WHEAT. $95 



cold water, and is separable from it by evapo- 

 ration. The saccharine part is convertible 

 into an ardent spirit ; but the mucilage in 

 bread that has been kept some time, tends to 

 acidity and monldiness. 



We are beholden to the island of Chios 

 for the invention of starch. Starch Hour 

 was called Amylum by the Greeks, as it 

 was made without going into a mill, or 

 being ground upon stones. The next starch 

 in esteem with the ancients was that of Can- 

 dia and of Egypt ; their method of procuring 

 it was simply that of putting the wheat in a 

 wooden vessel, and covering it with fresh 

 water, which was changed five times a day ; 

 it was then well mixed and incorporated into 

 a kind of paste before it became sour or bitter. 

 This being done, it was laid to dry either 

 upon linen cloths, or in wicker baskets ; after- 

 wards it was put Upon tiles that had been 

 smeared over with leaven, and was placed in 

 the sun to harden. 



To enumerate the various uses of this corn 

 would be to dwell long on a subject that is 

 generally known. Both the meal and the 

 chaff were used medicinally by the ancients ; 

 and it is recorded that Sextus Pompeius, a 

 Spanish noble, whose son was afterwards 



