EXAMINATION OF TEXTILE FIBRES. 



85 



regions of Europe and America. The seed of the plant 

 furnishes linseed-oil, and the bast yields flax to be spun 

 into linen. The flax-fibre like others of its class, is a 

 bundle of cells, each a hollow cylinder tapering at both 

 ends (Fig. 33). Its cells are distinguished by their 



Fig. 33. — ^The Flax-itibre. (After Hassack.) 200 diameters. 



large size (25 to 30 mm. long by .02 mm. in diameter), 

 and by the fact that they are swollen or knotted at fre- 

 quent intervals. The central canal is narrow and nearly 

 circular in section, while the cell itself is somewhat flat- 

 tened. Thus when a number of cells are examined under 

 the microscope some will appear much broader than 

 others, while the canal in all of them is narrow. At the 

 end the flax cell tapers gradually to a very sharp point, 

 and the canal disappears at some distance from the tip. 



