VA3JIOTJS MODES OP STEEPING. 139 



greater degree of ripeness, and to pull the more robust 

 female plants a little before reaching their perfect matu- 

 rity ? By this means, greater uniformity would be at- 

 tained. Even if it be not thought worth while to separate 

 the tall stalks from the shorter ones, at least attention 

 ought to be paid to placing the ripest and the longest 

 stems always in the middle of the bundle, to prevent 

 their being bruised or broken when they are put into or 

 are removed from the steeping-place. The benefit of such 

 an arrangement will be perceived even in the operation 

 of combing, although it takes place so long afterwards. 

 If it is impossible to avoid steeping male and female plants 

 at the same time, it would still be a piece of very bad 

 management to suffer them to be mixed together. 



It is equally advantageous to make a difference between 

 the hemp which still remains green, although it may be 

 ripe, and that which is white and yellow ; between that 

 which has grown in the shade, or on soils of a very oppo- 

 site nature. Seed-bearing hemp always takes the longest 

 time to steep, except when it is put into the water at the 

 same time with the flower-bearing hemp, or when it is 

 not completely ripe. The perfection of steeping consists 

 in great part in paying proper attention to the sorting of 

 the bundles, with reference to the length of time which 

 they require to remain in the water ; otherwise, some 

 stalks in a bunch will be too forward, whilst others will 

 remain very difficult to peel. This difference of time will 

 run from twelve to thirty-six hours. A good hemp- 

 steeper ought to copy the good vineyard master, who 

 tastes several times in the course of the day the liquor 

 which is fermenting in his vats, to ascertain the progress 

 of the vinous fermentation, and to seize the true moment 

 of its actual completion. In like manner, the steeper 

 ought from time to time to draw single stalks from out 

 the mass, and examine the state of the fermentation, to 

 see whether the fibre begins to part easily from the stern. 

 He will observe that green and coarse hemp is sooner 

 steeped than green and fine ; that v green in general is 

 quicker done than yellow ; long sooner than short ; the 



