The Express.
London, England, 1850-12-26 00:00:00

EVENING, DECEMBER 26. 1850.

THE CULTIVATION OF FLAX.

Application (mays the Cor* Southern .Reporter) hem
been made to Dr. O'Brien by a friend, conuniestotted to
_ . .. . .

make the Inquiry on behalf of an Bagliah Arm, respecting
the eligibility, as to alto and water supply, of two establish.
meats, now, we believe, idle, In the neighbourhood of Car.
ringaline, with a view to their unveralon into ilax.seatehing
mills, the applicants requiring to know whether they could be
made available to prepare the &goof 7,000 scree of flax strew,
and also whether, in case of the mills being set to work that
quality Olin maid be calculated on as lately to be grown in
Ike district. These questions have both been affirmatively
answered by Dr. O'Brien; and from the statement of his
friend, be cossiden it nearly certain that the parties on whose
behalf the application was made will eater at once into treaty
whittle millownere, and, if fairly met, embark their cspital
is the pr ,posed undertaking. This, certainly, is a cheering
prospect for the people of Kin&lee and Kerricurrihy. The
site 01 these mills is, as we have said, peculiarly eligible. In
the statistical y of Cork, the Roy. Mr. Townsend 'peaks
of the land in these baronies thus The soil of the low
oroands is sufficietoly deep, of a kind and mellow texture,
producing good hay and pasture, and excellent grain;" and
again—" Tee richest soil of this district Is found in the vale,
which, beginciog at Cork harbour, takes its course to the
western mrretnity of Brinoy." All the valley of the Ooa-
indeed, is particularly eui'ed for the flax plant, and it
could not fail to prove resannentive to the grower. Add to
this that the &cilium of water-carriage make Carrigalirm
aeceisible to all the districts about the harbour, and persons
cultivating the plant on any part of its shores would 8 id a
market there, the cost of carriage to which would be comps
naively email. To ti ,e millowuer, on the other hand, like
&tweeters could he promoted, as he could ship the scotched
flore tronbhis mill.doors to any part of the world. We .r.:st,
however, that, before very long, it would he exp-rted, in the
character of yarn or linen, and not merely as fiez.
Referring to the existing demand for flax•seed required in
the manufacture of oil and cake, and for sowing purposes,
the report of the R 4.1 Flex Soc.ety iur published has the
following remarks " There Is an annual Import from foreign
countries in the Crated Kingdom of about 650,000 quarters
of seed and 70,000 tons of °duke made from it, value Cue- I
:her about 1,960,0001, all of which could readily be ow
planted by the home-grown art Ole, while the valuable
manure which it produces would ratans to the soil the greeter
part of the substances token from it by the plair. To meet
the austral demand for sowing, ab tut 28,000 quarters of seed
would be required, at an average valuer of 1128001. Nor
would the money value he the only advantage of producing
this at keine. It often happens, as in the Sam of the present
year, that enough foreign seed cannot be procured to meet
toe demand, end while f,e price is so much enhanewd u to
place its purchase beyond the means of the po.rer class of
farmers, mooch land ,intended for fix is put in other
crop., atter tb. import of seed has been ex austed. It is
very gratifying to flod that morretban 6,000 bushels of seed
from the steeping concerns were sold last spring to farmers,
and that the proem., as in all instances where good home.
caved seed is need, was abundant, and generally eacelled tke
trope from foreign seed. Your committee calculate that
nearly 40,000 bushels of Irish seed will be available for next
sowing season, from this and other sources. They look con-
fiduity forward to a period not far distant, when the import
of foreign seed will be restricted to the quantity necessary to
maintain the rigour of the plant, es it ha. been found that
is the same strain of seed be mod fur itemise/ea years it de-
generates in quality, but this might be obviated by chang-
ing the mad to different soils, as is done in the cue of other
plane."
It appears from tie official returns of the years 184748,
and 49, dist the cumber of quarters of 8m seed imported
into this county y have been as follows; —From Rums,
Northern port., 623,399 ; 256,794 ; 118,190. Ditto, ports on
the Sleek flea —; 147,618 L• 235,710 Sweeten and Nor.
way, 3,282; 2,970 ; 6,066. Denmark, 7,343; 1,348; 1,013.
PfoFfin, 27,8131; 44.411 ; 36,840. Hanseatic towns, 6,926;
3 991 ; 3,311. Hollano, 8,915; 7,609; 6,253. France,
7,124; —; 3,020. Italy. 13,500; —; 62 Naples and
Steil —; 6,479; 2,488 Austrian rrrr Merano —; 6,933;
1. NI Its and cos,, 1,330; —; 1.099. Cream, 6,987;
; —; Torkey, 6,688 ; 1,023; 643, Ej) pt, 9,966 ; 7,193;
10,913. British India. 24,328 ; 11843; 16,696. North
America, 113; 124; 178. United kitatee, 10,381; 7,63 d;
30. West lodate, —; 301;
Thus, taste e listll a. the present time a very extensive
agricultural market for the produce of flax in the soap. of
need for sowing, and for crushing, and for the refuse con-
sumed as oil-coke. But it is not alone to what may be termed
the agricultural market that the former has a right to look,
but to that extensive and almost uulimited demand which

