Spinning Flax (1940-1949)

British Instructional Films presentation.
Man holds a bunch of flax out towards the camera. Two men work with large bundles of flax, separating it into smaller bunches. Man lifts large bundles onto a barrow. The fibres are combed by a large mechanical machine. A fairly young boy (13 or 14?) puts flax into the mechanism. The machine combs out the fibres. Boy sits at the machine pulling out sections of the flax. Flax is moved along by pulleys. Bundles of flax are stacked. It is spread out and "drawn to length" by two women workers. The flax travels on a conveyor belt into a machine where it is passed under rollers. The flat flax emerges from the other end into a barrel. The flax is then pulled upwards out of the barrels and passed through another machine. More processes. "The slivers are roved." A woman tends to a part of the process - lots of threads of flax come off a machine. Shot of the flax being wound on to bobbins. *"The rove is spun into yarn" - the flax emerges slowly from a machine where it appears to be heated. Flax wound onto bobbins. The wet yarn is reeled to hanks. Women work by a large revolving drum. C/U of woman attaching threads to the drum and adding new bobbins when the threads run out. The hanks are dried and bundled - hanks are threaded on to a pole and placed on drying racks. Bundles of flax are stacked in piles.
*Note: there is a print marked "C. Copy" which runs from asterisk to end. End title reads; "Produced with the Co-operation of the National Committee for Visual Aids in Education" but other than this seems exactly the same.
CHECK - Soundtrack?
FILM ID:2883.03
A VIDEO FROM BRITISH PATHÉ. EXPLORE OUR ONLINE CHANNEL, BRITISH PATHÉ TV. IT'S FULL OF GREAT DOCUMENTARIES, FASCINATING INTERVIEWS, AND CLASSIC MOVIES. www.britishpathe.tv/
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British Pathé also represents the Reuters historical collection, which includes more than 136,000 items from the news agencies Gaumont Graphic (1910-1932), Empire News Bulletin (1926-1930), British Paramount (1931-1957), and Gaumont British (1934-1959), as well as Visnews content from 1957 to the end of 1984. All footage can be viewed on the British Pathé website. www.britishpathe.com/

[@ZacharyRodriguez]

Beautiful. Every bit of it. Thank you for preserving this experience.

[@tomomok1982]

Flax, also known as common flax or linseed, is a member of the genus Linum in the family Linaceae. It is a food and fiber crop cultivated in cooler regions of the world. Textiles made from flax are known in the Western countries as linen, and traditionally used for bed sheets, underclothes, and table linen.

[@klareellis]

Also for paper.

[@ZacharyRodriguez]

I've heard there are two variants of commercial flax plant. A shorter one used for seed, and a longer variety for textile.

[@opheliarolle5393]

I just gained new respect for the craft.

[@salahfathi4610]

Egyption flax fiber We have all kinds of Egyptian raw linen and its derivatives for the manufacture of textiles and use in many other things. Please contact: [e-mail] Egypt: 00201276007225 France:0033753934337 Thank you Salah

[@roberthenderson760]

@@ZacharyRodriguez Flax grown exclusively for seed has no real value for textiles and was usually destroyed by burning or landfill, now there is a lot of research into cleaning this fibre for use in composites. Short Flax fibres are Known as "Tow" and are a by product of the Hackling process , these short fibres are usually Carded , Drawn, Roved and spun into heavier less valuable yarn counts as opposed to the more valuable long "Line" fibres used to spin the finest linen yarn counts.

[@maryannedelaney]

Wow. It is amazing how it didn't disintegrate after that long and arduous process through the machines.

[@M3rVsT4H]

Yeah, I think you know you've found a pretty special natural fibre when you can do all of that to it and it's still strong enough to make a shirt out of.

[@mrs.manrique7411]

The more the fibers were processed, the softer they were - which is important if you're going to be wearing them on your skin!

[@roberthenderson760]

Flax fibre is extremely strong like Hemp and Jute etc. It is also very "Hydroscopic" with a regain value of 14 - 16% which also adds to the strength . This is also why the machinery was very robust. I have seen myself where untended machines have had rollers bent and castings smashed due to Flax sliver "lap" formations.

[@RKarmaKill]

The beauty of efficiency with child labor 👍

[@roberthenderson760]

I think that mill may have been in Belfast, York street or Strandtown perhaps ? Those lads where likely apprentices 14 or 15 years maybe which was normal for the era.

[@moniquem783]

@@roberthenderson760 plus it was wartime. Men were a bit hard to find!

[@book3100]

Not everybody is a doctor.

