The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-08-20
JOHN CHINAMAN'S DRINKS.
Numerous SpirituOuS TippleS Of the
Middle Kingdom.


Alcohol Is Generally Used as Food,
and Drunkenness Is Seldom Known.
Spirits, Wines, Liquors, and Cor
dials of China.
From the New York Sun
OF the many odd features of life in
China, none is more remarkable than the
way in which the people treat the liquor
problem. 1t is startling to one who has
lived in New York and seen the endless
trouble about excise and internal revenue
license and police.
Here is vast empire with $1,000, 900 or
more population. 1t has no saloons, no
inebriate homes, and no chronic drunk
ards. There is no excise or internal reve-
nue. or tax. Any one can wholesale and
retail wine and liquor to his hearts con
tent as freely as he can sell potatoes or
kindling wood. The pauper can get drunk,
if he chooses. with the greatest ease, for
nowhere on earth is the product CT the fer
menting club and the still so cheap as
| here. Sam shut or rice wine can be bought
as low as two cents a quart and no-ma-
lou or rice gin for Is cents a gallon Eu-
ropean sailors come ashore and get fight
ing drunk at an expense of five cents. 1t is
Il. served
| on every table, no matter how humble,
and at every meal. Nevertheless, the
heather Chinese do not drink to excess.
! The drunkard is practically unknown, ex-
| cepting where he is civilized Christian,
and the diseases resulting from the abuse
of alcohol have no place in Chinese path
| ology.
There are no restrictive features as to
| drinking in the religious system of China
a n MN sca 70,
much as those in force in England and
America.
There are no sparkling water or crystal
spring lodges, and no cheap instructions
in the primary schools about the effects
of alcohol upon the human stomach.
1t was not always thus, however. Long
before the Christian era, in the times of
the Chan dynasty, John Chinaman was
wont TO whoop IL up with the wine bowl
The grape wine fourished in those
years, and over hundred localities were
famous for the wines they produced. There
was the same Nariety in China in 1894 B
G. that there is in Europe in A d. 1894
There were white wines and red. sour
wines and sweet. light wines and heavy.
and there was wine which effervesced.
a sort of champagne. There were good
housewives in those early days. who
made gooseberry VINE, currant wine, and
other homemade tippleS.
There were sturdy farmers, who had
learned to terment wheat and barley in
the north and rice and millet in the south.
and who turned out a very respecta BILE ale
or beer; only where the English farmer
favored his brew with hops and herbs
the Chinese employed fruits and flowers
There were herdsmen IN the north who
made kumyss out of mares and goat S
milk.
There were small distilleries which
made brandy, spirits and whisky, and
made them so well that they were sent
into foreign lands and there sold as med
icine.
But wine was the prime favoriUe, and
Bacchus was king. Everybody used it,
and in some parts of the land used il TO
excess. The vice was more prevalent IN
the upper classes than in the lower.
MOBILES and great scholars too often got
full and painted the town red. One or
two sOvereigns yielded to the same
temptation and would have made Rome
howl if Rome had been in existence at
The time. Then there were lots of lee
turers and professional orators who went
around the country denouncing the Juice
of the grape and larger lot who made
fortunes by retailing and wholesaling it
to thirsty humanity. Then of a sudden
the rule of the wine cup passed away.
The downfall of wine was effected by a
moral spasm on the part OF one of the en-
perors Of the Chan dynasty He had
used the seductive juice of the grape for
years and was right royal drinker On
one occasion he took a great deal more
than was good for him. and had head
ache SO large the next three days that it
seemed as If a barrel, well coppered,
would be the only thing that would Il his
regal brows. When he recovered he was
new man, and the new man was a sort
of Father Matthew or Neal Dow He
decreed the destruction OF all the wine
shops and wine cellars, then of all the
disJilleries. of all the vineyards, and last
of all of each and every vine The impe-
rial ukase was carried out. The grapes
vanished from China and the tawny Juice
became an unknown term.
In after years the bull against the
grape was annulled and its culture started
again. But IL has never amounted 10
much, and does not to-day Neither did
the Chinese ever make grape wine again
70 any perceptible extent The decree
against wine was repealed also, and the
joyous liquid was imported from other
lands.
But the Chinese. in the meantime, had
invented hundreds of other drinks, a few
weak, but most Of them very strong. and
had lost the taste Of the Juice Of the
grape. Even today they prefer our
hqueurs, cordials, and even our gin, ar
rack, and kuemmel to the finest Verzenay
or idryest Mumm. As for claret, bur
gundy, Rhine wine. and Moselle they
regard them as inferior varieties Of vine
gar and feel a mild pity and compassion
for the trained western barbarians"
who can buy and drink such stuff.
Nevertheless, there Is much hope Of a
market IN China for the California wine