FLAX. 



15 



those countries where flax is most cultivated the 

 hand-break is still used. 



This instrument is a block of wood about seven or 

 eight feet in length, and seven or eight inches in 

 breadth and thickness. Deep grooves are made 

 in the wood extending through its whole length, 

 about an inch wide at bottom, and increasing in 

 width in such a manner that the divisions thus formed 

 may present rather sharp edges on the surface. 

 Over this block of wood another block is fitted, one 

 end of it being made fast by means of a hinge, and 

 the other shaped into a handle. This upper block 

 has two longitudinal edges, so shaped as to enter 

 and fit into the corresponding grooves of the under 

 part of the machine. 



Flax-breaking. 



