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Fork, in Idaho. The men are industrious and have become good farmers, and, although brave and good warriors, have never fought against the whites. Their name refers to the ancient practice of flattening the skulls of young infants in various ways, as was done in Peru before and after the arrival of the Incas, among the Caribs in Central America, Mexico and Florida and among the mound-builders of the Ohio and Mississippi valleys. Among modern Indians the practice is mostly confined to the Chinooks and other tribes of the northwestern coast of North America.

Flax. Species of the genus Linum, and especially the cultivated flax, L. usitatissi-

mum. The genus contains about 80 species, belonging to the temper-a t e regions both of the northern and southern hemis-> pheres. The flowers are bright and showy and remarkably regular. The common flax has been cultivated from ancient times, and is unknown in its original wild state. It is cultivated not merely for its valuable fiber but for linseed or flaxseed oil. The fibre is used for the coarsest as well as the finest fabrics, and is not only valued for finest linen cloth and filmy lace but is employed in the body of cordage and rope. It was raised in Egypt in the days of the Pharaohs; has been famous for ages; and is still grown there in large quantities. Of the European countries where it is extensively cultivated Russia, Belgium and Ireland stand to the fore. Cultivation of it was begun in America by the early settlers, and some impetus given when the supply of cotton was cut off by the Civil War. Of late flax-culture for fibre has been receiving increasing attention. It will grow in almost all parts of the United States, but requires a great deal of care and labor. The flaxseed production of the United States in 1906 was 25,576,146, bushels.

Flea, a small, wingless insect with a sharp pointed beak, by means of which it punctures the skin of animals upon which it lives, leaving a red, itching blotch. These insects have powerful legs, and are remarkable jumpers. Fleas live on the dog, cat, rabbit, pigeon and poultry. The fleas of the dog and the cat will also attack man, but there is another species of fleas known as the human flea. To rid a dog or cat

FLAX

of fleas, the animal should be dusted with Persian insect powder, and the sleeping-places thoroughly cleaned. The human flea is not very abundant in the United States, except in warm, sandy districts, but they are common in Europe. In northern Africa and in some eastern countries they are a terrible torment. A single flea will inflict many bites. As a protection, the tops of the stockings should be dusted with insect-powder, and it may also be sprinkled between the sheets at night.

Fleur=de=Lis, a symbol in heraldry, meaning literally flower of the lily, is famous as the emblem of the kings of France in the middle ages. The full device was three lilies on a blue field or ground. The origin of the fleur-de-lis in nature appears to have been, not the lily proper, but the iris-plant. Its conventional form has been traced back to the ancient Etruscans.

Flicker, a bird with many names, a member of the woodpecker family. It is known as Yellow-Hammer, High-Hole, Golden-Winged Woodpecker, etc. It is a large bird, considerably larger than the robin. When flying, it displays a shimmer of yellow and a flash of white; the wing-shafts and lining and tail-quills are a rich yellow, the tail white on the upper side. Above, it is a grayish brown barred with black, wings black and yellow, a noticeable patch of white low on the back, the head gray. It wears a noticeable top-collar of a beautiful shade of red; the light color underneath is thickly dotted with black, with a black crescent on the upper part of the breast. He is a handsome fellow and yet, on the ground, not conspicuous, his protective coloring being that of the ground, where he frequently feeds. Ants are his chief food. Though a woodpecker, he leaves most of the boring to other members of the family, and gets his ants from the ground or from decayed wood. He is not above using another woodpecker's deserted nest, but often bores nests in apple trees and decayed stumps; sometimes the nest is found 60 feet up from the ground. Six white eggs are the rule. The breeding-range is throughout the eastern states.

Flint, a mineral, a variety of quartz, consisting almost entirely of silica, with a little lime, oxide of iron, water and, sometimes, carbon. It varies in color from almost black to light brown, red, yellow and grayish white, and is sometimes mottled or spotted. Flint is often found imbedded in chalk, and is also found in beds or veins. It was used to strike fire with steel and in firearms. The most ancient use of it was for sharp weapons and cutting instruments. It was also used by American Indians for arrowheads.

Flint, Austin, American physiologist and writer, was born at Northampton, Mass., on March 28, 1836, and graduated in 1857