HOP SUBSTITUTES. 127 



gentlemen connected with the hop trade was held at Maid- 

 stone, to take into consideration what steps should be taken 

 to check the use of deleterious articles as substitutes for hops 

 in the manufacture of beer. The result of the meeting was 

 that a large and influential committee, consisting of the chief 

 hop growers in the county of Kent, and many hop merchants 

 and factors of fhe Borough, was appointed, with instructions 

 to form a deputation to wait upon the President of the Board 

 of Trade, or take any other steps which might be deemed 

 necessary with a view to prevent the use of deleterious mix- 

 tures as a substitute for hops in the manufacture of beer. 



For the reference of those who desire to investigate the 

 subject of hops more fully and minutely than it has been 

 here treated, I may state that there will be found in the 

 volumes of the ' Journal of the Eoyal Agricultural Society of 

 England ' various analyses, as, for instance, by J. C. Nisbet. 

 on the mineral ingredients of the hop, and on the composition 

 of the Golding and yellow Grape hops, vol. vii. p. 210-15 ; 

 on the analysis of the flower, ix. p. 144, and xiii. p. 474, by 

 Way and Ogsten, xi. p. 514 ; and of brewers' spent hops, 

 xiii. p. 498. Mr. S. Kutley has also a prize essay on the 

 best mode of managing a hop plantation, vol. ix. p. 532. 



Finally, I bring this work to a conclusion with some 

 statistics which may be found useful for reference. 



A few figures regarding the highest and lowest scale of 

 duties for a series of years may not be uninteresting, or 

 without use. 



From 1712 to 1750 the duty varied from 6,526/. in 1725 to 91,880/. in 1746 



1751 1800 14,895/. 1782 203.663/. 1794 



1801 1850 15,463/. 1802 269,331/. 1826 



1851 1859 47,369/. 1854 398.63S/. 1853 



In 1859 the duty was 328,070/. 



