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I hope he will this evening show us some of the very successful results which he has obtained. The material he employs can, I believe, be obtained as cheaply as any thing else. I have no doubt, however, that if fibres come to be largely employed in making paper, India will participate in the commerce, as her fibres now undersell all others; and though jute is dearer than usual, it is not because smaller quantities have come in, but because it is becoming applied to a number of new textile purposes, but for some of which several of the fibres now before you are equally applicable.

CONCLUSION.

As we said at the commencement of these observations, it is necessary to connect the producer and the purchaser, and if we want to obtain these fibres in quantity or of good quality, we must address ourselves to local agents, who will make European wants known. For not only must the culture of a new plant succeed, but there must be a demand on the spot for the produce. This has been prominently brought forward by several of the Revenue Officers.

Thus, the collector of South Arcot writes:-"1 do not believe that anything short of an assurance that a remunerative price will be immediately given, will induce the natives to attempt the cultivation of any novel species of produce." From Tanjore, the collector writes, that "the cultivators have no desire for speculation, and no faith in mere assurances that articles fitted for the European trade will meet with a ready sale at Madras." So in Canara the same officer writes :-In this district, "the Ryots want very little encouragement to cultivate any article beyond a certainty of remuneration. But it is of no use to tell them that any article is of value in a distant market. This is nothing to them. The only question is, if they produce it, will any one give them money for it on the spot, for if any one will, they will produce it immediately." He adds, that he considers the Indian hemp, that which we have already seen, is of such good quality from Canara as to be the most promising article. These officers adduce the fish-oil of the Malabar coast as having become lately an article of export from the Malabar coast. So in South Arcot, the ground nut has come to be largely produced, and its oil exported, in consequence of a remunerative price having been offered by a merchant at Cuddalore. In Rajahmundry and Ganjam, sugar, they mention, as being cultivated in this mode as indigo is in the Cuddapah district.

So Mr. Henley, as we have just seen, recommends dealing with the cultivators by means of native agents, who make advances, and make contracts, and are responsible for the delivery of produce.

The natives of India ought, moreover, to be assisted with machinery suitable for the separation of fibres, and not of a very expensive character, and which might be moved either by hand or bullock power. I may adduce the small cotton gin, the construction of which was superintended by the Commercial Association of Manchester. The natives of India, who would only buy these small machines at first, have since bought about 300 of them, many of them with 10, 20, and 25 saws.

fibres, are well worthy of forming cordage for ordinary purposes, until they are produced in sufficiently large quantities to make use of them for other purposes. We have also had before us the true hemp, which, though imported from the distant Himalayas, is able to compete in price, as it does in strength, with the hemp of Russia.

Among textile substances, we have seen that there is considerable probability of the successful culture of flax in the Punjab, and perhaps in some other district. But it has appeared very desirable that we should at once make use of some of the indigenous fibres of India which seem well adapted for the purpose, as we have seen the marvellous effects produced by careful preparation on some of these fibres. Those from the west coast seem at once available, while the beautifully prepared and silken fibres of the Hibiscus seem much too valuable to be any longer neglected, and the plants which produce them unite the good qualities of rapid growth, easy cultivation and ready separation of their fibres.

Among the fibres which appear most desirable, from the excellence of their qualities, is that of the Mudar plant, or its nearly-allied species, which abound in desert places, and grow without culture or water, may be yearly cut down, and yearly produces fresh stems. In the qualities of strength and fineness, this seems to come nearest to the China grass, of which, as the Rheea of Assam, we have noticed the imports by several ships, which will probably assist in establishing it as a regular article of import from India, as well as from China.

Most, if not all of those fibres, are fitted for making into paper stuff. Though most of them, from being applicable for cordage or textile purposes, are able to command higher prices than the paper-maker can give, yet some may be brought for such prices as he can afford. Many of them, I feel no doubt, will occupy high places among the imports, as well as among the prices of fibrous materials, and may rival in quantity the jute, which was at one time thought worthless, but which cannot be had in sufficient quantities for our manufactures.

