The Washington herald., 1908-08-02

A visitor to the Western and South
western Irish seabcard in summer Will
see the ascending smoke Of many fres-
On a warm day. when the air IS stil,
the smoke hangs low and trails far over
the bare downs.
The rnystideI and imaginative traveller
may then receive The passing impression
that he has been suddenly and mysteri-
Ously transported back into classical times
and is watching funeral pyres. say, on the
shores Of the Aegean. Should he be 10
Ieeu ard Of the trailing smoke an acrid
odor as Of the burning bones comes to his
nostrils. almost confirming the Illusion
In way, indeed. those are funeral pyres.
and they are consuming old Neptune's
bones. says the Manchester Guardian
For are not the great branchIike masses
Of seawrack burning there the very bones
of the sea god2
Those are the fires OF the kelpmakers.
who are taking their sea harvest through
It's final stagei For many months men.
women. and children have been busy
gathering the wrack for this burning
The unusually high winds whiSh prevailed
during the last autumn and winter gave
good harvest TO the wrack gatherers.
pIenafuIly piling their spoils within easy
reach. But all sea wrack cannot be made
into keip and what the sea casts Up is
not so good FOR the purpose as that which
IS actually cur from the rocks. The cut-
ting Of the vrack IS done by men n
boats. necessarily on a very calm day
Two Men work Together
Two men work together. one reaching
the seaweed with a long pole. 70 which
cutter Is attached. and the other drawing
IL into the boat by kind OF drag- As il
requires approximate twenty-four tons
Of seavveed 90 produce one ton Of kelp.
and as In winter time calm days are rare
OF those coasts. u needs good luck 90 get
even the promise % a good harvest But
the keIpmaking Is exclusively confined 20
T tie most poverty stricken regions OF Ire
land 10 districts where The p0tatO-the
mai1stay of Lfe-is periodically oAsnted
b. the damp climate. and where the heads
Of families. fishermen Of necessity during
the autumn and winter. can only occa-
si5naIiy venture out 70 sea ip their frail
{ CORA ghs. or 'bosts. made OF tarred canvas
stretched on a frame
IN those parts hunger IS never very far
I from the peasants door. and there IS
therefore the strongest incentive for the
wrack gatherers TO work hard
The collecting Of The wrack Is but the
first phase Of a Iong process. for il has
then 10 be spread out on the ground OF on
tho universal fences or low walls OF
loose st0nes-to dry. That generally takes
a good deal Of time .n a climate where
rain is specially frequent and abundant.
When the wrack is superhclally dried II
is made Up into stacks or cocks The
month OF May will have come before IL IS
ht FOR burning and then the making OF
/ the kelp goes on gil through the summer
Carried on In Pits.
This last process IS carried out IN shall
low. grave-l.ke pits about "a feet long
by 8 feet wide The wrack-caIled. IN
the ve-nacuIar. 'feamanach"-is burned
little BY little. The resultant kelp-or.
in Irish. 'cilp--takes one OF two forms
IN some districts the seaweed IS burned
u=-z-- 10 an ash while n others the
burning is continued until a slag-like sub
stance is produced n either case the
product is sold 70 factors or agents.
who visit the districts al the proper sea
E son. and is by them exported 90 chemical
{ frnanufacturers. mostly 20 Scotland II IS
T 20 be regretted that the kelp cannot be
dealt with in ireland. SO that those who
make Il might gai1 more profit by the
industry. but although the attempt has
f been made. 10 met with only a qualified
. success.
/ AT one time kelp was the sole source OF
I iodine and also the main source Of sodium
and potassium and their by-Products
Long since. however. the industry re
ceived its first blow. when sodium began
: 10 be produced in other ways as & now
entirely IS. Then kelp ceased 20 be used
; for the production OF potash. and finally.
within the last few years. the advance in
: chemical science has resulted in iodine
! being obtained from the nitrates. Now
adays large deposits Of salcpeter are be
/ ing mined n various countries, especially
I In South America and Germany. solely
I for this purpose
IreIand's Dying Industry.
I Il Is not 10 be wondered At that In such
I circumstances keIp making IS now one
0f Ireland's dying industries. While only
about ten years ago IS los TO SO ton
was obtainable. the price last season had
/ gone down to from s3 70 s3 los a ton.
/ One ton Of kelp produces only eleven
pounds OF iodine. al IS a pound. so that
( the kelp makers cannot now gain much
by thel- precarious industry. II has 70 be
Remembered. 300. that this proportion Of
iodine is got from the best kelp. and II
! is contended that the keIp makers have
Z OF recent years become careless. produc-
/ ing an inferior article II that is so I
I could not greatly blame them. but I have
Z not been able. even by personal incuir-
les from those who should know. TO sat
/ isfy myself as 10 the truth OF that charge.
! Although the number OF kelp makers IS
/ growing smaller year by year. the indus
/ try is still a relatively important one in
the remote districts where II is carried
+ on. Nowadays IL is generally worked on
I a plan Of partnership. a small farmer OF
/ other holder OF a portion OF fOreshore
Z allows = man, who IS usually assisted BY
! his family. TO gather and burn the sea-
Wrack. and the profit from the kelp IS
/ equally divided between the two. Thus
I il is usually the poorer Eenbers OF the
/ community who do the actual WORK
! Whatever they make out Of It they sore
/ " need. and II the industry died out en-
/ tirely one frail barrier Of the few which
the Munster and CcnnaUght peasant can
erect against periodical famine would dis
1 appear.
Western Maryland in the Balance.