Manawatu Herald. TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 1889. ATTENTION.

Manawatu Herald, Volume II, Issue 281, 3 September 1889, Page 2

Manawatu Herald. TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 1889. ATTENTION.

If we dosire to really establish the flax industry ou a permanent footing, the importance of preparing a far better sample than is now produced, is beyond question. Reports from fibre brokers in London and from gentlemen who are at present in that city, and who are interested in the trade, all make the question as to the stability of the industry dependant on this main point. Our connection with the hemp millers i« so large that we are constantly in communication with them, and we may say that we are in possession of their side of the case. In many instances the millers find it necesary, from financial reasons to sell their product on tho spot or at any rate somewhere within tho colony, and they have been much disheartened at the very small diff rence that the buyers make between well dressed, and very medium dressed, fibre, in no cose has it ever j exceeded a pound a ton. The Lon don reports places the difference at five pounds a ton at the very least, and the output of tlie district is disorganised because the present purchasers find it to be" more profitable to them to keep almost a uniform market price, as they therefore by buying poorly dressed flax at, we will say, a slightly higher price than they should, secure a better dressed article at too low a figure. This further appears to be the case when it is noticed that the net prices received by millers, who have shipped direct, are much in excess over the local figure. There can be no doubt that it will be a lucky day when all the mill owners art able to sell for themselves at home, and reap the reward of oare and attention, t hemp miller wrote out the o her day that his mill., must turn out a first doss article, and that it would pay to do go, as he believed* that & real good sample would f -teh* £85 a ton, af not more. In our last issue we reported that a southern firm had, by the last' mail? received advices of a sale of very well dressed hemp at £41 a ton, surely this proves the correctness of the above mentioned gentleman's belief. The in*

dustry has been practically revived, from.thespurt of twenty years ago, though it is true that some few mills have been kept at work during tas past period. No one however will pretend to say that sufficient interest has been devoted to the business, nor have a proper series of experiments been carried out, and we therefore thinlc that millers would find it to their best advantage, to make fair trials of suggestions that may be offered, we learnt the value of the Phormium tenar from the natives of these islands, and their old methods of dressing the fibre are well worth noting, not, . in the actual style of tcrftping, but certainly in their operations as to making the fibra white and soft, and free from gum. The Government have reissued a handy book on this plant, but we would venture to state that it would not be found in many hemp millers hands. The remarks we now make are taken from that very useful production. Classification of the green leaf we hold to be of much importance, but as it would be too expensive to copy the natives in taking off the col ured edges and what is termed the keel, it should not be difficulty to roughly sort the lengths, as we have before shown, and to reject the badly spotted leaves. The sorting of (he green leaves prior to stripping, enables the lengths to be kept for ever after separate. Washing next comes for consideration. The natives always threw the leaves directly after stripping into a tub of water, so as to keep them soft, till they washed the lot in a running stream. For thoir mats they took even more trouble, as the} r used to soak thoir fibre four days, in running water, then beat it with a stone and this process was repeated over and over again for four or five we ks, which was thus made very soft and durab c. We have given the explanation as showing that some system of washing is the one that requires attention and simplification. Mr Skey who has made exhaustive experiments on the action of chemicals on the flax, to effect a clearance both of the skin and gum states that soap was the most satisfactory agent. " A certain portion of the bruised leaf was taken nnd digested in hot water for two hours It was then boiled two hours longer with 12 per cent of common soda soap, before it affeoted the leaf so that it would clean with the nail. The fibre so obtained, when scraped, appeared to be everything that could be wished for, being remarkably soft and flexitie, but with a faint shade of green colour, indicating probably that no decomposition of the fibre had taken pace. When the sample so propared had been kept for one year, iv appeared to be as strong as at first." Mr Skey acknowledges that such a process would be too dear but he says " The expenditure of soap, however, can be greatly reduced in two ways, first, by washing the Phormium ropoatedly in war n water and then adding the aoip to the necessary amount; scond, hefore ad-ling the soap, by neutralising with carbonate of soda the water in which the Phormium has been boiled, as it acquires »n acid reaction. In each case the proper quantity of *oap is that which gives to the warm solution a permanent froth upon its surface when stirred about. The first process of washing is preferred on account of its greater cheapness, and also because it avoids the danger of using the excess of alkali to which the latter is subject." He suggests t"e connection of the steam pipe of the boiler with a perforated coi< tying at the bottom of the vat in which the boiling is carried on We should suppose that after the hot water process the fibre would be better for a wash in a running stream to clear it of all particles of skin. An experiment anyhow in this direction w.uld not be costly, when the extra washing of the fibre would necessitate less bleaching and also loss scutching. We have heard of one firm that has adopted the hot water process, but whether plain or with soap, we cannot say, but we have heard that the sample is a very superior one. If millers do this and improve their scutchers, and make their bales of a good size and smpe, and cover them and have a good brand, we are >ure they will reap thsir reward. The extra work will of necessity cost more, but the fiftire m- be worth much more in proportion to the cost entailed. Again aid again we repeat, these are just the points that a Hemp Millers <\ ssociation is needed. Some day we still hope to ' see one formed, and foi the iniliers we say, the earlier the better.