The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-06-13
OLD COLONIAL DRINKS.
FINES when Water Was Held Much
in AbhOrance.

FINES when water was Held Much
In AbhOrance.
Alice Morse Earle in the Chicago Record.
The English were not a nation of water
drinkers. Their greatest physicians and
scientists constantly taught that water
was not supplied by nature as q beverage.
It was asserted to defect the appetite. de-
stroy the natural heat and overthrow the
stomach. 1t was said to "hit and swim"
through the body, and even its mildest
judges acknowledged that it was mot
convenient"
The colonists in America reared in these
beliefs suffered much In the new world
in the earliest days from water-drinking.
Bradford the pilgrim governor, complain
ed loudly while Higginson, the Salem
minister. boasted in 1929 Whereas, my
stomach could only digest and did re-
quire such drink as was both strong and
stale, / can, and ofttimes do drink New
England water very we'll" AS he lied
shortly after writing this his words do not
carry their intended force. One bold New
Englander says Of water; Il dare not
preferre this before good Deere. but any
man would choose 1t before bad Deere,
wheay or buttermilk."
Water-drlnking was held in special abb
horrence In Virginia, for the notion arose
that the great mortality among the early
immigrants was caused by the enforced
use of water at that time during the scare
ity Of beer The assembly in 1923 rec
commended all newcomers to bring plen-
tiful supply of malt, to be used In brewing,
and thus not be forced 10 drink water
"till the body became hardened" EARLIER
still--in 1909 in the True and Sincere Dec
laration," issued by the governor and
councII-brewers were asked for: and also
two AapnanHa LODI 10 M
with Gates. Soon barley and hops were
plentifulIy grown I'm Virginia, and II be-
came no longer necessary 10 import beer
from England. In 1859 George Fletcher
obtained a monopoly IN Virginia for four
teen years Of brewing In wooden vessels
whether this affected the progress or
brewing do not know, but soon II grad
ually declined, as did the cultivation OF
barley.
The virginia planters quickly discovered
the adaptability Of the persimmon for beer
by making and baking cakes OF the fruit.
and then brewing from these cakes. They
brewed beer from dried Indian corn from
potatoes from pumpkins. and from bran
and molassos, from green stocks OF maize
chopped and mashed. They planted the
Jerusalem artichoke like barley TO be
used IN brewing and dlstlllng. The Royal
Manuscript commission gives the project
OF a chemist named Russell who. for
Il .00o. paid by the Virginia company,
agreed 20 demonstrate the making OF wine
or beer from the sassafras tree. so there
was no lacking for materials for brewing
New Englandors did not long continue
in peerless state. They imported malt.
and learned how TO make beer from Indian
corn, and quickly learned 20 cheat In brew
Ing using coarse molassos. In 1884 an ale
quart Of beer cost "A penny az an ordinary
and a landlord could be fined II he charg-
ed "A higher prcc or II his hccr WAS az n
low standard. Tavernkeepers also were
enioined 10 sell no more than a quart Of
beer ont Of meal times. This was 10 pre-
vent "bye-drinkng 4"
The PATRONS found breweries q proata-
BILE business IN New York. and private
families In all the colonies bunt home
brcw-houses. But IN New England drink
ing habits soon underwent a change New
Englandcrs soon drifted from becr-drlnk.