The baking of muffins requires a round piece of cast iron, called a bake-stone, smooth on the outside, and placed in bricks just like a copper : these are very common in the north of England, where they live much on flat broad oat-cakes. Some private families have a particular contrivance to place them over a kitchen fire. When you have this conveniency to bake the muffins, take a pint and a half of good ale-yeast, or barm, and pour water upon it; let them stand a night, and pour off the water clear the next day : then put the yeast into two gallons of water only milk-warm, with two ounces of salt, and stir them together for some time; put this into a bushel of fine wheat flour laid in a trough, and make it into light-dough : let it lie an hour, and it will rife and swell; then take a piece of a proper size, make it round, roll it in flour, flat them with a rolling-pin, and lay it on the table,under a piece of flannel. That the iron may be heated all alike, put a brick in the middle of the fire, otherwise the middle of the stone will be too hot. Lay on the muffins, and when one side changes colour a little, turn the other. Take care they don't burn, nor become too brown. When you use the muffins, toast them crisp on both sides, then pull them open with your hand, and they will appear like a honey-comb; lay on a piece of butter, and clap the sides together again, setting them by the fire. When the butter is melted, turn them upside down : never use a knife.