 23,520 
 
 200 
 
 22,323 
 
 15* 
 
 16,786 
 
 22,381 
 
 27 
 
 22,680 
 
 210 
 
 21,260 
 
 16 
 
 16,000 
 
 21,333 
 
 26 
 
 21,840 
 
 220 
 
 20,293 
 
 161 
 
 15,284 
 
 20,378 
 
 24 
 
 20,160 
 
 230 
 
 19,411 
 
 171 
 
 14,628 
 
 19,g&4 
 
 23 
 
 19,320 
 
 240 
 
 18,602 
 
 18* 
 
 14,028 
 
 18,704 
 
 22 
 
 18,480 
 
 250 
 
 17,858 
 
 19 
 
 13,474 
 
 17,965 
 
 21 
 
 17,640 
 
 260 
 
 17,171 
 
 20 
 
 12,800 r 
 
 17,067 
 
 20 
 
 16,800 
 
 270 
 
 16,535 
 
 203 
 
 12,337 
 
 16,449 
 
 
 
 280 
 
 15,945 
 
 21 J 
 
 11,907 
 
 15,876 
 
 19 
 
 15,960 
 
 290 
 
 15,395 
 
 22 
 
 11,636 
 
 15,515 
 
 18 
 
 15,120 
 
 300 
 
 14,882 
 
 23 
 
 11,130 
 
 14,840 
 
 
 
 310 
 
 14,401 
 
 23$ 
 
 10,894 
 
 14,525 
 
 17 
 
 14,280 
 
 320 
 
 13,951 
 
 24* 
 
 10,449 
 
 -13,932 
 
 16 
 
 13,440 
 
 330 
 
 13,529 
 
 25 
 
 10,240 
 
 16,653 
 
 
 
 340 
 
 13,131 
 
 26 
 
 9,846 
 
 13,128 
 
 
 
 350 
 
 12,756 
 
 261 
 
 9,603 
 
 12,883 
 
 15 
 
 12,600 
 
 360 
 
 12,401 
 
 271 
 
 9,309 
 
 12,412 
 
 
 
 370 
 
 12,066 
 
 281 
 
 8,983 
 
 11,977 
 
 
 
 380 
 
 11,749 
 
 29 
 
 8,827 
 
 11,769 
 
 14 
 
 11,760 
 
 390 
 
 11,447 
 
 30 
 
 8,533 
 
 11,378 
 
 
 
 400 
 
 11,161 
 
 301 
 
 8,393 
 
 11,191 
 
 13 
 
 10,920 
 
 450 
 
 9,921 
 
 341 
 
 7,421 
 
 9,894 
 
 12 
 
 10,080 
 
 500 
 
 8,929 
 
 38 
 
 6,737 
 
 8,983 
 
 11 
 
 9,240 
 
 550 
 
 8,117 
 
 42 
 
 6,095 
 
 8,127 
 
 10 
 
 8,400 
 
 600 
 
 7,441 
 
 46 
 
 5,565 
 
 7,420 
 
 9 
 
 7,560 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 25 
 
 For instance 2/10 = 4,200 yards to the 
 pound, 3/10 = 2,800 yards. 
 
 Spun Silk in 2-ply, 3-ply, etc., has the num- 
 ber of hanks per pound, and yardage its count 
 indicates. 
 
 For instance 10/1 = 8,400 yards to pound, 
 10/2 the same, etc. 
 
 Thrown Silk loses in dyeing, an average of 
 25 per cent., hence 1 pound or 16 ounces grey 
 will give 12 ounces dyed, pure dye, making it 
 necessary to add 3 3 1/3 per cent, to the gum 
 or grey yards per pound to obtain the dyed 
 yardage per pound of 16 ounces. 
 
 46 drams 5,565 yards per gum pound, plus 
 33 1/3 per cent. (1,855) = 7,420 yards per 
 dyed pound. 
 
 An Improved Method of Making Solutions 
 for Knitting Yarns 
 
 BY CARDIGAN 
 
 In order to get the best results in knitting 
 yarn we moistened the wool yarn by running 
 it over a roller which revolved in a trough 
 partly filled with a solution of lard oil, soap, 
 paraffine and water. This solution was made 
 up by the bucketful and heated until it 
 reached the boiling point. It was then boiled 
 until smooth. This worked well for a while, 
 but on some days we ran on cotton and did 
 not have any use for the solution. On these 
 days the buckets would stand around the 
 room and catch all kinds of refuse, including 
 
26 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 tobacco and pieces of yarn waste. This made 
 the solution so dirty it was impossible to use 
 it on white yarn and frequently we had to 
 throw it away. 
 
 Finally we arranged a can in which to boil 
 the solution. We cut a hole in an old water 
 cooler and ran a steam pipe into it from the 
 boiler. In this way we were able to prepare 
 the mixture in larger quantities and could 
 draw it off as we used it, thus preventing the 
 accumulation of dirt and other refuse. 
 
 Dyeing Silk Hosiery 
 
 Please give us information regarding the 
 best methods of matching the silk with the 
 cotton or mercerized top in a silk hose. We 
 are having trouble in getting a good match as 
 well as an even dye. Monarch (2326). 
 
 The difficulty appears to be in failing to ob- 
 tain an even shade on both the cotton and 
 silk. The dyes suggested as having been used 
 seem to be of the classes most employed for 
 the purpose by dyers of these goods, but we 
 think that it is not so much a matter of what 
 firm supplied the dyes, as it is of experience or 
 lack of skill in applying them. Dyeing stock- 
 ings of this and similar bright shades to meet 
 the demands of the current fashions for colors 
 constitutes almost a trade by itself, and the 
 writer has seen otherwise skilled silk dyers fail 
 utterly to satisfy the demands of the mills. 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 2/ 
 
 To dye such shades, the dyes must be se- 
 lected from the group of colors that will dye 
 both fibers approximately the same shade 
 from the one bath, and afterwards top with 
 brilliant green crystals. The dyeing should be 
 done as follows: 
 
 Prepare the bath with 
 10 lbs. Soap. 
 3 lbs. Soda. 
 60 lbs. Glauber's Salt. 
 
 The softest water only should be used. Boil 
 the bath, and add the above items and the 
 necessary amount of dyestuff as determined by 
 laboratory tests, and dye for about one hour. 
 This does not mean to keep the goods on the 
 spring boil for the entire time. The cotton is 
 dyed, less than the silk, but the cotton takes 
 on color in the cooling bath, consequently the 
 dyer must keep a close watch as to just how 
 the dyes are doing their work in the kettle. It 
 happens that shading is frequently necessary 
 for this class of work, and the dyer must have 
 at hand for instant use some few dyes that 
 will dye one or the other of the fibers in the 
 stockings. It is almost impossible for any 
 colorist or dyer to make a combination of dyes 
 that will dye silk and mercerized cotton mix- 
 tures identically the same shade. 
 
 After the body shade has been dyed, run the 
 kettle off, give a rinse, and make up a fresh 
 kettle w T ith cold water, add a suitable amount 
 of the basic green (brilliant green crystals) 
 
28 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 and work the stockings in it for some time, 
 and then gradually increase the temperature 
 to 125° to 130° F. and continue working until 
 the degree of brilliancy has been reached. 
 Run off, and then give a light wash until no 
 more color comes off. 
 
 Shading with the basic dyes requires that a 
 small quantity of acetic acid should be used 
 to ensure even results. Berwick. 
 
 Causes and Prevention of Seconds 
 
 BY TRENTON 
 
 The problem of keeping down seconds in a 
 knitting mill is one on which many manufac- 
 turers have spent a lifetime and much money. 
 The attempt to prevent seconds has sometimes 
 cost more than the real loss in seconds. Sec- 
 onds collect from a hundred causes, but the 
 most important are oil spots, poor winding, 
 bad knitting and mistakes. Cleanliness goes 
 far to reduce the number of seconds. Oil 
 spots always mean seconds, even with the so- 
 called stainless oils, for even with the latter 
 the goods will turn yellow in a month or two 
 and will be returned by the buyer. This starts 
 trouble, for no one can place the responsibility 
 for an oil spot. 
 
 There is not much chance for oil spots 
 around a winder, so we will take up the next 
 step, the knitting frames. The careless oiling 
 of a machine by letting the oil can drip, or 
 putting perhaps too much oil around the bed 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 29 
 
 plate or cylinder ring-, will cause the oil to 
 drop through to the fabric below. Sometimes 
 these drops get on the take-up rollers and 
 leave a black spot at every revolution of the 
 roller. The oil that drips from the can or any 
 clean oil is the cause of future trouble. Black 
 oil can be cut out at the cutting table. Oil 
 spots also occur from other sources such as 
 leaky bearings, elevators, sewing machines, oil 
 cans and oily tables. A knitter who uses a 
 leaking can over a valuable roll of goods in 
 sight of a bright red "Cleanliness First" sign 
 ought to be looking for another job a few min- 
 utes later. This also applies in the bleach 
 house to a man who will squirt oil around an 
 extractor in motion, the extractor having no 
 protection from the spattered oil. 
 
 Operators of sewing machines also swell the 
 list of seconds by flooding a machine or using 
 the leaky tin oil can. Dirty or oily yarn 
 streaks must be fought out with the spinner 
 and if a perfect white garment of the better 
 grades is wanted this will be a hard proposi- 
 tion. 
 
 Poor winding results in large bunchy knots, 
 loosely tied knots and spinners' waste. Keep 
 the strippers closed. Otherwise the result will 
 be bales and bunches in the goods. New ways 
 of making seconds are constantly appearing. 
 The most common cause is yarn that has 
 twits, soft ends or uneven spots. All these de- 
 fects mean holes. A tight fabric with poor 
 
30 
 
 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 yarn, too long a draw on the dial stitch cams, 
 tight or hard pull on the take-up, poor 
 needles, worn cams or thread guides, guides 
 too close to the needles, cut dials or cylinders, 
 all tend to make seconds. 
 
 A knitting frame must be kept clean and all 
 parts watched for defects. The old saying, 
 "Good winding is half the knitting," does not 
 apply in all cases. Do not let waste collect 
 around the needles or in the yarn rack. Do 
 not let an operator run too many machines. 
 This might not seem important, but notice an 
 operator that takes care of say eight large 
 latch machines. When things seem to go bad, 
 the machine does not get the necessary atten- 
 tion. The operator with six machines watches 
 the work closely, has more time to look 
 around and produces more work than the 
 operator with eight machines, other things 
 being equal. 
 
 It is essential to keep yarn on bobbins on 
 a covered shelf out of reach of the floor dust 
 and dirt. Do not let the rolls or skeins of 
 knitted cloth get on the floor. Have the cut- 
 ters call attention to all the imperfect rolls. 
 This might get tiresome for a time, but it helps 
 in the end. Make a note of all these imper- 
 fections and get after them. It will be sur- 
 prising how soon the cutters stop calling up 
 the knitter to look at bad rolls. 
 
 A mistake in a knitting mill, from a winder 
 who mixes the j^arns to the buttonhole opera- 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 31 
 
 tor who makes a buttonhole upside down, 
 means a second. A knitter puts up the wrong 
 yarn, seconds; the cutter gets a certain size 
 too short, seconds. Seamers get sleeves in 
 crooked, or take off too much, seconds. Fin- 
 ishers run crooked lines, operators put lace on 
 wrong, or a different style than called for, sec- 
 onds. Button-hole, button sewers, tape girls, 
 inspectors may cause seconds. A bad needle 
 in knitting, a finished garment caught in a 
 sewing machine belt, a drop of stamping ink, 
 or a drop of paste in the shipping room may 
 make a second at the last process. How to 
 prevent seconds: Fight them, fight the leaky 
 oil can, dirty floors and walls, cloth bins, stock 
 rooms, careless help. "Cleanliness First" will 
 help the fight. 
 
 Ridgy Effect in Knit Goods 
 
 On a 16-gauge spring needle machine hav- 
 ing four feeders, using 23 1/2 grain yarn 
 (basis 20 yards) what variation in the yarn 
 would there have to be to make the cloth look 
 ridgy? Would two grains either way do it? 
 
 Robson (2152). 
 
 The variation of yarn in weight, two grains 
 either lighter or heavier, if the yarn was 
 evenly spun from good carding, would not 
 make the knitted cloth look ridgy or uneven; 
 it would only make the cloth heavier or lighter 
 in the weight of the finished garment. Not 
 only would a much greater variation than that 
 be necessary to make the cloth ridgy, but the 
 
32 
 
 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 yarn on each one of the four feeds would have 
 to vary in size. 
 
 Ridgy or uneven knitting is generally caused 
 by uneven or badly spun yarn, which is some- 
 times due to the stock used. Variations in 
 the weight of well carded and evenly spun 
 yarn will not cause ridgy knit cloth. 
 
 F. W. Herington. 
 
 I would first suggest that "Robson" go over 
 the stitch wheel very carefully and see that 
 they are all set at the same angle and landing 
 the yarn at the same height in the needles. 
 Also see that the springs which hold the wheel 
 in place are alike and do not let the tension 
 on the yarn pull them out when the machine 
 is running. If these wheels are not set as they 
 should be, ridgy cloth will be the result. This 
 is also true of the landing wheels as they 
 should land the stitch to the pressers in the 
 same spot on all four feeds. Then look over 
 the cast off wheels and see that each stitch is 
 being cast off alike. If these details are all 
 carefully looked after there should be no 
 trouble with ridgy cloth unless the yarn is un- 
 even. A variation of one or two grains either 
 way would make uneven cloth. Uneven twist 
 in the yarn would also cause the trouble. I 
 would suggest that "Robson" take off three 
 feeds from the machine and run only one for 
 one or two yards of cloth. This ought to tell 
 whether the trouble is the result of uneven 
 yarn. Delmar. 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 33 
 
 Holes in Knit Fabric 
 
 I am enclosing a sample of knit fabric which 
 contains a number of holes. These do not 
 come very often. The yarn is knit on a 7 -inch 
 striper. I have changed parts of the machine, 
 but the holes still appear. Can you suggest a 
 remedy? Essex (2395). 
 
