THE BLIGHT IN HOPS. 85 



upon which the most flourishing and promising hops and other 

 were all infected with mould or fen, in their leaves 

 and fruit, whilst the then poor and unpromising hops 

 escaped, and produced plenty ; because they, being 

 small, did not perspire so great a quantity as the 

 others ; nor did they confine the perspired vapour, 

 so much as the large thriving vines did, in their 

 shady thickets. This rain on the then warm earth 

 made the grass shoot out as fast as if it were in a 

 hot-bed ; and the apples grew so precipitately, that 

 they were of a very fleshy constitution, so as to rot 

 more remarkably than had ever been remembered." 



" The planters observe, that when a mould or fen 

 has once seized any part of the ground, it soon runs 

 over the whole ; and that the grass, and other 

 herbs under the hops, are infected with it." 



" Probably because the small seeds of this quick- 

 growing mould, which soon come to maturity, are 

 blown over the whole ground. Which spreading of 

 the seed may be the reason why some grounds are 

 infected with fen for several years successively." 



" I have in July (the season for fire-blasts, as the Fire-blasts 

 planters call them) seen," says HALES, " the vines in in hops - 

 the middle of a hop-ground all scorched up, almost 

 from one end of a large ground to the other, when a 

 hot gleam of sunshine has come immediately after a 

 shower of rain ; at which time the vapours are often 

 seen with the naked eye, but especially with reflect- 

 ing telescopes, to ascend so plentifully, as to make 



