BOOK XVIII. XIII. 71-XV. 75 



grain is however rice, of which they make a drlnk 

 Uke the barley-water made by the rest of mankind. 

 Rice leaves are fleshy, resembUng leek but broader; 

 the plant is 18 inches high, with a purple blossom 

 and a root of a round shape Hke a precious stone. 



XIV. Barley is the oldest among hunian foods, as Usesoj 

 is proved by the Athenian ceremony" recorded by '^'^^^' 

 Menander, and by the name given to ghidiators, who 

 used to be called ' barley-men '. Also the Greeks 

 prefer it to any other grain for porridge. There are 

 several ways of making barley porridge : the Greeks 

 soak some barley in water and then leave it for a 

 night to dry, and next day dry it by the fire and 

 then grind it in a mill. Some after roasting it more 

 thoroughlv sprinkle it again with a small amount of 

 water and dry it before milHng ; others however 

 shake the young barley out of the ears while green, 

 clean it and while it is wet pound it in a mortar, and 

 wash it of luisk in baskets and then dry it in the sun 



and again pound it, clean it and grind it. But what- 

 ever kind of barley is used, when it has been got 

 ready, in the mill they niix in three pounds of flax 

 seed, half a pound of coriander seed, and an eighth 

 of a pint of salt, previously roasting them all. Those 

 who want to keep it for some time in store put it 

 away in new earthenware jars with fine flour and its 

 own bran. ItaUans bake it without steeping it in 

 water and grind it into fine meal, with the addition 

 of the same ingredients and millet as welL 



XV. Barley bread was much used in earUer days, 

 but has been condemned by experience, and barley is 

 now mostly fed to animals, although the consumption 



of barley-water is proved so eonclusively to be very uariei/- 

 conducive to strength and health : Hippocrates, one """*^' 



