PREFACE

The 1906 copy of Peter McDonald's Licensed Trade Catalogue

had lain undisturbed in the drawer of a old kitchen dresser in
Muasdale's Inn, on the west side of Kintyre, overlooking The
Atlantic Ocean, for some seventy years when a chance remark,
in a conversation with the inn's licensee, Maggie Mackinnon,
about long-disappeared whisky brands, led to her bring the
intriguing reference through to the inn's bar for inspection.

A new Licensing Act had come into effect in Scotland in 1903

and the pages of Peter McDonald's catalogue not only took the
reader through the salient principles of the new Act but also
through many now long forgotten aspects of Scotland's licensed
trade and a host of other things in general.

These were the days before photocopiers were common-place

A CLUTCH OF DRAMS
© 1987 and 2008 P. Donald M. Kelly PA29, Scotland
and, conscious of the value of the book's information in later
years, the only solution was to respectfully ask old Maggie,
who'd been in the inn for nearly five decades, since 1932, if the
book could be borrowed so that long-hand copies of its contents
could be written up, the book duly returned to the inn and the
safety of the kitchen drawer.

1
When Maggie died in the early 1980's, the inn was sold, its new
owners continuing to run the business till October 1988 - Just a
year before the doors were closed, in June 1987, Peter
McDonald's catalogue again resurfaced in Muasdale Inn, this
time in one of the under-counter drawers and again the
opportunity was taken to borrow the book and this time
everything of interest written long-hand into a Woolworth's
"jotter", the Scottish term for a school work-book, its 100 pages
of filled up within a month, on the evening of Monday, July 6,
1987.
On the Saturday evening, the Saturday before the beginning of
the Glasgow Fair holidays, Peter McDonald's catalogue was duly
returned to the inn and, amongst the regulars in the bar one
Rod McPherson, one of Campbeltown's Customs & Excise VAT
officers, Rod, much intrigued by the Woolworth 'jotter' with the
long-hand manuscript that had been written up to include
additional notes about the various processes of distilling and
rectifying spirits at 'the turn of the previous century', asked if he
could borrow the manuscript 'for a quick read'.
What follows is part social history, part practioner's text book
written from a 'Scotch', rather than British or English, viewpoint
- In the beginning, a short history of alcohol, duties and taxes
- In the middle, a guide to manufacturing and 'rectifying' spirit
products - After the middle, extracts from the 1906 copy of
Peter McDonald's Licensed Trade Catalogue and then, towards
the end, a look at 'The Big Hoose' and the organisation and
duties of house staff in Victorian and Edwardian times and
finally, as might be expected proper, a brief look at Argyll in the
1890's and a note of Britain's Colonies and Dependencies, 'The
British Empire', to which so much of the products in these pages
were delivered.
Whatever the reader's preferred 'tipple', alcoholic or non-
alcoholic, it's almost certainly here in this 'clutch of drams' -
Slainthe !

Having the advantage of a father who had joined The Customs &
Excise in 1909, he retiring in 1958 and having too been a
hotelier (and inn-keeper), the notes that had been included in
the manuscript added much to the lists and other information
retrieved from Peter McDonald's catalogue and care was taken
to take 'the sciences of distilling and brewing' no further than
they were understood and known at the time of the catalogue's
publication, in 1906 and that is what had so obviously caught
Rod's attention.

Though having no copy of the manuscript, I didn't question its

safety in Rod's hands but, little did I know it that it was going to
be a long, long, time before I ever saw it again, H. M. Customs
& Excise effectively "impounding" it for nearly four and a half
years and the manuscript eventually being returned to me on
December 10, 1991, a lightly pencilled date on the reverse of
the note here.
2
 PETER McDONALD
Peter McDonald, a native of Ross-shire and a direct descendant
of The Lords of The Isles, was employed as manager of the
rectifying department of Messrs. James McKenzie and Sons,
then the largest firm in its trade in Glasgow.

Continuing to superintend McKenzie's rectifying business in

Stockwell Street until McKenzie's death in 1876, Peter McDonald
then acquired the business as sole proprietor and, as 'The
Victualling Trades' Review' of April 1906 notes, "Mr McDonald, a
representative Celt, with exceptional enterprise and courage,
proved in the building up and developing of business" and,
"highly respected throughout The Highlands, made a noble
reputation for sterling integrity in all his dealings".

In private life, Peter McDonald was found a genial companion

and staunch friend amongst his companions. An enthusiastic
Mason and a generous contributorto the funds of The Free
Church, he treated his clanship not merely as a platonic
sentiment but, when the last of the Glencoe McDonalds died, in
order to prevent the estate, held for centuries in the clan,
passing into strangers' hands, he offered £15,000 for its
purchase, unfortunately without success.

Maintaining a special personal supervision over the rectifying

department of his company throughout the years, Peter
McDonald ensured that his business occupied a distinctive
position not only as Rectifiers, Distillers and Blenders but also as
wholesalers in wines, spirits, ales and stouts as well as
suppliers of all furnishings, fittings and equipment necessary to
the licensed trade of the era.

DOING THE ROUNDS - FROM H.M. Customs & Excise Nowadays Peter McDonald's advices on 'reducing spirits', then
an everyday task of landlords, are of peculiar interest to
3
connoisseurs and others who may wonder no more such CLOSING OF PREMISES
processes.
GAMING

LICENCES

PASSENGER VESSELS

THE 'IVANHOE'
CONTENTS
CLUBS
A SHORT HISTORY OF ALCOHOL and LICENSING
(including a copy of a 1793-dated Highland Distillery PAPERWORK
Licence)
OFFENCES AND FINES
THE HOSTELRY
EXCISE OFFENCES
MISCELLANY
THE REVENUE and SMUGGLING

ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES
THE GLASGOW PUBLIC HOUSE - April 1903
THE ILLICIT STILL
CELLARS
SPIRIT REDUCTIONS etc.
CLEANING OF BEER PIPES and BEER PUMPS
HANDLING WINES
REASONABLE PRICES
NON ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES
PREMISES - HOURS - TRAVELLERS - STAFF
SCOTCH WHISKY DISTILLERIES - 1905
CHILDREN
IRISH WHISKY DISTILLERIES IN 1905
GROCERS and DELIVERIES

BILLETING THE ARMY

PETER M'DONALD'S PRICE LIST FOR 1906
PUB GRUB

SCOTCH WHISKY - PRICES ARE per dozen 26-oz bottles

4
IRISH WHISKY - PRICES ARE per dozen 26-oz bottles CHEROOTS

BRANDY - PRICES ARE per dozen 26-oz bottles CIGARS

BRANDY VINTAGES IDENTIFIED WINES - Racking, Fining and Bottling

RUMS - PRICES ARE per dozen 26-oz SHERRY VINTAGES IDENTIFIED

bottles
PORT VINTAGES IDENTIFIED
GIN - PRICES ARE per dozen 26-oz bottles
PORT VINTAGES IDENTIFIED
VODKA - PRICES ARE per dozen 26-oz bottles
BURGUNDY VINTAGES IDENTIFIED
VERMOUTH - PRICES ARE per dozen 26-oz bottles
CHAMPAGNE VINTAGES IDENTIFIED
LIQUEURS - PRICES ARE per dozen 26-oz bottles
BAR PRICES
BITTERS - PRICES ARE per dozen 26-oz bottles

MINERAL or "APOLLINARIS" Type WATERS DOMESTIC ISSUES

AERATED WATERS BIG HOUSES - THE STAFF

BRITISH CORDIAL WINES - per dozen 26-oz MOTOR VEHICLE REGISTRATION MARKS OF 1906
bottles
ARGYLL and THE ISLES - SOME 1895 NOTES
BEERS and STOUTS Prices Equivalent to An 1895 Gazeteer Guide to AIRER GAEDHIL - The Land
11-gallon keg of The Gael

BOTTLED BEERS, STOUTS, LAGER and CIDER ARGYLL LIVESTOCK TOTALS IN 1894
per 2 dozen case 10-oz
bottles CATTLE VALUES AVERAGE PER HEAD

CIGARETTES priced on basis U.K. FISH LANDINGS IN 1894

of 200's packs
BRITAIN and HER COLONIES and DEPENDENCIES IN
"WEIGHTS" sold usually in 8-oz 1894
packs
5
 8th Century - Abou-Moussah-Djafar-Al-Sofi detailed the
process of distilling, as did his disciple Albukassen in the 10th
century, both were Arabian alchemists.

1150 - Distilling introduced to Europe by the Spanish Moors -

the art further promoted by the teachings of Abucassis, the
philosopher, which brought about the introduction of distilling
techniques to Gaul and Ireland.

1170 - Henry II's army found a number of Irish distilleries.

Late 15th Century - Irish emissaries introduced the

techniques to Scotland.

1494 - 'Eight bolls of malt to Friar John Cor wherewith to make

aquavitae' granted in The Exchequer Rolls.

1497 - James IV's Lord High Treasurer paid 9/- to a local barber
in Dundee for spirits.

