BOTH FIBRE AND SEED MUST BE SAVED. 



221 



are found to be the cheapest and most useful ingredient, linseed 

 perhaps excepted. The cultivation of flax was first taken up 

 to supply the latter, and even if it should eventually turn out 

 that flax cannot be grown with profit, except for the fibre, a 

 great point will still be gained by using a portion at least of 

 the produce of our own soil in the shape of what is commonly 

 called artificial cattle-food, although we may have to resort to 

 the foreigner for the other portion. We would say to every 

 farmer and grazier, purchase your linseed and supply yourself 

 with what more may be necessary for the manufacture of com- 

 pound — the proportion is one stone of linseed to four stones 

 weight of bean-meal ; thus you will retain eighty per cent, of 

 the amount hitherto expended for oil-cake to circulate and 

 re-produce wealth among yourselves, instead of transferring it 

 to the pockets of the foreigner."* 



The above advice lays the axe at once to the root of all my 

 exertions for the British farmer. In justice to him, I am 

 bound to avert a stroke so fatal to his interests. That my 

 attempt will prove successful there can be no doubt, because 

 profit and common sense declare in my favour. I have already 

 shown in my former writings, that unless a strict regard is paid 

 to the seed, flax cannot be extensively or profitably cultivated 

 in this country. 



By far the greater quantity of imported flax is that from 

 which the seed has been saved, and is, from all that I can learn, 

 the most profitable to the grower. My object has always been 

 to direct public attention to this particular quality, and not to 

 those peculiarly fine descriptions, suited alone to garden cul- 

 ture, and to hands long accustomed to the arts of preparation. 

 My desire is to introduce into our fields this double crop, the 

 most remunerative part of which to the " farmer and the gra- 

 zier," I again repeat, is the seed. It is true, that the finest 

 flax will obtain double the price per ton of the inferior sorts, 

 but it must be remembered that more land is required to pro- 

 duce it — that it incurs an infinity of trouble and expense, and, 

 what is still worse, returns nothing to the soil. Besides, if all 

 were to grow first-rate flax, the price would become lower than 



* The writer of the above article had at the time the disposal of a considerable 

 quantity of seed beans. 



