Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1895-04-25
THE AGE OF PAPER.
Bone of the Mnrvels of Our Modern
Invention.

bOme Oh tnc MurNclh OF our MOucrn
Invention.
II any one had prophesied fifty years
I ago that cannon, car wheels, boats, pen
ellis and clothing were to be made Of the
same substance on which the Bible and
"Hamlet" We're printed, he would have
been laughed out of countenance. Yet
to-day the manufacturers Of paper are
reaching out and inventlng new pro-
cesses whereby hundreds of iron and
wooden commodities are made Of the
pulp from their mills at price which
threatens to drive all competition out
of the market
An Eastern manufacturer Is advertis-
ing paper stockings, paper gloves and
paper mittens, and he warrants them
to be more durable and much less eX-
pensive than wooden or cotton goods.
The articles are light and airy and very
comfortable for summer wear, They
are woven from paper yarns which
come from the mandatory all prepar-
ed for the purpose. Ordinary paper
cord, with which everyone is familiar,
Is too smooth for knitting, and 1t Is
therefore given a nap by passing
through specially constructed giggng
machine, After the knitting Is finished
the goods are placed in Il sizing bath
made from tallow and potato starch,
which imparts strength and solidlty to
the texture After drying, the socks
or gloves are dyed in various colors,
and look so soft and woolly when they
come from the store that 1t Is hard to
tell them from the ordinary goods. And
they are so cheap that when they begin
to give out or become soiled they can
be thrown into the fire and new ones
purchased. The laundryman has not
yet expressed his opinion as to this eX-
ceedingly convenient arrangement,
A cannon recently made of paper pulp
stood the most severe tests without
bursting, and 1t may not be many years
before the ornaments Of the world will
come from the paper factory rather
than the steel works. The chief points
in favor Of the pulp guns are their elias
ITCHY and lighness. Instead Of having
to be dragged tediously over the coun-
try by six or eight horses cannon Of
paper can be loaded into light wagon
and pulled along at trot by n span of
mules. The body of a paper gun is
made of pulp and the core Is of steel
About five layers of "copper" brass ana
steel wire are wound about the eXter-
ior surface, thus binding the paper and
steel firmly together. The outside Is
braced and held together longitudinal
ly by means Of long rods fastened to
bolts, which extend upward from their
bed among the wire bands. A special
grade Of paper pulp with long tibers is
selected, mixed and combined with the
usual hardening ingredients, consisting
of litharge, wax, tallow, white lead and
blue lead. Then pulp is run into molds
and cast to the proper shape, after
which the steel core Is inserted The pa
per, although exceedingly hard and du-
rable, will give way enough when the
explosion Of the powder occurs to pre-
vent a break.
Since the cannon was tested with
such great success paper manufacture
ers have been experimenting in the con-
structlon Of paper fly-wheels for great
engines. They hope to produce wheel
which will not burst when the load is
suddenly taken off the engine and the
speed runs to a high velocity. The pro-
cess Of manufacture Is extremely sim.
pie. The wooden skeleton Of big
wheel is put in a revolving frame and
sheets of MANILA paper from n great
spool are wound around 1t, with appll-
,ations Of glue between. This thick lay
er of paper is so elastic that the posi-
bility Of breakage in case Of accident is
exceedingly small
Paper is also rapidly taking the place
of rubber as an insulator of electric
wires. A cable so protected has been
laid recently under the Hudson River
at New York, and it works admirably.
Each separate wire is bound with n
strip Of paper wound spirally, and the
whole is covered with a thick lead pipe.
When it is known that a paper-insu-
lated, lead-covered cable can be bought
for so cents foot while the rubber-in-
sulated cable would cost not less than
So a foot, the future Of paper insulation
for electrical wires can be easily mag
ined. 1t is matter for surprise that
its use for this purpose has not, been
more extended in the past.
An enterprising paper manufacturer
Is advertising paper table-cloths beau
tifully figured and so soft and smooth
that they can hardly be distinguished
from the best linen. They have one dis
advantage, however. If hot water Is
spilled on them, they wilt and bag in n
most provoking way.
Besides these articles barrels, lead
pencils, tubs, pals, horseshoes, car
rails, armor plates for men-of-war and
hundreds of other things are now made
of paper.
New Ailments.
"Strange, amt 1t. the new kinds Of
ailments folks has?" remarked Mr.. Sim