1505 - Edinburgh Town Council decreed whisky to be dispensed

only by barbers and surgeons.
A SHORT HISTORY OF ALCOHOL and
1579 - Scarcity of grain that year resulted in Parliament
LICENSING restricting the common people from distilling, though not
however restricting the 'man of substance' from continuing !
1116 BC - 1st definition of spirits, 'what men will not do
without' (Soo-Ting Po, China)
1580 - Irish illicit distillers subject to hanging but Scots
smugglers supplying whisky which was sold at 5/- a mutchkin,
330 BC - Pytheus The Greek visited Scotland to find the
about ¾ of an English pint measure.
natives drinking a mead made from wheat and honey.
1609 - Fifth Statute of Icolmkill prohibited importation of wine
and spirits to Scotland's Western Isles from mainland traders,
384 - 322 BC - Aristotle noted 'sea-water can be rendered
but did not prevent local distribution.
potable by distillation' and that 'wine and other liquids can be
subjected to the same process', a process used for centuries
1616 - Chiefs of The Western Isles had quotas laid down on
before the peoples of India and China using rice and flowers.
their personal exemptions.
AD 200 - The Egyptians distilling from barley.
1622 - Ships' masters penalised for exceeding 1616 quotas.
6

1643, March - 2 pence per gallon duty imposed on spirits.
1644, January 31 - The first Scottish Excise Act.
1681 - Act of Restraint on exhorbitant expense of supply at
baptisms, weddings and funerals - Note - In 1616, when even
whisky was not particularly fashionable, the sum of £400 was
spent at Hugh Campbell of Calder's funeral.
1681 - General imposition of tax on malt.
1693 - Re-introduction of duty on whisky at 2/- per pint.
1695 - Temporary suspension of malt tax but duty increased to
2/3d per proof pint of whisky.
1696 - Return of the malt tax.
1705 - Cancellation of malt tax but duty raised to 2/6d per
proof pint of whisky, the price of a pint of 'reduced' whisky, it
around 12 to 13 oz in measure, then 2/-.
1707 - Steep increase of duty on spirits to price whisky outwith
the reach of the working people, resulting in the smuggling of
gin and brandy.
1742 - Spirit duty reduced to nominal levels in an attempt to
defeat the illicit trades.
1784 - Withdrawal of Duncan Forbers of Culloden's successors'
privilege to distil on a nominal rate of £22 annually, in lieu of
£20,000 excise duty, for services rendered to James II in 1688
and as a compensation for the damage of property by Jacobites
in October 1689, namely in respect of one distillery, Ferintosh.
1802 - Bonded stores introduced at ports for general import
and export purposes.
7
1806 - Introduction of severe anti-smuggling legislation and
duty on imported spirits reduced.
1814 - An Act was passed prohibiting the use of stills under
2,000 gallon capacity in The Lowlands and under 500 gallons
'north of the base of The Grampian Mountains' - As a
consequence of this Act, Highland distillers being forbidden to
sell spirits south of this line too, many Highland and other
distilleries closed down.
1815 - The Government, in an attempt to deter illicit stilling in
The Highlands, which, as a result of The 1814 Act, had
increased, authorised the licensing of stills of 40 gallon gallon
capacity.
Interestingly here, a copy of a Highland Distillery Licence for a
40 gallon still, licensed for use in Campbeltown in 1793, twenty
years before The 1814 Act.
HIGHLAND DISTILLERY LICENCE - No 234 - Dated 1793
(in the possession of Peter S. Armour of Campbeltown)
"We whose hands are hereunto set, being the major part of the
COMMISSIONERS OF EXCISE in that Part of GREAT BRITAIN called
SCOTLAND, by virtue and in pursuance of Acts of Parliament
made and passed in the Twenty-fifth and thirty-third years of the
Reign of HIS MAJESTY KING GEORGE THE THIRD, do hereby
LICENCE, AUTHORIZE and EMPOWER
"JAMES ARMOUR residing at CAMPBELTOWN in the County of
ARGYLL,
BUT NOT ELSEWHERE a STILL of the Cubic Content or Capacity
(including the head, horn, pipe, tube or other apparatus
therewith connected, under the name or denomination the
same may be called or known, as high as the steam can ascend)
of FORTY GALLONS ENGLISH WINE MEASURE and
"TO DISTIL AND DRAW OFF SPIRITS from the Barley, Beer, or
Bigg, of the GROWTH OF THE COUNTIES AFTER MENTIONED OR,
FROM SOME OF THEM, in the several counties of Orkney,
Caithness, Sutherland, Ross, Cromarty, Inverness, Argyle,
Bute and Nairn and IN SUCH PARTS OF THE COUNTIES OF
Dumbarton, Stirling, Perth, Forfar, Kincardine, Aberdeen,
Banff and Elgin, AS LIE
"TO THE NORTHWARD AND WESTWARD OF A LINE BEGINNING AT
THE Boat of Balloch, where Loch Lomond runs into the River
Leven, in the County of Dumbarton and PROCEEDING
EASTWARDS along the Great Military Road from thence to
Buchlivie, in the County of Stirling;
"THENCE NORTHWARDS to Thornhill AND FROM THENCE to
Dunblane and Auchterarder in the County of Perth THENCE IN A
LINE PROCEEDING IN A NORTH-EAST DIRECTION TO A CERTAIN
POINT WEST of the Town of Perth and distant therefrom Two
Miles; FROM THENCE NORTHWARD TO The Boat of Kinclaven,
on the River Tay, in the same County of Perth; THENCE TO
Blairgowrie, Alyth and Kerrymuir in the County of Forfar AND
THENCE BY THE FOOT AND SOUTHSIDE OF THE GRAMPIAN HILLS
TILL THEY TERMINATE near the River Dee, within three miles to
the WESTWARD OF OF AND EXCLUDING the City of Aberdeen
EXCEPTING ALWAYS OUT OF THE LIMITS AFORESAID EVERY
PLACE WITHIN THREE ENGLISH STATUTE MILES OF THE NEAREST
PART OF THE SEA-SHORE IN the Counties of Elgin, Banff, and
Aberdeen;
"DURING THE TERM OF ONE YEAR and for no longer or shorter
Space, from the FIRST DAY OF DECEMBER ONE THOUSAND
SEVEN HUNDRED AND NINETY THREE AND
"TO USE, SELL and DISPOSE OF SPIRITS SO DISTILLED WITHIN
THE LIMITS AFORESAID BUT NOT ELSEWHERE subject to the
RESTRICTIONS AND REGULATIONS contained in the above
mentioned Acts of Parliament;
"AND HE the said JAMES ARMOUR having paid down the sum of
FIFTEEN POUNDS being One Quarter of the Composition of
Licence Duty, at the rate of ONE POUND TEN SHILLINGS
8
STERLING yearly for each ENGLISH GALLON of the Content or
Capacity of THE AFORESAID STILL AND,
"HAVING ALSO FOUND SUFFICIENT SECURITY FOR A FURTHER
SUM OF FIFTY POUNDS STERLING to answer the PAYMENTS OF
SUCH PENALTIES as he may incur, in the Terms of the Said Acts
of Parliament in that case made and provided.
"Given under our hands, at the CHIEF OFFICE OF EXCISE IN
EDINBURGH THIS SECOND DAY OF DECEMBER IN THE YEAR ONE
THOUSAND SEVEN HUNDRED AND NINETY THREE.
"John Grieve
Jas Stodart
Peter Graham"
1822 - Illicit Distillation Act leading to government stamping of
all stills - This had been preceeded by The 1786 Scotch
Distillery Act which levied duty on the capacity of stills - The
Act was a sequel to The 1784 Wash Act which levied duty on all
wash manufactured in The Lowlands at 5 pence per gallon but
levied duty on the contents of stills in The Highlands at 20/- per
gallon !
1823 - The Excise Act which embodied all considerations and
grievances of the legal and illicit stills and, of great interest, the
one by which George Smith of Glenlivet legalise his distilling
operation at Upper Drummin Farm, which had been going on
since 1817 - Smith's right to 'The Glenlivet' branding was
established by law in 1880.
1831 - Poteen was criminalised by The British Government and
too, much later, would later be criminalised by Eire.
1847 - Duty-free warehouse bonds introduced at distilleries.
1853 - The Forbes Mackenzie Act laid down 'permitted hours'
for the retail licensed trade.
1855 - The closure of the 'Borders' Customs' posts between
England and Scotland as Prime Minister Gladstone introduced a
common duty of 8/- per proof gallon of spirit for both Scotch and
English spirits and the introduction of The Methylated Spirits Act
almost immediately cut distillers' hitherto highly profitable sales
to paint and varnish companies.
1860 - Excise on Spirits Act freed distillers to use materials in
any fashion and combination and to blend the various different
types of spirits.
1915 - Immature Spirits Act introduced to require whisky to be
stored for 2 years before sale, it amended the following year to
increase the minimum storage time to 3 years.
THE HOSTELRY
'The ancient, true and proper use of Inns, Ale-Houses and Victualling
Houses is for the Receipt, Relief and Lodging of Wayfaring People
travelling from place to place and not meant for the entertainment and
harbouring of Lewd and Idle People to spend and consume their Money
and Time in Lewd and Drunken Manner' states an Act of 1604. Four
hundred years later one may be forgiven for thinking that there is
perhaps a need for the preservation of this introduction in current
legislation.
o0o
Where or when the first inn actually functioned will never be known but
the first recorded reference to taverns was 'unearthed' at the end of the
1800's and today will be found in the Louvre in Paris.
The Code of Hammurabi was effectively an elaboration of early and
previous codes and, dated about 1700 BC, made the then undiscovered
9
tablets of Moses seem like a postscript. Moses' tablets are indeed but a
development of the Code of Hammurabi.
'The Code contains no less than 284 statutes and, half-way through the
'commercial' section, appears the first recorded reference to taverns.
It is evident that these were in the nature of brothels with the landlady
doubling as both barmaid and prostitute and clearly taverns were in
poor repute as they early became a magnet for undesirables.
The Code of Hammurabi not only sets out statutes for dealing generally
