Duponts to Produce New Yarn Take Place of Japanese Silk
New York, Oct. 21 – (UP) –
Hosiery makers predicted today that a new yarn to be produced by E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Co., and Celanese Corporation of America, would eliminate the American market for Japanese silk for hosiery.
Of the $100,000,000 worth of raw silk imported annually, 50 per cent comes from Japan and $75,000.000 of it goes into hosiery.
The Celanese Corporation announced yesterday it was building a $10,000,000 plant at Pearisbug, Va., to produce the new yarn. A few days ago the duPont comapny announced plans for a $7,000,000 plant at Seaford, Del., to make the new yarn known as “Yarn 66.”
For years the Japanese silk market has been suffering from the introduction of rayon in most garments. Raw silk remained neccesary for women’s hosiery, however, because all synthetic silks were too lustrous or too inelastic. These objections are believed to have been overcome in the new yarn.
Experimental hosiery produced by duPont was said to have compared favorably with silk hose retailing at $1 a pair and less. With improvements it was believed that higher priced silk hosiery could be deplicated.
Waycross Journal-Herald, 20 October 1938