New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1884-08-19
GIiO(I.

Rear AdmUal George r. Fo>blc IN Ne Uatef SerV'cs
For gro is our lIrb0ard and starooard
Oar main mast our mlzzen, our log;
At a. q shOrc, or when uarhOred,
IAN o d Sailor Song.
"O' tat men loull PIT an ouemy into Their mouths
is un6ic ,ed, and The il srcden' dcyii" Ohelo.
"Boi Jack .itn smile, eacl danger meets
Weigh anc or, heayes the log,
Trim. al The sails, belay tie .hee's
And drinks his can Of grOg." -lDbdin
Grog. which properly is a mixture OF rum and
water WAS never served out in the United States
Navy as il was the custom to give the men their
whisktv or as it was enormously called, tot Of
pror '-unadulteTated-that ls IN the language OF
the dram-drluker, neat or straight nope |
make my mcaulng pam 10 the average reader with
all these oOilo1uial terms.
Grop is defined as above in WcbSteI's Unabridged
Dictionary, but has not been deemed worthy Of eX-
PLANTATION III The leldln encycOpRd (Chambers's
excepted and, strange TO say has no place III Fa!-
coneTs Marine Dictionary, published IN l759
II has heen usual TO aScrlbe the invention OF groS
to Admiral Vernon, and he certainly did introduce
It into the royal navy IN 1910, or thereabouts,
though its invention, or the invention of mixed
drinks, as Will be shown, has claim to much
higher antiquity. and has been attributed t. the
io0y god BaccEus himself Admiral Vernon, while
in command of the West India station. and when
extremely popular, on account Of his reduction Of
Porto BelO, November %, 1889 with only SIX YES
sells Of war, caused TO be served out to the men q
rev beverage Of rum aud water, or " laf-and-
half" which proved most palatablc TO them, and
grew into favor: and as he was styled "Oid GTOg,"
from his wearing a rough "goga,nD coat
OF CLOAK. in which he walked the deck In bad
weather, the men gave 1t the name Of "GIoR'
Old sailors often tax Of - O. Imb-gTOg," or
thumb. bfewcd gfOg." which they eXp.a!h thus: OF
a cold wet hight at the Striking the bel, when the
watch came down wet and everything was very
dark, Of them used 70 NIX OF brew their grOQ
by dipping tLeJ tumb INTO the glass and ascertain
By feeling a. they COuid not see WeAj when they
had PM enough rum into II before adding water.
The Joke used TO be. that the night was 80 cold
they had 10 sensation In tne tips Of Their thumbs,
and. consequently, the rum came up 10 The middle
and half filed the glass before they felt H. and
thus thumb bTewcd' was unusuaiy strong. The
old salts receipt for a "nof'wcsier ia. iii bdf
the glass with fim. and the other half with strong
Evidently these cd salts would say with Fa-
staff
"f { had atbou,ani sons, n. Grst rrnc.p!e would
teach them should ~. TO fofsuca: p,'auODs"
But "grog' or somewhat similar mixture was
used IN Che royal navy long before tho days Of Adj
OF THE Rate OF Dyett for sOuldgers and Msryners
for 80 Dayes for the scotch borders; temp Hen
WIFI" in which the diet for "FYcshc days" in
which two meales perday were allowed, and "Ihshe
DAYS. and fasting dayes with one meale the daye,"
etc. was allowed, and each man was allowed a
and one Of sack
In the third volume of State papers there is let
ter from the Lord Deputy and Council Of Ireland
70 Henry Will. dated "Dubne. the 10Th Novem.
shipping" AID among the drinks mentioned and al
lowed besides Beare." are "Wyne Sake. q
tonnes maketh beverage 8 tonnes" "Wyne, Gas
cOyne. tonnes, maketh beverage 16 tonnes SO
We would call "two-water grog;" that Is, the
be Serage consisted of One-tbird sack and two
thirds water; and that the wine of Gascoyne not
being as strong suffered less diution