27. _SUGAR is the concrete or crystallized juice of the_ sugar cane
(Saccharum officinarum, Fig. 5), _a plant, much cultivated both in the
East and West Indies, which has a jointed stem eight or nine feet high,
long and flat leaves of greenish yellow colour, and flowers in bunches._
The cultivation of the sugar-cane is pursued to great extent in the islands
of the West Indies, where, about three centuries ago, it was first
introduced from China, or some other parts of the East, and where it
flourishes with great luxuriance, particularly in moist and rich ground.
The season for planting it commences about the beginning of August. This
operation is performed by laying the canes in rows, in trenches formed for
the purpose. Roots issue from each joint; and, in the course of nine or ten
months, the stems which rise from these respective roots, and constitute
the sugar crop, attain their perfect state. The saccharine juice is
contained in a spongy pith with which the interior of the plant is filled.
When cut down, the leaves are thrown aside as of no use in the manufacture
of sugar, and the stems or canes are divided into pieces, each about a yard
in length. These are tied together in bundles, and conveyed to the
sugar-mill; where they are bruised betwixt three upright wooden rollers
covered with iron. The juice, which flows from them, is conducted, by
canals, into a large vessel formed for receiving it. The quantity of juice
prepared by some of these mills is upwards of ten thousand gallons in a
day.
The next operation is called clarifying. For this purpose the juice is
conducted, along a wooden gutter lined with lead, to a place called the
boiling house, where it is received into copper pans, or caldrons, each
placed over a separate fire. A certain proportion of powdered lime is now
added to it, for the purpose of taking up any acid which the juice may
happen to contain. The heat is then increased until the liquor is nearly in
a boiling state. By this process the greatest part of the impurities that
were contained in the juice rise to the surface in a scum. The purified
liquor is then carefully drawn off, either by a syphon or a cock, leaving
the scum at the bottom of the pan.
From these pans it is conveyed, by another gutter, or channel, to the grand
copper, or evaporating boiler, where the scum, which rises to the surface,
is skimmed off as the liquor boils. After undergoing a similar process in
smaller boilers, with a farther mixture of lime, until it has attained a
certain degree of thickness, it is transferred into a large shallow wooden
vessel, where, as it cools, it granulates or runs into an imperfect
crystallization, by which it is in some degree separated from the
_molasses_ or _treacle_, an impure part of the juice, which is incapable of
being crystallized, and which, in large casks, is exported, for various
useful purposes, to the different countries of Europe.
From the cooler the sugar is removed to the curing-house. This is a large,
airy building, furnished with a capacious cistern, for the reception of the
molasses. Over the cistern is an open frame of strong joist-work; upon
which are placed several empty hogsheads, each open at the head, and having
a few holes at the bottom, closed by stalks of the plantain tree thrust
through them. The mass of saccharine matter is now put into these
hogsheads; the molasses are separated from the sugar, by draining, into the
cistern, through the spongy stalks of the plantain; and the remainder, thus
entirely crystallized, has the name of _muscovado_ or _raw sugar_.
The article denominated _clayed sugar_ undergoes a process somewhat
different. For the preparation of this, the sugar, when taken from the
coolers, is put into conical vessels of earthen-ware, each having, at its
bottom, a hole, about half an inch in diameter, which, at the commencement
of the process, is stopped with a plug. This plug, after the sugar has
become perfectly cool, is removed, and the molasses drain through the hole.
When these have ceased to run, the surface of the sugar, in the vessel, is
covered with fine clay, to a certain thickness, and water is poured upon
the clay. This, oozing through it, pervades the whole mass of sugar,
re-dissolves the molasses still remaining in it, with some parts of the
sugar itself, carries these off through the hole at the bottom, and renders
the sugar, that is left, much purer than that which is made the other way.