 I have carefully examined the white mer- 
 cerized knit fabric and have concluded that 
 the yarn was burnt in bleaching. This often 
 happens in bleaching white cotton and mercer- 
 ized yarn and it will not show up until the 
 yarn is used in knitting. It usually comes in 
 ends of yarn mixed through the cones. It is 
 only a short time ago that I had the same 
 trouble with a case of 2/12s white cotton. The 
 yarn proved worthless and the longer it stood 
 the worse it got. We finally had to throw it 
 away. The bleacher said the fault was in the 
 stock used and the yarn man said it was the 
 bleacher's fault, so we let it go at that and got 
 our yarn from another source. 
 
 I have no machine here to test the yarn, but 
 would offer a few suggestions: First, have the 
 knitter look over the needles and see that they 
 are all milled the same, that the latch and 
 spoon are all smooth. If he finds them all 
 right, then look at the machine and see if the 
 dial is running true and not swaying, as this 
 will make holes in tender yarn. Be sure that 
 the cylinders and dial needles are evenly 
 divided and that the edges are not rough, as 
 this will cause cutting. See that the cylinder 
 
34 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 draw-down cam is ground to the right degree 
 so that the needles will not rob one another 
 when forming the stitch. Also see that the 
 draw-down cam does not hold down more 
 than two needles before beginning to release 
 same. 
 
 After getting these parts all right look to 
 the dial draw-back cam and see that the dial 
 and cylinder needles are set so they will not 
 draw back together. The dial should be set 
 one or two needles ahead of the cylinder 
 needles. Look to the yarn guide and see that 
 the yarn is going into the needles free and at 
 the right point. Last, but not least, see that 
 the take-up is perfectly clean and that the 
 machine is working right. If all these details 
 are attended to and the holes still appear, then 
 the yarn must be at fault. Bristol. 
 
 Knitting Silk 
 
 I would like to get some information on run- 
 ning 3/20s silk on a circular latch needle ma- 
 chine, cut 12 needles to the inch. I am run- 
 ning this now with a strong tension on the 
 threads, but it does not work very satisfac- 
 tory. I would like to know if this can be run 
 with a tension and have it so there will be 
 elasticity to it. This is run with 8 ends on an 
 8 feed machine. Maurice (2263). 
 
 In knitting silk there are numerous difficul- 
 ties to overcome which do not confront a knit- 
 ter when knitting cotton or wool. To obtain 
 the best results the dial should be adjusted so 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 35 
 
 that the dial needles are about 1/16 inch 
 above the top of the cylinder and the stitch 
 cam on the dial needles adjusted to make the 
 needles draw in about 1/16 inch from the edge 
 of the dial. Make the stitch on the cylinder 
 needles about 6 to the quarter inch, and if the 
 yarn stand is about four feet high, enough ten- 
 sion is given to silk by the time it travels up 
 to the top guide and back down again to the 
 needles. Have a fairly good weight on the 
 take-up rollers to pull the fabric quite tight 
 and then as a rather loose stitch is being made 
 the fabric will shrink back about half an inch 
 to every six inches of cloth. It will be neces- 
 sary to make the article so much longer to al- 
 low for shrinkage, but when it has shrunk 
 back it will be found quite elastic. If it ap- 
 pears too loose tighten on the cylinder needles. 
 It is not advisable to lower the dial in order 
 to make the fabric tighter and more elasticity 
 is imparted by not making the fabric too tight. 
 It is a good plan to use lard oil on a piece of 
 felt or cloth when running silk on a latch 
 needle circular machine. Put this on the ma- 
 chine not too close to the needles so that the 
 silk will pass over the oily cloth very lightly, 
 receiving enough oil to make it run well with- 
 out showing any stains. "Maurice" may be 
 using a cylinder needle machine with sinkers 
 to cast off the stitch. In this case it is not ad- 
 visable to have too much tension on the silk. 
 Use lard oil and not too tight a stitch. If the 
 
$6 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 lard oil does not make a good fabric without 
 any weight, use weights until a difference can 
 be noticed. Cleburne. 
 
 Size of Yarn for Gauges 
 
 What sizes of yarn are best suited for 4, 5, 
 6, 7 and 8 gauge work on the Edward Dubied 
 flat knitting machine? Please state the cor- 
 rect size for each gauge. Calgary (2157). 
 
 We referred this question to E. O. Spindler, 
 350 Broadway, New York, an importer of 
 knitting machines, who replies as follows: 
 
 The correct sizes for the different gauges 
 are as follows: 
 For machines with 4 needles per inch 4-ply 
 
 12s worsted. 
 For machines with 5 needles per inch 4-ply 
 
 16s worsted. 
 For machines with 6 needles per inch 3-ply 
 
 19s worsted. 
 For machines with 7 and 8 needles per inch 
 to 3-ply 21s worsted. 
 
 These are the counts as they should be used 
 for the respective gauges. Manufacturers dis- 
 agree, however, quite frequently and I know 
 cases, for example, where people knit 2-ply 18 
 on five cut machines. 
 
 Cost Table for Manufacturing Sweaters 
 
 Please give us a cost table for manufactur- 
 ing men's sweaters, using a basis of 4/20s 
 quarter blood worsted yarn, working with 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 3/ 
 
 power machines on the body and hand power 
 on sleeves. Grosier (2048). 
 
 I can give only outline table for manufac- 
 turing men's sweaters, as the cost for various 
 items varies in different parts of the country. 
 In a mill with a capacity of 12 dozen per week 
 of shaker coats, the overhead or fixed charges 
 would be about 30 per cent, of the selling 
 price, which, added to the cost of manufactur- 
 ing, gives the cost of the goods. These over- 
 head or fixed charges include all salaries and 
 wages, general expenses, repairs, power, light 
 and incidentals, trade discounts, etc. For an 
 example I will take a size 40* sweater coat knit 
 from 4/20 worsted weighing 18 pounds per 
 dozen. 
 
 18 lbs. of 4/20 yarn at 85c. per lb $15.30 
 
 4 ozs. waste 22 
 
 Winding 18 lbs. at lc 18 
 
 Knitting sleeves, per doz 75 
 
 Knitting bodies, per doz 50 
 
 Knitting cuffs, per doz 20 
 
 Knitting pockets, per doz 25 
 
 Knitting trimming, per doz 15 
 
 Hand finishing 1.35 
 
 Mending 25 
 
 Sewing on trimming on machines 3 5 
 
 Sewing on buttons on machines 25 
 
 Making button holes on machines 25 
 
 Boxes 1.00 
 
 Buttons 1.00 
 
38 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 Thread .15 
 
 Folding and packing 05 
 
 Total $22.20 
 
 I note the question of "Grosier" (2048) and 
 the reply in the August issue. The figures may 
 be right for shaker goods, but not for a reg- 
 ular line. I give herewith a statement of cost 
 as we calculate it, based on an average pro- 
 duction of 150 doz. per week, using 5-gauge 
 Grosser power machines, knitting bodies, trim, 
 and pockets, and Grosser hand machines with 
 a good knitter making full fashioned sleeves 
 with cuff. 
 
 I take your estimate of 18 lbs. for a garment 
 and allow 1/2 lb. for waste, which I find is an 
 average : 
 
 18 lbs. 1/4 blood worsted at 85c $15.30 
 
 1/2 lb. waste 48 
 
 Winding at 2c 3 7 
 
 Knit bodies, trim and pockets 40 
 
 Knit sleeves fashioned 75 
 
 All sewing machine operations 1.25 
 
 Mending examination, folding 25 
 
 Boxes 3 6 
 
 Buttons 1/2 gross 63 
 
 Packing 05 
 
 Shooks, 12 doz. cases 10 
 
 $19.94 
 
RINKS FOR KNITTERS 39 
 
 An allowance of 10 per cent, of the selling 
 cost is made to cover all overhead charges. 
 We include as expense items thread, facing, 
 labels, etc., but do not include trade discounts 
 nor selling costs, which are figured on the 
 price per dozen of each style. I do not see 
 how these items could be made as an over- 
 head charge, as the cost price and selling price 
 vary so much. Unless a mill is running on one 
 style only and selling to one house only I do 
 not understand how it would be possible to 
 average the selling cost and make it an arbi- 
 trary overhead charge. Macbeth. 
 
 Prices Paid for Piece Work 
 
 Please explain how the prices paid for piece 
 work on full fashioned knitting machines are 
 determined. In our mill we are paying 35 
 cents per dozen on 3 9 gauge, 18 section boot 
 leg silk, or a little less than 1 1/2 cents per 
 stocking. The mill superintendent informed 
 me that this price was paid because he could 
 not secure help in any other way. It occurred 
 to me that there must be some fair basis for 
 calculating piece work prices on this machine 
 and I would be glad to have you give me the 
 information. Knitter (1939). 
 
 The knitting of full fashioned hosiery re- 
 quires as highly skilled help as any textile 
 work. The knitting of silk is the most diffi- 
 cult. Manufacturers must be absolutely sure 
 that they have men who will help keep the 
 machines in perfect condition. It has been 
 our experience that about three out of ten of 
 
40 KINKS FOR KNITTER'S 
 
 those whom we have tried to teach in- the last 
 fifteen years have mastered the trade. We 
 have been careful to start only those in good, 
 health, of good habits and having good eye- 
 sight. Those who had several years prior ex- 
 perience as helpers on half-hose leggers or on 
 footers became the best knitters. Most of 
 those whom we have taught have stayed with 
 us. We have found that we must pay our men 
 as much as they could get at other mills. Of 
 course the cost of living, size and condition of 
 machines and quality of silk used may safely 
 be taken into account. Although conversant 
 with the cotton system of knitting from the 
 two section hand frames down to the big 
 power frames of today, we have yet to learn 
 of any basis for calculation other than that of 
 mutual agreement between employer and em- 
 ployes. Winwick. 
 
 Keeping Track of a Yarn Account 
 
 We are manufacturers of hosiery and would 
 like information as to a good way to keep 
 track of a yarn account. We always keep a 
 record of what is received, what is used, and 
 the amount used per dozen. If five hundred 
 dozen are manufactured during a week we 
 calculate accordingly. When the inventory is 
 taken we are always short, which shows that 
 more yarn is being used than we calculated. 
 How do mills look after this? 
 
 Knitter (2090). 
 
 The shrinkage in the weight of the yarn re- 
 ceived when compared with the weight of the 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 41 
 
 goods and waste is evidently due to the evapo- 
 ration of the moisture in the yarn. Cotton 
 yarn, during the process of carding and spin- 
 ning, absorbs a large quantity of moisture; in 
 fact it is necessary for the proper working of 
 cotton to have considerable moisture in the 
 rooms, which is obtained by the use of humi- 
 difiers. It will be found that when the yarn is 
 received by the manufacturer, the weights are 
 nearly, but not exactly correct. The yarn may 
 have been subjected in transit to varying con- 
 ditions of evaporation. For this reason it is 
 difficult to keep an accurate account, the 
 weights varying from 3 to 6 per cent. 
 
 A case of yarn is, for example, received from 
 the spinner and the weight found to corre- 
 spond with the amount on .the invoice; an- 
 other case may be stored in a warm place for 
 say two or three weeks and then brought into 
 the knitting room to be used. If it is weighed 
 it would be found short in weight. If the case 
 of yarn had been kept in a damp place, it 
 would have gained in weight, and this increase 
 would disappear in the winding and knitting. 
 This is one reason why hosiery weighed as the 
 goods come from the same machine during the 
 day will vary in weight. On Monday morning 
 in hot weather when the yarn has been ex- 
 posed on bobbins over Sunday, it will be found 
 that the goods will weigh less than those knit 
 during the day from yarn just received from 
 the spinners. 
 
42 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 Take as another illustration, a roll of cloth 
 for underwear which has been weighed as it 
 conies from the knitting machine, then 
 washed, dried and weighed again. It will be 
 found to have lost from 5 to 7 per cent, in 
 weight, as a result of the loss of the moisture 
 in the yarn when the goods were weighed first. 
 Owing to the variation in the loss of weight 
 due to evaporation, the only accurate way to 
 determine the cost of yarn used in the manu- 
 facture of a given quantity of goods is to keep 
 track of the goods manufactured from a cer- 
 tain lot of yarn. This yarn should be wound 
 and knit separately and a record made of the 
 number of dozens obtained. In this way it 
 will be easy to determine the quantity of yarn 
 used per dozen and the cost of the same, 
 allowance being made for the waste in knit- 
 ting and winding. This system may not be 
 practicable where many different weights of 
 goods are made, but tests of this kind can be 
 made on one or two styles in order to deter- 
 mine the loss. Lafayette. 
 
 Number of Needles to the Inch 
 
 Please state what is the greatest number of 
 latch needles to the inch. Avon (23 56). 
 
 There are frames cut 16 to the inch. I have 
 a few of them, but they have not been satis- 
 factory. Fourteen latch needles to the inch is 
 the greatest number I have known to work 
 well. Trenton. 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 43 
 
 Calculating Cost and Return on Increase in 
 Plant 
 
 My employer has a greater demand for half 
 hose than he can produce on the machines he 
 has in operation. The rib frames, looping and 
 finishing machinery is ample to take care of 
 60 dozen per day more than is being produced 
 at the present time, but he is not inclined to 
 invest any money in knitting machines. I am 
 willing to install the knitters. How much per 
 dozen would you suggest for the use of the 
 machines? I will pay for the upkeep of the 
 machines. It costs 3 5 cents per dozen to pro- 
 duce the hose ready for looping and they are 
 sold for 72 1/2 cents per dozen finished. 
 
 Knitter (2379). 
 
 I cannot see how the employer could make 
 it pay to rent machines in this way. It would 
 be better to take "Knitter" into the business 
 and give him stock corresponding to the value 
 of the machines. This would be increasing the 
 business, whereas the rental idea would be 
 adding to the cost of production. If, however, 
 the rental scheme is acceptable to both par- 
 ties I would figure the charges per day on the 
 following basis: 
 
 If one machine produces 3 dozen, 20 will 
 produce 60 dozen. 
 Cost of 20 machines at $100 $2,000 
 
 Depreciation, 5 per cent $100 
 
 Anticipated profit, 10 per cent 200 
 
 Fair return on investment $300 
 
44 
 
 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 Production, 52 weeks, 15,600 dozen. 
 15,600 dozen at 2c. would give a yearly 
 
 income of $312 
 
 If by "upkeep" is meant paying a fixer, this 
 cost should be added, but I suppose "Knitter" 
 means depreciation which is covered. 
 
