and kind of bales have been selected and removed
from the groups or parcels in the store or warehouse, they are
conveyed to the batching department, and placed in a suitable
position near the first machine in the series. It need hardly be
mentioned that since the fibre, during the operation of baling, is
subjected to such a high hydraulic pressure, the bale presents a
very solid and hard appearance, see Fig. 7, for the various
so-called "heads" of fibre have been squeezed together and forced
into a very small bulk. In such a state, the heads are quite
unfitted for the actual batching operation; they require to be opened
out somewhat so that the fibres will be more or less separated from
each other. This operation is termed "opening" and the process is
conducted in what is known as a "bale opener," one type of which is
illustrated in Fig. 8, and made by Messrs. Urquhart, Lindsay & Co.,
Ltd., Dundee.

The various bales of the batch are arranged in a suitable manner
near the feed side of the machine, on the left in the view, so that
they can be handled to the best advantage. The bands or ropes, see
Fig. 7, are removed from the bale in order that the heads or large
pieces of jute can be separated. If any irregularity in the
selection of the heads from the different bales of the batch takes
place in this first selection of the heads of jute, the faulty
handling may affect subsequent operations in such a way that no
chance of correcting the defect can occur; it should be noted at
this stage that if there are slight variations of any kind in the
fibres, it is advisable to make special efforts to obtain a good
average mixture; as a matter of fact, it is wise to insist upon a
judicious selection in every case. The usual variations are--the
colour of the fibre, its strength, and the presence of certain
impurities such as stick, root, bark or specks; if the pieces of jute,
which are affected adversely by any of the above, are carefully
mixed with the otherwise perfect fibre, most of the faults may
disappear as the fibre proceeds on its way through the different
machines.

[Illustration: FIG. 8 BALE OPENER _By permission of Messrs. Urquhart,
Lindsay & Co., Ltd_.]

The layers of heads are often beaten with a heavy sledge hammer in
hand batching, but for machine batching a bale opener is used, and
this operation constitutes the preliminary opening. As already
indicated, the heads of jute are fed into the machine from the left