FLAX. 469 



pulled by hand, it may be either dried in the sun before binding, or bound at once. If cut 

 with a scythe, the swath should be thrown towards the standing flax : in this way the stalks 

 are all left leaning against the flax, and may be gathered and laid in gavels to dry or be 

 bound into sheaves. 



When the ground has been thoroughly drained, and is uniformly level, and the sowing 

 even, the stalks will generally all be of about the same length. Where pulling is practiced 

 in harvesting, considerable care is taken to shake off the soil that adheres to the roots, and to 

 keep them even at the root end. 



When the seed is the main object, it is not necessary to cut the stalks lower than to 

 secure the seed-bolls, the stalks that are left being plowed under to enrich the soil. It should 

 be bound at once and put in small stacks to dry. Care should be taken to have the seed- 

 bolls well cured before stacking or storing. If stacked in the field, the stack should be made 

 solid, with, the heads in and the stalks ends out, keeping the center filled and a little crowded. 

 The stack should be covered with hay or straw and allowed to remain until it has gone 

 through the usual sweating process, which will generally be in about two weeks. Sometimes 

 the sweating process is omitted, and the bundles are loosely stored until the seed is threshed. 



Preparing the Fiber. There are various methods of preparing the fiber of flax for 

 use. The object to be attained is the separation of the bark containing the fiber from the 

 woody stem. This is accomplished by a rotting process, which dissolves or destroys the 

 gluey or mucilaginous substance which holds the fibers together and to the stalk, and renders 

 them easily separated. 



The usual practice, after the headfe have been removed, is to submerge the bundles of 

 stalks in soft water, being weighted with stones or other heavy material to keep them well 

 covered. The length of time required to complete this process varies, according to the 

 temperature, from four to fourteen days or more. Water containing iron, or other mineral 

 matter, would be liable to stain the fiber, as well as hinder the process of rotting. 



It is important to know just when the process is completed, for if left remaining too long 

 in the water, the fiber will become weakened, and will break and tangle in the after-manage 

 ment. If not sufficiently rotted, it will break up with the stalk. When it has been continued 

 just long enough, the woody part of the stalk may be easily separated from the fibrous 

 portion, and the fibers themselves from each other. 



Sometimes this process is accomplished by dew-rotting, which consists of spreading the 

 stalks upon the grass and exposing them to the dew, turning them occasionally to render 

 the process uniform; but the method previously described is greatly to be preferred. Fol 

 lowing this, is the process of &quot;breaking,&quot; which consists of freeing the fiber from the woody 

 portion of the stalk; this is followel by scutching or swingling, which is that of getting out 

 the small particles of bark and stalk adhering; and this again by hatcheling or combing, 

 which strengthens the fibers, separates the fine from the coarse, and frees them from all 

 tangled or broken pieces. 



These various methods of preparing flax for use were once all performed on the farm, 

 but at present a large portion of the product is sold after the bolls or heads have been 

 removed, and these various processes are performed by the manufacturers of linen goods. 



Preparation of Seed for Market. In preparing flax-seed for market, the bolls 

 are first thoroughly dried and threshed, after which the seed is cleaned by a winnowing or 

 seed-cleaning machine. The threshing is generally performed with a machine where large 

 crops are produced, as hand-threshing, or any other means of opening the bolls would be a 

 very slow and laborious process. 



Where small quantities are grown, the seed is sometimes shelled by drawing the heads 

 of flax through a comb for the purpose, containing sharp iron teeth; also, by breaking them 



