No. 144.] 183 



taken out to be used as tow or flax cotton, and all the rest re- 

 tained and delivered in a sliver form ready for the drawing 

 frames — that all this could be done at a trifling expense, less than 

 two cents per poun I, making less tow than by the old mode, and 

 saving nearly all ihe « normous expense heretofore deemed indis- 

 pensable for heckling. It was stated that in spinning fine yarns 

 it is customary to cut the ordinary hands or heads of flax into 

 three or four parts, six or < ight inches long, and that more even 

 yarn is made in this way and with less loss of tow in heckling as 

 much as they are compelled to heckle the ordinary rotted flax for 

 fine spinning. A fact, he said, was not generally known, which 

 he stated, and which was, that in all fine linens, all but the very 

 coarser kinds, the fibres of flax are parted in the operation of 

 spinning, the instant before bd ig twisied, to about 2h inches in 

 length — that this could be seen by any one who would untwist a 

 thread of linen, and try the length of fibres. It was said that 

 the flax roving passed through warm water in a trough on the 

 spinning frame, and the flax being softened by the maceration, 

 the fibres are parted by the action of the rollers, the front pair 

 running some sixteen times faster than the rear pair of holding 

 rollers, placed from two to three inches back of the front ones. 

 This will show that every fiore from two to three inches long 

 should be saved, if possible, for linen, and the great value of his 

 machine and process by which nothing goes to tow but the very 

 shortest fibres, making the tow all short enough to card with 

 wool as flax cotton. In this way flax cotton could be produced 

 much cheaper than in any other, using only the inferior portion 

 of the material for this purpose. He had made flax cotton many 

 years ago, but could never see much object in itj it seemed like 

 an absurdity to make poor cotton out of good flax. The greatest 

 value of flax cotton, except for linen fillings, is to combine with 

 wool in place of cotton. He showed a sample of tweeds, the 

 filling of which was two-thirds flax. It gives the goods much 

 greater strength and durabiliry ihan cotton with wool, or even all 

 wool. The goods could not be torn by a man lengthwise. It is 

 customary to make twe-ds and all woollen-mixed goods now 

 mostly of cotton, and the opinion seems to be rapidly gaining 

 ground among woollen manufacturers that sheep are useful only 