In conclusion, I trust I may refer to an observation I formerly made, and that was, the confident hope that the Collections of Raw Products which were being formed would have considerable effect in diffusing correct information on all such subjects; and I said, that as in the City time was counted in minutes, I would have one in the very heart of the City. I may congratulate the Society on the speedy establishment of a Museum at the India House, which will contain, for permanent examination and constant reference, an ample collection of the Raw Products and Manufactured Articles of the vast Indian empire.

DISCUSSION.

Mr. ROUTLEDGE said that he had great pleasure in complying with the request of Dr. Royle, to show the paper and half stuff he was now manufacturing from a raw fibrous material. These specimens of paper were by no means perfect, and only served to illustrate what may be done with a raw material. At the mills with which he was connected, they were now putting down additional plant, and in the course of a few months they would be in a position to supply half stuff or paper

Having thus gone, as briefly as possible, over the extensive field spread before us, I have only to recapitulate the points which seem most worthy of notice. First, that the west coast of the Bay of Bengal, as well as the Peninsula of India, abounds in basts and barks, which are cheap in price, and might be brought as dun-pulp to the trade. The scarcity of paper-making matenage, if not thought worthy of being converted into fibres or half-stuff. Among cordage materials, besides the brown hemp of Bombay, there are some excellent varieties on the Malabar coast, and in Canara, as well as in other parts of India. The chief point would seem to be to encourage the natives to collect and prepare the fibres as carefully as possible, which there is every probability of their doing, if encouraged by adequate remuneration from the local buyers. The Plantain and other white

rial was a question which had notoriously, for some time past, attracted the attention not only of paper-makers but of all commercial circles, as it was generally admitted that, although the ratio of increase in the manufacture of paper has fully kept pace with that of our two other great staples, iron and cotton, it differs from them in the daily increasing deficiency of supply in its manufacture. The abolition of postal restrictions and the spread of cheap serial publications, had, during the past

