The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1863-04-11

@A 4
II is time that the attention 81 our
agricultural population were more iul'
N turned 10 the cultivation Of lax than
It appears 10 have yet been That ~.
ticlc now sells It fully u hundred
Der cent above what ID commanded
twelve months ago. There can be no
doubt that extraordinary prices Will
prevail Tor years 70 come, II Tor no
other reason than the cotton famine
Admit thaphe three millions OF bales
alleged TO he stored up AZ the South
were available, the market Tor dry
Goods has been sodepleled q late that
the whole could lie manufactured with
in & months AMI the fabrics made from
il be disposed d at iair prices. Afterthis
the pros pect IS, not .'the.delugc, but
4 further drought. b eSouth produc
ed only about one million OF bales last
wear. and will probably grow less dur
inc that on which we have entered, 50
utterly disorganized is its labor, and
so urgent Is the demand for bread to
sustain its population. Next to the
great necessaries Of life among orr
Selves may be justly placed such pro
ducts as flax and wool. Of which We
cannot possibly have a surplus, and
are likely to have a great deficiency
A senseless prejudice has 9 e
do in lettering u farmers from cni-
t;yating flax than any other cause
that We are aware Of. Il has been al
legged that It is too exhaustive on ths
soil: but there is TO reason to condemn
il any more than an ordinary gran
crop. Ifhax be one Of the series Q
rotation crops, and succeed n Q
vegetables, like potatoes, tnrnips, &c.
and be followed by clover, which ma,
be sown with it, no detrimental effect
10 the soil will be observable. Tn
labor or disagrecableness Of prepar
ing il for market are also grounds 9
complaint; but these arc growing les
every year from the application Of IN
proved machinery Even on the oil
plan pursued in Ireland and Belgium
the cost Of bringing a certain value
market was little ii anything in exces
Of a crop Of grain. The plant require
no'attention after the seed has been pu
in a moderately rich, friable, an
loamy soil, until pulling time. i
pull il is neither iaborious nor dis
agreeable, the principal matter whicI
requires attention being to have til
root ends in the bundles uniform
The next step is to immerse i IN
pond where il can be well kept bclc'
the surface BY means Of logs, stone:
&c. the bundles having at first . yer
buoyant tendency. The water shout
be soft, not a running stream, nor ye
altogether stagnant. Here is the mos
unpleasant part Of the performance
The odor arising from the pond j. di'
gushing for two or three days, and
fishes exist therein they are certain I
die.
The next process il (or was) to tax
the rotted fax ont Of the water an
spread it on the ground to dry. 0
the average, ten days for each Of thes
operations will suffice. The pith beir
by this time easily separable from II
outside fibre, nothing remains but |
take up and rebind it for the mil
where It il cleaned. Altogether ne
more than four weeks are usually n
auired from the time when flax i pu
led until il Is ready for manuiacturin
purposes. We have referred to thcs
matters, a little more in detail, as a
impression seems to prevail anon
farmers that many months must elaps
before the crop can be turned ini
money. The inventions lately brongl
before the public are known to efic'
still further saving Of time ar
labor, tosay nothing Of the unplcasal
part Of the process.
Our present situation as a people
such that we must return to the wea
ing Of both coarse and fine line
and be will bea public benefactor wi
shall undertake to make two plants
fax grow where only grew befor
We have abundance Of soil admiral
adapted to the culture Of this anciel
and almost forgotten product. "
have many thousands among us wi
arc familiar with every detail Of Il
labor required. We have inventi'
genius. We have an extraordina
demand from the paper mills, viii,
can absorb every pound that will
raised for years to come The seed