@airs, not may for manufactures of linen, but also tor cinema,
soil. awl cordage, velvet., valesteone, cords, and other pile
Roods, In the manuftwore of which flat silky be used, either
wholly or to part. To these branches of manufacture, which
are Ist capable of very considerable dayslopmeret, iney be
idled tho enormous demand, which, in ail probability, will
arms in consequence of recent diecur ee iee by which the flex
fibre say be so peepec d as to be spoil to soma extent spun
cotton, silk, or wool mactioery, either by itself or in combie
notion with, talk, cotton, cr wool.

The official returns of the years 1847, 1848, and 1849,
give the following as the quantities (in cwt..) of flea ins
ported from different forties counuies: Hurts and
northern poets, 859,627; 740,396; 681,167. ...gas,
1,250; 662; Denmark, 16,193 ; 14,160; 6,186. Pius.
sus, 186,020; 86,858; 141,846. Oernia..y end Hanseatic
towns, 18,769; 27,113; 34.809. Holland, 107,692; 122,601;
73603. Bs:gists, 80,168 ; 80,679; 39,960. France, 11,145 ;
7,296; 6.177. Spain and P rtegal, —; 796; 245. Italy
and Naples, 8,271 ; 3,007; 3,688. Austrian frontiers, —;
6.604 ; 4,006. Malta, 4 086. 695. 348. Turkey 78; —;
94. Egtpt, 124,144. 74,907 ; 57,356. Rest Indies and
China. •:66 •—; 1,812. Australian Colonies, 138; 60;
992. Vette States 1.789; 1,144; 768. Braid, 56; —;
Channel Islands, 700; 4; 31.
Witn reepeet to the linen trade of Ireland, it is one which
is no doubt yet capable of rig icing very considerable eaten.
Notwithstanoing the complete removal of the " bounty
system," spin which the Irish Linen Board was carried on
for wetly a century, the inctsase which tea taken piece in
the linen manufactures since l's dissolution of the board,
bee been most surprfsit.g. Under a system which gave a
bounty of thirty O'Meara for each spin •le, not more than
12,000 spindles wire worked, while at the pitmen% moment,
under a dtderent state of things., the num,* r has increased
to nearly 400,000, and the esorts have increased from
55,000.000 to 106,000,0!0 yards. The progress and pretest
pesi ion of the Ina ft x m .aufacturen is then stated by
Mr. DitAdam' the so eretagy to the Royal Flex Society:
" In 1793 the first laudatory for spinning flex woe erected
le Ores' Britain ; and, as it was found that
thus produced mote cheaply than by hand. this trade
speedily extended itsfl!. Tue fox was all spun dry, and the
yarns produced were all of the costlier kinds. The first
teolnaion machinery referred to in Ireland was established at
Cork in 1803, and consisted of 212 spindles for canvas yarns.
Ti • Linen Board, through a bounty of 30.. per spindl,
succeeded in eocouragieg the organisation of several c
cares, amoentiog, In 1809, to an aggregate of 6,3b9 spindles-
la 1816 there were in Ulster five mills, the largest having
1,024, and the smallest 300, spindles. In the same year
there were two in Leinsver and seven in Munster, only one
being at full work, owing to the depression of trade int-
ly after the end of the war. About 1826, English sad
Scotch yarns began to be imported for the hest time into
Ireland, and completely undersold the hand•pun article.
The.' yarns were produced on the system called wet spin.
ning, the fits, during the process of twisting, being passed
through hot water. By •Ina mode it could be spun much
finer than by the dry apiAning, and by degrees, aided by
subsequent itsprcresruts, the quality and fineness of th•
yarn Isere so much chaneed, and the ecenosny if working
so much attended to, that the hand spun yarns wars tem.
pfirely superseded, except for the very .finest cambric
loonies. One of the greatest sdvantattes of this system was,
that the tow could be spun almost SS floe as flax. The
first extensive facility on the wet spinning system crested is
Ireland wet in 1828. Abut 1835 a considerable export of