The further refining of sugar, or forming it into the white conical loaves
which are so much used in this country, is the business of the European
sugar-bakers. This is done by dissolving the raw sugar in water, boiling
the solution in lime water; and then clarifying it with bullock's blood, or
the white of eggs, and straining it through woollen bags. After due
evaporation it is suffered to cool to a certain degree. It is then poured
into conical moulds of unglazed earthen-ware, the summits of which are
perforated. Here it concretes into a hard white mass, leaving that part of
the syrup, which will not crystallize, to run off through the hole in the
point of the cone. The broad end of the cone is then covered with moist
clay, the water from which penetrates into the sugar, and displaces and
carries off the impurities which, otherwise, would be retained in and
discolour it. It is then carefully dried, and receives the name of _loaf_,
or _lump sugar_.
_Sugar-candy_ is formed by boiling down a solution of sugar till it becomes
thick; and then removing it into a very hot room, to crystallize upon
sticks or strings, placed across small tubs, or other vessels. It is
denominated brown or white sugar-candy, according to the quality of the
sugar of which it is made.
_Barley sugar_ is sugar boiled in barley water, but now more frequently in
common water, till it is brittle. It is then rolled on a stone anointed
with oil of sweet almonds, and formed into twisted sticks. To give it a
colour, a small quantity of saffron is sometimes mixed with it.
When sugar was first introduced into this country, it was employed only as
a medicine; but it has now become an essential article both of luxury and
use. It is the basis of syrups; and is used in cooking, and in confections,
preserves, sweetmeats, and liqueurs of every description. Sugar is also
sometimes employed in medicine.
The juice of the sugar-cane is so palatable, and at the same time so
nutritive, that, during the sugar harvest, every creature which partakes
freely of it, whether man or animal, appears to derive health and vigour
from its use. The meagre and sickly negroes exhibit, at this season, a
surprising alteration; they now become fat and healthy. The labouring
horses, oxen, and mules, being allowed, almost without restraint, to eat of
the refuse plants, and of the scummings from the boiling-house, improve now
infinitely more than they do at any other season of the year.
_Rum_ is a spirituous liquor distilled from molasses, scummings of the hot
cane juice from the boiling house, or raw cane liquor from canes expressed
for that purpose, lees (or, as it is called in Jamaica, _dunder_), and
water. The dunder answers the purpose of yeast for the fermentation.
Sugar-canes, as large and juicy as those of the West Indies, are cultivated
in several parts of Spain, but particularly in the country betwixt Malaga
and Gibraltar. They were originally introduced, by the Moors, several
centuries ago; and the sugar made from them is of excellent quality. There
are sugar mills, in more than twelve different places, on the coast of
Grenada, all of which are fully employed: in one village there are four,
which cost at least 5,000_l._ sterling each.
28. _OATS are the seeds or grain of an annual plant_ (Avena sativa, Fig.
14), _too well known, and too much cultivated throughout every part of
Europe, to need any description._
_The country from which they were originally imported is not known._
The principal use of oats in this country is for the feeding of horses. In
the northern parts of England, and in Scotland, they are applied also to
the nutriment of man. When simply freed from their husks they are called
_groats_ or _grits_; and, in this state, are much used in broths, and other
kinds of nutriment for sick and infirm persons. More frequently, however,
they are ground into _oatmeal_, which is made into cakes, biscuits, &c. The
husks, infused in water, and allowed to remain till the water becomes
somewhat acid, are boiled to a jelly called _sowins_. A grateful and
nutritive kind of jelly, which has the name of _flummery_, is also made of
oatmeal, boiled with water, and flavoured with a little orange-flower
water, and sugar.
Oats will thrive in almost any soil, but they are chiefly productive on
land that has been newly broken up. They are usually sown in February or
March, and the harvest commences about August. Several kinds or varieties
are cultivated in different parts of England, such as _white oats_, _black
oats_, _brown_ or _red oats_, _Tartarian_ or _reed oats_, _Friezeland
oats_, _Poland oats_, and some others, but, of these, the first are
considered the most valuable.
