Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1877-07-19
Mixed DRINK That ts One of the
wonders OF tho World.

a Mixed Drink That is one of the
wonders OF tho World.
New York World. 5thl
The Brooklyn Eagle, in an
article upon summer drinks, all
ludes to the "John Collins as a
beverage "made Of water, soured
with lemon.juice, sugar, pepper
mint and a little old Santa Cruz
rump and adds that it "was
named after John Collins, an Irish
actor of some rcputer We really
cannot allow the truth of history
thus to be triAed with, and we must
protest against such an interpreta-
ton of a venerable drink being ac-
cepted anywhere outside of the
slums Of Brooklyn, where we are
not surprised that if concocted on
this recipe it moves its deyotees to
devour the substance of the widow
and the Presbyterian church, tc
throw their wives out Of third story
windows and to corrupt the virtue
of ''indipindint" aldermen. Soured
water, peppermint, sugar and rum,
forsoothl Oh shame, where is thy
blush Oh blush, where is thy
shame? The "John Collins"
proper is composed Of half a lemon
squeezed into a soda tumbler (hali
filled with pounded ice, or not, as
individual tastes may dictate), a
liberal wine glass of Old Tom gin
Holland may be substituted when
Old Tom is unattainable, but the
result is necessarily inlerior-a bot
tie of soda and a heaping table
spoonful of powdered white sugar,
last of all, the compound to be
drunk Immediately. 1t has a posi-
tive merry fragrance of what Ten
nyson calls "the gin within the
juniper" an enliyening efferves-
cence, an electric tang said to be
peculiarly grateful to the palate Of
a morning. When for the Old Tom
there is substituted Santa Cruz or
Jamaica rum, the result is a "mask-
ed battery" the significance OF
which name will be apparent to
the philosophical philologist, or to
the individual who absorbs several
of them. This ambrosia was the
invention of the head waiter at
"Limmer's," the famous London
hotel which passed out of existence
last winter. His name and occupa-
ton have been immortalized in
verse:
my name is John Collins. head waiter at
Corner Of Conduit street. Hanover Square,
Ny chief occupation is filling of brimmers
For oil the. young gentlemen frequentols
there"
The drink speedily received the
appreciation of the officers of the
British army, and is now poured by
them as libations to the rosy-fnger-
ed Aurora from Aldershott to
Australia -" England's morning
John Collins" in the fine words
of Webster: "Following tho sun
and circling the world.' The beat
ifc beverage was, by the way, intro
daced into the United States at the
Clarendon, in this city, some twenty
years ago, by very eminent officer
of the royal artillery now retired
upon his honors in London. 1t is
also to be regretted that the Eagle
did not conscientiously devote itself
10 its subject and explore that
wealthy and illimitable wilderness
Of summer drinks whereof Sir Isaac
Newton feelingly said; ~ feel like
child gathering shells on the sea-
shore" We may introduce to its
attention o drink as yet unnamed,
the creation Of a Toronto. druggist
who may have as potent reasons for
concealing his identity as had the
devotee OF mint juleps who first at
a Southern hotel" taught dad to put
grass in his liquor.P lie took an
English soda glass, capacity nearly
0 quart, half filed with ice raspmgs
superimposed upon a tablespoonful