OF THE COUNTY OF DOWN. 235 



his fon and fucceflbr with increafing fpirit and atten- 

 tion. At Newry there have been lately fet up a few 

 damafk looms ; whether they are likely to make a pro- 

 grefs has not yet been afcertained. In the neighbour- 

 hood of Waringftown there is a manufacture, called 

 damafk diaper, which is faid nearly to equal the real 

 damafk in beauty and wear, and is much cheaper. In 

 the fame neighbourhood a confiderable quantity of 

 diaper is made. Befides thefe, a number of articles are 

 made for home confumption, fuch as fheets, facks, and 

 a long &c. in which every part of that ufeful vegetable, 

 the flax plant, is in/the end worked up. 



Muflin is the next manufacture of importance after 

 linen ; the rapid progrefs it has made in this county, 

 during the laft twenty years, previous to which it was 

 fcarcely known, has fomething truly inftruftive to poli- 

 tical economics, by pointing out to them, in the intro- 

 duction of new manufactures, to find fuch as eafily 

 aflimilate with thofe already eftablifhed. Thus every 

 weaver of linen in this country, upon the expectation 

 of fuperior profit, was ready to turn his attention to- 

 wards the weaving of muflin, which, though fomewhat 

 different in the execution, militated very little with his 

 ancient habits. Very foon, therefore, on its appearance 

 it detached a number of workmen from the linen 

 trade ; and a great many others, who would have ap- 

 plied to the latter, finding it much more eafy td acquire 

 a knowledge of weaving muflin, and better wages, 



gave 



