Vlll 



with economy had failed. Oil -cake, the refuse of lin- 

 seed, stood first in the farmer's estimation. He main- 

 tained that it was superior to the pure seed itself; nor 

 could his deep-rooted prejudice be removed till a chain 

 of successful experiments rendered conviction irresistible. 



My attempt to grow the seed of which this favourite 

 oil-cake was composed, arose from the desire of substi- 

 tuting native for foreign produce to fatten cattle, and 

 originated the present movement towards the growth of 

 flax. An insignificant commencement ! but destined, 

 like many similar dispensations of Providence, to pro- 

 duce benefits to which no assignable limits can be 

 placed. 



Box-feeding and summer-grazing next engaged ^y 

 attention ; which, in combination with flax-culture, form 

 the foundation of the following pages ; and I am con- 

 fident that the advantages therein portrayed will be 

 fully realized by all who rightly apply them. It would 

 be folly to dispute their solidity without the test of prac- 

 tical inquiry. Nor do I intend again to enter the lists 

 of controversy with parties guided only by empty theo- 

 ries and idle prejudices. 



The opposition of the Anti- Corn-Law League forms 

 a remarkable feature in the history of the present move- 

 ment to extend the cultivation of flax. I refer to it with 

 pain : for though no inconsiderable portion of the free- 

 trade party were favourable to the culture, and many 

 flax-spinners promoted it by subscriptions and premiums, 

 yet, in their collective capacity, they greatly retarded 

 the cause. Their sweeping condemnation of landowners, 

 for the supposed attempt " to substitute flax for wheat, 

 and to lessen the means of subsistence," was inconsistent 



