Part 2

The complete exhaustion of the plant is proceeding very rapidly in Spain; and as it is estimated by the best informed authorities that it will take, even with the greatest care and under the most favourable conditions, at least fifteen years to reproduce it from seed (a system not very likely to be pursued in that country,) at no very remote period this valuable paper-making material appears doomed to extinction.

During the last few years a large and increasing supply of "ESPARTO," or as it is there called "_Alfa_," has been received from Africa; and although the quality of African Esparto is not valued by the paper-trade as high as the Spanish, still it meets with a ready sale, being used to mix with, or in substitution of the latter.

As much as 60,000 tons were imported last year (1874) from Algeria, and great inducements by concessions and otherwise, are offered by the French Government to induce railway communication with the interior districts of that country, where the plant is said to abound on some of the mountainous plateaux, and thus for some little time the market may be supplied, but the difficulty of procuring labour, and the cost of railway carriage for such long distances, will add considerably to the present charges of transit to this country.

Within the last two or three years, the Belgian and American Paper-makers have commenced using "Esparto," and so latterly have the French, and as our main sources of supply will now be Algeria, (a French colony,) any material reduction in prices can hardly be looked for.

"ESPARTO," like other commercial products, is amenable to the law of supply and demand; and thus, as the demand is, and is likely to continue in excess of the supply, its cost has enormously increased, the price it now commands in the market being nearly double that, at which I sold many thousand tons during the early years of its introduction.

The Paper-manufacturers are thus again experiencing the same difficulty recognized by THE LORDS OF THE TREASURY, and by THE BOARD OF TRADE in 1854, and which more recently was considered of sufficient importance to induce the appointment of a SELECT COMMITTEE ordered by THE HOUSE OF COMMONS in 1861:

"To inquire into the DUTIES OR PROHIBITIONS in FOREIGN COUNTRIES on the EXPORT OF RAGS used in the MANUFACTURE OF PAPER in the UNITED KINGDOM, and their effect upon that MANUFACTURE."

The COMMITTEE REPORTED: "That the production of paper in this country is in excess of the supply of the material of which it is made, and the paper manufacture is in consequence dependent for a large portion of its supplies on foreign Rags, amounting to about 15,000 tons per annum, which is by estimation a fifth of the whole quantity of Rags used for the manufacture of white paper in this country, on nearly the whole of which heavy export duties are paid."

Another paragraph of the COMMITTEE'S "REPORT" states: "That the Committee have directed their especial attention to inquiring as to the possibility of applying any _New Fibre_ as a substitute for the refuse material now in use for Paper-making purposes, and find that great efforts have been made to discover some material of this nature, but as yet with little success; and although they see no reason to doubt that Straw and other fibrous substances may form a supplementary part of the material for paper-making, the great comparative expense of chemically reducing these _Raw Fibres_ presents difficulties to their becoming a substitute for the refuse material now used."

Since the above "REPORT" was published, the position of the Trade has materially altered. The export duties in some countries have been abolished, in others reduced; Rag material has increased in quantity and diminished in price; "the difficulties of chemically reducing _Raw Fibres_" no longer exist; and the "15,000 _tons_ of Rags" estimated by the "COMMITTEE" as the requirements of the Trade have been more than "substituted" by the 150,000 _tons of_ "ESPARTO" _and other Raw material_, now annually imported, while the development of the chemical trade keeping pace with the introduction of "RAW FIBRES" has materially facilitated their employment.

Caustic soda, but little known in 1861, is now extensively manufactured, and Weldon's new process has greatly increased the power of production and diminished the cost of manufacturing bleaching powder; thus "the comparative expense of chemically reducing _Raw Fibres_" is no longer an obstacle to progress.

The manufacturer of the present day will, in fact, undertake to make paper from any raw fibre, or fibrous substance that may be submitted to him.

He has, however, several questions to consider before he will commit himself to purchase or contract for any new fibrous material, these being: its cost, not merely as a raw material, but in the details of manufacture, and the quality of the paper that can economically be made from such fibre, either alone, or introducing it as a blend with the material he at present employs; then, assuming these points satisfactorily determined, he would desire to know the quantity of such material annually available, with some guarantee for continuous and reliable supply at a price not liable to erratic fluctuations.

