School: Cnoc an Chláraigh, Séipéal na Carraige (roll number 14002)
- Location:
- Knockaclarig, Co. Cork
- Teacher: David Ó Ceallacháin
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0356, Page 482
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- The flase seed is sown in the spring. In August a nice blue flower and seed come on it. It is pulled from the roots before the sad gets ripe. It grows only about half the height of oats.When cut the women bind it into sheaves and bury them in a pond of water. Stones are put down on the sheaves to keep them under the water. After about three weeks the hard part of the flase and the fibre can easily be separated.When the sheaves are taken out of the pond they are openend and spread out to dry in a fenced field. It is left out under the rain and sun for a few weeks until it is well bleached when it is again made into small sheaves.These sheaves are put on sticks by the fire-side to dry. After a few days the men pound the flax with a túrgín or bittle, to take away the hard part from the fibre. It is then cloven with a cloven tongs to separate the course part from the fine. After being cloven it is hackled with an thing called a harkle, out of which there are long nails sticking. The hackle separates the short coarse flase from the long fine flase the short flad is called toe. The long flax and the(continues on next page)
