The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1883-05-16

Work, then! Life's sun is setting,
And the night of Death comes on,
And the Master at His coming
Will expect thy work we'll done!
Beverages Six Hundred Years Ago.
The poor man had little to sweet
en- his lot. The bees gave him hon
ey; and long after the time am
dealing with, people left not only
by will, but actually bequeathed a
summer flight of bees to their
friends; while the hive was claimed
by one, the next swarm would be-
come the property of another. AS
for the drink, it was almost exclu
siyely water beer and cider. Any
one who pleased might brew beer
without tax or license, and every
body who was at all before the world
did brew bis own beer according to
his own taste. But in those days
the beer was very different stuff from
that which you are familiar WITH
To begin with, people did not use
hops. Hops were not put into beer
until long after the time we are con-
cerned with. l dare say they flavor
ed their beer with horehound and
other herbs, but they did not under
stand those tricks which brewers
practice nowadays for making the
beer "heady" and sticky and poison
Gus. am not prepared to say the
beer was better, Or that you would
have liked it: but / am pretty sure
that, in those days, it was easier to
get pure beer in a country village
than it is now, and if a man chose to
drink bad beer he had only himself
to thank for it. There was no such
monopoly as there is now. am in.
clined to think that there were very
great many more people who solo
beer in the country parishes thar
sell it now, and ! am sorry to say
that the beer sellers in those days
had the reputation Of being rather {
bad lot. 1t is quite certain that they
we're very often in trouble, and of al
the offences punished by fine at thi
manor courts, none is more common
than that of selling beer in false mea
sures. Tobacco was quite unknown
it was first brought into England
about three hundred years after the
days we are dealing with. When q
man once sat himself down with his
pot, he had nothing to do but drink
He had no pipe to take off his atten'
tioG from his liquor. If such a por,
tentous sight could have been seen
in those days as that of man vomi.
ting forth clouds of smoke from his
mouth and nostrils, the beholders
would undoubtedly have taken tc
their heels and run for their lives
prntesting that the devil himself hat
appeared to them, breathing forth
fire and flames. Tea and coffee, too
were absolutely unheard of, and wine
was the rich mans beverage, as it il
now. The fire-waters of our time
the gin and the rum, which have
wrought US all such incalculabie mis-
chief--were not discovered then
Il Nineteenth Century.
"A You've lady from New Havet
recently applied in New York for
position as nursery governess. Sh
was informed that she must give he
whole time to the three darlings
sleeping and eating with them, bath
ing them, cleaning their room, walk
ing out doors with them, teachin!
them all the Eoglish branches, Pari
sian French, correct German, perfec
technique on the piano, and elegan
manners, and when not sewing fo
them assisting with the family sew
ing, besides dressing herself WE'LL
She was to have no "outs," and i
upon trial she susted she might re
eeive as much as SIG a month Elk
change.
--MERRIcK, senior counsel In the
Star Route case, will prosecute KEEL.
Iogg, as the latter has made allega.
lions that the prosecution was infu-
snced by personal motives.