SHEEP diseases: causes, .nature and prevention. 315 
of Walkiiigton Towers Farm, Beverley, in the Leeds Mercury :— 
“Since the malt duty was removed every farmer can make malt for him¬ 
self, free from all restrictions, and the cost to him of making it is a nominal one. 
“Formerly, very much was thought of malt as a feed for all stock, and it is 
especially good for cows, as they will upon it, with bran and other food, produce 
plenty of rich sweet milk all the winter through. Sheep, beasts, and horses all 
thrive and fatten upon a mixture of it and other foods, but of late years it has not 
been much used, as its cost has been higher than other feeders. 
“Malt is termed green when the roots and stem of the barley, from which it 
is made, are sufficiently grown for it to be put upon the kiln to be dried. It is 
also at this stage of its growth that it is of the most value as a feeder, it being 
found that the green malt gives better feeding results than dried malt, and, as 
I will show later on, every farmer can easily make this sort of malt himself almost 
without any manufacturing cost. 
“As I have already said, the general use of green malt has been curtailed by 
its comparative expensiveness, but this objection does not exist at the present. 
There is no better barley for making this malt from than that imported from 
Russia, being less liable to mould; and, singular to say, this sort of barley has 
never before been so plentiful nor so cheap as it is at the present time—in fact, it 
can be got at the chief ports at 6d. per stone, or £4 per ton, which is below the 
price of hay, undecorticated cotton cakes, and bran—in fact, feeding barley is at 
present more than l^d. to lid. per stone, or £l per ton, cheaper than maize, and 
is not very much higher in price than straw is in some parts of the country. 
“No doubt this unprecedented cheapness of feeding barley will cause it to be 
used largely in its unconverted state, either unground or ground into meal, along 
with turnips and other food, but I prefer it when converted into green malt, and 
for the benefit of those farmers who are inclined to follow my example in this 
respect, I may say that the process of conversion is as follows:— 
“ The barley must first be steeped overhead in water (allowing it room to 
swell) about forty-eight hours, and this can be done in any tank or large tub or 
casks which may be available (the latter can also be bought of any cooper for a 
few shillings each), into which a large plug-hole should be made at the side, as 
near the bottom as possible, and over the inside of the plug-hole should be fixed 
some perforated zinc (which can be got at any ironmonger’s), so that when the 
plug is taken out, the water may be drained off through the zinc and plug-hole, 
and the barley left behind. It is a good plan to let the perforated zinc enclose a 
larger space than is occupied by the plug-hole, so as to let the water drain to it 
more quickly. 
“When the barley has been steeped forty-eight hours, and the water drawn 
off, place it thickly upon a floor, say two feet thick, and let it remain there until 
L some warmth is developed; it must then be thinned down to, say, 6 inches, and 
must be daily turned over until it strikes out its roots. As soon as these have 
grown a little, and show signs of withering, they should be sprinkled with a 
watering can, and the turning continued until the acrospire—or what would be 
the stalk if the barley were planted—has forced its way well up to the back of the 
barley under the skin. When this is accomplished, the barley has been converted 
into green malt, and is at the stage of manufacture which is of most value to the 
