fibre from flax (1940-1949)

British Instructional Films presentation. A field of flax. C/U of flax flowers. C/U of buds. Two men on a tractor harvest the flax. C/U of flax being cut. Flax is stacked in bundles then lifted on to a cart which is towed by a tractor. The flax is then sent via an elevator to the top of a large pile of flax. In the factory the flax is sent up another elevator then dropped on to the factory floor. Men unwrap the flax then feed it into a machine. Women take bundles of flax which are bound in a machine. “Retting“ - the flax bundles are stacked in a pile inside a large tank. Graphic illustration of how the bundles are stacked. Hot air is then pumped into the tank, as is water. Hot water then rises through the flax. We see the hot water bubbling. A man reaches down through a hole in the top of the tank to test a piece of flax. He checks the temperature of the water on a thermometer. The flax remains in the tank for 70 hours.