The Osceola times., 1882-01-07
NINEGAR'S N0TARlES.
"Cuilrd Ladies'" Victims to singular
Vice
New orleans Democrat

Vice.
New orleans Democrat
"Do you know or have you ever heard
why 1t is that negro women drink vine
gar?" asked gentleman OF a Times re-
porter one day last week
The scribe proiesssd the profoundest
! ignorance in regard TO the matter, but
he Immediately set to work TO find an
answer to the question. In the first
place he inquired of several negro We
men if they ever drank vinegar.
YES" said one, 81 drink it II the
time, especially when | am ironing, and
the women in our yard drink it too"
Does IT you any good"
Yes; it is cheaper than whisky, and
it keeps up person wonderfully.
don't know why began it-because the
others did, | reckon. 1t hurt me at first,
made me feel sick at the stomach, but
when | got over this feeling | felt a
great deal better. It's especially good
after smoking a pipe and leaves kind
of cooling feeling behind"
How much Of 1t do You take at a
dose?"
about two tablespoonfuls. The first
dose took was about teaspoonful, but
know some ladies'" the colored wo
men are generally alluded TO as ladies
| by their associates, who take as much
| as r quarter of q teacupiul. If ! took
| that much it would make me sick
How did the habit first begin?'
Some of the ladies used to take it,,
when feeling badly, and it did them so
much good that Others followed the
example. The men folks can't drink
vinegar and don't like the women folks
to take it, but they do it though"
The reporter subsequent saw an dp.
/ town lady who is at the head of a arge
| bOardinghouse In answer 10 questions
/ prOpounded TO her she said: "Oh, yes, |
have had number Of c0lored women in
my employ who were great vinegar
drinkers. The way / found il all ont
was ia this way: had a washer and
lroner who ate very little. | always
kept a bottle of vinegar in my kitchen
where | could get it easily. One day /
went to take it from the shelf and found
thai the bottle was nearly empty. Twas
not annoyed at this, although little bit
surprised, but concluded to keen the
vinegar under lock and KEY. The next
day the servant came to me and asked
me for a little vinegar ! asked her
Z
TO drink She then told me that she
always drank it, and that it did her
power Of good. | have noticed that
those women who are the greatest
whisky drinkers are also the greatest
vinegar drinkers. You will be surprised,
| know, when | tell you that whisky
drinking among colored women, espec-
tally those in advanced years, prevails to
great extent. / lave been compelled
to discharge ever SO many valuable
servants on this account. ! could not
trust them nor depend on them, and so
of course ] had to dispense with their
services. 1t is great pity, too, for they
do not live a great while after the habit
has become confirmed with them. |
think the chief reason of its killing
them 50 quickly is on account of the
mean whisky they get from the grog
shops. You know some Of these corner
grocers will give servants a lagniapue Of
whisky for the purpose of securing their
custom. When | send a servant TO the
grocery she can go to whichever one she
] pleases, so long as ii is in the immediate
neighborhood. If grocer refuses to
/ give a servant dram, she will not pat
ronize him, and so he thinks the best
thing he can do under the circumstan-
ces is to oblige her. | tried once to
keep my c-ok from going out 10 get her
drains by selling her some of the whisky
| kept in the house, hut it took so much
to satisfy her that | was forced TO give
up the practice. And yet she would 90
to corner grocery and get royalty
drunk on ten cents This made me
think that it must be awfully mean
whisky that they get at these places"
You've noticed, then, that the wo-
men who drink whisky also drink vine
gar?"
"Yes, and those of them who get on
sprees sober up on vinegar"
The reporter after bidding the lady
good day, interviewed seVeral phyrlclahs
in regard TO the vinegar drinking prac-
tice. Said one.
81 didn't know that the practice was
so general, but know several negro
women who drink vinegar, although |
have never been able to discover what
good it does them. Vinegar is very
acid, you know and very hard to digest.
he women can't drink it for the sake
Of the whisky that is in it, for the rea
son that it contains very little of the
liquor"
The other physicians that the re-
porter applied to could give no further
information in regard TO the matter. He
said he had noticed, however, that the
women who were in the habit of drink
ing vinegar were thin and weak eyed,
and usually very lazy He also stated
that the vinegar drinking practice was
confined to negro women. Althougr
the reporter was unable fully to answer
the question prOpounded to him by the
L -.
established that the question is peril
nent, and that its complete elucidaton
would prove very interesting.