Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-10-20
NEW CLOTH FIBER.
Great Things Hoped From Brazilian
Linen"

!
| ...- Linen"
From the New York Tribune.
revolution is promised in the linen in
| dustry of the world through the scovery
| and development Of new linen plant in
| digenous to Brazil and some OF the great
! fertile plains OF South America The new
1 plant Is known as Canhamo- .Braziliensis
permit. or Brazilian linen. Its practical de-
velopment is now being effected upon sew
eral experimental plantations. the most
notable Of which is at Bea Vista, in the
| state Of Rio Janero. The development
| was begun with the assistance Of the state
government and has continued to a point
at which 1T may be stated without question
| that the fiber is a success and that its
| influence will be felt at once in the fabric
world. The product of the plantations al
ready established has been contracted for
by British interests at profitable rate
One Of the plantations includes area
| OF 100000 square meters of growing plants
| at Redeiro. and the one at Bea Vista will
soon have more than 100000 square
| meters.
The Brazilian linen plant Is virtually a
| weed, which grows from twelve to eight
cen feet high in four or five months, and
| resembles hemp In general appearance.
Special advantages are claimed for it over
| European linen and other similar fiber
plants. 1t is absolutely hardy, resisting
alike the dry Or the rainy season, bearing
| equally we'll In dry wet soil, and not
| being prey to insects mildew. 1t re-
| Quires no care special attention after
planting, and natures so rapidly that a
| crop can be gathered three months after
| sowing, which means that three crops
year can be had. 1t can be grown upon
| what are now vast tracts Of practically
| waste land with comparatively little outlay
Of capital. The fiber has all the neces-
| sary qualities required for high-class use
strength. fneness. fexibility and adapta-
bility for bleaching or dyeing-and every
| portion of the plant can be used for some
| industrial purpose.
excellent, but the cultivated plant shows
| a finer one, with strands Of greater length,
! being much longer than European linen or
| hemp. In fact, it is so long that it must
be cut before being used for weaving pur-
poses. Experiments to test it's strength
show that linen broke when the weight at
| tached reached 1874 pounds, European hemp
| broke under strain of % pounds, and Bra
| lillian fiber "A'' broke under 1913 pounds,
''B' under % pounds and Co under 26.4
pounds .....-
of which corresponds to the best linen. the
| second to coarse linen and the third to
| European hemp. From the fiber of the
plant. therefore, come both fine linen and
| strong rope. The residue Of the plant is
| high-grade cellulose, said to- be especially
suitable for the manufacture of fine writ
| ing paper. the whiteness and clearness
| of the stem of the plant simplifying the
process of manufacture The fiber is adapt
ed to dyeing and bleaching. The dyed sam
pies have lustrous and silky appearance.
| The present cultivation of the new linen
plant Is largely experimental. The best
| time for planting Is said to be in Novem-
| Der, which corresponds to May in more
northern c1imes. The ground is prepared
| in September (March) and October (ApriD
in two divisions, comparatively small
| space for growing seed and the rest for
! industrial purposes. The seed crop should
be prepared earlier. II possible. and it is
| with -Rx,n oaAo TO fba
meter. thus giving the plant more room
| to grow that is allowed for fiber, which
| requires 100 seeds to the square meter. Thus
! closely planted, the stalks grow with one
| stem, not having room to branch out. The
fiber thus produced is finer and more silky
j The plants grown for fiber should be cut
before Towering. 1t requires about three
months for them to acquire the proper
| height-about ten feet. The staple is long.
| The plants cut about four inches above
| the ground. They will at once send out
| shoots. which can be cut in the same man
| ner again forcing a new growth. By
| this process there will be harvest from
| plants sown in November. in February,
| June and October, corresponding to August
| December and April of northern climes. At
| ter the harvest it is necessary to dig up
| the roots and prepare the soil for a new
| sowing It has been found necessary to
keep the growing crop clean Of weeds The
| amount of fiber produced varies with the
| several crops. Tests show that the first
crop on 100 square meters produced 44O
| pounds of clean fiber and $50 OF coarser
| fiber; the second. 270 pounds of clean fiber
and 1.7SO of coarser fiber. The average OF
| the third crop is about one-half of the sec
| ond. The annual production Of 100 square
meters. planted with Brazilian linen, there
| FORE Is about S45 pounds of fine fiber and
| 5000 pounds of coarser fiber. with some
| thing like 5000 pounds of ibrous roots and
| waste, suitable for paper manufacture
Multiplying these figures by 40 gives the
| total production Of an acre Of ground as
| 154, 600 pounds of fiber Of two grades-about
seventy-seven tons-to dispose of which for
the present the promoters have contract
| at 500 gold ton This earning of SIS, 400
/ an acre is based on the local price Of the
| product which is about Is cents gold
pound for the first grade of fiber and Z
| cents gold for the second grade.
| The demand for the waste material of the
| plant for paper making will. it is believed.
! be steady. Machinery for the treatment Of
| the plant for the extraction Of the fiber has
| been imported from Europe. Present plans
| contemplate only the production of the raw
| fiber for export, although the ultimate re-
| suit may be the establishment in Brazil
| of a great manufacturing. enterprise, when
labor and commercial conditions justify the
! venture. The production of fiber from the
Brazilian plant has Just been patented in
| the United States. Whether the plant can
| be grown to advantage in the southern
| portion and Pacific coast region Of Amer
| lea, free from frost, is not yet known. An
| investigation is to be made. however, and
| if conditions seem favorable new agri-
| cultural industry will probably be estab-
| lished in the United States.
Scotch Dinner in Seventeenth Century
From the Scottish Review.
| An account Of hospitality in 1929 gives
| - to-, ~