Part 3

_Starch_ is a substance frequently prepared from wheat, and is obtained by the following process. The wheat is put into tubs of water, and exposed, for some days, to the heat of the sun, in order to bring on a proper degree of fermentation, the water being changed twice a day. Having now become sufficiently soft, it is poured into large canvass bags, which are worked or beaten, on a board over an empty vessel, to extract the farinaceous particles. Fresh water is put to it, and after being considerably agitated, it is allowed to subside. As the sediment increases, the water is gradually drained off, and, at length, the starch is formed into small pieces, and dried for use.

During the late war, when the intercourse betwixt France and the West Indian islands was entirely cut off, several attempts were made in that country to obtain _sugar_ from starch. The process was a long and intricate one; and the success with which it was attended was not such as to render it either practically or permanently useful.

_Bran_ is the husk of wheat, separated in grinding. Infusions of bran are, not unfrequently, employed both externally and internally in medicine. They are also sometimes used to cleanse the hands instead of soap. And, in times of scarcity, bran has been advantageously employed in the making of household bread.

_Wheat straw_, when chopped or cut small, forms a wholesome provender for horses and oxen, especially when mixed with green food. It is also used as litter for horses, and is employed as thatch for cottages, houses, and barns. When cut into certain lengths, bleached by means of sulphur, and split, it is plaited, and formed into hats and bonnets.

A nutritive substance called _Semolina_ is formed from wheat flour, granulated by a particular process. A patent was granted in the year 1780 to Mr. Jacob Levy, for a method of making it. Previously to this, semolina had been imported from Poland, under the name of _Cracow groats_. It constitutes a light and wholesome food for invalids, being considered, in this respect, preferable to sago; it may also be made into excellent puddings.

_Macaroni_ is a preparation from the finest wheat flour, mixed with eggs, or other glutinous substance. It is chiefly imported from Italy, Sicily, and Germany. Its name implies _cut paste_, and it is eaten in various ways; on the continent with milk, and with us in soups and puddings, or served up in a dish with grated cheese, milk, and other ingredients.

_Vermicelli_ is made by a mixture of flour, cheese, the yolks of eggs, sugar and saffron. This, being reduced to a proper consistency, is formed into long slender pieces or threads, like worms, by being forced, with a piston, through a number of little holes, in the end of a pipe made for the purpose. Vermicelli was first brought from Italy, and it is chiefly used in soups and other culinary preparations.

30. _BARLEY is a well known kind of corn_ (Hordeum distichon, Fig. 15.) _which grows wild in the island of Sicily, and some other parts of the south of Europe._

Next to wheat, this is, in Europe, the most valuable of all the species of grain, especially for growth on light and sharp soils. The seed-time for barley usually commences about the end of March or the beginning of April, and sometimes lasts until the first week in June; and, for the produce, four quarters per acre are considered a fair average crop, and eight quarters a very extraordinary one.

Few instances of fecundity in corn are more remarkable than what has been related of two grains of SIX-ROWED BARLEY (_Hordeum hexastichon_) which were planted in a garden: they produced 113 stalks, nearly all of which yielded ears; and these contained, in the whole, more than 2,500 grains.

The principal use to which barley is applied in this country is for the making of _malt_, from which beer and ale are brewed. For this purpose it is first steeped in water for three or four days. It is then taken out, and suffered to lie, until it begins to sprout or germinate. As soon as the germination has approached a certain state its further progress is prevented by drying the barley in a kiln, heated with coke, charcoal, or straw. The grain has now become mellow and sweet; and, after having been crushed in a kind of mill contrived for the purpose, its saccharine qualities are easily extracted by the boiling water, in brewing. The liquor that is thus produced has the name of _wort_; and this, after having undergone the process of fermentation, and having received a bitter flavour by a mixture of hops, becomes ale or beer. Hence has originated the general appellation of _malt liquor_. What remains of the malt after brewing is called _grains_. These, in London, are employed for the feeding of horses, cows, and swine.

