The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-09-29
HOLDS THE DRINK RECORD.
NEW ORLEANS SAID TO BE THE
HARDEST DRINKING TOWN.
san francisco Comes Next-Wash-
inEton Is a Comparatively Temper
ate Town-The Evil Is Decreasing.

From the Washington Star.
whisky drummer who never tasted
uI-Ev m his life but who has, neverthe-
loss been selling the product of one of
tho largest distilieries in Kentucky all
over tie United States for the past four
teoo years, was commenting the other
c.51ius 10 4 Star man on the scarcity of
drunken men on The streets of Washing
ton.
u have spent from two to three weeks
here every year for the past decade and
half" he said, land I am a pretty close
observer of urban populations. l believe
am right in maintaining that Washing
ton. outwardly at any rate, is about the
sonarest city in America. During all of
nv visits here l cannot recall having seen
ON the streets more than half a dozen men
palpaby under the influence of drink. and
] have been in Washington at all seasons
OF the year. Now, have told a Iot of peo
ME living in their cities of this. and have
d usually been scoffed at by folks who have
never been in Washington. Oddly enough
the impression prevails very largely
throughout the country that Washington
is a. wild, registering, carousing city where
perpetual saturnalia reigns This idea
has probably been considerably fostered by
persons who have visited WASHINGTON on
ing holiday occasions such as the inau-
gurations of Presidents when. of course.
the visitors themselves make most of the
Llarty. Again, because most of the
worlds capitals are what you might call
swift places, perhaps the people who don't
know any better take it for granted that
Washington must be the same way As
matter of fact Washington is decidedly
the soberest of all the big capitals, and I
have visited many of them"
What American city stands at the top
of the list in the quantity of liquor it
consumes inquired the Star man.
Drinking in New Orleans.
New orleans. undoubtedly was the re-
ply, 81 say it off-hand without any idea
of knocking, for I believe that 1 am
right The men down in New Orleans
drink an enormous amount of hard liquor
They do rot however. show it very much
They are skilled in the fine art of carrying
liquor. Up in this section of the world
the drinkers don't spread out their drink
ing so much-that it, the 'toot habit. so
10 speak, prevails more. The average
New York or Philadelphia or Baltimore or
Washington man who drinks takes it out
in an overnight jamboree and then lie
wakes Up disguised and doesn't drink a
drop until he is due the next time.
The New Orleans drinkers, on the con-
trary, and, in fact the drinkers of mauy
of the larger Southern cities, make drink
ing a somewhat steady game and pastimo
They rarely get entirely 1oa6ed, and in
capable, but in New Orleans there are
thousands of men who drink practically
all the time they are awake OF course,
there are steady drinkers of this sort ev-
crNwhere, but they have the biggest call
as / say, in New Orleans in proportion TO
the size of the town. New Orleans man
Who doesn't drink is looked upon as some
thing of a curiosity by his friends, unless
they happen to know that the non-drinker
has been a former drinker on a heavy
scale ami that, having had a serious time
of il owing . his overindulgence in liquor
in the past, lie has knocked it off. The
average New Orleans business man is able
20 stand an amazing amount of hard
liquor. l know whisky drummers who are
pretty good themselves in the matter of
sampling their own samples, but most of
them tell me that at their best they Call-
not keep up with the New Orleans process
sion. l know any number Of high-grade
men down there who get away with their
Two quarts of rye every day without ever
becoming enthusiastic or thinking il any
thing unusual Maybe the damp, sog3y
climate of New Orleans has something TO
do with the ability of its citizens to pun
ism the red-eye. I've noticed that the
drinkers who live in damp climates can
do a longest route with the stuff than the
men who live in dry, crisp climates. l am
tod fot instance, that one drink OF
whisky in Denver does the WORK of three
drinks IN cities situated on lower, damper
levels
Begin Early.
Another particular thing about New
Orleans drinkiug-about drinking, in fact,
in many of the larger Southern towns
is the early beginning of the game. Now,
d. ~~r11 lnF. u
drinks hardly ever thinks of drinking in
The morning. There is. of course, large
class of morning cocktail people up this
way, but fortunately, l think, their num-
her grows smaller as the viciousness or
the practice becomes better known. Inc
Washington man who would, for instance,
he seen taking drink of whisky an hour,
say, after breakfast would be very likely
10 be looked at askance by his friends
They would Immediately conclude that the
morning drinker was being downed by
rum, and they'd probably shake their
heads over it. Business men up in this
tier of cities who drink very rarely drink
during business hours.
We'll, down i'm New Orleans drinking
begins at any time within an hour after
breakfast. It always makes me shudder
10 see man throwing a big Sulp of
whisky on top of a good breakfast, but
mat is the real and approved thing down
orleans men who only seem to eat for
the purpose of laying a good foundation
Tor liquor. Now, in one respect, it is the
Very best thing in the world for the
steady drinker to eat his meals regularly
ana plentifully, but the steady drinker
"p this way gives his stomach a chance
10 assimilate its food before he pours
any fiery liquids on top of it, I'll bet there
arc very few steady whisky drinkers in
Washington who can take big drink
OF whisky Immediately after breakfast
without becoming a bit qualmish over it.
hut us all in the training and in the
,enVlronment' as il were. The New Or
ans man argues that it's the man who
WAITS until his stomach becomes empty
~1ore he begins his daily drinking who
IHtily gets downed by hard liquor phys
any and morally, and in truth the New
'Ileans man who tells you this seems to
uoVe his contention in his own person.
BefOre and After Meals.