26 STUDIES OF AMERICAN BARLEYS AND MALTS. 



in other words, be rich in diastase and M peptase a high nitrogen 

 content of barley is more essential for distillery purposes than for 

 brewing. 



ACTION OF THE BERLIN CONGRESS, 1908. 



In 1907 the question of barley valuation was considered by the 

 International Agricultural Congress at Vienna, and it was deter- 

 mined to submit it to a special international commission to meet in 

 Berlin in October, 1908. This commission agreed on a general system 

 of barley valuation which, however, was not to be applied to 4 or 6 

 row barleys. The principles underlying the new international valua- 

 tion system are: 



1. To establish a general system of valuation not considering varieties. 



2. To create three grades of value a highest, a medium, and a lowest. 



3. To adopt eleven points for valuation, classified as follows: 



Highest class: 



1. Protein content (penalties for excessive protein being omitted). 



2. Bad odor. 

 Second class: 



3. Uniformity (as to size). 



4. Weight (1,000 kernels). 



5. Fineness of husk. 



6. Damaged grains. 

 Lowest clas> 



7. Color. 



8. Purity of sample (foreign seed). 



9. Sprouters. 



10. Purity as to variety. 



11. Shape of berry. 



The following points were omitted from the systems previously 

 described herein: 



1. The mellowness of corn, either of the original barley or after steeping. 



2. Hectoliter weight. 



3. Impression as a whole. 



4. Water content of the barley. 



The germinating energy was recognized as a valuable point for 

 judging barley, and it was recommended for use at competitive ex- 

 hibits, but it was considered impracticable for ordinary expositions. 

 This system of barley valuation, as well as the Berlin and Vienna 

 systems which are modified by it, were established for the purpose of 

 serving as guides to jurors of award in judging exhibit barleys, and 

 consequently under circumstances necessitating the judging of large 

 numbers of specimens or samples with dispatch. While in the main 

 the same test points should naturally form the basic features for 

 valuing barley for commercial purposes also, such important points as 

 germinating capacity, the examination for which requires much time, 

 can not well be undertaken for exhibit barleys ; besides, exhibits have 



