53 INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION, 1876. thank Messrs. Hovey & Co., of Boston, for a series of samples of French fabrics, with the following names: Velours . Empress. Chambery gauze Mousseline de beg Cashmere de bege Merino tulle . Pongee . Mohair glac6 . Vigogne . Serge Basket . Matelasse Diagonals Imperial silk ser£e Algerine Armure . Turenne cloth Drap d’Alma . Sicilienne Bombazine Tamise . . Chinchilla Mexican cloth Knickerbockers French camel’s hai Satine Australian crape Drap de Nationelle Parametta cloth Henrietta cloth Hernani. Damasks Brocades All wool. All wool. Silk and goat’s hair. All wool. All wool. Silk and wool. Goat’s hair and cotton. Silk and wool and all wool. All wool. All wool, fancy. Silk and wool. All wool and silk wool. Silk and wool. All wool. Silk and wool. Cotton and wool. Silk and wool. Silk and wool. Silk and wool. All wool. Camel’s hair. Silk and wool. ' Wool with irregular spots of different colors and materials. Cashmere goat’s wool. All wool, with satin weave. Cotton and wool. All wool. Silk and wool. Silk and wool. Silk and wool. Wool, silk and wool, and wool and cotton, in infinite varieties for furni ture, woven on the Jacquard loom. Some of the general features of the French fabrication of dress and furniture stuffs may here be appropriately considered. The influence of the possession by France of Merino wool upon the character of her dress fabrics has already been referred to in this report. In the spinning of fine Merino wools, and weaving them into dress goods, France takes precedence of all nations. The most important contribution to this success was the invention, by Heilman, of Mulhouse, of a method of mechanical combing, adapted to the short fibres of Merino wool as well as to the long staple for merly regarded as exclusively combing-wool. Mainly through this invention, France, to use Mr. Alcan’s words, “marched, in the early