Flax for Paper-making. 
473 
Countries. 
Undpi- Flax Average yield. 
btatuteAc.es. per^cre. 
Total tons 
Fibre. 
Egypt 
Germany 
Great Britain 
Italy .. 
Ireland 
Total : Europe, including Egypt . . 
218,042 
140,901 
0,292 
15,000 
162,099 
329,362 
957 
8,985 
27,048 
44,114 
200,350 
157,534 
2,000,000 
33,639 
33-14 
33-59 
20-00 
20-00 
36-49 
27-90 
20-00 
24-89 
31-36 
26-79 
18-33 
24-89 
20-00 
20-00 
45,162 
29,580 
787 
1,875 
36,969 
57,432 
119 
1,398 
5,301 
7,380 
22,953 
24,508 
250,000 
4,205 
3,344,329 
23-33 
487,675 
" Referring to your inquiry as to the economy of using the better jiortion 
of the flax for fibre, and the poorer quality for paper-making, my oinnion 
would be against such a proceeding in your case especially, for the following 
reasons : — 
" 1. You sow lighter for seed and straw than for fibre, viz. I5 bushel for 
the former, and 2 or more bushels for the latter object, per statute acre. This 
lets the sun and air freely at your plants, making them stronger, hardier, and 
more resinous in composition, good for a large yield of seed and straw, but 
coarse, brittle, and " hempy " in fibre. 
" 2. If you sow for fibre, to have a good article you must to a certain 
extent sacrifice the seed, that is, you must pull before the seed is thoroughly 
ripe if you want fine silky fibre, otherwise your fibre will be hardening and 
coarsening while you wait for the seed to ripen thoroughly. 
" 3. In your district you have not the arrangements and appliances at hand 
for good retting and scutching ; if you had to take your straw any length to 
the scutcher, the cost of carriage on this great gross weight would overcome 
the profit. 
" 4. You are not near enough a good flax market ; this I take to be true, 
theoretically and geographically ; but perhaps you know of outlets near enough 
at hand. 
"In my opinion, flax for the strata and seed, and flax for the Jihre would 
constitute more or less two distinct businesses, proceeding by different methods 
to obtain the best results in each case. Of course if you (a) have a purchaser 
within reasonable distance, (b) care to go to the expense of establishing a 
retting and scutching establishment (making up your mind for the losses 
incident to first experiments in these processes), and (t) sow heavily for fibre, 
counting less on profit from seed, I believe in the end the venture would pay 
well, and be a first-class thing, not only for your own neighbourhood, but for 
the whole country. 
" Mr. J. B. Edmonds, of Stone House, Plymouth, Mr. Warnes, of Triming- 
ham, Norfolk, and others have gone extensively into flax-fibre business. 
Mr. Warnes especially made it a main point on his farm, brought over rotters 
from Belgium, scutchers from Ireland, and produced some oif the best flax 
used in the Leeds-mills at the time he was in the business, fifteen to twenty- 
five years ago. 
