^S8 MONTHLY JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURE. 



«of the largest home-grown crop for several years. There have lately been erected 

 aa this neighborhood 60,000 additional spindles, which will be aifu/l work, dur- 

 iing the ensuing year, and which it is calculated will consume 3000 tons addi- 

 fiional flax, of the value of half a million of dollars yearly." There are in 

 Xeeds sixteen extensive firms engaged in spinning flax, who keep in constant em- 

 ;ployment at least 10,000 hands.* 



Why cannot America rival them in this, as it has done in the manufacture of 

 ■cotton and wool ? Are not all the mountain valleys, in the neighborhood of our 

 immeasurable but unused Avater power in the south and south-west, exceeding- 

 ly well adapted to the growth of flax? But as to the exhausting nature of the 

 -jcrop, says the writer in hand : 



■" The main point npon which we rest our asseitiou that flax is not necessarily an exhauster 

 eof the soil, as far as its composition is instructive on this point, is this : Exhaustion of the 

 »m1, as the word implies, is the removal out of it of those elements of vegetable food which 

 St contains, and in the abundance of which its fertility consists. Now plants derive all their 

 raiineral portions from the soil — all those portions, in fact, of which, when they are burnt, 

 ■Aeir ashes consist — and upon the quantity and quality of them their power of exhausting 

 :^e soil depends. 



■" Taking tlie whole flax ]^lant, when hai-N-ested, Dr. Kane found it to contain 5 ])er cent. 

 ■•-of ashes; which, comparing it with other plants, is a large proportion: Init the whole of the 

 i3ant need not be canied off the farm. The fact is, nolhiiig hut the fiax should be carried 

 'off the farm; the seed should he consnmcd ujion it; the sfcepiug-icater should be used as 

 liquid manure — and none better can be applied ; the bone or stalk on which the flbre grew, 

 '-^when se])arated liom the flax by the operation of breaking and .scutching, SHOui.n be burnt 

 — as it will not rot for years as manure — and can'ied to the dung-heap. The tibre is the 

 tesLY THING carried to market; and the point to be ascertained, by one who cultivates flax 

 ;as he ought, in order to make up his mind as to the exhaustion of his fann consequent on its 

 ^.cultivation, is the mineral matter can-ied off" in the fibre : and this, on Dr. Kane's authority, 

 -sivd for the satisfaction of all who wish to cultivate the crop, we pi-uclaim to be most uisig- 

 iiificant in quantity; in fact, you may take a bundle of fiax fibre, and burn it, mid it wUl 

 'leave no ashes. 



■" I shall conclude these remarks by adthng, from the columns of the Agricultural Gazette, 

 ■ -&. report of the speech of Dr. Kane, on this subject, at the Markethdl Agricultural Societj". 

 The chaii-mau, W. Blacker, Esq. said : — ' Gentlemen, I Iwg now to request your particular 

 •attention to such observations as Dr. Kane may be kind enough to make.' 



** ' Dr. Kane said that he felt great pleasure in acceding to Mr. Blacker's request that lie 

 *hould endeavor to explain to the farmers present the principles ui)ou which tlie euiploy- 

 meaat of the refuse of the flax ci-ops, as manuie, is jiroposed. It is really very simple ; and 

 iie felt satisfied that, in that neigliliorhood, whei-e so much activity and intelligence were aji- 

 piied to the improvement of Agriculture, it only rci]uiied that the rea.'sonablencss of any 

 .practice should be shown, hi ordnr that its adoption in ])racrice might be secured. Evciy 

 iarmer present was aware that crojis exh;iustcd the soil ; that tlie plants take out of the 

 ground a number of materials, and that it was necessary to restore a similar material to the 

 . .'ground, in order to keej) up its fertility ; therefore, die manure which the fanner puts hi 

 '< wi^. «>r beiore his seed is, in a degree, the raw material of which tlu; grown crop is to be 

 ViSBaile. It is just aa much a part of the plant as the seed itself ^^'hen the fanner .sells and 

 sends away his grown croj), to be used for Ibod, as in the case of wheat, or oafs, or potatoes, 

 ;%e thereby sends away and sells tin- essence of the manure which he had put into the 

 :^8uml; and, as he thus gets paid ti)r the manure, wIk^i it is exhausted, he must put in as 

 .Miuch more for the next croj), which is to be di-alt with in the same way. Now, in the case 

 of flax, there is the important pecidiarity tliat it is not eaten; and hence does not return to 

 <he land any manure in the ordinary way, wliile it takes out of the soil just the same matori- 

 -.tiis as oats or potatoes; so that it is really a very exhausting crop, if we only look to the' 

 'OTXJwing of it. But the flax crop differs i'roin other crojts in this — that the value of oats or 

 aotatoes, and all food crops, (lei>ends on what they take out of tlie ground ; while the valu- 

 ^^lisle part of the flax is the line lihre, or thread, which has taken nothing out of the gi-ound. 

 JIT you bum away a bundle of flax-.straw, it will leave behind a large (piantity of white ashes, 

 ■<sKbich consist of the dilVerent substan(M>s which the plant took out of the ground; but if you 

 Ibnra away a bundle of vvell-dre.s,sod flax, it will leave no ashes. Now, what has become 

 ««fibe ashes? They have evidently been canned off with the waste parts of the plant ui tlie 



■* According to the census of 1840, there were in the United States but l.tWS persons employed in flax 

 "inflbandry altogether, and the whole ciipital invested, is put down at $208,067 ; eighteen States are put 



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