1000000030

F L A

There is nothing f!ateJ here as expenec of ,he ca–

n,1 in IVhieh the fl,IX is IVa,ered ;

be"uf~

that "r:ts

mueh aeeording 'o ,he eonrenic:¡eies people have fer

making i,: anJ a elnal once made requirts for afler–

yms only to e repaired and cltanled .

is a eemín faa, th.t the grmer the erop ís, the

bener is the qualily of the fame kinu of Oax.

The adrantage of having bod, a erop of fl ax lnd a

erop of turn;p the fame year-or of fOIVing grafs–

fecds along ",ith the lintfeed-and of redueing

th~

ground to a fine garden mould, free of lVeeds, oughl

tO be

attend~d

tOo

F" Cambrid alld

Ji"~ l.o-~·II.

The ground muO be a

rieh light foil, rather (andy, but canoOl be too rieh.

ought tObe ploughed inSertember, or the begin–

ning of üaobcr, firll pUlling a ¡¡ttle hot rOllen ciung

upon it.

Seeondploughing in January after a hanl frof!; and

when you inlend to l'ow it, plough it • third time, o;

ra,her hoe it, redueing lhe clods very fine; but nl.lke

no furrolV¡: lhe land mu¡f be maJe Icvcl like agarden;

but never work Ihe land when IVet.

The feed Ihonld be 1'olVn the beginning of April,

and about double the quantity tbat is generaJlyfown by

our farmers; if the bnd be

ver

y rieh, it will require

rather more than double.

As foon as fown (if Ihe weather be dry) it will be

oeeelfary to roll Ihe ground.

The lint muf! be weeded

very

clean IVhen about

Ihree inehes high; direéllyafler IVhieh you mull fet

forked f1ieks, of about one and half ineh thiek (whieh

ought to be prepared before) every four or (¡ve feet,

aeeording to the length of the poles you are

lay "P–

on th'em; they Ihould be IVell fixed in the ground, the

forked part to reeeive the poles about fix or feven

inehes above the lint; eaeh rolV of poles Ihould be

IIVO, three, or four fetl afuoder,laceording to the length

of the bruOnvood you are to lay upon them.

The poles ought to be from ten to fifteen feet long,

and firong enough to fuppor! the brulh aerofs the

poles; take the longef! brunnvood you can get, the

more branehythe better, ve rythiek, fill ing up the va–

eaneies with fmaller brulh, and any of the branehes

Ihal rife higher than eightetn or twenty inehes ought

be lopt 01T tb make the brulh lie as lel'el as pollible:

any[Ort of brulh will doexeept oak, as that tinges the

lint.

Your lint mufi be rulled as foon as Ihe feed is

f~lIy

formed, whieh is a few days after it is OUt of the

bloom before ,he lint turn yellow.

muO be pulled above Ihe brufllwood, and every

handful laid upon it as foon as pollible: if it is fine

weathcr, leare it fouror five hours in Ihat manner; then

carry it toa fere,n near a bam, to PUt it under cover

incafe of rain; there it muH be fpread four or five

~ays,

anJ always PUt in Ihe baro at nighr, or when

It aPrem to rain: the

bundle~

mufi be opcned in the

ba'n, or made hollow, tOpre\'cnt it from hcating.

Thefe operations muH be p"rforrned unril the lint is

per:eflly clry, anel out of danger of heating ; taking

Clre

dIe time tOkc( p lhe rou", as el'('n as ponible,

L A

and if pJliible, keep jt :ronr rain or wet : if yotl canno:

prevent it f,on¡ being IVer, it will be bmer (Oleave it

on ,he g"fs ,,11 dry;

beeaul~

whtn once ",et, theput–

ting it under eover cerore drywill make it turn blaek;

a tlling whió muf! be pre\'enled a( all events.

11'

any of th" lint upon the border, or ,hrough the

pieee of grollr.". Le eoarfer than anorher, it mufl be

[eparm o from the relfo

T he IItrnof! eare mufi be taken to preferve the lint

emire, or unbroke ; for this reafon lhey bm 01T the

feed widl a ,ound mell or bittle.

The

0100

¡,roper ground i¡ [ummer fallow, or after

potatoes, or lea ; if ponible oear a wood, to prevent

the ex penee of cmying brufll.

A! foon as the [eed is 01T, if you intend to IVater it

that feafon, it

mu~

be tied in bundles about as la'ge

as you"can gra[p wlth your tlVO hands.

The water proper for it, is a very fmall rivulet or

foft fpring free of any metallie ore, anJ taking me

that no fiood or fotll water entm your pit; whieh

mufi be at leaf! five feet deep, about nine Qr ten broad

at the top, and feven or eight at

t~e

boltom, the

length will depend on the quantity of flax. you hal'e

to water. A very fmall f!ripe of water, when e!<ar,

fllOu ld always be running in and 01T from your pit

when the lint is in il.

The pit ought to be made three or four momhs be–

fore it be ufed

You nluf! drive poles about four inehes thiek, with

a hook ioclining downwards, in this form 7, all a–

long the fides of the pit, about fil'e feet afunder. The

hooks mua be level, or talh,r under the furfaee of the

Water. Along pule, Ihe whole length of the pit,

mul~

be fi xed into thefe hooks on eaeh fide ; and erofs poies

PUt under thar , tOkeep the lint under water; but, Ibe

erofs poles are not ufed till Ihe lint is put in. You

mul! arder it fa, that all the lint Ihould be three or

four inehesunder water. Younext bring yourlint to ,he

fides

01'

the pit; then pUl your Oleaves head to head,

caufing eaeh overlap tbe other ahout one third, anu

take as many of thefe as make abuodle of tIVO or two

and a·balf feet broad, Jaying the one abol'e the other,

till it is about four or fOllrand a half feet high; then

you tie them tOgether in the middle, and at eaeh root–

eoct: "after this, you IVrap your buodle io nraw, and

lay it in the water, puuing the thin or broad fide un–

dermof!, taking eare that none of your lint toueh the

emh ; after it is fullyprelTed under IVater, plI"t in your

crofs poles tOI:eep it under. The bundles ought to

lie in the pit a foot feparate from eaeh other. This

renum it eafy

take OUt; for, if the buodles en–

t.ngle, thcy will be toO

he~'y

raif~.

The time of watering depcnds fo nlJeh upon the

weather, anJ

fO(tn~fs

or hardncfs of the water, ,hat it

is illlpoflible

(,x any eerrai" tinte. This mil!! be le(t

the flti ll of the farmer. If the

Aax

be i"tenJed for

fpinning ya,n foft an" fil for

eambri~k,

it ollght to be

f?md upon fllOrr gr.\fs for four

01'

fil'e days b,fore

)'011

pnt i,

HitO

lhe warer; but if for lawn' , I.-c. Or thread,

it is

~dllOdry

it olltright. Ineither c:tlc,a"ui.! ;I!J:lUeh

r"flib:e lO ItI it get r,in; as mll"l r,';1\ 1"1.,;.chO$and

W.I!ft LS