Women's Clubs," can wield an almost magical power in the
creation of interests or encouragement of effort, and the federation
of organizations, each one exchanging experiences as well as products,
would be an ideal means of growth and extension.

The machinery for the work exists in almost every county of every
State of the Union, and with the threefold interest of the promotion
of practical art, that of increased manufacture, and the extension of
that sisterhood which is one of the most Christian-like and desirable
aims of women's clubs, it would seem a natural and congenial effort.

The best results of this general awakening will probably be in the
South. Certainly no conditions could be more favourable than those
existing in the Cumberland Mountains, where wool and cotton grown upon
the rough farms are habitually spun and woven and dyed in the home
cabin. The dyes are often made from walnut bark, pokeberry, and
certain nuts and roots which have been found capable of "fast" stain
and are easily procured. Unfortunately, the facility with which
aniline dyes can be used is not unknown. The "linsey woolsey," which
is not only a common manufacture in the farmhouses, but the common
wear of both men and women, is an interesting and good manufacture,
capable of much wider use than it enjoys at present.

And linsey woolsey is not the only home weaving done in the Cumberland
Mountains. The showing of cotton homespun towel weaving at the
Atlanta Exposition was a feature of the Exposition, and the homespun
blankets of the various kinds which one finds in common use are only a
step removed from the process of the admirable Navajo blanket.

We see from these different possibilities and indications, that
although we are still a people without true home productions, there is
every reason to believe that this condition will not be a lasting one,
and that before many years we shall find the special advantages and
general cultivation of the country have not only produced but given
character to a large domestic manufacture.

CHAPTER I.

RUG WEAVING.

Rag carpets have been made and used in farmhouses for many
generations, but it is only of late that there has been a general
demand in all country houses for home-made piazza rugs, bedroom rugs,
and rugs for general use.

It has been found that the best and most durable rugs for these
purposes, and for bath-rooms for town and city houses, can be made of
cotton or woolen ra