 Hoosier. 
 
 Manufacturing Knit Boots 
 
 Kindly give me as much information as pos- 
 sible regarding the enclosed knit boot (shown 
 in the illustration), how it is made, on what 
 kind of a machine, etc. Mackie (2265). 
 
 These goods are made on a cross cut cir- 
 cular latch needle machine driven by power on 
 the cylindrical portion of the work and by 
 hand on the heel and toe. The shaping is done 
 by transferring the stitches by means of a 
 hand rack. The toe is closed on the machine. 
 The machine must be large enough to allow 
 for the considerable shrinkage of the boot in 
 the felting process. This shrinkage, of course, 
 depends on the kind of material used. I un- 
 derstand that 3/4 automatic machines were 
 used for making these boots some years ago, 
 but the method I have described is employed 
 by a number of up-to-date mills. 
 
 Ernest Tompkins. 
 
 The sample has been knit with a thick yarn 
 spun out of a coarse wool of strong felting 
 properties and it may readily be believed that 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 45 
 
 the thread structure is an advantage in felt in- 
 tended for this purpose. The sample has 
 been put before a firm -which manufacture fin- 
 ishing machines and they see no obstacle in 
 
 the way of getting the desired amount of felt- 
 ing upon the fulling machine. A considerable 
 amount of shrinkage would have to be al- 
 lowed for and it would be necessary to make 
 tests upon a measured area of fabric in order 
 to arrive at the initial size of the boot. 
 
 J. Strand. 
 
4-6 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 Determining the Gauge of a Knit Fabric 
 
 Can you inform me of any method known 
 by which one can distinguish the cut of a ma- 
 chine or the number of needles to the inch by 
 inspecting the fabric, that is, in latch needle 
 work? I am sending a sample of goods re- 
 cently made on a 11-cut machine, 3 6 gauge 
 needles with a 42 hook and have been told by 
 several it was made on a 12-cut machine. 
 
 Moscow (2308). 
 
 There is no known method, except experi- 
 ence, that I ever heard of, by which one can 
 tell the cut of needles from a sample. The 
 sample submitted looks to me like a 12 cut. 
 There might be a difference between the 11 
 cut and the other frames in number of 
 needles. In fact some 11 cut machines I 
 know of come nearer being a 12 cut, owing to 
 the variation in the standards of machine 
 builders. Trenton. 
 
 Shrinkage of Hosiery in Dyeing 
 
 Can you tell me what causes a shrinkage in 
 length of hosiery dyed with a developed 
 black? We allow for shrinkage, but after dye- 
 ing, the top is about two inches short. We 
 have been troubled with this for a week or 
 more and were wondering if there was any- 
 thing in the water to cause the difficulty. The 
 recipe we are using for this black we sent you 
 a few days ago with the question regarding 
 reddish shade. Thornton (2258). 
 
 Cotton hosiery not only shrinks in length, 
 but also in weight. The former shrinkage is 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 47 
 
 a mechanical condition only, and can be 
 traced directly to the amount of take-up in 
 the yarn due to its twist, which greatly influ- 
 ences the result. Some yarns take up more 
 than others, and the only way to get at the 
 cause is to measure carefully the knitted ho- 
 siery before and after dyeing by the develop- 
 ing process, and preferably from yarns of dif- 
 ferent counts. 
 
 As a rule, cotton loses in weight about 5 per 
 cent., not including the natural moisture. 
 
 Shrinkage due entirely to the result of dye- 
 ing depends upon the number of operations 
 through which the hosiery passes. As the de- 
 veloped black process consists of three baths, 
 it is probable that the shrinkage will be 
 greater than if the dyeing process consists of 
 only one bath. Berwick. 
 
 I do not see anything in the dyeing recipe 
 that would cause the shrinkage in length. It 
 is my opinion that the whole trouble lies in 
 the increased twist in the knitting yarn. Have 
 some of this twist taken out and I think 
 "Thornton" will find the shrinkage will be re- 
 duced to a normal amount. Beta Napthol. 
 
 Large Figures on Jersey Cloth 
 
 Can you give me any information regarding 
 knitting machines for jersey or bathing suit 
 cloth on which letters and figures can be knit 
 into the goods? Knitter (2309). 
 
48 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 A flat fabric could be knit on a jacquard 
 machine but this would leave floating threads 
 on the inside of the garment which is imprac- 
 tical where such large figures or large letters 
 are used. The old fashioned English hand 
 knitting frame would produce such articles 
 but this process is very slow and furthermore 
 it is extremely difficult to secure help to ope- 
 rate these machines. The younger generation 
 never became expert on these old hand frames 
 and the old men who still work on them are 
 gradually dying off. 
 
 It would seem as if the most practical so- 
 lution would be to stitch on felt letters which 
 have been previously cut or stamped out or 
 you might be able to secure a few good hand 
 finishers who would be able to use the stock- 
 ing darning stitch for plaiting a colored letter 
 on the top of the regular jersey garment. This 
 could probably be done at a cost of about 25 
 cents a letter in sizes up to four or five inches 
 high. Max Nydegger. 
 
 Marking Knit Goods 
 
 If a heavy soft lead pencil is used to write 
 on the cloth while the fabric is stretched over 
 a board covered with coarse emery paper, the 
 marks will not bleach out and there is no limit 
 to what you can put on a roll. This method is 
 clean and rapid. The marks will fade a little, 
 but a heavy mark is easily read and anyone 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 49 
 
 who- tries it will discard all stamps and be 
 glad to get rid of the pad that it so liable to 
 smear everything that it touches, fingers in- 
 cluded. 
 
 We use an ordinary graphite pencil for 
 marking our rolls and all that is necessary is 
 to make the mark heavy enough. The emery 
 "hoard is used to hold the cloth as the mark 
 Will not penetrate unless the cloth is held 
 firmly. It is so easy to mark rolls in this way 
 that we mark every roll with the knitter's 
 name and the machine width, all of which is 
 very useful in the cutting room. I am under 
 the impression that it is the carbon in both 
 the coal tar and pencil mark that resists the 
 bleaching process. The method differs only in 
 the manner of applying it to the cloth. 
 
 Herkimer. 
 
 Dyeing- of Cotton and Silk and Cotton and 
 Artificial Silk Hosiery 
 
 BY KASHGAR 
 Artificial silk has gained a strong foothold 
 in the manufacture of certain kinds of hosiery, 
 especially such as is moderate in price, and 
 made to meet a demand for something that is 
 not expected to last too long. Cotton, plain or 
 mercerized, and real silk, are also employed to 
 a very large extent in the manufacture of a 
 similar line of goods, but which, owing to the 
 greater cost of the real silk, commands a 
 somewhat higher price. 
 
50 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 In the dyeing of these two classes of ho- 
 siery, it was formerly the safest plan to dye 
 up each fiber to shade separately, and then 
 knit the article, but the general custom now 
 is to dye the stockings in bulk, and to control 
 the dyeing operation in such a way that the 
 various dyes used will go on the two different- 
 fibers at the same rate, thus giving the same 
 shade. 
 
 Dyeing Cotton and Real Silk Mixtures 
 
 The stockings are generally made of real 
 silk in the leg, but with mercerized cotton top, 
 heel and toe. The silk is in the raw state and 
 must be degummed in the usual manner with 
 two soap baths, followed by a good rinse. The 
 degumming is best done in bags, although 
 some dyers prefer to carry out the operation 
 in either the revolving stocking dyeing ma- 
 chine or loose in the tub. This latter method 
 is not the best one to follow as there is, as a 
 result, a number of stockings that are "sec- 
 onds." 
 
 The best type of machine for dyeing these 
 stockings is difficult to recommend, but per- 
 haps the revolving cage machine is the one 
 most frequently found in such dye houses. 
 The choice of dyes is generally confined to 
 either the substantive dyes — those dyeing cot- 
 ton without any mordant — either alone or, as 
 is commonly done, in combination with dyes 
 of the acid group. 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 5 1 
 
 For certain shades it is found that the silk 
 does not dye as full as the cotton, and the 
 dyer is required to add some acid colors to 
 bring up the shade of the silk to match that 
 of the cotton. The process is to add to the 
 dye bath the approximate amount of substan- 
 tive dyestuffs necessary to give the depth of 
 shade desired, and add about 20 pounds of 
 crystal Glauber's salt, and dye for about one 
 hour under the boil — usually 3/4 hour at 
 19 0° F., is sufficient. During the dyeing note 
 how the silk is coming up, and as it takes the 
 substantive dyes less than the cotton, add a 
 very small quantity of some acid color of the 
 same shade as the cotton dye. 
 
 After the two fibers are about the same 
 depth, complete the dyeing by adding 10 
 pounds of acetate of ammonia in crystals, then 
 raise the temperature to 210° F., and continue 
 the dyeing for 20 minutes longer. As a rule, 
 the cotton and silk will be satisfactorily dyed 
 if the dyer's choice of colors was judicious. Do 
 not add the acetate of ammonia until the sec- 
 ond half of the operation, and always bring 
 the temperature afterwards to near the boil. 
 
 Certain modifications of the dyeing process 
 are necessary for particular shades. A royal 
 blue, for instance, is best dyed with the 
 methylene blues, of which there are many 
 good makes on the market. The stockings are 
 immersed for 5 hours in as small a volume of 
 bath as convenient, heated to 100° F., and con- 
 taining 6 per cent, of tannic acid (on the 
 
52 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 weight of the stockings), then squeeze and 
 pass through a cold bath containing half as 
 much antimony as of Tannic acid. Afterwards 
 wash and dye. It is to be noted that the 
 higher the temperature of the tannic acid 
 bath, the deeper will be the shade of the silk, 
 while if the temperature be allowed to go 
 down, the cotton will show up deeper. 
 
 The dye bath is made up with about 1 3/4 
 lbs. of an ordinary good type of methylene 
 blue, the dyeing being done with a small 
 amount of acetic acid, not allowing the tem- 
 perature to exceed 140° F. 
 
 The fashionable shade of emerald green on 
 cotton and silk stockings is dyed exactly as 
 for the royal blue, but dyeing before mor- 
 danting with a bright acid green shaded with 
 a pinch of Indian yellow, then wash and mor- 
 dant as previously described. Afterwards 
 again dye at 110° F., but using basic dyes to 
 produce the shade, usually a mixture of bril- 
 liant green crystal — a most common dye, and 
 a basic yellow. 
 
 Dyeing Cotton and Artificial Silk 
 
 The process for dyeing this combination of 
 fiber is not complicated. The dyes most gen- 
 erally employed being of the substantive 
 group, but as artificial silk has a strong 
 affinity for many of this class of dyes, they 
 should be selected only after trial, and to ad- 
 just the dyeing process to reduce this dyeing 
 affinity. 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 53 
 
 The dyeing temperature should be kept as 
 low as possible, 14 0° F. being sufficiently high. 
 As the exhaustion of the dye baths is incom- 
 plete, it is necessary to work with a pretty 
 strong dye liquor, but this does not mean that 
 strength is to be given by large additions of 
 common salt, which would only tend to "salt- 
 out" color at the expense of the dyeing. 
 
 As a rule, 10 per cent, of Glauber's salt is 
 sufficient, with 1/2 to 1 per cent, of soda ash 
 and 3 to 4 per cent, of Turkey red oil. Com- 
 mence dyeing at 75° F., and gradually in- 
 crease the heat to 140° F. 
 
 A peculiar condition is often experienced in 
 dyeing full, heavy shades — the artificial silk 
 taking up the color too strongly. To guard 
 against this it is found an advantage to pre- 
 pare the stockings by soaking for several 
 hours in a tannic acid bath containing 10 to 
 12 per cent, of tannic acid, heated to 150° F., 
 then transfer the goods to a bath containing 
 7 1/2 per cent, of tin crystals dissolved with 
 the aid of a little muriatic acid, and finally 
 rinse well. By this treatment the artificial silk 
 is made to lose some of its affinity for the 
 dyes, and the tendency for evenly colored 
 stockings materially increased. 
 
 Bleaching Underwear 
 
 In bleaching white woolens with sulphur we 
 find that rinsing after the bleaching in warm 
 water to remove the sulphur smell gives the 
 
54 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 goods a yellow cast. Could you give us some 
 information as to how to avoid doing this? We 
 use a hot air web dryer and cannot wait to air 
 goods outside. Mansfield (2240). 
 
 When bleaching with sulphur dioxide if the 
 treatment with the gas is followed by a re- 
 peated washing in hot water the goods natur- 
 ally become yellower, as an oxidation of the 
 material takes place. This can, however, be 
 avoided if the washing in hot water be fol- 
 lowed by a rapid treatment in a weak bath of 
 ammonia or carbonate of soda. This neutral- 
 izes the sulphurous acid present in the wood 
 and avoids to a great extent the formation of 
 the yellow color. Umbria. 
 
 Defective Knitting 
 
 We are sending you a sample of knit goods 
 made of No. 18 three-ply spun silk yarn. This 
 swatch shows particular defects, forming a 
 sort of oblong ring where the yarn seems to 
 be finer. As the silk runs the long way in the 
 swatch we cannot see how defective yarn 
 could form a small circle from several layers 
 of yarn. We wound some of this yarn, form- 
 ing these rings, on a blackboard, but cannot 
 find cut places in it where the rings were 
 formed. Uneven yarn should show in the 
 swatch thick and thin places in the same di- 
 rection as the yarn is running, but not in the 
 form of rings. We would like to have your 
 opinion as to whether these rings are made 
 from defective yarn or poor work on the knit- 
 ting machine. Fairview (2458). 
 
