Of the many beers of this country, perhaps the most deserving of notice here is the _Mum_ of Brunswick, well known and appreciated for its excellence. The process observed in its manufacture has been, it is said, always kept a mystery,[113] and to prevent discovery, the men who brewed it were hired for life. The origin of the word _Mum_ is obscure. The German _Mumme_, a strong ale producing silence[114] from intoxication; the Danish word for a mask, because it exhibits the parties drinking it with a new face; and _Christian Mummer_ of Brunswick, the supposed inventor of the drink, have been by turns suggested. The varied kinds of _Schenk_, or winter beer, and _Lager_, or summer beer, are fairly well known. The Leipzig Goose and the Berlin white beer are refreshing drinks in summer. An excellent description of _Bierbrauerei_ apparatus is given in Brockhaus’ _Conversations Lexikon_, Band iii. The most important beer factories are in Munich,[115] Erlangen, Zirndorf, Nürnberg, and Vienna. German beer is far less potent than that of England, but want of strength is made up by the quantity taken. From the time of Goethe, and long before, Germans were great consumers of beer, and the scene in his “Faust,” of students in Auerbach’s Cellar, was typical of his time. Now-a-days there is no degeneracy in the German beer drinker, and a Viennese “Saufender Renommist” will drink his thirty half-pints of _Märzen_ at a sitting. German beers are now readily attainable at any German restaurant in London. INDIA. The Hill-tribes of India commonly consume _Pachwai_, prepared from rice and other grain in Bengal. In Nepaul a beer named _Phaur_, made from rice or wheat, is brewed much in the same manner as English ale, which it is said strongly to resemble. It is in considerable repute and, according to Hamilton,[116] wheat and barley are in Nepaul reared for the express purpose of making the beer and other drinks similar to it. In the West Indies the negroes make a fermented drink resembling beer from _cassava_, which in Barbadoes is termed _piworree_,[117] and in other places _ouycou_. This plant, the _manioc_ or _mandioc_ of America, grows to the size of a small tree, and produces roots like our parsnips.[118] _Ouycou_ is sometimes brewed very strong. It is considered nourishing and refreshing, as indeed most drinks which gratify the palate seem to be considered. Molasses and yams are used in its preparation. The liquor is red. _Piworree_ or _paiwari_ is also made by the Indians in Honduras, as in Brazil, from cassava. Cassava bread carbonised superficially is placed in hot water until fermentation arises. To promote this, feminine chewing is found efficacious. The taste, says Simmonds, is said to resemble that of ale, but is not “quite so agreeable—this may easily be believed.” _Cela dépend_, as in the case of the _chica_ of the sierras of South America. JAPAN.