After some experience in the use of dye-sticks, however, it will be found comparatively easy to handle the materials, in and out of the dye-baths, with the sticks, without at any time taking hold of them with the hand. Nothing demonstrates more clearly the skill of the dyer than the ability to carry, immerse in the dye-bath, stir, take out, wring, and rinse the materials without getting stains on either clothes or fingers. On the other hand, the amount of slopping that can be accomplished by a careless, but enthusiastic, amateur must be lived with to be thoroughly appreciated. _Wringers._—Both before and after dyeing it is very important to have at hand a good clothes wringer, preferably with metal frame. In fact, for very careful work there should be two wringers; one to wring out the raw materials after boiling them in soap and water, or, if clean, in plain water, to insure that they are thoroughly and evenly wet; and the other to wring out the excess of dye-liquor from the goods before rinsing, or, as in some cases, before hanging up to oxidize. The rubber rolls of these wringers should be kept clean by scouring with soap and sapolio immediately after finishing the day’s work, and by carefully rinsing free from dye-liquor. It is always well to keep on hand near the wringer a supply of clean blotting paper, or cheap filter paper, or even soft, dry cheesecloth or muslin. For by wrapping the materials that have just been dyed, in any of these, and then running them backwards and forwards through the wringer, it is possible to dry them with a minimum of time and exposure. This is particularly important in the case of natural and artificial silks, either in skeins or scarfs, of ostrich feathers, and of other light and fragile materials. _Drying Arrangements._—Sufficient room should be provided for hanging up the cloth to dry. An ordinary clothes-line, conveniently fastened, is the best means of support. For special purposes, where the material handled is very delicate or where the work is done in a classroom, a simple clothes-horse made of thick glass tubing, one inch or so in diameter and supported on a wooden frame, will occupy the least possible space and give the best support. CHAPTER II MODERN DYESTUFFS The whole art and practice of dyeing was completely revolutionized once and forever, by the discovery in 1856 of the artificial dyestuff named mauveine, or, more commonly, mauve, a name, by the way, derived from the French name of the violet-colored mallow flower.