IV. Comprehension

Exercise 8. Answer the following questions:

1. Why is flax considered to be the oldest of the textile fibres?

2. When was flax cultivated in Egypt?

3. What country was the greatest linen-producing country in the world for many hundreds of years?

4. Where did the use of linen spread in later years?

5. What did the Romans use linen for?

6. Was flax cultivated in Europe?

7. How long was linen the most generally used textile?

8. Why did cotton become more widely used than flax after the second part of the 18-th century?

9. What textile fibres are used by larger amounts now?

Exercise 9. Say whether it is false or true. If false, say why:

1. Flax is the oldest of textile fibres because considerable amounts of it are actually preserved for us in Egyptian tombs.

2.Flax was cultivated in China 5000 years ago and for centuries it was the only textile fibre in that country.

3. The Egyptians liked to dress almost entirely in cotton.

4. For many hundreds of years Egypt was the greatest linen-producing country in the world.

5. In Greece and Rome linen was used for women ’s clothing and for outer garments.

6. Later every country in Europe began to cultivate flax.

7. Now chemical fibres are used by much larger amounts then linen.

Exercise 10. Retell the text according to the plan:

1. The oldest textile fibre.

2. The cultivation of flax in Egypt.

3. Linen in Greece and Rome.

4. The cultivation of flax in Europe.

5. The most widely used textile fibres today.