29. _WHEAT is a well known kind of corn_ (Triticum hybernum, Fig. 13)
_which is cultivated in most of the civilized countries of the world, and
is supposed to have been originally introduced into Europe, from some
part of Asia._
No grain is so valuable to the inhabitants of nearly all climates as this;
and, by a wonderful ordination of Providence, it is rendered capable of
sustaining, without injury, almost the two extremes of heat and cold. Not
only does it ripen in Egypt and Barbary, but it ripens equally well in
Scotland, Denmark, and Sweden.
It constitutes the chief food of the British nation; and its abundance or
scarcity regulates, in a great degree, the welfare and prosperity of the
inhabitants. The whole annual consumption of grain, in this island, amounts
to nearly 25,000,000 quarters; and in London alone, to more than 1,162,100
quarters. Of this by far the greatest proportion is wheat.
For the cultivation of this important grain the best lands are rich clays
and heavy loam; and, although light soils will produce wheat of excellent
quality, yet the crops on the other soils are by far the most abundant. The
best season for committing the seed to the ground is September, and the
earlier in the month the better. Some farmers consider it necessary to
steep the seed in brine or other pickle before it is used, to prevent it
from being devoured by vermin, and render the corn less liable to disease
than it would be without this process. In a good season the wheat harvest
commences in August, and is finished in the course of the ensuing month.
This species of corn is usually cut with instruments called reaping-hooks,
but in some parts it is mown with scythes.
The different kinds or varieties of wheat that are cultivated in this
country are too numerous to be particularized.
Wheat is liable to injury, not only from the attack of insects, but from
several kinds of disease, the principal of which are _blight_, _mildew_,
and _smut_. In the former the fibres and leaves of the plants are
contracted and enfeebled, and the grain is ultimately deprived of
sufficient nourishment: by mildew the straw and ear are affected: and by
smut the grains, instead of containing their proper substance, become
filled with a black or dark brown powder.
_Wheat flour_ consists of four distinct principles, gluten, starch,
albumen, and a sweet kind of mucilage. And it is a remarkable circumstance,
that the _gluten_, if not similar, has a very near alliance to animal
substances.
To enumerate the various ways in which preparations from wheat serve for
nutriment would be unnecessary, as they are known to every one.
_Starch_ is a substance frequently prepared from wheat, and is obtained by
the following process. The wheat is put into tubs of water, and exposed,
for some days, to the heat of the sun, in order to bring on a proper degree
of fermentation, the water being changed twice a day. Having now become
sufficiently soft, it is poured into large canvass bags, which are worked
or beaten, on a board over an empty vessel, to extract the farinaceous
particles. Fresh water is put to it, and after being considerably agitated,
it is allowed to subside. As the sediment increases, the water is gradually
drained off, and, at length, the starch is formed into small pieces, and
dried for use.
During the late war, when the intercourse betwixt France and the West
Indian islands was entirely cut off, several attempts were made in that
country to obtain _sugar_ from starch. The process was a long and intricate
one; and the success with which it was attended was not such as to render
it either practically or permanently useful.
_Bran_ is the husk of wheat, separated in grinding. Infusions of bran are,
not unfrequently, employed both externally and internally in medicine. They
are also sometimes used to cleanse the hands instead of soap. And, in times
of scarcity, bran has been advantageously employed in the making of
household bread.
_Wheat straw_, when chopped or cut small, forms a wholesome provender for
horses and oxen, especially when mixed with green food. It is also used as
litter for horses, and is employed as thatch for cottages, houses, and
barns. When cut into certain lengths, bleached by means of sulphur, and
split, it is plaited, and formed into hats and bonnets.
A nutritive substance called _Semolina_ is formed from wheat flour,
granulated by a particular process. A patent was granted in the year 1780
to Mr. Jacob Levy, for a method of making it. Previously to this, semolina
had been imported from Poland, under the name of _Cracow groats_. It
constitutes a light and wholesome food for invalids, being considered, in
this respect, preferable to sago; it may also be made into excellent
puddings.
