This is now by far the most important manu facture in the Panjab ; but it was almost entirely confined to Kashmir, until about 1820 ; a terrible famine visited Kashmir, and, in con sequence, numbers of the shawl - weavers emi grated to the Panjab and settled in Amritsar, Nurpar, Dinanagar, Tilaknath, Jalalpur, and Ludhiana, in all of which places the manufac ture continues to flourish. The best shawls of Panjab manufacture are made at Amritsar, which is also au emporium of the shawl trade. But none of the shawls made in the Panjab can com pete with the best shawls made in Kashmir itself, —first, because the Panjab manufacturers are unable to obtain the finest kinds of wool ; and, secondly, by reason of the inferiority of the dyeing, the excellence of which in Kashmir is attributed to some chemical peculiarity in the water there. On receipt of the raw pashm or shawl-wool, the first operation is that of cleaning it ; this is clone generally by women. The best kind is cleaned with lime and water, but ordinarily the wool is cleaned by being shaken up with flour. The next operation is that of separating the hair from the pashm ; this is a tedious operation, but the valne of the cloth subsequently manufactured varies with the amount of care bestowed upon it. The wool thus cleaned and sorted is spun into thread with the common churka or native spinning machine. This is also an operation requiring great care. White pashmina thread of the finest quality will sometimes cost as much as £2, 10s. a pound. The thread is next dyed, and is then ready for the loom.
Plain shawls are simply woven with a long, narrow, and heavy shuttle, but variegated shawls are worked with wooden needles instead of a shuttle, there being a separate needle for each colour.
The shawls aro mado both long and square, the former generally tneasuring 54 'lichee wide and 126 long, the latter 6:3 to 72 inches square. In some parts of Asia these shawls are worn just as they come from the loom ; but all those destined for India are carefully washed and packed near Lahore.
About a.n. 18G0, the maharaja of Kashmir, to check the deterioration in the quality of shawls mannfactured in his dominions, issued the follow ing circular :— Ite it known that in the city of Siree Nugget., alias Kashmir, a paradise on earth, the number of men and women employed in the occupation of shawl-weaving aggregates 70,000, and, in fact, nearly all the inhabitants of this fnr-famed city are connected with the trade. That owing to the dulness of tho market in England and France, caused chiefly by the inferior description of shawls rnanufacturtd, inany tradesmen and inerchante have been subjected to heavy loss and some to bank ruptcy, and a large proportion of the weavers have been thrown out of employ. On the maharaja's late tour through Kashmir, the circumstance occupied his chief attention, and from the inforniation he obtained be ordered the following rules to be established in order to serve both manufacturers and traders :— 1. Shawls to be uniform in size as follows :--Ladies' shawls, 31 yards by li ; turbands, 2 yards by 2 ; jama war, 4i yards by 3.
2. Any shawl badly wove to be destroyed—the value to be recovered by the proprietor front the weaver. Should the fault lie with the proprietor, he will be punished by the Government.
3. A designer is at liberty to dispose of his designs, but should he attempt to conceal any part of a design which is purchased from him, he will be severely punished.
4. Any person convicted of robbing a firm of a design will be severely punished.
5. One designer is not at liberty to transfer designs to another, and as the Government has now relinquished the tax, it is hoped that there will be considerable im provement in the art.
G. Not more than six shawls are to be wove from one design, or a heavy fine will be inflicted.
7. The seller of a design is not to retain a duplicate or attempt to form another exactly like the one sold ; in such case a fine will be levied equal to Ith its value.
8. In future, duty will be levied by measurement of wool and worsted, and not by weight as hereto fore ; this will induce spinners to produce a finer description of the material, and will be more profitable to the wearer.
9. His Highness, taking into consideration the dis treseed condition of all manufactories for want of suf ficient funds, and seeing that tradesmen are not disposed to assist them with advances, has placed in the hands of Pandit Hunna Nundjoe and Hajeo Mooktiar Shah, a sum of Rs. 1,00,000 for the purchase of raw material, the same to be delivered prorortionately to manufac turers, the value of which is to be refunded to Govern ment on the sale of shawls.
10. His Highness the maharaja is greatly indebted to Dewan Kirparam, who, from his expenence, had assisted greatly in framing these rules, and encouraging this important branch of manufacture.
A weaving - shop may be occupied with one shawl, provided it be a remarkably fine one, above a year, while other shops make six or eight in the course of that period. Of the best and most worked kinds, not so much as a quarter of an inch is completed in one day by three people. which is tho nsual munber employed at moat of the shops. Sometimes, in order to hasten the 1, process, a, thawl is made in separate pieces in different looms, and the pieces are afterwards sewed tOgether. This is done with great dex terity, so that it is not immediately detected. It very rarely happena that the pieces, when pleted, correspond in size. The shops consist of frainework, at which tho persons employed sit on a bench ; their number is from two to four. On plain shawls, two people alone aro employed, and a long, narrow, but heavy shuttle is used ; those of which the pattern is variegated are worked with wooden needles, there being a separate needle for the thread of each colour ; for the latter no shuttle is required. The operation of their manufacture is, of course, proportionate to the quantity of work which their patterns may require. 'lite Ustad, or head workman, superin tends, while his journeymen are employed near him inunediately under his directions. If they have any new pattern in hand, or one with which they are not familiar, he describes to them the figures, colours, and threads which they are to use, while he keeps before hiut the pattern on which they happen to be employed, drawn upon paper. During the operation of making, the rough side of the shawl is uppermost on the frame, notwithstanding which the Ustad never mistakes the regularity of the most figured patterns. The wages of the Ustad (the employer furnishing materials) are from six to eight piee per day ; of the common workmen, from one to four pice in Kashmir may be about three halfpence.