MECHANICS AXD USEFUL ARTS. 115 



A patent for the manufacture of paper from wood has been taken in 

 England, by 11. A. Brooman, of London. In this, the machinery pre- 

 ferred to be employed, for the purpose of obtaining the fibres of wood and 

 woody substances, consists of a millstone or millstones, or metal roller, 

 cylinders, or rasps with roughened surfaces, which are caused to act upon 

 blocks or pieces of wood held in a frame, always in the direction of the 

 grain thereof, a current or stream of water being directed on to the stone 

 or other reducing agent immediately before its contact with the wood. A 

 gauge is provided, to prevent the passage with the water of such portions 

 of the wood or woody fibres as may not be sufficiently reduced. The 

 fibres come from the stones, rollers, cylinders, or rasps, in a state of pulp, 

 and are passed through sieves of different gauges, from which they are 

 taken, to be applied to the manufacture of different qualities of paper. 

 The pulp thus obtained may be mixed with rag pulp, and with various 

 other ingredients now employed in the manufacture of paper ; and the 

 pulp is subjected to form it into paper. The wood pulp may be bleached 

 by any ordinary process, or by means of the following process : Mix the 

 pulp, in the first place, with a solution of carbonate of soda or soda ash, 

 and subsequently with a solution of alum ; the strength of these solutions 

 being regulated by the degree of whiteness required to be given to the 

 pulp. The relative proportions of the two chemical bodies in their re- 

 spective solutions are about two to one ; that is, the quantity of carbonate 

 of soda contained in its solution should be about double the quantity of 

 alum contained in the solution of that salt. The total quantity of both 

 required, is about one-tenth by weight of the pulp operated on. 



The patentee claims, first, the manufacture of paper from wood and 

 woody fibres, reduced to fibrous pulp by means of mechanical agents, 

 acting in the direction of the length or grain of the said fibres, and paral- 

 lel thereto ; together with water or other suitable liquid, applied in the 

 manner described. And, second, the particular arrangement of machinery 

 described, for reducing wood to fibrous pulp suitable for the manufacture 

 of paper. 



The following notice of another improvement is taken from Newton's 

 Journal, George Stiff, of London, patentee : 



In carrying out his invention, the patentee makes use of straw, or grass, 

 " gunny bagging," and "hemp bagging," preferring, however, the em- 

 ployment of strav,'. When straw, grass, or vegetable fibre of any similar 

 kind is employed, the first process made use of is, to cut the straw or 

 fibre into lengths of about half an inch, which may be done in a chaff- 

 cutting machine, or any similar apparatus heretofore employed for the 

 purpose ; after which, the straw or fibre is winnowed, by any suitable 

 contrivance, in order to separate the knots and other portions of the fibre 

 which could not be readil}^ reduced to the consistency of pulp. The straw 

 or fibre thus treated, or the guany bagging, or hemp bagging, after hav- 

 ing been suitably prepared, is placed in a boiler or vessel, together with a 

 sufficient quantity of clear water to cover the fibre or other material, and 