Besides the use of barley in brewing, there is in some countries, especially in Scotland and Germany, a great consumption of this grain, for broths, soups, and other food. For this purpose it is freed from its husks and formed into round granules, about the size of small shot, and of a pearly whiteness, which thence have the name of _pearl-barley_. All except the heart or best part of the grain is thus taken away. The barley, in this state, when boiled, forms a nutritive food; and a decoction of it, properly flavoured with acid, is said to be one of the best beverages that can be adopted in acute diseases. The making of pearl barley is a German invention. In Scotland the lower classes make it by means of hand-mills; and many persons are satisfied with merely ridding the grain of its husks by stamping it in mortars.

_Barley-meal_ is occasionally made into bread by the poor; and it is likewise used for the fattening of poultry and swine. From _barley-straw_ a yellowish coloured paper has been manufactured; the making of which was, some years ago, attempted in this country upon a large scale, but without success.

31. _RYE_ (Secale cereale, Fig. 16.) _is a kind of grain supposed to have been first introduced into the northern parts of Europe from the island of Crete._

As bread corn, sometimes alone, but more commonly mixed with wheat, rye was formerly in great request, particularly in the northern counties of England. This mixture, which is denominated _blend-corn_, or _maslin_, is at present partially used, in certain districts, not only from motives of economy, but also because the rye is supposed to render the bread more moist and palatable than it would otherwise be. In some part of the country, rye is much used by ginger-bread bakers, for the dark colour of its flour is not perceptible, when mixed with treacle. This species of grain is frequently used for the distillation of spirits.

It has been remarked, in some districts of France, that rye, from bad seasons, or from other causes, has proved noxious and even poisonous. The grains of the corn, thus degenerated, are black on the outside and tolerably white within; and, when dry, are harder and closer than good grain. Bread that is made of rye which contains even a great quantity of this bad corn, is not distinguishable by the taste, from other rye bread; and it seldom produces its ill effects till some time after it has been eaten, it is then said to occasion gangrenes in the legs and other parts of the body, and dangerous fevers. The poorer people, however, are those chiefly who are subject to these diseases, as many of them have little other substantial food to subsist upon than bread made of this species of corn.

In several parts of England rye is sown either by itself, or mixed with tares to be cut whilst green, for the feeding of sheep, cows, and horses. Rye straw is used by brick-makers, and collar-manufacturers; and is considered an excellent material for the thatching of cottages and barns.

32. GRASSES.--_By grasses we are to understand such plants as have a round, jointed, and hollow stem, surrounded at each joint with a single leaf, long, narrow, and pointed; and the flowers of which are a kind of chaffy husk. According to this definition, wheat, barley, oats, and rye, properly belong to the grasses, although they are known by the peculiar appellation of corn or grain._[2]

To the grasses it is that the face of nature is indebted for a great portion of its cheerful appearance, and its beauty. They constitute the general herbage of every country, covering to an immense extent the whole surface of the ground. They are very various in their kinds, the British species alone being nearly a hundred and twenty in number. To many species of animals their leaves afford an indispensable article of sustenance; and their seed supply food to birds.

33. _SWEET-SCENTED VERNAL GRASS_ (_Anthoxanthum odoratum_, Fig. 17).[3]--This species is usually considered (though it perhaps ought not exclusively to be so) as that to which the hay fields are indebted for their well-known and delightful fragrance. When partially dried it is very odorous; and, if chewed, in a recent state, its _stalks_ are highly aromatic, tasting not unlike those of fresh lavender. The _root_ has an odour somewhat resembling that of musk. A distilled water, which serves as a vehicle for some perfumes, is occasionally prepared from the leaves and flowers of the vernal grass. The dried flowers are employed in some parts of the Continent for imparting an agreeable flavour to snuff and tobacco.

The vernal grass is not very productive, and by some farmers it is considered not palatable for cattle. Others, however, esteem it an useful addition in their meadows; and, from its being generally found in great abundance on such pastures as sheep are fond of, and afford excellent mutton, it is at least thought to be a good grass for them.

34. _COTTON GRASS_ (_Eriophorum angustifolium_, Fig. 18).--The seeds of this grass are encompassed with long cottony or wool-like hairs; and so abundant are the plants in many tracts of marshy land, particularly in the northern parts of England, that the ground appears almost as if covered with snow.

