Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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JULY IS. 1955 From P"r ^ ? -? f ;* '.i-j K Cottor "Terrific stuff ? Nottoc," i said ads recently placed by a retail chain of stores in New York newspapers. After detailing the virtues of this wonder fiber, the ads went on to explain that "nottoc" was cotton spelled backwards. A Act ?-* /-l ' ax u/woiun oiuiv: auvci iidcu a "natural miracle fiber" that has everyone talking. The store said that this textile miracle, apparently extracted from a wonder plant grown in the South, is called cotton. Across the country, retailers and consumers are rediscovering cotton at a time when their cars are full of talk about test-tube fibers with imposing names that sound like so many patent medicines. Extr a v a g a n t claims have been made for many of these synthetic socalled "miracle fibers." Many of them have been disproven in practical use. Uome-Jback In the meantime, King Cotton is making a sensational come-back in the apparel and home furnishing fields, as well as in industrial uses. Annual domestic consumption * is running well over eight million bales, a couple of million more bales than during ^ the pre-war era when cotton was virtually unchallenged by the synthetics. To what does our cotton industry owe its rebirth? Many factors are involved, with research and promotion, better styling and better quality fabrics most often mentioned. But chemistry has been a big force. Through chemical finishing. cotton can bo made resistant to soil vvrinkline mil dew and flame. It also can be made water repellent. Treated cottons take on a variety of embossed, glazed, and sculptured textures, opening T This /. ? M & < ^jmr. V.^l i - The jp new horizons for the dress designer. With special finishes, one kind of cotton print cloth can be transformed into any one of at least 20 different kinds of effects ? pique, moire, crepe, plisse and many others. Permanently pleated cottons are one of the latest developments. Wrinkle resistance is a spectacular property of the thermosetting resins ? ureaformaldehyde and melamineformaldehyde. In liquid form, the resin penetrates cotton fibers and sets or locks them in position. II > it II tW II It'll I tUMUIIl iu glamorize fabrics with sizing and other materials which fill up the holes between the threads, or soften, stiffen or weight the fabric. These finishing brews have included such ingredients as castor oil. tallow, glue. Epsom salts. China clay, cornstarch and tapioca. The trouble with such finishes is that they are likely to wash out of the fabric at the first laundering. Revolution Then came the rosin revolution in textile finishing. Its origins appear to he obscure. It has been recorded, however, that Hanns John discovered in 1JH.8 that urea and formaldehyde would combine to form a resin. He heated one part of urea in five parts of commercial formaldehyde solution to produce a sticks syrup which hardened into a clear lacquer-1 ike Mini lie suggested lliat llie stuff mi.tint lu> useful for impregnating the fabric on airplane wings. () t h v v chemists improved John's brew and used it as a stiffening agent for hats. F. L. Barrett, in the British laboratories of the Tootal Broad hurst Lee Company. Ltd., in 1919 apparently be HE CLOTHMAKEI Nature's otvn miracle fifntr t st/Z/tri tntdnt <i>i /? long trail between the time it is seen here in the Clinton Cotton Mills Carding Room until it turns uf) in such a high fashion dress as modeled on the right by lovely I)e Lois Faulkner. / 9.>.> Maid of Cotton. } Real 1 came the first chemist to note the crease-resisting effects of the urea-formaldehyde resin. As fellow chemists improved his process, melamine was added to the list of resin-making chemicals. Tootal Broadhurst launched its synthetic process in the United States in 1939 and in England in 1943, under the "Tebilized" trade mark. Meanwhile, Joseph Bancroft and Sons Company of Wilmington. Delaware, was extending the use of resin applications to include all mechanical effects on textiles. starting with the Lippert patent in 1937. Bancroft, under W. Ralph Maclntyre. now its president, came up \\ ith a process for making glazed chintz that was washable and spot and soil resistant. Instead of keeping its discovery to itself, the firm undertook a broad licensing program. At the end of World War 11. Bancroft came out with a whole new family of Everglaze fabrics that were easy to cut. sew. tailor and iron. if i # Linda Gail is the five-year-old daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Joe S. Caughman. Mr. Caughman is employed in the Spinning Department of Clinton Mills. i . To ' \ "** - 1 * J 4 ' 1 j m tx At '-ill] a * J Miracle ^ SHEETS J ( \ / I SHIRTS N?515,420 BALES ^ DRAPERY UPHOLST I ^ *AND SLIPCOVERS f \?X 506-560 BALES I 6S / V I 474,970 [ SUPPLIES ^ / i O Q "?>*/ > \ M V / I '3 / C? as well as being wrinkle resistant Most of the 125 cotton finshing plants in this country, as well as many abroad, now are licensed to use the Everglaze process. One chemical manufacturer has produced 10.000 different finishes in the past five years on cottons and I'lii'iiuaia >ci\ uiuN 11ci\ L tii:i\ scratched the surface of the job to bo done. Thermosetting resins already have given cotton a tremendous boost in the market place. At the same time the chemists warn that the 3 This j Fabric The Biggesr Uses of Corron in 1954 V ( VUOMEN s ^ f ( DRESSES ) ^ ( 261*40 BALES ) N ) Q \ ERr ) ( J ] ' ("retail piece ) J ( ) B { ?L ?G.C&DS.. A 1 2 5 ?, 5 o ALbb I DUSERS ) V I e ' Bales S } O v TOWELS J \ " ( \ ( u "-j ?) ( RUGS AND CARPETS } ( 303 37Q BALES [* ALITQMQPILES USES) <3 ' ' I' day of miracle cottons is not vet at hand. There still isn't a cotton that never has to be washed and never shows a > wrinkle. Even the best finish can't overcome the deficiencies of a poorly woven fabric; even the best must be applied carefulIv so as not to damage the cloth more than it improves it. Textile finishing remains a meticulous art. and the fii nal finish is no better than the skill of the craftsman i who puts it into cloth.