The mirror., 1911-02-09
Binding TVile
By r. s.

QuanUlCloS HOW dudyS LII onO n"h Wv |
ing of the enormously large crops OF
small grain that grow throughout
the Northwest, is manufactured from
principally two varieties OF hbre,
known as manila and sisal. The
State of Yucatan, in Mexico, pro-
duces the greater amount OF slsal,
while the Philippine Islands pro-
vide us with the manila and it is one
of the principal products. The ma
nila fibre is obtained from species
of the banana tree family, and grows
to height of from twelve to twenty
feet. The stems of the separate
leaves grow in close cluster, form
ing what seems to be solid tree trunk |
up to height of from ten to four
teen feet where they separate and
branch out like the limbs Of any or
dinary tree. The natives cut the
stalks off near the ground and re-
move the leaves from the top Of the
stalks. Then they separate each in
dividual stem and remove all the
pulp from the fibre by repeatedly
drawing and pounding it across the
dull edge of blade fastened in a
large block of wood. This method
of harvesting and cleaning manila
fibre has not, up to present date
given way to modern machinery.
The average days work for one
native in cleaning the fibre is about
twenty pounds. The work cfharvest-
ing and cleaning the fibre is confined
to the mountainous districts. After
the fibre has been cleaned and dried
it is then brought to the coast vii
layers where it is bought up by ex-
porters who sort and press it into
bales suitable for shipping.
The henequen plant furnishes the
sisal fibre that comes to this coun-
try. The plant resembles the cent
ury plant and very often is mistaken
for the same. 1t forms one OF the
principal product of Yucatan, where
it is cultivated on large plantations
and mostly by Indian labor. The
young plants are set out in rows OF
from eighty to one hundred feet
apart. By the sixth year the plant
is sufficiently matured that the under
and larger leaves are cut and the
pulp removed, leaving the fibre to
dry in the sun, after which it it baled
and ready for market The life OF
the plant is about twenty years, and
after it dies it is replaced by young
ones, but during it's period of bear
ing it produces about fourteen ma
tured leaves a year. The method of
gathering and preparing the sisal
for market is much more systemetic
than that employed in the Philip
pines. All the large sisal planta-
tions have tramways extending
through the henequen fields, so that
as fast as the harvest is gathered ii
can be loaded on cars and hauled by
trans to the factory where it is made
into fibre. Here they have machin-
ery which cuts and strips the fibre
lengthwise into shreds and at the
same time removes all the pulp
After this is done it is hung upo1
lines to dry from the exposure to the
heat of the sun. When this process
is concluded it is then pressed int
bales and shipped to the Unitet
States. where it is in great demand
for manufacturing purposes, and l
always finds ready sale at the twin
factories.
At the twine factory the fibre firs
masses through meshing or cardin
machines, into which it is fed b
hand, after which it is drawn into
conduit and energies from the me-
chine through rollers in coars
strand and at the same time is cole
in large heaps or piles, each pll