Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1916-02-05

Recent tests of North Dakota flax
in tow mill at st. Paul, Mimi, the
produce OF which was shipped to
Maine for manufacture into paper
and strawboard, have been reported
upon by Jason l.. Merrill, paper plant
chemist, United States department of
agriculture. ..'
The North Dakota flax, Mr. Merrill
reports, has been successfully used in
the manufacture OF fiber counter
boards, which are employed to a great
and increasing extent in making toe
boxes and counters for shoes. Mr..
Merrill sees no reason why this
should not be the end Of 100000
tons of fax straw hitherto burned in
this country annually as waste.
1t has been assumed by some that
the American flax is not suitable for
manufacturing purposes, but Mr. iMer-
rill insists that this is not the case.
He admits that the cost Of producing
good writing paper from flax straw
has forbidden it competition in that
market, or even in highgrade sack
papers or rope papers. Manufactur
ers of cartridge or shot shell papers,
however annually import 1000 tons
of flax waste and have been com
PEELED to study substitutes.
$5,000000 Now Wasted.
Mr.. Merrill estimates that the pa
per producing possibilities of the
100000 tons of fax straw annually
burned in this country are equal to
the annual production of writing pa
per in the United States: that its
sale would mean an added revenue
to the farmers Of about $5,000000 an
nually; that it would keep q place
for flax in the agricultural system
of the country; would probably result
in paper manufacturing industries BIZ.
ing established in sections where
there are not any now: would help
the American paper industry to be in
dependent Of foreign raw materials,
and produce a keener realization Of
the latent value of some of the enor-
nous crop wastes in the United
States.
North Dakota Big Producer.
North Dakota is at present the
largest flax producer, with about
100000 acres annually in fax. Min
nesOta. which was in second place 10
years ago, now falls behind both
South Dakota and Montana.
A small flax tow mill in North Da
kota has produced bleached flax pulp
of an apparently satisfactory quality
from which good grades of writing
paper have been manufactured, bit
the work. while promising. Mr.. Mer-
rill considers yet in the experimental!
stage.
The fax used in the laboratory
tests on which Mr.. Merrill reports
was Of the ordinary seed flax type
raised in the vicinity of Fargo, was
threshed with the ordinary threshing
hay baler.
Flax from the same neighborhood
was used in wrapping paper expert
ments at Cumberland Mills, Me.
The outbreak of the European war.
during these experiments, caused
great uneasiness in the fiber board
industry concerning the supply of for
eign raw material, there having been
imported annually therefor about
1000 tons of flax waste. which until
1912 sold for less than $40 a ton.
Prices Raised.
But in 1913 the average price was
$3.50, and after war broke out quo.
tations went as high as $65, although
there really, during a considerable
part Of the time. was not any of the
waste available. 1t was then thought
that if American fax straw could be
substituted for the imported waste.
which is used for counters and toes
for stiffening the heels and toes of
shoes, this would be a propitious
time to induce manufacturers to CO.