November i, lago.] 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
321 
SOME OBSERVATIONS ON TEA DRYING 
MACHINERY. 
(By C. B.) 
* # # 
In deciding upon the beat olaaa of machine, the 
first question to be considered is •pnioer ; if the factory 
is supplied with unlimited water power the decision 
should at once be made in favour of one of the yan 
maoliines, because the fuel consumed by snob is about 
10 per cent, leas for weight of tea dried than by machines 
which do not require power. If there is abundance of 
steam power available the same consideration holds 
good, but to a limited extent, because the extra fuel 
used in the boiler will nearly balance the difference 
of fuel used in the drying machines, and the fact is 
to be taken into account that the oogiue will have to 
be kept going for hours after the rolling work is 
fini.shed. When power in the factory is limited, it is 
obvious that the decision should be in favour of such 
machines as the £/p-draft Sirocco, because it is inde- 
pendent of the engine, and can be placed in any part 
of the factory, irrespective of tho position of the 
other machinery. 
Sevei'nl machines to do the required work are bet- 
ter thin one only of large capacity, because any little 
accident deranging the latter would bring the whole 
of the drving to a standstill, whereas in the former 
case a difficulty with one machine could be overcome 
by extra pressure upon the others ; and, besides, if 
the extra In at from drying is utilized for withering 
fl lors overhead, it is evidently better to have such 
beat-producing apparatus distributed than to have 
it concentrated on one spot, unless indeed withering 
fans are employed to distribute the heat. Another 
consideration is that it does not pay to work a large 
machine for drying a small quantity of tea in the slack 
season, for it stands to reason that an immense body 
of iron, and perhaps brick, as we'l as floor, takes a 
geat deal of fuel to bring it up to a temperature of 
240 deg.; and this is an expenditure which is greater even 
for a short day’s work than for a long one, because 
there is a longer interval of cooling down between 
working hours. Besides all this it is well to have 
one or two machines doing the finishing off only, as 
no machine yet invented will, under ordinary circum- 
^taiic ,s, dry the tea pueca at one go. Viewed from 
everv point, therefore, it is better to have, say, not 
less than four machines for a moderate sized factory 
ttiaii !u have one large machine capable of drying 
tho whole. 
In choosing a type of machine it is well to look to 
substantial itj/ ; of course it goes without saying that a 
machine which will unfailingly produce tea of even Jd. 
per lb. bettor than others is to bo got at all cost ; 
but no such superiority has yet been established for 
any one, and the fact remains that the most substan- 
tial will prove the best in the long run; provided 
always that tho price is not very serious (though they 
are all more expensive than they should be), since 
it is quite possible that during the next five years some 
genius may place in the market an article which will 
meet most of the requirements still left untouched. 
A machine with an excessively powerful fan is to be 
avoided by all, for many reasons. Such a machine is 
useless for final firing, because it will blow away the 
finest of the tea ; it dries rapidly by passing through 
the tea a much larger quantity of air than in the more 
moderate processes, and the fierce strong blast must 
destroy a gnat deal of the aroma of delicately fla- 
voured teas; the power required to work such a fan 
is enorm udy more than peop’e are apt to think 
when they twirl the thing round by one hand when 
the bolt is off ; and the consequent oonsumption of 
fuel in the boiler and tne wear and tear of connecting 
machinery are no small items : the heat in the air 
after passing tlirongh such a machine will be found to 
be out of all proportion to the n mount of moisture 
carried away, and is therefore a direct waste and in 
many ca.ses must be a positive nui.sance. It is a 
rnisfako to think that suoh heat can be utilized for 
withering because drying is Huep''«e4 fn Vp gnm? nn 
when the withering is tinishe.i, nr iiouly so. 
-a 
It is an undoubted fact that machinerv is a saving 
of labour, and some of the drying machines save a 
great deal in that way ; in most cases this saving is 
to be reckoned at much more than the actual wages, 
because it sots free the labour for other work in the 
most busy season, when increased cultivation may be 
of vast importance to quality as well as quantity of 
tea . — Indian Planters’ Gazette, liMig, 26tb. 
THE RAMIE FIBRE. 
Fbogbess of its Manufactube in this 
COUNTBY. 
Editor, “Manufacturers’ Record,'’ 
Now that fahrica made of ramie fibre, and of Ameri- 
can manufacture, are on sa’e and can be had regu- 
larly of the trade, one more etaple. hitherto unknown 
to the AmerioHu agriculturist may be established on 
a scale that will produce an .annual revenue to the 
farmers aggrega'ing nn immense sum. All experi- 
ments in the cultivation of the ramie plant in this 
country have been on a small scale, not ever suffi- 
cient in their pronorlions to demonstrate an efficient 
and practical me'hod of decorticating fhe stems. 
A serious obstacle to the progress of ramie culti- 
vation in this country has been the element of 
doubt regarding the demand for the fibre. Enthu- 
siastic writers upon the subject of ramie culture 
have greatly exaggerated the demand for China grass 
(ramie) said to exist in Europe, In recent years the 
price of China grass has been so hi?b, compared with 
other fibres, as to prohibit its use in Europe except 
in moderate quantities. Large sums of money have 
been expended in Europe experimenting in the fabri- 
cation of what is universally acknowledged to be tbe 
finest and most valuable vegetable fibre known to the 
commercial world. Costly experiments were conducted 
to properly ungum the fibre of imported China grass. 
Generally those experiments have been unsatisfactory, 
while the appe.arauce of tbe resulting fibre seemed 
perfect, being fine, glossy and white. Yet when spun 
and put into cloth the fabric would crack, and many 
other difficulties were met with in this fabrication 
which were known only to the art. 
Moreover, the fibre obtained was always costly, 
which made it necessary to introduce it only into 
high-priced goods. This involved another class of ex- 
periments, such as machinery for spinning and to 
complete the fabricution of a kind of goods that 
would command a sufficient price to make the enter- 
prise remunerative. Some of the European experi- 
menters seem to have been partially successful, hut they 
have not created a large demand for tbe fibre. 
From an American .standpoint, there is not a large 
establishment in Euri pe tunning on ramie. It has 
remained for Mr. Charles Toppsn to thoroughly and 
perfectly ungum the fibre, so that it can be spun 
and carded by ordinary cotton and woollen machinery, 
giving a re.sult that' permits the fibre to be n.«ed 
in the manufacture of cheap fabrics. This has not 
been accomplished in any other country, and its value 
can hardly be overestimated, for inasmuch as the fibre 
is produced cheap enough to be used in low grade 
goods, now the demanil for the raw material will he 
large. The evidence of this is in the fact that fhe 
first six months of 1890 will show a consumption of 
China grass iu tbe United States greater than was 
consumed in all Europe iu the year of 1889. 
The mannfac'uve of goods from ramie is now es- 
tablished, and the fibre, will soon find its way into 
the highest grade of fabrics. Men's suitings and fine 
underwear are already being made here from it. 
A commercial joiirral, recently commenting on the 
varieties of ramie, states that thtre is an annual 
variety valuable only for cordage. This is iirobuldy 
an error ns to its hi ing a variety of ramie. China 
and Japan ])roJnce the well-known commodity we 
know as China grass or ramie, and while there are 
Bcvcral Varieties, the plant is a perennial. I’he amuml 
referred to is probably in no way alii' d to ilu Clnia 
