BARLEY. Hardeum vulgare. This grain, from the fact that it has been used from time immemorial in Oriental countries as food for horses, and to a great extent as food for man among barbarous people; and from its easy con version into malt and thence into beer, ale and other spiritous liquors, it has acquired an im portance not warranted as a food grain. It is far below Indian corn, wheat, or even oats, in money value to a country, except in certain cli mates where it may be easily cured bright for malting When heavy, and perfectly bright, it commands high prices from maltsters, but when it is dark and discolored it hardly brings the price of good oats per bushel. In Europe, where barley is extensively raised as one of the crops of a rotation, it is much employed as food for horses after a hard day's work. It is given after having been boiled, in which condition it acts as a gentle aperient and sudorific, opening the system and softening the skin. In the United States there is a prejudice against the use of bar ley as food for horses. This is entirely unfounded. Six or seven pounds may, be given at a feed with out injury, and if soaked twenty-four hours be fore feeding, a horse may eat what he will natur ally take at a meal, and without injury. Certain it is that in Oriental countries,where it forms the bulk of the grain fed, it agrees perfectly with the horses. The same may be said of its use in New Mexico, on the plains and in California. It is nutritious, and in every way adapted either to horses of fast or slow work In the great grain region of the United States, oats are more pro lific and certain, and hence but little attention is paid to barley. Barley is less nutritious than wheat, but one-seventh more so than oats. The ancient Romans, besides using it as food for horses, considered it the best food for swine, especially after boiling, the flesh so made having been reckoned especially tender and sweet. The first record of barley sown in America, is at Martha's vineyard in 1602, and in Virginia in 1611. In the New England States it has long been held valuable as food for hogs, nailch cows and poultry. There is no doubt that the only drawback to its use is the high price which. bright grain brings for malting. Barley is held to contain less of the flesh and blood-making principles than wheat, hence its use as a demulcent and for invalids in febrile complaints, and as an emollient in inflammatory disorders; but from its well known tendency to act on the bowels, it should not be eaten by persons subject to diarrhcea, or when bowel complaints are prevalent. Barley contains of— begins to hang down, and the straw assumes a golden hue. Then cut, and if sufficiently long tie up into small sheaves, in the event of bad weather. This will better protect it from staining than if lying loose. Barley stacked loose gets into better condition than when tied up ; the sweating is more uniform and the sample a shade mellower. Still the evidence is in favor of tying. It is also re commended to avoid threshing with a machine, as the germinating " spear " is bruised, and is as much injured by it as if heated in the mow. It In Europe and the Oriental countries barley is extensively cultivated for fodder. In Germany
:and Russia it is extensively used for making bread. Scotland has long been celebrated for its barley meal, and its use is constantly extending in the form of mush with milk in all civilized countries. Barley grows best in a sandy soil and must have dry weather for ripening and curing. Hence the superior quality of the crop when grown on the plains of the far West and in Cali fornia. In that State it is sown at any favorable time during the winter, or even to the end of March. In the West the crop is sown on newly -plowed rich soil, reduced to a fine filth in April or early in May, at the rate of about one and a half bushels drilled, or one quarter more sown broadcast ; occasionally three or more bushels are sown. The varieties usually sown are the two rowed (Honleitot distichun) and the six-rowed (H. Aexastichou). The usual yield on fair soils is from twenty to twenty-five bushels, though under ex ceptional circumstances fifty and even sixty bush els per acre have been taken. Pot or hulled barley is barley denuded of its husk, in a null, and is used in making mush, puddings, etc. Pearl or pearled barley is when all the integments are removed and the grain rounded and polished; in which form it is much used in soups. Pearled barley, ground into flour, is called patent barley. More care is required in harvesting barley than in any other of the grain crops. It should be allowed to become ripe, but not dead ripe. It is very apt to be de stroyed on account of weather, causing germina tion of the grain, and the consequent deprecia tion of its value as malt. Hence it should not be stacked or put in the barn unless thoroughly dry. None should be put away when the dew is upon it, as, from the softness of the stem and the ten -dency of the ears to vegetate, it will be heated, the vitality may be destroyed, and maltsters will purchase it only for grinding, and then at greatly reduced rates. The English plan of harvesting is as follows : The grain must be ripe, but not dead dry ripe, in order that it may germinat,e evenly. Wait until the red streak:s which runs longitudi nally on the ripening grain disappear, the head is likewise important, on account of the fineness of the texture of the chaff, that the grain should not be tbrown in very large heaps without daily examination, to prevent heating and fermenta tion. The necessity for all these cautions will readily appear when the process of malting is un derstood. Among the new varieties introduced within the last few years are, Saxonian, Probstier, Chevalier barley. The latter, a pedigree sort, that is a variety obtained by careful selection and cultivation through a number of years. In the first half of the last decade the cultivation of barley received a strong impulse from the high prices obtained. Since that time its cultivation has presented fluctuations. In 1874-75, exports dropped to 91,118 bushels, the value of which was 67.4 cents per bushel as against 320,399 bushels the previous year, worth 65.8 cents per bushel. In 1875-76, exports reached 317,781 bushels, worth 66.3 cents per bushel. In 1876-77, it reached 1,186,129 bushels, worth 59.8 cents per bushel.