Grove Chemical Company

The World's Paper Trade Review, 1899. A Question of 'Size'. ARABOL v. ARLEDTER. Let Papermakers Arbitrate.

We have received the following communication from Messers  Bertram and Co. of 28 Queen Street, London EC - It has come to our knowledge that The Arabol Manufacturing Co, New York, has sent pamphlets all over England and Scotland in which they twist facts in such a way that we are obliged to make the following remarks - " We offered the Arabol Co the United States patent of
the Arledter process and we have their reply in writing that they will consider the offer. For reasons mentioned below they declined it, and at once began to publish their articles in which they declare that the Arledter patent could not hold if contested, that we have tried to levy tribute on their sales by asking a licence of 10s per ton as consideration of their using our United States patent, further, that we sent them menacing letters etc.
We are not in need of the Arabol Co to work our patent, but were influenced to apply to them by Mr F Arledter, of Charlottenburg, who informed us that the Arabol Co, through their representatives in Germany, had tried to secure his patent. This proves that they did not underrate the importance of this matter and that they well knew the value of the patent. Before accepting our moderate terms, they employed a lawyer to see whether this patent could be infringed upon. Their counsel said it could and they cabled at once, 'Decline offer'.
"Their plan is now to see whether their old process will stand our competition, and if not, to adopt the pressure boiling and to risk legal action. Their ascertations that they boiled formerly under pressure are incorrect, and only made to contest our patent. When Mr Ardledter applied for the United States Patent The Arabol Co drew the attention of the Patent Office to their well known pamphlet which they said dealt already with the free rosin theory. This, however, did not prevent the granting of the patent.
The Arablo Co now pretend that the patent has been granted on account of the carbonic acid in the Arledter size. The Arabol Co knew very well that Dr. Bock's patent dealt already with the addition of carbonic acid to rosin soap, and that Arledter's soap, if caustic soda is used, does not contain carbonic acid. In the first part of their pamphlet Mr Weigaertner talks such nonsense
about the difficulty of adding more soda and rosin to the size in the pressure boiler that it is evident that his company never thought seriously of pressure boiling much less tried it.

As the Arledter process from the breaking of the rosin barrels to the storing of the filtered soap lasts less than six hours, and as a small boiler will produce over three tons of soap during this time, it needs no further explanation that the cost of production is scarcely one eighth of the cost of the Arabol Process. The Arledter process is simplicity itself, and as it is open to inspection at the Crown Works, Appley Bridge, and in a few weeks time at Glasgow and Canning Town, London, every papermaker can see the plant and witness the whole process in a very short time. If any process guarantees a uniform size it is the Arledter process, as everything is under perfect control. If the right quantity of soda is put into the boiler, and this is a very easy matter, the size must be perfect and cannot be otherwise. Nothing is lost of materials put into the boiler, the size being boiled always under the same pressure, and this is the only way to obtain regularity. The proof of the pudding is in the eating, an old Proverb says. No mill will ever adopt the Arabol process, whereas many leading mills have already adopted the Arledter process, and as to their sales of size, although in the market only eight weeks, more mills are now using Arledter size than the Arabol Co secured customers in almost as many years. If paper mills give up the manufacture of size, and this is only a question of time, they must have a guarantee that if they buy ready made size this must not only give the same result, but also reduce the cost of sizing.

We are not afraid of the libellous way of dealing with our straightforward offer, and could show the bad faith of the Arabol Co by going into further details, but do not want to encroach upon your readers' time.

Samples and sample parcels are now at the disposal of all papermakers, who can thus form their own opinion.

 

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