OF FRUIT TREES. 171 



again. Hence, in the practice of some men it is 

 racked five or six times. 



" 'On the other hand, if the fermentation is mode- 

 rate, it is commonly suffered to remain after the 

 first racking. In the common practice of farmers, 

 (English farmers,) it is racked but once. (In our 

 practice, speaking of farmers generally, it is not rack- 

 ed at all, but suffered to remain in its first lees.) 

 Those who prepare cider for sale, always think it 

 prudent to repeat the rackings till the liquor is 

 quiet. If this cannot be readily brought about, 

 they have recourse to stumming. Stumming is 

 burning matches covered with sulphur within the 

 cask. The match is let down into the cask light- 

 ed, and the cask is thus filled with the fumes of 

 sulphur. The cask is suffered to remain three hours, 

 before the liquor is put into it. Ninety-nine casks 

 in a hundred in the country, (Great Britain,) go 

 through this process. 



"'But there are some persons who prefer ferment- 

 ing their cider in open vats or tubs. Some do it in 

 deep tubs, but the most approved mode is in shal- 

 low vats, five feet in diameter, and not more than 

 two deep, each containing about eight barrels. In 

 these the liquor remains till it has done rising; when 

 it is racked off without skimming, (being drawn off 

 from the bottom.) In this case, it seldom is rack- 

 ed a second time. 



" ' There are three species of fermentation. 



" ' The vinous, which gives the liquor the body and 

 qualities of wine. 



" 6 The acetous, which produces vinegar. 



" ' The putrid, which utterly destroys its use. 



("' The cider in our country rarely stops at the 

 first stage. It is nine times in ten advanced far to 

 the vinegar state.) The juices of fruits, with mo- 

 derate heat and fermentation, will readily pass into 

 the vinous state. They will, if left open and not 

 attended to, soon after pass into the acetous or acid 



