rate while she is mounting the warp on the beams.
She then places the upper beam of the loom in the place of the stick
_b_ and the lower beam in the place of the stick _a_. Sometimes the
upper and lower beams are secured to the two side rails forming a
frame such as the warp of a blanket is wound on (Sec. IV), but more
commonly the loom is arranged in the manner shown in Plate XXXVI; that
is, the upper beam is secured to a rafter, post, or tree, while to the
lower beam is attached a loop of rope that passes under the thighs of
the weaver, and the warp is rendered tense by her weight. Next, the
upper shed is supplied with a shed-rod, and the lower shed with a set
of healds. Then the stick at _f_ (upper stick in Plate XXXVI) is put
in; this is simply a round stick, about which one loop of each thread
of the warp is thrown. (Although the warp may consist of only one
thread I must now speak of each turn as a separate thread.) Its use is
to keep the different threads in place and prevent them from crossing
and straggling; for it must be remembered that the warp in this case
is not secured at two points between three stranded cords as is the
blanket warp.

When this is all ready the insertion of the weft begins. The reed-fork
is rarely needed and the batten used is much shorter than that
employed in making blankets. Fig. 57 represents a section of a belt.
It will be seen that the center is ornamented with peculiar raised
figures; these are made by inserting a slender stick into the warp, so
as to hold up certain of the threads while the weft is passed twice or
oftener underneath them. It is practically a variety of damask or
two-ply weaving; the figures on the opposite side of the belt being
different. There is a limited variety of these figures. I think I have
seen about a dozen different kinds. The experienced weaver is so well
acquainted with the "count" or arrangements of the raised threads
appropriate to each pattern that she goes on inserting and withdrawing
the slender stick referred to without a moment's hesitation, making
the web at the rate of 10 or 12 inches an hour. When the web has grown
to the point at which she cannot weave it further without bringing the
unfilled warp nearer to her, she is not obliged to resort to the
clumsy method used with blankets. She merely seizes the anterior layer
of the warp and pulls it down towards her; for the warp is not
attached to the beams, but is movable on them; in other words