Furrow

Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)

in ordinary language, a trench in the earth made by a plow; ow; any narrow trench, groove, or hollow; a wrinkle. In milling, the grooves in the face of a millstone; the plane surface is land. A leader furrow extends from the eye to the skirt of the stone at such draft as may be determined. The steep edge of the furrow is called the track edge; the more inclined edge is called the feather edge. The second furrow is that branching from the leader nearest to the eye. The skirt furrow departs from the leader nearer to the skirt. A gauge furrow is concave at bottom. FURS. Under the name of furs may be included the skins of almost all those animals which, for the sake of protection against cold, have for a covering an under layer of a soft, woolly, or downy texture, through which grows in most instances an upper one of a more bristly or hairy nature; some by nature possess more of the under coat, and others more of the upper, the proportion varying considerably in different animals and countries. In winter the fur becomes thicker in its growth, thereby improving the quality and value for commercial purposes; young animals too possess thicker coats than full-grown ones. In some instances the under-fur alone is used in manufacturing, while the upper hairs are removed-e. g., in the fur-seal. The chief supply of furs is obtained from Siberia and the N. parts of North America, and, as these tracts are for the greater part of the year frostbound, the fur-bearing animals enjoy a comparatively unmolested life, the fur, therefore, grows thickly during the winter season, and is in its best condition when the animal is trapped in the spring; large quantities also of the smaller sorts are found in the United States; Europe produces immense numbers of common furs, such as rabbits, hares, foxes, etc., besides the more valuable stone and baum (tree) martens, though the larger animals have almost disappeared as the countries have be come more and more cleared and inhabited; South America yields nutrias and chinchillas; while Australia exports rabbits, opossums, and kangaroos, and Africa monkey and leopard skins. Nearly all fur-skins are brought to the market in the raw or undressed state.