_Macaroni_ is a preparation from the finest wheat flour, mixed with eggs,
or other glutinous substance. It is chiefly imported from Italy, Sicily,
and Germany. Its name implies _cut paste_, and it is eaten in various ways;
on the continent with milk, and with us in soups and puddings, or served up
in a dish with grated cheese, milk, and other ingredients.
_Vermicelli_ is made by a mixture of flour, cheese, the yolks of eggs,
sugar and saffron. This, being reduced to a proper consistency, is formed
into long slender pieces or threads, like worms, by being forced, with a
piston, through a number of little holes, in the end of a pipe made for the
purpose. Vermicelli was first brought from Italy, and it is chiefly used in
soups and other culinary preparations.
30. _BARLEY is a well known kind of corn_ (Hordeum distichon, Fig. 15.)
_which grows wild in the island of Sicily, and some other parts of the
south of Europe._
Next to wheat, this is, in Europe, the most valuable of all the species of
grain, especially for growth on light and sharp soils. The seed-time for
barley usually commences about the end of March or the beginning of April,
and sometimes lasts until the first week in June; and, for the produce,
four quarters per acre are considered a fair average crop, and eight
quarters a very extraordinary one.
Few instances of fecundity in corn are more remarkable than what has been
related of two grains of SIX-ROWED BARLEY (_Hordeum hexastichon_) which
were planted in a garden: they produced 113 stalks, nearly all of which
yielded ears; and these contained, in the whole, more than 2,500 grains.
The principal use to which barley is applied in this country is for the
making of _malt_, from which beer and ale are brewed. For this purpose it
is first steeped in water for three or four days. It is then taken out, and
suffered to lie, until it begins to sprout or germinate. As soon as the
germination has approached a certain state its further progress is
prevented by drying the barley in a kiln, heated with coke, charcoal, or
straw. The grain has now become mellow and sweet; and, after having been
crushed in a kind of mill contrived for the purpose, its saccharine
qualities are easily extracted by the boiling water, in brewing. The liquor
that is thus produced has the name of _wort_; and this, after having
undergone the process of fermentation, and having received a bitter flavour
by a mixture of hops, becomes ale or beer. Hence has originated the general
appellation of _malt liquor_. What remains of the malt after brewing is
called _grains_. These, in London, are employed for the feeding of horses,
cows, and swine.
Besides the use of barley in brewing, there is in some countries,
especially in Scotland and Germany, a great consumption of this grain, for
broths, soups, and other food. For this purpose it is freed from its husks
and formed into round granules, about the size of small shot, and of a
pearly whiteness, which thence have the name of _pearl-barley_. All except
the heart or best part of the grain is thus taken away. The barley, in this
state, when boiled, forms a nutritive food; and a decoction of it, properly
flavoured with acid, is said to be one of the best beverages that can be
adopted in acute diseases. The making of pearl barley is a German
invention. In Scotland the lower classes make it by means of hand-mills;
and many persons are satisfied with merely ridding the grain of its husks
by stamping it in mortars.
_Barley-meal_ is occasionally made into bread by the poor; and it is
likewise used for the fattening of poultry and swine. From _barley-straw_ a
yellowish coloured paper has been manufactured; the making of which was,
some years ago, attempted in this country upon a large scale, but without
success.
31. _RYE_ (Secale cereale, Fig. 16.) _is a kind of grain supposed to have
been first introduced into the northern parts of Europe from the island
of Crete._
As bread corn, sometimes alone, but more commonly mixed with wheat, rye was
formerly in great request, particularly in the northern counties of
England. This mixture, which is denominated _blend-corn_, or _maslin_, is
at present partially used, in certain districts, not only from motives of
economy, but also because the rye is supposed to render the bread more
moist and palatable than it would otherwise be. In some part of the
country, rye is much used by ginger-bread bakers, for the dark colour of
its flour is not perceptible, when mixed with treacle. This species of
grain is frequently used for the distillation of spirits.
