The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-09-11
SILK STOCKINGS
 MADE FROM AMERICAN TREES
Fifteen Millions Produced From Forests of
 Country.

Fifteen million pairs of silk stock inEs, the product of the American forest, were sent out of the United States last year to compete with the product of the oriental silk worm. Not that these American silk stock ings actually grew on the trees but they were made from wood pulp, the product of American forests
 The rapid growth in the art Of making artificial silk in the United States is illustrated, according to a statement by The National City Bank of New York, by the fact that 15,- 00O,0 pairs of stockings manufactur- ed from artificial silk were exported from the United States in the fiscal year 1919 against only 5000, ,OO0 pairs in 1918. and 2,00O,OOO in 1917. So rapid has been the development of this industry by which the Ameri- 1 can chemists and manufacturers have | entered into competition with the ] oriental silk worm that the value of artificial silk manufacturers exported | from the United States has grown | from SS57, 900 in the fiscal year 1917 1 to $2.339,O00 in 1918, and $7,677, ,OOO | in 1919, being thus nins times as much in value in 1919 as only two ! years earlier, the first year in which | the government thought the industry | of sufficient importance to justify a l record of its export
 | The process by which the forests | are turned into silk stockings is a i comparatively simple one. Wood pulp | is treated with caustic soda to form | a sodium ccuuIose and then dissolved | in carbon disulphie. The product, | alkali-c cellElose-Nauthate, is a viscous | solution popUlarly called ''viscose' ! and after being filtered and allowed ! to ripen by standing is forced through l capillary tubes into a liquid which ! solidifies the threads which are when 1 completed similar in appearance, di- | mensiOn, and chemical qualities 10 | the fibre produced by the silk worm. 1 This silk fibre or thread is used in the | precise manner 1T. manufacturing as | are the threads produced by the | silk worm which are of similar com ! position and characteristics. The ar tificial product has in fact a greater ] brillianCy, being more Ius-rous than natural silk but a somewhat harsher 1 feeling. Some of the early short | cominEs of the artificial produ of. lack
 of strength and elasticity, have been l considerably Icssened and these arti- .i !
 for both warp and filling threads, fol l hosiery, dress trimmings, upholster-
 ies, and rugs, also taking the place ot real silk for insulating electric wirs
 and making durable mantles for in.
 candesCent HEhts.
 The production of artificial silk 1T
 the United States has been greatly
 stimulated during the war period Formerly considerable quantities ot
 this material which has been manu
 faCtured in Europe for several years
 were imported into the United States
 especially from Germany, Austria
 Hungary Belgium, France and th1
 United Kingdom, but the reduction 1T
 this supply from abroad led tn
 American manufacturer 10 ''get busy
 and he turned out in 1914 30O.0ot pounds of the artificial silk; in 1917
 6,5OO.OOO pounds, and in 1918 pre- sumably about twice that of 1917 sine,
 the quantity of manufactures iron
 this material exported in 1919 wa
 double that of the preceding year ana
 the value nearly three times as Erea
 as one year earlier. Meantime, tn importation of artificial silk whicl amounted to over S4,OOO,OOO in tn
 year preceding the war is now onI, about Oue-fOurth as much as in 1914 although the prices are, of course practically double those of the pre-wa period.
 The artificial silk manufactures ex ported from the United States go t
 all parts of the world and actually in
 wade the countries in which the nat ural silk is produced. Silk stocking and other products of artificial sill
 now go to China, Japan ana Italy tn |, l chief silk producing countries of tn
 world, though a large proportion O that exported in 1919 went to Eng
 land, Australia, Canada, Argentina
 Cuba, New Zealand and South Africa while still larger quantities are solt in the domestic markets of the Unite, States.