Poor people sometimes stuff their pillows with the down of the cotton grass; but there is a prevailing opinion that it is not wholesome to sleep on. This down is probably too brittle to be manufactured by itself into thread, yet, in combination either with wool or cotton, it may be spun into a strong and uniform yarn, from which gloves, stockings, and cloth, in small quantity, have been made. Its brittleness has been much corrected by a simple chemical process. Wicks for candles have sometimes been made of it.

35. _BULL-RUSH_ (_Scirpus lacustris_, Fig. 19).--Of the stems of this plant the rush bottoms of chairs are made. Being of soft and pliant texture, totally destitute of roughness, the bull-rush is also sometimes used for the stuffing of pack saddles, making of mats, and thatching of cottages.

36. _MEADOW FOX-TAIL GRASS_ (_Alopecurus pratensis_, Fig. 20) is a very common but valuable kind, which grows freely in moist and fertile pastures and meadows. It possesses, in a superior degree to any other grass, the three great requisites of quantity, quality, and early growth. The best hay which is brought to London is said to be from meadows where this grass abounds; and, in many parts adjacent to the metropolis, it is extremely abundant.

37. _TIMOTHY GRASS, or MEADOW CATS-TAIL_ (_Phleum pratense_, Fig. 21), is a grass much cultivated in several parts of North America, and particularly in wet, loamy grounds, where, though coarse and hard, it is found extremely productive and useful. Such has been the celebrity of Timothy grass, that a gentleman (William Strickland, Esq.) was requested by the Board of Agriculture to make inquiries concerning it; and, from his remarks, it appears that this grass is the chief support of cattle wherever the meadows of it abound. He saw extraordinary crops of Timothy grass growing, as thickly as it could stand upon the ground, three or four feet high, and, in some instances, as coarse as wheat straw. It is cut before it arrives at maturity; and horses are said to prefer the hay that is made of it to every other kind, and to thrive peculiarly well upon it.

Though a native and very common grass in our own country, it is doubtful whether our climate be sufficiently warm to bring it to the same perfection in which it is found in America. It has, however, been cultivated in England with considerable success; and, when used for green food, for which it is particularly calculated, it may be cut two or three times in one season; but, when intended for hay, it should be cut at least a week before it flowers.

38. _FIORIN, or ORCHESTON LONG GRASS_ (_Agrostis stolonifera_, Fig. 22), is known as a troublesome weed in moist meadows and pastures, and also in cold and stiff arable land, by name of _Black Squitch_ or _Bent-grass_. It grows with such luxuriance, lying upon the ground, and taking root at the different joints, that the stems are sometimes several feet in length; and, when cultivated as a crop, it has been known to produce, at two cuttings, betwixt seven and eight tons per acre. This grass was first brought into notice as a grass for hay, by a small tract of meadow ground, in which it was cultivated several years ago, at a village called Orcheston, in Wiltshire. Horses, sheep, and cattle are said to be extremely partial to it, and to prefer the hay which is made from it to any other. To be in perfection, it requires a moist climate, or a wet soil; and it will grow on cold clays, that are unfitted for other grasses.

In Ireland it is called fiorin grass, and, under this appellation, it was first introduced to the public notice in that country, in the year 1810, by the Rev. Dr. Richardson, of Clonfecle, in the county of Antrim.

39. _The MEADOW SOFT GRASS, or YORKSHIRE WHITE GRASS_ (_Holcus lanatus_, Fig. 25), though it vegetates late in the season, produces an abundant crop, and flourishes well in any moist situation. Both its foliage and flowers are soft and woolly. It is chiefly calculated for the feeding of sheep, and has answered extremely well, when close fed. The hay that is made from it is said to be very injurious to horses, and it is not much relished by cattle.

40. _CANARY GRASS_ (_Phalaris Canariensis_, Fig. 23).--This grass grows wild in Worcestershire, and some other parts of England. It is, however, often cultivated for the sake of its seeds, which are extensively used as food for small birds.