It has been remarked, in some districts of France, that rye, from bad
seasons, or from other causes, has proved noxious and even poisonous. The
grains of the corn, thus degenerated, are black on the outside and
tolerably white within; and, when dry, are harder and closer than good
grain. Bread that is made of rye which contains even a great quantity of
this bad corn, is not distinguishable by the taste, from other rye bread;
and it seldom produces its ill effects till some time after it has been
eaten, it is then said to occasion gangrenes in the legs and other parts of
the body, and dangerous fevers. The poorer people, however, are those
chiefly who are subject to these diseases, as many of them have little
other substantial food to subsist upon than bread made of this species of
corn.
In several parts of England rye is sown either by itself, or mixed with
tares to be cut whilst green, for the feeding of sheep, cows, and horses.
Rye straw is used by brick-makers, and collar-manufacturers; and is
considered an excellent material for the thatching of cottages and barns.
32. GRASSES.--_By grasses we are to understand such plants as have a
round, jointed, and hollow stem, surrounded at each joint with a single
leaf, long, narrow, and pointed; and the flowers of which are a kind of
chaffy husk. According to this definition, wheat, barley, oats, and rye,
properly belong to the grasses, although they are known by the peculiar
appellation of corn or grain._[2]
To the grasses it is that the face of nature is indebted for a great
portion of its cheerful appearance, and its beauty. They constitute the
general herbage of every country, covering to an immense extent the whole
surface of the ground. They are very various in their kinds, the British
species alone being nearly a hundred and twenty in number. To many species
of animals their leaves afford an indispensable article of sustenance; and
their seed supply food to birds.
33. _SWEET-SCENTED VERNAL GRASS_ (_Anthoxanthum odoratum_, Fig.
17).[3]--This species is usually considered (though it perhaps ought not
exclusively to be so) as that to which the hay fields are indebted for
their well-known and delightful fragrance. When partially dried it is very
odorous; and, if chewed, in a recent state, its _stalks_ are highly
aromatic, tasting not unlike those of fresh lavender. The _root_ has an
odour somewhat resembling that of musk. A distilled water, which serves as
a vehicle for some perfumes, is occasionally prepared from the leaves and
flowers of the vernal grass. The dried flowers are employed in some parts
of the Continent for imparting an agreeable flavour to snuff and tobacco.
The vernal grass is not very productive, and by some farmers it is
considered not palatable for cattle. Others, however, esteem it an useful
addition in their meadows; and, from its being generally found in great
abundance on such pastures as sheep are fond of, and afford excellent
mutton, it is at least thought to be a good grass for them.
34. _COTTON GRASS_ (_Eriophorum angustifolium_, Fig. 18).--The seeds of
this grass are encompassed with long cottony or wool-like hairs; and so
abundant are the plants in many tracts of marshy land, particularly in the
northern parts of England, that the ground appears almost as if covered
with snow.
Poor people sometimes stuff their pillows with the down of the cotton
grass; but there is a prevailing opinion that it is not wholesome to sleep
on. This down is probably too brittle to be manufactured by itself into
thread, yet, in combination either with wool or cotton, it may be spun into
a strong and uniform yarn, from which gloves, stockings, and cloth, in
small quantity, have been made. Its brittleness has been much corrected by
a simple chemical process. Wicks for candles have sometimes been made of
it.
35. _BULL-RUSH_ (_Scirpus lacustris_, Fig. 19).--Of the stems of this plant
the rush bottoms of chairs are made. Being of soft and pliant texture,
totally destitute of roughness, the bull-rush is also sometimes used for
the stuffing of pack saddles, making of mats, and thatching of cottages.