The

few years especially, given great impetus to the produc- calculation half a million tons of this valuable fibre wore tion of paper. In the 5 years from 1830 to 1834, the annually wasted, which now might be rendered available annual turn out of paper was 31,423 tons; but in a by the agency of the extremely simple machine before similar period, from 1849 to 1853, it was 67,515 tons; the meeting, the operation of which would be shown by and in the 2 years 1853 and 1854, it was 79,291 and Mr. Warren, the engineer and manufacturer. 79,418 tons. Notwithstanding this increase, he (Mr. machine was the invention of Mr. Francis Burke, a colonist Routledge) believed he was correct in stating that the of Montserrat, and he (Mr. Routledge) considered, from consumption of paper in England, taken according to its efficient action, that this problem was now solved. In the population, is considerably less than in other coun- the year 1838 a patent was taken out by Mr. John Small, ries; in America, for instance, the consumption is 13lbs. for Improvements in Thread or Yarn and Paper from per head per annum; in France, 9lbs. ; in Belgium and Plantain Fibre, and numerous other patents had subHolland, 8lbs.; but in England, only 6lbs. to 7lbs. sequently been taken out with the same end in viewThe published excise returns hardly gave a fair data for some by machinery, others by chemical means. The latter calculation.___The price of raw material in France, Bel- might briefly be dismissed with the remark, that any gium and Holland, was much below that in England, chemical treatment sufficiently powerful to dissolve or reas much as from 10 to 15 per cent., and the material duce the pulpy matter to a state fit to be separated was also much better, as in those countries more flax from the fibre, would seriously injure the latter, even if is employed for body linen and clothing than in this it could be rendered effectual, which was very doubtful. country, where cotton is more generally used; in With reference to the machines, none hitherto had America the price of material is much higher than in answered the purpose. All the engineers who had this country, the Americans being large buyers of gone into the question had endeavoured to imitate the raw material in this market, and their price being con-action of the comb or heckle, combined with brushes and sequently enhanced by the cost of carriage. Within scrapers, and these, besides their liability to breakage, the last four years, also, the Austrians had prohibited required skilful manipulation, which was not to be relied the exportation of rags; and in France, Holland, and upon in the colonies. The exception to this rule was a Belgium, the exportation of raw material for paper-making machine with which he was connected in the year 1852, is also prohibited. Three or four years back, the rise which was exhibited at Messrs. Pontifex's. This of the price of material in this market was as much as machine, however, when sent abroad and set to work, 20 to 30 per cent.; this was, however, checked by the was found not to answer-it was extremely costly, very late war, and the high value of money since has checked cumbersome (weighing some tons), and the working production, but this year the demand is again increasing. parts liable to derangement; whereas that of Mr. He might add, also, that the quality of rag material is Burke was simplicity itself, and the fibre was produced much deteriorated, partly from the decreased use of in a perfectly clean state, fit for market; as a proof flax for fabrics, such as shirting and women's gar- of which he might add that he had been offered, by ments, and partly from the increased demand com- an eminent fibre broker, £33 per ton for 100 tons or pelling the paper-maker to admit of an inferior selec- more; and when once introduced in sufficient quantity to tion of his sample of rags. In his own mill, for in- attract the attention of consumers, there would be little stance, where they purchased a low quality of rags, it doubt that the price would advance. Dr. Royle, than was no uncommon circumstance for him to see oil-cloth, whom they could have no better authority, had informed tarpauling, &c., &c., and there was always a large per them that the plantain and banana were the cultivated centage of woollen rags in the lower assortments, which varieties of the Musa textilis of the Philippines, from are thrown out-the better descriptions for shoddy, to whence they procured the Manilla hemp, which was so mix with the lower qualities of woollen cloths, and for much esteemed in this and the American market for the paper-stainery flock, and the commoner sorts for ropes and cordage; indeed, the Americans, if they could manure. He believed that one of the first duties which procure Manilla hemp at anything like a reasonable would be remitted so soon as our finances permitted, price, employed it in preference to all other fibre for these would be that on paper, and immediately thereafter purposes. Two years back the finest samples of Maan immense increase of production would result. Look-nilla hemp sold for £115 per ton. This, perhaps, was ing to the improbability of any very considerable addi- an exceptional price, but he was told, on excellent aution to the supply of raw material through the present thority that a very high price would be obtained for planchannels, and as the high value of land and labour in tain fibre of good quality. The machine in question England act as a practical prohibition to any produc- would equally treat all the different varieties of endotion here, it was obvious that we must look to foreign genous plants. He would not pretend, in this brief nocountries, and our colonies especially, to meet the neces- tice, to recapitulate the different varieties of plants, as sities of the case. Dr. Royle had, therefore, done the they would be found enumerated in Dr. Royle's work on community at large, and our colonies especially, infinite Fibrous Plants, but would limit himself to the aloe, or service in directing attention to these valuable and re- Agave Americana, the different varieties of yucca, the liable sources of supply, and he (Mr. Routledge) hoped pineapple, Phormium tenax, &c., on which it had been tried, that one main obstacle in the way had now been suc- and its action found perfect. All these plants abounded in cessfully overcome, which was the treatment of a class our colonies, and could be produced at merely a nominal of textile plants, which exist in immense abundance cost to a practically unlimited extent. The machine throughout India and our colonial possessions generally. now exhibited would produce 30 lbs. of clean fibre The chief staple of food of the negro and labouring per diem, and required the attention of a man or population in our West Indian colonies is the fruit of the boy for feeding, but Mr. Burke had invented a machine plaintain, of which a specimen had been kindly fur- which might almost be termed automaton, the working nished by Sir Wm. Hooker, from Kew. When the parts, that is the revolving toothed drum and elastic bed stem of this plant has fruited, if not cut down it dies were the same, but in front of these were fitted feeding away, but generally immediately the fruit is obtained rollers, into which an attendant had only to insert the the stem is cut down, and considerable expense incurred lanyard or strip of stem, and the same was delivered at in removing it to make way for others. This stem, the other side with all the pulpy matter or parenchyma as would presently be demonstrated, abounds in a fibre detached therefrom, requiring to be thrown into water to of the most valuable description, fitted for all textile dilute the gummy or mucilaginous matter, when it is purposes; and the tow refuse, or that damaged by imper-dried and baled for market. The stem of the plantain, fect preparation or the voyage to this country, is a most valuable adjunct for the paper-maker, either to use per se, or to mix with his present material. At a moderate