with taverns and public behaviour but, interestingly, sets out 'Wages and
Pension Orders' as well as an official price list for taverns.
The mainstay of the stock was locally produced barley-beer and palm
wine and these products were supplemented with imported grape wine
from the Lebanon.
Although, in these early times, currency was in use it was common
practice to pay the tavern-keepers in kind and no doubt there would
have been local 'exchange' tables to take account of the mix of money
and goods neede to persuade transactions.
The rates set out in The Code of Hammurabi set the price of a cheap,
low grade, liquor at 6 measures of liquor for 5 measures of corn but it
was well known to everyone that 5 measures of corn would brew 50
measures of liquor ! Little wonder the tavern-keepers would be
codemned as robbers !
False measure or watered-down beer was subject to appropriate
penalty - Drowning !
o0o
As trade routes developed in The East 'khans' were built beside most
water-holes and wells for the travelling caravans to rest.
In those times travellers and merchants moved in groups for
better protection from brigands and robbers and the purpose of the
'khans' was two-fold.
Strictly speaking a 'khan' was not simply an inn but a cross
between a fortified stable and a warehouse and 'khans' were, generally,
erected by the local rulers who controlled the areas through which the
caravans travelled. Not only did the 'khans' give their customers
protection from night attacks but they also made certain that the
local rulers could levy tolls and taxes for the 'safe passage' of
goods and people travelling across their territory.
Although by 2300 BC a well established road system existed in
China it was not until the rise of The Roman Empire, controlling
nearly all the 'civilised' world, that communications would eventually
and vastly be improved in The West.
At the height of The Roman Empire a citizen of Rome could cover
some ten thousand miles without worrying about changes in
currency, the need for visas or concern about accommodation.
Speed mattered and the Romans had to have the best possible road
systems and nothing like them has been achieved before or since
these times.
Such is the quality of Roman road and bridge building that it is
only fair to consider that Roman post-houses must have been of
equqlly high quality in their construction and in their supply of
travellers needs.
The Roman posting-houses were built, generally, in towns and
villages spaced out at five to eight mile intervals. Attached to
posting-houses were 'mutations' - stables - where horses could
be exchanged for fresh and ready mounts.
The posting houses were designed to facilitate an efficient
government postal system
and to house officials and couriers of 'the Empire' and were not
intended for the common traveller. Much of the Roman Empire
was, in reality, hostile territory and a mix of officials and ordinary
travellers in the same house and under the same roof could not
be seen as, in any way, safe.
10
The ordinary traveller had to stay in 'cuponae' or 'tabernae' and
it is from the word 'taberna' - meaning originally 'shop' - that the
English word 'tavern' derives. In Scotland the word 'shop' is still
used with reference to 'public-house'.
Certainly the 'tabernae' were no better than they were a
thousand years before when the Code of Hammurabi was written
and the Romans gave statute that "Such persons (the female inn
staff) shall be held as being immune against the judicial
proceedings of the law against adultery and against prostitution
as the very indignity of their life is an insult to the laws they
should observe".
Travellers of rank who were not allowed to use the Roman's
posting-houses and who, almost certainly, were travelling with
an entourage had to set up camp outside the Roman 'tabernae'
at the first known examples of our modern 'caravan sites'.
The actual practice of 'camping' involved no hardship
whatsoever to those of high rank for each had a retinue of slaves
and servants to carry and provide for their every need and in many
cases they would have been better off than had they been permitted to
stay in the posting-houses.
Tiberious, for example, not only took the proverbial kitchen sink
with him but also portable garden plots to provide fresh melons
and early growing vegetables for his table - he certainly did not 'rough
it'.
Today the 'camp de luxe' is only made by the Arabs - completely
motorised - and it is only within recent decades that shooting
parties in Bengal have scaled down their own
attempts to emulate Tiberius.
Julius Caesar - one of the early 'wheeled' tourists - had little time
for the trappings of campsites and preferred to sleep in his
chariot whilst keeping on the move day and night !
The 'motel', incidentally, was originated in 1924 by one James
Vail on the north-side of San Luis Obispo, on Route 101, at the
foot of the Questa grade in America - he called his establishment
'The Motel Inn' - and he prefixed his electric 0-T-E-L sign with the
letters "H" and "M" flashing alternately thus the term 'motel'.
Though the Romans introduced vines to Britain the Saxons had
no taste for wine and when the Romans left the Saxons left the
vines to die and went merrily on making - and drinking - their
beer made from barley. The name beer is drawn from 'beer-lec' -
the barley or beer plant. With the coming of the Danes beer
became 'ale* - possibly from 'yule'.
The Anglo-Saxon 'eale' stems from the Danes 'ol' and there
appear to be fairly obvious links between ale and yuletide.
By now ale-houses were established at most road junctions and
ale-houses were readily identified by a bush tied to the end of a
pole displayed outside the door a tradition drawn from Roman
times when tabernae were marked by a bunch of vine leaves on
their doors and hence the origin of the saying 'a good wine
needs no bush' - a good inn becomes well-known without
advertising !
King Edgar (959-975) reduced the number of ale-houses to one
per village and introduced the use of measures to the trade.
Peg tankards containing half a gallon of liquor were divided into
eight parts by pegs fixed inside at each level and by law nobody
was allowed to drink more than one peg - half a pint - at one
draught. Needless to say temptation was great and competition
soon ensued giving rise to the expression 'taking someone down
a peg - or two'.
Inns were now for the drinker and no longer the traveller and
drinkers were further encouraged to find meeting places at fairs
and markets by the erection of wine booths.
11
The conquering Normans found themselves no better off than
the long departed Romans for they too lived in often hostile
territory.
At nightfall, the Normans were host to passing nobles and it was
as much a way of affording safe passage as it was a way of
gaining fresh news and a change of entertainment that they
were happy to look after passing nobles but on some routes
there were so many guests each evening that the castles
became so overcrowded and the barons were persuaded to build
hostels for the nobles' entourages. Soon these hostels became
inns and it became customary to display the family coat of arms
outside denoting their proper ownership. Gradually the coat of
arms gave rise to the name of each 'hostel'.
Travellers could also expect overnight safe lodging at any religious house
- the right of sanctuary.
Even the poorest of travellers would be accommodated in guest-
houses out-with the main buildings of the monasteries and could
rest and eat safely.
Lack of custom, for centuries, held up the development of the
inn. Pilgrims and vagrants received and enjoyed free charity and
the nobility expected and got free hospitality wherever they
went but for other groups of travellers the facility of reasonable
accommodation just did not exist.
The tradition of private hospitality lingered on in Scotland long
after it disappeared elsewhere and it was 'the tourist board' of
Edward I of Scotland who, as much to assist the improvement of
inns as to keep a check on the movement of travellers, passed a
statute which, to this day, is unique in the world and perhaps
worthy of revival that, from 1425» made travellers liable to a penalty
of £ 2 each - a huge sum then -for every night they stayed with
friends instead of using the rooms in the local inn. Though
nobles were exempt themselves their servants and horses had
to be quartered at the local inn or the nobles too were to be
fined accordingly.
Ale was by now part of the staple diet and brewing was therefore an
everyday activity.
There has been a suggestion around this time that the familiar
marking of beer barrels by 'X', 'XX' or 'XXX' originated in
monastery breweries and is properly a form of trade mark guarantee -
'sworn on the cross(es). It is more acceptable however that the
crosses be accepted as denoting the various strengths of beers
and around the sixteenth-century a strong beer might well have
been regularly marked 'XXX' - The duty on a 36-gallon barrel of
beer by this time was 2s 6d (12-gp).
The brewer and the cellarmen were certainly very important
individuals in any religious house and special prayers were held for
them. In the Middle Ages monks brewed ale with the same skill
and care as today they give to the distillation of their special
liqueurs.
The traveller might well be expected to be drawn to the
monastery as opposed to putting up with and suffering the fayre
of the local ale-house where, to say the least,
the quqlity would be somewhat dubious.
Until the seventeenth-century brewing, outside the monasteries,
