Leeds,  the  chief  centre  of  the  industry,  makes
coarse  woollen  goods,  including  flannels,  blankets
and  coarse  cloths.  Bradford,  Halifax  and  Hudders-
field  specialise  in  the  finer  "  worsteds "  used  for
suitings  and  dress  materials,  in  which  the  mohair
and  alpaca  are  used  up.  Batley  and  Dewsbury  make
"  shoddy  "  from  old  woollen  cloth  and  wool  "  waste."

Bradford  and  Trowbridge  in  Wiltshire,  and  Stroud
in  Gloucestershire  are  famous  for  "  West  of  England  "
broadcloth  and  tweeds.
Hawick  and  Galashiels  are  the  centres  of  the
"  Tweed  "  industry  of  Southern  Scotland.
Leicester,  with  local  supplies  of  coal  and  the  sheep
pastures  of  Lincolnshire  close  at  hand,  specialises  in
woollen  hosiery.
Carpets  are  made  from  local  supplies  of  wool  at
Kilmarnock,  Kidderminster,  Wilton  and  Axminster ;
and  flannel  is  made  from  the  wool  of  the  Welsh  sheep
in  the  upper  Severn  Valley  at  Welshpool  and  Newtown,

"  Harris  "  and  ''  Irish  "  tweeds  are  made  by  hand
in  the  cottages  of  the  Hebrides  and  Connaught.
3.  The  Linen  Trade  is  chiefly  carried  on  in  north-
east Ulster,  in  Forfarshire  and  Fifeshire,  and  in  the
West  Riding  of  Yorkshire.  In  the  first  and  last
named  regions  flax  is  grown;  but  all  import  large
quantities  from  Russia,  where  it  is  grown  in  the  forest
clearings,  and  finer  qualities  from  Belgium.  Good
water  for  bleaching,  the  damp  climate  of  the  first
two  districts  and   abundance  of  coal  in  the  third.
88  THE   BRITISH   ISLES

favour  the  industry.  The  chief  centres  are  Belfast
and  Lishurn  in  Ireland,  which  produces  the  finest
qualities ;  Dundee,  Arbroath  and  Dunfermline  in  Scot-
land, and  Barnsley  in  England.  The  beautiful  Irish
lace  is  hand-woven  from  linen  thread.