 This fabric was made on a spring needle 
 flat frame. The defect was caused bv not 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 55 
 
 pressing hard enough to clear all needles, 
 thereby holding more than one stitch on cer- 
 tain needles. Perhaps the needle plates are 
 loose enough to allow play in the needles, in 
 which case the presser bar will only press 
 needles back instead of closing the beard. 
 
 Trenton. 
 
 Bleaching Silk Hosiery- 
 Please send us a receipt for bleaching silk 
 hosiery. We are at present bleaching mercer- 
 ized and cotton hose with chloride of lime and 
 having very good success in this line, but have 
 some silk hose that we wish to bleach, and 
 would thank you to give us a formula for 
 same. Elcot (2199). 
 
 Silk hose to be made ready for bleaching 
 should be thoroughly cleansed with a light 
 soap boil, care being taken that all soap is 
 afterwards completely removed by a good 
 wash. Successful bleaching can only be ac- 
 complished where the silk is clean. Silk may 
 be bleached by different processes, the most 
 common being either by the use of permanga- 
 nate of potash and bisulphite of soda. It may 
 also be bleached with either peroxide of hy- 
 drogen or peroxide of sodium. 
 
 The permanganate process was formerly 
 very much used for bleaching all kinds of silk 
 goods and when the details are given atten- 
 tion, the results are very good. The following 
 quantities are for a small kettle holding suffi- 
 cient water to accommodate 20 to 25 pounds 
 
56 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 of silk hosiery. To such a bath dissolve 6 
 ounces of commercial permanganate of potas- 
 sium and add 1/2 pound of Epsom salt. The 
 hosiery is worked in this solution until the 
 purple color is nearly removed and the silk 
 has attained a full rich brown color. Lift, 
 wash and work the brown hosiery in a fresh 
 bath containing 6 ounces of a solution of bi- 
 sulphite of soda standing at 71° Tw., together 
 with 1/4 ounce of sulphuric acid, first diluted 
 in a pint of water. Sometimes where the de- 
 posit of brown oxide of manganese is very 
 heavy, a second passage through the bisulphite 
 becomes necessary. 
 
 Bleaching with peroxide of hydrogen or 
 peroxide of sodium is perhaps the best method 
 for general use. Peroxide of hydrogen is used 
 full strength (3 per cent.) as supplied by the 
 chemical works. The silk is immersed in the 
 solution in suitable wooden tanks without any 
 iron or other metal in contact with the bleach 
 solution. This solution must be made slightly 
 alkaline with ammonia. Keep the silk well 
 under the surface of the liquid, even if a 
 wooden lattice is necessary. Let the bleaching 
 proceed for six to ten hours or longer, over 
 night is the usual practice, and in the morn- 
 ing, lift, squeeze to save the excess of liquor, 
 rinse and finish. 
 
 If peroxide of sodium is used, it must be 
 added to the bath in small portions at a time, 
 first adding the necessary amount of sulphuric 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS S7 
 
 acid. The following quantities are used for 
 25 pounds of silk hosiery: 
 60 gals, water, 
 
 5 lbs. sodium peroxide, 
 
 8 lbs. Epsom salt 
 The temperature of the bath may be grad- 
 ually brought up to 180° F. if necessary, al- 
 lowing the silk to remain immersed for 6 to 8 
 hours, afterwards lifting, washing and then 
 carefully put on drying boards. Dumfries. 
 
 Bleaching Yarn 
 
 I am having considerable difficulty in se- 
 curing as soft a bleach on cotton yarn for un- 
 derwear as I require. The goods bleached by 
 me knits up wider than that when bleached by 
 an outside concern and also makes the gar- 
 ment appear to have been knit on a coarser 
 gauge machine. Do you think this is due to 
 the method of boiling preparatory to bleach- 
 ing? Which is to be preferred, an open boil 
 or a pressure boil? My yarn seems to possess 
 a slight harshness or scroop which I am un- 
 able to detect in the yarn that comes in from 
 the outside. I enclose a sample of knit goods 
 bleached by my process and one bleached by 
 an outside process. Both pieces were made 
 from yarn bleached in the skein. I give the 
 yarn a regular caustic boil at high pressure 
 and use the slow method of bleaching. I know 
 the pressure boil is superior to any other for 
 many purposes, but I am inclined to think an 
 open kier boiling is better for this kind of 
 work. I use regular softener in the finishing. 
 Do other bleachers get better results with 
 something else ? Flow can I increase the elas- 
 ticity? Landrum (2280). 
 
58 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 The sample bleached by "Landrum" is 
 quite harsh and this harshness is due to too 
 much alkali either in the boil or in the finish- 
 ing of the soap. If the yarn is taken from 
 the dryer before it has time to thoroughly cool 
 it will have a tendency to spoil the elasticity 
 of the webbing. Mohegan. 
 
 If "Landrum" will reduce the caustic by 2 
 per cent., make up with 3 per cent, of Soda 
 Ash, add 1 1/2 per cent, of good castor oil 
 soap, work the mixture 2 hours at 150° F., 
 then bring to the boil and work 6 hours using 
 a centrifugal pump for circulation and using 
 bleaching liquor that has been treated with 
 soda ash and sour off with muriatic acid, I am 
 sure that he will get the yarn so that it will 
 not have a harsh handle, but will feel much 
 softer and fuller. Parma. 
 
 Seaming Sweater Coats 
 
 Will you please advise us what is the best 
 method for the seaming together of what is 
 known as the Shaker sweater coat, also the 
 Jumbo stitch sweater coat. We refer to the 
 cuffs, collars, sleeves and sides. 
 
 Marcus (2277). 
 
 The majority of knitting mills are finishing 
 their Shaker coats by hand, whereas for the 
 seaming up of the sides of Jumbo stitch sweat- 
 ers that are knit front and back separately, a 
 special sweater overseamer may be used to 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 59 
 
 good advantage. Shaker coats are generally 
 made without side seams. Some are using the 
 sweater overseamer for the seaming-in of the 
 border, having provided a firm edge by means 
 of a Merrow machine to the body cut open in 
 front. 
 
 The hemming is best done on a circular 
 looper and the putting in of the sleeves on a 
 flat bar looper. Max Nydegger. 
 
 Streaks in Hosiery, Variation in Sizes and 
 Number of Operatives Required 
 
 Enclosed is a sock manufactured of 2/3 2s 
 combed peeler mercerized in the cuff, 2/40s in 
 the body, 2/50s in the heel and toe and l/60s 
 in the splicing. We would like to know the 
 reason for the streaked effect. Some of our 
 people think it is caused in the mercerizing, 
 while others claim that a running of the single 
 thread with the double thread is bound to 
 show a difference in the dyeing. Kindly ad- 
 vise us as to the real cause, also your opinion 
 upon running single and double threads to- 
 gether in the same sock. We are also having 
 considerable trouble in keeping our sizes even, 
 as the machines set on one size start off in the 
 morning and before noon they run from 1/2 
 to an inch larger. Kindly explain the cause of 
 such a variation. Also inform us as to the 
 number of machine men and helpers required 
 to operate 14 Paxton & O'Neil plating ma- 
 chines, and 39 Mayo model A and model C ma- 
 chines, 14 Wildman ribbers and 10 record 
 loopers. Summit (2248). 
 
 I find that a plain lisle yarn is used as rein- 
 forcing in heel and toe and a single soft yarn 
 
6o KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 as splicer. Yarn not mercerized will not take 
 the same color in dyeing as a mercerized yarn. 
 The process of mercerizing, especially the 
 caustic bath, removes all vegetable oil and acts 
 as a mordant by opening the fiber and making 
 it more susceptible to the dye. To prove this 
 put a common lisle stocking in with the mer- 
 cerized lot when dyeing and the difference in 
 color will be plainly noticed when finished. I 
 think the trouble can be overcome by using 
 mercerized cotton, and feel sure no trouble 
 will arise with streaks except possibly in the 
 splicing. I do not think a single yarn can get 
 as much luster as a double yarn on account 
 of not being able to stand the tension in the 
 process. I understand that tension plays a 
 very important part in adding to the luster. 
 
 I have never had any trouble with varia- 
 tions in size, except in winter, when in the 
 morning the machines were cold and would 
 knit tight and naturally make short goods, but 
 they would get back to their normal state 
 again as soon as they got warmed up and run- 
 ning smoothly. It is possible that the dog on 
 the chain ratchet is skipping occasionally. 
 This will cause the goods to be long. One opera- 
 tor, a girl, should run two knitters and do her 
 own topping. Two good fixers should be able 
 to handle the machines and keep them in re- 
 pair. On ladies' goods, one operator should 
 run from 10 to 15 knitting machines. 
 
 Cipango. 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 6l 
 
 Blue Spots on Bleached Knit Goods 
 
 I enclose sample of our knit goods which 
 are bleached in the roll by the peroxide proc- 
 ess and which show numerous small blue spots 
 scattered irregularly through the goods. We 
 are having a great deal of trouble with these 
 spots, nearly all of our goods showing more or 
 less of them, and would like to have your 
 opinion as to the cause of and remedy for the 
 difficulty. Nixon (2427). 
 
 I can think of nothing in connection with 
 the peroxide bleaching process which would 
 give such unfavorable results. I knew of an 
 instance where similar trouble was encoun- 
 tered, and after careful investigation we found 
 that it came from attempting to do the dyeing 
 in close proximity to the bleaching Appar- 
 ently very small particles of dyestuff floating 
 in the air would settle on the top of the liquid 
 in the bleaching vats and cause spots such as 
 appear in this sample. Separation of the proc- 
 esses put an end to the trouble. This might 
 be worth while investigating. Caliatura. 
 
 The trouble which "Nixon" is experiencing 
 is very peculiar, as the peroxide process is su- 
 perior to the other processes in that there is 
 less trouble from machinery and plant equip- 
 ment. I assume from the inquiry that the 
 trouble arises in the bleaching process, as 
 'Nixon" does not state whether he is using a 
 little blue after the bleach to heighten the 
 color of the goods. If the spots are caused in 
 the bleaching process it is evident that some- 
 
62 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 thing comes in contact with the peroxide 
 which acts as a soluble agent, and that the 
 spots are then distributed through the goods. 
 I would advise "Nixon" to examine all parts 
 of the vats to see that the connections are 
 right. There may be a defect in some joint 
 where a little graphite or some other sub- 
 stance is being dissolved by the peroxide and 
 carried away by the liquid into the goods. Or 
 it may be caused by the marking of the goods. 
 Does "Nixon" use blue crayon for marking the 
 rolls as they are brought from the machines? 
 I have known this to be the cause of a lot of 
 trouble, especially if they are the soft crayons, 
 which is distributed between the threads to a 
 greater or less degree according to the pres- 
 sure used. This color is made soluble by the 
 bleaching solution. 
 
 I would suggest finding out where the spots 
 first appear. We at one time had a lot of 
 trouble with spots appearing on our goods and 
 upon investigation found that the dust and 
 specks were falling from the floor above, 
 which had been used for dyeing. After put- 
 ting in a new floor th3 specks disappeared. 
 
 If this does not remedy the trouble I would 
 advise "Nixon" to look to his labels and the 
 packing of the powders. Is there any other 
 work being done in the same room where blue 
 is being used? Is there any liquid used to 
 clean out the boilers that would have any ef- 
 fect on any of the vats or materials being 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 63 
 
 used? Examine the vats and see that the lin- 
 ing is all right. Look at the water anl steam 
 and also the mixing of the peroxide in the 
 bath. If a blue is used after the bleach, the 
 trouble may arise there, for there are blues 
 that will spot the goods, no matter how much 
 care is taken. Delco. 
 
 I have read with interest the replies to the 
 question ("Nixon" 24 27) regarding blue spots 
 on knit goods, and take this opportunity of 
 giving a few remedies that overcame this same 
 trouble for me. I had prepared skeins for the 
 knitting room and found when knitted that 
 blue specks would appear on certain parts of 
 the stocking. I started to trace the trouble 
 and found that when the men handled these 
 skeins they rubbed them against their blue 
 overalls, which stained the yarn blue. I have 
 trucks which are used exclusively for bleached 
 goods. It is a bad practice to do the bleach- 
 ing and dyeing under one roof. All the dye- 
 stuffs are weighed outside. Barton. 
 
 We have read with interest the reply to 
 the question from "Xixon" (2427) regarding 
 blue spots on knit goods, which appeared in 
 the February issue. We are interested in tbis 
 for the reason that we are having the same 
 trouble and have been unable to locate the 
 cause. We note the suggestions made, such as 
 bleaching near blue dyeing tub, using hhie 
 
64 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 after bleaching, marking the goods with blue 
 crayon, dropping of specks from the floor 
 above, or steam from boilers. We thought 
 that possibly our investigations might be of 
 interest to "Nixon". 
 
 We have had special yarn made using all 
 colors of soft crayons that the cotton mill uses 
 in marking the roving, that is, we used a lot 
 of it in spinning a number of cops and found 
 that they practically all bleached out, and 
 those that did not were not marked with the 
 blue color which was giving us trouble. 
 
 We use no blue whatever in our process of 
 bleaching, either before or after. We use no 
 blue of any shade in our plant, the only colors 
 we manufacture being bleached white and 
 stained Egyptian goods. Our bleach house is 
 entirely separate from the dye house. We 
 have placed on samples of cloth all the differ- 
 ent colors that we use in making Egyptian, 
 have stained our cloth with oil used on the 
 machines, oiled the machine so that it would 
 run a lot of dirty grease onto the cloth. In 
 fact we applied everything that could or 
 could not come in contact with the cloth in 
 process of manufacture, but none of them pro- 
 duced the blue color. 
 
 Our vats are made of wood and heated with 
 a lead coil, the solution coming in contact with 
 nothing except wood or lead. The steam in 
 the boiler does not escape into the liquor, the 
 coil being continuous and tight. The water 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 65 
 
 used in mixing the peroxide solution is all fil- 
 tered through a Hungerford & Terry filter. 
 The graphite pencils used in marking the end 
 of the rolls do not produce the blue color. 
 
