Part V.] Pearson: Note on the Utilization of Bamboo. 5 
PART I. 
GENERAL DISCUSSION ON THE SUBJECT. 
1. History of former enquiries carried out with a view of 
ascertaining t e possibility of manufacturing paper-pulp 
from Bamboos. 
Origin of the enquiry. —The idea of manufacturing paper-pulp from 
bamboos is not a new one. During the early seventies of the last cen¬ 
tury, Esparto grass was chiefly in use for the manufacture of paper, 
and just about that time the demand for cheap paper began to exceed 
the available supply of this grass. Paper-pulp manufacturers were 
therefore on the look-out for suitable substitutes and amongst others 
which came under their notice were conifer woods and bamboos. The 
conifer woods won the day, being obtainable nearer the European 
market, so that to-day at least three-fourths of the world’s supply of 
paper is made from spruce and pine woods. The bamboo, however, 
during that period, received a fair amount of attention. The Govern¬ 
ment of India instituted an enquiry in 1873, the report on which deals 
with possible fibre-yielding plants, their strength and general qualities. 
Enquiry by Hem Chandra Kerr in 1874. —The next publication on 
the subject of Indian fibres is by Babu Hem Chandra Kerr, entitled 
“ The Cultivation of Jute in Bengal, and on Indian Fibres available for 
the Manufacture of Paper.” 
T. Routledges enquiry of 1875. —We next find an Englishman, 
namely, Mr. Thomas Boutledge of Sunderland, taking an interest in 
bamboos, at just about the time of the crisis when the supply of 
Esparto grass was becoming insufficient to meet the demand. It may 
be said that it was to this gentleman’s initiative that bamboos began 
to be seriously thought of as a possible raw material from which to 
manufacture paper-pulp. He published two notes on the subject, one in 
1875, entitled “ Bamboo considered as a Paper-making Material ” and 
another entitled “ Bamboo and its Treatment ” which appeared in 1879. 
Liotard’s Refort of 1883. —In 1883, Mr. Liotard published a note 
on “ Paper-making Industry in India ” which deals directly with the 
consumption of paper in India and the United Kingdom and discusses 
Railway Rates, which do not, however, apply at the present time. 
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