36. _MEADOW FOX-TAIL GRASS_ (_Alopecurus pratensis_, Fig. 20) is a very
common but valuable kind, which grows freely in moist and fertile pastures
and meadows. It possesses, in a superior degree to any other grass, the
three great requisites of quantity, quality, and early growth. The best hay
which is brought to London is said to be from meadows where this grass
abounds; and, in many parts adjacent to the metropolis, it is extremely
abundant.
37. _TIMOTHY GRASS, or MEADOW CATS-TAIL_ (_Phleum pratense_, Fig. 21), is a
grass much cultivated in several parts of North America, and particularly
in wet, loamy grounds, where, though coarse and hard, it is found extremely
productive and useful. Such has been the celebrity of Timothy grass, that a
gentleman (William Strickland, Esq.) was requested by the Board of
Agriculture to make inquiries concerning it; and, from his remarks, it
appears that this grass is the chief support of cattle wherever the meadows
of it abound. He saw extraordinary crops of Timothy grass growing, as
thickly as it could stand upon the ground, three or four feet high, and, in
some instances, as coarse as wheat straw. It is cut before it arrives at
maturity; and horses are said to prefer the hay that is made of it to every
other kind, and to thrive peculiarly well upon it.
Though a native and very common grass in our own country, it is doubtful
whether our climate be sufficiently warm to bring it to the same perfection
in which it is found in America. It has, however, been cultivated in
England with considerable success; and, when used for green food, for which
it is particularly calculated, it may be cut two or three times in one
season; but, when intended for hay, it should be cut at least a week before
it flowers.
38. _FIORIN, or ORCHESTON LONG GRASS_ (_Agrostis stolonifera_, Fig. 22), is
known as a troublesome weed in moist meadows and pastures, and also in cold
and stiff arable land, by name of _Black Squitch_ or _Bent-grass_. It grows
with such luxuriance, lying upon the ground, and taking root at the
different joints, that the stems are sometimes several feet in length; and,
when cultivated as a crop, it has been known to produce, at two cuttings,
betwixt seven and eight tons per acre. This grass was first brought into
notice as a grass for hay, by a small tract of meadow ground, in which it
was cultivated several years ago, at a village called Orcheston, in
Wiltshire. Horses, sheep, and cattle are said to be extremely partial to
it, and to prefer the hay which is made from it to any other. To be in
perfection, it requires a moist climate, or a wet soil; and it will grow on
cold clays, that are unfitted for other grasses.
In Ireland it is called fiorin grass, and, under this appellation, it was
first introduced to the public notice in that country, in the year 1810, by
the Rev. Dr. Richardson, of Clonfecle, in the county of Antrim.
39. _The MEADOW SOFT GRASS, or YORKSHIRE WHITE GRASS_ (_Holcus lanatus_,
Fig. 25), though it vegetates late in the season, produces an abundant
crop, and flourishes well in any moist situation. Both its foliage and
flowers are soft and woolly. It is chiefly calculated for the feeding of
sheep, and has answered extremely well, when close fed. The hay that is
made from it is said to be very injurious to horses, and it is not much
relished by cattle.
40. _CANARY GRASS_ (_Phalaris Canariensis_, Fig. 23).--This grass grows
wild in Worcestershire, and some other parts of England. It is, however,
often cultivated for the sake of its seeds, which are extensively used as
food for small birds.
41. _PURPLE MELIC GRASS_ (_Melica cærulea_, Fig. 24) is found in great
luxuriance on the turf moors, near Glastonbury, in Somersetshire. The
people of that neighbourhood make of its stalks a neat kind of besoms,
which are used as a cheap and tolerably good substitute for hair brooms.
This grass occurs in the most barren, sandy, and boggy situations; but,
more especially, about pools upon mountainous heaths.
