PROCEEDINGS OF THE FARMERS* CLUB. 259 



"Albany, June 2, 1812. 

 " To the Honorable the Legislature of the State of New York: 



" Gentlemen: Having' at tlie last session done ns the honor to appoint us, 

 together with Dr. Benj. De Witt, to examine into the utility and probable 

 value of the discovery made bj- Charles Whitlow of a plant said to be supe- 

 rior to flax or hemp for all the purposes to which they are adapted, Mr. 

 Whitlow has laid before us (in the absence of Dr. De Witt, who, not having 

 been apprised of his appointment, has not attended), several specimens of 

 the plant. We have taken the opinions of Dr. Edy, and through him of Dr. 

 Mulenburgh (gentlemen who are distinguished for their skill in botany.) 

 These gentlemen severally assert that the plant referred to is of a rare 

 species, and has not been heretofore described by botanists, and that its 

 discovery promises to be very useful. We have also received the testi- 

 mony of several persons concerned in the manufacture of twine and thread, 

 ■who concur in declaring that it is superior for those uses to the finest Brit- 

 ish flax, and greatly so to that of the United States. But we have not yet 

 had the means of examining the plant in its growing state, or of compar- 

 ing it with others of the same genus, or of consulting (as we wish to do), 

 with Dr. De Witt. We are not, therefore, prepared to report fully on the 

 subject. But, from what has already been made apparent to us of the 

 ■utility of the discovery, we are induced, at the'request of Mr. Whitlow, to 

 recommend a loan to him of money, upon his giving such security as may 

 appear satisfactory (both for the application and the refunding the money 

 so loaned), with a view to his collecting such quantities of the roots and 

 seeds of the plant as may forward, in the shortest possible time, its cultiva- 

 tion, and of the material as to have it manufactured in its various fabrics so 

 early as to enable us to lay specimens of these several articles, together 

 with a more specific report, before the Legislature at its next session. 



" Believing that it will be important to a proper knowledge of the value 

 of this plant that this should be done before your honorable body decide 

 upon his request, and believing, from present appearances, that the object 

 may be highly important, and that the loan can be well secured, we are 

 induced to recommend his request to the consideration of the Legislature. 



" All which we have the honor respectfully to submit. 



" Rob. B. Livingston, 

 "E. C. Genet." 



Now, said Mr. Robinson, it is a matter of curiosity to know Avhat this 

 plant was that attracted the attention of such men more than fift}^ years 

 ago. Are there any persons living who can give us light upon the subject? 

 Was this plant tried and found unsuitable, or was it overshadowed by 

 cheap cotton, which stopped the cultivation of flax, and has kept a thousand 

 bills barren that but for cotton would have been covered with sheep, fur- 

 nishing cheap and wholesome, clothing in wool and skins, and furnishing 

 the laborers with abundance of meat, and at the same time aflording ample 

 remuneration to farmers. So would the cultivation of fibrous plants — this 

 one, so favorably reported upon, perhaps, among others, all of which have 

 been kept back by those who have been willing slaves to slave-owners, 

 who have so long clothed the world with slave-grown cotton. 