or rather the annular rings, consisted of two descriptions of fibre, the upper, long and strong, the under more soft and silky. In the smaller machine, this was entirely

In reply to the CHAIRMAN,

Mr. ROUTLEDGE said, he was not sure cocoa fibre could The only descripbe bleached, but the plantain and many others could be bleached as white as the driven snow. tions, perhaps, which would not stand it were the jutes. All the hemps would. The machine was adapted for the agave genus as well as for the plantains.

removed by the action of the beater when drawn back, and bleaching, before it could be worked into a fabric and would require to be subsequently separated from the and printed, and subsequently, while in use, has been to pulp, when it would sell to the paper-maker; but in the a certain extent further disintegrated by wear and the larger machine this lower portion of fibre was retained, usual manipulations of the wash-tub. From these vawhen it might be separated by drawing through a coarse rious causes there would no doubt be great difficulty in heckle or comb. The larger machine would produce 2 cwt. introducing any new raw material generally to the trade, of fibre per diem. Thirty small machines might be driven unless it is assimilated in character and facility of treatby a steam-engine of 10 horse-power, and 10 of the ment to the materials now employed. These remarks The samples of would in all probability be made by a maker to whom larger ones by one of the same power. paper before the meeting would show the adaptability of it was sought to introduce any new material in a raw the plantain fibre for paper-making. The coarse paper had state, and due consideration must therefore be given to a portion of New Zealand flax intermixed-of the other objections (which must not be called prejudices) for two, one was entirely from plantain fibre, the other with which there are good grounds. In Scotland, flax and an admixture of rag in the proportion of one-third. To hemp-waste were now extensively used in paper-making, resume the paper-making question, in which he (Mr. and the chemical treatment of a raw fibre better underThese objections did not apply with the same Routledge) was more immediately concerned, it must be stood. borne in mind that the paper-maker now only used the force to a prepared half-stuff, but, on the contrary, there refuse fibrous products, unfitted for any other manufac- was every inducement for a maker to employ a material turing purposes, such as rags, worn-out canvass and rope, which would afford him the following advantages, viz., sacking and bagging, tailors' cuttings and refuse, and quality, cheapness, and facility of increasing his output what might be termed the offal of the spinners and ma- with a positive diminution of outlay. He might add that nufactures, the sweepings, in fact, of their mills-the he had taken out a patent for the treatment and preparaPa- tion of raw fibres into half-stuff, which applied to the The prepared half-stuff chief of which were cotton, hemp, and flax waste. per had also been made from wood, the bark of trees, plantain and similar fibres. hop-bine, bean-stalks, sunflower, hay, straw, couch-grass, could be supplied pure and clean, and bleached to any deor twitch. Two or three mills were now using straw sired standard, and might then be used per se, or mixed pretty extensively, and a mill was now being erected to in any desired proportion with the present materials emmanufacture paper from twitch, which, however, was no ployed. novelty, for in the year 1832, he believed, when the Royal Agricultural Meeting was held at Oxford, Lord Alford presiding, the proceedings were printed upon paper made from twitch or squitch at the mill now in his (Mr. Routledge's) occupation. The paper-maker, in fact, refuses no fibrous retuse (excepting that of wool and silk), being governed in the price he gives by quality, or in other words, adaptability, to his purpose, and the loss incurred in manufacturing the same into paper. It was obvious, from the above brief description of the paper trade, that there is a wide field open for the introduction of any material which will meet the necessities of the case, but to ensure a successful commercial result, two important questions must be determined-first, that the material shall be convertible into paper, or paper pulp, of good quality, at a comparatively trifling expense, and with uniform success; and secondly, that there shall be a certainty of a constant and unvariable supply of this material at a very low price, not liable to fluctuation. He believed these requirements were satisfied in a great measure by the half stuff that he would shortly be in a position to supply; but the plantain, aloe, and similar fibres, were superior in quality, although their cost would be greater. There was, however, a wide field open, and he believed the paper trade would absorb, without difficulty, many thousand tons yearly. The effect would be to reduce the cost of rag material, or at least to induce a better assortment thereof, which would produce the same effect. It now only remained to consider the objections which could be urged against the use of any new fibrous material for paper-making. They are the great difficulty always experienced in inducing manufacturers to adopt new processes, and alter existing appliances at their mills. was not to be wondered at, considering the great outlay and risk involved in altering machinery and making experiments, which obviously must also materially interfere with the current operations of their business. Moreover, the greater number of paper-mills in this kingdom are worked in a great measure by water power, and being remote from mineral districts, fuel is expensive, rendering steam power costly, and coal for chemical purposes a consideration. And it must be borne in mind that a raw material requires a totally different system of chemical treatment by the paper dealer, to that usually adopted by him for the present rag material, which has, previous to coming into his possession, undergoue the process of reduction to a fibrous state

