BEER

is a drink made from an infusion of malted barley which has been boiled with hops and allowed to ferment. A similar drink was drunk in Egypt at least 3000 years before the Christian era. Romans introduced it into Britain. It is much more wholesome than spirits. The female hops only are used by the brewer. The hop was probably first used for brewing in the 15th century. In the United Kingdom 27,500,000 barrels are produced, and 26^27 gallons per head are drunk in the year. Between 1880 ana 1886 there was a great decrease in the number of licensed brewers, but the amount of beer produced was practically the same. Mr. Gladstone’s beer-tax, levied in 1880, was the cause of the decrease in the number of those brewers.