The value of "ESPARTO" as a Paper-making material having been recognized, and its employment almost universally adopted in the Trade, naturally led to various attempts to introduce other "_new material_," which hitherto, however, have met with only partial success: the "DWARF PALM," _Chamoerops humilis_, and "DISS," as well as some other materials from North Africa, have been tried and abandoned as unsuitable: "JUTE" also has latterly attracted considerable attention; "Butts" or "Cuttings," as they are termed, the refuse from the preparation of the long clean fibre now so largely used as a Textile, have entered extensively into consumption, being imported from India specially for paper-makers' use, packed in hydraulic-pressed bales; but this fibre is difficult and costly to bleach perfectly, and is only employed for the lower class of "News" and "Common printing," or unbleached, for "Brown" and "Wrapping" papers; but as it has long been familiar to the trade in the form of Waste, Gunny-bagging, and Rope, it can hardly be termed a "_New Material_."

Two or three other excellent fibrous materials may be mentioned, small parcels of which are occasionally to be met with, that are, or more correctly speaking would be, much prized by Paper-manufacturers if obtainable at reasonable rates, such as "ADANSONIA BARK," "NEW ZEALAND FLAX," "MANILLA HEMP," "SUNN," and other INDIAN, HEMP-LIKE FIBRES, all of which will bleach well and make paper of superior quality; but unfortunately the quantity available is so small, and the supply so irregular and uncertain, that they can hardly be relied upon as "_Raw Material_."

"WOOD," both chemically and mechanically prepared, has been, and indeed is now, used to a very considerable extent; but the latter, produced by grinding down "billets" from the tree as cut down, on a grindstone to a pulp, with water, or without water, to the condition of flour, contains but little fibre, and that fibre with very little "felting" property (an essential for a good sheet of paper); thus it can only be used as a "filler-up" for "cheap News" and common papers, like "clay" (facetiously called in the trade Devonshire linen), or any other adulterant which the necessities of the Paper-maker, to meet the market, (_or in other words deficient supply of good and cheap suitable material_) compel him to use.

"WOOD," chemically prepared, is costly in production, as it is only possible to reduce it into _Pulp_, by boiling under very high pressure, with strong caustic alkali; several mills established both in England and Scotland, to carry out this manufacture, have abandoned it, and such _Pulp_ as is now used in the Trade is derived exclusively from the countries where the wood is grown. The _Pulp_ thus produced, although somewhat hard and harsh, if the wood is carefully selected, and properly prepared, will, blended with other material, produce a fair quality of paper.

The use of "STRAW," from the "_Cereals_," WHEAT, OATS, and RYE, has of late years greatly extended, both in this country and throughout the continent of Europe, as well as in the United States of America, either alone or as an admixture with rags and other material, for all classes of paper, as these countries equally with England suffer from a deficient supply of _Raw Material_; but in England, owing to the increased consumption for agricultural and feeding purposes, and influenced also by the scarcity and high prices lately ruling for "ESPARTO" in many districts, "STRAW" has become very difficult to obtain, and considerable quantities have in consequence been imported from Holland and Belgium, both raw, and as bleached _Pulp_.

I may here mention two other fibrous substances, which have from time to time attracted considerable attention, viz. "MAIZE LEAVES" and "RICE STRAW," both of them _raw materials_, from which a fair quality of paper is produced in the countries where these plants are cultivated; but, as in their natural condition after being harvested they are far too bulky to permit of transport to this country, they would have to be reduced to a portable form where they grow, and even then, owing to the small yield of "_true fibre_," their economical conversion is somewhat doubtful, unless under favourable conditions.

The daily increasing demand for PAPER being recognized, and the impending if not immediate scarcity of _Raw Material_ available for its manufacture, up to the present time, having been shown, to what quarter must the Trade look for an extended supply?

This it must be admitted has become an important question for consideration, it being evident that unless some "_New Material_" suitable for the purpose is speedily introduced, the "PAPER TRADE," one of the most important in the UNITED KINGDOM, will be seriously crippled; meanwhile of necessity high prices are maintained, and as a natural consequence the consumer suffers.

