The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1877-11-14
THE BARTENDER's STORY.

He Relates n Few Experiences in
TWENTY-FIVE Years Career
Liquors, Mixed and Plain, and
the Men Who Drink Them.
Cincinnati Tines
he was a man about forty years Of age,
Of genial disposition, and possessed Of
an irresistible desire to relate his exper.
fence Of life whenever ho found patient
listener. BE had been, he said, all over
the country-irom Maine to California,
and from the Canadas to the Gulf Of Mex.
leo. BE commenced life at the age Of
thirteen as 4 barkeeper, and he never ez.
Pected TO be anything else As long as he
lived.
A Tines representative met him late
one night in an East Front street sample
room, and over 4 social glass OF gin and
water, he narrated the following:
II didn't have no education, bat / pic.
ked up heap Of worldly knowledge and
experience before / was twenty, an I
made more friends than could remem.
Der. When / was thirteen man named
GoodWood took me from the Orphan As
sylum at Poughkeepsie, n, Y, and pu.
me in his saloon, in GlenhAyen, 4 little
town about four miles away. That was
my first start in life. / was pretty smart
then, II / do say it myself, and in less
than three months / could mix any kind
Of drink \ man called for. When l had
been in the business six months was
sick Of 1t, but as couldn't do nothing
else had 10 stick It out You see iei.
lows youse'ed 10 come in about the
time we opened up in the morning an
wanted 10 get cocktail. They was ner-
yous and shsky like, and il used to make
me feel kind Of sorrowful TO see 'em.
Cocktails, you know, will stay on mans
stomach, an most men when they've
been out on jam have got to have a
shmulant the next morning. They're all
dead wrong though, cause cocktail Just
eats out mans stomach. II they'd take
a lemonade pretty sour they'd feel heap
better. l never got stumped but onect,
an that was when was tending bar al
Cairo, Illinois. Ny boss was running an
all.night house, an about two o'clock in
the morning couple Of sWells come into
the saloon an called for Franklin tod.
dies. thought was 4 frat class bar.
keeper up 10 that time, but the franklin
toddies were away beyond my limit, 90
weakened and asked 'em what sort Of
drink that was. Why, you gilley,' said
the fellow who called for the drinks,
that's gin and settler water
It's mighty unpleasant thing keep
ing bar, for you get acquainted with lots
Of mighty clever fellows, an they come
in and get drinks on credit, and il they
don't pay for them when they promise
you have to make the debt good yourself.
But it has its pleasant side, too, and
man has a mighty good chance to study
human nature. A barkeeper don't pay
much attention 10 the regular customers,
cause he knows what they always take
but when stranger comes in we always
try to get onto his calibre.
at takes heap OF money 10 stock
bar, I'm tellin' you, Tor there's so
many kinds Of liquor called Tor, that II
you want 10 run first class place, you've
got to keep 'em all. Now there's Bens.
dictine,' its got 10 be mighty popular Of
late, and's called for twenty times day.
Frozen absinthe" and anisetete cock.
tails Is called for 4 good deal too. Am.
orleans are the people for mixed drinks,
and its of them most Of the money Is
made. You see don't cost much more
to make mixed drink than a plain one,
aud we get double the price for 'em.
Why look at milk punches! They cost
about three and one hall cents to make
'em, an We get twenty and twenty-five
cents a peiee for 'em. Englishmen gene.
rally either drink ale, porter half and
half or gin-while Germans want wine
or beer. No, there ain'tso much profit
on beer as you think, but there's for
tune in whisky, even at ten cents glass.
But bar makes money when a lot Of
young bloods come in and buy champagne
and most Of it is sham.pagne, too. day-
ing diee.box is nuisance, and CAUSES
the most Of the rows in drinking saloons.
Aman II cheat in throwing dice, or play
ing cards, that wouldn't steal copper,
II he had chance. It's mighty amusing
to hear the excuses and pretexts the old
soakers use to get drink. They're al
ways trying to get onto come new rack
ct that bar.keeper amt posted on.
Most Of 'em are willing to do anything
to get drink, from carrying up coal and
running errands to scrubbing the floor
or saving up a load OF wood. It isn't al
ways the worn out huns that we have to
contend with, either. There's them fell
lows what wear good clothes an look
pretty slick, who sit around in saloons
all day and night waiting for an angel
to drop in. An angel is what they call
man who comes in and treats 'em.
Sometimes he's an old friend or acquain.
lance and often astranSGr who gets about
half full and feels generous like and
thinks he's doing big thing in treating
everybody. Our profession calls angels
dead suckers, an that's what they are
too.
"Besr's what's killing the first.class
sample-room trade in this town. Beers
cheap and good, and fellow can get as
drunk on It as he can on whisky. Then
the prices OF goods 10 coming down too
now, an the s'loons amt keeping the
quality Of liquors they usedt to. Why,
1 can go right now, into dozen 6rst class
places in this town where they used to
charge twenty cents drink for whisky,
an now you can get it for ten. No sir |!
the business amt what it used to be, an
il l could get out Of it I'd do it to onct."
The old barkeeper heaved deep sigh,
swallowed his gin with the air Of a man
who knew his business, and made some
other remarks oftoo personal nature to
appear print, concerning the drinks and
the way they got them, OF good many
public citizens. While his remarks we're
relished exceedingly by the reporter, who
knowing the parties mentioned, could en-.
Joy the keen points made, the gentlemen
themselves would hardly appreciate the
old barkeeper's opinions and word por.
traits Of them.
The wIsest OF Precautions.