on the most
important vegetable spinning material known. Its value is increased by
the fact that the flax plant readily adapts itself to various
conditions of soil and climate, and in consequence has gained access
to northerly districts and cool highlands. Although flax has lost some
of its importance from the successful competition of cotton,
nevertheless it still forms one of the chief articles of an industry
which merits all the care bestowed on its cultivation and proves
highly profitable.

=The Physical Structure of Flax.= Flax, when seen under the
microscope, looks like a long, cylindrical tube of uniform thickness,
with lumina so small as to be visible only as straight black lines
lengthwise of the fiber, and frequently exhibits small transverse
cracks. It is never twisted like cotton fiber. Its color varies from
pale yellow to steel gray or greenish tints. The difference in color
is due chiefly to the process of "retting." Its average length is
about twenty inches, and its tensile strength is superior to that of
cotton. It will absorb moisture, 12 per cent being the standard
allowance made.

Flax is used for making linen thread and cloth, yarn, twist, string
fabric, and lace. In its composition it is almost purely an
unlignified cellulose, and its specific gravity is 1.5.

Flax is a better conductor of heat than cotton, hence linen goods
always feel colder than cotton goods.

Russia produces more than one-half the world's supply of flax, but
that from Belgium and Ireland is of the best quality. Italy, France,
Holland, and Egypt are other important producers. The plant is an
annual, of delicate structure, and is gathered just before it is ripe,
the proper time being indicated by the changing of the color from
green to brown. At the time of gathering the whole plant is uprooted,
dried on the ground, and finally rippled with iron combs, to separate
the stalks from the leaves, lateral shoots, and seeds.

The best fiber amounts to about 75 per cent of the stalk. To separate
this valuable commercial product from the woody matter the stalks are
first subjected to a process termed retting, which is steeping them in
water until they are quite soft. Then follow the mechanical processes
to further the production of the fiber and free it from all useless
matter.

These are as follows:

1. Crushing or Beating. This consists of breaking the woody matter
with the aid of mallets or in stamping mills.

2. Breaking. T