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Page 35
Whisky, which is what I now refer to as the highest outcome of the
strength of barley, is, like hodge-podge, of Scotch incubation, and
deserves, for country's sake and the fame it has, some brief regard. The
process by which the grain is prepared may be described as follows. The
grain is first damped, then spread out on a floor, and finally a certain
quantity of water and heat applied, when it begins to germinate, which
it continues to do to a certain stage, beyond which it is not allowed to
pass. At this moment a Government official presents himself, and exacts
a duty of the manufacturer for the production of the malt, the
authorities shrewdly judging that they are entitled to levy off so
valuable an article a modicum of tax. The grain thus prepared is now in
a state for further manufacture, and it passes into the hands of the
brewer or distiller, to be converted into a more or less alcoholic
drink.
First the brewer produces therefrom those excellent beverages called
beer and porter, and so contributes to our refreshment, enjoyment, and
strength. These beverages are, in one shape or other, nearly in
universal demand, and the money spent upon the consumption of Bass and
XX almost passes belief. They are exported into every zone of the
world, and consumed by every class. And then the distiller takes the
grain in the same form, and, by slow evaporation and subsequent
condensation, extracts the pure, subtle, and potent spirit we have
referred to, and which, in more or less diluted form, we call whisky, or
Scotch drink. And this article also, in spite of cautions, is in large
demand and extensively exported, though perhaps not so much is consumed
among us as was fifty years ago. It is not by any means so bad an
article as it has a bad name; for when of good quality, and moderately
indulged in, it is perfectly wholesome; only when the quality is bad, or
the indulgence excessive, do evil results follow. And indeed such are
its merits when good, that it is said dealers sometimes export it to
France and other parts, from which it is imported again to this country,
transfused into splendidly labelled brandy bottles, and sold
untransformed as best brandy!
Little do we think, when eating our quiet dinner at a Scottish country
inn, what power and wealth are represented in the hodge-podge which
belike forms one of the dishes, and which, by suggestion and in the
style of the housewife, we are now analysing. As we disintegrate the
mess, and resolve it into its elements, we may well bethink ourselves of
the cost of our board on the planet, and of the value of the articles we
are daily consuming. To help you to a clearer idea of this, in regard to
the article barley alone in the form of malt, let me commend to your
attention the following statistical statement:--
A Parliamentary return of 1876 shows that the quantity of _malt_ charged
with _duty_ during the year was--
BUSHELS. DUTY.
England, 54,655,274 �7,412,621
Scotland, 2,927,763 396,241
Ireland, 3,346,606 453,883
---------- ----------
Total of United Kingdom, 60,929,633 �8,262,746
The quantity of barley imported into the United Kingdom during the year
was equivalent to 2,736,425 quarters. See how great a fire a little
spark, hodge-podge, kindleth!
So much for the quantity of malt produced, and the revenue derived from
it, in a year in the United Kingdom. I have spoken of this malt as being
convertible into a form which possesses, among other virtues, the power
of quenching our thirst. I wish it did not also quench our thirst for
the knowledge we all ought to have of its production and really
serviceable qualities; that it would stimulate inquiry after such
things, and not smother it, as it is too apt to do; and, in general,
prompt us to a wiser study of our social wants, and the means at our
command for further social improvement; which we might prosecute with
less and less recourse to the stimulant virtues of malt in such forms as
whisky. And this we may do, if we limit our indulgence in it to the less
potent form of it in beer, which, while it is calculated to quench man's
bodily thirst, is equally calculated to quicken his mental. How much it
contributes to allay the former, and how many thirsty souls are
refreshed by it, we may estimate from the statistics of the sale of it
furnished by a single firm in London. I refer to the firm of the Messrs.
Foster, Brook Street, who are friends of my own, and to whom I should be
glad to refer all who may be in want of a wholesome beer, for theirs is
so good and genuine. The Messrs. Foster are among the most extensive
bottlers and exporters in the country; and I find from the information
they have kindly supplied me, that the beer bottled by them for export
purposes during the year 1874 was 6000 butts, of 108 gallons each; that
their contracts for the supply of bottles during that period represented
25,000 gross, or 5,040,000 bottles, which, if laid end to end, would
extend to about 1000 miles; and that their accounts with Bass & Co.
alone for that term amounted to �150,000. All, from the highest to the
lowest, drink beer in England; and when unadulterated and taken in
moderation, it is one of the most healthful beverages of which the human
being, man or woman, can partake.
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