FLAX AND FLAX-WORKERS. 
BA Wie aWelv a5 OUN 
(Read at Whitehaven. ) 
. I do not think it necessary to make an apology for reading a 
paper on trade at a Scientific Institution, inasmuch as it would, I 
presume, be readily admitted that scientific pursuits and scientific 
_ discoveries were valuable in proportion to their ministering to the 
necessities and enjoyments of life. He who would form a correct 
estimate of the benefits resulting to mankind from the industries of 
the United kingdom, must not omit the Linen Trade. The linen 
trade is of national importance. There is also considerable artistic 
skill displayed in the production of a material which, for personal 
wear and many domestic purposes, is at once the most cleanly, 
healthful, and agreeable of all the home-made fabrics in use 
amongst us. 
When looked at under the microscope, the flax fibre is seen 
_ to be cylindrical, bright, smooth, and transparent. The cotton 
fibre is, on the other hand, surrounded by a multitude of exceed- 
ingly minute edges. This may explain the reason why linen and 
cotton cloths act so differently upon the health of those who wear 
them. 
In point of national importance, the linen trade holds a 
‘prominent place amongst the industries of the world: some 
millions of persons in the United Kingdom are employed in the 
‘manufacture of linen. It is stated that about one-third of the 
population of Ireland are, in one way or other, connected with the 
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