Fibres 



315 



about ten days the fibre sinks to the bottom of the pond, and the process of decomposition 

 is regarded as complete. The turbidity of the water during the whole period indicates .the 

 activity of the fermentative organisms. 



In Belgium the straw is retted in the river Leys, the water of which is said to be unrivalled 

 for the purpose. The bundles are closely packed in crates, the tops of which are covered with 

 straw to keep out any foreign matter, and the whole is then placed in the water for from four 

 to fifteen days. The straw is again dried in little stooks in the fields, and then subjected 

 to a second, and sometimes a third, immersion, when the steeping process is complete. When 

 the flax is considered to be sufficiently retted it is finally dried in the fields, and then subjected 

 to a " breaking " process which fits it for the final scutching. The breaking is effected by 

 machinery, and consists essentially in breaking up the stems of the plants between rollers 

 in order to separate the woody tissue from the fibre or flax. The more thoroughly the breaking 

 is performed the less will be the amount of scutching required, and consequently the quantity 

 of waste material will be reduced. During the scutching process the fibre is freed from the 

 woody particles and rendered fit for the market. Hand-scutching still survives in some coun- 

 tries, but scutching machines are extensively employed in all the great flax-growing districts. 

 During the process the broken stems are subjected to the action of revolving blades which 

 beat out all the woody fragments, and, when quite clean, the finished fibre is removed to the 

 store, and there finally baled for the market. 



Flax fibre is from twelve to thirteen inches in length, and varies in colour from silvery grey 

 to yellowish white, according to the method of retting employed. It is the strongest of 

 the commercial plant fibres, but,: nevertheless, is soft and flexible, and is extensively used for 

 making table linen, handkerchiefs, collars, sewing thread, and bookbinders' twine.. 



Photo by Charles Ab&niacar 



THE CULTIVATION 



j-HEME-.: RESTING 



^ OF THE 



UNIVERSITY 



OF a 



