pends on a supply of food; and, to attain which, no facrifice of property was an obstacle; therefore, that nation, whose exigences were urgent, was compelled to embark at the national cost, or render no relief. Thus, while we beg to pay our tribute of acknowledgement for that seasonable precaution, allow us to express our opinion that, when the causes of juftification ceafe, the scheme should also; for, except in cases fo extraordinary, the supplies of grain will find their way to market through the merchant (under regular and permanent laws, adapted to relieve the manufacturer, as well as prudently encourage the farmer), with greater facility, more steadiness, and less expence, than through the medium of any government. In the counties of Hereford, Monmouth, Worcester, Gloucester, Wilts, Somerset, and Devon, the harvest in point of weather for saving it, has been universal, and the crop of spring-fown grain never known to be more abundant; but one general opinion prevails of the defectiveness of the crop of wheat, which may be ascribed to two causes; the destruction of the plant by fevere frosts last winter, when the ground was not covered with snow, and the effect of a few frosty nights, when the wheat was in bloffom, injuring the top of the ear from filling, and which now affects the yielding very materially. To exemplify it more clearly, the estimation prevails, that the stock of old and new British wheat on Sept. 29, 1795, was one-third short of the stock of old and new, Sept. 29, 1794; and it is a most lamentable circumstance to look forward to, when we review the evils likely to refult from the late dearth. A frugal use of wheat recommended, and introducing substitutes for it in the make of bread, will alleviate in a small.degree. The free circulation of corn inland should have every attention and fupport; for, the late distress was greater than the ftock in the growers hands juftified, had not interruption been given by mobs under the fanction of men who ought to have known their duty better. In many districts of only 20 miles, the difference in price was full 10s. to 20s. per quarter more than it ought to have been, comparatively speaking. To these two objects, we most humbly suggest to your lordships, should be united that of a timely foreign fupply, either by bounty, to encourage the merchants, should the markets be free and open; or, in cafe they were resorted to as last year, we conceive the national purse cannot be opened for a more laudable purpose than fuch national neceffities as the property of individuals is inadequate to. The average confumption of Bristol, and the places immediately dependent on it, is about 2000 sacks, or 250 tons of flour; and the effect of inland situations resorting for relief cannot be more fully elucidated than by reference to the failure of 1774, when 60,000 quarters of wheat, and upwards of 50,000 barrels of flour, were imported in twelve months, and circu lated in all the adjacent counties." English wheat fold at the London market, Oct. 18, at 96s, to 98s. per quarter, 1500 quarters, an advance of 6s. per quarter on the last marketday's price; government wheat from 60s. to 82s. per quarter, 5000 quar ters, and more could have been fold had it been fresh and sweet. The different corn-factors flated that the wheat of this year was, in Dorlet, 1 Dorfet, in part blighted, which made it produce lefs; the general average defective, but the defect partial. About Yarmouth, the crops one quarter meafure per acre, and 2lb. the bushel heavier, than last year. In Kent very defective; and in the fens of Lincolnshire a material deficiency; all owing to the blight. In Hertfordshire, 15 bufhels per acre instead of 22 or 23. The Imall fupply brought to London fince the last harvest, owing to the deficiency in this year's crop, and the old stock being exhausted, the difficulty of procuring a crop from the additional labour in threshing, arifing from the defective quality of the sheaves, the demand for feed-wheat, which perhaps this year exceeds the demand of ordinary years, as the high price leads the farmer to fow more feed. Wheat is generally onetenth of the produce this year; it will be more; and the great part of the supply which used to come to London is drawn off in confequence of the home demand, and the demand of other districts where the crop has been short. The fupply will increase when the feed-time is over, which will be about the middle of November. No idea of the fupply being withheld in consequence of combinations, which are believed impossible. Barley generally understood to be abundant. Oats a good crop, but not fo many fown as before, but more wheat. Pease a good crop. In Dorfet, people resort to barley bread, that grain being plentiful; but the price will not be fo reasonable as might be expected from the crop. has been for the last 30 years, but