57 
have kindly forwarded samples of the grass and a photo- micrograph 
of a transverse section of the leaf. (See Case 93, Museum No. II.) 
The following account by Mr. G. Stewart Remington of recent 
chemical investigations and of experiments made in the manufacture 
of paper from lalang appeared in the Agricultural Bulletin of the 
Straits and Federated Malay States, December 1908, p. 585 :— 
“ One of our correspondents sent a sample of lalang grass recently 
to England, and has received the following report, also samples of 
paper made from lalang grass entirely and 4 lalang and } cotton :— 
CERTIFICATE OF ANALYSIS. 
* Sample of Lalang Grass marked ‘ Exchange Singapore, Straits 
Settlements,’ on 23rd July, 1908. 
“This is to certify that the above sample has been carefully 
examined with the following results :— 
“ This grass was forwarded to ‘ The Aynsome Technical Labora- 
tories’ for investigation, that its commercial use as a source of 
pulp for paper-making might be ascertained. 
“The object of the present report is to draw attention to the 
importance and value of this grass as a pulp-producing material, 
and to indicate its chief characteristics and economic value 
“ The sample was a pale buff colour, lustrous in appearance and 
of fair strength, of the order Gramineae. 
“The chemical examination furnished the following results, the 
percentages other than that of moisture being expressed on the dry 
material : 
Moisture. ve ie ov i 13°21 
Ash 
BR si8 te si sis 
Loss on L. Hydrolysis... ‘as ive 10°76 
Loss on B. Hydrolysis... ee iti 46°65 
Loss on Mercerisation oui ss Si 31°62 
Loss on Acid Purification .,, sb ii 0°95 
Gain on Nitration .., on or box 21°19 
Cellulose nis vit ied or ov 47°4] 
Length of ultimate fibre... ee eee 1°20 
“The ultimate fibre obtained from this grass is very similar in 
most respects to Esparto, the yield of bleached fibre being about 
the same. This is a favourable indication, inasmuch as * Esparto ’ 
is one of the best known and most useful sources of supply to the 
trade. The fibres as seen under the microscope are short, smooth, 
cylindrical, fairly uniform in diameter, gradually tapering to 
rounded extremities ; they also occur together in little bundles, 
The pulp will be found to contain a number of small cuticular cells 
h do not however show in the finished paper. The fibres are 
stained a pale yellow with iodine solution, which fades more 
rapidly than is usual with coloured pulps. 
“The results obtained from the chemical analysis show that the Ze 
grass is capable of yielding a good quality of cellulose, suitable ieee 
every way for the manufacture of paper. tee the grassis 
very susceptible to the action of dilute alkalis, the final product eee 
€xceptionally pure and readily resolved, ~ : Ss 
