The Portland daily press., 1862-09-05

tatement, to bear with word, not Of opolo-
y, but of explanation. Mr.. c. often tells in
conversation, of his large interests in Indiana,
If his vineyards, and the amount Of Catawba
vine and brandy that he manufactures. He
las repeatedly talked of these things to ourselt
One day, "at one of our best hotels" where
we were boarding, he was remarking upon the
Fery superior qualities of his brandy, its
reedom from all base authorizations, its purity
nd fitness for medicinal and other laudabe
Uses and upon being informed that we were ig-
iorant of the article,and had never even seen
pecimen of it, he politely invited us to go with
him to another room where he had sample,
hat we might see and test it for yourself Hav-
ing no conscientious scruple or pledge to be
violated in accepting such an invitation, we
followed Mr.. Case-supposing him to be gen.
tleman who knew and appreciated the conf
dence and courtesies that gentlemen are ac-
customed to observe-and instead of leading
TO his private room, where we supposed he
was going, he led, as though the way was ia
miliar, to the bar-room. Mr.. Case called for
ty into a glass-how much we know not, for
we were there, not as an informer but as
friend-and we turned what we deemed prop
er into another glass. That Mr.. G. drank his
we presume to be the fact, though we didn't
take pains to watch him; that we drank the
contents of the other glass,we know is not the
fact, not from any conscientious scruple, but
from absolute fear. We should have done so
but for that faithful sentinel, the nose. 1t was
an almost colorless liquor, the smell peculiar,
aud the taste of the most fiery and fearful kind.
The smell and taste-bare taste-were enough.
We took simply swallow, perhaps half Ia
BILE spoonful, and the sensation that flashed
through the head-t,e burning sensation-
and seemed to take hold of every nerve and
fibre of the system, was more like that of some
powerful acid or virulent poison than of any
thing we had ever before tasted. Mr.. Case
said it was pure Catawba," but we would no
more risk it than we would rifle whiskey war
ranted to kill at forty rods; and when he in
formed us that he was accustomed to drink
that vile stuff daily, we no longer wondered at
siie Shb aNtci vi MS tuitoiidis, VI at lut
lar aspect which he wears late in the afternoon
almost every day. SO much for our experience
with Bro. Case, in "pure Catawba brandy"
But for the wine experience. A few weeks
after the occurrence above related, as we were
about to leave the same hotel where we had
been boarding, and were standing at the coun-
ter settling our bill, Mr.. Case invited the land
lord to go and try a specimen of his pure Ca
tawba tcine. The landlord, and not Mr.. c. we
think, invited us to go as third member of
the party. A specimen of wine was produced,
said to be Catawba, of which we took what we
deemed proper and sufficient, and it was APP
parently not Intoxicating, not differing mate
rally in taste from various kinds of wines made
from currants, rhubarb and other domestic
fruits. There was nothing peculiar about it,
either in taste or effect and but for the above
paragraph we doubt if the occurrence would
ever have been revived in memory. Mr.. Case
told the landlord that he was going to send
him a cask of the same wine; jokingly we re-
marked thut he had better serve his friends all
alike. We made the remark without special
thought or intention, supposing that the pro-
posed cask for the landlord was intended as a
present, but we learned subsequently. that it
was intended as an Offset for his board bill.
and that Mr.. c. is accustomed to crowd his
Catawba upon his landlord to Hquid-ate his
bills
We ask the readers pardon, renewedly, for
obtruding this article upon hisattention Moth
ing could be more offensive to our own taste.
We submit to the reader, if the offensive labor
has not been forced upon us. We confess that
we have been served right. We consented to
place oursef in bad company and we have had
1T publicly thrown in our face The lesson is
good one. We hope our readers will profit
from it. Remember, if you accept an inyi-
tation from Mr. Elphalet Case to taste the pure
products of his own vineyard, he will openly,
and in public print, twit you of violating the
ordinary rules ofsobriety! Remember that he
an old man of sixty-six, is willing to plead
guilty of shameless vice, for the sake of in
volving you in the disgrace.
Then think ofthe man who will so violate
the confidence of one whom he has invited to
partake of his hospitality! We know of no
crime more damning than that of inviting
gentleman TO your house or your room, to par
take with you of your own chosen sports, games
or practices, and then parading him before the
public in an uniavorable light for so doing.
The man who will be guilty of so dastardly an
act, as Col. Benton once said, is unworthy to
cross his legs beneath gentemans table
should be excluded from every assembly from
which regard for confidence is not spurned.
In closing, we will simply say that our pur-
pose has not been to iniure the sale of Mr..
Cases Catawba; nor have we felt at liberty to
betray the confidence that he has reposed in
us. We should despise ourself to lift the veil
and reveal conversation or facts that have
transpired between him and us alone.
Nor would we have said what we have said
above. but for his forcing npon us the necessi-
ty Of an explanation.
New Books.
THE TAX PAYERS Notwithstanding