H. Travees. — On the Clmtlimn 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 : — 



" Eecent schemes for preparing flax have excited great attention. Those 

 of Chevalier Claussen are the most important. The first attempt was to 

 prepare long flax flbre for ordinary linen manufacture. Eour 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. 



Aet. XVIII. — On the (Jliatham Islands. By H. H. TeaYee^. 



Plate VI. 

 \_Read hefore the Philosophical Instittde of Canterlury .'] 



^HE following letter addressed to Mr. W. T. L. Travers, P.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 Ca.pe pigeons. 

 After sighting the main island we proceeded directly to Pitt's Island, and 

 came to anchor off a rocky point forming the eastern extremity of a small 



