On Claussen's Flax- Cotton. 



241 



of flax by the manufacturer, in consequence of his discoveries. 

 The subject occupied the attention of the Council at three of its 

 meetings, and the liveliest interest was evinced by the members 

 present. In order that the subject m.ay be fully understood by 

 our readers, we propose to point out in detail the nature of the 

 invention of the Chevalier Claussen. 



The history which that distinguished gentleman, who was formerly 

 an extensive cotton-grower and slave-owner in the Brazils, gives of 

 the causes which first led him to experiment upon flax, for the pur- 

 pose of " cottonizing " it, is exceedingly interesting, inasmuch as it 

 shows that his success was the result of inductive research, and 

 not the ofl"spring of mere chance. He states that, in wandering 

 along the luxuriant banks of one of the Brazilian rivers, his atten- 

 tion was attracted to a white down-like substance, adhering to 

 the branches of trees overhanging and touching the stream. On 

 obtaining a quantity of it, he was so pleased with its character 

 that, thinking he had discovered some hitherto unknown vegetable 

 product, he was determined to trace it, if possible, to its source, 

 and to ascertain the plant which had yielded it. With the ardour of a 

 naturalist he commenced his task, and eventually found that the 

 substance had been washed from a bed of flax-straw, the produce 

 of some of his own land, and which, long before, he had caused 

 to be thrown, as useless, near the banks of the river. To this 

 heap the swollen waters had occasional access — fermentation and 

 the decomposition of a portion of the plant had taken place — and 

 in time the influence of natural chemistry had so separated the 

 filaments of the flax fibre as to give the mass a cotton-like appear- 

 ance ; and some of it, having been washed into the river, had been 

 arrested by the overhanging branches. Although the substance 

 thus accidentally discovered was far from being in that condition 

 which would fit it for the hands of the cotton-spinner, yet, even in 

 its then imperfect state, it led the Chevaher to entertain the idea 

 of the possibility of completing, by the aid of artificial chemistry, 

 that which nature had but partially accomplished. 



In order that the nature of the invention may be perfectly un- 

 derstood, it is necessary to state that the stem of the flax-plant 

 consists of several perfectly distinct parts: there is the woody 

 matter, or straw, which supports the plant while growing ; the fibre, 

 which lies upon the outer surface of this inner cylindrical straw ; 

 and one or more substances, such as gum, and resinous and gluti- 

 nous matters, which cause the fibres to adhere to each other and to 

 the surface of the straw. The fibre is the only part required for the 

 manufacturer, and must, previous to its being used, be separated 

 from the other constituents of the plant, and upon the complete- 

 ness of such separation depends to a great extent the value of the 

 produce for manufacturing purposes. If one of the flax- stems be 



VOL. XII. R 



