466 
Flax for Paper-ntakivg: 
grass that is imported ; vast quantities of hemp, jute, pulp 
made from various kinds of wood, bamboo-cane, rags, straw, 
and many other articles are imported for making paper. At 
the present time (July) upwards of 3Z. per ton is being paid 
at the Cardiff Mills for oat-straw from Belgium ; can it be 
doubted that at the relative prices flax must be far the cheaper? 
or that flax must enter largely into competition with these far 
inferior articles? There appears to be at the present time a 
great desire on the part of the paper-makers to find a new fibre 
on which they can rely for a regular supply, for the supply of 
esparto-grass is somewhat precarious ; and owing to the war in 
Tunis, to frequent disturbances among the Arabs, the mo- 
nopolies granted to certain companies, and so on, the supply 
has not been regular or satisfactory. The present time there- 
fore appears favourable for the introduction of flax, and to 
accomplish this the paper-makers must take the matter up, and 
put out offers to take so much flax at so much per ton, as Mr. 
Reed has done ; let them do this for a few years until the crop 
is established, and there will be no further difficulty about the 
supply. 
Paper-makers at present appear to be incredulous as to the low 
price, of 4Z. 10s, per ton, at which farmers can afford to produce 
flax, and well they may be, seeing how much more money they 
have been paying for an inferior article. At the annual meeting 
of the Paper-makers' Association, held on May 9th, the subject 
of flax for paper-making was discussed, when the President 
remarked that " he was certainly under the impression that if 
any one could grow flax to a profit, it would be the cultivator 
who could ' rett ' it, and get 40/. a ton for it as a textile fabric, 
instead of 4/. 10s, as a comparatively waste product. It seemed 
to him doubtful whether so expensive a crop as flax, which was 
available for the linen-spinner, could ever be produced to meet 
the requirements of the paper-maker." 
At the same meeting another gentleman stated that " the cost 
of flax-waste was from 5/. to 14/. per ton. It was a delusion to 
suppose that straw-flax could be brought into the market for 
paper-making. For that purpose the material could only be the 
debris after the use of the straw as a textile material." And this 
in the face of the published fact that the grower has produced 
it, and found it a profitable crop at 4/. 10s. per ton, and that 
Mr. Reed has used it in considerable quantities, and is prepared 
to take one or two thousand tons this season ! 
It is undoubtedly a great question whether it will not be 
found economical to extract the best part of the fibre for 
linen, and use the inferior only for paper. This probably will 
depend in a great measure upon the kind of paper required, also 
