and
then sorted and cleansed a second time.

Persia, Turkey, and India all produce wool, the two former countries in
larger quantities than India, but some of the very finest wool comes
from that part of India known as Kashmir. The celebrated Turfani wool
comes from Chinese Thibet. It is very choice, and beautiful fabrics are
woven from it.

[Illustration: SOUMAK RUG

SIZE, 4.11 x 3.1

_The fine weaving of this Soumak Rug and its beautiful coloring are
especially admirable. The texture is very firm, the threads being
tightly drawn. On a field, which is a choice shade of blue, rest
geometrical forms, each one of which has a ground of terra cotta, pale
green, or soft yellow, and is ornamented with rich blue, ivory, or a
light shade of terra cotta. All are outlined with black. The hook design
is noticed in different parts of the rug, and especially in the border.
The artistic effect of this bit of weaving is most pleasing._

OWNED BY MR. WILL J. DAVIS, CHICAGO.]

The pashim is the soft downy wool growing next the body of the goat. In
color it is white, dark gray, or drab; and of this many of the finest
India rugs are woven. Large-tailed sheep are common in Kabul, Peshawar,
and other districts; these furnish wool from which many a rug is
woven. It is possible that the very sheep watched over by the shepherds
of Judea the night of our Saviour's birth were reared partly for their
wool, with a view to rug-weaving.

The camel is useful not only as a beast of burden; its hair is woven
into fabrics both fine and durable, chief of which are rugs, beautiful,
much desired, and costly; the younger the animal the more is its hair
esteemed. The natural colors harmonize readily with the furnishings in
most rooms, and the soft texture of the best ones is attractive.

The process of carding is accomplished by means of a block with vertical
pins in even rows close together. The wool is drawn through these many
times, and then spun into yarn.

THE QUALITY

The fineness of a rug depends largely upon the quality of the wool and
the number of knots to the square foot. In one yard of the best made
Persian rugs there are between twenty thousand and thirty thousand
stitches made by hand. The wool must be of fine quality, but not too
soft. It should be closely woven, and evenly cropped. A great deal
depends upon the manipulation of the wool in the rough, and careful
attention should be given to this particular.

The quality of the