The Salt Lake herald-Republican. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1909-1918, 1910-08-15
GOOD PAPER MADE
FROM CORNSTALKS
Department of Agriculture
Solves Commercial
Problem.
BI-PR0DUCT NOT WASTED
WILL SERVE TO NOURIsH THE
DAIRY HERD.
BY-PRODUCT NOT WASTED

Washington. Aug. 21.-COrnstalk ex-
tract is among the possibilities as a
food for dairy cows. The department
OF agriculture has developed this car
amel-like food during its paper inves-
IlgaIlOns- The extract has been pro-
duced as a by-prOduct, and the outlook
Is that IL viii have an important bear
ing on the problem of producing paper
from eOrnstalks.
The experts have gone so far with
their inquiry as to be just about ready
10 try the extract on the COW. They
nave examined il chemically and have
found II free from poison. Now the
question is whether the COW viii thrive
on IL. one OF the experts is looking in
vermont Tor maple sugar outfit.
when he finds it, he proposes TO boil
the 1000 extract down to a consistency
or mOlasses. He will then put il on
fodder and feed It TO the COW. If one
COW does well, the operation will be
extended to a whole herd
This experiment looks forward TO
the possible time when an important
cornstalk industry will be esta blished
In the United States. The vision Of
Lhe department experts pictures the
farmer going to the paper mill with
MS load OF cOrnstalks. and returning
with the richest sort of food for his
cattle. Already II has been indicated
~ the paper investigations that the
manufacturing operations must be con-
quoted IN distinctly corn districts
small commercial mill viii find
surflcient corn in a surrounding radius
OF eight or ten miles OF good corn
country, which will be within driving
distance for all the farmers wishing to
ullllze the cornstalks 10 the best ad-
vantage. For a paper mill OF larger
output radius OF thirty miles, il is
inquired, Will be ample. A considera bic
nE0n0FTfnn NJ
VIII furnish a large demand, right at
the paper mill, for this new stock food,
providing farmers win generally adOpt
the wise plan Of keeping their farms
well stocked.
COrnstalk Paper a Success.
=, The meaning of this development Is
that paper making from cornstalks IS
IN fair way to be reduced to an alb
solutely commercial basis. The experts
nave showed beyond peradventure that
a good grade of paper can be produced
from stalks. Some OF the correspond-
ehce OF the department of agriculture
IS being written upon cOrnstaIk paper
me ordinary observer would never de-
tect the difference between il and
hlgh quality of wood pulp paper 1t is
as white as you please. and has a good
surface 1t is sufficiently tough for
DOCKS and ma gaines. 1t is being pro-
duced now. In hundredWeight lots be
ing manufactured by the department
az commercial mill at Portland Me.
II is entirely suitable for books maya
zines and the highest class of news
paper printing.
The chief question now is to put
thls cornstalk paper on a basis where
II can compete with magazine and book
paper made from wood pulp. With
the food extract as by-product, that
achievement is already in sight. And
IN developing this by-product the de-
partment experts have taken one of
inn Fr.r4 s~a-5
rylng out the policy of conservation.
IL happens that the food elements of
cornstaiks are no good for paper. The
ordinary paper processes would cook
these food elements out with chemicals
ana not water until nothing but the
Ilher Of the stalks was left In the
ordinary processes Of paDer making
not only would these food elements be
wasted, but chemicals would be wasted
IN separating them from the fiber
But plan has been evolved of boiling
the stalks before any acid is added.
Thus there is cooked from the stalks
into the water nearly all of the food
elements Of the stalk. Then this ex-
tract IS evapOrated down into a mo-
lasses-like liquid, which can be boiled
down still further into a solid This
extract, when boiled down, looks and
smells like caramel
Ton Produces 800 Pounds.
A ton of stalks will produce about
material contains in addition TO sac
charine matter and proteids, phos-
phOrus, potash and nitrogen. Those
are the precise elements which are
most valuable on the land. So the
farmer can raise corn for the market
can sell his stalks. and can still re-
turn 10 his land, by feeding the extract
TO his stock nearly all the fertiliZiug
elements which the corn took from the
land in the process Of growth.
The den9FrmpUr nVnarrG 1aua aop-
quered one obstacle after another In
the development OF both the cornstaIk
paper and the food extract. One of the
great questions was whether the stalks
could be kept sweet and dry through a
whole year so that a paper mill could
be kept continually al work The ex-
perts had stalks shredded and baIed
The shredding gave the air chance to
get al all parts OF the stalk, and the
ballng helped to solve the problem of
small bulk for transportation. Some Of
these stalks are now in Washington.
having gone through almost an entire
year since cutting. They are sweet
and are just as good for paper or fOd-
der as when first cut
Another problem was TO produce a
nOnpOisOnous food extract. When the
experts examined the first food extract
they found that Il contained poison
The explanation was that the stalks
contained an acid which acted on the |
brass and copper parts Of the machin- /
cry. SO. in the experimental machinery
all brass and copper connections have !
been replaced with other materials. So /
far as the chemist can find now tie I
extract is nonpOisOnOus.
Different Grades OF Paper.
or the pulp derived from the corn !
stalk about One-thiTd by weight con-
sists of fine fibers, with which paper |
Of high grade can be made. This is
suitable for letter paper and for books /
and magazines. The balance of the /
pulp consists largely OF pitch cells and |
Will make a sort of parchment, which /
is for short time well-nigh water |
proof. a limited quantity of this lat |