Arizona weekly citizen., 1886-07-24
\ NEW INDUSTRY.
The Discovery of a New Process With
 Millions in ft.


 The Discovery of a New Process With
 Millions in 10.
 Among the many remarkable products of this wonderful land, i; may not be out of place to include its ingenious iH- ventort, probably as valuable clsss of people as the territory possesses, not ex- ceptiug the capitalists who invest their millions here.
 New processes of utilizing the various natural products of the country hitherto considered of but little value or utility are among the greatest achievements necessary to the prosperity of The ter ritory. and 1t is ID this direction that it5 people have much to hope for. The iie.d is a broad one and the OppOrtuu!- tes are vast for the exercise of inceaE. fly of men aBd the application Cf science.
 O,s If the most valuable Of the more rcceU, re-uit5 Of careful inyes,iEa;Iou nri intelligent experiment, lies upon tns CITIZEN table ID the form Of several bundles of long. clean. stout, elast!, and pliable fibcr5 made from the various species of the cactus which grow sa sbuadantly over all the bills aUd nesRs from the RiO GraHCe tO thB Pacific ocean. These fDers gre remar&Eble for their tensile strength. thcIr fine quality, length and cleanliness, and Co look ai them one would scarcely b lieve they had passed through @ process SD simple and expeditions that their present form Is removed but a single hour from the cutting of the stalks ln the field. Here may be seen s coarse, grassy fiber, two feet long, made from the sOtOl or palm cactus. It is extremely strong and the coarse fibers are capable of beng rived to very fiue iiiameE,s. In the msnu!sct- ore of cOrdage. mating, upho.sier;nS. etc, q. probably has To equal ,n the world. An additional simple pro ces- of cuTiing would make it tLe best mattress filing in the world.
 Another bundle with equally lous itc-, but carrying little ot ihs c5t;ouy fragments of the original leaf, Is made Ir, m the mescal plant. Tue Elaments are nearly uniform ID size throughout their entire length, and they possess Oce distinctive quality Of excellence in being extremely elastic. A slug!e thread Oi this iiter, six inches long, will stretch fully huli an Iuch, re snmIaS its original leIEtn sJ soon gs the tension Is removed. In other re- specis IL possesses close resemblance to iute.
 Next ID quality of fneDess comes the yucca bacchsta, or Spanish bayone, hIs resent bles bunch of fine, straw c0lOrcd flax, with wonderful tensile strength. Three strands of this fiber. twisted together, sustained q weight Of 33j pounds, on a test. For H thread but slightly larger than a single hOrs Esir. this ms almost marvellous. IL is 0 beautiful, soft aLd fine; fiber, capa- Il8 Of being woven into twiues and ropes requiring immsnse strength vlth small bulk. Its uses are practically uu- limited.
 The last oi the four samples, and the ono which capiIyates the practical eye, is from the yucca cOnstricta, or GmOie, ths well known soap weed. It is of pale straw color, glossy, soft and fine, with strength tEat IS marvellous. The tirer l> .trAigLt and clean and bears the appearance Ot having been cOmbed. al though lt Is actually in the form 1t came from the solution, having only been washed iu n water bath. It is the high cot quality of the fOur grades and it wIli prove to be the most valuable for man uiactur.ng purposes.
 That these tibers are valuable for cord age, etc. has been long known, but DO process has been discovered until quite recently, of removing the pulpy matter uf the leaves without destroying the quality Of the fiber. Ir. John c. Belk, ui Tombstone, experimented for time, aud by chance notion he hut upon the exact requisite Co effect the purpose, aad Las secured letters patent upon the discovery aud associated with him are Mes.Ts. Mm. Herring and R $. HafTord, UO.h ol Tombstone.
 The leaves are first crushed between roi!ers, after the manner of treating slCgr cane. They are then put into G vaL containing an alkaline sOlutiOn.and boiled for n time yaryIng from half an hour tU two hOur-, Rccor ling to the strength Of the solution. Some leaves have been treated completely in seven minutes, but forty minutes l. about the average time. The tibers are then taken out and washed, and are ready for the fgctory.
 AN "a NA aaN An AANAAAAAAkH AlAN ANtA ANA- ! essary tO keep the solution boiling teing | about all tine cost aside from the labor | The solution ls made of very simple and l inexpensive ingredients, and ID its treat | ment n quantities the fiber can be pre- pared at c cost not tO exceed one dollar | Der ton. After having been washed i. Is exposed to the ar and dTIed. For tvlne, rope, c0riage, sacks for ore, su- gar, gram Or other purpose. and for mp hOi-tcry and fabrics Ot many kinds, it l. we'll adapted, and further experiments VIII likely extend its field Of usefulness.
 The yucca leaf contains from ten Co twenty three per cent of fiber against two and one-hslf per cent in flax, and gs it grows over vast area of country l Iu great abuEjance. the value c.! thIs discovery can hardly be over estimated. As material fJg coritCs and twInes even, it has great field. iu lSdu the importation of fiber into the United States amounted Co SlLUOUOU1. Last year Chicago sold coarse twInes which this fiber is we'll adapted to make, amounting to S3 u1 ulu and even San Francesca sold SsJUuuD worth of the same goois. This fiber takes tar and ,olor freely and can therefore be used n place of the mere bulky ropes on .hipboard.
 Messrs- BelS, Hh1Ird and Herring la,e organized company Co mauufsc- uTe the fiber n quantities. under tbe lame Ci the American Fibre company, with a capital of SjIOUJ1 They will irJbsbiy begin the manufacture In the .!iy of Tombstone, and extend It to l;Ler portions of the territory as rapidly s tdc demand requires. lt will add uEgh Co the business iElCs;r:es Of Tombstone. aud IS energetic projectors .!ll probably reap tlc rica harvest oi ',l.,h they SO well merit.