42. _REED MEADOW GRASS_ (_Poa aquatica_, Fig. 26) is one of the most useful
of the British grasses, particularly if grown in wet meadows, or upon the
banks of rivers or brooks. In the fenny lands of Cambridgeshire and
Lincolnshire it not only affords a rich pasturage for cattle in summer, but
forms also the chief part of their winter sustenance. In situations
favourable to its growth it sometimes attains the height of five or six
feet, When cut for hay, it is first dried, then bound up into sheaves, and
formed into ricks, in which it undergoes a slight fermentation that much
improves it. Cows and sheep are both partial to this grass. As hay, it is a
valuable food for cattle, and particularly for milch cows.
43. _SMOOTH-STALKED MEADOW GRASS_ (_Poa pratensis_, Fig. 27) is a favourite
grass for cattle; and flourishes even on the driest soils, growing wild in
meadows, on dry banks, and even on walls. In rich meadows of Somersetshire
it forms a considerable part of the herbage; and, in those that have been
flooded during the winter, it flourishes with such luxuriance as nearly to
exclude every other grass. Notwithstanding this, it possesses the valuable
property of resisting excessive drought, and is frequently green in high
gravelly pastures, after almost every other grass has been withered. It
flowers early, and makes an extremely valuable hay.
44. _ANNUAL MEADOW GRASS_ (_Poa annua_, Fig. 28).--No grass is more common
than this, and none makes a finer turf. It occurs in almost every
situation, by the sides of roads, on open and extensive commons; and in
many parts of England there are whole meadows of it, without any mixture of
other grasses. In those districts of Suffolk which produce the best butter,
the annual meadow grass is found in great abundance.
It is a remarkable circumstance respecting this grass, that it does not
suffer injury, but that, on the contrary, it is improved by persons
frequently walking over it. Mr. Stillingfleet states that, on the hill near
Malvern, in Worcestershire, a walk which had been made for the convenience
of the water drinkers, was, in less than a year, nearly covered with it,
though no plant of it could be found about any part of the hill. This was
attributed, in a great measure, to the constant treading upon it, by
persons passing to and from the well.
45. _CRESTED DOG'S-TAIL GRASS_ (_Cynosurus cristatus_, Fig. 29) is
extremely common in meadows and pastures, and constitutes a principal part
of the turf, on high gravelly or chalky soils, in parks, lawns, and sheep
walks: and, from the close and thick turf which it makes, it affords good
nourishment to cattle and deer. Parks that are famous for excellent venison
contain a great proportion of this grass. In the summer time its seeds
afford sustenance to pigeons and small birds.
46. _SHEEP'S FESCUE GRASS_ (_Festuca ovina_, Fig. 32) has great celebrity
as food for horses and cattle, and, in particular, for sheep, which are
said to prefer it to all other grasses, and to become fat upon it sooner
than upon any other. Though of short growth, its leaves are numerous and
succulent. The Tartars are said generally to fix their habitations, during
the summer, in places where there is the greatest plenty of this grass,
from its yielding an abundant supply of excellent food for their cattle.
And it has been remarked that the sepulchral monuments of the ancient
Tartars are chiefly observed in situations where Sheep's Fescue Grass
abounds; this has been considered a test of the great value which that
people set upon it.
47. _HARD FESCUE GRASS_ (_Festuca duruscula_, Fig. 30) is common in
pastures, meadows, and waste grounds. It springs early, affords excellent
food for all kinds of cattle; and, in good ground, yields a plentiful crop.
48. _FLOTE FESCUE GRASS_ (_Festuca fluitans_, Fig. 31).--This plant, which
grows almost exclusively in wet ditches, and in ponds, is so favourite a
food of horses and swine, that they will sometimes even endanger their
lives to obtain it. A farmer, who resided some years ago at Ruscomb, in
Berkshire, assured Mr. Stillingfleet that he had known a field of four
acres (which was nearly always covered with water) afford sufficient
nutriment to maintain five farm horses, in good condition, from April to
the end of harvest, without any other food; and that it yielded even more
than they could eat. The Cottenham and Chedder cheeses are said, in a great
measure, to derive their celebrity from the cows feeding on this grass.
