The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-01-22
Interesting, Talk on
Its Manufacture
BY A HOLYOKE MAN.
First in Industrial Series
Very Successful.

chanics Association was held in Wash
burn hall, last evening, Richard C, Cha
pin of Holyoke lecturing on Wood
pulp and modern paper making before
an audience that filled the hall. Many
of those present are engaged in the
manufacture of the machines used in
paper making, but We're unaware of
the process through which the raw ma
terial passes from the rag, or tree, to
the finished product.
The speaker of the evening was in
PRODUCED by the president of the as
ISOLATION, James Logan who said that
paper has meant a great deal to Wor-
cester, for we have made here all of
the machines, except one, that are to-
day employed in the manufacture of
paper. Il
Mr.. Chaplin prefaced his address with
few introductory remarks dealing
with the history of paper and the DIFF
ferent substances that had been used
at one time or another for writing pur-
poses.
While many of the finer grades of pa
per are today made of rags, wood pulp
is entering into the composition of all
classes of paper.
The stock of both rags and wood fibre
is very similar, the only difference be-
ing in the form of the fibre. AT the pa
per mills the rags are received in i'm
mense bales of from 500 to 500 pounds
each bale of a single kind of rags or
of single color. The rag room, where
these bales are received is a thorough-
ly democratic place. In it are cotton
and linen rags, white and colOced light
and dark, new, clean, soiled and dirty.
They are collected and backed in var
ious parts of the world and SO expert
are some of the sorters that they can at
once discern the country where the rag
was gathered.
The rags of each country have their
peculiar texture. Rags good for one
kind of paper are not suited for an
other and all have their special pur-
pose.
He then proceeded to take his au-
dience through mill in operation and
traced infinitely the course of the rags
from the time they are received on
the top floor of the mill to the time
when the stock is turned out in the
form of finished paper, On being re-
ceived at the mill the rags are first
broken open and thrown into what is
known as buster, where all the loose
dirt is shaken out and they are then
passed to series of tables, where wo-
men cut open the seams, cut off but
tons and remove patches. thus letting
out any dirt that may have remained
from the buster. These women often
find much valuable and solid matter,
such as coins, government bonds and
knives, and it is the unWritten law of
the mills that to the finder belongs the
spoils. The rags are then passed to
the cutting machines, where they are
cut into uniform pieces about four in
ches across.
The stock is then passed to the
bleaching boilers, which have vary
ing capacity. These boilers are about
six inches in diameter ana twenty feet
long and are hung on hollow trunions
AT intervals on the inside of this boiler
are spikes upon which the rags are
hung. When all is IN readiness a So
luton of lime, water and caustic soda
is run into it and the boiler rapidly
turned. The action of the lime on the
rags is to dissolve the dirt. The rags
are boiled in this way under a pres
sure of from Is to 10 bounds for from
TO Is hours, the time required de-
pending on the quality of the rags.
some kinds having to be handled with
great care in order TO preserve the tex
ture They are then sent TO the wash
ing engine, where they remain for
about three or four hours, at the end
OF which time they are clean but not
white They are then bleached in a
solution of chlorine. This completes half
the process of paper making, and it
is by far the most important part of
the work. At this stage it is what IS
known as half-stock
The stock is then SucceSe.iVa1v nassau
TO drainers, heaters. In the latter pro-
cess the fibre is separated and broken
into, sheets. Care has TO be taken in
separating the fibre not to cut ii. some
papers Autograph better than others
some sheets will fold better and some
VIII take a die easily and not cut the
paper. All these things depend upon the
stock used and the manner i'm which il
is beaten. The best bond, linen an6
ledger paper today have wood pulp in
them.
James E, Russell of Springfield who
died last week. was the first man WIN
successfully produced wood fibre. This
hbre IS made directly from the wooC
altef the bark has been removed. TAt
composition of the newspaper is large.
~ wood fibre. The block of wood is frs
passed to the chipping machine. then Il
digester and finally washed anf
pleached. Spruce timber is the very hes
WOOD that is employed as it is stronger
and more tibrous. Hemlock is aist
largely used, but it is more brittaI an,
causes the paper to crack.
Inc consumption of wood fibre papel
mas increased 10 times since its firs
Introduction in 1881 The present nro
duction is about 725 tons a day. IN,
wood fibre is mixed with half stool, i,
the engine, beaten up, and separa TO,
into thin fibres. The eoloring of nana
Is all done in this engine.
Mr.. Chaplin then explained the con
struction of the largest paper maxim,
Tiachlne ever made the product of tn
Elce, Barton and Fales Company q
this city 1t is over a hundred feet /,
length and l62 inches in width. The pro
cess of making paper in olden times h,
hand was also infinitely described Tn
bank notes of England and Scotia N,
are still printed on this hand made ma
per, but our government notes an
printed on machine made paper AT
MN at Dalton. which is under govern
ment supervision.
The process of placing tho 1vato
mark in paper was described, and D1
Chapln said that because ii reaG
Linen 1t did not necessarily imnI-
that the paper was entirely made n
linen rags In order to make the ma
per hold ink, it is necessary that if h
sized and this may be either ANNA
or vegetable size, according to the ma
lure Of the stock. Finishing is IA
last process in the manufacture of pa
paper, and this is nothing more thar
ironing. Two methods are employed
plating and upercallendering. Tn
plating does not give the glossy an
pearance.
Owing TO the solutions through wbicl
the stock passes in the process o
manufacture, it is necessary to keel
the mills running twenty-four hour
a day
After the exposition Of methods en-.
ployed IN the manufacture OF paper, &
lelleE Of lantern slidna ,..n,.n .i,u..... q.