Democratic Sentinel, Volume 19, Number 36, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 13 September 1895 — USE OF PAPER PULP. [ARTICLE]

USE OF PAPER PULP.

It la Being Converted Into Many Curious Things. We have had the golden age and the iron age and various other ages, says the Philadelphia Record, but the present, says an exchange, will probably be known as the wooden or paper age. Paper dress material masquerading as silk is the latest invention in the paper line, and threatens to drive the silkworm out of the business. Spruce sawdust, cotton or jute waste and alcohol are put into the machine, and come out at the other end shining, delicately colored, rustling silks, suitable for the most fastidious lady's gown. Of course, this paper silk doesn't wear so well as the real fabric, but think how much cheaper it will be. Enthusiastic paper manufacturers say the new woman and the new man will dine oft paper dishes. It is not improbable that the hat of the future will be an indestructible paper affair, impervious to fire and water. Over in Paris any enterprising milliner will be able to show ydu stylish bonnets and hats made entirely of paper, frame, trimming, ornaments and all. Parasols of paper do not seem to have been thought of yet, but satchels and trunks of paper are common enough. The paper trunk, despite its frail sound, is the despair of the baggage smasher. It refuses to smash.

So do paper car wheels. They liave been in use for years on some of the most important railroads In this country. It must not be supposed that the wheels are made entirely of paper. This material only forms the interior shell. Having been subjected to terrific pressure, it is molded and firmly bolted to the outer rim, which is of steel. Greater durability and lightness are claimed for these wheels, but don’t let the idea of lightness lead you to get under one. If you do, you may possibly have use for one of the paper coffins which are being turned out at wholesale by a firm ut Westfield, Mass. The railroad train of the future is likely not only to have paper wheels, but to run on paper rails. These are made entirely of paper and are formed in molds under great pressure. They have been used to some extent in Russia and Germany, and are said to be free from many of the defects of the ordinary steel rail. Paper horseshoes are another European invention. Among the advantages claimed for them is that they maintain a rough surface, enabling the horse to get a good grip on the smooth pavements. German paper makers have put on the market a substance called “papier sculptor,' which is used Instead of clay for moldings. It is simply paper pulp kept soft enough to be worked. Papier mache ceilings and wall decorations are very fashionable. This may look like leather or brocade, or u thousand and one handsome embossed effects, but they are wood pulp just the same. The house furnishing departments in big shops furnish interesting evidence of the extent to which paper enters into ordinary life. Paper pails and tubs are appreciated by the suburban dweller who hasn't set tubs. They are much lighter and easier to keep clean, as well as cheaper, than the old style. Water colors are made of paper. So is the much abused cupsidor, Peach baskets, berry baskets and almost everything under the sunsalt, which used to come in pretty blue and white bags, oatmeal, crackers, ice cream, shoes, dresses—ls sunt home in a paper box.