of  the  Ashes  of  Plants. 
521 
cattle  relish  them,  and  Mr.  Warnes  considers  them,  weight  for 
weight,  equal  to  good  hay. 
But  in  flax  the  straw  is  destined  to  a more  important  purpose 
than  that  of  any  of  the  corn-crops,  and  the  chemist  who  would 
wish  to  make  out  its  history  must  follow  it  through  the  processes, 
having  this  purpose  in  view. 
After  the  separation  of  the  seeds  the  stalks  are  steeped  for  a 
certain  length  of  time  in  water,  a species  of  fermentation  is  pro- 
duced, and  the  woody  matter  of  the  straw  becomes  rotten  and 
detached  from  the  fibre;  at  this  juncture  the  stalks  are  removed 
and  spread  upon  the  grass  to  bleach.  Subsequently,  in  the  opera- 
tion of  scutching , the  woody  matter  is  separated  from  th efbre — the 
all-important  part  of  the  plant — by  a simple  mechanical  process. 
It  is  necessary  that  we  should  know  first  how  much  of  the 
mineral  matter  of  the  stalks  is  lost  or  removed  in  the  steeping ; 
and  next,  of  that  which  remains,  what  proportion  is  left  on  the 
farm  in  the  wood,  and  what  permanently  removed  by  being  sent 
to  market. 
Specimen  No.  7 is  the  straw  of  fine  flax  (No.  1)  after  steeping; 
No.  8 is  the  fibre,  and  No.  9 the  wood,  separated  from  No.  7. 
Per  centage  of  Water,  Ash,  and  Sulphur,  in  Fine  Flax  Straw  after 
steeping,  and  in  the  Fibre  and  Wood  of  the  same  : — 
No.  7. 
Fine  Flax  Straw, 
steeped. 
No.  8. 
Fibre  of  Ditto. 
No.  9. 
Wood  of  Ditto. 
Water 
13-18 
7-91 
• . 12-60 
Ash  
•97 
1-03 
• . -84 
Ash  calculated  on  dry  substance 
1-11 
M2 
• • -95 
Sulphur  on  1000  grains  \ 
undried  . . . / 
•21 
2*43 
• • -76 
Composition  in  100  parts  of  the  Ash  of  Fine  Flax  Straw,  steeped,  and  of 
the  Wood  and  Fibre  of  the  same  : — 
No.  7. 
Fine  Flax 
Straw, 
steeped. 
No.  8. 
Fibre  of  Ditto. 
No.  9. 
Wood  of  Ditto. 
Silica 
15-90 
5-08 
2-96 
Phosphoric  Acid 
3-79 
10-76 
5-12 
Sulphuric  Acid  . . 
1-90 
2-66 
4-68 
Carbonic  Acid  . 
18-04 
17-70 
28-68 
Lime  ..... 
47-00 
48-75 
40-46 
Magnesia  .... 
2-60 
4-43 
2-77 
Peroxide  of  Iron 
5-68 
3-54 
2-45 
Potash 
1-70 
1-92 
9-00 
Soda 
3-33 
3-80 
3-88 
Chloride  of  Potassium  . 
• 0 
• . 
• . 
Chloride  of  Sodium  . 
trace. 
1-30 
trace. 
Total  • • • . 
100-00 
100-00 
100-00 
In  addition  to  the  fibre  of  the  fine  flax,  we  have  examined  two 
