NEW ZEALAND FLAX PAPER.

Evening Star, Issue 3386, 27 December 1873, Page 3

NEW ZEALAND FLAX PAPER.

{From the New Zealand Herald, December 8. ) We have been shewn a small volume printed on paper made from the leaves of the New Zealand flax plant, and which is now lying at Messrs Upton and Co s, Queen street. It is entitled, “Phormium tenax, or the New Zealand flax plant,’’ and is a short treatise on the value of the fibre of the plant as an article of commerce, with a postscript showing its importance as a staple for the manufacture of paper, in which it is shown that the fibrous substance the plant contains renders it highly desirable as a material for that purpose. The paper upon which the book is printed is an excellent illustration of the truth of the authors assertion. In appearance and strength it more closely approaches those of parchment than any paper we have seen. Why such an opportunity for profitable enterprise has been so long neglected is a matter of surprise to us, as it must be to many others. (From the Southern Cross.) The paper on which this interesting little work is printed was manufactured by Mr Smith, of Moreton Paper Mills, Yorkshire. The following are the manufacturer’s observations addressed to the author, wbo appeara to have furnished the leaves. “You will observe that the paper is very strong ; indeed, in my opinion, nearly as durable as parchment itself, of the same thickness. Had the raw material been hackled or cleaned previous to manufacture, I have no doubt it would have deen equally strong, of a beautiful color, and a first-rate paper, more durable than any thing ever seen in the shape of paper.” The reader of Mr Murray’s book cannot but be impressed with the fact that 37 years ago attention was called to the invaluable qualities of phormium tenax as a staple for paper manufacture, and feel surprised that a field of enterprise fraught with so much promise has so long been unoccupied.