The bandbox plot was an attempt to assassinate the lord-treasurer during the reign of Queen Anne. A bandbox containing three charged and cocked pistols was sent to the lord-treasurer, a thread tied to their triggers in such a way that when the box lid was lifted the pistols would discharge and shoot the person opening the box. Apparently deanSwift was present when the box was delivered, and seeing the thread cut it, thereby disarming the device. Research Bandbox Plot
A bead was originally a prayer; then the name was given to a small perforated ball of gold, pearl, amber, glass, or the like, to be strung on a thread, and used in a rosary by Roman Catholics in numbering their prayers, one bead being passed at the end of-each ejaculation or short prayer. Later the word came to mean any such small ornamental body. Since the 19th century glass beads have been among the most common sort.
A bobbin is a reel or other similar contrivance for holding thread. It is often a cylindrical piece of wood or plastic with a head, on which thread is wound for making lace; or a spool with a head at one or both ends, intended to have thread or yarn wound on it, and used in spinning machinery (when it is slipped on a spindle and revolves therewith) and in sewing-machines (applied within the shuttle). Research Bobbin
Carpet, a thick fabric, generally composed wholly or principally of wool, for covering the floors of apartments, staircases, and passages in the interior of a house or other place. Carpets were originally introduced from the East, where they were fabricated in pieces, like the modern rugs, for sitting on - a use obviously suggested by the Eastern habit of sitting cross-legged upon the floor. Eastern carpets are still highly thought of in Europe, into which they are largely imported. The good quality Persian, Turkish, and Indian carpets are all woven by hand, and the design is formed by knotting into the warp tufts of woollen threads of the proper colour one after the other.
Of European carpets the Brussels carpet was a common and highly-esteemed variety at the end of the 19th century. It was composed of linen thread and worsted, the latter forming the pattern. The linen basis did not appear on the surface, being concealed by the worsted, which was drawn through the reticulations and looped over wires that were afterwards withdrawn, giving the surface a ribbed appearance.
Wilton carpets were similar to Brussels in the process of their manufacture, but in them the loops were cut open by using wires with a knife-edge, and the surface thus obtained a pile.
Tapestry carpets have also a pile surface. They were traditionally manufactured according to a process patented by Mr. Whytock of Edinburgh in 1832, the great speciality of which was that the threads were particoloured by printing in the proper manner for each design before being woven up.
The Kidderminster or Scotch carpet consisted of two distinct webs woven at the same time and knitted together by the woof. The pattern was the same on both sides of the cloth, but the colours were reversed. An improvement upon this was the three-ply carpeting, made originally at Kilmarnock.
The original Axminster carpets were made on the principle of the Persian or Turkey carpets. Patent Axminster carpets (invented by Templeton of Glasgow, 1839) have a fine pile, which is produced by using chenille as the weft, the projecting threads of which form the pile, which is dyed before being used. Carpets of felted wool, with designs printed on them, are also used, and are very cheap. Cheap jute carpets are also made. Research Carpet
Cotton-spinning is a term employed to describe in the aggregate all the operations involved in transforming raw cotton into yarn. The word 'spinning' has also a more limited signification, being used to denote the concluding process of the series. The following affords a general notion of the nature and order of the successive operations carried on in the manufacture of cottonyarn:
(1) Mixing, the blending of different varieties of raw cotton, in order to secure economical production, uniform quality and colour, and an even thread in any desired degree.
(2) Cleaning, an operation partly effected in mixing, partly by scutching, the cotton being prepared in the form of a continuous lap or rolled sheet for the next process.
(3) Carding, an operation in which the material is treated in its individual fibres, which are taken from the lap, further cleansed, and laid in a position approximately parallel to each other, forming a thin film, which is afterwards condensed into a sliver - a round, untwisted strand of cotton.
(4) Drawing, the drawing out of several slivers to the dimensions of one, so as to render the new sliver more uniform in thickness, and to place the fibres more perfectly in parallel order.
(5) Stubbing, the further drawing or attenuation of the sliver, and slightly twisting it in order to preserve its cohesion and rounded form.
(6) Intermediate or second stubbing, a repetition of the former operation and further attenuation, not necessary in the production of coarse yarns.
(7) Having, a continuation of the preceding, its principal object being to still further attenuate the sliver, and give it a slight additional twist.
(8) Spinning, which completes the extension and twisting of the yarn. This is accomplished either with the throstle or the mule. By means of the former machine the yarn receives a hard twist, which renders it tough and strong. By means of the latter yarns of less strength are produced, such as warps of light fabrics and wefts of all kind.