was often in female hands both in the ale-house and in the home.
Ale-wives were not in the least popular individuals. Disputes
about the quality of their beers were innumerable. Ale was neither a
thirst-quencher- nor an excuse for a night out in these days.
So seriously was ale considered by some, particularly because of
the many dangers of consuming food of doubtful age, origin and
quality, that it was more than necessary to improve the general
quality of ale simply to improve the nourishment of the poor and this
done by extolling the medicinal virtue 'more powerful than yet known'
and as being able to cure ills caused by eating bad and contaminated
foods.
It is difficult to comprehend just how large a part of the diet was
ale until one discovers that Henry VIII's queen's maids-of-honour
12
were each allowed for breakfast 2 gallons of ale and a 'dim' pitcher of
wine taken with a loaf of bread and a bread roll.
Similarly, in 1512, the Earl of Northumberland's children were
each allocated a quart of beer to wash down a piece of salt fish
and a dish of sprats for breakfast.
In the evening the Earl and his good lady sat down to a gallon of
beer and a quart of wine between them for dinner - less than
Henry's wife's maids had for breakfast !
Measures in these days are equally interesting. The Wine Gallon
was 80% of our present-day Imperial Gallon which itself
measures 277.4 cubic inches while the Ale Gallon was greater and
measured 282 cubic inches.
For centuries the normal method of brewing ale had simply
required hot water to be poured over a malt mash and the resulting
liquid then boiled for an hour or so and the froth skimmed off.
Yeast was then added and within hours the ale sold and used.
The simple quality test was to spill some ale on the table and if a
cup could then be stuck to the table by the thick ale the quality
was quite acceptable - just like making jam !
The brewer was always anxious to move beer as quickly as
possible for it soured very, very quickly! In Elizabeathan times it
was laid down that brewers should not deliver beer less than
eight hours after it had been 'tunned' - barrelled - in summer
and not less than six hours after in winter.
On the whole ale was plain and uninspiring though those who could
afford it spiced the ale much in the same way as they spiced their cakes.
The risk of ale souring is reduced by boiling up hops with it and
the resulting liquid is then known as 'beer'.
The Scot, perhaps more so than his English counterpart, was
well-known as a mercenary soldier and sailor and was
particularly often well travelled yet, in his own country, that is, in the
area of the Lowlands, the facilities for the traveller generally would
not improve until the 1700's.
From his travels the Scot was soon to find reward in merchant
trading and, despite the legal obstructions raised by the English,
the Scots were able to establish themselves successfully as
European traders and then, thanks to the French wars which
closed the approaches to south west England, as colonial traders.
Though this may seem to have little bearing on hostelries and
inns the outwardly mobile Scots became more knowledgeable
than their English counterparts - especially in the handling of
wines and the improvement of spirits.
The Scot was no simple consumer, though doubtless he had the
capacity, but instead the knowledge gained in handling cargoes
advantaged him in other ways.
Much of Scotland's trading lay with Germany and the Low
Countries and there was further trading with France, Spain and
Portugal with nearly all cargoes going through the port of Leith.
Clarets, port, brandy, Dutch gin, Hock and Moselle wines all
enriched the Edinburgh palate.
Though there was much opposition to The Union of the Crowns
in 1707 the merchants were quick to take advantage of the new
commercial opportunities.
At the time of 'the Union' Scotland had but 215 ships - by 1712
the Scottish merchant fleet had 1,123 ships.
Sugar and tobacco soon became the great trade of Glasgow and
so it was in Glasgow that the citizens drank rum and not whisky
and indeed the Glaswegians generally considered whisky to be a
'raw' spirit.
Whisky was no doubt improved by its storage in the empty
sherry casks of the Edinburgh merchants but, with the exception
13
of the application of duty which had been applied to the Scots
distillers since 1579, no regulation controlled whisky production or
maturity.
Although Scotland's links with the world were well established by
the 1730's it was 1749 before Glasgow had a regular stagecoach
service to Edinburgh and then, in summer only, a journey of
some 12 hours.
The carriers' service between Edinburgh and Selkirk - a distance
of some 38 miles - took a mere fortnight !
From 1758 the Glasgow to Edinburgh coach carried mail and by
then there were ongoing connections via Newcastle to London
which took a week. It was still quicker by sea !
Whilst stagecoach services in England were fairly reliable by about 1780
they still did not carry mail and it was only thanks to a certain Mr
Palmer persuading the Postmaster-General to allow him to carry
mail to Bristol - in 15 hours instead of the usual 4 days - that
brought about some 300 Acts of Parliament to build bridges and
generally improve roads before the mail service too became reliable.
Scot's shepherd's son Thomas Telford was to be the engineer
who made the biggest contribution to this work and he oversaw
the building of some 1,500 bridges and around 10,000 miles of road.
One of the most enthusiastic coach travellers was Campbell of
Inveraray who would contentedly sit for the 60 hour day and
night journey to London a journey which allowed only the
briefest of stops to change horses and have food.
Past food was certainly the order of the day and of the night and
with coach-horse changes timed to the minute - the actual
changes being made in less than one minute - the journey, for
example, between London and Holyhead allowed for 27 changes
of horse in 261 miles and that only gave the traveller 40 minutes
for food etc. !
Telford's roads suffered from such fast wheeled traffic and it was another
Scot - John Loudon Macadam, born in 1756 - who was to improve
their surfaces by chipping rough stones which bedded themselves
under the wheels into the road bases which, in turn, brought roads, for a
while at least, to near the standards that the Romans might have
approved.
Campbell of Inveraray, enjoying his travel on Telford's roads,
might not have been so happy had he stopped in his mind to
consider that the man who improved Telford's roads - Macadam -
was in fact a MacGregor !
A law, passed in 1605, made it punishable by death to bear the
name of MacGregor and in fact, two centuries later, it was still
enforceable !
One of the unhappy clan reasoned that as all men were supposedly
descended from Adam so he had the right to call himself 'son of
Adam' - MacAdam and would therefore have no
future dispute with any clan.
Happy MacAdam - Happy Campbell ! The standard Inveraray
execution was to tear off the unfortunate's arm, impale it on a
spike and then carry out the hanging !
By the 1750's, with trade and communications improving, Robert
Tennant, the brewer, opened The Saracen.'s Head, in Glasgow's
Gallowgate, as the first hotel in the city and here was established
the mail coach terminus for the service to Edinburgh.
As The Saracen's Head marked the eastern boundary of the city
The Black Bull, in Argyle Street - used by the Highlanders -
marked the western.
In 1783, the Tontine Hotel opened in Glasgow's West Street, in
the Trongate and here was, properly, the first travellers' hotel.
14
The Glasgow of the 1800's had a population of some 30,000
people and was more than well supplied with drinking houses. In
fact every twelfth house was a commercial drinking establishment !
Though the social behaviour of the natives changed little in
Victoria's reign - indeed it had not altered one iota in 2,000 years
before either - there were some notable developments in Glasgow's
catering facilities.
The Glasgow 'tea-room' of the 1890's was pioneered by the
Cranston family who owned the Crow Hotel in George Square.
The 'self-service' restaurant - the first being that opened by
William Lang in Queen Street - was visited and studied by
purveyors from all over London to find out how Lang's systems
worked.
When the Grand Duke Alexis visited Glasgow in 1880 for the
launch of the Czar of Russia's new steam yacht - the 'Livadia' -
he neatly summed up Glasgow as "the centre of intelligence for
England" !
Certainly in the 1880's and 1890's the average Glaswegian was
probably more generally and better educated than his southern
counterpart but it would indeed be very wrong to suppose that
either were more tempered than the other in their enthusiasm
for the temptations of the public-house or tavern !
Though the Victorians realised the desirability, indeed the
necessity, of providing
alternatives to the temptations of the public-houses it was a
problem not to be solved through the well intentioned temperance
socieities but instead through the development of the moving
picture and the cinemas.
With the introduction of the subway in I896 and the
electrification of the trams in 1902 a happy and gregarious
public found Sauchiehall Street to be the very centre of civilisation !
What better than a night out in 'Sauchie' Street with the Regal
Cinema - the first in Scotland to show films commercially - and to follow o0o
the film a fish supper at Godenzi's Restaurant - Heaven had
arrived ! "We're very proud of uncle - He once gave his name to a cocktail" !

