Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1868-11-22
Wine Vault Under London
Docks.
Twenty-Five Thousand Barrels
Of Pert.

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Of Pert.
oOrEssnod4nee of the PhiiAdslphia Evening
Bulletin.l
The London docks visited by all for
eigners who pass through London, are
objects of great interest, viewing them
from the outside, as harbors, where ca
nal crosses canal, till they extend to a
city combining the two strange effects of
Venice with her liquid thoroughfares,
and China with her floating houses.
But under this scene, familiar to every
one from description, if not actual view,
is still more curious sight, which it is
more difficult to obtain. Thanks TO the
efforts of relative Of a merchant who
had stores deposited there, We we're pro-
vided witE pass to the wine vaults of
the East Cooper, or branch of the Lon
don docks. There were six in the party,
and after long, rainy, muddy drive
through the old part of the city, past
BiIlingsgate fish market. where cockney
men and boys substitute the world-re-
nowned fish woman Of the past, and there
is less sauce sold with the fish, past the
Tower with its many spires and gloomy
battlements, we at length arrived at the
entrance Of the docks. A government
official examined our passes, and we
drove on through a wilderness of casks,
coils of rope, aud heaps of bran till we
reached the door of the cellar No. f.
Going down fight of stone steps, we
came to a sort of vestibule, where on one
side was an Office for the examination
and signing of passes; on the other, a
place fitted up with shelves, having brass
eyes like those made to receive the ends
Of door bolts, long, wedge-shaped wal
nut paddle, with metal lamp on the
broad end, sticking in each eye. An
oily-fngered, dirty-faced individual,
strikingly resembling Lamps of
q Mugby Junction" stood in the shade
Of this recess, companion sitting be-
hind him, whose name was james, and
number two, as a calendar on the wall
informed US, over which was written
Usher through the vaults for Monday )"
" Lamps placed light in each of our
hands, and we entered the vaults. I'M
agine eleven acres of ground, or rather
underground, under streets and below
the water line of the Thames, divided
into long vaulted alley-ways, covered
with sawdust, a double iron track for
barrels to roll on directly in the center
on either side three tiers of barrels Of
port, old port wine, amounting in all 20
35, 600 barrels of port alone-and you
have one of the eighteen large cellars
under the docks. We had the rare priv
ilege of tasting the port number 00O-
three different barrels. Tasting orders
are frequently given for sherry, but sell
dom for port, and with a ehuekle Of self
satisfaction our conductor congratulated
us But 1 was already dizzy with the
| fumes Of $4,000 barrels, and the flicker
ing of our lamps in the dark archways,
penetrated by binding rays, Ike ropes
of fire, running from and meeting half
way between the reflector, as powerful as
we use on steam engines, at one end of
each alley, and then opening into the
main rotunda at the other end. On the
ceiling hung the fuagus formed from the
evaporation. One piece, called the eroeo-
die, from its shape, a great ridgy animal
elinging with It's feet to the ceiling was a
hundred and fifty years old Nearly all
of the fungus was of dun color, re-
sembling the inside nap Of lead d-colored
wedding, but occasionally bleached white,
when it looked like the stalactites in
caves. Our conductor was not so super
stitious about the fungus as Joey Ladle,
and declared "pieces had often fallen on
him and he wasn't dead" Still he
seemed very proud Of it, and with great
reverence hunted around for the largest
and most curious formations, giving us
some little incident, curious and interest
ing about each piece. In the brandy and
whisky vaults the fungus is white.
Scarcely knowing whether L was on
my head or feet, the Pickering lights and
dark edges Of the barrels, fungus, saw
dust, people and posts dancing in wild
procession through my brain. stopped
with the rest before row of barrels
marked 000 The usher drove sharp
steel instrument through the end of the
first one, blew into it, and out spirited a
stream Of pure rich port fifty years old
Hoping an internal application would
remedy the dizziness caused by inhaling
it, tasted it and felt instantly better,
but the second and third barrels dared
not "try," and even our usher threw
away glass for which many an epicure
would have given fifty dollars sterling
The holes were filed up again by stick
ing wooden pegs in them, chopping them
of, and leaving the barrels as sound and
secure as if they had never been opened.
Emerging from these cellars, we were
glad to enter our carriages, drive home,
and take a nap,