ARTIFICIAL WOOL.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1504, 26 October 1886, Page 1

ARTIFICIAL WOOL.

For some li,me past, "pays Iron, attention has been directed to a very interesting product consisting of extremely thin and slender sharings of wood, which are comparable to paper cut'for packing. It is known by the name of “ wood wool.” This product was first:; introduced into France as a packing material. It weighs about? 40 or. 50 /per cent less than the materials generally used; for such a purpose. ' Ita beautiful appearance, its fineness,' and its extreme cleanness, at once brought it into favor with shippers. It was afterwards found that the material was admirably adapted fpr the manufacture of mattresses, for litter for cattle, for the filtration of liquids, and for stuffing horse collars, etc., the most suitab'e pieces of wood being selected for each of these purposes. Its elasticity causes it to be considered the best material for bedding after horsehair, audit Is even preferable to any other substance when it is derived from resinous woodj since it does not then absorb moisture. In workshops wood wool is tending t t6 replace cotton waste for cleaning machinery, and it has likewise found ao applic|tipu on the rolling stock of railways lor lubricating car axles. While it. has tne same property which cotton waste has of absorbing oil, it costs ten times less chan that material. It* use is said to be rapidly growing in Austria and Germany, and also in France t