METHOD OF CULTIVATING THE HOI*. 
141 
the} are picked, or they are apt to sustain considerable 
damage, both in colour and flavour, if allowed to remain 
long in the green state in which they are picked. In very 
warm weather, and when they are picked in a moist state, 
they will often heat in five or six hours ; for this reason, the 
kilns are kept constantly at work, both night and day, from the 
commencement to the conclusion of the Hop-picking season. 
“ The operation of drying Hops is not materially different 
fr om that of drying malt, and the kilns are of the same con 
struction. The Hops are spread on a hair cloth, from eight 
to twelve inches deep, according as the season is dry or wet, 
or the Hops ripe or immature. When the ends of the Hop 
stalks become quite shrivelled and dry, they are taken off 
the kiln, and laid on a boarded flooi till they become quite 
cool, when they are put into bags. 
“ The bagging of Hops is thus performed : in the floor of 
the room where Hops are laid to cool, there is a round hole 
or trap, equal in size to the mouth of a Hop-bag. After 
tying a handful of Hops in each of the lower corners of a 
large bag, which serve after for handles, the mouth of the 
bag is fixed securely to a strong hoop, which is made to rest 
on the edge of the hole or trap ; and the bag itself being 
then dropped through the hole, the packers go into it, when 
a person who attends for the purpose, puts in the Hops in 
small quantities, in order to give the packer an opportunity 
of packing and trampling them as hard as possible. When 
the bag is filled, and the Hops trampled in so hard that it 
will hold no more, it is drawn up, unloosed from the hoop, 
and the end sewed up, two other handles having been pre- 
viously formed in the corners in the manner mentioned above. 
The brightest and finest coloured Hops are put into pockets 
or fine bagging, and the brown into coarse or heavy bagging. 
The former are chiefly used for brewing fine ale, and the 
latter by the porter brewers. But when Hops are intended 
to be kept two or three years, they are put into bags of strong 
cloth, and firmly pressed so as to exclude the air. 
