e
linen must have carefully prepared fiber. Linen should be soft,
yielding, and elastic, with almost a leathery feel. Fineness of linen
does not always determine good wearing qualities.

Good linen ranges in price from 75 cents to $3.00. Irish linen has a
good bleach. French and Belgian linens, while fine in thread, are not
as serviceable as Irish linen. Germany makes a good wearing linen, but
not a large variety of patterns. Scotch linens are now used more than
other kinds.

[Illustration: STACKS OF FLAX IN BELGIUM

Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y.]

_Sources of Flax_

Russia,
Holland,
Belgium,
Germany,
Ireland,
Canada,
U. S. (for seed only).

_Sources of Manufactured Linens_

Scotland,
Ireland,
Germany,
Austria,
Belgium,
France,
Russia,
United States.

MANUFACTURED LINENS

_Damasks and Napkins_
Scotland,
Ireland,
Germany,
Belgium.

_Towelings_
Scotland,
Ireland,
Germany,
United States,
Russia.

_Glass Checks_
Ireland.

_Canvas_
Scotland,
Ireland.

_Handkerchief Lawns, Cambrics, and Laces_
Ireland,
Germany,
France.

_Towels_
Germany,
Scotland,
Ireland,
Austria,
U. S. (union).

_Linen Sheetings_
Ireland,
Belgium,
France,
Scotland.

_Blouse or Dress Linens_
Ireland,
Scotland.

_Bleached Waist Linens_
Ireland,
France,
Belgium.

_Fancy Linens, Doylies, etc._
Germany,
France,
Japan,
Madeira Islands,
Island of Teneriffe.

FOOTNOTE:

[18] The stem fibers such as flax, jute, ramie are called bast fibers,
and before any of them can be utilized industrially, steps have to be
taken to render them free from gum. When the stems of these plants are
severed, the juice tends to oxidize through contact with the air and
forms a gum of a peculiarly tenacious character.

CHAPTER XVI

HEMP

[Illustration: LOADING HEMP IN MANILA]

=Hemp= is a fiber that is obtained from the hemp plant. It grows
principally in Russia, Poland, France, Italy, Asia, India, the
Philippines, Japan, and some parts of the United States--Kentucky,
Missouri, Tennessee, Ohio, Indiana, and New York. The original country
of the hemp plant was doubtless Asia, probably that part near the
Caspian Sea. The preparatory treatment is similar to that for the flax
plant, except that most of the wor