H. Travers.—On the Chatham Islands. 119 
Upon the question whether the strength of the fibre is injured by the 
process of separation mentioned in this paper, I have no means of stating 
anything conclusive. I am of opinion that it is not in any degree injured ; 
and I found that opinion upon the following passage from a recent work 
detailing the progress of useful inventions :— 
“ Recent schemes for preparing flax have excited great attention. Those 
of Chevalier Claussen are the most important. The first attempt was to 
prepare long flax fibre for ordinary linen manufacture. Four hundred- 
weight of flax in the straw was boiled in a stone vat, in water containing 
caustic alkali. The boiling lasted four hours, which was said to ‘ret’ or 
separate the fibres as effectually as an ordinary steeping of a week’s duration. 
It is asserted also that the fibre is developed in uniform strength, that it is 
less discoloured than by the old process, and that much more of the glutinous 
or gummy matter is removed. The flax was removed from the alkaline 
liquid and steeped for two hours in water slightly acidulated with sulphuric 
acid. This effected the cleansing of the flax and at the same time rendered 
the straw a more valuable manure than it would otherwise be. The flax 
was then in a fit state to be scutched and prepared by the ordinary flax 
apparatus.” 
It would be interesting and satisfactory, however, if some person quali- 
fied to do so would undertake the experiments necessary to determine this 
point. 
Ant. XVIIL—Onz the Chatham Islands. By H. H. Travens. 
Plate VI. 
[Read before the Philosophical Institute of Canterbury] 
THe following letter addressed to Mr. W. T. L. Travers, F.L.S., by his son, 
Mr. Henry H. Travers, on the return of the latter from a phytological 
exploration of the Chatham Islands, was read before the Philosophical Insti- 
tute of Canterbury, and is now published as part of their Transactions :— 
“In accordance with your instructions, I proceeded to the Chatham 
Island Group in a schooner, the * Cecilia," of 40 tons, which sailed from 
Lyttelton on the 12th of October last. Our voyage was slow and somewhat 
uninteresting, and it was not until the 19th that we sighted the Horns, two 
conical-shaped hills at the south-western extremity of Chatham Island. On 
the way down we met large numbers of right whales, humpbacks, and por- 
poises, and were, as usual, accompanied by albatrosses and Cape pigeons. 
After sighting the main island we proceeded directly to Pitt’s Island, and 
eame to anchor off a rocky point forming the eastern extremity of a small 
