97. _FLAX is the produce of an annual plant_ (Linum usitatissimum, Fig.
37), _with spear-shaped leaves, and blue flowers, which is cultivated in
several parts of Great Britain, and grows wild in corn-fields and sandy
pastures of some of the southern counties._
_The stems of these plants rise to the height of about two feet. The seed
vessels and leaves of the calyx are sharp pointed, and the flowers have
each five scolloped petals._
It is supposed that we were originally indebted for this plant to those
parts of Egypt which are annually inundated by the Nile; but the time of
its introduction into this country is unknown. Its utility is incalculable.
To it we are indebted for the linen we wear, for our sheets, table-cloths,
and numerous other indispensable articles of clothing and domestic economy;
and although cotton might, in some degree, supply its place, those persons
who have been accustomed to the comforts of linen would be little desirous
of the exchange.
The cultivation of flax is pursued to considerable extent in some parts of
the British dominions. The seed imported from Riga and Holland is
generally, though perhaps erroneously, esteemed the best. It is sown in
March or April; and the plants, when nearly ripe, are pulled up by the
roots. These, if flax and not seed be the object of the crop, are either
placed in small parcels upon the surface of the land, for exposure to the
sun, to dry; or they are immediately conveyed to the place where they are
to undergo the process called watering. For this purpose they are loosely
tied in small bundles, placed in pools or ponds of soft and stagnant water,
and allowed to continue there several days. By the fermentation which takes
place, the bark or flaxy substance becomes separated. They are then taken
out, and thinly spread upon the grass, in regular rows. Here they are
occasionally turned until they have become so brittle, that, on being
rubbed between the hands, the flax easily and freely separates from the
stalks. They are taken up, and bound in sheaves, to be either sent to a
mill, or to be broken and scuttled, as it is called, by a machine contrived
for that purpose.
The flax, by the above process, having been separated from the stalks, it
subsequently undergoes various dressings, according to the purposes for
which it is to be used.
When the plants have been grown for _seed_, they are pulled as before, and
then laid together by handfuls upon the ground, with the seed ends towards
the south, that they may be the better exposed to the sun. The next
operation is to force off the seed vessels. For this purpose a large cloth
is usually spread on some adjacent and convenient spot of ground, and an
instrument, called a ripple, is placed in the middle of it. This is a sort
of comb, consisting of six, eight, or ten, long, triangular, upright teeth.
The seed ends of the flax are pulled repeatedly through the teeth of the
comb, by which the parts containing the seed are removed from the stalks.
After this the pods and seeds, which have the name of _line-seeds_, are
spread upon a cloth in the sun to dry, and subsequently are threshed,
sifted, winnowed, and cleansed. The best seed is generally preserved for
sowing, and the second sort yields considerable profit in the oil which is
obtained from it by pressure. This, which is called _linseed oil_, is
equally useful in the arts and in medicine. It is occasionally employed for
making the soap called green soap. If heat be applied during the pressure
of the seeds, the oil attains a yellowish colour and a peculiar smell, and,
in this state, it is used by painters and varnishers. An infusion of the
seed, in the manner of tea, is recommended in coughs; and from the seed is
also made an useful kind of poultice for external inflammations.
After the oil has been expressed, the remaining farinaceous part of the
seeds is squeezed together into large masses, called _oil-cake_ which is
given as food to oxen.
It must be remarked that the water in which flax has been macerated becomes
thereby poisonous to cattle; and, on this account, the practice of steeping
it in any running stream or common pond was prohibited by an act of
Parliament, passed in the reign of Henry the Eighth.
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