41. _PURPLE MELIC GRASS_ (_Melica cærulea_, Fig. 24) is found in great luxuriance on the turf moors, near Glastonbury, in Somersetshire. The people of that neighbourhood make of its stalks a neat kind of besoms, which are used as a cheap and tolerably good substitute for hair brooms. This grass occurs in the most barren, sandy, and boggy situations; but, more especially, about pools upon mountainous heaths.

42. _REED MEADOW GRASS_ (_Poa aquatica_, Fig. 26) is one of the most useful of the British grasses, particularly if grown in wet meadows, or upon the banks of rivers or brooks. In the fenny lands of Cambridgeshire and Lincolnshire it not only affords a rich pasturage for cattle in summer, but forms also the chief part of their winter sustenance. In situations favourable to its growth it sometimes attains the height of five or six feet, When cut for hay, it is first dried, then bound up into sheaves, and formed into ricks, in which it undergoes a slight fermentation that much improves it. Cows and sheep are both partial to this grass. As hay, it is a valuable food for cattle, and particularly for milch cows.

43. _SMOOTH-STALKED MEADOW GRASS_ (_Poa pratensis_, Fig. 27) is a favourite grass for cattle; and flourishes even on the driest soils, growing wild in meadows, on dry banks, and even on walls. In rich meadows of Somersetshire it forms a considerable part of the herbage; and, in those that have been flooded during the winter, it flourishes with such luxuriance as nearly to exclude every other grass. Notwithstanding this, it possesses the valuable property of resisting excessive drought, and is frequently green in high gravelly pastures, after almost every other grass has been withered. It flowers early, and makes an extremely valuable hay.

44. _ANNUAL MEADOW GRASS_ (_Poa annua_, Fig. 28).--No grass is more common than this, and none makes a finer turf. It occurs in almost every situation, by the sides of roads, on open and extensive commons; and in many parts of England there are whole meadows of it, without any mixture of other grasses. In those districts of Suffolk which produce the best butter, the annual meadow grass is found in great abundance.

It is a remarkable circumstance respecting this grass, that it does not suffer injury, but that, on the contrary, it is improved by persons frequently walking over it. Mr. Stillingfleet states that, on the hill near Malvern, in Worcestershire, a walk which had been made for the convenience of the water drinkers, was, in less than a year, nearly covered with it, though no plant of it could be found about any part of the hill. This was attributed, in a great measure, to the constant treading upon it, by persons passing to and from the well.

45. _CRESTED DOG'S-TAIL GRASS_ (_Cynosurus cristatus_, Fig. 29) is extremely common in meadows and pastures, and constitutes a principal part of the turf, on high gravelly or chalky soils, in parks, lawns, and sheep walks: and, from the close and thick turf which it makes, it affords good nourishment to cattle and deer. Parks that are famous for excellent venison contain a great proportion of this grass. In the summer time its seeds afford sustenance to pigeons and small birds.

46. _SHEEP'S FESCUE GRASS_ (_Festuca ovina_, Fig. 32) has great celebrity as food for horses and cattle, and, in particular, for sheep, which are said to prefer it to all other grasses, and to become fat upon it sooner than upon any other. Though of short growth, its leaves are numerous and succulent. The Tartars are said generally to fix their habitations, during the summer, in places where there is the greatest plenty of this grass, from its yielding an abundant supply of excellent food for their cattle. And it has been remarked that the sepulchral monuments of the ancient Tartars are chiefly observed in situations where Sheep's Fescue Grass abounds; this has been considered a test of the great value which that people set upon it.

47. _HARD FESCUE GRASS_ (_Festuca duruscula_, Fig. 30) is common in pastures, meadows, and waste grounds. It springs early, affords excellent food for all kinds of cattle; and, in good ground, yields a plentiful crop.

48. _FLOTE FESCUE GRASS_ (_Festuca fluitans_, Fig. 31).--This plant, which grows almost exclusively in wet ditches, and in ponds, is so favourite a food of horses and swine, that they will sometimes even endanger their lives to obtain it. A farmer, who resided some years ago at Ruscomb, in Berkshire, assured Mr. Stillingfleet that he had known a field of four acres (which was nearly always covered with water) afford sufficient nutriment to maintain five farm horses, in good condition, from April to the end of harvest, without any other food; and that it yielded even more than they could eat. The Cottenham and Chedder cheeses are said, in a great measure, to derive their celebrity from the cows feeding on this grass.

