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Show PAPERMAKIN IN SIA 2 canals, the gathering of 440/ bark was a steady occupation butin recent years the demand for papermaking bark ha greatly diminished and only two or three old men remai who follow this precarious calling. Mrs. Niltongkum ha eight or ten bundles of %0/ bark which she had purchase the morning of my arrival and this small amount woul furnish material fora number of days to come In preparing the &/ bark for making paper the ma terial was first soake in the strea for three days, th action of the water tending to loosen the outer from th inner bark. The old woman of the mill explained that th inner white bark was used for making paper of the fines quality, while the dark-coloured rough outer bark wa made into sheets of inferior quality. After the two dis tinct grades of bark had been separated by hand the were soaked in lime water, contained in large earthen ware jars (Photograph 1), for three or four days, afte which the bark was subjected toa mild steaming. For thi process (Photograph 2), the lime-soaked bark was place in a large cylinder made of bamboo splints, which wa supported upright over an oven, the steam supplied fro a shallow iron bowl under which a wood fire was built After the steaming process, the bark was kept submerge in earthen-ware jars until ready for macerating. Previou to the beating the material was gone over with some de gree of care to free the bark from any rough particle Al rights reserved |