The Sun.
London, England, 1850-12-13 00:00:00

SOCIETY OF ARTS:

The fourth ordinary meeting of the Society of Arts
was held on Wednesday night, the Right Hon. T. M.
Gibson, M.P., in the chair, when a paper was read "pn
the bleaching of linen, cloth, calico, cotton, flax, and
other fibres," by Mr. F. C. Calvert, professor of che-
mistry at the Royal Institution, Manchester. The
paper commenced by an historical review of the sub•
ject in association with linen and cotton cloths ; after
which an elaborate description was given of the pre-
sent systems of bleaching as applied to both de-
scriptions of fabric. In the course of his re-
marks, the Professor laid it down that the fibre
could not be separated from the wood of flax
without the application of steeping ; and among the
obstacles to the rapid bleaching of linens he
mentioned the impurities which remained after the
steeping process. Certain portions of the wood, or
reed, intermingled with the fibre as it was spun, and
thereby rendered the bleaching more difficult ; but
separate these splints from the fibre, and he saw no
reason why linen should not be bleached as readily as
cotton. He mentioned that he himself had a process
by which the bleaching was facilitated, and the
article rendered nearly as white as cotton ; but he was
satisfied that until linen could be bleached as well by
a rapid chemical process as it could be in the field,
flax could scarcely be expected to maintain its true
value before the public. He described Schenck's pro-
cess of steeping in water at a given temperature, and
expressed an opinion to the effect that as it was the last
it was the best improvement upon the old system ;
and after exhibiting some manufactured specimens,
bleached and unbleached, of China grass and jute,
which elicilkd much interest, he called attention to
the importance, in a national view, of extending the
cultivation of flax. A comparatively small quantity
was grown in Ireland, whilst the linen trade was gra-
dually increasing, thus rendering the manufacturers
more dependent upon foreigners for their supplies
of raw material. Indeed, he could not comprehend
why, in Ireland especially, the money paid for foreign
flax should not be distributed in its cultivation at
home. Ireland was capable of producing all the flax
that our manufacturers consumed ; but she required
assistance to develop her resources in this respect.
No person who considered the question could avoid
arriving at the conclusion that the cultivation and
manufacture of flax would be a great source of profit
to the farmer and manufacturer, as well as of em-
ployment to labour, in support of which several
facts were stated. Whilst Mr. Calvert was touching
upon this subject, a number of fabrics, such as cords,
velveteens, and other cloths, all woven from flax, were
produced by Mr. Peter Atley, the texture, colour, and
quality of which were highly approved. A lengthened
and interesting discussion followed, exclusively upon
the question of the best mode of adapting flax of
home growth to textile purposes. Mr. Warnes, whose
process of steeping has been specially described
in this paper, explained the principal merits of his
plan ; and he was followed by Mr. Donlan, who pro-
duced numerous samples prepared by him without
steeping at all, and without the application of chemi-
cal agency except for the finest qualities. The flax
prepared under this process was admitted to be of the
best description, and it was stated that it had been
valued by brokers at 541. to 561. per ton. The dis-
cussion having closed, the proceedings terminated by
a vote of thanks to Mr. Calvert.