 We have come to the conclusion that this 
 blue must get into the yarn before we receive 
 it. The mill manufacturing the yarn has 
 taken cotton from the bale and kept it sep- 
 arate in the various processes, watching 
 closely every operation to see that it did not 
 get mixed with black flyings, running it when 
 they were not making anything but peeler 
 yarn, yet we still had the blue spots in the 
 goods. We have finally come to the conclu- 
 sion that the only sure way of eliminating the 
 trouble is to bleach xhe lime. This removes 
 the spots completely. 
 
 We also had trouble with pink spots, as well 
 as blue, but we discovered these were caused 
 by scarlet felt bobbin covers. The scarlet fly- 
 ings from the bobbin covers would be carried 
 by the yarn into the cloth, and the color 
 would bleed, causing the pink spots. We took 
 several single fibers, placing them at different 
 points in the cloth and put them in the 
 bleach, laying a piece of cloth on top >f it. 
 The scarlet from a single fiber would bleed 
 making a pink spot on the cloth to which it 
 was applied. It would also run into the cloth 
 lying next to it, making two spots. We elim- 
 inated the pink, but could not eliminate the 
 
66 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 blue. These suggestions may be of some bene- 
 fit to "Nixon" and save him a number of ex- 
 periments. Delaware. 
 
 Terms Used in Knitting 
 
 I would like to have you give an explanation 
 of the following knit goods terms: Swiss rib, 
 Norfolk and shaker knit. Norfolk (2407). 
 
 A Swiss ribbed knit garment is slightly dif- 
 ferent from regular stitch. A special cam is 
 used in the cylinder to hold down more 
 needles than ordinary. This makes the cyl- 
 inder wales more prominent. In nearly every 
 case needles are left out in front and back for 
 a number of inches. This gives the effect of 
 stripes. There are many so-called Swiss 
 ribbed goods on the market, but not one in 
 five is the real thing. Most people believe that 
 because a garment is a light weight and knit 
 on a fine cut frame with needles left out, it is 
 a Swiss ribbed garment. A knitting machine 
 has to be specially prepared to make it. 
 
 I cannot explain the word "Norfolk," unless 
 it is a trade mark or something to distinguish 
 one sweater coat from another. These new 
 names for sweater coat stitches crop up quite 
 often. 
 
 "Shaker knit" is derived from the heavy 
 goods knit by hand by the Shakers in New 
 Hampshire, with long bone knitting needles. 
 Later on they were made on circular knitting 
 frames. Shaker knit stands in about the same 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 67 
 
 class as Swiss ribbed, as far as the real 
 Shaker knit is concerned. Up to a few years 
 ago, I knew of 'Shaker knit" goods made in 
 Brooklyn, N. Y., and Philadelphia, Pa. These 
 were made on anything from a hand knitting 
 machine to a twenty-inch circular latch needle 
 machine, cut three needles to the inch. An- 
 other case I have in mind was as near the real 
 thing as possible. The goods were made in a 
 sweater shop in a New Jersey city and all knit 
 by hand, using the long bone needles. 
 
 Trenton. 
 
 A Norfolk sweater is one made along the 
 general lines of a Norfolk jacket, namely, with 
 a box pleated and belt effect. The stitch may 
 be changed in various ways to simulate 
 pleats. I do not«think there is any particular 
 stitch called "Norfolk," but that the name sig- 
 nifies a combination of stitches that produces 
 the Norfolk effect. Tyrone. 
 
 The word "Norfolk" is applied to any gar- 
 ment either knitted or woven where the coat 
 contains a pleat on both sides of the coat, 
 back and front, with a belt around the waist. 
 It is not a trade mark, simply a trade name 
 used by both knitters and tailors for garments 
 of this cut. It is worn by men, women and 
 children. There is no such thing as a "Nor- 
 folk" stitch in knitting sweaters. When a gar- 
 
68 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 merit is made up in this style it makes no dif- 
 ference whether it is a shaker or any other 
 stitch. Hawick. 
 
 Meaning of Knitting Terms and Adjusting 
 Machine for Good Plating 
 
 What is the meaning of the term "knitting 
 point" ? If the cap of a circular knitting ma- 
 chine was not set in the right position, would 
 this interfere with good plating? 
 
 Casma (2447). 
 
 The term "knitting point" refers to that 
 point where the completed stitch falls off the 
 needles, or in other words, the cast off. The 
 dial and cylinder do not cast off together; the 
 cylinder stitch is formed and released before 
 the dial stitch is cast off. . 
 
 The dial cap of a circular frame must be in 
 an almost exact position for perfect plating. 
 There are several styles of frames that use a 
 longer dial stitch cam, thereby holding the 
 dial stitches with latches open until the cyl- 
 inder stitch has released. Let the dial run as 
 far back as possible v.ithout dropping stitches. 
 There are many helps, such as tension on 
 yarn, location of hole in yarn guide for back 
 thread, position of yarn guide, smooth needles 
 and many others. Try a colored yarn if using 
 all white to show up the poor plating. 
 
 Trenton. 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 69 
 
 The Scrooping of Hosiery 
 
 BY HERTFORD 
 
 There have been a number, of methods sug- 
 gested for imparting a scroop or silk-like 
 crunch to dyed hosiery, more especially when 
 this hosiery is made up of mercerized cotton 
 yarns. The scrooping process is carried out 
 as a subsequent operation to that of dyeing, 
 and is in reality a final process of finishing. 
 The methods which have generally been sug- 
 gested are those involving the use of various 
 organic acids such as acetic, lactic, tartaric 
 and formic. In fact, almost any acid acting 
 on the cotton fiber and allowed to dry will 
 produce a silk-like crunch to the material. In 
 the case of the stronger mineral acids, such as 
 sulphuric, hydrochloric and nitric, the action 
 extends too far and although a very decided 
 silk-like crunch is developed, the cellulose of 
 the fiber is attacked to such an extent as to 
 cause chemical disintegration, resulting in the 
 tendering or complete destruction of the cot- 
 ton material. 
 
 The organic acids mentioned above do not 
 have the same deleterious effect in tendering 
 the cotton fiber, but if used alone they also do 
 not produce sufficient scroop to make the proc- 
 ess really worth while. If, however, the or- 
 ganic acids are employed in connection with a 
 soap bath, it has. been found possible to pro- 
 duce quite a satisfactory scroop without ap- 
 parent injury to the strength of the fiber. The 
 
JO KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 cause of the scroop produced on cotton by this 
 action of acids is probably a certain hardening 
 of the surface of the fiber so that when it is 
 bent it produces a crackling or crunching 
 sound. This hardening may be enhanced 
 sometimes by the use of a little glue or starch 
 solution in connection with the acid and soap 
 treatment, though these substances are also 
 liable to stiffen the material. In cases where 
 such a stiffening effect is not desired, their 
 uses would not be possible. 
 
 The character of the yarn also has consid- 
 erable to do with the degree of scroop which 
 can be produced by chemical treatment. Mer- 
 cerized yarn can be scrooped to a greater de- 
 gree and with more readiness than unmercer- 
 ized. Soft single ply unmercerized yarn can 
 hardly be scrooped at all, whereas hard 
 twisted and lisle unmercerized yarns can be 
 given a fair amount of scroop. The degree 
 of scroop is also influenced by the heat used 
 in the drying of the material. It is well to 
 dry as hot and as quickly as possible, as these 
 conditions will tend to harden the surface of 
 the fiber to a greater degree and thus produce 
 a more pronounced scrooping effect. A number 
 of recipes for cotton, more especially mercer- 
 ized cotton, have been suggested and the fol- 
 lowing includes some of these: 
 
 (1) The dyed goods are passed through a 
 soap bath containing 1 oz. of hard soap per 
 gallon. The goods should be worked in this 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS J I 
 
 soap solution until thoroughly impregnated 
 and at the temperature of about 140° F. The 
 goods are then removed and the excess of 
 liquor is either squeezed out or the goods are 
 placed in a hydroextractor and then without 
 rinsing worked in a second bath containing 
 2 1/2 ozs. of lactic acid and 3 ozs. of caustic 
 soda per gallon. The goods are worked in 
 this bath for 20 minutes at a temperature of 
 140° F. and then hydroextracted and dried 
 without rinsing. 
 
 (2) The soaping of the material is carried 
 out as above described, but the second bath 
 consists of 1 oz. of formic acid per gallon, the 
 material being worked therein for 20 minutes 
 at the room temperature and then hydroex- 
 tracted and dried without rinsing. 
 
 (3) It is claimed that a permanent and pro- 
 nounced scroop can be given to cotton by 
 treating the material with a soap bath as 
 above described and then giving a cold bath 
 containing 1 oz. of tartaric acid per gallon, re- 
 moving the goods after 15 minutes, hydro- 
 extracting and drying without rinsing. A 
 greater scrooping effect can be produced if 
 sizing materials are added to the acid bath 
 which may then contain 1 oz. of tartaric acid, 
 1/6 oz. of glue and 1/5 oz. potato starch. It 
 is said that the effect can be still further en- 
 hanced by treating the goods first with 2 to 3 
 per cent, of tannic acid and 1 to 1 1/2 per 
 cent, of antimony salt and then soaping and 
 treating with tartaric acid as just described. 
 
J2, KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 (4) According to a German Patent 242933, 
 mercerized cottons may be scrooped in the 
 following manner. The goods are first soaped 
 as usual, squeezed out or slightly rinsed, and 
 then treated in one of the following four 
 baths, after which they are wrung out or hy- 
 droextracted and dried without rinsing. 
 
 (a) 2 1/2 ozs. of lactic acid and 1 oz. of 
 soda ash per gallon. 
 
 (b) 1 oz. of lactic acid and 2 ozs. of so- 
 dium lactate per gallon. 
 
 (c) 3 ozs. of tartaric acid and 2 ozs. of soda 
 ash per gallon. 
 
 (d) 1 oz. of tartaric acid and 1/2 oz. of 
 sodium tartrate per gallon. 
 
 In case the goods have been dyed with sul- 
 phur dyes, it is said that this process not only 
 gives a distinct scroop but also protects the 
 dyed material from subsequent tendering. 
 
 (5) Another process which has been sug- 
 gested for the scrooping of dyed cotton ma- 
 terial is to work in successive baths of calcium 
 acetate, soap and acetic acid in the following 
 general manner. Run the goods for 15 min- 
 utes at 110° F. in a solution of calciurrf ace- 
 tate of 7.9° Tw. Squeeze lightly but do not 
 rinse. Then work for 15 minutes at 120° to 
 140° F. in a bath containing 40 per cent, of 
 soap on the weight of the goods. Again 
 squeeze lightly or hydroextract and pass into 
 a cold bath containing one part of acetic acid 
 to 10 parts of water. Finally squeeze and dry 
 without rinsing. 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 73 
 
 (6) Another process which has been sug- 
 gested is the use of boric acid in the following 
 manner: 
 
 One hundred pounds of the cotton goods are 
 worked in a bath containing 16 to 20 pounds 
 of boric acid for 1/2 hour at 70° F. The goods 
 are then hydroextracted and dried without 
 rinsing or the effect can be enhanced by using 
 two baths as follows: First, working the ma- 
 terial in a solution containing 1 1/2 ozs. of 
 soap per gallon, hydroextracting and second 
 passing into a bath containing 1 1/2 ozs. of 
 boric acid per gallon, then hydroextracting 
 and drying without rinsing. 
 
 Bleaching and Shrinking Underwear 
 Garments 
 
 Is it possible to bleach underwear all made 
 up without the collar and buttons and button- 
 hole stays on? If so, what is the simplest 
 process for cotton and linen? Can under- 
 wear be shrunk made up as mentioned above, 
 that is, wool, worsted, cotton and linen, and 
 what would be the simplest process? 
 
 Montville (2281). 
 
 Underwear can be bleached in shirt lengths 
 sewed across the shoulders and with the 
 sleeves sewed in, but not with the neck cut. 
 If the neck is cut out the bleaching will pull 
 the garment out of shape. I have found the 
 following process to be a good one for cotton 
 and linen: Boil in caustic soda at 2 per cent. 
 for 6 hours, rinse thoroughly after boiling. 
 
74 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 Then give the goods a chloride of lime bath 
 at 2° Tw. for one-half hour. Rinse again and 
 then sour with oil of vitriol at 1° Tw. for 15 
 minutes. Rinse again. Soap in a laundry ma- 
 chine and rinse thoroughly, extract and dry. 
 I have found it more practical to bleach in 
 rolls. 
 
 A simple process of shrinking wool, worsted, 
 cotton and linen underwear would be either by 
 steaming or hot water baths. If the goods are 
 to be steamed, an air tight room would be 
 necessary, leaving the goods in the room for 
 three to five minutes with a steam pressure 
 of about ten pounds. If the hot water bath is 
 used, I would advise leaving the goods in the 
 hot bath at 110° F. until thoroughly saturated, 
 then extract and dry. Mohegan. 
 
 Knitting Silk Plated Coats 
 
 We want to make up a worsted and silk 
 plated knitted garment that can be brushed 
 and will have the appearance of a silk coat 
 with the desired luster. Can such a coat be 
 made on a five gauge machine, and can it be 
 made with woolen and silk yarns instead of 
 worsted and silk? Also please advise which 
 yarns are best for the purpose and what the 
 cost would be. Knitter (2479). 
 
 A silk plated coat can be made on a five 
 gauge machine, but the result would be a 
 heavy and expensive garment. A five gauge 
 would be almost a jumbo stitch, no matter 
 what cut of cylinder or plate is used. I as- 
 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 75 
 
 sunie that "Knitter" is using circular ma- 
 chines. If this garment is to be brushed on 
 the outside a soft twist silk should be used 
 and a soft twist means trouble. Fiber silk 
 causes more trouble and waste than natural 
 silk, but it can be made to run. A good grade 
 of woolen yarn should answer as well as wor- 
 sted. If this coat is to be made with a plain 
 stitch great care should be used in plating, 
 otherwise the silk luster will be lost. On fiber 
 silk more or less tension is generally used to 
 straighten or lay the silk in the right position 
 as it leaves the yarn guides. 
 
