The  Trials  of  Hop-Drying  Plant,  1909. 
197 
The  competition  was  strictly  limited  to  the  efficient  work- 
ing of  the  apparatus  itself,  the  resultant  sample  of  dried  hops 
being  examined  solely  with  the  view  of  ascertaining  how  the 
hops  composing  that  sample  had  been  treated,  quite  irrespec- 
tive of  the  quality,  size,  or  variety  of  the  hops  themselves. 
It  will  be  noted  that  there  were  three  west  country 
machines  and  one  Kent  machine  competing,  and  it  was 
arranged  that  the  west  country  machines  should  be  under 
the  charge  of  Kent  observers,  and  that  the  Kent  machines 
should  be  in  charge  of  west  country  observers. 
To  ensure  that  the  machines  should  all  be  in  readiness,  and 
the  arrangements  for  weighing,  &c.,  during  the  trials  should 
be  complete,  a preliminary  inspection  was  made  by  the  two 
Judges  and  the  Consulting  Engineer  of  the  Society. 
The  first  plant  to  be  inspected  was  that  entered  by  Messrs. 
Williamson  & Allen,  manufactured  under  Joyces’  Patent.  It 
consisted  of  a gill  stove  or  furnace,  enclosed  in  a vertical 
rectangular  galvanised  iron  shaft,  about  6 ft.  square.  The 
furnace  was  fitted  with  hollow  fire  bars,  the  air  passing 
through  which  was  collected  in  a pipe  leading  up  the  shaft, 
and  delivered  into  the  upper  part  of  the  kiln  above  the 
hops. 
The  furnace  gases  were  conducted  up  another  pipe  in  the 
shaft,  and  delivered  free  of  the  kiln  to  the  outside  atmo- 
sphere. 
The  bottom  of  the  shaft  was  open  for  some  height  above 
the  ground  to  allow  of  the  access  of  air  to  the  outside  gill 
surfaces  of  the  stove,  such  openings  being  regulated  by  sliding 
dampers. 
On  the  front  face  of  the  shaft  is  a horizontal  hinged  flap  or 
door,  this  is  kept  closed  when  the  hops  are  being  dried,  but 
when  cooling  is  desired  it  is  thrown  open,  or  across  the  shaft, 
thus  arresting  the  ascending  column  of  hot  air.  The  shaft 
terminates  about  4 ft.  6 in.  below  the  hair,  which  it  is  claimed 
allows  for  an  even  distribution  of  temperature  under  the  hair 
and  through  the  hops. 
From  the  above  description  it  will  be  seen  that  this  plant, 
like  the  open  fire  kilns,  depends  solely  upon  natural  draught 
for  transmitting  the  hot  gases  through  the  kiln.  There  is 
no  fan. 
Unfortunately  Messrs.  Williamson  & Allen  were  obliged 
to  withdraw  this  machine  from  the  competition,  owing  to  an 
objection  raised  by  the  owner  of  the  oasts  as  to  the  conduct  of 
the  trials.  This  was  much  regretted. 
The  next  plant  to  be  examined  was  that  by  Messrs.  Whiting 
Bros.,  manufactured  under  Neames’  Patent,  and  erected  in  one 
of  Mr.  F.  Neame’s  oasts  at  Tinbridge,  Faversham. 
