Ms. Schaffer's description of identification methods -- including ignition, solubility, drytwisting, staining, and microscopic examination -- is criticized as oversimplified and in some cases overcomplicated. Ignition tests can give more information than is presented by Ms. Schaffer; reference is made to The Identification of Textile Materials. Ms. Schaffer's solubility series is felt to be overly complicated; a simpler series is given in a footnote. The validity of the drytwist test on degraded fibers is questioned. Identification by ash analysis and staining tests does not pertain to all fibers mentioned, while other fibers are not discussed. Insufficient information necessary to identify fibers by microscopic examination is given, and there is no advice to seek further tests. Identification of the wide variety of materials found in ethnographic objects is ignored. The reviewer concludes that there are simpler methods of identification of basic fiber types, and that much more information is needed to perform more detailed analysis. -- AATA