Flax and Hemp: From the Seed to the Loom
Mechanical Engineering Magazine
February, 1937

This country imports almost all of its fibers except cotton. The Whitney gin, combined with improved spinning methods, enabled this country to produce cotton goods so far below the cost of linen that manufacture practically ceased in the United States. We cannot produce our fibers at less cost than can other farmers of the world. Aside from higher cost of labor, we do not get as large a production. For instance, Yugoslavia, which has the greatest fiber production per acre in Europe, recently had a yield of 883 lbs. Comparable figures for other countries are Argentina, 749 lbs.; Egypt, 616 lbs.; and India, 393 lbs.; while the average yield in this country is 383 lbs.