Director'' s Annual Report. 39 



afford another class of fibres which may be called "structural" or 

 "foliaceous." Among the chief of these are Manila hemp, coir, 

 sisal and pita. 



A third class of fibres is obtained from the down or hair sur- 

 rounding the seed or seed capsule of certain plants. The most 

 important of these is cotton, which is produced in bolls contained 

 in the seed envelope of various species of Gossyphwi. 



The method of separating fibres from the plant depends 

 materially upon their stru(5lure. As a general rule the process' 

 involves steeping or macerating in water (termed "retting"), beat- 

 ing and scraping (known as "heckling"), washing, drying and 

 bleaching. With certain fibres some of these processes may be 

 unnecessary, but in broad terms the manufacfture of fibre may be 

 said to embrace them all. Modern machinery is making import- 

 ant changes and introducing new methods and economy of time 

 and expense. Before the introdu(5lion of mechanical aid the pre- 

 paration of fibre was necessarily slow and laborious. In former 

 times retting appears to have pla5'ed a more important part than 

 now, nearly all fibres being first subjedted to this treatment ; that 

 of the coco palm, known as coir, was allowed in some instances to 

 macerate for two years. The process of retting is now not so often 

 resorted to, as it is found that it injures the quality of the fibre 

 both as to strength and color : it must, however, always form a 

 necessary part in the preparation of some fibres. 



In extra<fling fibres by hand, bast varieties are best obtained 

 by gently beating the bark with a wooden mallet to loosen and sep- 

 arate the filaments. These should then be thoroughly washed and 

 freed from extraneous matter and then immersed for a greater or 

 less time in water until the fibre can be cleaned from impurities. 

 The preparation is completed by such drying and bleaching as is 

 required. 



The process of hand preparation of strucftural fibre follows 

 much the same lines as are required for bast ones. With pulpy 

 plants, such as the agaves and plantains, retting may be dispensed 

 with altogether, and fibre obtained in this way usually commands 

 a better price on the market. As a rule the more quickly the sap 

 and pulp be removed after cutting, the cleaner and stronger the 

 fibre. Clearness and texture often form a good criterion as to 

 strength . 



