PAPER-MAKING.

Taranaki Daily News, 16 October 1920, Page 10 (Supplement)

PAPER-MAKING.

FROM BY-PRODUCTS OF FLAX. Fhixmilk'rs in the Manawatu and Foxton districts lire eonsiiloring the possibilities of utilising t!ie by-products from the flaxmills, and their attention lias been turned to the of making paper. At a meeting of flaxiiiill owners held at Palmorston North tliis week', interesting reports upon the proposal were read, and a committee set up to make further inquiries. ' WRAPPING PAPER AND BAGS. Mr. J. H. Stevens submitted the following report: "Green flax, broken fibre and stripper siips appear to be an ideal material for the manufacture of the several qualities of wrapping paper. The demand for this class' of paper is indicated by the evidence of one Wellington paper merchant, who says that as a bribe to the mills to allow him a share of their output, he presses and ships free to them all his waste paper for pulping. To establish a mill for making wrapping paper would cost about £150,000. A pulping mill is practically the same thing and would be equally costly. The present price of this class of paper is £(3O per ton or more, it was previously as low as £ls. mill machinery at Mataura is being renewed at a cost of nearly £IOO,OOO, and possibly this may increase the output and affect the prices. The Hon. E. P .Lee (Minister for Industries) will place the question of a bonus for the manufacture of paper before Cabinet, and advise later on. The New Zealand Paper Mills offer £5 per ton for dried stripper slips, and £2 lO.t per ton for merchants' paper cuttings of waste paper f.0.b., Foxton. Sir Wm. Fraser says that permission could be obtained to utilise Tokomaru Falls for power, subject to the gazetted conditions. It is stated that 300 horse-power might be developed there. About that power is said to be the minimum requirement of a mill. As compared with the woollen industry, paper making requires less labor. The vicinity of Foxton appears to be suitable for a site for such a mill. NEWSPRINT AND WRITING PAPER. "Until means are found to eliminate [coloring and brown spots, flax, h not suitable for this purpose. The New Zealand Paper Mills repor.: 'We are now making exhaustive experiments in this direction with the best fibre, in the hope of accomplishing something useful. If we succeed there is no telling what it | will mean to the fiaxmilling industries.' 1 am reliably informed that the Publishers' Association would find the necessary capita! to establish a paper mill (approximately £200,000), provided a continuous supply of suitable material for pulping could be guaranteed. Dr. McLaurin, Government Analyst, recommends a reference to Professor Fasterfield, of the Cawthorn Institute, Nelson, who has made an exhaustive study of the scientific aspect of paper manufacture in New Zealand. Pending the result of his experiments, and those of the New Zealand Paper Mills, to which reference is made above, we may confine our practical inquiries to the question of j wrapping papers. ! VEGETABLE CUTICLE AS MANURE. I ''Mr. C. B. Aston, of the Agricultural Laboratory, says vegetable cuticle is an excellent substitute for stable manure, but strongly recommends that it be restored to the land from which the flax is cut It is specially effective as a fertiliser of root crops such as potatoes and turnips This opinion is' confirmed by experiments at Ruakura It is also of value as an -absorbent of molasses for stock foods, and might be utilised by manufacturers of this product. The Prime Minister lias asked the General Manager of Railways to report upon the question of granting freight concessions upon this material for manure, similar to those which now apply to agricultural lime. Meantime, flaxmillers aro in the position to experiment with their own root crops in the vicinity of the mills, and should be invited to do so, and to report to the Association." AN ENGINEER'S OPINION. The following letter is from Mr. Boorman, an engineer who has been appointed by the New Zealand Publishers' Association to make inquiries concerning the making of paper from New Zealand material: "Regarding the making cf paper from the waste from flaxmills, the finest kind of paper can he made from the slips and tow, as well as from any clean fibre waste. This material lends itself in strength to commercial and book papers, as well as 'craft.' I am, however, at the present moment personally interested more in 'newsprint' paper. The New Zealand National Newspaper Association have appointed a committee from its membership to take up the problem of making the paper used by them here in New Zealand from New Zealand material. This committee has asked me to co-oper-ate with it as a mechanical and consulting expert. This lam now doing. The newspapers of New Zealand use ahout 15,000 tons of newsprint per annum. You can, therefore, see that before any money is involved it will be necessary that the supply of raw material for this must be absolutely assured. I would suggest that you start a movement that will secure the agreement of enough flaxmillers to supply their slips, etc., sufficient to ensure without fail from 50 to 100 tons per day of finished paper pulp, for a period of several years."