After the piece goods are brought to the proper shade, they are finished, usually by carefully rinsing in water to take away all traces of free acid, then by passing through a cold soap bath, often with a little olive oil emulsified in it, to increase the lustre; finally, through a bath of weak organic acid, like acetic acid, to develop the so-called “scroop” or “feel” of the silk. When silk is washed in soap, or is dipped in even a weak bath of alkali, it becomes soft and clammy to the touch, and has no “life” or “snap” to it when dry. The passage through a bath of weak acid develops the characteristic stiffness of the silk fibre, and causes it to give its peculiar rustling sound when pressed. =Skein Dyeing.=—When weighting or adulteration is not employed, i.e., in the so-called “pure dye” process, the dyeing of skein silk resembles the piece dyeing described. The degummed silk is immersed in a dye-bath containing the dyestuffs (Acid colors) dissolved in boiled-off liquor, broken with dilute sulphuric acid. The bath is heated nearly to the boiling point, and the silk turned in it until the desired shade is produced. It is then taken out, washed thoroughly in water to remove the last traces of acid, and then brightened by passing through a soap bath with some oil, and later through a bath of acetic acid to develop the “scroop.” _Drying._—An important part of the process is the final drying and finishing. The drying should be done slowly and carefully, and not proceed too far, or the silk will be brittle. As is well known to dyers, silk has the power of absorbing 25% or 30% of its weight of water without becoming perceptibly damp to the hand, and this moisture, when not carried too far, is of actual benefit to the material, making it stronger and more elastic. This property is often made use of by the honest (?) dyer when, in case some of the silk in a lot has been spoiled by accident or carelessness, he makes up the difference in weight by the liberal use of the watering pot. _Finishing._—This process is perhaps the most difficult and technical of all, for the value of the finished product depends very largely on it, and it is almost impossible for an amateur to accomplish it. The skeins, after drying, are hung on a heavy polished wooden bar and, with a smooth wooden stick, are shaken out, straightened, pulled, twisted, and worked until the fibres are all parallel, the kinks taken out, any weak or injured portion cut out, and the whole skein has acquired the proper amount of lustre.