PAPER FROM RAGS	15
breaker, and yield a pure and clean half stuff of good strength, which will
become easily fibrillated and give a firm handle to the paper.
No. i Fines, or Best Fines, consist usually of a mixture of linen and cotton.
They are always white and clean and of fairly good strength—that is, they
are not absolutely worn out. They consist of much the same classes of articles
of domestic use as the No. I Linens, and often include collars and cuffs, white
shirts, etc. When of good quality they are heavy rags, and contain many
large pieces and few strips. They must be overlooked for buttons, fasteners
and elastic, and they are cut up by hand prior to being put through the chopper.
They are boiled with a very little caustic soda—say, I per cent—or a little
soda ash is often sufficient. The pressure used need not be high and the boiling
need only last for 2 to 4 hours at most. They require very little bleach, and
give a beautiful pure and clean half stuff, which can be beaten off very quickly
without getting too wet.
These rags are used chiefly for the manufacture of superfine writing papers
which have to be pure and bright and 'pretty*.
Outshots and Second Fines are the same as the previous quality, but are not
so clean, or so large in size, and are more worn out. They are, in fact, thrown
out by the rag sorters when grading for Best Fines. They need to be carefully
overhauled for buttons and fasteners, elastic and 'dress preservers' which con-
tain hidden rubber solution. They often contain a great many strips of clothing
which have rows of buttons and minute metal fasteners attached.
They need more caustic soda and longer boiling than Fines. They give
a fairly bright white half stuff, but it has not the strength of the Fines, and they
need more bleach.
These rags vary a good deal according to the source of supply, and great
care must be exercised in the buying of diem.
Soiled Curtains.—These are often packed separately, although they are also
included among outshots and seconds. They are a soft cotton rag, very often
tender on account of frequent washing and exposure to light and air when
hanging in windows. They are, however, very uniform in quality. They
require to be carefully sorted to remove pins and elastic and metal rings. They
require little caustic, gentle boiling, and very little bleach. When carefully
handled they give a much stronger half stuff than would be expected, con-
sidering how easily they tear before treatment.
They can be made to give a very free working stuff, suitable for blottings
and filterings.
Seconds.—There can surely be no class of raw material used by any manu-
facturer which varies so much in quality and price as 'Seconds*. All rag
merchants sort and pack them in vast quantities, but no two merchants sort to