The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1902-03-08


mingled. From the mint on the
waiter there foated that indescribable
odor that the old Colonel believes
slipped out one day through the mar
row gate of Paradise when St. Peter
had his back turned. Now the old
cavalier measured out just dram OF
pure syrup and poured it into the
whisky and water. Next he dropped
in the cracked ice, and then he put in
the mint so that not a leaf was
bruised. Swiftly he held it toward
his guest.
"Quick, quick, my boy; drink il
before the ice melting spoils the pro-
portions of the mixture"
The reporter buried his nose in that
buch of mint-and it was very, very
good. When the glass came down
there was one young man who felt
that life was not all in vain.
That's the secret, /" said the Col
onel. "It must be drank, not slipped.
Five minutes, even three minutes,
ruins it. Fresh mint, old whisky,
pure syrup and pure water, then drink
it right away"
"I remember" he went on, when
the G. A. R. was here, an old friend
brought half a dozen of them up to
see me. You know, I was never a
very ardent G. A. r. man, so I did
not know what to do with them. I
proposed a mint julep. They had
never heard of one. / did not know
how they would like it, but trusted
to the mint. They drank around, and
then one fellow asked, hesitating1y,
if it would be within the law of cour-
tesy, he would like to try another.
You should have seen their faces when
/ said yes"
The Colonel paused.
"How did it end ?'' asked the re-
porter.
"Well,' said the Colonel, "when
they went away some of them wanted
to run me for President, and their
old Colonel took me aside to tell me
in confidence that if the Confederates
had brought mint juleps against them
insteads of guns the whole id
Union army would have surrendered
on the spot for taste.
''It's natural taste, one fellow
can't get away from. Iwish, though,
some fellow would invent a double
cup, the outside one to hold the ice.
Then gentleman could sip his julep.
Some people, you know, won't
give beginner more than one julep.
That's wrong, for its natural taste,
and the more you give them the bet
ter they like it. But, my dear boy,
remember the mint must be fresh. -
The seeker for julep knowledge
next hunted up disciple of the more
modern school. This gentleman, an
ex-Rough Rider, was found in his
fat with a frosted silver mug beside
him. He said not word in greeting,
but arose, beaming silently, and got
another mug.
The reporter took observations.
"I'm of the new school," said the
ex-Rough Rider, 80 watch me. A
Kentucky girl visiting her brother,
an army officer in Arizona, taught me,
and her way beats those old Virgin
ians all to pieces. They never taste
the mint. I do"
While he was talking he had slip
ped to the ice box and brought out a
handful of mint.
"Half an hour from the bed," he
said. Then quickly he crushed sew
eral stalks and put them in the bot
tom of the mug. He put in about
an ounce of water, one teaspoonful of
powdered sugar, ice to fill the mug
nearly to the top, then about three
fingers of whisky, SO mellow, rich
and oily that one hated to see it hid
den in the silver. mug. A crowning
glory of mint was added to the top,
and by that time frost had completely
whitened the silver mug.
"Rye straw" asked the reporter.
"Straw be DID," replied his
host. "Drink." The guest took
the mug and the Elysian Field drift
ed down to less than half a square
away.
Ibid you taste the delicate flavor
of the mint? Don't that beat any
Virginia style drink you ever tried ?"
demanded the host, as his guest, with
a deep sigh, relinquished the cup.
"I'm undecided. II can't tell
exactly" stammered the reporter.
The other laughed cheerfully. "All
right, we'll convince you," he said,
and straightaway began On another
julep.
This time Venus walked right down
off her throne out into the midst of
the Elysian Fields and she and the
scribe sat down to drink nectar to-
gether. AS he came back to earth he
could hear his host murmuring in the
far distance: "The mint must be
fresh.' And really that seems to be
the secret of it all.-LouisWlle Con-