No. 149. 1 407 



Judge Van Wyck said : In the olden time we used to cultivate 

 flax, for it was essential to our household industry ; all well 

 ordered farms had then as much flax grown as supplied the 

 needed thread and linen for the family, and soon it was found 

 that our flax seed was so good as to be in large demand for ex- 

 portation; and now, notwithstanding the prevalence of cotton 

 fabrics, we all continue to admire its beauty, durability, and 

 capacity to receive and hold fast all dj^es. In this, and in many 

 other respects, it is superior to cotton, and also even to silk. I 

 trust that our Yankee ingenuity will make it, and make it cheap ; 

 and- 1, hope that American tea will also soon appear. 



Mr. R. L. Pell, of Pellham, moved that the subject of flax be 

 continued. Carried. 



Mr. Ellsworth, late Commissioner of Patents. — While I am 

 working on my little two thousand acre farm in the West, I often 

 think of your American Institute with feelings of pleasure in its 

 useful labors. I am only able to say a few words on the subject 

 before you, for I am on my way home, and have but a few 

 minutes to spare. Eut, sir, I have the evidence here in my power, 

 that we can supply flax cheaper than cotton. I have tried it on 

 our prairies. We make first a fence around the fields — we do 

 it for $110 per mile, and so durable a fence, as yet, has not been 

 made elsewhere. We run two deep furrows to put the bottom 

 of our posts in ; these posts incline to each other at an angle. 

 We place side rails on one side of these angular posts ; we turn 

 the furrows back again on the feet of the posts. We place our 

 corn stalks, when that is the crop, leaning against these fences, 

 and thus a shelter is formed for our stock. We plough with a 

 beam nine feet long, supported in front by two wheels. We have 

 no weeds the first year, and flax subdues them afterwards. We 

 get ten to fifteen bushels of flax-seed per acre. We mow it with 

 a horse -power machine. We sow a field with barley and flax in 

 equal parts. Barley grows tallest — ^both lipen at the same time. 

 We separate the seeds by sieves which let one kind pass and stop 

 the other. It will not be long before the travel from us to you, 

 will enable us to bring you our oxen in four days ; and besides 

 them, turkeys, venison, mutton, &c., &c. We will give you most 