verve to Frage. began to fl d its way from Great Britain
and Ireland. From three millions of kilogrammes, or about
60 000 ewe ,1. 18;e8, it increased to 10 mileione kilogrammes,
or about 200,000 ow'., in 1841. Of this capon Ireland bad
. large share, equal to about 300,0001. ; and nearly on
fourth of her sondes machinery, in the latter year, was
working for France. The yam produced in 1841 were
slued at 1,700,0001. Bat the French having plated a heavy
dote on oar yarns in 1842, .o great was the check, that in
1843 oar production of perm hid fallen to 1,200,0001, a dif
tempo, in two years of halt a million sterling. In last, the
Ir sh flax spicners considered this impolitic act of the French
govevament as a crushing blow to their trade. That thole
gloomy anticipations have not b•eo realised is • moat astir
rectory circumstance, and shows strongly the great proven
which our linen masafeetore ha eines made. In 1841 there
were 41 mills, with 180000 soindles •' this year, 1850, there
are 73 mills, with 339,030 spindles ; seed adding the new mills
now being built, and the a4ditions of machinery now making
to existing concerns, there will be, by the end of this year,
about 400,000 spindles in operation."
Merest commercial changes hays had a most benelldal
effect in extending the maanfastores of linen.
It is a feet worthy of note, that almost in the sue pre
ream in which the demand for flax ham Maroseed, lm
an..ply has diminished. In 1757, before the drat
for spinning flex was erected in Great Britain. .luitnri
e-meunted all the flex which she produced and imported
from foreign soantria to the vales of hearty 140,0001. Is
1816, during the @shinier* albs Linea Board. Ireland, in-
stead of being a flee Importing eciantrv,aetsally hoseme ea
exporting eoustry to the errant of 72,5001. Mr. M'Adam,
the secretary to the Royal Flax 18 misty, gives the following
as the quantities of flex 170•111 ia Ireland in each ol the
following ream; —1866, 79,780 acmes; 1806, 61,442; 1811,
92,345; 1814. 61,902; 1818, 83,312; 1821, 80,786; 1841,
83,745; 1842. 93,435 ; 1848, 112.200 1844, 122,888; 1846,
90,112; 1848, 72,120; 1847, 68,312; 1848, 63,563; 1849,
60,078.
La the year 1841, eicoralas to Mr. Wa.deol, there were

in Ireland sayloyed in the linen trade 41 mills, with
260 000 spindles ; there as in the present year 73 mill. with
339,000 spindl.n, 1,0 ha states " that addle" the new mills
now being built, and Ole additions of machinery now melting
to existing cnt,. en., the,, •ill be by the end of this year
about 400,000 spindles in eyeration." Comparing the restive
proportion of acres of Bez g fC, an with the number of apindles
at work, it would app. ar that a,l 1941 the number of spindles
were 31 times treater than the number of sem of flea.
whereu in 1849 they were about 5 6 times pasta,. The
eff tiestion of flea has fallen eff in In land sines 1841 nearly
26,000 acre', while the quantity of fl►t mown in 1849 did
cot amount to one-hell of that grown in 1844.

- -
MONEY MARKET.

THIS DAY.

