Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XII.djvu/216

 208 NEEDLE cities lie across Nedjed; the more northerly one, to Medina, through the province of Ka- sim, that to Mecca along the N. base of Jebel Toweik. The caravans are made to pay ex- orbitant tribute, for the Persians and all others who are not strict Wahabees are regarded as heretics whom it is right to despoil. Nedjed contains two diverse elements in its popula- tion, those who are strict "Wahabees in faith and those who are Wahabees by subjection only. The former class predominates in the provinces of Aared, Woshem, Sedeyr, Aflaj, Dowasir, and Yemamah. In the other provinces there is not much attachment to the reigning dynas- ty, and the people are unsettled in their opin- ions. Hasa, Katif, and Kasim are subject to Nedjed only because they are unable to free themselves, the majority of the people being Mohammedans, but not Wahabees. The gov- ernment is a pure despotism. The military muster of the sultanate is about 50,000 men. Two or three miserable vessels at Katif con- stitute the navy. The annual revenue is esti- mated by Palgrave at about 100,000, with a nearly equal income from extraordinary con- tributions, fines, spoils of war, &c. For the earlier history of Nedjed see WAHABEES. In 1834 Turky, the sultan of Nedjed, who was ac- tively engaged in reconstructing his kingdom, ruined by the Egyptian invasion, was assassi- nated by his cousin Mashary, who usurped the throne. Faisul, Turky 's son, returned at once from Hasa, where he had been besieging Hof- huf, slew Mashary, and assumed the sover- eignty. The Egyptians again overran Nedjed in 1838, and Faisul surrendered to their com- mander ; but in 1843 he returned to Riyad and reestablished himself as the legitimate head of the Wahabees. He died in 1865, and was suc- ceeded by his son Abdallah, against whom his younger brother Turky successfully revolted. Abdallah, expelled, sought aid from the Sublime Porte, which sent an armed force and in 1874 took possession of Hasa on the east, while on the west another body of troops occupied Lahe, but with what result so far as Nedjed is con- cerned is not now (February, 1875) known. See Palgrave's " Journey through Central and Eastern Arabia" (London, 1865), and Pelly's " Visit to the Wahabee Capital," in the "Journal of the London Geographical Society " (1865). NEEDLE, a slender steel instrument, pointed at one end and with an eye at the other, used for carrying the thread in sewing. Among uncivilized people, at a very early period, rude attempts were made to form needles or bod- kins of bone and ivory, by means of which their garments might be stitched together ; but among the more refined nations of antiquity, as the Chinese, Hindoos, Egyptians, Assyrians, and Hebrews, fine needles must have been in common use. Pliny mentions needles of bronze for sewing and knitting as being in use in his day, and bronze needles of large size have been found in Egyptian tombs, which must have been made 4,000 years ago. Fine needles could not of course resist the consuming action of air and moisture for so great a length of time. The Spanish or steel needle was introduced into England in the time of Queen Elizabeth ; but the process by which it was made was kept secret, and the art was unknown till the year 1650, when it was revived by Christopher Greening at Long Crenden in Buckingham- shire. Great improvements have since been introduced in needle making; and the "fine steel needles " of that period bear but a faint resemblance to the delicate and highly temper- ed needles of the present time. The manufac- ture of needles is now carried on to a great ex- tent in many villages in England, but princi- pally at Redditch, about 12 m. from Birming- ham, and from this obscure place a large por- tion of Europe, the British colonies, and the United States are supplied. They are also made at Aix-la-Chapelle and its suburb Bor- cette, the latter place being the principal seat of the manufacture on the continent. Though extremely simple in its form and appearance, the needle requires many operations for its construction, passing through the hands of nearly 100 workmen. The wires of various sizes "being furnished in coils to the needle maker, he selects such as are of equal diameter and clips them into pieces, each of the length of two needles, with large shears, which are fastened to the wall of the cutting room. After being straightened, they are pointed by applying them to small, rapidly revolving grindstones. The wires being pointed at both ends, the centre of each is flattened, and a groove is formed on either side, with a small indentation at the spot where the eye of the needle is to be made, which operation is per- formed by means of a stamping machine. A bed of iron which contains the under half of the die or stamp is supported on a heavy stone, the upper half being attached to the bottom of a hammer, of about 12 Ibs. weight, which is raised with the foot by means of a lever. The wires are dropped, one at a time, upon the iron bed, and the hammer is made to fall upon them with a sharp blow. The raised faces of the stamp produce indenta- tions on the opposite sides of the wire ; and though the operator adjusts each piece sepa- rately, yet he can stamp 2,000 wires or 4,000 needles in an hour. The work of eyeing the needles is performed by boys, who use small hand presses for the purpose. The lengths are next separated between the eyes by bending the lines of needles backward and forward. The points then being held firmly in a hand vice, the heads are filed to their proper shape. This completes the soft work, as it is called. The next process is hardening. The needles are now in a black, soft, dingy state ; and in order to harden them they are placed on iron plates and brought to a red heat, when they are plunged into cold oil, after which they are again heated to a less temperature and more gradually cooled. The scouring or clean-