1 88 On Malting. 



l»?ing so dry and floury when brought to the kiln as the 



Hertfordshire malt. 



The same object, that of an increase of measure, also occa- 

 sions the acrospi re being driven quite up to the end of the grain, 

 and very frequently much beyond it. The longer it is suf- 

 fered to grow the more it distends the body of the corn, and 

 of course increases the bulk of the malt, In several of the 

 old floors which T examined I foimd the acrospire driven an 

 inch out of the grain, and so unequal was the vegetation in 

 many of the same steepings, that the acrospire was of all 

 lengths, from upwards of an inch out down into the body of 

 the grain. In many floors too the corn was run together in 

 hard bunchy knots, by the fibres of the root growing and 

 Stron'jlv matting together. This originated on the water 

 given on the floors puddling in holes, and the corn there 

 getting a larger proportion. All this mischievous inequality 

 of vegetation arosp entirely from the water given on the 

 floors, and it is more or less inseparable from the practice. 

 Nothing similar appeared on any of ihe Hertfordshire floors, 

 and I also observed that many of the old watered floors were 

 mouldy, much beyond any which I saw in Hertfordshire. 

 It is called in the west finnery, appearing to be very com- 

 mon in ihose makings, and it was said, .by some, to be oc- 

 casioned by the floors not being watered more early. But 

 this was rather an excuse than an explanation, for it very 

 evidently results from the wet corn heating, and being after- 

 v/ards excluded too long from the influence of the atmo- 

 sphere. 



Exclusive of the double root which I have mentioned, 

 and which cannot fail greatly to exhaust the corn, I paid 

 particular attention to the quantity of root which appeared 

 on the grain in most of the floors, and it certainly was not 

 less than double the quantity which I had observed in the 

 Hertfordshire floors, and this I consider as one of the chief 

 causes of the lightness and inferiority of the malt. 



In the weat, as in Hertfordshire, I entered into conver- 

 sation with the common workmen, and endeavoured to draw 

 from them information on the subject of their employment. 

 Most of them maintained that watering on the floors was 



beneficial^ 



