Page:Collier's New Encyclopedia v. 09.djvu/435

THOUS 373 THREAD forming a scanty brush, tip black; fur close, hard; livery mostly chequered, or penciled with black and white, extremi- ties buff; they are not gregarious and do not burrow. From Africa and South- western Asia. Some of the species are now classed with Canis and others with Vulpes. THOUSAND ISLANDS, a group of small islands numbering about 1,800 in the St. Lawrence, immediately below Lake Ontario. They belong partly to Canada and partly to the State of New York, and have become a popular summer resort. THRACE, the ancient name of the Turkish province of Rumeli. It is said to have been peopled by a tribe of Pelas- gians. The authentic history of the coun- try commences with the formation of the Greek settlements in the 6th century b. C. Of these, the principal were Byzantium (675 B. C), Selymbria, Abdera (560 B. C), Mesembria, Dicaea, Maronea, ^Enus, Cardia, Sestus, Amphipolis, etc.; but their want of union enabled the Thracian chiefs of the interior to preserve their independence. In 513 B. C, Darius, King of Persia, marched through Thrace on his way to punish the European Scythians, and on his return, left Megabazus, with 80,000 men, to subdue the country. In this he partially succeeded, but new dis- turbances and complications arose be- tween the Persians and Greeks, which re- sulted (480 B. c.) in the famous expedi- tion of Xerxes. The rise of the Macedo- nian kingdom, under Philip II. (359 B. c), destroyed the independence of a great part of Thrace. Under the Government of Lysimachus, Thracia was incorpo- rated with Macedonia, and became com- plete. On the fall of the Macedonian kingdom (168 B. c), it passed into the hands of the Romans, and subsequently shared the vicissitudes of the Roman em- pire. In 305, it was overrun by Alaric, and in 447, by Attila. In 1353, Amurath obtained possession of all its fortresses, except Constantinople, and remained in the hands of the Turks. By the treaty of Neuilly in 1919 Bulgaria agreed to give Thrace to Greece. THRACIA, in .zodlos7t a genus of Anatinidos. Shell oblong, nearly equivalve, slightly compressed, attenuated and gaping behind; cartilage processes thick; pallial sinus shallow. Animal with the mantle closed; foot linguiform; siphon rather long, with fringed orifices. They live in water from 4 to 120 fathoms deep. Recent species 17, from the United States, Greenland, Great Britain, Nor- way, the Mediterranean, the Canaries, China, etc.; fossil 36, from the Lower Oolite, if not the Trias, onward. THRASYBULUS, an Athenian gen- eral, who in the time of the Thirty Ty- rants, took refuge at Thebes. Having gained some followers, he marched against the usurpers and expelled them. In commemoration of this triumph, a yearly festival was instituted at Athens. Thrasybulus wisely procured the passing of a general amnesty, which decreed that no one but the principals should be pun- ished. He subsequently displayed great valor in Thrace, and slew the Lace- daemonian general with his own hand. Trasybulus fell in a battle with the As- pendians, who were the allies of Sparta, 394 B. C. THREAD, a compound cord consist- ing of two or more single yarns, doubled and twisted. In the trade it is divided into lace, stocking, and sewing thread. Any fibrous substance, such as cotton or flax, when it is to be woven, is first spun into yarn, which is sometimes called thread. Sewing thread, however, always consists of at least two or more yams twisted together. In the spinning of yarn the process is the same whether it is to be woven into cloth or twisted into thread. Beginning with the spun yarn, the stages in the process of manufactur- ing a six-cord cotton thread (a very com- mon kind) are: (1) The yam is doubled and wound on bobbins; (2) the double yam is then twisted into a two-ply thread; (3) the thread is next rewound on bobbins for the second twist; (4) the thread is twisted a second time on the twisting frame, three two-ply threads being thus formed into a six-cord thread; (5) the thread is rewound on large bob- bins, from which it is reeled into hanks for bleaching or dyeing; (6) the bleached or dyed thread is next rewound on bob- bins for spooling; (7) spooling — i. e., winding the thread on small bobbins called spools or pirns for use. The spin- dles of the spooling machine mm at a speed of 7,000 revolutions per minute. Paisley is, however, the principal seat of the manufacture in Great Britain. The making of thread on an industrial scale was begun in that town in 1722 by Christian Shaw of Bargarran. She had obtained information from Holland about the process of making linen thread, and what she and her friends manufactured was sold at the time under the name of "Balgarran thread." The industry did not become of great importance so long as flax was the material used. But in the early part of the 19th century, when the spinning machines of Hargreaves, Ark- wright, and others came largely into use,