Warp

“ The warp is like that of the Navajo blanket, a heavy cotton [100] cord, the filling or woof of many doubled fine cotton threads, which quite cover the heavy warp, and give the ridged effect of a coarse rep.
As I have said, they are woven almost invariably in horizontal stripes of two blues, or blue and white, with darker ends and a warp fringe. Simple as they are and indeed must be, as they are the result of unskilled labour, they are pleasant to look at, and have many virtues not dependent upon looks. They are warm and pleasant to unshod feet, and therefore suitable for bedroom use. ”

“ The eternal harmony of warp and woof, of all manner of knotting, knitting, and reticulation, the art which makes garment possible, woven from the top throughout, draughts of fishes possible, miraculous enough in any pilchard or herring shoal, gathered into companionable catchableness;—which makes, in fine, so many Nations possible, and Saxon and Norman beyond the rest. ”

“ ONE half of day is dark, and bright the other: both atmospheres move on by sage devices. Agni Vaisvanara, when born as Sovran, hath with his lustre overcome the darkness. 2. I know not either warp or woof, I know not the web they weave when moving to the contest. Whose son shall here speak words that must be spoken without assistance from the Father near him? 3. For both the warp and woof he understandeth, and in due time shall speak what should be spoken, Who knoweth as the immortal world's Protector, descending, seeing with no aid from other. ”

“ The warp is not rolled round a beam, as in our looms, but kept at its extreme length, and the farther end is made fast to a large stone or heavy substance, which is gradually drawn towards the weaver as he progresses in his work. ”

“ The ordinary native warp is short, and it is stretched out to its full length in the street, and the size carefully and thoroughly brushed into it. The warps which our machines will produce may be thousands of yards in length, and, if they are successful, will almost entirely do away with the enormous waste of time involved in putting new warps into a loom at frequent intervals. ”

“ Both warp and woof are usually of wool excepting in some of the Kabistans and Shirvans and, as a rule, the ends are finished with loose or braided warp threads. The predominating colors are the blues and yellows. They are seldom made in large sizes. Some of the most characteristic designs are the eight-pointed star of the Medes, the six-pointed star of the Mohammedans, the triangle, the diamond, the latch hook, the barber-pole stripe, the tarantula, the swastika, the reciprocal trefoil, the link-in-lozenge and the tree of life. ”

“ As the woof is subjected to more wear and tear than the warp, it should be stouter. For this reason each of the two ends of which it is composed is twisted separately before the two are twisted together, while for the warp the latter of these processes is sufficient. The result of this difference is that, when looked at beneath the microscope, the thread of the woof has an uneven look, as though it were a small cable, while that of the warp looks flat and smooth, and is therefore adapted to reflect the [86] light, receiving the shiny look which makes a silk-stuff so attractive. ”

“ While many things may be used for warp with a certain degree of success, there are fine points to be observed in weaving as in all the art-crafts, and the real beauty of the result depends upon giving due attention to these points. It is always well to remember that in all weaving the warp plays a most important part. Mercerized cotton warp works out effectively with silk or linen woof or with a combination of both, and retains its beauty after being laundered many times. ”

“ If the threads of a new warp are similar in number and counts to those of the finished warp, and are to pass through the shedding harness and reed also in a similar manner, it is more economical to twist the threads of a new warp separately to the corresponding threads of the old warp, and then draw the twisted portion of the warp bodily forward through the healds and reed. ”

“ In a chequered cloth the warp was made of two-coloured threads stretched in successive bands, and the cross stripes of the weft were woven in by the two shuttles. To form a more complicated pattern the weft must not cross the warp alternately: the design is formed by either the warp or the weft predominating on the surface in certain places. In all cases each thread of the weft must be driven home to its place after each stroke of the shuttle. ”

“ It is common knowledge that when a warp thread drops out, its place is indicated by a thinness or fine opening for the whole length of the missing warp, and this is so because the reed, besides pushing the weft into position, also acts as a warp spacer, that is to say it keeps the warp threads properly apart, every one being properly aligned. When no reed is used the warp threads are not so evenly placed—they are not so parallel to one another for there is nothing but their tautness to keep them in position. ”