And for the holidays what else but a trip 'doon the watter' to the o0o
coast and perhaps 'a look at the engines' - which to every
Glaswegian was the code for 'a trip to the bar' - and so too to travel "Why collect miniatures ? Everyone does that ! With full-size bottles
back in time to the beginning of that brand new century, the you're in a completely different league" !
twentieth century, to see the ways of the past and to perhaps learn a
little of how we once lived and played. o0o

- MISCELLANY - I'm not drunk !

Starkle, starkle little twink,
"I hear you can paint nearly anything," said the new inn-keeper to the Who the hell you are, I think
local sign painter. "Oh yes," came the reply, "especially red lions". I'm not as drunk as some thinkle peep I am
Besides I've only had some 10 Martinis
"Well I want 'The Angel and Trumpet'. Just say now if you can't do it". And anyway I've got all day
Sober to Sunday up in.
"Suppose I can but (in a quiet aside) 'spect they'll look like lions" ! I fool so feelish, I
don't know
o0o Who's me yet
But, the drunker I sit here
"I'd like some sandwiches to take up to my room" - "Sorry, we don't do The longer I get !
sandwiches". - "Well, let me have some bread, please". - "Sorry, we
haven't got any bread". - "Could I see the manager then, please". - I'm not drunk !
"Sorry," replied the very cool receptionist, "the manager doesn't see
guests" ! o0o

o0o

"A room for when ? . . . . . Nae chance !"

o0o

"A whisky and sofa," said the boss to his secretary. "No thanks, I'd rather
have a gin and platonic".
The only difference between a waiter and the devil is that the waiter's
got two tails !
15
 previous practice, entered by doors immediately adjoining the main
THE GLASGOW PUBLIC HOUSE entrance of "the shop".
April 1903 Counters, previously divided by screens and partitions, were also to be
cleared and opened up by demand and any allowed such partitions and
The regulations introduced by Glasgow Magistrates suggest that many
screens were to be reduced to eighteen inches in height and
of the city's public houses were in need of considerable improvement!
constructed of clear glass. They were also to be not less than six
Bearing in mind that just 100 years before 1 in every 12 houses in the
feet apart and could not project over the edge of counters. Such
city had been a drinking house it seems not improbable that many public
regulations enabled the bar staff to see what was going on at all
houses were still little better than ordinary residential houses which, later,
times and were intended to lead to better control of premises.
were used for retailing drink.
The customers were to have little or no opportunity for getting
Whilst the magistrates were prepared to transfer certificates to the
up to too much mischief ! Even the private sitting rooms, in the
husbands, widows or even the children - presumably under trust - of
past allowed to be secured by the customers inside, were to have no
certificate holders without necessarily requiring improvements to
locks or snibs on the doors.
premises they were certainly not going to grant transfers to others
without guarantees that premises would be considerably upgraded.
Family departments, for off-sales, were also removed under the new
Naturally, as is still the case to this day, all plans had to be submitted to
policy and bearing in mind the laws of age with regard to children the
the licensing courts before work was undertaken. Three copies of plans
move was long overdue.
were required - two on drawing paper and one on tracing paper or
tracing cloth - on sheets 20 by 13 inches - drawn on a scale of one-
No premises would be passed which were not provided with
eigth of an inch to the foot.
sufficient toilets for its size though no distinction was made between the
sexes. Water closets and urinals were to be fitted on external
The names of streets and lanes etc. had to be marked as had their
walls and demand was made that there be a window at least six
widths.
feet square -half of the window opening for ventillation - and
where no such window were possible a twelve inch extractor fan
Premises having back doors or openings leading to or from any closes,
was required to be fed through an extraction shaft not less than
staircases, lanes or back thoroughfares would not be considered as
half the square area of the fan employed and this shaft venting to the
suitable for use as public houses.
outside air. Floors of toilets were to be laid with concrete or tiles
and urinals of stall pattern were to be constructed of slate,
All drawings presented in application to the oourt would have to show
marble, enamelled iron, fireclay or tiled and fitted with
the heights of counters and partitions. Partitions and porches would
automatic flushing cisterns and 'dispersal' pipes.
have to have clear glass panels fitted above the height of four feet six
inches and instead of there being a number of small sitting rooms for the
All drains and draintraps had to be shown on licensing court plans.
customers the house would have a fully open area for its customers.
Cellars, under public houses, also had to be identified and again the
layout of drains - where they existed, which does not always
Where there was to be provision for additional sitting rooms each had to
appear to have been the case - also identified.
be lit by a separate window. Each room had to have a glass panel at
least twelve inches by six inches set in the door. The entrance to sitting
rooms had to be visible from behind the bar counter and not, as in - MISCELLANY -

16
Rare opportunity to buy (licensed premises) - No one else
wants !
Unspoilt s Planning permission granted for adjacent ground !
Subject to new instructions : The surveyors for the last would-be-
landlord''s bank say that 'it'll cost tens of thousands pounds to fix' !
o 0 o
CELLARS
Essential to the workings and the success of any establishment was the
condition of the cellar.
Proper ventillation, equable temperature and cleanliness with each
factor contributing to the quality of the stock sold to the customer. Walls
and floors were recommended to be covered regularly with a whitewash
of quicklime to which about 10$ of chloride of lime had been added.
Under no circumstances even temporary were perishables such as
fresh meat, fish, cheese, butter, fresh fruit or vegetables to enter the
cellar as their quick decomposition gave rise to odours which would
readily be absorbed by wines and beers stored in their casks.
While consistent with the avoidance of draughts there should be a supply
of fresh air into every cellar.
Temperature in the cellar is of great importance and as sudden change
can affect wine, through rapid expansion and contraction of the liquid
producing cloudiness, it was strongly recommended that wines be
stored separately from beers. The delivery of beer from the brewer, who
maintained the beers prior to delivery at a low temperature in the
brewery, would result in the sudden drop of temperature of the cellar and
affect the wine as described.
Also recommended was the racking of beers and wines on well raised
scanting of wood which should be bedded in sand if there was any
problem of vibration e.g. the then new Glasgow Subway affecting the
store !
17
Nothing was to be stored underneath the racking as a circulation of air
around the casks was particularly desirable - Previously many cellars
had stone and wood racking which had prevented the necessary air
movement - No single racking was to be more than ten feet in length.
Floors should be washed down with water containing a quantity of
diluted carbolic acid to act as a disinfectant.
Ideally every beer cellar sould have a hot water heating system and
each radiator should have a control tap to regulate its temperature thus
enabling a better control of the beers' conditions.
STORAGE TEMPERATURES (Fahrenheit) Aerated Waters and Minerals ( 40°
), Spirits ( 45° - 50° ), Cask and Bottled Beers, Sparkling and Light Wines (
50° - 55° ), Clarets and Burgundy ( 54° - 57° ) and Port, Sherry, Madeira
and Marsala ( 57° - 62° ).
The effects of sunlight had to be particularly avoided in the case of the
bottled wines, ciders and beverages containing citric or tartaric acids.
CLEANING OF BEER PIPES and BEER PUMPS
The use of soda water was not recommended for cleaning purposes as it
was likely to make the beer flat !
Once a week the pumps and pipes should be cleaned with a fairly strong
solution of soda made with warm water. This solution should be pulled
through the pipes and allowed to remain for an hour or so in them before
being drawn off and a bucket containing salt water is then pulled
through.
This in turn may be allowed to lie in the pipes for a short time before a
quantity of clean water is drawn through.
All pipes should now be clear of deposits and it is only necessary to draw
through a small amount of beer before it should be seen in perfect
condition for sale to the customer.
- MISCELLANY -
Make it a rule never to drink by daylight nor refuse by dark !
The only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it !
It's got lumps in it !
Every time I fall asleep he comes in and wakes me !
o0o
REASONABLE PRICES
Simplisticly, prices always and in every trade should depend on the
quality and standard of service supplied to the customer and to some
degree prices should also be an indicator of local prosperity - or,
conversely, its lack.
Inn-keepers were not entitled to greater charges than there were
'reasonable' !
The interpretation of reasonable was decided by both the intrinsic value
of the traveller's goods and possessions and the trouble and care which
the inn-keeper and his staff took to look after guests.
The 1881 Army Act fixed billeting charges for men and horses and is a
useful starting point for general charges for board and lodging. The rates
set out in the act were still in force 25 years later in 1906.
PREMISES - HOURS - TRAVELLERS - STAFF
In their wisdom, The Glasgow Magistrates of 1903 recommended that
-"certificate holders shall not employ females as attendants at the bars of
public houses, or theatres, or hotel bars used by the general public
excepting always females who are certificate holders attending
personally in their own shops or are wives or daughters assisting in such
shops or female assistants in licensed premises where a bona fide
restaurant business is carried on.
18
Where a bar is principally used for drinking purposes only male
attendants must be employed
there".
It would appear that the standing of the public houses was no better
than it had been some two thousand years before.
Whilst public houses were required to close on Sundays inns and hotels
could remain open to serve travellers. Innkeepers and hoteliers who
wished to close on Sundays were at liberty to make application for 6-day
certificates thus avoiding Sunday opening though they would still be
required to serve the needs of their resident guests and, in turn, the
guests of these resident guests !
Samuel Pepys, the diarist, notes how innkeepers considered their duties
as host and guide and in the better inns the landlord asked his visitors to
stay free, as his own guests, over the Sabbath !
Would such hospitality equivocate with today's "weekend breaks - 3
nights for the price of 2 nights" and one still is charged extra for all the
meals! Inns and hotels were similarly defined and were required to
provide four bedrooms where the local population exceeded 1,000 but
only two bedrooms if less - This situation might well be noted
today.
Licensing Hours were made universal throughout Scotland in the 1903
Act when hitherto there had been exceptions for burghs under 50,000
population the consequence being that places formerly exempt - such
as Edinburgh, Glasgow, Greenock, Leith, Aberdeen, Dundee and Paisley -
now all conformed to opening at 8 a.m. and closing no earlier than 10
p.m. and no later than 11 p.m.
Magistrates were empowered to grant special permissions allowing
opening not earlier than 6 a.m. - covering local markets - and, under local
bye-laws of local courts to allow for 'assemblies, balls and suppers on
special occasions.
In Glasgow grants were to 2 a.m. but if the occasion did not commence
before 11 p.m. then the extension was allowed to 3 a.m.

