The Jute Industry: From Seed to Finished Cloth Part 1

The Jute Industry: From Seed to Finished Cloth.

by T. Woodhouse and P. Kilgour.

PREFACE

The sub-t.i.tle of this little volume indicates that practically all the processes involved in the cultivation of jute plants, the extraction of the fibre, and the transformation of the fibre into useful commodities, have been considered. In addition, every important branch of this wide industry is liberally ill.u.s.trated, and the description, although not severely technical, is sufficiently so to enable students, or those with no previous knowledge of the subject, to follow the operations intelligently, and to become more or less acquainted with the general routine of jute manufacture. As a matter of fact, the work forms a medium of study for textile students, and a suitable introduction to the more detailed literature by the authors on these textile subjects.

T. WOODHOUSE.

P. KILGOUR.

THE JUTE INDUSTRY

FROM SEED TO FINISHED CLOTH

CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTORY

The five main fibres used for ordinary textile purposes are cotton, flax, jute, silk and wool; in this group jute has been considered in general as being of the least value, not only in regard to price, but also in regard to utility. It is only under phenomenal conditions which arise from a great upheaval such as that which took place during the world's great war from 1914 onwards that, from a commercial point of view, the extreme importance of the jute fibre and its products are fully realized. Millions of sand bags were made from the year 1914 to the year 1918 solely for military purposes, while huge quant.i.ties of jute cloth were utilized as the covering material for food stuffs of various kinds, thus liberating the other textile fibres and cloth for equally important purposes. It is on record that in one short period of fourteen days, 150,000,000 sand-bags were collected, packed and despatched from Dundee to be used as protective elements in various ways and seats of conflict.

A glance into the records of the textile industries will reveal the fact that the jute fibre was practically unknown in these islands a hundred years ago. Unsuccessful attempts were certainly made to import the fibre into Great Britain in the latter part of the 18th century, and it has been used in India for centuries in the making of cord, twine and coa.r.s.e fabrics, because the fibre is indigenous to that country. And since all the manufacturing methods there, for a considerable time were manual ones, the industry--if such it could be called--moved along slowly, providing employment only for the needs of a small section of the community on the Eastern sh.o.r.es.

The first small imports of jute fibre were due to the instigation of Dr. Roxburgh and the East India Company, but it was only after repeated requests that any attempt was made to utilize the samples of jute for practical experiments The fibre was so unlike any of the existing staples that those interested in textiles were not anxious to experiment with it, but ultimately they were persuaded to do so; these persistent requests for trials, and the interest which was finally aroused, formed the nucleus of the existing important jute industry.

Apart from the above-mentioned efforts, the introduction of the jute fibre into Great Britain was delayed until 1822, when the first small consignment reached Dundee--now the Western home of the jute industry. This quant.i.ty was imported into this country with the special object of having it treated by mechanical means, much in the same way as flax fibre was being treated. At this period Dundee was a comparatively important textile centre in regard to the spinning and weaving of flax and hemp; it was, in consequence, only natural that the longer, but otherwise apparently similar and coa.r.s.er, jute fibre should be submitted to the machinery in vogue for the preparation and spinning of flax and hemp. When we say similar, we mean in general appearance; it is now well-known that there is a considerable difference between jute fibre and those of hemp and flax, and hence the modifications in preparation which had ultimately to be introduced to enable the jute fibre to be successfully treated.

These modifications shall be discussed at a later stage.

It might be stated that while only 368 cwt. of jute fibre was reported as being s.h.i.+pped from Calcutta to this country in 1828, the imports gradually increased as time pa.s.sed on. The yarns which were made from the fibre were heavier or thicker than those in demand for the usual types of cloth, and it was desirable that other types of cloth should be introduced so that these yarns could be utilized.

About the year 1838, representatives of the Dutch Government placed comparatively large orders with the manufacturers for jute bags to be used for carrying the crop of coffee beans from their West Indian possessions. The subsequent rapid growth of the industry, and the demand for newer types of cloth, are perhaps due more to the above fortunate experiment than to any other circ.u.mstance.