Two o'Cnow•
The market for the hone fnuds opened with a firm
aspect this morning, and under the influence of A
steady business prices were maintained at an advance
ofd on Tuesday's rates, but the dealers have since
been rather taken by surprise by the an-
nouncement which has lately been made that
the directors of the Beak of England, at
their weekly meeting to-day, have decided upon
raising the minimum rate of diroutint to 3 per cent.
The effect of this intelligence was to cause an imme-
diate and rapid decline in prices. Console, after
being steady at 971 to 3 ex div. for the account,
quickly dr,pped to their present quotation, 961 to 2,
being a fall of 4 as compared with the last vote-
lion of Tuerday's market.
The Three per Cent. Reduced mark 911, 3, and ! ;
whilst the New Tnree-and-a-Quarter per Cents. have
been dealt iu rather mere extensively than of late, at
994, 1,1, and 981. Business is marked in Long
Annuitiee, 1860, at 7 13.16; Bank Stock, 214 and
2134; ditto for account. 2144.
Exchequer Bids, 1,0001., have been transacted at
67e. and 64e. prem.; ditto small, at 64e.; India
Bonds, 1,0001, at 85s. prem.
The market for the foreign stocks was also good at
the commencement of business, but here also the
the new. above referred to has caused a reaction, and
motet descriptions bare experienced a decline. Tae
transaction., however, up to the prevent time,
have not been general, as will be seen from the fol-
lowing business list of the morning's operation., viz.:
Buenos Acres Six per Cents., 31. Danish Five per
Cents., 101, 4. Dutch Two-and-a-Half per Cents.,
593 do. Four per Cent. Certificate,, 91, 903. Equa-
doe floods, 33. Five per Cent. French Iterate,
96f. ; exchange, 24f. 90c. Mexican Bonds,
35! and 3. b•eth for money and account. Pe-
ruvian Four-and-a-Half per Cents., 1849, for account,
813, 3. Ituseian Four-and-a-Haif per C nts., 983, 3.
Spanish Active Five per Cents , for account, 18.

ISNOLISU ►PNUN.—Tnn DAt.

lima Stock M 3 14
3 par Ct. Rol. AMY.. P
3 tot Ct. Coe. Ann.. thus
e t.
yet al Awtri.
tt
le
tat Ct. liuht bond, et)
per Con

TORNIO

igoi.lir;wit. IM.. IT r
Plato New. a 7
6 ritt4Clitirral...i:).,TO:s /4 4
Ditto Col tonb. I .101.
Cohuublail kus.lor If
3 uts Ct. I)6.ish 111... 76 8
14 pct Ct. Putch 11.1,.. :9 I
19a Ct. Duton Cert... 99 6

3 pet Ct. Coo Am. DES h
3t Ps. WI I
litchopow 11111,644. to ea

IN FUNDS.
1 par 131. lima. Mo.. 14
timed& Ihterred Klik. 4
Lea.l".•:. ,

41 per Ct. :',11•1•1. 114.
Portugooor C 344 II
par CL. le.. 11.. 111
1:Itlo ITI
3 pa Ct. Stator, KY,*
Do. Polerrod Mu,
Ditto 140•44. lids.. 31
:I pot 31 3
onossolo Worts.. Vow; 11 11

MINCINU-LANF..—THIS DAY.
To day is considered a holiday, and we bane no cotassarcial
report.

TALLOW MARKET.-THIS DAY.

The market continues steady, but with not quite so such
act ivity an there has been for acme time past. Prices range
as follows: —Town Tallow, 38. sd. ; Petersburg Y. C. on t►e
soot, 37.. 3t ; all the year. 37s • Jan., Fob, and Much,
370.; last threw mouths of IBM. 395.

SMITHFIELD MARKET.—THIS DAY.
Messrs. Coops an. Davis rsvrt very little doing. Present
quo•stions :—Pritne M•adosr, 725. to 80a.; interior, 555. to
6h.; ii wen, 5.5.. to 61 ; Clover, 70s. to 80s.; second cut,
604. to 70.. ; Straw. 22.. to 25..

MELANCHOLY DEATH ET FALLING ])ow AN
UIIFILUTLCTID COALPIT.—The following is • melancholy
instance of the custom of leaving old pita use .erred : .0a
he 13:b inst. (stye the IVohwhanspturs eMonicle), T. M.
Biq.,cnocer, held aa atjourned inquest at the Ship
and R.inht er Tay. rn, lludlry-riad, in this borough, an the
body of James Thomas, a blacksmith, 28 years of eye, in the
employ of Me an. 110 and Dizou, iron and seal masters, at
the 11 nigh Hill. Colliery, who had been killed on the previ-
use Friday night by falling down one of the.pits in that
colliery. It . ppearid that the dec. and had been drinking
with his brother and imithir man at the (Jseen's Arms
puqic house, near Saelhouse-lens, on the aignt M question.
Decrand drank two or three pints a ale. The three
. .

men lett the h.,tme t. gather alterwarje parted
for their r. Fp. ezive home.. Tnuisne'. broth., Blatt dat the
. . .