 I have never heard of brushing such a coat, 
 but that does not mean that it cannot be done. 
 The ordinary brushes would hardly do, even 
 with a soft twist silk. I remember having 
 seen a coat on the market at one time, made 
 from a worsted and fiber silk, with a tuck 
 stitch effect in colors. This was made on a 12- 
 gauge machine, five needles to the inch. The 
 face of this garment was silk and being made 
 with a tuck stitch, every other feed was silk, 
 saving half the silk. All of these garments 
 were made in two colors. With black wool 
 and white silk the silk would show on the face 
 in vertical stripes when slightly stretched. 
 With the plain stitch these stripes would not 
 show. The tuck stitch also gave more weight. 
 
 It would be difficult for me to say which 
 yarns are best for the purpose, as I do not 
 know the price or the weight of the garment. 
 
j6 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 The yarn should, however, be a three-ply, say 
 a 3/3 4s worsted and a 3/16 silk. Trenton. 
 
 A silk plated and brushed coat can be made 
 on a half -cardigan stitch. Use a l/16s wor- 
 sted and a 11-end organzine silk. To make 
 the coat from woolen yarn and fiber silk on a 
 5-gauge machine, it is advisable to use a 24s 
 wool and a 150s fiber. This makes a much 
 better looking garment than using a 16s wor- 
 sted and 11 end organzine. "Knitter" will find 
 with proper tensions on the fiber silk he can 
 make a much better garment than with or- 
 ganzine silk. I do not mean by this that it is 
 better to use fiber than silk, but I do say that 
 by giving the proper tensions on the machines, 
 which I judge to be flat bed, wood fiber and 
 wool will work very well together and will not 
 have the tearing effect on the garment as do 
 worsted and silk. 
 
 Napping or brushing cannot be done on a 
 silk plated garment. Good results can be ob- 
 tained after the goods are knit by placing them 
 in a cylinder vat or washing machine, adding 
 about 5 gallons of soft soap to 15 gallons of 
 cold water and letting this work for about two 
 hours or until the goods feel spongy. Then 
 remove goods and run them through a dryer. 
 This method gives the appearance of brushing 
 and does not have the tearing effect caused by 
 using the brusher. 
 
 One concern making athletic goods and also 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS J? 
 
 cloth for ladies' and gents' suitings both on 
 spring and latch needles is using the above 
 method to obtain the brushed effect. This 
 concern uses 2 wool to 1 silk. The goods 
 after going through this process have a silk 
 luster which cannot be obtained on a brusher. 
 
 Taconia. 
 
 Preventing Streaks in Light Colored Knit 
 Goods 
 
 I enclose a small sample of knit goods 
 which you will notice is streaky in the pink. 
 I have met with this difficulty several times 
 and have not found anything that will take 
 the dirt or streaks out of the yarn without 
 spoiling the color. If you know of any kind 
 of a chemical that will clean woolen, worsted 
 and merino yarn I would like to know of it. 
 
 Hunter (2246). 
 
 I have had this same difficulty when knit- 
 ting light colored yarn and have usually found 
 that it is dust which has got on the yarn while 
 being wound, or in bundles which were not 
 properly packed or taken care of in the yarn 
 room. I have never found a remedv for the 
 trouble after the yarn is knit. I have tried 
 bleaching it out in white goods without get- 
 ting the desired results, and have also tried 
 several solutions for removing the spots, but 
 without success. The only advice I could give 
 would be to see that the yarn is clean when 
 taken from the bundle, that clean hands 
 handle it, and that the winding and knitting 
 machines are clean. Bristol. 
 
yS KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 Stains on Knit Goods 
 
 We are enclosing a piece of knit goods 
 showing brown stains. These stains get on the 
 goods for only one or two pieces directly on 
 the top in the kier. The kier has outside 
 vomit pipes which connect to a perforated pipe 
 in top inside, which distributes the liquor over 
 the goods. We use a solution of 22 lbs. caustic 
 soda, 15 lbs. concentrated ash and 10 lbs. chip 
 soap to boil 1,400 lbs. goods for 7 1/2 hours. 
 We rinse our goods twice with fresh water 
 from the top. Please advise what is the cause 
 of these spots and what to do to prevent them. 
 
 Croydon (2242). 
 
 The stains on the samples submitted may be 
 caused by soap chips being cut in the boiling 
 process and the residue of fat and dirt perco- 
 lating through the blow pipe, leaving the sedi- 
 ment on the goods on the top of the kier. This 
 is one cause of the stains. Another possible 
 cause is dirty kiers, and not too clean water, 
 with possibly dirty boilers. This is indicated 
 by the fact that the stains appear only on the 
 top of the kier. I had the same trouble a few 
 years ago in a piece bleaching plant. 
 
 I would advise "Croydon" to watch each 
 kier as it comes out, and to use the following 
 method: First, whitewash the kiers with a 
 strong solution of lime wash. This should be 
 repeated after every boiling if the stains keep 
 appearing. Second, cut out the soap chips, in- 
 crease the caustic soda to 25 pounds, the soda 
 ash to 20 pounds and boil the same length of 
 time. If the goods come out harsh, make a 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 79 
 
 solution of soap liquor and pass the goods 
 through the machine with about 20 pounds of 
 solution to 100 gallons of water, adding a 
 little blueing to heighten the white. This will 
 give the goods a softer feel than if they were 
 boiled with the soap chips. Third, see that 
 the goods are covered with burlap or sacking 
 in the kier and properly weighted to hold the 
 sacking down. Fourth, if any compound is to 
 be used in the boilers, or any chemical for 
 purifying the water, see if the quantity can be 
 reduced to help keep down the scum in the 
 boiling. If the above directions are carefully 
 followed I am quite sure all stains will dis- 
 appear. Dulcimer. 
 
 Hosiery Boards 
 
 Please give us what you consider to be the 
 best treatment of hosiery boards for use in 
 the Philadelphia Drying Machine Co.'s dryer 
 on ladies' seamless silk hose. We are troubled 
 with "clouds" or spots in the silk. 
 
 Fairmont (2319). 
 
 In the first place we would suggest that 
 "Manufacturer" dry the goods at a lower tem- 
 perature than at present. He must do this by 
 partly closing the valve which admits the 
 steam to the heating coil of the dryer. If he 
 finds that the low pressure steam gives him 
 the desired, results in drying he might put a 
 reducing valve in his steam supply line, so that 
 it would only be possible for the dryer to get 
 
80 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 a steam supply at the pressure which has been 
 found to give the best results. It might also 
 be well for him to see whether or not too 
 much softener has been used in the dyeing 
 and finishing of the hosiery. 
 
 We manufacture a great many boards for 
 various hosiery concerns and when these 
 boards are to be used for silk goods they are 
 given a special treatment. This includes 
 singeing, treatment with our special prepara- 
 tion, handling on special machinery and after- 
 wards hand finishing. This results in a par- 
 ticularly high class board which is very 
 smooth. — Philadelphia Drying Machinery Co. 
 
 Uneven Knit Goods 
 
 I am sending you with this inquiry a sample 
 of our knit goods bleached in the roll. By 
 holding it up to the light you will notice that 
 while the wale runs perfectly straight length- 
 ways of the rolls, the rows of stitches are 
 twisted out of shape so as to occupy a diagonal 
 position. The goods are knit on a 16, 17, 18, 
 19 and 20 inch machine, 14 cut, and the goods 
 are defective from all of them. These goods 
 are apparently all right so far as this defect is 
 concerned when they come from the knitting 
 machine, but the imperfection shows up in 
 the cutting room after the goods are bleached. 
 We use horizontal pipes for drying the goods. 
 "While it looks as if the trouble was caused in 
 the bleaching process, still we would like to 
 have the subject investigated thoroughly and 
 get the opinions of knitters as to the cause 
 and remedy. Haraba (2438). 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 8 1 
 
 It is evident from an examination of the 
 sample of knit goods submitted, that the 
 trouble arises in drying after bleaching, and is 
 due primarily to uneven tension exerted on 
 the goods at the moment actual drying takes 
 place. Such a condition may be due to one of 
 several causes: Allowing the goods to feed to 
 the spreader while in a slightly twisted condi- 
 tion, or failing to get an even tension on the 
 first layer placed on the roller: or by "brake 
 ropes" often used to prevent a too free deliv- 
 ery from the drying pipe. While it is impos- 
 sible to state the exact cause of the trouble, it 
 is very important to avoid stretching the goods 
 unnecessarily. Where any tension whatever is 
 exerted on the goods it should be maintained 
 uniformly. Weybosset. 
 
 I do not see how the uneven knit goods can 
 be caused in the bleaching process, unless the 
 goods are unrolled and handled very roughly. 
 I am firmly convinced the defect is caused by 
 pulling the goods over the horizontal piping 
 for the purpose of drying. ' Haraba" will no- 
 tice in drawing the goods off the roll over the 
 piping that the two sides have a tendency to 
 pull tight, leaving the center of the material in 
 a baggy condition. This would naturally cause 
 uneven goods. He should examine the first 
 pipe or probably a few of the front pipes 
 which the goods strike first when they are in 
 a wet condition to see if there is a roughness 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 that would tend to increase this drag- and draw 
 the goods out of shape. This is liable to hap- 
 pen if there is considerable tension as the cloth 
 is stripped from the roll. 
 
 The tension will be increased if there is any 
 resin used in the bleaching solution or if the 
 bleaching soap contains resin, which makes 
 goods rough while they are in a wet state. 
 When they are pulled over the horizontal pipes 
 this roughness causes the goods to pull. To 
 overcome this drag rub the pipes with an oily 
 cloth, with not too much oil on it, as the 
 goods are pulled over the pipes. This will ease 
 the drag. If this does not remedy the diffi- 
 culty put a brass sleeve over the pipes to work 
 loose so that it will turn around with the pull- 
 ing of the material. Keep a watch on the 
 goods to see if this drag is the cause of the 
 trouble. If this does not overcome the diffi- 
 culty I would advise installing a different 
 dryer. I would also advise using a wire when 
 commencing to pull the goods over the pipes, 
 threading the wire through both sides of the 
 goods. This will help to. prevent one lap 
 dragging before the other. Use a brass or 
 strong copper wire for this purpose, but brass 
 is preferred. Dulcimer. 
 
 The slant in the sample submitted is no 
 doubt caused in the process of bleaching. 
 "Haraba" does not state the kind of machin- 
 ery used in bleaching, so that it is difficult to 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 85 
 
 state -where the trouble arises. I have come to 
 the conclusion, however, that there is too 
 much tension and drag on the guides. Rolling 
 the cloth thicker on one side than on the 
 other would cause it to twist out of shape. 
 
 Mohegan. 
 
 Knitting Heavy Yarn and Making Good 
 Elastic Fabric 
 
 What is the heaviest yarn that can be knit 
 on a 10-cut rib machine to good advantage, 
 w T ith 3 6-gauge needles and 24-gauge hook for 
 cylinder and regular 3 6-gauge dial needles? 
 I am trying to run 10 1/2 yarn and the goods 
 appear full of holes. Can you suggest a 
 remedy? I would also like to have you advise 
 me as to the best way to set a knitting ma- 
 chine to get a good elastic fabric. 
 
 Saxon (2443). 
 
 The heaviest yarn that can be run on a 10 
 cut frame successfully, depends on how tight 
 the goods are to be knit. The sample enclosed 
 with the gauge of needles used and number of 
 yarn, should run well, provided good yarn is 
 used. Still a No. 12 yarn might do as well and 
 run without trouble. 
 
 The hole in the sample is caused by a knot, 
 which shows that the knots are either too 
 large or the hooks too small, or perhaps the 
 yarn is poor. Try a flat knot. If "Saxon" 
 does not wind his own yarn, catch the big 
 knots in the stop motion strippers. Try the 
 knots to see if they will slide through the 
 
84 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 hooks freely. If not, change the hooks. The 
 sample shows either a long stitch or that the 
 cam is holding down too many needles; the 
 dial needles seem to pull back too far, as the 
 distance between wales shows. The wales 
 ought to be close together for that cut and 
 yarn. 
 
 In order to get a good elastic fabric run the 
 dial as low as possible and make the stitch 
 and all changes with cylinder needles. Let the 
 dial cap run as far back as possible so that 
 the cylinder stitch will be formed and released 
 before the dial stitch casts off. On the style 
 of frame mentioned the dial should cast off 
 about five needles after the cylinder needles 
 release. Trenton. 
 
 It is my opinion that the hole in the sam- 
 ple of knit goods submitted was caused by a 
 knot in the yarn. The range of yarns that can 
 properly be knit on a 3 cut, latch needle rib 
 frame, runs from a single 10s to 18s. I enclose 
 sample swatch of 10s carded and 12s combed 
 knit on a 10 cut frame with good results. We 
 use 24 hook needle in the cylinder and 3 6 hook 
 needle in the dial, 3 6 gauge needles. 
 
 Caliatura. 
 
 Sizing* Compound for Silk Yarn 
 
 Can you send me a formula for sizing or 
 otherwise treating silk yarn to facilitate the 
 knitting of the same. Tokio (1270). 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS b 
 
 It is presumably spun silk-waste yarn to 
 which the inquiry refers. Any treatment of 
 the kind is unheard of in England where the 
 whole object of all parties concerned is to pro- 
 duce for knitting purposes the fullest, bulkiest 
 yarn possible. Consequently it is difficult to 
 understand what the inquirer would be at. 
 Supposing him to want a soluble form of 
 starch which can be easily applied and easily 
 dissolved out after knitting, a silk man of 
 great experience suggests rice water; the same 
 that is used to hold together raw silks in the 
 East; the least adhesive of starches. A fin- 
 isher with more claim to know starches and 
 less to know silks, suggests hard-boiled dex- 
 trin; partly because it would assist to give the 
 goods the 'scroop" which some customers de- 
 mand. Without more knowledge of the in- 
 quirer's circumstances and intention it is 
 hardly possible to give more information 
 either as to the composition or the machines. 
 
 Argus. 
 
