Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1884-04-17
TURNING THE WEEDS TO USE.
Fabrics Which Can be Made From the
Ffbres OF Wild Plants.

Fabrics Which Can De Made From the
Ffbres OF Wild Plants.
New York Tribune.
Ina shop window in Cortlandt street
is displayed variety of hanks of thread,
some course, some fine, some dark-color-
ed, some light, some vari-colored. Some
of the thread has the softness of finest
silk, some is rough and rasping as hemp,
1t is a curious assortment and attracts the
attention of many a paSser-by. A visit
to the inside of the shop is q revelation
of coming revolution IN certain sgricul-
tural products of this country hitherto
considered useless. In q rear room, about
1920 feet, we're three or four heavy, but
apparently very simple machines, opera
ted by a small steam engine. The room
was half filed with many kinds of weeds,
weed-stems and leaves, while in one cor
ner were seen barrels of crude asbestos.
One machine was being fed by a young
man, who gave to it bundle after bum
die of the dry, brittle weeds, while
another was greedilv devOring asbestos,
crushing Jumps weighing three and four
pounds and swallowing them without
grOan. The dry, trash-like stuff fed to
the first machine, was converted in short
time into the coarse, brown thread seen
in the window; while the rough asbestos
quickly changed its mineral hardness and
became fibre as fine as silk, ready to be
spun and woven. The common cotton
stalk, which the planter of the South pulls
up and burns after the years picking,
was made into a coarse thread, equal in
every respect to the iute of India, which
the United States buys to the extent of.
So, 900 annually. Flax straw, which
grows in many of the Safes of the Union,
which is cultivated by hundreds of thou
sands of acres for the seeds alone, and is
burned, or is left to rot in the fields, was
converted into fibre which made, an ex-
cellent' and coarse linen, and which,
when mixed with wool in the process of
manufacture, made an excellent substi-
tute for cotton. Other plants, of which
the greater number were discovered to
be weeds of the commOnest variety, were
shown to contain valuable fibre. Among
them were bear grass, Spanish bayonet
(needle), okra, nettle, ramie, pita, baur-
Dor, wild coffee, the cotton plant and iute.
Most of these plants grow wild. Little
or no attention has been paid to their
culture.
From these various flores, many of
which, by actual experiment, will dye
beautifully and perfectly, and without
injury, can be made bagging, mats, mat
ting, sacks for grain, rope, cordage, Irvine,
packing thread, paper stock of finest
quality, costly fabrics for wear, substan-
tial fabrics for everyday use, and ma
terial for upholstering purposes. From
! the fibrOus mineral asbestos can be made
freproof curtains and hangings for halls
and theatres, fireproof ropes, carpets and
groundwork for oilcloths, and many 9th
er articles of luxury and necessity. RAJ
mie and Sisal hemp fibre may be mixed
with silk in manufacture, and common
/ American grasses are turned into fibre
fine and strong enough for wigs and false
hair. Even the hard shell of the cocoa
nut is discovered to containa fibre which
closely resembles hair. It will not ''pack,"
and is equal to curled hair for upholster-
cas- use. Indeed, there are few of our
native products, which do not contain
some quality Of fibre, and recent ex-
periments have demonstrated that the
United States pays annually for products
which may be made at home, the large
sum of $16,O0O,O0O.