Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-10-13
HOW INDIGO IS RAISED.
It's Cultivation Gives Employment to
Millions of Natives In India.

Millions of Natives In India.
From Pearson's Magazine.
Indigo, the most beautiful and expensive
of all dyes in common use, has ever been
closely related to India, it's name i'm
plies. From India the ancient Greeks and
Romans drew supplies of the blue dye, and
although 1t was lost to Europe during the
greater part of the middle ages. enormous
quantities have been imported for COM
mercial purposes during the last hundred
years.
Indigo is cultivated all over India, giving
employment to millions of natives and
thousands of foreigners In three districts
alone. in Behar, where some of the finest
indigo is grown, European capital is invest
ed to the extent Of no less than S25,000,0O0
Some 10000 acres are under cultivation.
There are 700 Englishmen managing and
working on the concerns the factories
and plantations are always called. and
!, 500 600 natives
An indigo concern may occupy anywhere
between LOCO and 10000 acres. each culti-
waited acre producing on an average, about
fifteen to twenty pounds of indigo.
The plant grows to height of between
! three and five feet. 1t is in the leaves that
the cOlor-yielding matter chiefly resides,
they being at their fullest at the time when
the flower buds are about to bloom; but
no indication of containing anything which
will yield blue cOloring matter.
Toward the end of June, soon as
the monsoon has set in, the crop is cut
and the work of manufacturing commences
! The first manufacturing, called "morhum
mahai,' lasts generally to the middle of
August. BY this time the stems which
nave been cut have shot up again. and in
September a second crop is taken from the
same plants-sOmetimes three crops are
taken in one season.
In most concerns the simple, primitive
processes OF manufacture are still adhered
to, for planters and old hands are strong
believers in the original true blue. and will
have nothing to do with new-fangled ideas
and chemical admfxtures.
Every day the watts in which the plants
are steeped-the first process of manufac-
ture-are cleaned out by coolies. The plant
is stacked upright, to allow air to escape,
and Is kept in position by long pieces of
bamboo. Then water is run into the vat
which, however, is not quite filed since the
plant expands, exerting an enormous pres
sure that might easily crack the watts sides
The plants take a long while to soak; the
leaves are not easily wetted. When the
plants have been stepped for about ten
hours, the cOlor-yieding matter will have
been extracted. The liquid is now run off
into lower or beating" watts and the cx-
tracted plant, or sect is taken out. to be
subsequently employed to fertilize new
crops. The running liquid varies In color
from bright orange to olive green 1t is
nv oC7f2ehi y mat II SIitil HOW De kept IN
state of violent agitation.
The froth is at first blue, then white, and
soon disappears. The liquid, after passing
through various color changes turns from
green to dark, rich indigo blue The over
seer to test whether the beating process is
sufficient, takes little LIQUID and Dours il
on to plate-if the grain. or "fecula,"
readily settles leaving a clear fluid. the
heaters jump from the vat or the wheel is
stopped.
After beating. the fecula Is allowed to sot-
tie for two or three hours and then the
water is run off. The grain is collected
passed through various strainers whence
1t flows to a well, and is elevated by a
steam injector to an iron tank It is row
boiled, to prevent any further fermentation
and then the hot concentrated stuff is run
through strainers on to filter table
The resulting pulpy paste. not unlike col
ored whipped cream. is pressed and cut into
small CAKES, each stamped with the mark of
the factory, the date and the number of
the days boiling. The cakes are put away
to dry on bamboo shelves, Deing carefully
busted and turned every few days until
ready for packing.