176 PROCESS OF GROWING AND PREPARING FLAX. 



9. Bleachixg. To complete the rot, as well as to gain a better 

 color, the flax is bleached after the water rotting. The bleaching 

 during the months of March, April and May, is called spring 

 bleaching; during the months of June, July and August, summer 

 bleaching ; and during September and October, fall bleaching. The 

 flax bleached in March becomes very white, and is easily cleaned 

 of the shavings, but is said to remain hard. Flax bleached in May 

 receives, from the efi'ects of the dew, especially on meadows, a 

 flexible handle, as it is called, great weight, and a nice, bright 

 color. This flax is the most esteemed. Flax laid upon newly 

 mowed meadows to bleach gets a yellowish color, and is said to 

 lose in weight. Fall bleaching, so often affected with the injurious 

 night rust, is used only for inferior flax, or by poor people, who try 

 to dispose of their flax in the first year. To prevent the flax from 

 becoming too white, some let it bleach no longer than 2 to 3 days. 

 This is called the minute bleaching, but it is as yet but little in 

 use, since the linen woven of such flax is hard to bleach. For 

 bleaching, wet and cool meadows, covered with long grass, are 

 most suitable, for there the bleaching proceeds more regularly. On 

 dry meadows, especially where cattle have pastured, there is gen- 

 erally rjiore vermin which damage the flax to a greater or less ex- 

 tent. On meadows with long grass, the flax will suffer less from 

 rain and hail. To secure a good bleaching, it is required that the 

 flax be laid carefully and evenly, the halms adhering together 

 should be loosened, and the whole be turned frequently. When 

 the upper side has the desired color, then the flax is turned, and 

 remains lying until the color of the other side is satisfactory also. 

 After a- hard rain, having beaten down the flax too deep into the 

 grass, it must be turned without delay. When two or three sunny 

 days occurred during bleaching, the flax has to be turned even 

 after a light rain. In continuous rainy weather, the flax must be 

 turned and shaken up every two or three days. If such weather 

 sets in toward the end of the bleaching time, the flax must be 

 turned every other day, otherwise the .night-rust will affect it. The 

 night-rust consists of gray spots, it first appears on individual 

 halms, but will increase within 24 hours to such extent that all the 

 flax assumes a grey color. It mostly occurs during the fall bleach- 

 ing, and chiefly : 



1. When the flax lies too long and too deep in the grass. 



2. AYlien it has not rotted enough. 



