The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1909-10-06

:
to drink.
1T was famous sport to see a
guest drink a cup of wine for every
letter in the name of his best girl.
Then, as now, the high and great
were responsible for fashions which
the others followed. The mobiles and
even the rich business men were as
prodigal and Incorporate as the tri-
umvirs, cOnsula and emperors.
"Petronius Aribter tells of the rare
wines served at the notorious feasts
OF Trimalchio, the land owner, who
was often a host to the emperor, and
whose professional meat carver, Car
pus, was as noted as a lord in his
day
AT one of the dinners the SER
want appeared bearing a skeleton of
silver the joints of which were so
ingeniously arranged that the limbs
dangled and danced. Trimalchio ex-
claimed:
of such are we; let us live
while we may!"
THE expression lived long in
Rome.
THE murrhine vases possessed by
Nero were the marvel of the age,
and his wines were the rarest to be
obtained anywhere in the world. His
wine parties baffied description.
ON the night of the burning of
Rome Nero was expected as guest
at the feast of Caius Domitius Seba,
at which most of the guests and
dancers persisted in the flames.
Noted drunkards of the present
consider smashing a few window
panes and getting arrested a glorious
wind-up of spree. NerO's methods
were more spectacular. He wound
wind up his jag by setting Rome on
fire and fiddling drunkenly while it
burned.
Horace described the feast of
Nasidienus, in the first course of
which Goan wine was served. The
succeeding courses were washed
down by brimmers of Caecuban, AL
ban and Falernian, but Nasidienus
was noted for his perjury and would
have been stingy with his wine had
mot Servillus persistently clamored
for larger goblets.'
The Sybarites bestowed public
honors on those who gave the most
splendid banquets, drank the most
wine and got the drunkest.
when Heliogabalus assembled to
the throne his entry into Rome was
made in a chariot drawn by bar
tenders and by a historiographer
whose mission was to record the
orgies. Four courses a day were
served at his feasts, each one of
which cost not less than $4,000.
He gave fortunes to inventors of new
drinks.
"Heliogobalus was a rare old
liquor fiend. He invented the after
dinner lottery, which was a favorite
diversion at his carousals. The
guests took tickets at random.
While one might draw a prize of ten
elephants another would get ten
flies or a toothpick. Heliogabalus
and his guests would split their sides
laughing.
The guests of Heliogabalus drank
| his wines sitting on table couches
stuffed with partridge feathers and
hares' down. His wines were served
from vessels of gold and crystal,
precious gems. Only richly chased
silver vessels were allowed in his
kitchen. He exhausted the treas
ures of the empire, and after a reign
of four fast and furious years was
assassinated by Pretorians.
"Apicius spent $3,0OO,0O0 on rare
wines and dishes. He went over his
books one day and found he had left
| but 100000. Rather than starve
on such a pittance he killed himself.
'Lucullus was another prince of
lalcohology In his Neapolitan pal
ace he had many dining and drink
| ing rooms, the most sumptuous OF
which was his salon of Apollo.
when Cicero and Pompey called
on Lucullus Unexpectedly one day
he urged them to stay to dinner.
1--WE will stay, they replied, IF
you will promise not to go to any
extra trouble on our account
L promise, said Lucullus. Then
to a servant: place two more COW
ers in the salon of Apollo.
That dinner cost more than ST.
1000 a plate.
| full chronicle cease! In my forth
coming work, The Psychology of
Alcohol l shall cite innumerable
other examples. Suffice it to say that
the world is growing more temper
ate every day.
"A drunken man on the streets
has become a rarity A drunken
iudge of the bench is seldom seen
today that many men have never
witnessed the spectacle at all.
THE rum demon is old and full Of
wounds His day is passing. The
future will see him turn up his heels
and die.
How long will he last? Not long.
At most, not more than 1000 or l.
500 years.
nT WIN nTVN ENTTNEp MARCH