The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1914-01-21
.N'CANNA TALKED
ON FLAX STRAW

This paper was to have been read
by j. Dexter PIERCE OF McCanna, n.
D., president of the North Dakota
Straw Products Co. However, owing
to Mr.. Peirce's inability to attend
the convention, he assigned his sub
ject to S. M. McCanna Of Minneapolis,
vice president of the same corpora
ton, who presented the topic to the
Grain Growers. Mr.. McCanna said in
part:
MT. Chairman and gentlemen of
the convention: 1t would be presump-
tious for me to treat this subject from
any other angle than that Of an in
terested observer in a numbe of ex-
periments and demonstrations. I have
naturally acquired considerable knowl-
edge of the technique in connection
with paper making from flax straw.
from the scientific men with whom I
have worked, but this convention is
not interested in the technique of pa
per making. You are interested IN
this subject because it has a bearing
upon the subject Of conservation, and
is OF economic value to North Dakota
and her n~eighboring tlaX-groWing
states. Those most interested in this
subject aside from the paper makers
are, the farmers who raise fax. There
are in North Dakota alone 1,250.0 600
acres of fax raised annually and the
Only product at the present time de-
rived therefrom is the seed. and this
Is scarcely one-third Of the disable
products derived from the flax plant.
1t generally has been estimated both
by the government and by private ex~
p~erimentors, that fax straw is worth
$40 per ton to the state for paper
making alone. In addition there Is an
other by-product which every manu-
facturer who uses fax straw as a raw
material realizes upon. This is called
Protein bran and has a very high
food value for stock. This Protein
bran is worth in tho raw state $3.50
per ton, f. o. b. the mill, and this
amounts to about 20 per cent of the
raw material.
"Now summing up our figures based
upon general averages, we have one
| acre which produces about a ton OF
straw worth $3.50 for seed; $40 fol
paper and 81 for protein bran. ir
other words there is now going or
annually a process of waste of APP
proXimately $11 per acre by the burn
ing Of the flax straw in the fields, ar
annual loss of $13, 1916, 900. This is no
entirely accurate, because of the fac
that a certain per cent of the fia2
straw is used at the present time fol
stock feeding and for the manufacture
Of tow. I rave not the figures a
hand of how much fax straw is an
nuaily used for these purposes, bu
from my observation in the matter,
should judge that not over 10 pc,
cent is utilized at the present time.
FLAX straw is not a very good foot
foT stock in quantities, and nov be
cause Of the absence of tariff on tow
the tow business is no longer a profit
able one; SO instead of increasing tn
number of tons utilized annually il
this manner there Would naturally b.
a decreased number used.
FLAX straw has for a number o
years been looked upon by scientific
paper makers as a very practical raw
material, but there was never mucl
done in the way Of experiment unit
very recently. The reason for this |
plain to those who realize that enter
prise and private capital are no
spending time and money in expert
menting with new things, until a.
urgent necessity to do so is apparent
Until recently it looked as though tn
wood supply was ~ineXhaustible, bu
for the past ten years, paper maker
have been alarmed at the rapid de
crease of this raw material usefu
in paper making. It is true however
that some scientific men began think
AlAS VA q as " law llIOL
than twenty years ago, but there wa
nothing done in the way Of expert
ment. They tried to use it as the
would Wood fiber and found it was ia
more costly and did not make an
better paper; so the movement got
setback and was not revived unit
within the last four or five years, an
though the movement has a grea
impetus now it is being considere
only by a small majority Of practice
paper makers. The practical manu-
facturer Is a man who does not car
to experiment with anything until it
practically a proved success.
Il believe I am safe in saying tha
flax paper making could have been
commercial success. even before thes
new chemical treatments were dis
covered, had the paper trade bee
sufficiently interested to solve tt
problem Of initial cost of production.
Il know Of some organizations no
which a manufacture paper frol
fax straw successfully by using Of
methods used in treating wood fiber
/ will say this: the manufacture {
paper from flax straw by these Of
methods is not sufficiently proftab
to invite capital away from the woo
pulp industry. From my Observable
L SlioOIh ody LIldS Ltlb only EaENdItC
Of the fax paper industry is in II
new chemical treatments Of fax stra
9 where large profits are to be Obtain
3 ed, a few Of which I have in mind.
Il am a member Of a compan
t organized under the laws Of this sta
which is the owner of one Of thes
new patent processes, and we hay
q conducted a number, Of commerci
demonstrations in paper making ar
] are now making preparations to e,
our proposition properly under wa
, to manufacture pulp IN a large seal
"The man whose influence and carr
+ est efforts have been the greatest
{ putting forward, means for Il
:, thorough investigation and practic
exploitation of the flax paper industl
is Gov. L. B, Hanna Of this stat
e While in congress he got an apprC
9 priation of $4,000, to be used In el
- perimenting in the manufacture
= paper from fax straw, and all thos
! who arc connected with this work
: this state are greatly indebted to tt
governor for advice and support
s their labors.
= ITO promote the success Of this Il
: dustry as we'll as that Of a number
y other manufacturing enterprises Il
governor advocated in his message
8 he legislature last winter an appr
| priation to make 1T possible for an Il
dustrial commissioner to be appointe
whose duty 1t would be to investiga
the manufacturing enterprises in tt
state and to aid those at the head
these enterprises If m~eritorious
y raise capital both at home and in Il
east. I believe this recommendation
. be one of the very highest Of value
the state. Every one who understan
conditions in this state well realiz
II that 1t needs more manufacturing
q 1 -. = ~