FIBRE-PRODUCING PLANTS--SOURCES OF SUPPLY.

The high value of land precludes the cultivation of any fibrous material exclusively for paper-making in England, even if this climate was suitable for its growth; with the exception indeed of "FLAX" and "HEMP," it would appear that northern latitudes are not favourable for the production of fibre-producing plants, and therefore it is to warm or _tropical countries_ alone any reliable supply of "NEW MATERIAL" can be looked for.

In the _East_, and _West Indies_, in her _Colonies_ and _Dependencies_, England possesses an inexhaustible supply of fibre-producing plants; in India especially, almost every plant abounds more or less in fibre.

In China and Japan, as also in India, from the earliest times, paper has been made exclusively from _raw indigenous virgin fibres_, and the paper produced in these countries is in consequence generally extremely strong and tough, and although unbleached, and not made in a fashion adapted to European requirements, affords ample and conclusive evidence of the valuable supply of material at our disposal.

VEGETABLE FIBROUS, or FIBRE-PRODUCING PLANTS, are divided by BOTANISTS into two distinct CLASSES or DIVISIONS: ENDOGENS, or inside growers; EXOGENS, or outside growers.

From the former are obtained the fibres known as "MANILLA HEMP" or "ABACA" (from the _Musa textilis_ or _Plantain_), the "ALOE," "AGAVÉ" (or "_Pita_ _Fibre_"), the "YUCCA," "BROMELIA PENGUIN," "SISAL HEMP" (or _Hannequin_); "PINA FIBRE" from the "PINE APPLE" (_Ananassa sativa_), "MAROOL or MOORVA" (_Sanseveira Zeylanica_), "NEW ZEALAND FLAX" (_Phormium tenax_), &c.; "MAIZE" (or _Indian Corn_), "RICE," and other "CEREAL STRAWS," "ESPARTO," "DISS," and various "Sedges," "Reeds," and "Grasses," the latter including "BAMBOO," and "SUGAR CANE," are also comprised in this Class.

The FIBRES, or FIBROUS TISSUE enveloping the _Stems_ of _Herbaceous Plants_, known as "HEMP," "FLAX," "JUTE," "HIBISCUS," (_Gombo_ or _Okhro_), "RHEA," or "CHINA-GRASS" (_Urtica nivea_), "SUNN HEMP" (_Cratolaria juncea_), &c., as also the LACE BARKS (so called), such as the "ADANSONIA DIGITATAS" (from the _Baobab_ tree), the "NEPAL PAPER PLANT" (_Daphne cannabina_), the "PAPER MULBERRY" (_Broussonetia papyrifera_), &c., constitute the latter Class.

I have confined myself to recapitulating _a few only_ of the _fibres_ in either class, best known to commerce; this list, indeed, might be extended almost indefinitely, as may be seen by reference to the work before alluded to, 'The Fibrous Plants of India,' by Dr. Forbes Royle, as also to the elaborate Paper on the same subject, read at the meeting of the Society of Arts, May 9, 1860, by Dr. J. Forbes Watson, Reporter on the Products of India, Dr. Royle's able successor.

With some few exceptions (notably "Esparto" and some of the Cereal straws and grasses), the resulting or ultimate fibres from vegetable fibrous plants, before they can be utilized either for Textile purposes, or for the manufacture of Paper, must be freed from the extraneous substances with which during their growth they are more or less combined.

In the case of _Endogens_, the fibres are imbedded or enveloped in succulent, fleshy, or pulpy stems, or leaves; and in the case of _Exogens_, the fibre is combined with, and attaching to, wood, or woody matter, such extraneous substances or matters constituting, more or less, a considerable portion both of the weight and bulk of the plant even when matured.

TREATMENT OF FIBRE-PRODUCING PLANTS.

From all, or nearly all, _Endogenous_ plants the fibres are extracted by hand labour, no machinery having been hitherto invented by which this operation can be performed in an economical and satisfactory manner.

