Dirty Rotten Bugs...

The above snippet appeared in the 8 November 1867 issue of the Intelligencer Journal, published in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. You have to kind of wonder what that all tasted like.

NEWS FLASH - 1927

Date Line: New Orleans, Louisiana - 25 August 1927

Two 100-gallon whiskey stills, apparently loaded with high-powered mash, exploded in a Jefferson Terrace outhouse yesterday. leading to the arrest of Joesph Grego, John Grego and C.R. Grego.. The outhouse burned to the ground, revealing 4,000 gallons of fermenting mash.

Sun Herald (Biloxi, Mississippi

The Kerry Irish Pub, New Orleans

  One of the best things about a really old city center is the fact that you can find the best places tucked into little nooks and crannies of ancient old buildings, and New Orleans has a lot of old buildings and a lot of cool nooks and crannies. Such is The Kerry Irish Pub, on Decatur Street, in the French Quarter. With barely a few feet of frontage, The Kerry is infinitely deeper than it is wide. Walk too fast and you may miss it, which would be a pity. In a city that is known for its party atmosphere, a quiet Irish pub is a welcome relief.
Opened in October 1993, the original owners wanted a pub where one could hear Irish music all the time, not just a few nights here and there. Today, Irish music is still offered nearly every evening. This, and the fact that they know how to poor a decent pint of Guinness, as well as offering a good selection of Irish whiskey, makes The Kerry Irish Pub a destination worth searching out. Oh, and the place is haunted, so keep an eye out for ghosts.
On the day I stopped in I was, unfortunately, on my way to another engagement, but I did make time to savor a quick pint, and a shot of Powers’ Irish Whiskey. Next time I am in the Crescent City, I will certainly be back.

Cheers,
Dave

I stopped into The Kerry Irish Pub a few days ago - well worth the visit - just wish I could have stayed longer.

"Sung with Tremendous Applause, by J. B. Smith, the Celebrated Irish Vocalist."

All together now….

"Sung with Tremendous Applause, by J. B. Smith, the Celebrated Irish Vocalist." From a folio that contains 4291 song sheets. Included among these American songs are ninety-seven British song sheets from Dublin and London. The collection spans the period from the turn of the nineteenth century to the 1880s, although a majority of the song sheets were published from the 1850s to the 1870s. Held by the Rare Book and Special Collections Division of the Library of Congress.

A Two-Handled God-forgive-me…A Communal Drink Mug…

A Two-Handled God-forgive-me…A Communal Drink Mug…

From within Warren’s Malthouse: “Come , shepherd [Gabriel Oak], and drink. ‘tis gape and swaller with us - a drop of sommit, but not of much account,’ said the malster, removing from the fire his eyes, which were vermilion-red and bleared by gazing into it for so many years. ‘Take up the God-Forgive-Me, Jacob. See if ‘tis warm, Jacob.’

The above passage is from the book “Far From The Maddening Crowd,” by Thomas Hardy (originally 1874, this excerpt is from The Folio Society edition, based on the Wessex edition, 1912). The two-handled God-forgive-me is described as: “a two-handled tall mug standing in the ashes, cracked and charred with heat, it was rather furred with extraneous matter about the outside, especially in the crevices of the handles, the innermost curves of which may not have seen daylight for several years.”

The passage continues: “…but to the mind of any sensible drinker the cup was no worse for that, being incontestably clean on the inside and about the rim. It may be observed that such a class of mug is called God-forgive-me in Weatherbury and its vicinity for uncertain reasons, probably because it size make any given toper fell ashamed of himself when he sees it bottom in drinking it empty.”

Well, I Guess It Was A Good Idea? Well sort of...

British Public Houses To Install Drink Meters For Car Drivers

CARLISLE, ENGLAND - Fourteen public houses owned by the British government are installing drink meters to tell car drivers when they've had enough. The meters test reaction speeds.  The driver drops a coin in the meter, then tries to stop the coin by pressing a button. If he can stop it in less than .12 of a second he gets the coin back. If not, he loses the coin and gets warning that is reactions have slowed up.
The machines are approved by Britain's Royal Society for Prevention of Accidents, though not by some police officers. Sidney Ballance, chief constable of neighboring Barrow-in Furness, called them a menace.  He said they will encourage drivers to drink more to test their capacity.
Some people doubt the drink meters efficiency.   Peter Johnson, a young Royal Air Force officer, wrote to the Observer Sunday to say he and several other young pilots tried out the machines and found their reactions improving as they had more to drink.

As reported in the Muskogee Daily Phoenix (Muskogee, Oklahoma) Monday, 27 June 1960.

Proof Positive - Ale is Good For You

As the story goes: “It is worth mentioning that one William Hunter, a collier, was cured in the year 1758 of an inveterate rheumatism or gout, by drinking freely of new ale, full of barm and yest (sic). The poor man had been confined to his bed for a year and a half, having almost entirely lost the use of his limbs. On the evening of Handsel Monday, as it is called, (i.e. the first Monday of the New Year), some of his neighbors came to make merry with him. Though he could not rise, yet he always took his share of the ale as it passed round the company, and, in the end, became much intoxicated. The consequence was , that he had the use of his limbs the next morning, and was able to walk about. He lived more that twenty years after this, and never had the smallest return of his old complaiint.”

From: Observations on the Popular Antiquities of Great Britian: Chiefly Illustrating the Origen of Our Vulgar and Provincial Customs, Ceremonies and Superstitions, by John Brand (Henry G. Bohn, Covent Garden, London, 1853)

It's British In Spirit, Anyway...

Dinner last night - Sort of, kind of, maybe a bit British in spirit - Fish and Chips. OK, not like you would get down around the corner in Kegsworth, but in thought it's pretty close. Deep fried Alaskan Halibut (with a bit of spiciness in the batter), and twice fried Belgian chips. Hey, at least I was drinking an Old Speckled Hen.

Cheers,

Dave

Now That's A Good Idea

The Walker’s Patent Cask Tilting Apparatus

Oh Yea - hafta get me one of these contraptions. The genuine Walker's Patent Cask Tilting Apparatus. No sense letting any of that ale go to waste.

Cheers,

Dave

Photo: From the "Brewer's Guardian" magazine - 29 October 1889 (London)

Bob's-A-Dyin"

Bob's-A'Dyin'

An entry from the book "Notes and Queries, A Medium of Intercommunication for Literary Men, General Readers, Etc... " (London 1910). This was in answer to a query as to the origin of the phrase. Boisterous Merriment - Yes indeed.

Cheers,

Dave