. The face of a rug will stand the slapping which is
its usual punishment for being dirty; but do not forget, in the end, to
stroke it, with the nap, and so soothe its feelings. Do not beat a rug or
carpet on the back. That has no defence of nap, and you are liable to
break the warp and loosen the knots. Frequent sweeping is far better than
the brutality of constant beating. The wool of a rug is really a sentient
thing. However dead it may seem, it has a life and vitality all its own.
It can be quickened, rejuvenated, and made alive again by proper washing.

Rugs in our modern houses easily accumulate dust and grime and smoke. But
it is absurd to think that a rug is antique because it is dirty; or, more
foolish still, that because it is dirty it is both antique and beautiful.
Wash some of your treasures and you will wonder at their real glory and
colour. Generally speaking, every rug should be washed about once a year.
It is the Oriental custom; and carpets there are otherwise kept much
cleaner than with us, by reason of many usages and observances. That the
Orientals wash their rugs in cold water is not so. Wherever and whenever
their laundering is done, the water is as warm as can be had, naturally.

Milady washes her laces with her own fair hands, and delights in the task.
The rug collector will do well, perhaps, to follow her example; except for
the tender specimens, which must needs do without it, and the carpets,
which are unmanageable. At all events, he will do wisely not to send his
valued specimens to the ordinary carpet-cleaner. They may come back
expurgated, but some virtue has gone out of them. The wool has lost its
oil and life.

It is hardly within the province of this volume to prescribe the exact
methods of washing. Wool soap will do wonders, it being always remembered
to stroke softly with the nap, while the rug is drying. In Kurdistan and
neighbouring provinces the rugs are first soaked in milk of some kind and
then rinsed, cleaned, and rubbed dry. The milk gives back to the wool its
essential oil, and it becomes at once soft, shining, silky, and alive with
glowing colour. This process, simple as it is, is kept as a profound
secret by the few who know it in this country. Another Eastern method is
to rub the rug with a mixture of rice-meal and oil, but the first recipe
is by far the better.

Rugs must be cared for particularly as to moths. When they are in general
use the moth will not corrupt, rust,