| Spinning Jenny | |
|---|---|
| |
| Requires | None |
| Building Needed | Weaver's Cottage |
| Leads To | Spinning Mule |
| Stream | Textile Industry, Industry |
| Effects | |
| |
Spinning Jenny is a Technology in Empire: Total War.
Description[]
This device is, at heart, a powered spinning wheel that allows the bulk creation of thread for weaving.
Manual spinning is a slow, tedious business, and one that cannot be speeded up, only given to more hands to do. The spinning jenny mechanises the process, by turning the spindle on its side and having it roll to and fro as the thread is spun. A single worker can, using the jenny, produce eight threads at a time, rather than just one. Quality may suffer, but this is a secondary consideration, as is the well-being of the workers. They are often children, who have hands small enough to reach into the machinery while it is running and would otherwise be idle and undoubtedly given to all manner of mischief.
The device is usually credited to James Hargreaves (1720-1778), a weaver and carpenter from Lancashire in England. While his invention was clever, he was not a businessman or lawyer, and he suffered much lost income as a result of not using patent law properly.