No mention is made of 'drinking-up-time' so that one could be
served right up to the very last minute but then have no time to
consume the purchase !
It also appears that special extensions did not allow any 'off sales'
outwith ordinary permitted retailing hours.
Railway station refreshment rooms were totally exempt from the new
hours with travellers able to be supplied at any time on any day
with the obvious exception of The Sabbath !
The new Act did not define what a 'traveller' was nor was there any
definition of a distance requirement of 3 or any miles laid down.
By 1906 it appears that no precedent had been identified as truly
acceptable for a travelling distance and indeed there never
was !
If there was any question of precedent it was presumed to have been
settled earlier by Section 10 of the 1874 Licensing Act in these
words "A person shall not be deemed to be a bona fide traveller unless
the place where he lodged is at least 3 miles distant from the
place where he demands to be supplied with liquor - such distance to
be by the nearest public thoroughfare" and some courts held
that, by such, to travel one yard less than three miles 'by the nearest
public thoroughfare' was not sufficient - it had to be the full three miles
or more !
In England the distance was 7 miles.
Even at the end of the 20th century concessionary travel fares for
schoolchildren or indeed their entitlements to free travel or any travel
are pedantic in terms of yards !
In 1893 a case defined that though the traveller might have qualified in
terms of distance he could not be served if the sole purpose of his
journey was to be served with refreshment before returning whence he
came !
19
As no definition was offered in the 1903 Licensing Act everything went
back 'to square one' and the only advice from lawyers of the time was
that "travellers must be questioned before being served and travellers
should sign a book and enter both name and address.
Police, in some areas, continued to ask for and demand to inspect
visitors' books long after this requirement was long out of subsequent
licensing acts and Argyllshire, 'in the late 1970's, was the last area
known to sustain 'a six-weekly inspection' of hotel registers.
Guests were travellers or wayfarers bedding at an inn and the mere
purchase of 'temporary refreshment' constituted the purchaser as a
guest and, furthermore, despite all disclaimers, rendered the innkeeper
- note 'inn-keeper' and not 'hotelier' - liable for the safety of his
guest and all his goods.
The inn-keeper had the right, not the hotelier, to detain his
guest's goods until their bills were paid - this being under The
Inn-keeper's Act 1878 and after a period of 6 weeks, the bills still
unpaid, the inn-keeper could give one month's notice of his intention to
recover the money due by auction of the goods held.
Neither the landlord of a public house nor, as has being said, the
hotelier allowed such means of recovery.
The inn-keeper was compelled to receive all comers who were sober
and in a proper state to be received and at all,hours of the day and night
until his beds were full. He could not choose one and yet reject another
lightly - The inn-keeper who did was liable to action in court and
forfeiture of his licence - His charges too had to be reasonable.
Strangely, in the 1970's the police seemed to be totally ignorant of
these well established principles and precedents which still applied and
were still acknowledged and accepted by insurers !
Under an act of I863 inn-keepers were limited to £30 liability for loss of a
guest's goods provided the inn-keeper kept at least one copy of the said
act publicly displayed. His liability was however unlimited if goods had
been deposited with him expressly for safe-keeping and,
presumably, a receipt issued.
The Shops Act of 1892 to 1895 provided that no person under 18 should
be employed more than 74 hours in one week - and that included meal
breaks. This act did not apply to shops alone where only family
members were employed nor did it apply to those who were wholly
domestic servants.
Bar staff were, by definition, 'domestic or menial servants' and
they were not treated as 'workmen' under the appropriate acts
of employment and liability.
The Glasgow Magistrates laid down that no bar staff should work more
than 60 hours in any one week, which appears a considerable
concession in 1903.
It is possible to define the relationships between employers and
employees from the following information. Employers were not
bound to give cause when dismissing employees nor was it
necessary to provide a character reference even though the employer
could be actually fined £20 for giving a false reference. Should
an employer have initially given the employee a good reference
he could legally disclose anything prejudicial to the new
employer at a later stage !
Wages were due to the time of dismissal or leaving. Employees,
often in these days being annually paid, would be liable for one month's
notice and wages at the termination of employment unlike
weekly paid employees whose wages were calculated on an
hourly basis. Disobeying legal and proper orders, continual
neglect of work in all its manifestations and moral misconduct
were all reasons for instant dismissal.
Female servants who were employed as single females could be
instantly dismissed should it be subsequently found that they were
married at the time of their engagement and failed correctly to declare
their proper status.
20
Similarly, if a male servant married one of the female servants
after entering employment he could, unless he had obtained his
employer's agreement for the marriage, also be dismissed
without notice. Amongst the RULES FOR EMPLOYMENT were the
following -
Not to open the premises or serve or supply liquor outwith the
permitted hours
Not to serve anyone intoxicated or the slightest degree under the
influence of alcohol
To turn out any drunken persons and having them removed, if
necessary, by the police
Not to serve anyone who is sober but accompanied by any drunken
person(s)
Not to allow or encourage bad language or disorderly conduct
Having asked a person to leave and he has refused to turn them
out GENTLY !
Not to serve policemen or anybody in their company and not to
let them remain on the premises longer than their duty required
Not to supply liquor on credit
Not to allow any men or women of bad fame to meet or remain
longer than necessary to consume their refreshments
Not to permit gambling or betting
Not to drink with the customers
Not to have any friends on the premises after hours
Not to have any money on their persons whatsoever while on duty
To act firmly but respectfully in all dealings and should anything
unusual arise to call the proprietor or manager
To observe the laws with regard to children
- MISCELLANY - for it themselves.
I thought I told you . . . . .
How was I to know this was different ?
Wait until the boss comes back and ask him !
I didn't think it was important !
That's my department !
o0o
CHILDREN
Under the acts prevailing children under the age of 14 were allowed to
be supplied with liquor in sealed containers to be taken home for
their families.
The measure had to be not less than a 'reputed' pint - this measure,
mentioned only in the Child Messenger Act 1901, was not an official
measure in any way in any other act - by nearest comparison, it was
generally recognised as one-twelfth of a gallon as opposed to the
official pint measure of one-eigth of a gallon.
It does not appear so strange in these circumstances that then
children of 14 to 16 were allowed by law to drink beer, ale or
porter but had to be over 16 to consume spirits.
The devious child who did want to consume spirits could, quite
within the law, have them delivered to home though it is
extremely doubtful if any had the money or the mind for such a
scheme.
21
Seldom is it acknowledged that in The 1976 Licensing Act that it
is possible for anyone between 16 and 18, dressed even in
school uniform, to go into a licensed restaurant, sit down, order
a meal and order beer or lager to drink with their meal and pay
It is still generally the case that few licensees and even fewer
police have actually read the licensing acts either then or now.
GROCERS and DELIVERIES
Grocers were not allowed to permit drinking on their premises. Three
convictions would result in an automatic life ban to hold an excise
licence.
Everything ordered from the grocer, in so far as liquor and spirits were
concerned, had to be written out in a day book kept at the grocer' shop.
An invoice was made out and this accompanied the order to the
customer. The invoice, as did the shop book, noted the customer's
name, address, description and quantity of the order and in turn all this
detail had to be entered in the delivery vehicle's day book. On arrival at
the customer's address the order was supposed to be delivered, like a
postal letter, only to the individual named on the invoice.
The courts recognised the 'evils of hawking' i.e. the sale of ritrink from vans
on the streets and one conviction was sufficient to disqualify a
certificate holder for two years.
BILLETING THE ARMY
Under The Army Act 1881 the holder of a licence was expected to
provide billets for officers, soldiers, horses of the militia, yeomanry and
volunteers whenever required.
Towards this end police authorities annually prepared a list of the billets
and notified licence holders of the expectations to be met. Each list
specified the situation and character of each house to be used and the
number of persons and horses to be accommodated by each.
If the billet was required and more men and horses turned up than the
number to which the house was liable then each house would have its
portions of the excesses billeted accordingly.
It was therefore in the interests of each licence holder to appeal the list
as soon as possible - preferably as soon as it was issued.
The penalties for refusing to billet the army on demand were from £2 to
£5 for each offence - that could mean for each man and each horse !
Should the house be already full the licence holder was obligated to find
alternative suitable accommodation which, of course in turn, had then to
be approved for the billet by the local police - not the army - before his
liability was relieved'.
Each officer paid for his own food at the normal rates of the
establishment but his lodging i.e. his bed and his attendance by waiting
staff was fixed at two shillings (l0 pence) per night.
The price was fixed for each soldier's lodging and attendance
which, when no meal was furnished by the establishment, had to
include candles, vinegar, salt, the use of the fire (for cooking) and the
necessary utensils for preparing and eating his meal was set at four
pence (2 pence) per day.
Each day, if a soldier required, a breakfast consisting of half a pound of
bread and a cup of tea was sanctioned at a fixed rate of 1½ d (l
pence).
If the soldiers were halted for two days at any establishment one
hot meal each day would be sanctioned to consist of not more than 1¼
lbs (about ½ kilo) of meat before it was cooked, 1 lb of bread, 1 lb of
potatoes or other vegetables, vinegar, salt, pepper and 2 pints of 'small'
beer for the sum of 1 s 3½ d (about 7 pence) and the soldier's lodging
and attendance set at an additional four pence (2 pence) per night.
For the horses a stable was to be provided along with 10 lb of oats, 12
lbs of hay and 8 lbs of straw for each animal and for that a fixed rate of
one shilling (5 pence) was allowed.
22
PUB GRUB
All licensed premises were required to provide fresh water at the bar
and on the tables and this was to be changed daily !
Also required was 'a fresh and sufficient supply of eatables such as
bread, butter, sandwiches, biscuits, cheese and pies and such eatables
were to be listed on a card with their prices against each item'.
Failure to do either of these above - in all licensed premises - was a
'Breach of Certificate'.
Such items were to be displayed upon the counter or in a place where
they could readily catch the eye of the persons entering the premises -
customers and inspectors alike !
The courts also demanded that notices listing the eatables available and
their prices be displayed in each and every area where drink was
served and could be consumed, 'Pub Grub' had arrived.
Bread, butter, cheese and meats were displayed in glass covered
stands and 'combination heaters' - warming pies and porter - were,
generally, fired by gas as oil would odour the food.
These 'drawered' heaters were up to about 2 feet high and
square and would hold
some three dozen pies, about nine gallons of hot water and
three pints of porter - What clever machines !
CLOSING OF PREMISES
Although inns and hotels, in the course of their business of
looking after travellers, were not required to conform to closing
on special days as was demanded of public houses and grocers
selling exeiseable liquor such premises - inns and hotels - were required
to be wholly closed on New Year's Day but when that day fell on a
Sunday they were also required to be wholly closed on the Monday too.
Though closed to the general public they still had to supply their resident
guests (and, of course, their guests) !
A century on this principle still holds good under The 1976 Licensing Act
and the case regarding Monday closures following from New Year's Day
falling on Sundays is that, properly on the Mondays, alcohol can only be
served with a meal - order first the meal and then the drink and not the
drink first for that is against the law !
Again now The 1905 Act - On Spring and Autumn Holiday Mondays
premises were restricted in their hours and, with the obvious
exceptions of inns, opening was allowed only between noon and
6 p.m.
GAMING
The legal games which could be played in licensed premises were to be
billiards, bagatelle, dominoes, draughts, skittles etc.. Darts were not, at
that time, even mentioned !
Illegality came in when any game was played for money, drink or a
combination of both.
Amongst the games named as illegal were - ace of hearts, faro, basset,
hazard, passage, roulet, baccarat and chemin-de-fer.
Betting was also illegal it being a contravention of The Betting House Act
and betting could result in fines of up to £100 plus costs or up to 6
months imprisonment.
LICENCES
To enable a person to keep licensed premises a Magistrate's Licence had
to be obtained at the local licensing court. Once this was granted it was
23
presented to The Excise Office who then issued a certificate which
allowed the certificate holder to carry out business.
Licences issued by magistrates correspond to those of the present-day
covering licensed grocers, public houses selling either beer or beer and
spirits, inns and hotels - for either 6 or 7-day opening - and again
selling either beer only or beer and spirits.
Dependent on the authority of the Magistrate's Licence the Excise Office
would grant a certificate to obtain and supply wine and beer or wine,
beer and spirits.
The combined beer and wine certificate cost £3 6 s 1d (£3.30 p) in 1906
but the spirits certificates were based on the rateable values of premises
and costs ranged from £4 10s (£4.50 p) for premises with a rateable
value of under £10 per year to £60 where the rateable value rose over
£700 per year i.e. the bigger the premises the cheaper the spirit
certificate - the lowest rated premises paying, in many cases, more than
45% extra on top of their rateable value while the highest rated payed
only some 8%.
Brewer's Excise Certificates were not only necessary for landlords
brewing their own beer and cost £1.00 - the exact same charge as was
paid by the large commercial brewers for their certificates - but were also
required by private brewers e.g. in 'the big houses' for brewing in their
own homes for private consumption and private brewers were charged
between 4 s (20 p) and 9 s (45 p) a year for their certificates. Distillers
and Blenders - and manufacturers of Methylated Spirits -similarly had
certificates and these cost ten guineas (£10.50 p) per annum.
Chemists also had to pay for an Excise Certificate - 10 s (50 p) and
Passenger Ships also had to secure an Excise Certificate £5 per year but
ship operators were not, first, required to obtain a Magistrate's Licence
for fairly obvious reasons !
- MISCELLANY -
There's India stamped on the tyres but we're not going to Calcutta !
We don't have a timetable any more - just guarantee same-day usually till 1 am though there are 'exceptions' in different licensing court
delivery ! areas.

