Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-02-20
A Nettle Textile.

DAME. or China grass. is a nettle
IN which grows we'll In various
countries. China, Java, Mancnurla,
india Porto Rico and the Philippine
Islands produce vast quantities IL
is already used in the manufacture
or fishing lines. sail cloth. net, ships
cables, clothing. paper and Tor many
other purposes where It's uses are re-
sarded as trade secrets. The Chinese
make a great deal of their clothing
from it and are keenly alive to It's
value. The wealthy Chinese clothe
themselves almost entirely In ramie
cloth, and prefer it to all other tex
tiles. as it has a luster equal to SILK
and is not destroyed by washing. AS
ramie does not rot, 1t shows a quar-
ity which should recommend 1t Tor
many purposes.
II will grow where cotton grows.
but what is more important it can
be produced where cotton cannot. III
it were cultivated as largely as cot
ton. there is no doubt 1t would be
preferred to cotton, as IL Is quite as
cheaD. If wear and appearance
weighed in comparing it with any
other fiber, it would surpass cotton
for cheapness.
Germany has for number of years
been using ramie in the manufacture
of incandescent gas NANTES, consum-
ing more than 150.000.0oO of these
each year. France and other coun-
tries have been using it for making
bank notes, where it's wearing quail
tiles and durability have proven
satisfactory. Clothing made of ramie
can readily be washed and Numbered,
as it loses none of its strength, even
when dyed.
The greatest difficulty formerly ex-
perienced in putting ramie on the
market was the slow and expensive
process of degumming. A process
has been discovered, however, COM
prising an operation of 10 minutes,
and very simple, by which time and
labor were saved. and ramie seems
destined to take its place as a staple
commercial article. The fiber comes
out almost snow white, and .As stated.
is very much like silk. The process
in no way changed the essential char
acter of the fabric so far as strength
and durability are concerned. AS far
back as memory serves the Chinese,
who find a use for all things, have
considered it indestructible and they
have dyed it for generations:
The ease with which ramie can be
grown should be an incentive to
many farmers TO grow this fiber. for.
unlike cotton, it is not an annual
crop, once planted II will produce
from 16 to Is years. and gives a very
long staple 8 to IS inches 1t has.
too, another great advantage over
cotton and most crops in that It does
not suffer from the ravages OF insects.
withstands drought and does not need
to be harvested at an exact moment.
The large quantity Of tannin in the
composition of the plant protects it
from insects in a great measure. An
other advantageous feature Of ramie IS
that it is possible to grow 1t to a.
paying extent on land that will not
pay for general cultivation.
The Chinese grow the fiber. as a
rule, in small patches, treating 1t as
a cottage industry. where all the
family join in its cultivation and
harvesting. The plant grows to a
height varying from 5 to feet or
more. The stems do not all mature
at a given time, so that 1t cannot be
cut like corn or a similar crop, at
one reaping, but as the stems arrive
at maturity. In this way some parts
of the globe are so favorable to it
that the cropping could take place
almost daily.
The Chinese method Is to cut close
to the root and then Us sty.S- It by
hand, the ribbons being drawn slowly
through the thumb and forefinger. on
which is attached q hard substance,
which at one operation removes the
outer skin, or pellicle, and also most
OF the resinous gum that is so
abundant In the plant.