“ Her homespun warp proved to be quite defective. There were more or less broken threads to mend in the run of any warp, even that spun at the cotton mills, which was always stronger than hand-spun warp. At first, when the threads of warp would break on either the cloth-beam or thread-beam side, she would leave the loom-bench and mend the broken threads ”

“ At each intersection the pairs of warp threads are twisted half around upon themselves, inclosing the woof threads and holding them quite firmly, so that the open net-like effect is well preserved even under strain or in long continued use. ”

“ It is not at all uncommon to meet with illustrations showing the warp stretched at an incline, and apart from the fact that in many the weavers are posing for illustration, and therefore, are most probably not exactly in their natural positions, the tilted arrangement has this advantage, namely, that the work of beating-in is improved by the [Pg 31] fall given to the “sword” which, with less exertion by the weaver, drives the weft home more effectively. ”

“ In tapestry weaving the warp is covered by the woof on both its sides. The warp is divided into two leaves or parts by a thread, and by a glass rod or tube called the bâton de croisure.
“To form the web, the workman takes a shuttle mounted with wool or silk, the end of which he fastens to the warp to the left of the space to be covered by the colour in his shuttle ”

“ Seven sticks or chattee weaving-posts, called tanā parā or warp, are fixed upon the ground, occupying the length equal to the measure of the piece to be woven, and a sufficient number of twine or thread is wound on them as warp called tanā. The warp is taken up and removed to the weaving machine. ”

“ Roughly, the amount of contraction to allow in the warp can be obtained by taking into account the counts of weft and the number of intersections which the warp makes with the weft. The thicker the counts of weft the more the warp will be bent out of a straight line, also with an increase in the number of picks the amount of take-up or contraction will increase. ”

“ Weaving.—The warp is prepared by passing the thread round two smooth pieces of wood, one of which is fastened to two uprights, while the ends of the other are attached to the ends of a broad leather band, which passes behind the back of the weaver as she sits on the ground and, by leaning back, stretches the threads to the requisite degree of tightness. ”

“ Each warp thread is passed through a pair of reeds, fitted with dead stops in the center of alternating dent spaces, so that leases may be put in the warps at fixed intervals to assist in keeping them straight in the looms. ”

“ If a single warp is employed, two or more wefts form the figure, and the warp seldom floats upon the surface. Where warps do assist to form figure it rarely happens that more than three can be used without overcrowding the reed. Fig. 17 gives the design, and a transverse section of a reversible tapestry in four colours, two of which are warps and two wefts. If either warp or weft is on the surface, corresponding threads are beneath. The bent lines represent weft and the circles warp. Figured repps differ
Fig. ”

“ The warp, which is very slender, is suspended; the woof, thick and slightly twisted, is passed by the hand; when there are colours, there is a ball for each; every colour in the pattern, is one thread. After the thread is passed, a flat heavy iron with short spikes, protruding like a comb, is used to beat it down, when it gains the character of felt. ”

“ The warp is kept at great tension, and the cloth-beam on which the woven tissue is rolled rests on the woman's lap during the process of weaving. There are no treadles in the Shoka loom, by which the two sets of warp threads are alternately raised or depressed between each time that the transverse thread is passed, and all work is done by hand. The transverse thread is beaten firmly home by means of a heavy prismatic piece of wood. ”

“ To warp is to bend silently through the whole fiber, as a board in the sun. To crook is to bend irregularly, as a crooked stick. Deflect, deviate, and diverge are said of any turning away; deviate commonly of a slight and gradual movement, diverge of a more sharp and decided one. ”

“ The warp is generally made of what the weavers call mill yarns, cotton yarns spun and often dyed in cotton mills; and when the cloth is woven for women’s wear it is apt to carry a striped warp of red and blue, with a mixed filling made from spinning the wool of black sheep with a small proportion of white. ”