inquest t-at the deceased, when he patted with him, was
the worse for iiqaor, but was not drank; that he knew
what be was domg, and walked steadily. On the follow-
s, g Sonde), evening the woman wito whom his brother
lodged told him (witness) that Ilia brother had not been
home eines the previous Friday night. He immediately
went to Mr. D eon's house and informed him of the cif, um-
stance, at toe same time expressing • wish to have the pits of
the colliery searched. Mr Diatte said, '1 mopes it is only
a drunken frolic of hi..' He at:ere...de said, ' You they go
and tell Mr. Nott to get the pullies and rope, and search the
pet you thick the &vexed is tn.' Ile ( eroness) immediately
meet to Mr Nirt, who premised that It should be done the
following morntog. He attended at a coal pit at Hough
Hula the following rooroieg, and found several men drag.
ging the bit with a rope end drag; they brought up some
hair tt.e first time, sod he took it to Mr. Dixon, asking him
how the deceased was to he got up. Mr. D I:111 replied, ' I
sonnet have him got up any sooner than when the head
is drove out of the other pit.' He told Mr. Diana that
some collier. would get the deceased oat in four hours it he
weal let them have the air pipes for the purpose of :riving
the damp air out. Mr. D eon said that tekior the pip sup
from the otter pit would cause the men to play, and that it
would mkt them twelve hears to take the pipes no and put
them down again, and that the head would be driven oat
before that. He (witness) went back to the pit and law part
id the deees•rd'ojacket br ught up by the dreg. He took it
to Mr. Dam; who said he could do no more than what he
hod dote, nod that his men were driving the head out, and
would sown finish it, when the deceased could be got out.
He then applied to the justifies, and stated to them what he
Ilse nu+ dep. sad to, but Mr. Barker sa.d they had no power
to interfere. A p 'lineman then went with him to Mr.
Dii',ll'll house, but they were unable to see Mr. Dixon.
He applied to Mr. Dia to the following day, but he would
not assot him. He then delivered him a letter, addressed
to Maws. Hill and Down, wider' bed been Written under
legal advice, requesting them immediately to order their
men to altilt, and that they should employ every available
n cane to rev vir the body, in order that a legal inquiry
might be instituted before the proper authorities is to the
eases of his death. Mr. Piton still refused to allow him
the nes of the pipes Oa the fol'owing day John Grif-
fiths, the ground bailiff to the Parkfield Company, lent
him some air pipes, their men pus them down. Two
men descended the pit, tied to the shale, and shortly
&Onwards brotght up the body of the deceased, frightfally
disfigured. The pit in question, the witness added, was
unprotecred, and was within twenty yards of the public
road, leading from Steelhoose.lane into the Green lane
and the R meth Hill weeks, and was a thoroughfare very
much used by the miners employed at Mere.. Hill and
Dmor:a walks as well aa others. He (witness) could not
account for the deceased being in the pit, as he knew the
road well. The sight was dark a. d fog George Fowls
proved having parted with the de at the Rough Hill
furnace paw, when he was merry,' but knew what he
was about, nod walked steadily. The pit in question, the
witness said, was within about twenty yards from the road
leading to the deceued'e lodging, and was without any fence
against the road or round the pit. Samuel Alliegton; one of
the men who descended the pit and brought up the body of
the &mused, stated that both deoeseed'e logo and arms were
broken and his holy was frightfully crushed. The jury re-
turned a verdict to the effect that the dammed met hie death
by fall's( doers a pit."

- -
MIDLAND RAILWAY —Traal. for work coding Die. 22
1850, 22,1151 10.. 9'.; d.. Dee. 23, 1843, 22,4681. -
Aprrefte• : —1849, 668,895/.7. 44.; 1850,676 -
Illistosearsa, MAtumc, LIND 111111.•111011
TrafEr k r Werk endi..o Dee. 22, 1880'

IY 111.
11 55 WI,
ji 2i ate.
la 17

134 I 4 34
2 '4 21

41
231 24
11 l MR.

a; 11.;
11.21
I 1. 1.111
1 1 tm
01.
412
1 Is
, 3. Ws
S 1 37

414
194! I

•1 111 dt•

231 21
9

91 9
151 I I
31 1 I
274
gi
SI ex dly

1
I
i
1
1:10
11
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'l:...iiiii:
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