74 HOP-FLY. 



which has more rule over the pockets and tempers of man- 

 kind than any other ; its ahundance or scarcity being the 

 almost only criterion of a scarcity or ahundance in the 

 crops of hops : and of all articles of merchandize the hop 

 is consequently the most liable to variation in price. Ow- 

 ing to the interest taken in the crop of hops, much more 

 close attention has been paid to the hop-fly than to any 

 other insect ; and you find men conversant with its habits, 

 who would blush if you were to suppose them possessed of 

 enough natural history to know the name of the common- 

 est beetle or even bird ; but let me assure these, that there 

 is nothing derogatory to their manhood, their common 

 sense, or their dignity, in knowing something of the works 

 of Nature ; I never met with an individual who was the 

 worse man for it. I don't myself go the length of some of 

 your contributors, who measure the joints of an insect's 

 ears, as Professor Rennie, I see by your Magazine, has 

 called them. But, perhaps, even this is necessary to ac- 

 quire an accurate knowledge of each kind. 



The hop counties are Kent, Sussex, Surrey, Worcester, 

 and Hereford. The produce of these are termed, on the 

 market, Kent, Sussex, Farnham, and Worcester hops. 

 The Farnham are invariably the highest priced, and the 

 Sussex the lowest. The Worcester hops never come on 

 the London market, and hav 7 e a price of their own, which 

 is not much influenced by the general price, as no hops 

 are ever, or very rarely indeed, introduced to supply a de- 

 ficiency of the Worcester crop, should that fail. The hop 

 affords scope for the speculator in two ways : first, the hop 

 itself; and, secondly, the hop-duty ; the last is the subject 

 of betting to a very large amount annually. The old duty 

 on hops is 10s. 8d. per cwt. ; the new duty, imposed in 



