The earliest methods were, of course, all by hand. Perhaps the first was that described in Chapter II, where the heads of the plait were tucked in one under the other and rendered secure by the passing of some fibre inside the loops of the heads, so as to make an almost invisible joint, as in the case of a “Leghorn” hat. It may be said in passing that this method was carried out by the Italian plaitters in the case of chip plaits made of 9 ends, but without the securing fibre. The result was that there was enough “hold” given by the tucked in heads to ensure the edges holding together sufficiently to form a perfectly flat plate. It was in this form that chip plaits were first used for the “Granny” bonnets in vogue a century ago; for when stiffened with gelatine or glue the joins were sufficiently strong to enable the brim shape to be produced. The “Flats,” as they were called, were made all of one diameter, and it therefore followed that one made out of the finest plait would contain more rows than one made of a coarser grade. The exact diameter was determined by the finest size plait, and of that there would be 100 rows, hence the term “No. 100” represented to the trade the narrowest plait. The qualities down to the coarse ones were graded in 5’s, thus the next coarse size was “No. 95,” and so on, down even to “No. 65,” of which being very coarse only 65 rows were necessary to make the “flat.” To use for working, where dyeing was required, the flat was “stripped” by taking the outside end and gently pulling the flat, the centre of which was pivoted round and round until the whole was undone. This in no way deteriorated the plait, but it was soon found that to wind the plait into neat pieces saved considerable trouble for marketing and subsequent use. This, however, is only a digression recording a method of joining plait in spiral rows, of which head wear was made, which after all is the plan on which all sewing is based. The British sewers, with only a very few exceptions, have always joined plaits together by means of an overlap, that is, the head of one row covering the foot of another, thus, the needle passing through the plait just under the head, to make the stitch as little visible as possible, and through the foot close to the edge, so as to lay the plait as thinly as firm sewing would permit. The effect when sewn was of a tiny, practically invisible stitch on the surface of the plait and a continuous stitch on the under side, the stitches being about half an inch apart. (_See_ opposite page.) [Illustration: Fig. 10 SECTION OF 4 ROWS OF PLAIT]