[@lesabri]

Child labor is very cheap! Slavery is practically free...this is how the rich got/get rich

[@moniquem783]

@@lesabri look at the date of the video. It was wartime. The men were off fighting. Everyone who could, pitched in. It’s a fairly recent thing to stay at school until 18 and be considered a child that whole time. Both of my parents left school and started working at 15. Actually my sister did too. The moment she was legally allowed to leave school, she was out of there! 😂😂 If someone was not academically minded and didn’t like school, or if their family couldn’t afford for them to continue, it was normal for them to leave and get a job. In the UK, at the time of this video, the legal school leaving age was 14. It was raised to 15 in 1944 and 16 in 1972. The “child” in the video looks about 14 to me. Isn’t he lucky that his first job is in a flax factory! Yes it’s very dusty, but at least there’s no chance of an explosion like there would be in a munitions factory.

[@roberttaylor90y76]

I worked as a mechanic in a flax mill for 28 years.

[@user-uz1zm9xf7e]

people would be very interested in your knowledge now.

[@jonathanlandau-litewski7405]

My grandmother pressed flax for 4 years in a concentration camp. This is my first time actually seeing her 'job.'

[@loisraymcinnis6006]

Love learning! and thank you very much!

[@ginajones1003]

I love the posh accent of the narrator! Nobody speaks like that anymore.

[@bonniehowell6604]

The way of speaking is called “a Mayfair Accent”. Very posh.

[@carolinemaja2199]

Just go to England.

[@M3rVsT4H]

@@bonniehowell6604 I'd not heard that term. Thanks for sharing.

[@thatgrumpychick4928]

I bet it's because it takes effort and society has thumbed their nose at anything that takes effort

[@jonka1]

@@carolinemaja2199 I'm English and very few people ever spoke like that. The media in the 1940s set itself up as arbiters of "good taste" and that included speaking like that. The legacy of Lord Reith of the BBC.

[@Hihopeyouhaveawonderfulday]

Linen is such an impressive textile.

[@kenc2257]

There were some very young people (kids, really) working those machines, particularly at the start of the video.

[@lesley1848]

My mum and dad left school at 14 that is how it was back then. I left school at fifteen and now it is sixteen. Time changes society.

[@lisette2060]

Highly impressive production. -British technic at it's finest.

[@thekoderius265]

1: Whoever invented that machine is a genius 2: I want to touch those flax bundles so much lol

[@lisapelarske1634]

TheKoderius I know, right? They look so soft, that entire machine is truly a genius idea!

[@lisapelarske1634]

No wonder linen is so expensive!

[@motazelkholy6920]

@CakeBaker67 the inventor of this great machinery which is still working is James mackie irish factory

[@jamesmcinnis208]

@dave dude No one?

[@caritas3015]

An engineer was responsible for both the design of the machine and the engineering process.

[@marysmith7765]

So interesting how they can get such a consistent result from what is basically tall grass.

[@jumemowery9434]

Fascinating!

[@dinnerwithfranklin2451]

Interesting show thanks

[@KianneofTroi]

i love these types of olde videos ....

[@VRGamercz]

3:00 Damn how old is that boy? Not to mention state of his clothes.

[@colindubord4239]

Noticed that too.... wasn’t sure if those are his “work” clothes or that’s actually are a good set of clothes for him.

[@kaspernbs]

Looking at the break points i would say recent growth spurt and has broken through his work cloths since those areas would get stressed by his work actions. Due to buy a new set of gear i reckon.

[@LordSither1]

or 1940s northern england industrial area. kids probably 13-14. very common for schooling to last till your 11 or so up until the 1970s or so. especially in the rural farming areas

[@colindubord4239]

@@LordSither1 good job! You’re smart man

[@macdansav1546]

Don't forget there was a war on. In the early 40s lots of the older men would have been conscripted leaving the younger teenagers to take over.

[@cassbarker1966]

Wow amazing process 🤗

[@makeitkate3240]

Can you imagine kids doing that kind of work with industrial machinery in western countries now?

[@phoebebaker1575]

So cool

[@franklesser5655]

The end bundles... how does it not become a big tangled mess?

[@guillermoruiz3080]

Increible...

[@janerkenbrack3373]

As Sergeant Joe Friday would later say, Just the flax, ma'am.

[@anlemeinthegame1637]

Listening to the narrator is like stepping back in time. Quite the old style RP accent.

[@robertalan2427]

Looks like it must cost a BUNDLE

[@kathyohara6658]

I love linen, especially antique Irish linens. It is really interesting to see the processing the flax goes through to make it. This historical film brought back so many memories of a different era. The comments on this post about child labour show real ignorançe and I suggest schools improve their history and geography curriculum to educate thereby avoid entitled milleniums having to expose their ignorance on media platforms such as this.

[@Msfeathers7]

Do they still make any clothing out of flax?

[@GMack]

Yes, search for Linen clothing and you will see.

[@missartist123]

Flavia Slag yes. Linen is made entirely out of flax.

[@chubeye1187]

Flax also known as linseed, probably where the name linen came from or vice versa

[@salahfathi4610]

Egyption flax fiber We have all kinds of Egyptian raw linen and its derivatives for the manufacture of textiles and use in many other things. Please contact: [e-mail] Egypt: 00201276007225 France:0033753934337 Thank you Salah

[@00_rei90]

Still used in the military as part of LBEs

[@simonliu809]

my company is looking for flax yarn spinning waste, pls contact me who can supply..

