Hawke's Bay Times. Nullius addictus jurare in verba magistri. SATURDAY, JANUARY 13, 1872.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 19, Issue 1221, 13 January 1872, Page 2

Hawke's Bay Times. Nullius addictus jurare in verba magistri. SATURDAY, JANUARY 13, 1872.

Among our lust batch of Parliamentary papers we received the Appendix to the second Report of the Flax Commissioners, containing the results of microscopic and chemical analysis of the structure of the leaf, and of .the various kinds of prepared fibre. The analyses were made independently by two gentlemen in Great Britain, and are forwarded b} r the Home agents to the Chairman of the Flax Commission, We are sorry to note that they cannot report favorably of the machine dressed fibre. The microscope shows that there is a very great difference in the structure of the upper and lower parts—technically the blade and the butt—of the Phormium leaves, the lower portion being deficient in the best kind of the fibre, and abounding in that of inferior quality. We may remark that experience accords with this, it being found that the butt* end of the leaf, notwithstanding its greater bulk, breaks off more easily than the upper part. It appears also "that in the upper part of the leaf the fibre is better developed on its superior or glossy surface, and this exactly what the natives select, rejecting the fibre of the under or bloom surface. The native-dressed samples are characterised by the small size of the cell or ca\ity, as compared with the diameter of the fibre, while the fibre of the under or rejected surface is irregular in both the size of cavity and cell wall. That fibre is in consequence weaker than the other, and this also was a characteristic of machine-dressed flax. As a general rule, the microscopic appearance of the fibre agreed with that of Manila hemp, and differed materially from that of potton, Irish flax and Russian hemp. Of the chemical portion of the report may briefly say that the Phormium

fibre is acted on by boiling water to a much greater extent than the other textile fibres. Water at a temperature considerably above the boiling point will dissolve 25 per cent, of it, while the fibre of linen, or the true flax, loses only two per cent., showing that there is an inherent difference between the material of the fibres.

The reports of the two gentlemen referred to, detailing experiments, &c, occupy fifteen foolscap pages, but the bearing of the whole may be sufficiently gathered from the " general conclusions" in which they each sumuiaiise the results of their observations.

William Ramsay M'Nab, Esq , M.D., Edinburgh, Professor of Botany in the Royal Agricultural College at Cirencester, England, reports : From the results of the microscopical studies which I have made o* the Pharmtum tenax, I conclude —

1. That the best fibres are those which have the smallest cavity, and the greatest chickness of wall. %. That the fibres at different parts of she leaf are of very different values. As the leaf developes from above downward.*, the fibres at the apex will be much older than thq>'o at the base. Microscopical examination also shows that the fibres at the base (lower part of the butt) and apex (last inch or two of the leaf, ought to be rejected. The leaves themselves ought also to be very carefully selected. 3. That the fibres situated near the under surface of the leaf are often inferior in quality, and that the microscopic structure of the leaf shows that these bundles can only be separated from the tissues with the greatest difficulty. 4. That no cement exists binding the cells together; the so-called cement of Captain Hutton being the primary cell wall, consisting of cellulose, and easily soluble in cborate of potash and nitric acid.

5. That the gum existing on the epidermis of the upper surface is not likely to damage the fibres in any way, and can be easily got rid of along with the epidermis. 6. That the differences, chemical and microscopical, between New Zealaud flax and Russian hemp, and Irish flax, render it improbable that the New Zealand flax can ever be profitably applied to the same use-'. 7. That the resemblances, chemical and microscopical, between New Zealand flax and Manilla hemp show that New Zealand flax ought to furnish valuable material for the manufacture of -ropes, <fec. For tins end, I would urge that the fibro vascular bundles be extracted from the leaf as nearly entire as possible, and with care, taking advantage of the cellular sheath surrounding them, this ought to be practicable; but the fibres close to the inferior epidermis ought not to be removed.

8. That as the natives have overcome all the difficulties, a process as simple as possible ought to be employed, and while the bundles are not broken up into their ultimate cells, every care ought to be taken to preserve the natural oily and fatty matter in the fibre. Arthur Herbert Church, Esq., M.A , Oxon, Fellow of the Chemical Society of London, and Professor of Chemistry in the Royal Agricultural College at Cirencester, England, reports :

From the results of the Chemical studies which I have made of the Phormium tenax, I conclude—

1. That the best and strongest prepared Phormium fibres are those which, while fulfilling the requisite physical conditions and the microscopic conditions determined by Dr M'Nab, contain the smallest quantity of mineral matter and the largest quantity of hygroscopic water.

2. That the age or stage of development of the fibre has much to do with its chemical deportment, and with its strength, and that a considerable portion of the fibre in the leaf must be condemmed, both on microscopical ar.d chemical grounds, as of very small value.

3. That Phormium fibres are more easily and more considerably affected by

chemical reagents and by *ater at the boiling point, and at higher temperatores, than most other fibres used for fabrics, ropes, &c. 4. That Phormium- fibres are very readily wetted by water and sea-water, and that this wetting takes place to a small extent even alter the fibres have absorbed a considerable amount of wopd-far. The microscopic structure of the fibre serves (o explain this observation.

5. That the fact stated in (4) above, taken in connection with the observation that Phormium fibres contain much matter soluble in water or liable to change, helps to account for the decay of ropes made with this material.

6. That the use of a mixture of lubricating, or machinery paraffine oil with wood tar seems to prevent the entrance of sea watei and the proneness to change in Phormium fibre. Et is also suggested that as to the conversion of Phormium fibres into papyrine, by a brief immersion in sulphuric acid, of the strength used in the manufacture of vegetable parchment, seems to toughen, strengthen, and watei proof them ; this process might be made use of to improve inferior samples of fibre.

7. Thai the ultimate fibres are not held together by any cement, but by their cell-walls. These, however, being easily affected by various agencies, are, together with other changeable constituents of the material, a cause of disintegration and weakness. 8. That the treatment of the plant of Phormium, qv of its fibre with alkaline matters, especially at a high temperature, may, by removing the oil, tend to cause the harshness shown by some fibres and otherwise injure them. 9. That the use of the softest water, of a well-regulated temperature, and of effective yet uniformly exerted median icai power, seems to be of importance in the preparation of Phormium fibre. The relative value of different processes of treatment and bleaching did not come within the scope of the present preliminary inquiry, but could be ascertained with much greater ease than I before, through the data given in the ' present report. I