If there are five empty seats and I say it's full - It's full !
o0 o
PASSENGER VESSELS
Though naturally outwith the control of licensing courts ship owners still
had to pay £5 for each ship's Excise Certificate to permit them to retail
intoxicationg liquors.
The duty rate of £5 could be reduced by one-seventh if the ship did not
sail on Sundays but if, subsequently, the ship did sail on a Sunday - it
being somewhat naturally assumed that sales would be made -then ship
owners would be fined £10 for each Sunday sailing. Though the 1903 act
did not detail any permitted hours for ships selling alcohol it was in
practice only permissible to serve once the ship's ropes had been
detached from the pier and only to serve until the first ship's rope
had landed on the next' pier.
The 1976 Licensing Act - as The 1903 Act - requires that ships sailing
between ports within Scotland in the twenty-four hour period from
midnight on Saturday to midnight on Sunday must conform to 'hotel'
permitted hours i.e. 12.30 pm to 2.30 pm and 6.30 pm to 11 pm and of
course ships had to be away from piers before bars could be opened.
Under the 1903 Act, because of the provisions for 'travellers', the
permitted hours would, in theory, have been from midnight Saturday to
midnight Sunday ! Though none of MacBrayne's ships sailed on
Sundays these considerations were of some importance to passengers
on Clyde steamers! In the 1950's and 1960's when the 'DUCHESS OP
HAMILTON', in these summers, returned up-river from her Sunday
run to Campbeltown she left Brodick Pier, on Arran, at 5,40 pm
and got into Fairlie Pier at 6.40 pm which, in theory, allowed Fairlie
and, consequently, Glasgow bound-passengers only ten minutes
drinking time because of the law. In practice the bar opened as
soon as the steamer left Brodick !

No sales of alcohol were permitted whilst the ships were tied to piers
and, in the 1980's, this 'snag' became apparent to the operators of the
'HEBRIDEAN PRINCESS' ( the former Caledonian MacBrayne car ferry
which was converted into a 45-berth luxury 'mini-liner' cruising in
British and Irish coastal waters).

The owners of the 'HEBRIDEAN PRINCESS' (formerly the 'Columba') were

obliged to make applications to each and every licensing court in whose
area lay piers which the ship might berth alongside for short and
overnight stays on which occasions the 'law of the land' would apply to
alcohol sales.

The inconvenience of all the necessary paperwork encourages the

owners 'to anchor' rather than 'to berth' the ship as separate licences,
under The 1976 Licensing Act, are needed for 1) the ordinary permitted
Such 'common-sense' prevailed when, in 1970, the MacBrayne steamer
hours of 11 am to 2,30 pm and 5 pm to 11 pm and 2) for 'regular
'KING GEORGE V' was chartered for MacBrayne's first ever public
extensions' for the periods 2.30 pm to 5 pm and from 11 pm onwards -
Sunday sailing - their ships did not normally sail till just after midnight on

