PROCEEDINGS OF THE FARMERS' CLUB. 235 



Prof. Nash said that when he heard of this machine he was 

 prepared to refute the statement that it saved all the fibre, for it 

 had always been the case in machines that he had seen, that much 

 of the fibre at both ends of the flax was torn oflF by the extra 

 force that was required to remove the shives from the middle. 

 But he found that this machine takes the flax and finishes a cer- 

 tain length of it at a time, so that no part of the fibre is operated 

 upon longer than is necessary to entirely clear it of shives. 



The question was asked whether the steam blowing gun would 

 not compete with Mr. Sanford's machine for separating the fibre. 



Mr. Mallory said that Mr. Lyman's steam gun was only use4 

 for flax cotton. For this purpose it was a success. He assisted 

 at an experiment with it at Jones' Wood, and a large maple log 

 was put in the gun and fired ofi*. For a moment he thought every- 

 body was killed, the explosion was so tremendous. It cut off 

 large limbs of trees, and struck near a horse-car, which it would 

 have demolished if it had hit it. Pine slabs were next put in the 

 gun, which was braced against a large tree, and aimed at another 

 tree. When it was set off the particles were spread over the tree, 

 and it was finer than flax. It is very useful for the purpose of 

 separating fabrics for paper. Anyone who wants to make flax- 

 cotton can do it after the shivea are removed by Sanford's 

 machine, by a common fulling mill. The fibre of the flax is only 

 about one eighth of an inch in length. 



Mr. Carpenter oifered a resolution, appointing a committee of 

 three to examine this machine, which was adopted, and Messrs. 

 Mapes, Nash and Robinson were named by the chairman, 



FRANKLINITE IRON APPLIED TO HORSE-SHOES, 



Prof. Mapes said that since he had come into the room he had 

 been shown an improvement in horse-shoeing, of which he would 

 say a few words. The points of the shoe were made of a mate- 

 rial obtained from the Franklinite ore. The iron made from this 

 ore, after the zinc is extracted, is harder than steel, and was 

 at first considered useless for manufacturing purposes on this 

 account. It was afterward discovered, however, that it would 

 melt at a temperature lower than any other form of iron. It was 

 found, also, that it can be united by heat with the surface of 

 wrought iron, the compound retaining all the properties of 

 wrought iron. Mr. Selleck, who has been experimenting in the 

 matter, now places on each calk of the horse-shoe a small piece 



