The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-10-24
ODD FATE OF RUM.
Disappearance of a ripple Wnose
 Qualities Are Praised.

Disappearance of ripple WHOSE
 Qualities Are Praised.
 New York Sun.
 Many A sensible old fellow who enjoys fife will tell you that a Santa Cruz sour Is the finest of all Summer drinks; put he is apt to add with sigh:
 But where are you going to ma any genuine old Santa Cruz rum nowaoayss
 Perhaps by way of tantalizlng you' he will make references to some acquaint- ance who still has a jug of the nectar hidden away somewhere and who deals IL out to favored friends on red-letter days
 In truth Santa Cruz rum, like rum yenerally. seems on the surface Of things to he fair along on the road to extinc- ton. In most barrooms the stun served to the few customers who stiil call TOT it may be almost anything except genuine Santa Cruz. There is. indeed, legend that they don't make any more rum on the island.
 As a matter of fact. it Is asserted by those who should know that about as much rum as ever is produced on the Santa Cruz sugar plantations, and con noisseurs, for Santa Cruz, rum rises to the dignity of having conno'sseurs, de- clare that Its quality is as high as of old The esteem ln which 1t Is held by its remaining friends may bs judged from the fact that the best brings in this city as much as Si0 or SIP gallon a' retail. Now, pretty good whisky may pe bought for half that price.
 The disappearance of rum from the general markct is one of the curiositiss of drinking Half a century ago IL was a standard tipple Its admirers will tell you that 1t has every quality to endear itself to man.
 hn, p1 evidence to prove that it Is whole some drink wh,a used with discretion They will also tell you that there Is something about 1t which appeals to the palate and satisfies as mo other liquor does Why, then, has rum drinking passed away SO largely? First the Civil War gave 1t q blow by imposing tax whicn increased it's price enormously. Then came the rapid rise of whiskey. This was followed by the still greater boom in peer: Between the two rum was good deai crowded out of fashion, for there arc fashions in drinking as In other things 7. Rum drinking Is somewhat of an ac- ouired taste The old rum drinkers who appreciated the liquors good qualities continued to jrlnK 1t: but the younger generation took to beer and whiskey.
 Then the evil reputation attached 10 the name of rum, however undeserVed' undoubtedly hurt it. Rum was at the height of It's popularity when the tenn perance movement began to he vigorous Being the most conspicuous liquor 1t re- ceived the brunt of the attack.
 The rum demon and the rum shop ana rum itself have been made synonyms of intemperance and all it's evils. Naturally enough the man who wants to drink but
 ka y-,,Iv, fVraO hIy k ing. fights shy of rum and thinks pru- dently to compromise by sticking to.beeI or whiskey. That is another reason why rum drinking has decreased
 Yet old rum drinkers declare that If a man Is going to drink at all there is no drink which will do him less harm than rum. Besides satisfying his material needs. they say, 1t will stimulate his esthetic nature.
 Take Santa Cruz, for instance. It has a bouquet subtle and yaried and inspir- ing You can finger and reflect over 1t Samples of a dozen different rums. all made on the same plantations and in the same season, may all present differences to the palate of the connoisseur.
 The high quality of the Santa Cruz sour has been mentioned. Its delicious flavor is due to the property possessed by this rum above all others of har- monizing with and setting off the flavor of fruits. It Is this same quality which make a strawberry omelet with Santa Cruz rum seem to its admirers the very apotheosis of the strawberry.
 Santa Cruz has by no means mo- nopoly of fine rums. though It's product is generally put first on the list. There are those who prefer the red rum of Ja- maica even if most connoisseurs put 1t In second place.
 Our own Madrid rum is chased as only third in quality by judges; yet 1t is third place not very far removed from first. To those who imagine that New England rum deserves the attention of only the heather of Africa it may cause surprise to learn that some of it is of so fine a quality that 1t costs $1O gallon at wholesale.
 Other rum may be bought for as little as 30 cents a gallon in bond. Add the Government tax of $1.t0 a gallon. and the price Is brought up to $40. This is rum to be avoided It Is fiery and harsh. Tn it are riot arson and sudden death. It is the rum sent to the heather.
 A century and half ago various firms were formed in New England to make rum Some of them are still in business today at the old stand.