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the use of this mvention, the necessity of steep- 

 ing and dew rotting being avoided, the farmer, 

 after having pulled his crop, has nothing to do 

 but stack it, when sufficiently dry for that pur- 

 pose, and let it remain until convenient op- 

 portunities occur of bringing it into a market- 

 able state, which may now be performed in a 

 very few hours. The superiority of this mode 

 of preparation is very great, and the advantages 

 obtained by it in equal proportion. All the 

 labour and attendant expense of steeping, 

 spreading, drying, &c. as well as the losses in- 

 cident to these operations, is wholly saved ; the 

 produce of fibre is full one-third greater by this 

 than by former methods ; while the fibre itself 

 preserves the whole of its natural strength un- 

 impaired by any destructive process. In clean- 

 ing flax the whole of the seed is preserved, and 

 some parts of the plant that by steeping are 

 entirely destroyed, are now saved to be turned 

 to a very profitable account ; the chaff", for in- 

 stance, is an excellent food for horses, cows, 

 sheep, &c. and the woody part, when separated 

 from the fibre, is a strong manure, particularly 

 good as a top dressing for wheat ; both of these 

 have hitherto been wasted. The mode of using 

 the machines is so easy as to be worked by 

 women or even children ; they may, without 

 inconvenience to a family, be fixed in cottages 



