Wesley Corpus

To the Printer of the 'Bristol Gazette' Date: BRISTOL, HORSEFAIR, September 7, 1789. Source: The Letters of John Wesley (1789) Author: John Wesley --- 1. In the reign of King James I an Act of Parliament was made prohibiting the use of that poisonous herb called hops. It does not appear that this Act has ever been repealed. But in process of time it has been forgotten, and the poisonous weed introduced again. It has continued in use ever since; and that upon a general supposition, (1) that it was very wholesome, greatly promotive of health, and (2) that malt drink would not keep without it. 2. On these suppositions the use of it has not only continued, but much increased during the present century. 'I have lived in this town' (Whitechurch in Shropshire), said a gentleman to me sometime since, 'above forty years, and have all that time brewed much malt drink. I use just the same quantity of hops that I did forty years ago; but most of my neighbors use four times as much now as they did then.' 3. Nearly the same has been done in other counties, Yorkshire and Lincolnshire in particular. Forty years ago, I well remember, all the ale I tasted there had a soft, sweetish taste, such as the decoction of barley will always have if not adulterated by bitter herbs. So it had two or three thousand years ago, according to the account in Ovid, who, speaking of the manner wherein Baucis entertained Jupiter, says, Bibendure Dulce dedit, tosta quod coxerat ante polenta [Metamorphoses, v. 450; of the old woman and Ceres: 'She gave her something sweet to drink which she had prepared from parched malt.']; whereas all the ale in Yorkshire as well as in other counties is now quite harsh and bitter.