St. Paul daily globe., 1892-06-08


tion to it, for the Rechabites ''dwelt
in tents and drank no wine or
strong drink" the NaZarjtes allowed
no razor to come near their heads,
neither tasted wine nor mixed drinks.
We know also that the Hebrews fully
recognized the danger of wine as pro-
vocative of quarrels, of woe, of sorrow,
of redness of eyes. for more than one
proverb cautions the sons OF Abraham as
to each and every one of these points,
and intimates III strong language that
wine is not for kings or persons in
authority, lest they drink and peryert
justice.
Drinks of the North.
The Danes and Norwegians, not liv-
ing in vine-grOwing country, were
forced to use other stimulants, and,
having apparently taste for strong
drinks, invented them in abundance.
They had no less than fOrty-one differ
ent kinds of beer. the differences. how
ever, being inappreciably small.
In their voyages to the
South, however. they soon
learned the use and superiority of wine.
became fond of 1t, and began o import
IL into the Northern countries in large
quantities. They made a distinction.
however, between wine drinkers and
beer drinkers, Tor only the wealthy
could afford to drink the wines
or the South. while, as every
erybOdy brewed his own beer,
beer drinking was common among all
the people, however Door. Even during
the Danish conquest or England, vine
growing was pIacticed there to some
extent, though the wine made was de-
cidedly inferior. and the Danish and
Norwegian nobility always imported
their wines. Besides the wine and beer.
however, they had favorite drink
called mead, made of water and honey
fermented, and used by many nations
in the northern countries of Europe. 1t
was reckoned drink fit for the gods,
and as it was exceedingly Intoxicating,
to drink mead was equivalent to pos
sessing strong head. But
the Saxons, Danes and Norwe-
gians we're hard drinkers; even
the monks and clergy drank
more than would now be deemed credit
abl in dissipated layman. and numer-
Gus rules of conduct are eXtant which
indicate the prevalence of drunkenness
in the priesthood. Priests and monks
were forbidden to drink in houses
where liquors were sold; they were
forbidden to sit down at tables in the
open air where liquor was being served;
but no restriction was laid upon their
drinking as much as they pleased in
their monastic retreats, and some idea
of their bibulouSnesS may be gained
from the fact that in the records of
Netley Abbey barrel of beer day was
allowed for every six months.
German Wines.
The most celebrated German wines
are grown on the Rhine and its tribu
hut in, nc in Er0
the grapes which are best for wine
making are by no means so palatable
for eating, the Resisting, which pro-
duces the finest article of German
wine, being a small, white, harsh
STspe Se to tR 9He nH taste means It has Ieta been
discovered that the German wines mel
low best in large vessels, and the larger
the vessel the better the mellOwing of
the wine, all experience which has re-
suited in the building of the famous
Heidelberg Tun. an enormous barrel
which holds little over 600 hOgsheads.
Many volcanic districts along the Rhine,
the Moscle and the Main, produce
most excellent wines. and of course in
former times the best vineyards were
always the property of the church,
though most of them have passed from
the control of the jolly monks into the
hands of men who practice wine-grOwing
as a business. The wines of other
countries inEurope, as of Italy andSpain.
are in many cases a little inferior to
those of France and Germany. and
while Portugal produces several excel
lent varieties, the most esteemed wine
of this country is known as port, a red
wine usually strongly doctored with
alcohol. The wines of Sicily have de-
fo6 t1xrf bat
200 or 800 years ago, while those of
Greece are so badly prepared that
they turn to vinegar in the
summer time. Very little wine
of good quality is grown in
North Africa, but the Beers of South
Africa prepare fair article of claret.
The first American grapes grown for
purposes of VINE manufacture were
planted III 1864, since which time sew
eral excellent wines lave been manu-
factured on the Western continent. The
product of the vineyards of Ohio and
California is by no means lightly
article, and Chill singular wine, which
is one of the few improved by trans
portation, whether OH land or sea.
Gin and whisky.
In the last century gin and whisky in
England contested with brandy for the
mastery. and each enjoyed a remarkable
WAYS been of the best Hollands variety.
results might not have been so harmful
to the people OF England, but Hol-
lands was costly, and so the Eng
lish manufacturers set up in COM
petition. manufacturing English gin
from the impure products of English
and Scotch whisky stills, rectified and
fortified with cassia, oil of turpentine,
angelica root, juniper, cOrlander seeds,
licorice, cardamons, red pepper, alum.
sulphate Of zinc, acetate OF lead.
and few other substances
no less pungent than diverse in
drinking period of English history
every dealer had his own recipe for
making the liquor pungent, and more
ingredients were to be found in a mug
of gin than there were troubles in Pan
dora'S box. So mixed drink proved
almost the ruin of the common peO-
pie of England during the last CEN
tury, and statesmen and moralists ad-
vocated the substitution of whisky as
an improvement. Whisky is ''ulsge-
beatha," that is to say, ''the water of
life;" it is really the "wine of the
country in Ireland and Scotland, and
tries by seasoned natives is almost in
credibly great. John Wilson Croker tells
the story of Scotchman who was
sworn to give evidence in certain case
where the Sobriety or drunkenness of
litlgant was called in question. The
old Scotchman being asked what guam
tity of liquor he considered as mOder-
ate. replied that for himself he was
no drunkard, but every even
ing he took twenty glasses
of whisky punch. THAT is
my STINT" he said. land what more l
take is only occasionally and to make,
myself comfortable" Whisky is an an
cient and respectable drink, for as early
as 1860 well-known knight of the
name of Savage was accustomed to give
his soldiers a mighty draught of this
elixir OF life when about to engage in
battle with the Irish. AS early as the
reign of Henry VIII. it was deemed
necessary to restrain the manufacture
and ordinances were passed declaring