This

Mr. WARREN (presenting a portion of plantain stem, which had been just previously operated upon by the machine) said, it would be observed that the fibre had not been in the least degree broken or injured by the operation of the machine, but was presented entire throughout the length of the piece. With regard to the larger description of machine mentioned, it had been thought desirable to construct one capable of producing greater quantities of fibre. The machine now before the meeting required the attendance of one person, but he saw no reason why (as had been the case with cottonspinning) the attendance upon each machine might not, hereafter, be greatly reduced. He believed that in the course of a very short time a boy would gain sufficient dexerity from practice to be able to keep two machines going, as only one hand was required in the working of each. Mr. Warren then explained the advantages of the larger machine, describing some of its parts and its principle of action. One peculiar feature of this machine was, that it retained the silky part of the fibre, which in the operation of the smaller one was lost to a great extent. The action of the small machine Mr. Warren described as being rather that of a beater than a squeezer, but the fine fibre, which was of double the value of the other portion, was mixed with the pulpy matter thrown off. In the large machine this was preserved.

Mr. NOBLE said he was willing to take the fibre in the state in which it was shown to him at £33 per ton in any quantity. He considered the fibre from the small machine as best suited for general purposes, such as rope making, &c.

Mr. WARREN, having passed through the machine a picce of the agave, showed that the fibre could be perfectly separated, but that from the variable lengths of the fibre, being shorter at the sides and longer in the middle, in the drawing-back process the short fibres were apt to be lost, passing through with the pulp.

Mr. RIDGWAY said, at the Great Exhibition of 1851, there were specimens of fibre of the plantain from Demerara, which was stated to be worth about £45 per ton. Mr. Ridgway called attention to a specimen on the

Jamaica.

Mr. ROUTLEDGE referred to the Demerara Gazette, of June 1st, 1852, in which an advertisement appeared, to the effect that the Guiana Textile Fibre Association, together with most of the eminent residents in the colony, had made a subscription, which was forwarded to him, for the purpose of purchasing a machine at that time, made by Mr. Pontifex; but as that machine did not turn out so well as was expected, nothing was done. He had also a communication from Demerara, which fully confirmed what had been stated by Mr. Ridgway, namely, that plenty of planters were ready to take the matter up, if they could get suitable machinery for the purpose. He had also been furnished with calculations of the cost of production, of carriage to the mill, and all the various particulars. He believed there was a gentleman from Demerara in the room, who could confirm all that had been stated with regard to this question by the planters in that island-if they could only get suitable machinery and insure a regular market for the commodity.

