Page:Willich, A. F. M. - The Domestic Encyclopædia (Vol. 2, 1802).djvu/85

67&#93; to fer- its, and contracts an unplea- sant smell, and .1 bad colour : it also acquin s a dis • sharp t ,v bich is communicated to the flour and br ad 3 and, finally, grows toouldy and sour: in this state, it is fit only tor the mam starch. Farther, it is ground with difficulty, clogs the mill-stones, chokes the bolting-cloths, and yields but little flour 3 which is soft and moist, and will not keep tor any length of time, especially during warm weather. We have entered thus largely into this subject, because, from the variableness of the climate of this country, considerable quantities of corn frequently become sprouted : we therefore extract, with satis- faction, the following interesting particulars, for remedying this seri- ous evil, from an ingenious pam- phlet published in France. Sprouted corn should by no means be stacked, but housed and thresh- t d with the greatest ex, edition, is'or should it be put in a granary t tgether with dry grain, as the lat- ter will thus become moist. Care should also be taken to keep the place well aired 3 for, in the con- trary case,- even the latter cannot be preserved. As soon as sprouted corn is threshed, it should be spread upon the floor, and frequently turned 3 a door, or window, being left open to give vent to the steam. Some- limes it will be necessary to dry the corn in an oven j after the bread is removed 3 leaving the door half open, and turning the grain every ten minutes, to facilitate the eva- poration of the moisture. When it is thus dried, it should be sifted, COR P) and not put into sacks, or in heaps, till it is properly cook t -, as it will otherwise become mouldy. Although some fastidious 1 jer- sons may object to the trouble oc- ucd by this mode of curing sprouted com, yet as eight or ten days continual drying will preserve it for a whole year, and render both the bread and flour of a better quality, it surely merits the atten- tion of every diligent husbandman, and will amply compensate his trouble and labour. There is another disease that fre- quently attacks corn, which is usually termed lurnt - grain, of which we have already spoken, vol. i. p. 3gS. To these may be added, what is called the spur, which affe6ts both wheat and rye, but more especially the latter. The grains infested with it, are thicker and longer than the sound ones ; their outsides are either brown or black, and their surface rough. If a spurred grain be opened, a white flour is perceivable in it, which is covered with another of a reddish or brown colour. The latter has some degree of consistence, but may be easily crumbled between the fingers. Naturalists are un- able to ascertain, with precision, the cause of this distemper ; but it is supposed to be occasioned by the bite or sting of an insect, that turns the corn into a kind of gall ; a conjecture which is partly confirm- ed by the taste left on the tongue, after eating such grain. The ef- fects arising from the use of corn thus damaged, are said to be ma- lignant fevers and gangrenes, in consequence of which the extremi- ties of the body sometimes morti- fy, and spontaneously separate, without any pain or effusion of blood. v 2 Among