The Another fays, the wheat was in general thin on the ground, and yields ill; in consequence of blight, the crop of cone wheat is particularly bad; ascribes the want of fupply to a fickness among the labourers, reduced from five or fix in a barn to one or two; and the late rains have rendered the ground favourable 'for fowing, to which the farmers apply the corn as fast as threshed. The increase will probably be confiderable, as the markets in October are generally thin; but it will not be great till the feed-time The crop of wheat not probably, while fo applied, is over. Another corn-factor states the deficiency of fupply arifing from the feed-time to be not greater at prefent, as to English wheat, than it fo bad as to justify the present high price, though it will be probably higher than last year. He does not believe the poorer inhabitants of the kingdom will be induced to eat bread made of other forts of grain, The 1 The finer bread is used in the poorer parts of the town, such as Spitalfields, &c. On the borders of Effex, the magistrates enforced the ufe of the standard wheaten bread; but the poor did not like it, and thought it did not go fo far, and the magiftrates now fuffer the finer wheaten to be made. He agrees with the poor in opinion, that standard wheaten bread does not go fo far as the fine wheaten bread. If an inferior fort of bread is to be made, it should be univerfal; but, if this bread was made wholly of English wheat without any mixture of foreign, which is generally bad, it might be wholelome. Another stated the quantities of wheat fold in the London market for the month of September, and first three weeks of October, in the laft four years, as follows: the advantageous speculation it af fords in Europe. The French minister purchased it in the two laft and present years, and paid for it in gold coin, or by bullion, or by wine and brandy; the present contract is by certificates issued by the American government for part of the debts owing to France from the United States, which certificates amount to 800,000 dollars; but, as fome of them do not bear so high an interest as 6 per cent. American stock, there will probably be a lofs on them of 20 per cent. The whole of the fum paid by France in this mode may amount, including all deductions, to 160,0001. Most of the ships carrymg wheat and flour to France cleared out principally for Falmouth, and a market fometimes to Hamburg and fometimes to Spain and Portugal. The French government have fustained great losses in this trade by captures of corn and money, amounting to near 200,000l.; and the American merchants made immense profits by the high price required for their flour exported on their own risk. Even in the contracts now cartied on the lofles are fuppofed, by well-informed perfons in America, to be about 601. per cent. A number of merchants in America, who confidered the American debt owing to France as a collateral security, finding the debt is applied in the manner here stated, are difcouraged from shipping provifions on their own account; and the payments will not be so extenfive this year as the last; and fome merchants at New York, who had made an agreement with M. Fauchet, the French minifter, to fend flour to France, and, in consequence, had drawn bills to a large amount in England, on a supposition that the the money would be paid in France, and brought to England in time to fatisfy these bills, which has not been the cafe, are on this account in the greatest distress. The quantity of wheat for exportation in the United States is estimated at about a million of bufhels of flour, 1,100,000 barrels. The divifions and their weight were stated, also the price of flour made of wheat and barley in several proportions, and their produce per bufhel. Mr. Wm. Malcolm, who drew up the reports of the courties of Surrey and Bucks, is the only person who fuggests a combination of opulent farmers, who play with and feed the markets at their own prices; which demand the interference of parlisment, to keep open the ports, offer bounties, prevent fmuggling, compel the pitching of grain in the markets, enforce laws against engroffing, forestalling, and regrating, and prevent combinations to raife the price of labour. He ascribes the high price of grain to the great increase of population, the emigrants, the very great proportion of land converted from arable to pafture, increase of buildings and people in manufacturing towns, villages leffened, and great towns, particularly London, increased nearly 1-8th. The great quantity of potatoes grown this feafon has leffened the quantity of grain. He recommends numbering the people by the affeffors of the taxes, to afcertain the average produce fufficient for thein compared with the number of acres. Mr. Malcolm fuggefis the following hints: The immenfe quantity of meal ufed in the