PLUSH is a textile fabric, having a sort of velvet nap or shag upon one side. It is composed regularly of a woof of a single woollen thread, and a two-fold warp, the ono, wool of two threads twisted, the other, goat's or camel's hair. There are also several sorts of plush made entirely of worsted. It is manu factured, like velvet, in a loom with three treadles • two of which separate and de press the woollen warp, and the third raises the hair-warp, whereupon the weaver, throwing the shuttle,passes the woof between the woollen and hair warp; afterwards, laying a brass broach or needle under that of the hair, he cuts it with a knife destined for that use, run ning its fine slender point along in the hollow of the guide-broach, to the end of a piece extended upon a table. Thus the surface of the plush receives its vel vety appearance. This stuff is also made of cotton and silk.
POINT Leer.) POLISHING METALS. The work men commence by preparing the sur faces of the articles ; that is to say, it is of importance to remove all the marks left by the file, the turning tool, the scraper, &c., in order to render the sur faces uniform.
This preparation is effected on those metals, which are not very hard, by means of pumice-stone, either used in substance or reduced to powder and water ; and when in powder applied upon felt, or upon slips of soft wood, covered with buffalo or chamois skin, if the surfaces be fiat; or with pieces of soft wood properly shaped, so as to pene trate into the hollows, and act upon the raised parts. When the first coarse marks are thus removed, they then pro ceed to remove those left by the pumice stone. In order to do this, they employ finely powdered pumice-stone, which they grind np with olive-oil, and employ it upon felt, or upon small pieces of soft wood, such as that of the willow or sal low. It is important, in these manipula tions, to observe an important rule, which is never to proceed from one ape•. ration to another, before previously wash ing the pieces of work well with soap and water, by means of a brush, in order entirely to remove the pumice-stone, used with water, before employing it with oil, and likewise never to use those tools for succeeding operations, which had been used in preceding ones ; each stage of the operation requiring particular tools, and which should be kept in closed boxes, in order to prevent the powders being diffused or scattered about when not in use.
After removing the marks left by the coarse pumice-stone and water, by means of finely-grounded pumice-stone and oil : to know which, we should wash it with soap and water, and dry it well with a linen cloth: we must then examine it with a lens or magnifying-glass, to see whether any scratches yet remain ; if not we may proceed to the polishing. The softer metals are polished in differ ent manners, according to their size and uses ; the larger gold works are, however, generally burnished, but the smaller gold works in jewelry, &c., and those in brass for watch-work, are not burnished, but polished. The following are manipu lations :—After having removed with oil-stone powder the marks of the file, &c. they smooth them with blue and grey stones, and plenty of water : there are two kinds of these stones, the one soft and the other hard : the first arcil laceous schistus, the second kind schisto cotieule • this serves to sharpen tools upon. The pieces of watch-work are always smoothened in this manner, until all the marks disappear, and which is known by washing them with soap and water.
They finally proceed to polishing with the tnpoli from Venice, which is prefer able to any other sort, and is either finely ground in water, or in olive-oil, accord ing to the different eases, for pieces of gold work, or the larger kinds of jewel ry articles, and until they perceive their surfaces are become perfectly bril liant ; they then finish them with tripoli, reduced to an impalpable powder, and applied upon a very soft brush.