being at once heavier than, and insoluble in, water, and
it can be, therefore, stored under water very much more safely than
can any of the other solvents which are used.

Burnell's machine has two troughs filled with benzoline. In these are
arranged a large central roller round which are some smaller rollers.
The wool passes round the large roller and is subjected to a number of
squeezings in passing the smaller rollers. A current of the benzoline
is continually passing through the machine. The whole is enclosed in a
hood to avoid loss of solvent as far as possible. After passing
through the benzoline trough the wool passes through a similar trough
filled with water. Benzoline is better than carbon bisulphide in that
there is no tendency on the part of the wool to turn yellow after its
use, on the other hand it is more inflammable, and when it does take
fire is more dangerous, and being lighter than water is not so readily
and safely stored. Another feature is that it is not so completely
volatile at steam temperatures, so that a little may be left in the
grease and thus tend to deteriorate it. Coal-tar benzol, the quality
known as 90's, would be better to use.

The solvent processes are well worth the attention of wool scourers,
all that is required for their proper development being the production
and use of suitable machinery.

After the raw wool has been scoured it is batched, _i.e._, it is (p. 026)
mixed with a quantity of oil for the purpose of lubricating the
wool to enable it more easily to stand the friction to which it is
subjected in the subsequent processes of spinning and weaving by
giving it greater pliability.

For this purpose various kinds of oil are used. Olive oil is the
principal favourite, the variety mostly used being Gallipoli oil.
Ground-nut oil is also extensively employed, and is cheaper than
olive. Oleic acid a by-product of the candle industry, is extensively
used under the name of cloth oil, there is also used oleine, or wool
oil, obtained by the distillation of Yorkshire grease.

So far as merely oiling the wool is concerned there is not much to
choose between these different oils, olive perhaps works the best and
agrees best with the wool. Mineral oils have been and can be used
either alone or mixed with the oils above mentioned, and so far as
lubricating the wool is concerned do very well and are much cheaper
than the fatty oils named above.

The following are some analyses of