The Massachusetts spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1821-1823, 1822-01-09

TO the earth. If ne had slken TIE,
trouble of sending to New-York, and
obtaining clean seed, it would not have
happened.
4 gentleman from Columbia county,
in this state, informed me he found it
necessary to change his seed every year
and he found the seed raised on land
near the sea better than what was raised
north or west Of him-that in two years
his flax would degenerate so much as to
make the crop scarcely worth pulling.
have now hank Of flax sent me from
Minisink, town in Orange county II
was prepared and cleaned in the old
way, and measures four feet in length,
as dressed, and is of fine quality 1t is
called Sapling Flax, and produced 900
weight of clean fax Gas is said) to the
acre. | have sent to procure a quantity
Of the seed at any price, that may cui-
tiyate it for the seed.
One Of my lots was sewn in the morn
ing OF Saturday, the 10Th of May
There was shower in the afternoon,
and on Monday morning the flax was
bursting through the earth throughout
the lot. 1t was a fine lot of flax, free
from weeds but, according to my juGg-
ment and that of my farmer, the best
lots of flax, as have before observed,
were those that had been sown between
the Goth Of April and the 10th of May;
and there was no perceiyabie difference
between them.
AS sowed two bushels Of seed to the
acre, with view TO crop of flax, and
not seed, SO pulled my flax as ii was
passing from the blossom TO the bon.
The seed was not yet formed-the boll
was in milk, but it will nevertheless
yield from four to five bushels of seed to
the acre, fit for crushing or fe eding.
would recommend, if the farmer
cultivates for fax, to SOW two bushels
to the acre, and to set apart one or more
acres for seed, and to sow three pecks
TO the acre. From all the information I
have been able to obtain, that is the best
quantity to be sown, if you cultivate for
seed but the flax when dressed will be
too coarse to make fine linen, and can
not be made as white by my process of
bleaching.
As ! contracted for all my flax con-
cern, paid at the following rate, name
ly -
50 90 for ploughing, narrowing, and
sowing seed, per acre,
8 100 for two bushels of seed, per
acre,
8 90 for pulling and spreading on the
ground, per acre,
] SO for drying, bundling, and carting
TO the barn, per acre,
$40 SO,
where my fax now remains until my
machine can be set in motion by horse
or OK power, which Hope will be be-
fore January next.
In the month OF February or March
last, learned that il was impossible 10
obtain the English machines; and the
British government had refused, on the
application of Mr.. Rush, the American
Minister, to let them come then d.
rected my attention to having theme
made in imitation of the English ma
chimes, as represented in the 9th num-
Der of the Journal of Arts and Sciences.
published in London, and re-published
in New York, by Mr.. Eastburn. | en-
Ployed two persons in this city, who
undertook to make them, warranted
good; and after keeping me in suspense
until August last produced at length a
Breaker and Rubber, for which paid
them S 200, which are literally good
for nothing At the time these ma
chimes were about to be delivered. I
employed Mr.. James Macdonald to set
them, together with others contem-
plated to have made, in operation, by
animal power but finding them, as /
have before mentioned, useless, | threw
them aside, and employed Mr.. Macdon-
aid to make me one on an entire new
plan. This has succeeded to my wishes,
and certificate given me by several,
gentlemen who saw the machine oper-!
ate, is as follows -
Certificate.
We'were present at a trial of a newly-in-
vented machine, made for dressing flax or
hemp IN an unrotted or unwretted state, be-
longing to Messrs. Anthony Dey, and James
Macdonald, OF this city. The machine is COR