The following is the estimate referred to by Mr. Routledge:

Assuming Mr. V. der Gon Netscher's calculation of 4,500 stems every two years as a basis, we have 2,250 stems per acre per annum; 74 acres therefore would be required to yield 300 tons of fibre per annum; 560 stems, 80lbs. gross per stem 44,800lbs., or 20 tons, which at 5 per cent. gives 1 ton of fibre; the 2-cylinder machine will turn out 2 cwt. of fibre per diem.

table, which he said was wholly prepared in Deme- attending the meeting, to have been otherwise than a rara. Any quantity of that fibre could be produced if mere listener. In that character he had listened with they could only procure the labour necessary. Some attention and pleasure to the able and lucid statements time ago an advertisement appeared, offering a large of Dr. Royle. But matter had occurred in the course premium for the discovery and application of a material of the discussion to induce him to say a few words. as a substitute for rags in the manufacture of paper. The lecture had especial reference to East Indian fibres, Baron de Thierry sent to the Paris Exhibition paper but the observations were equally applicable to West made from fibrous materials from New Zealand. Mr. Indian fibres; indeed, to tropical fibres generally. He Ridgway called attention to the lace bark from (Mr. Sharp) represented a company recently formed, under the title of the Colonial Fibre Company, incorporated by royal charter. The operations of the company were limited, by charter, to the colonies of Jamaica and British Guiana, which alone are capable of producing from 500,000 to 700,000 bales per annum of plantain, besides large quantities of other fibrous plants. Some experiments had been made by a machine in the room. He could offer no opinion upon the action of that machine. He wished the parties interested in it every success. There was ample room for them, and himself, and many others. At the suggestion of the secretary he had much pleasure in placing upon the table a few specimens of various plants as they grew. They consisted of transverse and longitudinal sections of the plantain, the Agave Americana, or large American aloe, the Aloe angustifolia, the Aloe variegata, the Bromelia penguin, or wild pine, and one known under the name of silkgrass. The court of directors of this (Mr. Sharp's) company were anxious to satisfy themselves of the practical working of the machinery to be employed in the colonies, and, therefore, instructions were sent out to the correspondents of the company in the West Indies, to forward by every mail-steamer a number of the different would be seen, of a central portion, the peduncle or fruit plants for experiment. The plantain consisted, as stem; but as that stem could not, of itself, sustain the heavy weight of fruit, the support was afforded by means of the concentric rings which surround the central portion, and are merely the petioles or footstalks of the leaves. If the rings were examined, it would be found that the entire outer portion of each constitutes a mass of fibre, the inner portion consisting of mucilaginous matter, which would be removed in obtaining the fibre. The fruit stem, it would be seen, contained a very fine and beautiful fibre, resembling cotton, and capable of being worked with it. It must be observed, that the same machinery which prepared the plantain fibre would not work effectively many of the other plants. For instance, the penguin had a cuticle of so hard and siliceous a character as to require a different mode of treatment; and so with several of the others, rendering modifications of the machinery necessary. Mr. Sharp exhibited specimens of the fibres as prepared, consisting entirely of the products of the plantain. No. 1 was the fibre as obtained from the plant; Nos. 2 and 3 were preparations which assimilated it, in external character, to hemp; Nos. 4 to 7 were various modifications, developing the finer filaments of which the original fibre was composed, giving it somewhat the appearance of flax. The other specimens were the cotton-like material obtained from the fruit stem, and the rougher looking article was derived from the mucilaginous matter removed in separating the fibre. He also showed a piece of rope made from it. He submitted to the meeting another series of specimens, 3 10 0 consisting of the produce of many different plants, some of them of great beauty and value, together with some dyed. Some of these specimens were of Indian origin, and he had arranged for an exchange of seeds of such fibrous plants as were indigenous to the east, and not grown in the west, and vice versa. He thus hoped to give to each country the advantage of an extended growth. In this arrangement he had been materially aided by Dr. Royle's valuable work on Indian fibres. It might be asked, why he had not exhibited here machinery, or some drawings illustrating it. answer was short. Those machines were made the subject of patents, and prudential reasons forbade any

