hilst the water is hissing, with the lime; and afterwards
take all this lime and water away, and put fresh water into the vessel,
and throw some bay or common salt into each, and let it stand a day or
two; and when you come to brew, scald your vessels, throw into them a
little malt-dust or bran; and this will not only finish their
sweetening, but stop them from leaking.

But since there is so much trouble in getting vessels sweet after they
have been neglected, you ought to make all thorough clean after brewing,
and once a month to fill your vessels with fair water, and let it off
again in two or three days.

_Of mashing or raking your Liquors._

Suppose you take six bushels of malt, and two pounds of hops, and would
make of it one barrel of strong, and two barrels of small beer.

Heat your first copper of liquor for mashing, and strew over it a double
handful of bran or malt; by which you will see when it begins to boil;
for it will break and curl, and then it is fit to be let off into the
mash tub, where it must remain till the steam is quite spent, and you
can see your face in it, before you put in your malt; and then you begin
to mash, stirring it all the while you are putting in the malt: but keep
out about half a bushel dry, which you are to strew over the rest, when
you have done stirring it, which will be as soon as you have well mixed
it with the liquor, and prevented it from clodding.

After the dry malt is laid on, cover your mash tub with cloths, to
prevent losing any spirit of the malt, and let it so remain for two
hours. Meanwhile have another copper of liquor hot; and at two hours end
begin to let off your first wort into the under-back. Receive a pailful
of the first running, and throw it again upon the malt.--You will find
that the malt has sucked up half of your first copper of liquor; and
therefore to make up your quantity of wort for your strong beer, you
must gradually lade out of the second copper, and strew bowl after bowl
over the malt, giving it time to soak thro', and keeping it running by
an easy stream, till you perceive you have about forty gallons, which in
boiling and working will be reduced to thirty-six.

If you throw into the under-back (whilst you are letting off) about half
a pound of hops, it will preserve it from foxing, or growing sour or
ropy.

Your first wort being all run off, you must soften the tap of the mash
tub; and take a copper of hot liquor for your second mashi