Its seeds are small, and are remarkable for their sweet flavour and
nutritious qualities. They are annually collected in Poland, and are
exported thence, into Germany, and other parts of the continent, under the
name of _manna seeds_. These are used in soups, gruel, and puddings, even
by persons of the first rank and consequence. When ground into flour, they
are convertible into bread, which is little inferior to that made of wheat.
The bran of these seeds is stated by Linnæus to be useful as a medicine for
horses that are troubled with worms. Geese are fond of the seeds, and well
know where to find them. It is remarkable that these seeds have hitherto
been entirely neglected in England; though without difficulty they might be
obtained in sufficient quantity to prove beneficial.
49. _The COMMON REED_ (_Arundo phragmites_, Fig. 33) grows in ditches,
ponds, and by the sides of rivers, attaining the height of six or seven
feet, and flowering about the month of July.
Reeds are frequently made into screens or fences for gardens, and they are
considered particularly eligible for sheltering tender plants from injury
by cold, or blighting winds. They likewise make excellent _weavers' combs_;
and, when nailed across a frame of wood-work, are frequently employed as a
foundation for plaster floors. They are sometimes made into chair bottoms;
and into thatch for cottages and out-buildings.
From the flowers of the reed the country people of Sweden extract a green
dye, which they occasionally use for woollen cloth; and we are informed
that, from the dried roots, a flour may be made, which is capable of being
converted into a wholesome and nutritive bread.
50. _SEA MATWEED_ (_Arundo arenaria_, Fig. 34) is an useful and common
plant on most of our sandy sea shores. Its cultivation has, at various
times, been much encouraged, and even acts of parliament have been passed
for its preservation, in consequence of its spreading roots giving
stability to the loose, blowing sand, and thus raising a bulwark against
the encroachments of the waves. The Dutch are said to have availed
themselves of the advantage of these plants in securing and rendering firm
several parts of their coasts, which would otherwise have suffered much
injury.
At Newborough, a town on the south coast of the island of Anglesea, the
inhabitants manufacture this plant into mats and ropes; and the Danes
employ the fibrous roots for making whisk brushes.
The common people of Iceland collect the seeds of the sea matweed for
making bread.
51. _RYE GRASS, or RAY GRASS_ (_Lolium perenne_, Fig. 35), has, of late
years, been cultivated in some countries, to considerable extent, as fodder
for cattle. Its agricultural merits were first discovered in Norfolk, and,
thence, the seeds have been distributed through the greater part of the
kingdom; those who purchase them little suspecting that the plant was a
weed in their own fields. In dry pastures, and by road sides, this kind of
grass is extremely common.
When sown in high or sandy lands, either alone or mixed with clover, it
yields an earlier crop than most other grasses; and thus affords food at a
season when it is sometimes difficult otherwise to be obtained. The ray
grass that grows wild is stated to be much superior to that which is
obtained by cultivation; and we are informed that, if sown in a rich and
fertile soil, it will dwindle in a few years to a poor and insignificant
grass.
52. _COUCH, or SQUITCH GRASS_ (_Triticum repens_, Fig 36), is, in general,
considered a troublesome and pernicious weed. The roots strike so deeply
into the ground, and extend so widely, that the eradicating of them is
frequently attended with difficulty. As the plant lies upon the ground it
strikes out fibres from every joint; and so luxuriant is it sometimes seen,
that a single joint, when transplanted, has, in the course of twelve
months, covered a square yard of land.
The roots of couch grass are collected in large quantities at Naples, and
sold in the market as food for horses. They have a sweetish taste, somewhat
resembling that of liquorice; and, in times of scarcity, when dried and
ground into meal, they have been converted into bread. A decoction of the
roots is sometimes used in medicine.
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