45

H.—29

Quality of Eibre. The quality of the hemp during the past year, as can be seen from the', attached tables, shows an all-round improvement at all the grading-ports as compared with the previous year. The percentage of good-fair is increased by 9 per cent., and low-fair and common also show a moderate improvement. This without doubt is due principally to a difference of £3 to £5 per ton ruling during a great part of the year between the different grades, and it is to be hoped that this difference; will continue, as the majority of millers will do their utmost to mill for the higher grades. Most of the low-fair and common, hemp graded at the ports of Foxton anel Wellington was due solely to the very inferior (diseased) leaf several millers had to contend with, and very short leaf in the Southland District was responsible for the; high percentage, of low-fair graded at the Bluff. In many cases, howe;ver, the hemp graded during the year would have pointed much higher but for the unsatisfactory work in scutching. This branch of nulling is invariably done under the contract system, and the tendency is to aim at quantity and not quality. One result of poor scutching (with the resultant bad tail on the hanks), is that cordage-manufacturers experience great trouble in spinning, and oversea buyers often complain strongly of this we;akness in our fibre, which must have a detrimental effect on its safe. This fault has to be recognized in grading, and many large, parcels dealt with during the year had in consequence; to be put into a leiwer grade than that whiedi the quality of the; body of the fibre, merited. I would especially impress upon millers that something must be done to uplift the industry by improving the methods followed in the production of phormium-fibre, more; especially in the scutching process. In so doing a regular quality of fibre would be preidueerd, which woulel be appreciated by users and lead to an expansion of the demand. There, is not the slightest doubt that in conseepaence, of the large quantities of sisal nerw produced, and the imprerved methods erf producing this fibre, phormium-fibre is likely to suffer in the' world's markets unless something is done to materially improve on its present average quality. The loss to the Dominion on the past year's outpu caused by the production of low-grade, fibre which woulel have easily secured a higher grade by extra scutching is estimated at betwe;e;n £10,000 and £12,000, this calculation being based on the differene'e of prices between the various grades. Not only is there a direct lerss in the; output of a low-grade article, but an indirect one caused by the prejudice created in the minds of manufacturers, who, perhaps being unaware of our better quality, discard phormium under the impression that they have seen our best. The quality of the tow produced in the past seasern must be regarded as very satisfactory, the. percentage of third grade for the Dominion being only 7-5 per cent., compared with. 18 per cent, in the previous year. First grade has also gone up from 30 to 35 per cent. The low prices offering and very small demand for stripper-slips were responsible for the large' decrease in this by-product. The Marlborough, West Coast (South Island), and Wairoa districts still uphold their reputation for turning out a first-class epiality of fibre, and millers in these districts have no trouble in disposing of most of their output to local manufacturers. There are also several millers in the' Wairarapa and Manawatu districts who deserve special mention. Manufacturing Processes. A sulphur-bleaching process has been carried out by a few millers, but so far has not been as successful as was anticipated. Grading Statistics. The following tables give' particulars of the grading during the year emde;d 31st March, 1920, the Dominion totals and percentages for the: previous year being also shown for comparison in the' firstthree tables :—

ei np (Bales). 6 c ,. ., ,. <p -,,,, Uood-urading-ijorts. fe Dine. , , p, lair. s cc Auckland .. .. .. 46 3,488 Foxton 1.4 2,250 Wellington .. .. .. 92 6,184 Bluff .. 305 Dunedin .. 315 Blenheim .. .. .. 4-1,136 Pie-ton .. .. . . 394 ! 264 Napier .. 2,1.08 Lyttelton .. .. .. 50 178 High- Low- ,, i, . , . Con- ,. ? ci ■ Common. Reiected , , fair. lean-. ' demned. ._ 10,493 4.991 551 14 14,964 5,480 491 212 I .. 19,352 ' 9,658 579 94 2,650 2,625 301. , 13 .. 752 535 116 40 13 19 3 i 14 .. Total. 19,383 23,411 35,959 5.894 1,718 1,215 872 2,108 308 80 Totals, 1919-20 .. .. 800 16,228 I Percentage .. .. 0-88 17-82 48,345 23,102 2,057 336 53-23 25-43 2-26 0-37 72,970 44,105 6,276 596 105 53-32 32-23 4-61 0-43 0-08 99,868 Totals, 1918-19 .. .. 571 12,150 136,773 Percentage .. .. 0-41 8-92 Total decrease ii n 1919-20, 45,905 bales.