First Outlay.

10 machines at £100 each.
12 H. P. high pressure steam-engines....
Buildings, sheds, bricks, &c. .

Carriage of machinery, and fixing tanks,

pipes, connections, &c. . Say for unforeseen expenses...

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.£1000 0
250 0 0
500 0 0

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300 0 450 0 0

Maximum...£2500 0 0

Analysis of expense per ton fibre. 10 per cent. interest on £2,500 .... Rent, management, expenses, &c....

Daily proportion of above
Engineer

Coals for engine, 15 cwt.

£250 0
350 0

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£600 0 0

..per diem

£2 0
0 7

0 15

3 men attending machines..........38. per diem 0 9 boys ditto.....

..1s. 6d.

560 stems, carriage to mill
Proportion of cost of cultivation..
Packing and expenses royalty
Freight to England
Other expenses

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Total cost per ton...£12 0

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Mr. RIDGWAY remarked, that he was agent to an Association in Demerara, which was ready to produce any amount of fibre at a very small cost-next to nothing if sufficient labour could be obtained. That was the difficulty. The merchants at present confined their attention to sugar and rum. Formerly the colony grew large quantities of cotton, and could do so now, sufficient to supply all the markets or Europe.

Mr. SHARP said, it had not been his intention, when

The

disclosure of their construction at present. They had been devised, with great care and attention, under the direction of Mr. Benjamin Fothergill and Mr. Charles Beyer, of Manchester. Each machine was capable of producing, in a day of ten hours, from 400lbs. to 500lbs. of fibre, with an expenditure of half a horse-power. Mr. Sharp finally submitted some fibre, which he stated had all the character of the finest flax, and that some of the most experienced flax-spinners of this country had declared it superior to Russian flax, approaching Belgian in quality; and that it was capable of being spun and manufactured into all the fabrics in which foreign flax was employed.

Mr. TRENT said he had expended considerable time and money in bringing machinery to bear upon the manufacture of fibrous plants, and he claimed to be the first to obtain the long fibre from the cocoa-nut husk. He bore testimony to the beautiful manner in which the fibres of the material operated upon that evening had been separated by the machine before them; and, between Mr. Sharp and Mr. Burke, he had no doubt that in a little time they would become quite independent of Russia and all other foreign countries for the supply of fibrous materials. Dr. Royle, Dr. Hooker, and Mr. Henley had done good service in introducing these fibres to their attention. He (Mr. Trent) was now in hopes of something practical being carried out. On visiting Russia, some three or four years ago, he was satisfied, from what he saw there, that in a few years they would have the whole of the export trade in ropes to themselves. He visited two of the principal rope works in that country, and from the extent of plant, and the amount of work going on, he was satisfied that they were making as much rope in those two factories as was made in all London, the whole of which was for exportation. They were using English machinery, which had been in operation there from 20 to 25 years. He believed the Russian manufacture brought better prices in the colonies than the English. As a rope-maker himself, he was ashamed to see some of the descriptions of rope made for exporta