 Mill Wrinkles in Knit Goods 
 
 In fulling knit cloth we are having some 
 difficulty because of the roping of the pieces. 
 The goods stick together, although we open 
 them while in the wet stage. We find that the 
 crease caused by roping remains in the cloth 
 after it is dried and finished. Is there some 
 method to prevent the roping in the fulling 
 mill, or to remove the crease after the cloth 
 is finished? For soaping purposes we use a 
 
86 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 box on top of the fulling mill with a faucet 
 directly above the solid roll. In front of the 
 rolls the soap runs on the cloth from a 3/4- 
 inch outlet in an even stream which gives the 
 goods uniform soaping. We use one pound of 
 soap to each gallon of water boiled 2 1/2 to 3 
 hours, when the soap is entirely dissolved. Of 
 this solution we use 3 quarts to each 6 1/2 or 
 7 pounds of cloth. When soaping, we have 
 the trap up, running this way from 10 to 15 
 minutes. By this time all the soap has run 
 down on the cloth. After this we lower the 
 trap and put on the required weights and then 
 begin fulling. Running this way for 1/2 hour, 
 the roping begins and here also is where our 
 difficulty begins. Dexter (2409). 
 
 A knit fabric suitable for men's wear to be 
 fulled in a rotary fulling mill would have to 
 be very carefully handled to prevent wrinkles. 
 Its being woven in tubular form would cause 
 it to rope and if the goods were run for some 
 time wrinkles would be sure to show when fin- 
 ished. Ordinary woolen goods that have a 
 tendency to wrinkle or rope are best fulled in 
 the rotary fulling mill and fulling stocks. The 
 lulling stocks are extensively used in England 
 and Scotland and I know of no better method 
 of preventing mill wrinkles than frequently 
 shaking the goods out and fulling alternately 
 in the rotary mill and stocks. 
 
 In fulling a fabric like the sample sub- 
 mitted, I should first soap down as stated, and 
 run for only half the time required for the full 
 amount of fulling. I would then shake out 
 and fold the pieces neatly and place them in 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 87 
 
 the fulling- stocks, so that the feet kick across 
 the wrinkles, or in a woven fabric across the 
 warp. Folding the goods placed in the stocks 
 would have a tendency to shrink them length- 
 ways, probably as much as in the rotary mill. 
 In fulling in the stocks the goods are on view 
 during the whole process and can be readily 
 examined without stopping the machine or 
 drawing the goods out. 
 
 In the woolen and worsted trade there are 
 a few processes and machines for removing or 
 covering up mill wrinkles, but the fulling 
 stocks are the best prevention that I have 
 found during thirty years in the finishing of 
 woolen goods. Why stocks are not more ex- 
 tensively used in the American trade I cannot 
 understand. 
 
 There are very few English mills that have 
 not got one or more of these machines. It 
 was once my privilege to be shown over a fin- 
 ishing plant that had eighty-five of these ma- 
 chines installed all of modern make, the feet 
 kicking somewhere around 120 to the minute 
 and turning out fine work upon all kinds of 
 goods I see no reason why a fabric such as 
 this sample could not be turned out of these 
 machines in perfect condition. Pinetree. 
 
 Fuzziness on Silk Hose 
 
 We are enclosing two socks. One is new, 
 
 while the other has been worn and washed 
 
 once. Could you explain the reason for the 
 
 fuzziness on these socks? Agram (2384). 
 
00 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 The fuzziness on the silk stocking is caused 
 by using a strong alkali in the boiling-off proc- 
 ess before dyeing and knitting, which causes 
 the fibers to open up too much, giving a fuzzy 
 and specky appearance which is covered up 
 somewhat in the dyeing process. The best 
 way to boil off silk is to use a good soap and 
 water, or better still, the soap foam degum- 
 ming process. Silk hose should be washed 
 carefully. The best way to wash such goods 
 is to use an olive oil in cold suds, rinsing in 
 clean water in which a small quantity of salt 
 or vinegar has been added. This acts as a 
 mordant. Wring as flat as possible, let dry in 
 the shade and then press cold. A strong 
 alkali, such as potash or chloride of lime has 
 been used in washing the stockings. This has 
 turned the color and injured the fiber, causing 
 a fuzzy appearance. Lithonia. 
 
 Sizes of Boys' Underwear 
 
 Kindly give us the standard sizes for boys' 
 flat wool shirts and drawers. 
 
 Quebec (2292). 
 
 A standard scale of measurements for boys' 
 flat wool shirts and drawers was adopted by 
 the Wholesale Dry Goods Association some 
 time ago. We find, however, that in actual 
 practice some of these proportions were not 
 altogether satisfactory. We have from time 
 to time made slight changes in the scale and 
 are asking our manufacturers to make our 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 89 
 
 goods according to the following dimensions 
 which have proved to be most satisfactory: 
 
 Boys' Flat Wool Underwear — Shirts 
 
 Sizes 
 
 Width 
 
 Length 
 
 Length Sleeve 
 
 24 
 
 . . . 12 . . 
 
 19 
 
 13 
 
 26 . . . 
 
 . . . 13 
 
 21 
 
 14 
 
 28 . . . 
 
 . . . 14 
 
 23 
 
 15 
 
 30 
 
 . . 15 . . 
 
 25 
 
 16 
 
 32 
 
 . . . 16 . . 
 
 27 
 
 17 
 
 34 . . . 
 
 . . . 17 
 
 29 
 
 Drawers 
 
 18 
 
 Sizes 
 
 Inseam 
 
 Back Rise 
 
 Front Rise 
 
 24 . . . 
 
 . . . 19 . . 
 
 .... 12V 2 . 
 
 10 
 
 26 
 
 . . . 21 . . 
 
 13 
 
 ioy 2 
 
 28 . . . 
 
 . . . 23 
 
 13y 2 . 
 
 11 
 
 30 . . . 
 
 . . . 25 
 
 14 
 
 12 
 
 32 
 
 , ... 27 . . 
 
 .... 15 
 
 12% 
 
 34 . . . 
 
 . . . 29 
 
 16 
 
 13 
 
 Me 
 
 ti's Flat 
 
 Underwear- 
 
 -Shirts 
 
 Sizes 
 
 Width 
 
 Length 
 
 Length Sleeve 
 
 34 . . . 
 
 . . . 17 . 
 
 30 
 
 19 
 
 36 . . . 
 
 . . . 18 . . 
 
 31 
 
 20 
 
 38 . . . 
 
 . . . 19 . . 
 
 32 
 
 21 
 
 40 . . . 
 
 . . . 20 . 
 
 32 
 
 22 
 
 42 . . . 
 
 . . . 21 . 
 
 33 
 
 22 
 
 44 . . . 
 
 . . . 22 . 
 
 33 
 
 23 
 
 46 . . . 
 
 . . . 23 . 
 
 33 
 
 Drawers 
 
 23 
 
 Sizes 
 
 Inseam 
 
 Back Rise 
 
 Front Rise 
 
 30 . . . 
 
 . . . 29 . 
 
 15 
 
 13 
 
 32 . . . 
 
 . . . 29 . 
 
 15 
 
 13 
 
90 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 34 . . . 
 
 . . . 30 . . . 
 
 . . . 16 
 
 14 
 
 36 . . . 
 
 . . . 30 . . . 
 
 . . . 16 
 
 14 
 
 38 . . . 
 
 . . . 30 
 
 . . . 17 
 
 14 
 
 40 . . . 
 
 . . . 31 . . . 
 
 . . . 17 
 
 15 
 
 42 . . . 
 
 . . . 31 . . . 
 
 . . . 18 
 
 15 
 
 44 . . . 
 
 . . . 31 
 
 . . .18 
 
 15 
 
 Fillmore 
 
 Standard Sizes for Two-Piece Underwear 
 
 Following - is the list of standard sizes for 
 two-piece underwear which has been adopted 
 
 by the Jobbers' Association of Knit Goods 
 Buyers. We are publishing it here in response 
 
 to numerous inquiries for a standard list of 
 this kind: 
 
 Ribbed — Infants' 
 
 Size mark — Age A/0 B/l C/1% D/2 FJ/2% 
 
 Neck 9 10 10 11 11 
 
 Chest 14 15 16 17 18 
 
 Vest length . . 10 12 13 15 17 
 
 Sleeve length 7 8 9 10 11 
 
 Arm hole .... 7 7 8 8 9 
 
 Ribbed — Children's 
 
 Size mark — Age 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 
 
 Neck 11 12 13 13 14 14 15 15 
 
 Chest 18 18 19 20 21 22 24 26 
 
 Vest length 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 
 
 Sleeve length 11 12 13 15 16 17 18 19 
 
 Arm hole 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 15 
 
 Waist bands 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 
 
 Hip 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 
 
 Thigh 11 12 12 13 13 14 15 16 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 9 1 
 
 Rise band to crotch 
 
 front 7 2 8 9 9 2 10 10 2 ll 2 12 a 
 
 *Rise band to crotch 
 
 back 9' 10 11 ll 2 13 13 2 14 2 15 J 
 
 Inseam 13 15 17 20 22 24 26 27 
 
 Trunk 37 40 44 47 51 54 5S 61 
 
 Ribbed — Women's 
 
 Size mark 34 36 38 40 42 44 
 
 Neck 16 16 17 17 18 18 
 
 Chest 26 28 30 32 34 36 
 
 Vest length 32 32 33 33 34 34 
 
 Sleeve length 20 20 20 20 20 20 
 
 Arm hole 16 16 18 18 20 20 
 
 Waist bands 30 30 30 32 34 36 
 
 Hip 32 34 36 38 40 42 
 
 Thigh 18 19 20 21 22 23 
 
 Front rise 14 14 15 15 16 16 
 
 *Back rise 17 18 19 20 22 22 
 
 Inseam 27 27 27 28 28 28 
 
 Trunk 62 64 66 68 70 72 
 
 Ribbed — Boys' 
 
 Size mark — Age 6 8 10 12 14 16 
 
 Neck 13 13 14 14 15 15 
 
 Chest 20 21 21 22 24 26 
 
 Shirt length 20 22 24 26 2S 30 
 
 Sleeve length 14 15 16 17 18 19 
 
 Arm hole 11 12 13 14 15 15 
 
 Waist bands 24 25 26 27 28 29 
 
 Hip 21 25 26 27 28 29 
 
 Thigh 10 12 13 14 15 15 
 
 Front rise 9 9 10 11 11 12 
 
 *Back rise 11 12 13 14 15 16 
 
92 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 Inseam 17 20 22 24 27 29 
 
 Trunk 44 47 51.54 58 61 
 
 Ribbed — Men's 
 
 Size mark 34 36 38 40 42 44 46 
 
 Neck 16 16 17 17 18 19 20 
 
 Chest 28 29 30 32 34 35 37 
 
 Shirt length 32 33 34 34 34 35 35 
 
 Sleeve length 20 21 22 22 23 23 23 
 
 Arm hole 16 16 16 17 18 19 20 
 
 Waist 30 32 34 36 38 40 42 44 
 
 Hip 30 30 31 32 34 35 37 39 
 
 Thigh 16 17 18 19 19 20 21 21 
 
 Front rise 13 13 13 14 14 14 15 15 
 
 *Back rise 17 17 18 19 19 20 20 21 
 
 Inseam 31 31 32 32 32 32 32 32 
 
 Trunk 62 62 64 66 67 68 69 70 
 
 Flat — Children's 
 
 Size mark — Age ... 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 
 
 Neck 11 12 13 13 14 14 15 15 
 
 Chest 22 24 24 26 26 28 30 32 
 
 Vest length 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 
 
 Sleeve length 10 11 12 13 15 16 17 18 
 
 Arm hole 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 15 
 
 Waist bands 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 
 
 Hip 23 24 25 27 29 32 34 36 
 
 Thigh 12 13 14 15 16 17 19 21 
 
 Rise band to crotch 
 
 front 7 2 8 9 9 2 10 10 2 ll 2 12 2 
 
 *Rise band to crotch 
 
 back 9 2 10 11 ll 2 13 13 2 14 2 15 2 
 
 Inseam 10 14 16 19 21 23 25 26 
 
 Trunk 37 40 44 47 51 54 58 61 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 93 
 
 Flat — Women's 
 
 Size mark 34 36 38 40 42 44 
 
 Neck 16 16 17 17 18 18 
 
 Chest 34 36 38 40 42 44 
 
 Vest length 30 30 31 31 32 32 
 
 Sleeve length 19 19 19 19 19 19 
 
 Arm hole 16 16 18 18 20 20 
 
 Waist bands 30 30 30 32 34 36 
 
 Hip 40 42 44 47 50 53 
 
 Thigh 23 24 25 26 27 28 
 
 Front rise 14 14 15 15 16 16 
 
 *Back rise 17 18 19 20 22 22 
 
 Inseam 26 26 26 27 27 27 
 
 Trunk 62 64 66 68 70 72 
 
 Flat — Boys' 
 
 Size mark — Age 6 8 10 12 14 16 
 
 Neck 13 13 14 14 15 15 
 
 Chest 24 26 26 28 30 32 
 
 Shirt length 19 21 23 25 27 29 
 
 Sleeve length 13 14 15 16 17 18 
 
 Arm hole 11 12 13 14 15 15 
 
 Waist bands 24 25 26 27 28 29 
 
 Hip 24 26 28 30 32 34 
 
 Thigh 14 15 16 17 18 19 
 
 Front rise 9 9 10 11 11 12 
 
 *Back rise 11 12 13 14 15 16 
 
 Inseam 16 19 21 23 26 28 
 
 Trunk 44 47 51 54 58 61 
 
 Flat — Men's 
 
 Size mark 34 36 38 40 42 44 46 
 
 Neck 16 16 17 17 18 19 20 
 
 Chest 34 36 38 40 42 44 46 
 
94 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 Shirt length 31 32 33 33 33 34 34 
 
 Sleeve length 19 20 21 21 22 22 22 
 
 Arm hole 16 16 16 17 18 19 20 
 
 Waist 30 32 34 36 38 40 42 44 
 
 Hip ...36 37 38 40 42 44 46 48 
 
 Thigh 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 26 
 
 Front rise 13 13 13 14 14 14 15 15 
 
 *Back rise 17 17 18 19 19 20 20 21 
 
 Inseam 30 30 31 3131 31 31 '31 
 
 Trunk 62 64 66 67 68 69 70 
 
 *Where the front and backs of pants are 
 made alike they must both be the length of 
 the back rise as here given, and not one-half 
 the sum of the front and back. 
 