Its seeds are small, and are remarkable for their sweet flavour and nutritious qualities. They are annually collected in Poland, and are exported thence, into Germany, and other parts of the continent, under the name of _manna seeds_. These are used in soups, gruel, and puddings, even by persons of the first rank and consequence. When ground into flour, they are convertible into bread, which is little inferior to that made of wheat. The bran of these seeds is stated by Linnæus to be useful as a medicine for horses that are troubled with worms. Geese are fond of the seeds, and well know where to find them. It is remarkable that these seeds have hitherto been entirely neglected in England; though without difficulty they might be obtained in sufficient quantity to prove beneficial.

49. _The COMMON REED_ (_Arundo phragmites_, Fig. 33) grows in ditches, ponds, and by the sides of rivers, attaining the height of six or seven feet, and flowering about the month of July.

Reeds are frequently made into screens or fences for gardens, and they are considered particularly eligible for sheltering tender plants from injury by cold, or blighting winds. They likewise make excellent _weavers' combs_; and, when nailed across a frame of wood-work, are frequently employed as a foundation for plaster floors. They are sometimes made into chair bottoms; and into thatch for cottages and out-buildings.

From the flowers of the reed the country people of Sweden extract a green dye, which they occasionally use for woollen cloth; and we are informed that, from the dried roots, a flour may be made, which is capable of being converted into a wholesome and nutritive bread.

50. _SEA MATWEED_ (_Arundo arenaria_, Fig. 34) is an useful and common plant on most of our sandy sea shores. Its cultivation has, at various times, been much encouraged, and even acts of parliament have been passed for its preservation, in consequence of its spreading roots giving stability to the loose, blowing sand, and thus raising a bulwark against the encroachments of the waves. The Dutch are said to have availed themselves of the advantage of these plants in securing and rendering firm several parts of their coasts, which would otherwise have suffered much injury.

At Newborough, a town on the south coast of the island of Anglesea, the inhabitants manufacture this plant into mats and ropes; and the Danes employ the fibrous roots for making whisk brushes.

The common people of Iceland collect the seeds of the sea matweed for making bread.

51. _RYE GRASS, or RAY GRASS_ (_Lolium perenne_, Fig. 35), has, of late years, been cultivated in some countries, to considerable extent, as fodder for cattle. Its agricultural merits were first discovered in Norfolk, and, thence, the seeds have been distributed through the greater part of the kingdom; those who purchase them little suspecting that the plant was a weed in their own fields. In dry pastures, and by road sides, this kind of grass is extremely common.

When sown in high or sandy lands, either alone or mixed with clover, it yields an earlier crop than most other grasses; and thus affords food at a season when it is sometimes difficult otherwise to be obtained. The ray grass that grows wild is stated to be much superior to that which is obtained by cultivation; and we are informed that, if sown in a rich and fertile soil, it will dwindle in a few years to a poor and insignificant grass.

52. _COUCH, or SQUITCH GRASS_ (_Triticum repens_, Fig 36), is, in general, considered a troublesome and pernicious weed. The roots strike so deeply into the ground, and extend so widely, that the eradicating of them is frequently attended with difficulty. As the plant lies upon the ground it strikes out fibres from every joint; and so luxuriant is it sometimes seen, that a single joint, when transplanted, has, in the course of twelve months, covered a square yard of land.

The roots of couch grass are collected in large quantities at Naples, and sold in the market as food for horses. They have a sweetish taste, somewhat resembling that of liquorice; and, in times of scarcity, when dried and ground into meal, they have been converted into bread. A decoction of the roots is sometimes used in medicine.

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CLASS IV.--TETRANDRIA.

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MONOGYNIA.

53. _TEASEL_ (Dipsacus fullonem) _is a plant, with a somewhat egg-shaped head of flowers, and hard reflected scales, which is cultivated in several parts of England, to be used in the carding of woollen cloth._