ussia 1,031,000 1,320,000

The mule, by reason of the great size to which it has been developed, and
the impressiveness of its large, rhythmic motion, is one of the most
formidable of all cotton machines, as indeed it is one of the most
complex. It received its name from the fact that, performing two
principal functions--drawing and spinning--it was regarded as a hybrid,
just as the mule is a hybrid cross between the horse and the donkey.

In the mule (see diagram on page 53), which is a long and wide machine,
carrying sometimes, in new models, as many as 1,300 spindles, the drawing
and twisting are not continuous but consecutive. The rovings (B) are held
on a creel (A) at the back of the machine, usually in three or four
tiers, or on long beams or spools. They pass from the creel, or spools,
between three pairs of drawing rollers (C.) Coming out of the rollers,
they are fed to the spindles on the carriage which backs away from the
creel and recedes somewhat faster than the rovings are unwound. This
receding is the essential motion of the mule, for thus the cotton
receives its final drawing. The spindles, meanwhile, are revolving
rapidly, spinning the yarn. The twist goes first to the thin places where
the least resistance is offered. Then, as the carriage carrying the
whirling spindles continues to back away, the thicker parts of the
thread, being comparatively untwisted are pulled down to the average
diameter and are twisted in turn. The carriage usually runs back about
sixty-three inches. At the termination of its run, or stretch, the
spindles increase their speed until the twisting is completed and the
carriage starts on its return trip. This reverses the spindles, and the
thread which has been wound upon them is unwound, the slack being taken
up by one guide wire (D) while the other guides the thread to the winding
point, and winds it up in the opposite direction on the cone-shaped cops
on the spindles. The rollers do not feed out more roving as the carriage
returns. Hence, there is no slack when the round trip is completed.

[Illustration: _Slubbers, showing the U-shaped flyers_]

Except for the use of drawing rollers, there is little similarity between
the mule and the ring frame. The latter has no movable carriage, none of
the splendid sweep of motion that makes the mule so fascinating to
watch. The ring-frame is simple and business-like, and its speed is
amazing. The bobbins holding the rovin