 Sizes on the rib scale are based on 1 by 1 
 stitch goods of winter weight and a stretch of 
 25 per cent, in width is allowed. This allow- 
 ance may be increased up to 30 per cent, as 
 the goods run lighter in weight, or decreased 
 with more rigid fabrics. 
 
 "Waist band" is measurement of garment 
 when buttoned. 
 
 Sweater Coat Sizes 
 
 A committee of the Jobbers' Association of 
 Knit Fabric Buyers' which has been investi- 
 gating the question of standardizing sweater 
 coat sizes, made a report at the recent meet- 
 ing of the association in New York, and rec- 
 ommended that the following sizes be adopted 
 by the trade: 
 
KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 Men's Sweater Coats 
 
 95 
 
 Chest 
 
 Width 
 
 Length 
 
 Sleeve 
 
 Inches 
 
 Inches 
 
 Inches 
 
 Inches 
 
 34 
 
 15% 
 
 26 
 
 20 
 
 36 
 
 16% 
 
 27 
 
 20 
 
 38 
 
 17V 2 
 
 28 
 
 21 
 
 40 
 
 18% 
 
 28 
 
 21 
 
 42 
 
 19% 
 
 28 
 
 21 
 
 44 
 
 20% 
 
 29 
 
 22 
 
 46 
 
 21% 
 
 29 
 
 22 
 
 
 Boys' S\ 
 
 veater Coats 
 
 
 Chest 
 
 Width 
 
 Length 
 
 Sleeve 
 
 Inches 
 
 Inches 
 
 Inches 
 
 Inches 
 
 24 
 
 11 
 
 18 
 
 13 
 
 26 
 
 12 
 
 19 
 
 15 
 
 28 
 
 13 
 
 20 
 
 16 
 
 30 
 
 14 
 
 21 
 
 17 
 
 32 
 
 15 
 
 22 
 
 18 
 
 34 
 
 16 
 
 24 
 
 19 
 
 Sizes of Balbriggan Union Suits 
 
 Please give us the latest scale of sizes for 
 men's flat balbriggan union suits. 
 
 Wilton (2215). 
 
 I enclose the correct measurements for 
 men's flat balbriggan combination suits. It 
 will be noticed that I have given the scale of 
 lengths for the three-quarter length suit, as I 
 find that during the present season a very 
 large proportion of the business has been done 
 
g6 KINKS FOR KNITTERS 
 
 on this length garment, the end of the cuffs 
 of which is supposed to reach to the bottom 
 of the cuff of the sock. I have also given 
 measurements for short sleeves and the same 
 applies to the top of the sleeve. 
 
 Inseam Inseam 
 Shoulder for Ankle for % Long- Short 
 
 Sizes 
 34 
 
 Chest 
 17 
 
 to Crotch 
 30 
 
 Length 
 26 
 
 Length 
 21 
 
 Sleeves 
 17 
 
 Sleeves 
 
 8 
 
 36 
 
 18 
 
 31 
 
 27 
 
 22 
 
 18 
 
 8 
 
 38 
 
 19 
 
 32 
 
 28 
 
 23 
 
 19 
 
 8 
 
 40 
 
 20 
 
 33 
 
 29 
 
 24 
 
 20 
 
 9 
 
 42 
 
 21 
 
 34 
 
 29 
 
 24 
 
 21 
 
 9 
 
 44 
 
 22 
 
 34% 
 
 30 
 
 25 
 
 21 
 
 9 
 
 46 
 
 23 
 
 35 
 
 30 
 
 25 
 
 21 
 
 10 
 
 48 
 
 24 
 
 3 5y 2 
 
 30 
 
 25 
 
 22 
 
 10 
 
 50 
 
 25 
 
 36 
 
 30 
 
 25 
 
 22 
 
 10 
 
 As "Wilton" will undoubtedly put in a set-in 
 sleeve in his garment, the bottom will meas- 
 ure some two inches less or as much less as 
 the sleeve is set in at the top. Filmore. 
 
INDEX 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Artificial Silk Knitting 9 
 
 Bleaching and Shrinking Underwear Garments 73 
 
 Bleaching Silk Hosiery 55 
 
 Bleaching Underwear 53,61,73 
 
 Bleaching Yarn 57 
 
 Blue Spots on Bleached Knit Goods 61 
 
 Boots, Manufacturing 44 
 
 Calculating Cost and Return on Increase in Plant 43 
 
 Carrier for Goods in Sewing Room 13 
 
 Comparative Table for Cotton, Spun Silk, Arti- 
 ficial Silk and Thrown Silk Yarns 23 
 
 Cost and Production of Mfg. Underwear 10 
 
 Cost of Hosiery 12 
 
 Cost Table for Manufacturing Sweaters 36 
 
 Cutters, Economical 18 
 
 Defective Knitting 54 
 
 Determining the Gauge of a Knit Fabric 46 
 
 Duplicating a Sweater Fabric 15 
 
 Dyeing of Cotton and Silk and Cotton and Arti- 
 
 tificial Silk Hosiery 49 
 
 Dyeing Silk Hosiery 26 
 
 Eliminating Unnecessary Work in Sewing Room 13 
 
 Estimating Cost of Hosiery 12 
 
 Figures on Jersey Cloth 47 
 
 Finishing Coats 74 
 
 Floor Space, Method to Increase 22 
 
 Full Fashioned Hosiery, Wages on 39 
 
 Fuzziness on Silk Hose 87 
 
 Gauge of Fabric 46 
 
 Gauge, Size of Yarn for 36 
 
 Holes in Knit Fabrics 33 
 
 Hosiery Bleaching 55 
 
 Hosiery Boards 79 
 
 Hosiery Dyeing 26, 49 
 
 Hosiery, Estimating Cost of 12 
 
 Hosiery, Measurements for 16 
 
 Hosiery Sizes 17 
 
 Hosiery Scrooping 69 
 
 Hosiery, Shrinkage in Dyeing 46 
 
 Hosiery, Uneven Lengths in 21 
 
 Increasing Floor Space 22 
 
 Keeping Track of a Yarn Account 40 
 
 Keeping Track of Goods 11 
 
 Knitting Artificial Silk 9 
 
 Knitting Heavy Yarn and Making Good Elastic 
 
 Fabric 83 
 
 Knitting Silk 34 
 
9 8 
 
 INDEX 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Knitting Silk Plated Coats 74 
 
 Marking Knit Goods 48 
 
 Measurements for Hosiery 16 
 
 Mill Wrinkles in Knit Goods 85 
 
 Moisture in Yarn 41 
 
 Number of Needles to the Inch 42 
 
 Oiling Yarn 9, 20, 25, 35 
 
 Paraffine Waxing Attachment 21 
 
 Percentage of Seconds in Mfg. Union Suits — 17 
 
 Piece Work, Prices for 39 
 
 Plated Coats 74 
 
 Plating, Adjustment for 68 
 
 Preventing Streaks in Light Colored Knit Goods 77 
 
 Prices Paid for Piece Work 39 
 
 Production and Costs in Mfg. Union Suits and 
 
 Two Piece Suits 10 
 
 Ridgy Effect in Knit Goods 31 
 
 Scrooping of Hosiery, The 69 
 
 Seaming Sweater Coats 58 
 
 Seconds, Prevention of 17, 28 
 
 Shrinkage of Hosiery in Dyeing 46 
 
 Shrinking Underwear . . 73 
 
 Silk and Cotton Hosiery Dyeing 26, 49 
 
 Silk Hosiery Bleaching 55 
 
 ;Silk Knitting 9, 34 
 
 Sizes of Balbriggan Union Suits 95 
 
 Size of Yarn for Gauges 36 
 
 Sizes of Boys' Underwear 88 
 
 Sizes of Hosiery 17 
 
 Sizing Compound for Silk Yarn 84 
 
 Softener for Artificial Silk 9 
 
 Solution for Oiling Yarns 25 
 
 Stains on Knit Goods 78 
 
 "Standard Measurements for Hosiery 16 
 
 Standard Sizes for Two Piece Underwear 90 
 
 Streaks in Hosiery, Variation in Sizes and Num- 
 ber of Operatives Required 59 
 
 Sweater Coat Sizes 94 
 
 Sweaters, Cost of Manufacturing 36 
 
 Terms Used in Knitting 66 
 
 Underwear Bleaching , 53, 61, 73 
 
 Underwear, Cost of Production 10 
 
 Underwear Sizes 88, 90, 95 
 
 Uneven Knit Goods 80 
 
 Uneven Lengths # in Ladies' Hosiery 21 
 
 Uneven Yarn ./. 31 
 
 Union Suits, Seconds 17 
 
 Unnecessary Work, Eliminating 13 
 
 Wrinkles in Fulling Goods 85 
 
 Yarn Account, Keeping 40 
 
 Yarn Bleaching 57 
 
 Yarn Sizes, Table of 23 
 
 Yellow Cast on Bleached Underwear 53 
 
The 
 
 Eastman 
 Cutter 
 
 Will enable you to save from thirty 
 to forty per cent, in your cutting 
 costs. We can prove this to you 
 by a free demonstration 
 
 Eastman Machine Co. 
 
 BUFFALO, N. Y. 
 
Page 
 Needles 
 
 Made with our 
 
 Special Screw Rivet 
 
 Banish all of 
 YOUR 
 
 Needle Troubles 
 
 Finest Material and Finish 
 
 Unexcelled Workmanship 
 
 Let us figure on your 
 requirements 
 
 Address Dept. K 
 
 Page Needle Co. 
 
 Chicopee Falls, Mass. 
 U. S. A. 
 
A Mine of Knitting Facts 
 
 THE 
 
 SCIENCE 
 
 OF 
 
 s KNITTING 
 
 ^ ERNEST TOMPKINS 
 
 300 pages, Illustrated, Price $3.00, Postage free 
 
 Lord & Nagle Company 
 
 Publishers of the Textile World Record 
 
 144 Congress Street, Boston, Mass. 
 
ALEX. D. STELLE WALTER H. ROSSMASSLER 
 
 President Treasurer 
 
 SAUQUOIT 
 SILK MFG. COMPANY 
 
 HOSIERY 
 
 AND 
 
 Braiding Silks 
 
 Manufacturers of 
 
 Organzine, Tram, Twist, Fringe 
 and Knitting Silks 
 
 OF ALL KINDS 
 
 Fast Dye Organzines for Woolen 
 Manufacturers a Specialty 
 
 A/1 : I 1 ^ . Bethlehem, Pa. 
 
 iVl 1 IS! Philadelphia, Pa. 
 XTlllli7« Scranton, Pa. 
 
 New York Representatives 
 WILLIAM RYLE & CO., 225 Fourth Ave. 
 
 Philadelphia Office 
 
 4015 Clarissa St. (18th St. and Hunting Park Ave. 
 
 Nicetown) 
 
 Boston Agents 
 Chicago Office Stelle & Sherman 
 206 S. Market Street 78 Chauncy Street 
 
H.Brinton Company 
 
 Manufacturers of 
 
 Circular Knitting Machinery 
 Ribbers 
 
 Knitters 
 Body Machines, 
 
 The latest improvements in 
 all classes of machines. 
 
 Catalog and samples mailed on request. 
 
 213-217 Race Street, 
 Philadelphia 
 
Crane Manufacturing 
 Co. 
 
 Makers of both 
 
 Latch and Spring Needle 
 Knitting Machinery. 
 
 Of the spring needle type our WEB 
 FRAMES can be equipped with plain, 
 eiderdown or stockinet feeds, for UN- 
 DERWEAR and a great variety of 
 fabrics. 
 
 Our SPRING NEEDLE RIB MA- 
 CHINES produce a very line grade of 
 Underwear. 
 
 We have a PLAIN LATCH NEEDLE 
 
 STRIPING machine for 2 or 3 colors, 
 especially adapted for bathing suit and 
 athletic goods. 
 
 Machines of the LATCH NEEDLE 
 type are made for UNDERWEAR and 
 NOVELTIES. 
 
 ALL of these machines made in sixes and 
 
 gauges to meet the requirements 
 
 of the trade. 
 
 LAKEPORT, N. H. 
 
Stafford & Holt, 
 
 Manufacturers of 
 
 Automatic Circular Rib 
 Knitting Machinery 
 
 Of All Descriptions 
 
 Plain and Automatic Ribbed Under = 
 
 wear Machines, 
 Sleeve and Rib Top Machines, 
 Sweater Machines, 
 Pineapple Stitch Sweater Machines, 
 Racked Stitch Sweater Machines, 
 Jersey Stitch Sweater Machines, 
 Border and Collarette Machines, 
 Bathing Suit Machines with Strip* 
 
 ing Attachments, 
 Ribbed Toque Machines, 
 Flat Stitch Toque Machines, 
 Pineapple and Honeycomb Toque 
 
 Machines, Automatic Striping 
 
 Attachments, 
 Tassel Cord, Facing, Jacket Border, 
 Gas Mantle, 
 
 Mitten and Glove Lining Machines, 
 Roll Turning Machines. 
 
 LITTLE FALLS, N. Y. 
 
Use the Merrow 
 
 Overedging 
 
 Overseaming and 
 
 Shell Stitch Machines 
 
 For finishing seams and edges 
 of all kinds of 
 
 Knitted and Woven Fabrics 
 
 Send for particulars and 
 samples to 
 
 The Merrow Machine Co. 
 
 Hartford, Conn., U. S. A. 
 
 Branches in all principal centers 
 
Wildman Machinery 
 
 Provides Valuable 
 
 KINKS 
 
 for 
 
 Knitters and 
 
 Mill Managers 
 
 Wildman Mfg. Co. 
 
 Circular Rib Knitting Machinery 
 
 Automatic Stop Motions 
 Electric Cloth Cutters 
 
 NORRISTOWN, PA., U. S. A, 
 
 Illustrated Catalogue 
 
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 
 
 014 082 453 7