The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1901-02-08
SQUARE COTTON BALE A SUCCESS
Cotton Ginned and Compressed at the
Gin-The MalIett Process Leads

(From the Memphis. Tenn. Scimitar.)
Ever since Whitney gave to the world
his wonderful invention for ginning
cotton inventive genius has been tug
ging at the problem of baling the
f1eecy staple. A better method han
the original was dreamed of, but the
secret of how it could be lone was not
realized until three years ago., when
,the labors of c. E. Mallett. formerly
of North Carolina. but now of New
York city. eliminated In a triumph
which bids fair to revolutionlZe cotton
baling and COMPRISING. After patent
ing his invention the Mallett Cotton
Ginners' Compress Company was form
ed, capitalists of almost unlimited
means interesting themselves in the
enterprise.
The ever increasing demand for
compressed cotton at the gin was the
incentive that urged Mr.. Mallett to
perfect his theory for meeting what
seemed to him to be the necessities of
the cotton handling business.
The Mallett process is said to be the
most practical and commendable ever
devised. Cotton in it's first state after
picking is ginned. baled and compress
ed at a great saving Of time, labor and
expense. Cotton thus baled may be
billed direct to any foreign port at
through rates. An average of 100 bales
can be put into a car. whereas forty to
fifty compressed bales of the old style
constitute a car load. Of the regular
country bales the maximum number to
a car is thirty. The Mallett bales are
packed at such density as to render
them immune from destruction by fire.
The outside of the bale. of course, will
burn, but there is no chance for the
flames to get to the center. Each bale
is held securely by eight bands. An
other big advantage of this process is
the saving to the ginner, who can get
the compress charges of. so to Is cents
per bale from the buyer in excess of
bales put up by other methods. The
Mallett bale is as easily sampled as the
common bale, meets all the require
ments of the trade. and will be taken
on contract by all cotton exchanges.
THE PROCESS OF BALING.
The process of baling is as follows:
The cotton is taken from a condenser,
cleaned and fed into a bat-former. 1t
is mex run through compression roll
ers, which form the cotton into a
smooth bat fifty-four inches wide. This
bat is then packed into a press box in
loops, or folds. each fold receiving a
separate pressure and held in position
by steel fingers, which control the elias
ITCHY of the cotton. This initial pres
sure is twice the density of the ordi-
nary steam tramping press. Meantime
the bale at the other end Of the box has
been pressed to the density of thirty to
thirty-three pounds to the cubic foot,
bound by the usual ties and dropped
u The box is then revolved and a
new bale compressed while another
bales is being fed into the front box,
making a continuous process. When
these bales are opened the folds do not
adhere or stick together. but can be fed
direct into the picker at the mills in one
continuous bat. Moreover. these bales
do not expand. and run a uniform size,
the adopted standard bale which is OAK
81. Any kind of bagging can be salts.
factorily used. Mr.. Mallett has a spe-
cial buckle, of his own patent, which
holds the compression Town to about
25 per cent, thereby preventing expan-I
sion.
= 81
As to the financial success that may
be expected, we briefly mention the
fact that in Louisville last season, and
this her first effort in this line, the
management cleared 50. 500. This is
mentioned simply that the people may
know that with proper management no
one will be sunk in this instructive
and most entertaining enterprise, which
is so successfully carried out every
year in other up-to-date cities through
out the country.