234 ALCOHOL, VINEGAR, SAUER KRAUT, TOBACCO, SILAGE, FLAX. 



is packed in trenches in the ground, pressed by heavy weights, 

 and left to ferment. It undergoes a fermentation that converts 

 it into an acceptable food for cattle. Its value lies in the fact that 

 it is a means of utilizing what would otherwise be a waste product. 

 It is of little significance in this country. 



THE RETTING OF FLAX AND HEMP. 



Linen is made from the long tough fibers that are found beneath 

 the bark of the flax plant. In the plant they are firmly bound 

 together, and with the wood and bark make a solid mass, glued 

 together by a substance called pectin. To remove these fibers so 

 that they may be woven into linen, this pectin must be disposed of 

 in some way. The method by which this has been accomplished 

 from time immemorial is by "retting." The flax is tied up in 

 bundles and immersed in the water of a stream or in vats. Here 

 it remains until the water bacteria have pretty thoroughly rotted 

 or "retted" it. By the decomposing action of these bacteria, 

 the pectin is dissolved and the fibers in the flax stem are loosened 

 from their connection with the other parts of the plant. A little 

 combing over properly constructed teeth separates the fibers from 

 each other, and gives the desired product for spinning and weaving. 

 The separation of the flax fibers has practically always been done 

 in this way. The bacteria concerned have been isolated from the 

 retting flax a'nd obtained in pure cultures, and it is found that they 

 are able to produce the result when inoculated upon flax in pure 

 culture. Hitherto no substitute for this bacterial action has been 

 found that will satisfactorily replace the natural retting. It is 

 quite possible that some chemical means may be found that 

 will replace the bacterial process. Indeed, certain secret processes 

 are now in use that are based upon chemical methods and are 

 claimed to give uniform results in a much shorter time than the 

 ordinary retting. How soon these may replace the agency of bacteria 

 in the linen industries cannot be predicted. 



Hemp is prepared from the hemp plant by a means essentially 

 similar to the retting of flax. 



