382 PREPARATION OF FLAX. 



dissolve the gummy sap, by which the bark adheres to the woody 

 portion of the stalk, and to favour the decomposition of the soft 

 cellular tissue by which the woody bundles are held together. 

 This process, which is called water-retting, renders the water 

 offensive, and is said to be unhealthy to the neighbourhood ; 

 and an act preventing its being carried on in any common stream 

 or pond, is in force in this country. The length of time required 

 varies from about 10 to 15 days, according to the state of the 

 flax, the temperature of the water, &c. It has been recom- 

 mended as a much better method, to steep the flax in hot water 

 for a short time, with soft soap. The water-retting of fine flax, 

 for the manufacture of the most delicate cambrics and muslins, 

 is attended to with great care ; it is particularly necessary that 

 there should be a constant renewal of the water, as the fibres 

 will otherwise acquire a dark" tinge, of which it will be almost 

 impossible to get rid by bleaching. The fibrous bundles 

 are then separated from the rest of the tissue, by being passed 

 between two surfaces, one of which has grooves, into which 

 enter projecting ridges on the other. In former times, and in 

 some countries at the present, a very simple machine is used for 

 this purpose, termed a break; this consists of two long blocks, 

 cut in the manner just described, united by a hinge at one end ; 

 the lower one being supported, the upper is lifted at the other 

 end by the right hand, and the stems are drawn with the left 

 between the two jaws of the break, which are made to close 

 together forcibly several times, so as to bruise the stems and 

 separate their parts from each other, without breaking the fibres. 

 After this another operation is required, to separate the smaller 

 particles of bruised refuse from the flax ; this is termed scutching. 

 These two operations are now usually performed together by a 

 machine, principally consisting of three cylinders with ridges and 

 indentations that work into each other ; and between these the 

 flax is passed. After this, the flax is heckled, by drawing the 

 bundles through a frame studded with rows of sharp pins ; this 

 effectually frees it from all extraneous matter, and presents a 

 series of smooth distinct filaments. It is then ready for the 

 spinner. The finer kinds of flax, however, are prepared in a more 



