Keith Kissack

From 'The River Severn'

The monks were famous for their cheese, and both Leland and Rudder commended the meadows around here for the quality of their produce. William Marshall, on the other hand, thought Gloucester cheese overrated because it was coloured by a secret West Indian drug, prepared in London. This had first been done, he thought, for fraudulent reasons, but when the practice was copied by other cheesemakers, it was assumed that the colour was important, and it became difficult to sell any that had not been treated.