The fleshy stems, or leaves, of this class of plants are crushed and beaten, macerated in water, scraped and roughly combed, to separate the fibrous from the vascular, or pulpy portion of the plant; sometimes the plants are buried in wet sand, or mud, leaving them to soak, or rot, for many days, then beaten on a stone, scraped, and combed; but by this system the fibres generally lose colour and strength. The yield of fibre from this class of _Endogens_ ranges from 6 to 12 per cent., and it is only where native labour is exceedingly cheap and abundant that such a laborious and tedious process could be carried on.

The majority of the fibres from _Exogenous_ plants are also, in somewhat a similar manner obtained solely by manual labour; the herbaceous, or woody stems of such plants, being first steeped, or retted, to induce partial fermentation, and facilitate the separation of the corticular fibres, from the woody stem.

When produced in Europe, Flax and Hemp form an exception, being generally dried before steeping, which process is also more systematically and regularly conducted, and the subsequent separation of the ultimate fibres effected by breaking, scutching, and heckling; these operations being as far as possible carried out mechanically.

When the cost of cultivation, of carriage, freight to this country, charges and merchants' profit, are added to the outlay involved in producing clean fibres by the laborious and tedious processes described, even with the exceedingly cheap labour of _tropical countries_, it will readily be understood that they cannot be sold at a cheap rate.

When the above outlay has been incurred, and clean merchantable fibre results, such fibre will generally secure a high price in the market for Spinning, Roping, and other Textile purposes, far beyond the Paper-maker's limits, who therefore can only avail himself of damaged parcels, or such as, being of low or inferior quality, have been rejected by the "Spinner," and, even then, has to come into competition with the maker of low-class goods, the common "sacking and mat-maker," as any fibre of fair strength, long enough to spin into a coarse yarn, commands good value in the market.

It will be obvious from the preceding remarks that the Paper-manufacturer, for an extended supply of _Material_, must look to a _fibre_ or fibrous substance which, either like "Esparto," can be utilized direct, without having to pass through this process of semi-manufacture, or to some other "_New Material_," which, from the peculiarity either of its production or growth, and to the simplicity and economy of its treatment, can be imported into this country, in a condition suitable for his requirements.

Knowing from personal observation the peculiarities of the growth, production, and collection of the "ESPARTO" plant, and believing the time would come when the supply would be unequal to the demand (although I must admit, owing to the rapid extension of the Paper-trade, that time has arrived sooner than I anticipated), I have long and continuously kept my attention directed to any "_New Material_" which appeared likely to become available for Paper-making purposes.

For many years past, I have devoted much time to the investigation of _Fibres_, during which period I have, I believe, tested both chemically and practically as a Paper-maker, nearly every _fibrous material_ introduced into the market, with, as may naturally be supposed, extremely variable results.

Before any "_New Material_" will be favourably received by the Paper-manufacturer, it is clear that certain conditions must be fulfilled; these being that such "_Material_" shall favourably compare, so far as regards quality and cost, with those he now employs, and that he shall feel satisfied he may rely upon a continuity of supply, not subject to violent fluctuations in price.

Once assured on these points, there can be no doubt that, especially under existing circumstances (viz. deficient supply and high prices), the Paper-trade would gladly welcome the advent of any "_New Material_" calculated to relieve the present, or apprehended scarcity.

NEW MATERIALS.

Fortunately for the Paper-trade, and its supply of materials in the future, two _raw fibrous substances_ exist, to which I now desire to direct special attention, as I believe it would be difficult, if not impossible, to meet with any others to compare with them in the essential points, of reliable supply at extremely low cost combined with quality.

With this conviction I have devoted much attention to perfecting a simple and economical system of treating them, in order to produce a fibrous "_Paper-Stock_," considering _that_ to be the most practicable and best form in which they can be introduced into the Market.

One of these materials, "MEGASSE," or "BEGASSE," fulfils the main conditions which would be looked for by the Paper-manufacturer, inasmuch as vast quantities are available at a low cost, and owing to the peculiarity of its production being the necessary by-product of a large and widely spread staple industry--Sugar--not subject to the ordinary irregularity of supply.

