USES TO WHICH [Chap. 



many other circumstances, make it, in most 

 cases, the most valuable, perhaps,' of all the 

 articles of human food; yet it is not always 

 such ; and, as to health, if the fermentation of 

 bread be unskilfully managed, bread is some- 

 times far from being a wholesome sort of food. 

 As to quantity of nutriment, cakes or puddings, 

 and particularly porridge or mush, are fully 

 equal to bread, weight for weight of flour. It 

 takes, I think, ])ut about three j)Ounds and a half 

 of corn-flour to make porridge for ten persons ; 

 now these three pounds and a half would make 

 about /o^^r pounds and a half of bread. This 

 would not be half a pound to each person ; and 

 this would be dry bread, and bread alone. There 

 must ])e cheese, or meat, and beer. The broth, 

 or the skim-milk in the porridge, costs some- 

 thwy ; and a very trifle is that cost ; not a half- 

 penny to every pound of flour. So that bread is 

 not always, nor is it nearly always, the desirable 

 article to have, to say nothing about the heating 

 of the oven and the time. Yet, it is, in most 

 cases, desirable to have bread as a pa7^t of the 

 food of a family, though to lay all out upon 

 bread, is the worst of economy, save and except 

 the laying it out upon potatoes. It is a very old 

 saying amongst country people, that a family 

 may starve, but cannot live, upon h^ead alone. 

 Well, bread being to be made, let us now see 