By the year or season 1850-51, the British imports of jute fibre had increased to over 28,000 tons, and they reached 46,000 tons in the season 1860-61. Attention meanwhile had been directed to the possibility of manufacturing jute goods by machinery in India--the seat of the cultivation and growth of the fibre. At least such a probability was antic.i.p.ated, for in the year 1858 a small consignment of machinery was despatched to Calcutta, and an attempt made to produce the gunny bags which were typical of the Indian native industry.

The great difference between the more or less unorganized hand labour and the essential organization of modern mills and factories soon became apparent, for in the first place it was difficult to induce the natives to remain inside the works during the period of training, and equally difficult to keep the trained operatives constantly employed. Monetary affairs induced them to leave the mills and factories for their more usual mode of living in the country.

In the face of these difficulties, however, the industry grew in India as well as in Dundee. For several years before the war, the quant.i.ty of raw jute fibre brought to Dundee and other British ports amounted to 200,000 tons. During the same period preceding the war, nearly 1,000,000 tons were exported to various countries, while the Indian annual consumption--due jointly to the home industry and the mills in the vicinity of Calcutta--reached the same huge total of one million tons.

The growth of the jute industry in several parts of the world, and consequently its gradually increasing importance in regard to the production of yarns and cloth for various purposes, enables it to be ranked as one of the important industries in the textile group, and one which may perhaps attain a much more important position in the near future amongst our national manufacturing processes. As a matter of fact, at the present time, huge extensions are contemplated and actually taking place in India.

CHAPTER II. CULTIVATION

_Botanical and Physical Features of the Plant_. Jute fibre is obtained from two varieties of plants which appear to differ only in the shape of the fruit or seed vessel. Thus, the fruit of the variety _Corchorus Capsularis_ is enclosed in a capsule of approximately circular section, whereas the fruit of the variety _Corchorus Olitorius_ is contained in a pod. Both belong to the order _Tiliacea_, and are annuals cultivated mostly in Bengal and a.s.sam.

Other varieties are recorded, e.g. the _Corchorus j.a.ponicus_ of j.a.pan, and the _Corchorus Mompoxensis_ used in Panama for making a kind of tea, while one variety of jute plant is referred to in the book of job as the Jew's Mallow; this variety _C. Olitorius_, has been used in the East from time immemorial as a pot herb.

The two main varieties _C. Capsularis_ and _C. Olilorius_ are cultivated in Bengal for the production of fibre, while for seed purposes, large tracts of land are cultivated in a.s.sam, and the seeds exported for use princ.i.p.ally in Mymensingh and Dacca.

The above two varieties of the jute plant vary in height from 5 to 15 feet, and, in a normal season, reach maturity in about four months from the time of sowing. In some districts the stems of jute plants are sometimes rather dark in colour, but, in general, they are green or pink, and straight with a tendency to branch. The leaves are alternate on the stems, 4 to 5 inches in length, and about 1-1/2 inches in breadth with serrated edges. Pale yellow flowers spring from the axil (axilla) of the leaves, and there is an abundance of small seeds in the fruit which, as mentioned, is characteristic of the variety.

While many attempts have been made to cultivate jute plants in various parts of the world, the results seem to indicate that the necessary conditions for the successful cultivation of them are completely fulfilled only in the Bengal area, and the geographical position of this province is mainly responsible for these conditions.

On referring to a map of India, it will be seen that Bengal is directly north of the bay of that name, and is bounded on the north by the great Himalayan mountains.

During the winter period when the prevailing winds are from the north, large areas of the mountainous regions are covered with snow, but when the winds change and come from the south, and particularly during the warmer weather, the moist warm air raises the general temperature and also melts much of the snow on the mountain tracts.

The rain and melted snow swell the two great rivers on the east and west of Bengal--the Patna and the Brahmaputra--and the tremendous volume of water carries down decayed vegetable and animal matter which is ultimately spread on the flat areas of Bengal as alluvial deposits, and thus provides an ideal layer of soil for the propagation of the jute plants.

The cultivation of land for the growing of jute plants is most extensively conducted in the centres bordering on the courses of the rivers, and particularly in Mymensingh, Dacca, Hooghly and Pabna, and while 90 per cent. of the fibre is produced in Bengal, Orissa and Bihar, there is 10 per cent. produced outside these areas.

