144 DICKSON'S REPLY TO PROFESSOR LOWE'S 



ten pounds per acre upon his holding or his farm. But if we 

 could not do all, we could do much. By a judicious combina- 

 tion amongst ourselves and the expenditure of a moderate 

 outlay in prizes and in furnishing instruction in various useful 

 crops, with the culture of which we are at present unacquainted, 

 a great advance could be obtained beyond our present 

 situation. , 



" We talk much about protection to agriculture, but here is 

 a crop in which, with all the advantages of the soil and climate 

 and market upon our side, we permit an annual importation 

 of Flax, seed, and oil-cake to no less an amount than £7,783,883 

 per annum. In other words, nearly eight millions a year in 

 hard cash, for which little is taken in exchange, is paid by the 

 mill-owners of this country for an article which could be 

 grown at home with pron t to the employer, and furnish the 

 means of honest subsistence to our starving population. 



" From the letter of Mr. Dickson, it seems ' that in the small 

 town of Bally mena, in the county of Antrim, £30,000 per 

 week is paid for linen goods, by Messrs. Chain and Sons/ etc. 

 The contrast presented by this town — not much larger, if as 

 large, as Tuam — is painful to contemplate. 



"We beg to turn the attention of our readers to a serious 

 consideration of the subject of our correspondent's letter. It 

 is a duty upon us to combine as one man, in taking measures 

 for the cultivation of a crop so remunerative and so productive 

 of industrial employment. If the Flax-crop be the rent-paying 

 crop in other places, we see no reason why it should not 

 become so in this neighbourhood. 



c 'This course would be more judicious than, by seeking 

 to return to impossible protection upon corn, throwing 

 away time and energies which should be more profitably 

 employed. The present letter of Mr. J. H. Dickson, putting 

 forth the advantages of the Flax-crop so very clearly, 

 induced us to defer until next week the publication of 



