1807.] 
beer, others with equal advantages of li- 
quor, and all the necessary materials had 
never, for centuries past, any beer in their 
ecllars, either strong or small, fit for a 
Christian Englishman to drink, or even 
(no Popery) foranTrishman. Something, 
perhaps no little, of this yet remains. A 
very usual defect was that of transpa- 
rency; and [remember about thirty odd 
years since, the house-steward of an ho- 
nourable and respectable baronet, of the 
right old English breed of country gentle- 
men, made heavy complaints to me, that, 
although their.beer was liberally brewed, 
and of the best materials which a rich 
and fertile country produced, it was yet 
always tnick and turbid. I promised, but 
did not find leisure, to look into the cause 
of this. About ten years afterwards, 
however, changing my residence, by mak- 
ing a move of forty miles to the rivht 
about, I had an opportunity. of detecting 
one cause, at least, of turbid beer. The 
first brewing at my new house having 
stood its proper time, we tapped a cask, 
afterwards several casks, and found the 
drink all alike, thick as wash. On ques- 
tioning the farming-bailitf, who acted as 
brewer, aud who had served my prede- 
cessor many years in the same capacity, 
his answer was, that very good, but no 
fine beer§ ever was, or ever could ke, 
made in this house, referring me to all 
the neighbours,comers and goers. Surpriz- 
ed indeed, but not at all satisfied by this 
aceount, T applied for farther informa- 
tion to my predecessor, a very worthy 
gentleman and rather a deep drinker in 
good beer. With a face of gravity and 
concern, my friend confirmed the bai- 
lif?’s account from his own long experi- 
ence; and as by the writings of the house 
it appeared to have been built early in the 
reign of the first James, I really began 
to be apprehensive of a complete un- 
broken tradition of muddy beer, from that 
era. The affair appeared to me of the 
miraculous cast; but having no faith in 
iniracles, whether of ancient or iecent 
date, | was determined on exammation, 
rather than passive credence. A brew- 
ing approached, the liquor was pellucid, 
the malt propefly ground. In the com- 
mon random way, the liquor seemed to 
be taken at the proper heat, and the 
worts were well boiled. - In the latter 
stage of the process, the secret came out. 
My brewer, about to tun his beer, was 
preceeding to lade it all up, thick and 
thin, top and bottom, and to cask it in 
that state, on which I stopped him. Such 
then appeared to have been his usual 
Montury Mac., No, 165, 
te 
On the Common Brewery. 
527 
practice, never attending to working the 
beer in the casks. I directed him to take 
up the beer carefully, without disturbing 
the bottoms, which I destined to the hog- 
cistern, and to work his beer weil in the 
casks, filling them up with a reserve for 
the purpose, as often as the waste by fer- 
mentation should render it necessary. 
Four months afterwards I invited the 
friend of whom honourable mention has 
been made, to a family dinner, during 
which he inguired of me where I pur- 
chased such bright ale, as he was desirous 
of obtaining some such, I was obliged 
to call in the brewer as my voucher, be- 
fore I could persuade my friend, that the 
beer he had before him, and which by 
the colour and brightness he could not 
distinguish from sherry,was home-brewed. 
The same success attended all my after 
brewing in that country, and so the won- 
der.ended; but I do not boast that the 
neighbours followed my example. 
Before I proceed any farther, Mr. Edi- 
tor, I find it necessary to explain to my 
readers, why I ought to egotize a little. 
A certain traveller, now in retirement, 
tells us that he once wrote even a selling 
book, without understanding a syllable of 
the subject. Thoroughly as that gentle- 
man knew the world, he must have been 
aware that his case was by no means sin- 
gular. However I am not ambitious of 
the credit of such a superior talent, I 
mean to shew why I ought to know, - 
at- least something of the common 
brewery. Before I quit the Travel- 
ler in Retirement, I must take leave pub- 
lickly to state the just cause of complaint 
which I have against its author, the Rev. 
Mr. Dutens. He robbed me—of nearly 
a whole night’s rest, and sieep is of pecue 
llar consequence to me. One of his vo- 
Jumes came into my hands, late in the 
evening ; I felt it quite impossible to re- 
tire until I had finished the last chapter, 
even then thinking it a lucky escape that 
the succeeding volume was without my 
reach. 
Some years previous to the last period 
alluded to, with my Latin fresh in my 
head, and brim full of the confident va- 
nity of a young man, [-had determined 
tomake my literary debut withan English 
translation of Tacitus. It appeared to 
me that Gordon, in aping, from inability 
to imitate, the manner, hadgiven a bur- 
lesque, as well ag a version, of the writer. 
I purposed to have taken Junius for my 
English model, which I then supposed, 
from certain hints given me by the edi 
tor of a newspaper, and which Lam now 
i e. 
LA % halt 
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