263 OF GARLIC, itc. [Chap. 14.

flour is made, and is not fit to make even the coarsestkind of ship-bread.

To test the properties of the finest flour, I contrivedto catch so much of the dust of that which was floatingabout in the mill, as made a large loaf of bread, whichwas raised with the same yeast, and baked in the sameoven, with other loaves, that were made out of the mostlively meal; the loaf made of the dust of the flour wasequally light, and as good, if not better, than any of theothers; it was more moist, and pleasant to the taste,though made of flour that, from its fineness, felt like oil.

I conclude, therefore, that it is not the degree of fine-ness that destroys the life of the flour, but the degreeof heat, produced by the too great pressure applied ingrinding; and that flour may be reduced to the greatestdegree of fineness, without injuring the quality, pro-vided it be done with sharp, clean stones, and with littlepressure.

CHAPTER XIV.

ARTICLE 112.

OF GARLIC, WITH DIRECTIONS FOR GRINDING WHEATMIXED THEREWITH; AND FOR DRESSING THE STONESSUITABLE THERETO.

In many parts of America there is a species of onion,called garlic, that grows spontaneously with the wheat.It bears a head resembling a seed onion, which containsa number of grains about the size of a grain of wheat, butsomewhat lighter.* It is of a glutinous texture, and ad-

* The complete separation of this garlic from the wheat, is so difficult, that ithas hitherto baffled all our art. Those grains that are larger, and those that arcsmaller than the wheat, can be separated by screens; and those that are muchfighter, may be blown out by fans; but those that are of the same size, and nearlyof the same weight, cannot be separated without putting the wheat in water,where the wheat will sink, and the garlic swim. But this method is too tediousfor the miller to practise, except it be once a year, to clean up the headings, ra-ther than lose the wheat that is mixed with the garlic, which cannot be otherwisesufficiently separated. Great care should be taken by the farmers to prevent