“ Alley, ii (Adriana) ; Heywood’s Proverbs (ed. Farmer, pp. 80, 130) . [In Ray’s Proverbs (ed. Bohn, p. 45) , ‘snarling’ is the word used instead of ‘warling’.]
warp. ‘A pitchy cloud Of locusts, warping on the eastern wind’ (i.e. working themselves forward—the metaphor is of a ship) , Milton, P. L. i. 341. In Scotland used of the flight of a swarm of bees, see EDD. (s.v. Warp, vb.1 9) .
warray, to harass with war, Spenser, F. Q. i. 5. 48; Fairfax, Tasso, i. 6. ME. warray, to make war (Barbour’s Bruce, see Glossary) ; werray (Wars Alex. 2495) ; werreyen (Chaucer, C. T. A. 1544) . ”

“ As compared with true tapestries, the loom-made articles have more limited colour schemes, and their figured effects may be obtained from warp as well as weft, whether interlaced to form a plain face, or left floating more or less loosely. Every weft thread, in passing from selvage to selvage, is taken to the surface where required, the other portions being bound at the back. Some specimens are reversible, others are one-sided, but, however numerous the warps and wefts, only one texture is produced. ”

“ The invention of the warping-mill necessitated specialism in warping, and it was essential that warping should be done to order, since at that time, the state of the industrial world being what it was, no person could ordinarily have been found to adventure capital in producing warps ready made in anticipation of demand for the great variety of fabrics which was even then produced. ”

“ Then there was the sky, the wonderful, luminous, starless, moonless sky, and the empty blue deeps of the edge of it, between the meteor and the sea. And once—strange phantoms!—I saw far out upon the shine, and very small and distant, three long black warships, without masts, or sails, or smoke, or any lights, dark, deadly, furtive things, traveling very swiftly and keeping an equal distance. ”

“ Here a cherry-flame, wielded by a retreating dwarf in tarnished armor, winked its ruddy eye amongst Men who cried out, steamed, and fell. There a dozen Wild Ones hurled themselves upon a tiny knot of Japcans, literally ripped the yellow men into bloody shreds, and raced on—with one of the Wild Ones now brandishing a lethal ray-stick! ”

“ In that wondrous Burg of Monsalväsch? As ever the time draws near
When Saturn his journey endeth— (that time by the wound we know, 965
And yet by another token, by the fall of the summer snow)
Then sorely the frost doth pain him, thy king and uncle dear,
And deep in the wound empoisoned once more do they plunge the spear,
One woe shall help the other, the spear cure the frost's sharp pain,
And crimson it grows with his life-blood ere men draw it forth again!'970 ”

“ Some of the elder seamen would have it that the whole was the work of the devil; that the dwarf was a demon who haunted those lonely shelves to disturb and perplex poor mariners; and in the evening, when we sat upon deck smoking and drinking in the grateful twilight, many a dismal tale was rehearsed of phantoms of the sea, and particularly of the unearthly creatures whom many of the crew believed to dwell upon islands as yet unvisited by mariners, and who try to scare away the human intruders upon their domains. ”

“ OOM for the Vikings! the sons of the creek, the bluff, stalwart rovers who love the salt sea with a consuming passion, and shout with glee as the waves foam beneath them and tempest roars about them. Mighty warriors are they, wild and untamed as the element they love, swift as the falcon, remorseless as the vulture, fierce as the wolf. ”

“ The Titans are emblems of the subterranean fires and the volcanic forces of nature, which, hidden deep underground, occasionally emerge, heave up great masses of rock, and hurl them about with an accompaniment of deafening roars, while their ponderous tread causes the very earth beneath them to tremble. ”

“ The flying spear whistles through the darkness of the night, and comes full on the shield of Sulmo, and there snaps, and the broken shaft passes on through his heart. Spouting a warm tide from his breast he rolls over chill in death, and his sides throb with long-drawn gasps. ”

“ A Viking fleet is even now heading for our shores. Look at the long black ships, with their high prows curved in the semblance of a serpent. The sun glints on the bright shields which protect their bulwarks, on the mail which the warriors wear, and on the battle-axes and spears which they wield. The great sails flaunt painted devices—the eagle, the bear, the wolf, and the raven. Fierce are these creatures, but fiercer still the men who now come to harry these shores. ”