THE RICE-PAPER PLANT. 81 
three feet high. They are planted equidistant and in rows, and not 
unfrequently on the sides of the hills. 
** When the plants have attained their full growth, which is said to 
be in the tenth month, they are cut down, the twigs and leaves removed, 
and the stems left to soak for some days in running water, to loosen 
the bark and wood, and facilitate the removal of the pith. This last, 
after being cleaned and made into a cylindrieal shape, is cut into con- 
venient lengths, and is now ready for the hand of the paper-cutter, who 
performs his part as follows:—Taking a sharp broad-bladéd knife, 
of which that now exhibited has been sent as a specimen, he makes a 
slight longitudinal ineision in the cylinder of pith, which is then turned 
round gently and regularly on the edge of the knife, until the whole 
available material is planed off in thin even slices. Much care and 
dexterity are requisite to produce sheets of even thickness: if the opera- 
tion is performed too hastily and the motion of the hand not properly 
regulated, the sheets will not take the required curl, and will come off 
in wrinkled masses. If, on the other hand, the paring is done too slowly, 
the paper is liable to come out of uneven thickness. This is the blun- 
der which the Fuh-chow artisans are too apt to commit, and they are 
far behind the Formosa cutters, whose skill is truly admirable; one or 
two workmen at Amoy have however done wonders in this line, and 
deserve considerable praise. 
“ The skill of the workmen, and the appearance of the material, are 
well illustrated by the accompanying specimens*. No. 1 contains 
cylinders of the pith after the cleaning is finished and before the cut- 
ting of the paper commences. No. 3 shows what remains of the ori- _ 
ginal cylinder after the whole of the available substance has been planed 
off, and the extreme tenuity of the specimens is evidence of the skill 
and nicety of the operation. Nos. 4 and 5 are small-sized sheets, cut, 
the former in Formosa, and the latter (which are dyed) at Fuh-chow. 
. No. 6, sheets of full size. No. 2 contains a quantity of the spare 
shavings or cuttings which remain after the sheets are reduced to a 
regular form, and are sold as stuffing for pillows. 
* The sheets of the smaller sizes are bought up by the flower manu- 
facturers, dyed, and made into artificial flowers, for which an immense 
* Thanks to Mr. Bowring and other friends in Hongkong, our Museum of - 
Economie Botany now contains a very ery full collection of the several states of the - 
Rice-paper, and the implements employed in its preparation —Eo. 
VOL. V. 