"MEGASSE," the fibrous residue of the Sugar-Cane (after it has been crushed to extract the juice), properly prepared, affords a strong, nervous fibre, or "_Fibrous Stock_," which bleaches well, and possesses all the characteristics of a first-class Paper-making material.

"MEGASSE" however, as it comes from the crushing rolls, and even when dried after crushing, is so exceedingly bulky, that (being produced almost exclusively in tropical countries) the cost of carriage added to its great liability to damage from fermentation, precludes the possibility of its being imported to England in its crude state; moreover, the true fibrous portion of "Megasse" does not amount to more than 40 per cent., the remainder being constituted of CELLULOSE, combined with glutenous and other compounds, which of themselves are useless for Paper-making, and which consequently must be separated from the residuary or ultimate fibre.

It follows, therefore, that "MEGASSE" must be converted into a _Fibrous Stock_ at, or near, the Sugar factory where it is produced, then dried, and put up in hydraulic-pressed bales for economical transport.

The present value of "MEGASSE" (in its crude condition as produced) is relatively to that of fuel, as, unless it is returned to the soil as manure (which is the practice in some countries), it is employed in the Sugar factories, for raising steam, for motive power, and for evaporating the Cane juice.

As the value of "Megasse" thus considered is very low, factories established in connection with existing sugar mills for the manufacture of "_Paper-Stock_," where sufficient quantities of so bulky a material could be concentrated, and where other favourable conditions exist (of which an abundant supply of water is an essential), would yield a large profit to the planter or sugar manufacturer, as the "_Paper-Stock_" he would produce would meet with a ready sale at prices at least equivalent to "ESPARTO," reduced to the same condition.

Having made "_Paper-Stock_," and "_Paper_" of good quality from "MEGASSE," and determined the profitable result of such a manufacture beyond dispute, I look forward at no very distant date to see the Paper-trade of this country receiving, at least, a portion of its _raw material_ from some of our own _Colonies_ and _Dependencies_ (in most of which Sugar is produced), instead of, as now, being entirely dependent on Foreign Countries for supply.

It is estimated that the consumption of sugar in England amounts annually to upwards of 800,000 tons, or about 57 lb. per head of the population; and as it may be assumed that for each ton of sugar 1 ton of "Megasse" at least is produced, it will be seen that a large reserve of _Fibrous Material_ is available, awaiting the enterprise of either the Sugar or the Paper-manufacturer or a combination of both.

It is now my object to show to the _Two parties_ mainly interested, the PRODUCER and the CONSUMER, how closely their interests are coincident, and how both would be benefited by the creation and development of a new INDUSTRY.

The PRODUCER, the Sugar-manufacturer, is, in point of fact suffering from a similar competition to that experienced by the Paper-manufacturer in 1861--handicapped by the _drawback_ allowed on the export of FRENCH, AND BELGIAN, BEET-ROOT SUGAR, with which he is unable to compete, in the same manner as the Paper-maker suffered from the introduction of FRENCH, AND BELGIAN, PAPER--_free_, while the RAW MATERIAL--RAGS, paid a heavy _export duty_.

The CONSUMER, the Paper-manufacturer, is suffering from a lack of suitable material, which the Producer is able to supply, and by so supplying and utilizing a by-product, hitherto of little value to him, places himself in a position to meet his competitors on equal, if not better terms in the market.

It is true, that this (to him) new system of utilizing what may now be termed a waste, or by-product, would involve the outlay of additional capital, by the Sugar-planter or manufacturer, which he may deem foreign to his present business, but manufacturers now-a-days make their profits mainly by utilizing by-products.

A familiar instance of this may be cited in the Chemical trade; the muriatic acid produced in the manufacture of soda, formerly run to waste, being now employed for making bleaching powder; and, still more recently, the by-products annaline, anthracene, ammonia, &c., which formerly created a nuisance wherever Gas-Works existed, now constitute a large portion of their profits.

"BAMBOO," the other _Raw Material_ to which I have alluded, can hardly be called "_New_," it being well known that both the Chinese and Japanese have from time immemorial employed "Bamboo" for Paper-making purposes; and I have shown in the preceding "Remarks" that attempts have more recently been made, not hitherto affording successful commercial results.