SCIENCE OF FOXHUNTING. 77 



properties than barley, and in the manufacture of 

 oatmeal the husk is entirely separated from the 

 grain, barley being ground down husk and corn 

 together, which causes so much irritation to the 

 stomach and intestines of dogs. We hear certainly 

 of the Irish and Scotch oatmeal being superior 

 to the English, and the reason is this : Oatmeal 

 being the staple of our Sister Isle, more attention is 

 paid to the cultivation of this grain, thus render- 

 ing it more palatable and digestible to the poorer 

 classes in those parts of Her Majesty's dominions, 

 who subsist principally upon this kind of farinaceous 

 food. But there is another reason why a greater 

 breadth of oats is sown in Scotland and Ireland. 

 The soil and climate are more congenial to their 

 growth than that of any other cereal, except rye, 

 the use of which began to decline with the rule of 

 the ancient Britons. Rye is still extensively culti- 

 vated in Germany, and not many years since the 

 post-horses were fed chiefly on rye bread mixed with 

 a portion of sand, to prevent ostlers and postilions 

 appropriating it to themselves. The sweetest bread 

 that can be made is composed of three parts of 

 wheat flour and one of rye ; but in the present 

 age, adulteration of flour is carried on to such a 

 villanous extent, wholesome bread is unattainable 

 from any town baker. It appears that from the 

 time of Pharaoh, King of Egypt, bakers generally 

 have been guilty of great malpractices, and richly 

 deserve to have their heads lifted up on gallows 

 high as Haman's. 



To guard against adulterated oatmeal, the coarsest 