[@kayekaye251]

Why are the captions in Italian?!

[@AL-ri6bk]

Flax reminds me of rs

[@alanroy]

Who is the narrator?

[@rhondalundy550]

I wonder if anyone still uses those machines????

[@motazelkholy6920]

yes we r

[@motazelkholy6920]

www.eicflax.com

[@xxalmightyxx2304]

@@motazelkholy6920 wow thanks

[@b-bnt]

@x they should. Its part of buisness

[@roberthenderson760]

The oldest Flax processing machine I ever worked on was a 70 year old Hackling (combing) machine built by James Mackie & Sons of Belfast . It was in a mill in Germany , a purely mechanical machine ( first machine shown in video) There are many of these machines still working and also modern versions being manufactured (mainly in China).

[@leyop4559]

Yeahhhhh

[@drxym]

Practically Dickensian

[@jonka1]

If it was Dickensian then most of the workers would be little children.

[@bigjd2k]

Probably a more interesting job than sitting in front of a computer all day!

[@Canhistoryismylife]

@@jonka1 did you see the video those are children working at the machines

[@roberthenderson760]

@@Canhistoryismylife As we say (quite crudely) here in Belfast " Thems some brave hairy arsed children" , young apprentices 14 - 15 years which was normal for the era. I left school at 16 to begin an apprenticeship with James Mackie & Sons the manufacturer of the machines in the video and looked every bit as fresh faced as those lads and had my first pint of Guinness out of my first wage packet.

[@34tab]

I think that the ancient Egyptians ad linen cloth-- I cannot imagine how they managed to create it!

[@roberthenderson760]

A few years ago I visited a carpet yarn mill in Cairo , before I left they took me to visit the Cairo museum of Antiquities, there i saw a piece of Linen over 2,000 years old and it was as fine and beautifully constructed as any modern day fine Linen cloth. As I work (even today) in the Flax/Linen industry I found it particularly fascinating.

[@rachelstrahan2486]

👍

[@fieonshakespearenut]

In my head I added the cheesy "How It's Made" music.

[@aaronmorgan8819]

Is it New Zealand flax ?

[@chubeye1187]

Probably northern Ireland

[@roberthenderson760]

Could be Flax from Northern Ireland ,Southern Ireland, Russia, Belgium, Holland or the best Quality at that time and even today Northern France and either "dew" or "water" retted. Or in some cases blends of any of the above depending on production costs, quality and yarn count requirements.

[@ryanalexander3088]

no sussex flax, common flax

[@damianousley8833]

New zealnd flax comes from a different plant but processed in a similar manner. There is a film showing NZ flax being harvested and processed.

[@danielfeld8724]

No child labor laws yet

[@Euquila]

great vid, but it's late and I did yawn at the yarn

[@monipenihang1018]

Ahhhh child labor! Those were the good ol’ days

[@emilybond7556]

Obligatory Runescape comment as I didn't see one.

[@jeffwads]

Child labor laws need not apply baby.

[@xedang6576]

👍😁🇺🇸🇺🇦🌺

[@frankservant5754]

Wow the British were indeed way ahead when it came to industrialisation of course it did not come without its own vices but seeing a young boy working in a factory is quite refreshing

[@apcolleen]

What kind of factory did you work in?

[@user-gm7rh9oz1y]

🌳🎩💐🏚️🐓

[@marlonpicken5193]

good documentation of child labour

[@LeftIsBest001]

Ahhh, good old child labour.

[@willroman3595]

A libertarian dream.

[@l27tester]

We love child labour

[@scottleft3672]

Sadly you only see linen now is as rags for cleaning, from charity bins to charity factory, if a button missing, it's discarded into large sacks for sale at $10 a 1/4 ton bag, then torn into foot square rags, then sold at $10 a pound, shameful.

[@mynamejeff3545]

They don't have bedsheets where you're from?

[@nancyneyedly4587]

Linen is a favourable choice for summer clothing. Even linen pillows, curtains and sofas. Very popular. I have never seen a linen "rag", expensive linen tea towel maybe.

[@justinmorgan2126]

child labour... fantastic.

[@chubeye1187]

Not that long ago when we were a third world country

[@00_rei90]

By what definition exactly?

[@Brap-pl2me]

What a moron.

[@lisette2060]

How do you connect these highly ingenious machines and top quality product with third world?

[@roberthenderson760]

Third world? In Belfast we had the two largest (and wealthiest ) Flax Mills in the world and exported "Irish Linen" to the four corners of the earth. We also had one of the largest Textile Machinery manufacturer's in the world in James Mackie & Sons who designed, built and exported machinery for processing Jute, Hemp, Flax, Wool , Synthetics etc all over the globe for more than 150 years.