The Eejwt of the Select Committee on the Hop Industry. G 13 
of hops corresponding to the increased cultivation in the decade 
prior to 1878." 
The use of hop substitutes has for some years past been declared 
o be an important cause of the falling off in the demand for hops. 
it is alleged that in 1882, when hops were abnormally dear, large 
juantities of substitutes, as quassia, chiretta, Colombo, gentian, were 
employed, and that since then the substitution of these drugs for 
uops has been extensively continued. 
Most of the large brewers positively deny that they use sub- 
stitutes for hops. It would be at the risk of losing the reputation of 
their beers, for it is well known by brewers' chemists that these drugs 
can only perform one of the functions of hops, namely, that of im- 
parting a bitter flavour to beer. The other functions — of making the 
beer keep, of giving it an aroma, and of precipitating certain ingre- 
dients of the wort — cannot be performed by substitutes. This was 
affirmed positively by scientific witnesses. 
In America there has been a great outcry regarding the employ- 
ment of these drugs for hops, but the American Government evidently 
do not think they are abundantly employed, as they decline to 
prohibit their use, and the duty upon hops imported into the United 
States has been recently raised from 37s. 6c?. to 70*. per cwt. 
The Committee remark that " it is admitted generally that it is 
impossible to make beer such as the public require without hops, and 
that at most the drugs referred to can only be used as substitutes 
for a small proportion of the hops which would otherwise be used. 
It is alleged that none of the larger and better brewers make use of 
any of these substitutes." 
They add : " Although the depression of the hop industry cannot 
be largely attributed to the use of such substitutes, the evidence 
i submitted to the Committee is sufficient to show that their use is 
prejudicial to the interests of the growers in years when the crop of 
hops is deficient. The Committee therefore recommend that if used 
they should be declared." 
This is the only recommendation made by the Committee. In 
the next session of Parliament a Bill will probably be brought in to 
make the use of hop substitutes illegal unless a declaration of their 
use is made. But in the meantime the chemists must improve their 
processes of detecting these substitutes, as from the evidence adduced 
it appears that they can only affirm that hops have not been employed, 
but they are unable to specify the exact substitute that may have been 
used. And this would hardly be sufficient in case of a prosecution. 
One reason alleged in support of the extensive use of substitutes 
for hops was that in 1882 their price rose so considerably. It must, 
however, be remembered that in that year quassia, whose price is 
said to have risen from 51. to 40Z. per ton, was first extensively used 
for syringing the hop plants to clear them of aphis blight. In more 
recent years the price of quassia has doubled, or trebled, in a few 
weeks, in consequence of the great demand for syringing, or washing, 
hop plants. Other bittering substances have naturally advanced in 
value with quassia. 
