The Sun.
London, England, 1854-09-21 00:00:00

RAILWAY TRAFFIC RETURNS.

THE GREAT NORTHERN RAlLWAY.—Traffic return for
the week ending Sept. 10, 1854 £19,849 7 9
Corresponding week last year
LANCASHIRE AND YORKSHIRE RAlLWAY.—Traffic re-
turn for the week ending Sept. 17, 1854 £21,769 9 9
Corresponding week last year
CHESTER AND HOLYHEAD RAILWAY.—Trade return for
the week ending Sept. 17, 1854 £6,696 18 1
Corresponding week last year 6,039 18 7

Decrease in 1854 £656 19 6

WHY NO NEW MATERIALS ARE USED
IN PAPER MAKING IN ENGLAND.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.

SlR,—is a paper manufacturer I have been more
amused than instructed by the different suggestions in
the papers of articles suitable for making paper. Making
experiments is usually a thankless if not costly business,
and when we have to pay a duty of .200 to 300 per cent.
on the nsw material to the Government, in the shape of
excise, when made into paper, what possible induce-
ment have paper makers to try them I The capital re-
quired to meet the lion's share demanded by the inland
revenue, and the vexatious rules, and ruinous penalties,
for infraction required under a barbarous and antiquated
code, have had one sure and certain effect, that of con-
fining the trade to a number comparatively few. Their
reasoning is naturally this—the public must have paper,
and are using it faster than ever. Rags are scarce and
dear, let them pay the increased price necessary. And
as the duty does not stop consumption from increasing,
the process is being carried into effect in an accelerating
ratio. The same causes that have sent prices up so
much will raise them still higher.
Yet it is perfectly true that the material necessary
for making paper is in existence to any extent, and only
requires to be developed. They have found this out in
countries where the trade is free and enterprise rife, viz.,
the United States. In that country the consumption of
paper is just four times as large as our own per head, and
may be put down at 300,000,000 lbs. annually. Manu•
facturers have recourse to substances scarcely knows
here, and straw is employed, strengthened with stronger
fibre, for thin and thick woven papers, as well as fo
mixing with white paper pulp. The waste from palm
leaf manufactures, swamp canes, wcod shavings, and
other materials are employed in making paper, and the
quantity of white paper is made more abundant by brown
being employed for many purposes it is not employed for
here ; such as envelopes and thin wrapping papers. The
material for making brown papers is, and will be always,
more abundant than those for white paper. But white
paper, or paper nearly white; is used largely for wrap-
ping purposes in this country, and all the material
that will whiten, and which is put into such paper, is
'taken away from that species of paper in which white-
ness is indispensable, and makes it dearer.
If the duty cannot be taken entirely from paper, a
great and beneficial change would be produced by allow-
ing all coloured and tinted papers whatever to be free.
Then the enterprise of the manufacturer would be free to
try experiments without the certainty that now exists
of heavy loss. At any rate, he could sell the new made
article at the price of manufacture, without duty. Be-
sides which, substances now very abundant, and useless
for white paper, would make good tinted writing and
envelope paper, and having no duty to pay would be
much cheaper, thus soon coming into favour. Much
good would be done by such a step, but, until the
Chinese shoe of the paper duty is taken off, the trade
of paper making cannot, as the Americans say, "go
ahead."

I name the paper manufacture in America from recent
and practical experience among paper-mills there. Sti-
mulated by the reports of Messrs. Whitworth and
Wallis, I visited the States to see how they managed
mills there. I was completely taken by surprise at the
advanced state of the trade in every department, up to
the finest writing and drawing papers. Every improve-
ment that had been invented in our own country is in
universal operation there. The elastic state of the ma-
nufacture arising from a constantly increasing demand,
the free communication between one man and another
on all matters connected with machinery, the intelli-
gence of the workers, and, above all, freedom from any
legislative regulations or impediments, all combine to
produce a state of the highest prosperity. It is true
that the raw material is becoming as scarce there as it
is here, and is, besides, 20 per cent. dearer ; but fresh
sources of supply. are being opened, which promise to be
inexhaustible. I myself saw and have specimens of an
excellent quality of printing paper, made from the cane-
brake found on the banks of the great rivers there, under
a very simple process. Should the plan be carried out,
there will be no scarcity of material in America. The short supply felt in England has been made still
shorter by the large export of rags to the United States.uor
Besides taking this supply, the Americanst
use
ey
_Ol3
their own consumption material we the
ge of our
same purpose, from sheer want
vofkn improvement
business. Nor will there
be an- greattid its shackles are
till there is new blood in the trade, a
entirely removed,—l am, itc• canonwoled
A PAPER MAKER.

HARROWING ACCIDENT.—An accident of a frightfu
nature occurred on Friday, at the cotton factory of
Me•lsrs Thomas Kyle and Sons, Cowcaddens-street, in-
e3:ufdoayarteeyealloas:stnt o,
the back of the works,
in-
volving a terrible mutilation of Christina Colquhoun, a
was
sSehme
phlaodyeodnalys
fasnandgeew.had incautiously
fiag on, newe younge
venturedte-opetrhi
into
womant
woo oanrnk Faorrnoei
dfaTasu2yi
among the machinery, while it was in motion, and her
clothes got entangled with two wheels connect'ng a hori-
ziintal with a perpendicular shaft, whereby she was
d„,,;,,ed in among the machinery. The engineer in-
stantly rushed to the spot, and endeavoured to extricate
her. at the same time crying to those inside to stop the
engine ; but it would appear that they were unable to de
so, and he had to run and stop it himself, by which time
the poor woman was dreadfully mangled, both her legs
being literally torn off above the knees, and one of her
arms wrenched from her body. She was conveyed to
the infirmary, although she was not expected to live.
From all we can learn it appears that the unfortunate
woman bad no occasion to be near the machinery at ally
and the melancholy result offers another warning to Sit
who would rashly venture into such places,
females, whose loose dress is so liable to place especially
reclilLelY
in jeopardy.—Glasgcric Herald.

TUE WEATHER.—Sint Orprcn, SEPT. 21.

TIIER3IOIfETER, IN THZ SLIDE.

71 —highest since noon yesterday.
50 —lowest this morning and during the night.
63—this day at noon.

BAROMETER, 30'16.
WIND, N.W. to W.N.W.—Fresh, with cloudy weather
and occasional sunshine.