buffeting them about, till they become not only clean, but completely felted. All of our broadcloths have been subjected to its action, in the process of which the hairs of the weft and those of the warp have become mutually entangled, and each with one another, as with hatting in the regular hand process of loose wool or fur felting. Indeed, every hair composing the whole piece of cloth has its individual and independent progressive motions, combining the threads of both warp and weft together to such an extent that these cloths never unravel, and no hemming of a garment is required in the making of our clothes. Twelve hours in the mill will reduce a piece of cloth two-fifths of its breadth and one-third of its length. The progressive travelling motion of the hair resulting in the entanglement of the fibres and consequent felting and shrinking of the cloth, is further exemplified in the comfortable soft half-dress caps of the British soldiers, and in the bonnets and caps of the Scottish peasantry generally, which have all been first knitted very large with soft spun yarn, and afterwards felted down to the required size in the fulling mill. During the fulling of any and all kinds of goods, they must be frequently taken out of the trough, to be stretched, turned, the folds straightened, and generally inspected. History of Hats and Hatting. The word hat is of Saxon derivation, being the name of a well-known piece of dress worn upon the head by both sexes, but principally by the men, as a covering from the hot sun of summer, the cold of winter, a defence from the blows of battle, or for fashion. Being the most conspicuous article of dress, and surmounting all the rest, it has often been ornamented with showy plumes, and jewels, and with bands of gold, silver, &c. It is generally distinguished from a cap by its having a brim, which a cap has not, although there are exceptions even to this rule of distinction, for there are hats that have no brims, and there are also caps that are provided with a margin. Those hats that are made of fur or wool have all been felted, and felt strictly speaking is a fabric manufactured by matting the fibres together, without the preliminary operation of either spinning or of weaving. We find but little of hat-making recorded in history, and anything relating to hats is extremely meagre, although their partial use may be traced back to the time of ancient Greece amongst the Dorian tribes, probably as early as the age of Homer, when they were worn, although only by the better class of citizens when on a distant journey. The same custom prevailed among the Athenians, as is evident from some of the equestrian figures in the Elgin Marbles. The Romans used a bonnet or cap at their sacrifices and festivals, but on a journey the hat with a brim was adopted. In the middle ages the bonnet or cap with a front was in use among the laity, while the ecclesiastics wore hoods, or cowls.