The "body," or "foundation," of a good beaver hat is now generally made of eight parts rabbits fur, three parts Saxony wool, and one part of lama, vicunia, or "red" wool. A sufficient quantity of these for one hat (about 2 ½ ounces) is weighed out and placed in the hands of the "bower." On entering the "bowing-room," a peculiar twanging noise indicated to the visitor that a stretched cord is in rapid vibration; and in the management of this cord by the workman is seen to be one of the many operations in hatting wherein success depends exclusively on skillful manipulation. A bench extends along the front of the room beneath a range of windows, and each "bower" has a little compartment appropriated to himself. The bow is an ashen staff, from five to seven feet in length, having a strong cord of catgut stretched over bridges at the two ends. This bow is suspended in the middle by a string from the ceiling, whereby it hangs nearly on a level with the workbench, and the workman thus proceeds: - the wool and coarse fur, first separately and afterwards together, are laid on the bench, and the bower, grasping the staff of the bow with his left hand, and plucking the cord with his right hand by means of a small pieces of wood causes the cord to vibrate rapidly against the wool and fur. By repeating this process for a certain time, all the original clots or assemblages of filaments are perfectly opened and dilated, and the fibres, flying upwards when struck, are by the dexterity of the workman made to fall in nearly equable thickness on the bench, presenting a very light and soft layer of material, Simple as this operation appears to a stranger, years of practice are required for the attainment of proficiency in it.

The point in the routine of processes at which we have now arrived requires a brief consideration of the operation of felting, on which the while manufacture of a beaver hat depends. Felting is a process whereby animal fibres are made to cohere and to form a kind of cloth, without the aid of weaving, plaiting, knitting, sewing, or any analogous processes--warmth, moisture, and friction being the means by which it is effected, There is reason to believe that the process of felting was known in early times, and that the tents of the Tartars, as well as some articles of clothing, were produced by these means but the evidence of this point is rather indistinct. At what time felted wool was first employed for making hats, it would be difficult now to say; but there is a legend current among some of the continental hatters which gives the honor to St. Clement, fourth bishop of Rome...

But leaving St. Clement and his felted "inner soles," we may remark that the philosophy of felting was not understood until the microscope was applied to the examination of the animal fibres. It was then found that the fibre, whether of wool or fur, is surrounded by a vast number of minute teeth projecting obliquely from the central stem. As these teeth are very sharp, and are turned in one direction, they present and obstacle to the motion of the fibre in that direction, but enable it to glide easily in the opposite one; just as an ear of barley, when placed stalk uppermost within the cuff of the coat-sleeve, will soon work its way up to the shoulder by the motion of the arm. In some woolly fibres the irregularities appear like concentric cups, rather than sharp teeth.

When a heap of such fibres is rubbed and pressed, and the fibres are made to curl slightly by the action of warmth and moisture, they twist around each other, and the teeth interlace so tightly as not to separate. So complete, indeed, is the entanglement of the fibres thus produced, that a coat made from cloth manufactured solely by the felting process has been known to last in wear ten years.

The purpose which the serrated structure of hair or fur is intended to answer is matter for conjecture...

But whatever be the purpose which these arrangements answer in the animal economy, it is evident that the minute serrations on the fibres of fur and wool are the means of the felting; this being understood, we shall be able to comprehend how the fur and wool are worked up into the form of a hat, and we therefore return to the "bowing" room. The bowed materials for one hat are divided into two portions, each of which is separately pressed with a light wicker frame, and afterwards with a piece of oil-cloth or leather, called a "hardening-skin," until, by the pressure of the hands backwards and forwards all over the skin, the fibres are brought closer together, the points of contact multiplied, the serrations made to link together, and a slightly coherent fabric formed...

Few "kettles" are the scene of such busy operations as the hatter’s "kettle," and few would be so uninviting to a person fastidious as to cleanliness. Imagine a large kettle or boiler open at the top, having a fire beneath it, and eight planks ascending obliquely from the margin, so as to form a sort of octagonal work-bench, five or six feet in diameter, at which eight men many work. The planks are made of lead near the kettle, and of mahogany at the outer part, and at each plank a workman operates on a conical cap, until the process of felting or "planking" is completed. The "kettle" contains hot water slightly acidulated with sulphuric acid; and, as far as words can do so, the following may convey an idea of the process: -- the cap is dipped into the hot liquor; laid on one of the planks and subjected to a felting process; it is rolled and unrolled, twisted, pressed, and rubbed with a piece of leather or wood tied to the palm of the workman’s hand, and rolled with a rolling-pin...From time to time the cap is examined, to ascertain whether the thickness of the material is sufficient in every part; and if any defective places appear, they are wetted with a brush dipped in the hot liquor, and a few additional fibres are worked in... When this felting process has been continued for about two hours, it is found that heat, moisture, pressure, and friction , have reduced the cap to one half its former dimensions, the thickness being increased in a proportionate degree.

(‘A Day at a Hat Factory’ The Guide to Knowledge. Edward Walker, NY. 1849)

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