The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1899-06-13
Florida Moss.

The freeze this year killed the Florida
moss. People who do not recognize what
this means must think that this somber
! gray drapery OF the Southern forests
| gives one hundred bales a week OF
| ''moss hair" TO the Northern upholster-
! ers from the little village of Mlcanopy,
| Fla. alone, and other factories in the
! state yield many times as much. and
| this is only about one-half OF the weight
of the moss when taken from the trees.
| The other half Is the useless envelope
| to the inner and valuable hair. There
| Is a mistaken idea as 10 how the outer
portion of the moss is removed, accord
ing To the Scientific American. II is
generally supposed that the covering is
removed by chemicals or by passing
through some ingenious stripping ma
chine. The latter would be too expen-
sive and the former open TO the danger
OF injurlng the natural elasticity of the
fiber.
The moss when first gathered is
greenish- gray. When killed by frost or
lack Of proper sustenance, il is easily
distinguished from the live moss. Ii
turns gray and II bitten feels soft, while
the live moss 'crunches" between the
teeth But the outer covering VIII re-
main on either the dead or fresh moss
for months. If the moss. either alive or
killed is simply piled in heaps in a
moist place and covered with muck or
sand IL soon begins 10 ferment. The
temperature OF the interior of the heap
rises TO a point too hot for the hand 10
bear. and, If not checked, II keeps heat
ing ti4l too hot 10 walk over. But this
stage means damage 10 the interior
hair and must be avoided. Properly
conducted, the fermentation means the
complete destruction OF the outer skin,
anil the moss is left duly "colored,' /.
e., showing the dark brown color of the
hair.
Ii reaches this stage in the hands OF
the piclers. who then deliver IL in loose
wagon loads, like hay, 10 the esns.
There are about fifty OF these ginning
establis sAments in the state-very sim
pie affairs. The building Is constructed
as cheaply as possible, and, costing
from 5000 10 $500 no insurance is OBJ
tainabje. The floors is six feet from the
ground, made of Stats one and one-halr
inches apart. 30 that short hbers, sticks
and dirt will sift out. In the building rs
nothing but a cheap modification OF a
cotton gina cylinder two feet long and
of the same diameter. with two-inch
teeth. which beat the moss against SINH
lar stationary teeth. taking out sticks
and rubbing off most of the adherng
remains Of the outer covering or the
moss The machine is cheap and
very inefficient the resulting moss Is
either 2cGnt moss of - cent moss
the price per pound after ginning-ac-
cording to the care with which the
picker delivered it.
The wrlter was surprised To learn
that this IL the only preparation the
moss receives. IL is shipped in bales di-
rect TO ahe wholesaler who generally
distributes them unopened to the up
hOisterers.
The freeze will not Interfere with this
years crop. The dead moss IL treated
lust as before the freeze But the out
loolS for next year rs bad. The crop Will
be small. Usually where "a tree has been
picked clean. plenty OF small bits are
left. so that u a favorable locality the
tree will b full again In two or three
years This was shown by the practice
i'm noes localities of cleaning II from
tho orange trees every two years. But
when the temperature fell 20 degrees
i'm the centre cf the state last February
the moss was quite generally KILLED, and
its development 80 checked thar the
WELD will he smaller FOR several years.
south of Ocaia little naTm was done.