188 ENGLISH rOTANY. 



( f tliis Taluable fibre. After tlie diseiigngenieut of tlie fibres by water retting, tliej 

 are again subject to a process called " scutching," whicli still further cleanses them. The 

 iibres are then disentangled, and rendered fit for the manufacturer by another operation 

 called " heckling," which consists in passing them through the teeth of a comb, varying 

 in width according to the purpose tor which the Flax is destined. The rough and 

 broken fibres which are detached from the skein during the process of heckling form 

 the article called "codilea" or "tow," which is much used by surgeons and others. 

 Several chemical processes have lately been introduced by which the fibres of Flax can 

 be so finely divided as to appear like cotton. Berthollet made many experiments in 

 bleaching Flax, and was able to reduce the finest Flax and the coarsest hemp to one 

 uniform fineness of fibre and colour, so that even the refuse from rope-walks might be 

 made into a substance valuable in the arts. The finest thread which has been produced 

 in England by n)achine-s}>inning measures 12,000 yards spun from one pound ot Flax; 

 though by hand-spinning the process has been carried as high as 30,000 yards to the 

 pound. 



It is not, however, only for its valuable fibre that the Flax plant is cultivated; the 

 Beed is a considerable article of commerce and consum j)tion under the name of " linseed." 

 These seeds contain a mucilaginous and oleaginous substance, which recommends them 

 in infusion for colds and coughs. The chief value of the seeds consists, however, of the 

 oil which they contain, and which is expressed from them without the aid of heat. It 

 is largely used in the arts and manufactures, and as it dries readily is useful for painting. 

 When boiled it becomes of a brown colour, dries more rapidly, and in this state enters 

 into the composition of printers' ink. When freshly exjiressed it contains mucilage, 

 ^vhich is deposited by keeping, and may be separated by agitation with water, or 

 filtering through charcoal. The seeds yield about twenty per cent, of oil when expressed 

 iu the cold state, but considerably more when heated, of inferior quality. When shaken 

 with lime-water, linseed oil forms a white emulsion, which is the officinal Carron oil, 

 once in universal use as a remedy for recent burns. 



The cake which remains after expressing the oil is familiarly known by the name 

 of "oU-cake;" or, when ground up, of "linseed meal." This cake is used largely in 

 feeding cattle, and makes them very fat, but renders their flesh coarse ; it is also used 

 as a manure. The meal is one of the cheapest and best of all articles for making 

 poultices. Linseed has occasionally been employed as human food; but it is appa- 

 rently unwholesome. During the famine at Walcheren, in the sixteenth century, 

 some people at Middleburg ate linseed; they were attacked with swellings of the face 

 and body, and many eventually died. Linseed oil enters into the Veterinary Pharma- 

 copoeia as a purgative for sheep and horses. A jelly formed by boiling the seeds in 

 water, mixed with barley-meal, bran, and cut chair, is considered to be excellent 

 food for bullocks and live .stock generally. Mixed with honey, linseed oil has been 

 used as a cosmetic for removing spots from the face. Linseed is also employed as food 

 for small birds. With all this mass of useful and commercial properties, we must not 

 forget to mention that this lovely little plant is at once recommended to us by its 

 exquisitely delicate and beautiful appearance, of which poets have sung, and the less 

 prosaic peasantry of Continental nations have associated with their fetes and rejoicings. 

 Coleridge says : — 



" The unripe Flax, 



When through its half-transparent stalk at eve 



The level sunshine glimmers with green light." 



The custom of attributing particular meanings to flowers has been common in all 



