Chap. 73.] THE METHODS OP STOEIXG CORN. 105 



being made of brick, and not less than tbree^ feet thick ; the 

 corn, they say, should be let in from above, the air being 

 carefully excluded, and no ^vindows allowed. Others, again, 

 say that the granarj- should have an aspect in no direction but 

 the north-east or north, and that the walls should be built 

 without lime, that substance being extremely injurious"* to 

 corn ; as to what we find recommended in reference to amurca 

 of olives, we have already mentioned it on a former^ occasion. 

 In some places they build their granaries of wood, and upon 

 pillars,^ thinking it the best plan to leave access for the air on 

 every side, and from below even. Some persons think, how- 

 ever, that the grain diminishes in bulk if laid on a floor above 

 the level of the ground, and that it is liable to ferment beneath 

 a roof of tiles. Many persons say, too, that the grain should 

 never be stirred up to air' it, as the weevil is never known to 

 penetrate beyond four fingers in depth ; consequently, beyond 

 that depth there is no danger. According to Columella,^ the 

 west "v\and is beneficial to grain, a thing that surprises me, as 

 that wind is generally a very parching^ one. Some persons 

 recommend that, before housing the corn, a bramble-frog 

 should be hung up by one of the hind legs at the threshold of 

 the granary. To me it appears that the most important pre- 

 caution of all is to house the grain at the proper time ; for if 

 it is unripe when cut, and not sufficiently firm, or if it is got 

 in in a heated state, it follows of necessity that noxious in- 

 sects will breed in it. 



There are several causes which contiibute to the preserva- 

 tion of grain ; the outer^" coats in some kinds are more nu- 

 merous, as in millet, for instance ; the juices are of an olea- 

 ginous nature,^^ and so supply ample moisture, as in sesame, 

 for example ; while in other kinds, again, they are naturally 



^ Palladius, i. 19, says two feet. 



* On account of the damp. Columella, however, recommends a mix- 

 ture of sand, lime, and marc of olives for the floor ; B. i. c. 6. 



5 In B. XV. c. 8. 



6 This is still done in the Yalais, and has the great merit of preserving 

 the corn from house and field-mice. 



" •' Yentilare." On the contrary, the weevil penetrates deep, and does 

 not keep near the surface. 



« De Re Rust. ii. 21. 9 See B. ii. c. 48. 



^^ Those keep the Lest, Fee says, which have a farinaceous perisperm. 

 Millet has but one coat. 



11 This, in reality, would tend to make them turn rancid all the sooner. 