kitchens of large families, to fupply a pint or two of foup for the table, must contribute to the great consumption of wheat; and the vast number of small pigs, weighing from 7 to 10lb. per quarter, called delicates, and fold from 7d. to 8d. the lb. which would, if kept a few weeks longer, weigh from 15 to 20lb. the quarter, is another cause of the dearness of meat. In these times economy should be fet on foot in all families. The vast number of horses kept for pleasure and useless parade, must, by confumption of oats and hay, prevent the growth of human food on the fame ground. House-lambs are another delicate that might be done without; and, if fuffered to live a few months longer, would weigh more, and be of more use. We feem now to fet in for a wet autumn, and of course a wet feedtime for wheat, which will be a cause of raising the price by men who fpeculate in it. The difference in the price between the brown and white loaf is not fufficient to tempt the poor to eat it. The brown should be made of the whole produce of the wheat, with only a reduction of one-ninth of the weight for bran, &c.; and a bushel of wheat, weighing 63lb. should fend home to the owner 36lb. of meal, 6lb. of bran, and 1lb. lofs or waste." Nov. 2, a bill was ordered to be prepared, to prevent obftructions to the free paffage of grain and other provisions throughout the kingdom. Recommended to the lord-mayor and aldermen, to take measures for preparing correcter afsize-tables, to extend to bread made of white or household wheaten flour, with onethird, one-fourth, or one-fifth of rye, barley, oats, and Indian-corn flour, that the baker might have fuch a profit as might encourage his making it for sale at such a reduced price as should encourage the purchaser to take it. Nov. 5. Mr. William Cramp, keeper of the house of correction at Lewes, Suffex, gave an account of the mode of making starch from horse-chefnuts. He puts the chefnuts first in water to swell them till they burst, then took off the skin, and grated the kernel into fresh cold water. When that was done, he strained it through a coarse strainer or cheese-cloth, risfing the pulp well with fresh water, and then strained it again through a very fine strainer to take off the internal skin, or little thin red film next to the kernel. The strainer cannot be too fine for this second straining; for, starch will get through where water does. It was then left to fettle five or fix hours till the starch was effectually fettled at bottom. The water in which it was settled was poured off, and fresh water put on it, and all stirred up again, and left to fettle a second time, ferving it in that manner two or three times, till the ftarch was bleached quite white; and, after it had again effectually fettled, the last water was poured off, and it was put upon boards to dry. The whole process in fummer, when the weather is fine to dry it out of doors, may be finished in four days, and the starch will be fit to box up. It is better to dry it in the open air than on a stove, as the stove would probably dry it too faft, and affect the colour, which was also the case unless the chefnut was very clean of the inside skin. The whole expence is in grating and breaking the kernels; and that of making 5lb. of starch would not exceed Is. 6d. One gallon of ches nuts was enough for experiment. Mr. C. imagines that acorns would anfwer the fame purpose, and might be ground along with the chefnuts, but he had not tried. The process of making starch from chefnuts and potatoes it exactly the fame; and a bushel of the latter, at 56lb. the bushel, will make about 6lb. 4 oz. of starch. The first report from the select committee, appointed to take into confideration the present high price of corn, printed Nov. 19, 1795, states the first and most obvious mode of fupplying the deficiency to be by the importation of grain from foreign ports, by the restoration of the trade on corn to its natural channel, with the additional encouragement of a bounty of 20s. per quarter on wheat, and a proportionate bounty per barrel of flour from Europe South of Cape Finiftere, or the ports in the Mediterranean or Africa, till the quantity of wheat and flour together shall equal 3,000,000 quar ters, a bounty of 15s, per quarter on a certain quantity of wheat, and 10s. per quarter on all exceeding it from the other ports of Europe, and from America; and of 5s. per quarter, and in proportion on flour of Indian corn. A proclamation prohibiting the exportation and encouraging the importation from Feb. 13, 1795, until the expiration of fix weeks from the commencement of the next feffion of parliament. The report on the affize of bread, Nov. 9, 1795, was that the old ftandard bread, made of flour the whole produce of the wheat, and weighing three quarters of the weight of wheat, would tend to prevent many incor veniencies |