88 Transactions British Mycological Society. 
‘Benevolent old ladies, clergymen and officers of the Blue 
Ribbon Army have called upon him, or written for a scientific 
explanation, hoping to make the ‘Ginger Beer Plant’ a boon for 
the poor. One person wished to feed paupers with it; another 
hoped by its means to knock all the publicans on the head; a 
third to send it in barrels for the army in the Soudan. When such 
persons have been told it is merely a form of German yeast they 
have turned away disappointed and disgusted. Something more 
must evidently be done for this rum shrub, of which I have 
recently had applications for slips, rooted cuttings, and seeds.... 
As all the correspondents insist on this “American plant’ being 
a new species I propose to humour them by calling it Zingibeero- 
phora spumacephala.”’ 
Prof. Bayley Balfour exhibited the Ginger-beer plant at the 
Linnean Society in 1887. His statement—‘‘it is said the Ginger- 
beer Plant was introduced into Britain by soldiers from the 
Crimea, in 1855”’—1is very interesting in connection with the 
modern names all excepting California being associated with our 
overseas armies, and many of the individual specimens having a 
story of a soldier connected with them in some way. From 
W. G. Smith’s note quoted above it is apparent that the plant 
has been known in America for a number of years. It may be 
that it has commercial possibilities in that country on account of 
its fermentative properties. One interesting point is that in no 
case that has come to my notice has the ginger been added to the 
solution as in former days. 
The method usually employed by English villagers for the 
making of ginger-beer is as follows*: ‘‘They make a solution of 
sugar corresponding roughly to a 10-20 per cent. solution in tap 
water, in a large open vessel, a little cream of tartar and a few 
pieces of ginger are then added; some add lemon as well. The 
pieces of Ginger-beer plant are then placed in the mixture, and 
the whole allowed to stand for a day or two. Then the liquor is 
poured off into bottles and corked, and is drunk after two or 
three days more. Meanwhile more sugar solution is exposed in 
the original vessel containing the deposit, or ‘lees,’ and allowed 
to stand and bottled off as before.” 
J. RAMSBOTTOM. 
* Hi. M. Ward, Loc. cit. p. T20% 
