On the whole, it will be found advantageous, when the same grade of jute is required, to select a batch from different balers' marks so that throughout the various seasons an average quality may be produced. The same class of yarn is expected at all times of the year, but it is well known that the properties of any one mark may vary from time to time owing to the slight variations in the manipulation of the fibre at the farms, and to the variations of the weather during the time of growth, and during the season generally. A list of the bales for the batch is sent to the batching department, this list being known as a "batch-ticket." The bales are, of course, defined by their marks, and those mentioned on the batch-ticket must be rigidly adhered to for one particular class of yarn; if there is any chance of one kind running short, the condition should be notified in time so that a suitable mark may be selected to take its place without effecting any great change in the character or quality of the yarn. When the number 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.