tion. It was of a character to damage their reputation entirely as rope-makers. He had seen some rope made with mere waste, spun into fine yarn. A person sometimes had a three-inch rope that would not bear the strain of a properly-made two-inch rope. He lately attended some experiments with ropes at one of the Royal Dockyards, to test some Irish flax unsteeped against some Russian hemp. They tried some three-inch rope of Irish flax and some three-inch rope of Russian hemp. The Irish flax rope broke at a strain of three tons; the Russian hemp at three tons three cwt. Some rope made from Italian hemp was afterwards tried, and it bore a strain of four and-a-half tons. With regard to the Rheea fibre, he was satisfied that it was adapted to every purpose of ropemaking as well as to the finest fabrics. A friend of his

in Leeds had told him, that if he could get a sufficient sup

ply of that fibre he should no longer use flax, but that it was not worth while to adapt machinery to the small quantity that was at present attainable.

Mr. WARREN said, that the machine had been found applicable to the cleaning of any description of fibre that had yet been presented to it, even to the hard and dry American aloe, shown that evening.

The CHAIRMAN said, it had been his intention to offer some observations on the subject before them, but time prevented. He would, however, remark that Dr. Royle had proved that whereas, within the memory of men now living, England could only boast of two fibres-or little more-namely, hemp and flax, others had now been introduced to their notice, probably 200, from which they might take their choice, from the longest and coarsest, fit for the strongest cable, to that suited for the finest piece of muslin, to cover the most delicate form. The plantain, the pine-apple, the Hibiscus, the Crotalaria, hemp, and many others, which are either cultivated or grow wild all over India, together with

the celebrated Rheea, nettles, and Asclepias, which produce the most delicate fibres for muslins, are equally available for manufacturers who desire to procure them through agencies. In fact, they had an unbounded choice, if they only went after them. It was not to be expected that those within whose sphere these products were available should be acquainted with the mercantile requirements of other countries. The materials themselves, in the various forms in which they were now presented, having been laid before them, and their properties explained, it was for the manufacturers themselves to decide which was the best adapted for their purposes, and to take the means to procure a supply of that which they wanted. The whole of the materials and fabrics now exhibited would be arranged in a museum at the India House, in the course of a short time, for the public benefit, where any manufacturer could form his opinion upon the peculiar desirableness of any particular fibre for any particular fabric, and adapted to any particular machine. Then, through agents employed in India, he could, no doubt, organise a system of supply suited to his purposes. The plantain grew wild on the western Ghauts, from Cape Comorin to 25degrees of north latitude, millions of stems opening up every monsoon, only to perish unappropriated. In all tropical regions they would find, generally, fibres of a similar character. There had been two great fibres mentioned that night as substitutes for hemp and flax, and they were of the greatest importance-namely, Hibiscus cannabinus, and the Crotalaria juncea. thought that Dr. Royle had proved that he was eminently entitled to the hearty thanks of the Society for the large amount of valuable information he had afforded upon a subject most important to our manufacturers, if they chose to profit by it. He need scarcely invite them to pass a vote of thanks to that gentleman by acclamation.

A vote of thanks was passed to Dr. Royle.

the

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exhibited by Dr. Royle, specimens were shown by In addition to a very large display of fibres Messrs. Sharp, Pye, and Dickson. A machine for preparing the fibre from the plantain and other tropical plants was shown by Mr. Routledge, and

worked in the room.

Specimens of paper and pulp from some of the fibres exhibited were shown by Mr. Routledge. The Secretary announced that the specimens of fibres, &c., would remain till Saturday, in order that the members and their friends might have an opportunity of examining them.

Wednesday the 3rd of December, a paper, by The Secretary further announced, that on Mr. Christopher Binks would be read, "On some New Methods of Treating Linseed Oil and other Oils, for Improving their Drying Properties in their Application to Paints and Varnishes." On this evening, Henry Blundell, Esq., will preside.

Home Correspondence.

PAPER-MAKING MATERIALS.

SIR,-I have read with deep interest the article in your Journal of the 10th inst., on the "Paper Material" question, by Mr. William Stones, and I forward this communication to you in the hope that one or two interesting points connected with this question, and only

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