The _Corchorus Capsularis_ variety is usually cultivated in the higher and richer soils, while the _Corchorus Olitorius_ variety is most suited for the lower-lying alluvial soils, and to the districts where the rainfall is irregular; indeed, the _C. Olitorius_ may be grown in certain other districts of India which appear quite unsuitable for the _C. Capsularis_.

The farming operations in India are rather simple when compared with the corresponding operations in this country; there is evidently not the same necessity for extensive working of the Indian soil as there is for the heavier lands; another reason for the primitive Eastern methods may be the absence of horses.

The ploughs are made of wood and faced with iron. Bullocks, in teams of two or more, are harnessed to the plough as shown in Fig. 1 where a field is being ploughed as a preliminary process in jute cultivation. The bullocks draw the plough in much the same way as horses do in this country.

The operation of ploughing breaks up the soil, while the rough clods may be broken by hand mallets or by the use of the "hengha"--a piece of tree boll harnessed at the ends to a pair of bullocks.

The breaking up of the land prepares it for the cleaning process which is performed by what are termed "ladders"; these ladders are made of a few bamboos fixed cross-wise and provided with projecting pins to scratch or open the soil, and to collect the roots of the previous crop; they are the equivalent of our harrows, and may be used repeatedly during the winter and spring seasons so that a fine tilth may be produced.

When manure is essential, it is applied in the later ploughings, but other large areas have artificial or chemical manures added at similar stages in the process. Farm-yard manure is preferred, but castor-cake and the water hyacinth--a weed--const.i.tute good subst.i.tutes.

After the soil has been satisfactorily prepared, the seed is sown by hand at the period which appears most suitable for the particular district. The usual sowing time is from February to the end of May, and even in June in some districts where late crops can be obtained.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 1 NATIVES PLOUGHING THE GROUND]

There are early and late varieties of the plants, and a carefully judged distribution of the varieties of seed over the districts for the growing period will not only yield a succession of crops for easy harvesting, but will also help the farmer in the selection of seeds for other areas where atmospheric conditions differ.

It is a good practice, where possible, to sow the seed in two directions at right angles to each other, and thus secure as uniform a distribution as possible. The amount of seed used depends partly upon the district, and in general from 10 lbs. to 30 lbs. per acre are sown. The seed may cost about 8 annas or more per ser (about 2 lbs.).

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 2 BREAKING UP THE SOIL, OR "LADDERING"]

Plants should be specially cultivated for the production of seed in order to obtain the best results from these seeds for fibre plants.

Many of the ryots (farmers) use seed which has been collected from plants grown from inferior seed, or from odd and often poor plants; they also grow plants year after year on the same soil. The fibres obtained, as a rule, and as a result of this method of obtaining seeds, gradually deteriorate; much better results accrue when succession of crops and change of seed are carefully attended to.

If the weather conditions are favourable, the seeds will germinate in 8 to 10 days, after which the plants grow rapidly. The heat and showers of rain combined soon form a crust on the soil which should be broken; this is done by means of another ladder provided with long pins, and Fig. 2 ill.u.s.trates the operation in process. This second laddering process opens up the soil and allows the moisture and heat to enter. The young plants are now thinned, and the ground weeded periodically, until the plants reach a sufficient height or strength to prevent the words from spreading.

The s.p.a.ce between the growing plants will vary according to the region; if there is a tendency to slow growth, there is an abundance of plants; whereas, the thinning is most severe where the plants show prospects of growing thick and tall.

In a normal season the plants will reach maturity in about 3 1/2 to 4 months from the time of sowing. Although different opinions are held as to the best time for harvesting, that when the fruits are setting appears to be most in favour; plants harvested at this stage usually yield a large quant.i.ty of good fibre which can be perfectly cleaned, and which is of good spinning quality.

The plants are cut down by hand and with home-made knives; in general, these knives are of crude manufacture, but they appear to be quite suitable for the purpose. A field of jute plants ready for cutting will certainly form a delightful picture, but the prospect of the operation of cutting indicates a formidable piece of work since it requires about 10 to 14 tons of the green crop to produce about 10 to 15 cwt. of clean dry fibre.