The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1897-01-04
IsITTHEPAPER AGEs
. o,up CAME INTO USE THERE
SIM LAVE BEEN MANY CHANGES.

Have 10 BE Was"'"
,r...ort steam and railways modern
.ooietv would undoubtedly exist. but
' 'sSat a state of intellectual DARKNESS
VIM, no that of civilized mankind
wo 'out naner and the secret OF its man.
rfacturel For many years ,ne rag m mo'
", demands of the paper industry Inc
o. diversity of uses to winch
'noi. and paper pulp have been put IN
papIl VI decade have made 1T necessary
W. W. manufacturers to cast about ior more
iU sootive elementary substances Boots'
e 'lOnev boats, gas pipes, impermeapie
ppons' tovs. bottles, pipes, floors, doors,
oas r;,os architectural ornaments, roof
~, cbimneys and even compiete hre-
ins' houses are now made of paper.
p ,o claim that il will eventually sup
MAJ. ,rood for it will neither crack
por warp. 1t can be triturated' put I'M
dor great pressure and subjected TO GER
w. ~, chemical treatment and will then
."re a high polish and will resist the ef-
80 90, Of fire better than any other ma
,orial known. Paper is gradually sup
.Iant;no metal in certain lines. Loco
pi" ".;,o wheels have been made Of it for
several wears, and even rails Tor rail-
,oads. The next progressive step VIII be
40 rse II for the manufacture or ord
nance. which IS not by any means re-
mote possibility. Paper has largely tax
~ the Mace of linen. We have paper
collars and cuffs and blankets. An in
Oorions inventor has devised paper
Shirt bosoms, which can be torn of like
The nages from a calendar, thus enabling
tbo wearer 10 have clean shirt front
os often rs he desires. 1t is only mat
torof time before cloths. dressing gowns
ord entire suits of clothes will be made
From naper. The soldiers of the japanese
army wore paper trousers and jerseys
during their famous winter campaign.
Wood pulp is the most effective sub
stitute for rags in the manufacture Of
paper. Nearly every species OF wood can
ne used. Some kinds yield more than
others. More pulp can be got from VIII
low and chestnut than from walnut.
Different woods give various qualities
and effects. Aspen will yield very
white paper, but defective III solidity,
and is therefore mixed with fir. This
latter wood is most generally used. 1t
was first imported from the Black forest,
in Germany. The chief supply is now
obtained in Norway and Finland, in the
form of panks or poles, never exceeding
feet or inches.
For the last half century the worlds
production of paper has increased ten
fold. I'm 1850 it was 221, 600 metric
tons. The latest recent estimate was
1000, 600 metric tons. The European
manufacturers are suffering from glut
in production. The price of paper has
fallen one.third, while wages have dou-
bled. The European plants are not so
progressive as those in this country.
They depend too much upon manual Ia
Dor. In the United States the manufao-
turers have substituted machinery for
hand work, and as q result of the de-
crease in the number of their employees
are enabled to pay high wages.
Attention has recently been called TO
the utility of q little known species of
paper called the boabab, or Ansonia.
1t is made from the wood of the boabab
tree, which is native of west Africa,
and is known there as the monkey
bread tree" 1t is found in Abyssinia,
Senegal and south of Coyo river 1t is
of low growth and has a very thick
trunk. While it rarely attains "a height
of 20 feet, the trunk is usually 90 to 20
feet in diameter. The branches are pen
dulous and bear an edible fruit. The in
ner bark of this tree is very fibrous Ii
is used for making superior wrapper pa
pers, which have great tenacity. When
the inner bark is stripped from the tree,
fresh growth supplants that taken
away, and in couple of years the tree
is again in normal condition. The bark
is peeled off but once in four years.
The latest addition to the paper in
dustry is q sanitary note paper which
is claimed to be germproof. 1t has long
been known that letters frequently
spread infectious diseases by means OF
the germs that contaminste the paper.
An English firm has produced a paper
which is impregnated with an antiseptit
substance which kills all germs that
may come in contact with the paper. II
this paper proves to be what the proprie
tors claim, 1t is certainly meritorious
invention and will become generally
used by hospitals and during the rage Of
future epidemics.
Chinese and Japanese papers have
long been noted for their quality. 1t hat
recently been ascertained, however, thai
even finer grades are produced in Korea
One eminent authority states that "tht
Korean paper excels the very best tina
Is made in China and Japan. 1t Ii
manufactured entirely by manual labor
No machinery whatever is employed
For the better grades the bark of TIT
Broussonetia papyrifera is used. This i
gathered in the spring of the year. 1t il
placed in water, mixed with wood ash
es and is then beaten until it is reduced
TO thick pulp, which is dipped out il
good sized ladies and spread out in thii
sheets upon bamboo frames. A differen
grade OF paper is made from fragment