Up to the middle of the 18th century the only method of spinning known was that by the hand-wheel, or the still more primitive distaff and spindle. In 1767 a poor weaver of the name of Hargreaves, residing at Stanhill, near Blackburn, in Lancashire, invented a machine for spinningcotton, which he named a spinning-jenny. It consisted at first of eight spindles, turned by a horizontal wheel, but was afterwards greatly extended and improved, so as to have the vertical substituted for the horizontal wheel, and give motion to from fifty to eighty spindles. In 1769 Arkwright, originally a barber's apprentice, took out a patent for spinning by rollers. From the circumstances of the mill erected by Arkwright at Cromford, in Derbyshire, being driven by water-power, his machine received the name of the water-frame, and the thread spun on it that of water-twist. The next important invention in cotton-spinning was that of the mule, introduced by Samuel Crompton, of Bolton, in 1775, and so called from its combining the principle of the spinning-jenny of Hargreaves with the roller-spinning of Arkwright.
Numerous improvements in cotton-spinning have been subsequently introduced up to the present day, but they are all, more or less, modifications of Arkwright's spinning-frame and Crompton's mule-jenny. Among the principal of these may be mentioned the throstle, an extension and simplification of the original spinning-frame, introduced about the year 1810. Research Cotton-Spinning
An herbarium, or Hortus Siccus is , a collection of dried plants systematically arranged. Herbariums were popular among the Victorians, and a Victorian text describes the process for collecting specimens thus:
'The specimens should be collected in dry weather, and carried home in a japanned tin-box or vasculum, a small pocket-box being desirable, however, for mosses and small plants. Very delicate specimens should be at once placed in a small field-book of unsized blotting-paper carried tightly strapped between suitable boards, At home they are carefully arranged upon bibulous paper, and pressed between smoothly planed deal boards either by putting weights upon the boards or by using a screw-press. The paper is changed every day or two, as they are found to part with their moisture more or less freely.
Succulent plants (such as stone-crops) should be killed by immersion in boiling water, and left for some time to drain, before pressing. If the stem be thick and woody, or if the flower be thick and globular, as in the thistle, one half may be cut away without depriving it of its character. When the process of desiccation has been completed specimens are fastened upon stiff paper with a mixture of gum-tragacanth and gum-arabic, or thin glue, or with slips of gummed paper, or a needle and thread. To preserve the specimens from the ravages of insects, camphor should be placed in the cabinet and frequently renewed.' Research Herbarium
Jade carving is the process by which the surface of jade stone is embellished through abrasion. The earliest known carved jades were made in China during the New Stone Age, or Neolithic period. Neolithic jades were usually fashioned as blades, although it is unclear whether they served a utilitarian or ceremonial function.
Excavations conducted at sites settled during the Shang dynasty have yielded a number of carved jades in a variety of forms. Certain shapes predominate, such as the round disk (pi), the ax (kuei), and a cylindrical tube (tsung). These objects probably served a ritual function, either as symbols of rank or as grave furnishings. The most beautiful examples of Shang jade carving, however, are small sculptures and plaques. The discovery, in 1975, of an undisturbed tomb from the Anyang era of the Shang dynasty has yielded the richest group of jade carvings to date. The excavation revealed plaques depicting dragons and various birds, along with near-miniature sculptures of human figures, mythical creatures, and recognisable animals, including an elephant.
The achievements of the Shang jade carvers were adopted and ultimately surpassed by artists of the Chou dynasty. Surface decoration became increasingly sophisticated, with open- work featuring birds and dragons, as well as tiny, individually carved curls. The development of the iron drill is probably responsible for the technical advancements seen in the carvings of this period. Elaborate jade carving continued in popularity during the Han dynasty; in addition, a most notable jade artefact was the so-called funerary suit. Various excavations have yielded corpses encased in a jade form made of thousands of rectangular pieces of jade, sewn together with gold thread, and fitted to the body. Other small jades, previously objects for burial, were now fashioned for the uses of the living. Toilet boxes, drinking vessels, and delightful adornments for the scholar's desk have been preserved from the Han period.
The dating of jade carvings from after the Han dynasty through the Ch'ing dynasty has been highly problematic, as the archaeological evidence is often incomplete. Throughout this period, however, small decorative forms of jade, often depicting animals, flowers, or children, continued in popularity. T'ang and Sung carvers favoured small figures. Drinking and desk vessels, and jadejewellery as well, were widely produced in the Yuan and Ming epochs. During the Ch'ing period, particularly in the 18th century, large jade carvings attained great favour with the emperors and royal officials. Forms were often taken from ancient bronze vessels, reflecting the continuing interest in early art. Landscapes, often paralleling those found on carved bamboo or in paintings, were carefully transcribed onto the surface of enormous jade slabs. Much of this intricacy is still found in Chinese jade work today; traditional design motifs and carving styles also have been retained. China's continuous interest in jade carving was never found in other Asian nations.
The Indians practised a degree of jade work, most notably the Islamic Mughals, who favoured ceremonial weapons with highly decorative jade blades. The most important centre of jade carving outside the Orient was pre-Columbian Mexico and Central America under the Olmec, Aztec, and Mayan rulers. Splendid ceremonial objects-axes, knives, masks, and large animal figures-were produced; the objects are sophisticated in style and highly advanced in technique. Research Jade Carving
Abbreviations
Research Bandbox Plot
