American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1874-08-29
Our Bcys and Girls.
ADVENTURES OF A RAG.

looking bag She has, and carrying then
off.
Well, the history of one of those rags
its adventures and wonderful changes
is more marvellous than any fairy. AnC
the best of it is, every word is true.
l think you'll agree that it is marvel
Gus when ! tell you that, nice, neat anC
dainty as you may be, you may yet pu
that horrid rag among your choicest
treasures.
You don't believe it, Well, haven't
already told you lots of things you never
heard of? And do you think I've told
you all know? Wait bit and see. lie,
us follow the rag going off on the back OF
that poor girl. Having filled her bag
she goes off at once to an odd, dismal
looking shop that you wouldn't put YOU
foot into, where wretched- looking man
buys old iron, rags, bottles and, in fact
nearly everything other people throw
away.
He weighs the rags, looks them over,
counts out her pay generally few pen
nies), and she takes her bag and goes out.
Here we must bid her good-by, Tor from
this moment the rag goes up in life,
while she, poor child. will pick rags to-
morrow and perhaps all her life, and
there'll be very little going up for her.
When the dealer has enough rags he
puts tncH up III Il Ddlc anu SeHtiS tucln
oil to a paper-mill.
Oh, yes! you knew paper was made of
rags; didn't you?
Well, the first thing that happens to
them in that big, noisy place is to be taken
out of the bale, pulled over by IL lot of
girls and assorted. Silk rags go to one
corner, bits of wooden to another, white
cotton to a third and colored cotton to Il
fourth. To follow the rag we saw taken
from the gutter we should have to 90 to
the colOred cotton corner.
From the sorting room our dirty rag
will be carried, with lots of others, to the
cutting-rOOm. This is Il terrible place
where unfortunate girls sit at IA sort of Il
bench on which are fixed sharp knives.
The girls cut the rags into shreds, split
ting open hens and taking off buttons.
This, as you can guess, is fearfully dirty
work. The room is full of dust and the
girls look quite respectable dirt-heaps
themselves. AS soon as the rag is shred
ded it goes through a trap-door in the
floor and falls into big tub.
There! Aren't you glad it has come to
a Yashin g-place? 1t fairly makes one
feel dusty to think about handling such
things.
In that tub with plenty of limewater
it boils half day, and am sure it needs
it. Lime water, perhaps you know, takes
not only the dirt but every bit of color
out of things.
You girls who have made skeleton
leaves" know all about it.
From the very thorough bath the rag
goes white and clean into the cutting
machine. This wouldn't be "A very nice
place to fall into-and it's right on
level with the floor, too. 1t is large
round vat, with sharp knives revolving
all the time. They cut the rags into
threads, while clear water runs over
them all the time for five or six hours.
Don't think It's clear enough yet. At
ter all this cutting and rinsing the water
is drawn Off, some chemical stuff put in
and left for two hours. Then the water
is turned on and the knives begin again
and cut and grind for five or six hours
more.
OF course by this time, af er all these
knives and chemicals and washings,
heres not rag and hardly a thread
eft. 1t is mass of pulp looking more
ike milk than anything else. Now it's
'eady for IA most wonderful change.
1t is far more wonderful than any
airy story to see this pulp go in ut one
md of a machine and sheets of paper
:oma out at the other. Let me tell you
low it goes: The machine is all open
md you can see the whole operation.
inc sieve-to catch any remaining
falls on belt of wire
sauZe, which is all the time moving on
Of course it spreads out as thin as it can
md the water begins to drop through !
he gauZe as it moves on.
But there's too much water with the |
,ulp, and to draw it out suddenly they |
lave Il curious arrangement. The water |
nd pulp move on very comfortably to-
either until they come to IL certain box |
hey must go over. The moment they |
each that mysterious box every drop of |
water tears itself away and disappears /
n the box, leaving the pulp nearly dry |
nd looking very much like paper.
You won't be surprised ut the funny |
}, havior of the water when l tell you
hat "A s'eam-pump is all the time pump |
ng the air out of the box, and the water |
5 sucked in to fill the vacuum.
Right here is put in the water mark. |
f you don't know what that is, hold IL
beet of paper up to the light. You'll |
see straight or ZigZag lines all t
ver it, or the name of some man or pa |
'crmill. That is the water mark, and 1t |
5 made on the paper by roller on which |
he pattern is cut.
Now the pulp, having become paper, |
uns off the gauze belt on to one of felt, |
which takes it between Il pair OF heavy |
oilers. The rollers squeeze it so dry !
hat it don't need carrying any II ore, and |
t goes on alone between SIX or eight big |
oilers which are hot and which make it |
mooth and almost perfectly dry.
As it comes out from the last roller 1t |
uns against sharp knives which are set |
here, and is split into long ribbons Just |
vide enough for the kind of paper 1t is 7
o be.
Now comes another bath, Not to
lean it, for it is white as snow, but to
make it stiff and glossy. The bath is OF
,elatine. The paper ribbons run through
he box of gcfatinc, and between rollers
O dry them. On coming out they are |
.hopped INTO sheets by IA knife and hung
IN ii frame to dry.
Here they rest for some days, and it's |
he first rest since the rag came out of |
he gutter and started on its travels.
After this the new sheets go into a
,ress for a few hours. Some kinds of |
common paper stop here, but the nice
tote paper YOU are so fond of has anoth-
r journey before it, through the hands
If a string of girls.
The first girl feeds the sheets of paper
o string of rollers, which makes them
smooth and shining.
The second girl piles them up ana
lands them to the third girl who puts
hem through a cutting machine, Whlch
makes them perfectly regular in SIZE
The fourth girl puts them through the
That is Il droll ma
,hne; only row of pens ted by AN INK
rough
The fifth girl looks at each sheet and |
outs them into piles, perfect and imper-
cCt.
The sixth girl folds them. 1t is funny |
hnr tel ii