34 
Indian Forest Records . 
[Vol. Ill 
41. The Economist’s estimate for air-dry B. polymorpha and C. per - 
gracile delivered at such a site is Rs. 10 per ton. To this I add 25 per 
cent, to cover the rise in cost which is likely to occur soon after the estab¬ 
lishment of a large new demand. This brings it to Rs. 12-8, and accord¬ 
ing to Table VIII, with an average yield from these two species of 451 
per cent., the quantity required for one ton of pulp is 43'94 cwts. say 
44 cwts. which will cost Rs. 27-8. 
42. The cost of chemicals depends largely upon the efficiency of the 
recovery plant which, if of the quadruple effect vacuum system, would 
cost approximately £8,000 complete with buildings. In accordance with 
the usual factory practice, I estimate the cost of the regenerated liquor 
which it would deliver to the mill proper as if the chemical plant was a 
separate department bearing its own charges for materials, depreciation, 
repairs and labour, but not superintendence. The percentage of recovery 
I take at 85 per cent, of the total consumption of soda; 90 per cent, is 
possible and is frequently obtained, but the considerable amount of silica 
in bamboo would have the effect of slightly lowering this efficiency. Lime 
is quoted in the Economist’s report as costing 5 annas per cubic foot 
delivered, which is equal to about Rs. 14 per ton. Sulphate of soda 
(crude salt cake) can, I find, be imported and delivered for about Rs. 55 
per ton. Coal from Bengal I take at Rs. 15 per ton, which appears to 
have been about the average of the last three years. At these prices and 
taking labour at current local rates and including a charge of £800 per 
annum (10 per cent, on capital cost of plant) for repairs and depreciation, 
I estimate that the finished sulphate liquor could be prepared at a cost 
equal toRs. 65*8 per ton of active dry contents reckoned as NaOH of 
76 per cent, strength. The average quantity required according to 
Table VIII is 9 cwts. 0 qrs. 14 lbs. per ton of pulp, which would there¬ 
fore cost Rs. 29-14. 
43. The data available for estimating the cost of labour and super¬ 
intendence is limited to the experience of wood and straw pulp manufac¬ 
ture in Europe, and of paper manufacture in India. Neither is very 
applicable to the matter in hand. In the former, the cost is that of highly 
paid white labour of high efficiency, whereas we have to deal with cheap 
native labour of low efficiency, with its cheapness counterbalanced to 
some extent by the higher cost of imported superintendence. The ex¬ 
perience of Indian paper mills does not help us much, because the labour 
cost of pulp-making is very much less than that of paper-making, but it 
gives us some idea of the relative efficiency of European and Indian labour 
engaged on somewhat similar work. With an item thus open to some 
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