WEEDS. 7 



laying down land examined by him, he found samples 

 showing as much as 25, 26, and as high as 41 per 

 cent, of Yorkshire fog, which — in some cases, at any 

 rate — must have been added as a substitute for Meadow 

 Foxtail. In other mixtures Mr. Carruthers found 27 

 per cent, of Aira flexiwsa added as a substitute for 

 Yellow Oat-grass. He has had samples of a seed sold 

 as Meadow Pescue that contained scarcely a single 

 grain of the seed of that grass; while samples of it 

 containing 20 and 10 per cent, of Eyegrass were quite 

 commonly met with. He has seen samples of Dogs- 

 taU containing up to 50 per cent, of Blue Melick 

 grass (a grass found on all moors in Great Britain and 

 Ireland, but possessing no agricultural value). 



This is not the place to multiply instances of natural 

 impurities or of substitutions, which will be found 

 detailed under the proper head in the body of the 

 work, but one observation made by Mr. Carruthers 

 may be quoted, viz. : " I have no reason for supposing 

 it (substitution or adulteration) is done by any one 

 connected with the trade in Britain, and I have little 

 doubt that the worthless seeds are introduced before 

 the goods reach England. It is greatly to be desired, 

 then, that the buyers employed by the trade should be 

 able to detect the presence of adulteration in samples 

 offered to them." 



Is Legislation Wanted? 



Many people think that there should be a law 

 putting a penalty on the sale of seeds that contain a 

 conspicuous quantity of the seeds of weeds or inferior 

 plants. It certainly does seem strange that a grocer 

 may be fined for selling as coffee a harmless compound 