24
Sundays i.e. Monday mornings - and the first ever 'Sunday breaker' to
the island of Iona.
Departing from Oban at 9.30 am and scheduled to arrive off Iona at 1
pm giving three hours ashore (by ferry) and returning to Oban at
about 7 pm, it should have been the case that 'hotel' permitted
hours were observed and, the ship anchoring and not berthing at Iona,
this would have allowed the sale of alcohol from 12.30 p.m. till 2.30 pm
and again from 6.30 pm till she tied up, about 7 pm in Oban.
MacBrayne's Catering Superintendent - a real gentleman by the name
of Dick Whittington and an Irishman to boot - was on board and
about 10 o'clock that Sunday morning he asked about the permitted
hours for Sunday opening on board ships !
By the time the 'KING GEORGE V had reached the end of Kerrera - just
half an hour out of Oban - Dick made an announcement over the public
address system !
"Ladies and gentlemen. There will be sittings for lunch at 11 and 12
o'clock and tickets for these are now available from the purser's office
on the shelter deck. Light refreshments are also now available in
the cafeteria situated on the deck below the dining saloon AND
the adjacent saloon - reached by the stairway just before the dining
saloon entrance - is also, for the first time on a Sunday, now open for
the sale of crisps and other refreshments" !
It wasn't that the ship's passengers were devout alcoholics but
rather the sheer ingenuity of the announcement that drew the crowds
to the 'lower reaches' and that morning there were many queued
'looking at the engines' as they waited on the chance to get their
'crisps' !
Having digressed thus far it is worthwhile noting 'the the teetotal boat'
and the persuasions of the times.
25
THE 'IVANHOE'
Though 'looking at the engines' was, at least to Glaswegians,
synonymous with 'going to the bar' it was not until 1890 when the
Caledonian Railway Company built the paddle steamer 'CALEDONIA'
that the expression came into phraseology as it was, until then,
customary to box in and enclose all but the entrance to the engine
control platform from public view.
Not only was the 'CALEDONIA' innovative in allowing passengers to view
the operating of her engines but she too had 'a new toy' as not only did
she have 'Chadburn's' engine room telegraphs - these were introduced
first, in 1873, on the nine-year old 'IONA (III)' - but introduced, for the first
time 'docking telegraphs' which enabled the ship to be handled at piers
without orders, for the control of her mooring ropes, having to be
shouted, often against the wind, from her bridge and these docking
telegraphs - for ordering 'Make Past', 'Come on Deck', 'Haul In', 'Throw
Line', 'Hold On', 'Stand By', 'Slack Away', 'Look Out for Pender' and 'Let
Go' - also had a bell system to each paddle box platform, aft of the
paddle wheel, to order the control of the waist-ropes - 1 ring 'Throw
Line', 2 rings 'Make Past', 3 rings 'Slack Away* and 4 rings 'Let Go' - thus
keeping passengers near the engine space fully amused.
And so to the 1880-built 'IVANHOE' built for the quaintly named Frith of
Clyde Steam Packet Company whose directors - Alexander Allan of The
Allan Line, George Smith of The City Line, Captain James Brown also of
The City Line, Captain James Williamson and Robert Shankland, both
then of Greenock - all of whom, apart from Captain Williamson, viewed
this 'teetotal' venture as something of 'a hobby'.
The object of the venture was to provide an all-day cruise without the
liability of encountering the disorderly scenes commonly seen on other
steamers and to allow passengers to enjoy their trip without the
drunken disturbances which,, on other ships, so frequently
caused discomfort to the ordinary passenger !
Though temperance parties had long sought such a 'vehicle' as the
'IVANHOE' their attitude afforded, as Captain Williamson noted at
the time, "a notable example of that sort of preaching that does not
develop into practice" !
Captain Williamson also states that some members of these
temperance parties "were the most difficult of the vessel's
passengers to please and in the steward's department these
passengers expected to get a first-class article at a second-class price"
and he goes on "many instances of this peculiarity might be cited,
but I refrain". Also, says Williamson, "The experience of the vessel
showed clearly how hollow principles can prove themselves when
their sincerity comes to the test of £ s.d." and "the running of
the 'IVANHOE' was the most practical and effective temperance
sermon ever preached" and that was without the support of these
temperance parties who for so long had 'vapoured' on the subject of
temperance !
The 'IVANHOE' ran for 17 years as a teetotal boat and her daily
route took her from Helensburgh - not Glasgow - to ureenock, Gourock,
Kirn, Dunoon, Wemyss Bay (where most of her Glasgow passengers
boarded), Rothesay and through the Kyles of Bute to Corrie, Brodick,
Lamlash, King's Cross and Whiting Bay.
She then retraced her route to Corrie before deviating, by the
south of Bute and Runnaneun Light, to Rothesay and then
Wemyss Bay and her other outgoing calls.
The 'IVANHOE' also then reinstituted evening and 'moonlight' cruises
which had not been tried since the 1820's when early
steamships first became common and, again 'teetotal', their
26
success was due largely to the complete abscence of drunken
and riotous passenger behaviour.
The owners of the 'IVANHOE' also introduced firework displays to the
Clyde resorts when, for £100, they brought a Mr Pain, the London
pyrotechnist, to the Gareloch to put on a display which was of course
also enjoyed for no cost by thousands of spectators lining the shores. One
of the biggest annual firework displays was at Rothesay with up to 25
steamers cruising round the bay and Rothesay Town Council's fireworks
committees charged each ship owner £5 per ship for the display.
The 'IVANHOE' was decorated more like a private yacht than an
excursion steamer and she was the first Clyde steamer to have floral
displays in her saloons. Vines were even planted in pots lining the sides
of the dining saloon and their branches were trained across the saloon
ceiling and a report about the ship appeared.in 'The Queen' magazine.
Though known as 'the teetotal ship" her patrons, says
Williamson, "were by no means all of the teetotal persuasion".
Presumably her passengers were not unfamiliar with the device of the
hip flask !
In 1886 The King of Saxony spent a day, as an ordinary
passenger, aboard the 'IVANHOE' - thus dignifying her route with the
title 'Royal' - and Williamson states that "as might have been expected,
he proved much easier to entertain than his equerry who, indeed, had to
be reminded that he was not on board a private yacht.
Invited to the 'IVANHOE's' bridge The King of Saxony ventured a
bet that there was not even a bottle of Rhine wine on board the
ship !
The medicine chest, surprisingly, won the bet and The King's forfeit took
the form of a presentation to the ship of the royal monogram set in
brilliants" says Captain Williamson.
CLUBS
No licence holder of any description was allowed to supply liquor
to any club or masonic lodge of which he held membership. Any
club selling liquor to its members had to be registered with the
clerk of the local justices who, needless to say, was clerk of the
local licensing court.
A register, open to inspection by anyone (sometimes for a fee),
included all details of club officials etc. and had to be updated
annually. When a club ceased to exist or if its membership became less
than 25 it was removed from the register - offences would also lead to
removal of its approval by the clerk for licensing purposes.
Secretaries, or other office-holders, making false statements regarding
the registration of clubs could be fined £50 each plus 3 months
imprisonment with even, on occasion, hard labour !
On a lighter note, it will be observed that it will be no longer
possible for the ardent golfer when he migrates to his summer
quarters in pursuit of that most interesting pastime to become a
temporary member of the local golf club for his altogether too short stay
and he must now pay the usual entrance fee and the full
subscription to become a (drinking) member.
Anyone in a club refusing to give or falsely giving his name and
address to police with a search warrant would be fined £5.
Any person supplying and every person authorising i.e. club
officials the supply of liquor in an unlicensed club could be fined
£50 and be imprisoned for a month with hard labour.
If liquor was kept on the premises of an unregistered club every
officer and member could be fined £5 each unless able to prove
that as individuals they had neither known of such store orcould
prove that they had advised against it.
Justices of The Peace could grant search warrants to enable the
police named therein to gain access to clubs.
Without a search warrant police had no right of entry to a club.
27
If need be, in order to gain access to a club when in possession
of a search warrant, police could use force to inspect premises
and take names and addresses of those found on the premises
and to seize books and papers relevent to the business of the club.
PAPERWORK
While the Edwardian licensees successors may think themselves
hard done by making, presently Value Added Tax (VAT),returns to
Customs and Excise the penalties then for any omission, negligence or
delay were probably even greater than they are now.
All spirits delivered were accompanied by a certificate or permit stating
their strength and volume. This certificate was then entered
immediately and no later than immediately into the stock book -
the penalty for not not doing so immediately being £100 - Woe
betide the licensee who was 'spot checked' !
Before this entry could be made the spirits had to be checked for any
variance which might have occurred between leaving the
supplier and reaching the licensee.
The difference in strength between that indicated on the delivery cert-
ificate and that in the spirit cask - a difference of between 0.2
and 0.5 of a degree being quite commonplace though the
volume of liquid should be found to compensate - had to be
checked and a further check of the cask's volume made by
dipping the spirit cask with a measured and gauged and
approved dipping rod.
The stock book was entered to show the date of receipt, the certificate
number, the supplier and the place of supply, the gallonage
delivered and the type, the strengths and the proof gallonage of
the spirits received.
The actual certificate that was received with the delivery was
now defaced and cancelled - if this was not done immediately the stock
book was entered the penalty was £50.
Though cancelled and defaced the delivery certificates had to be
kept for a full year in case of subsequent inspections.
The licensee's stock book was further entered with details of the
cost rates and cost amounts, the selling rates and expected
selling amounts and any licensee who failed to fill in these
details with the arrival of each delivery could be fined £1 for
each gallon of spirits in excess of that shown in the stock book
and would run the risk of
their forfeiture as well !
- MISCELLANY -
It is regretted that it was not possible to send the enclosed forms to you
before the date by which, had you received them, you would be required
to forward the completed copies to this office !
I am not liable for Inland Revenue as I live by the coast !
The fact that The Bill did not appear in the Parliamentary
timetable for this session did not mean that it had a low priority
but merely that other measures had a higher priority.
What I have said has demonstrated that it is very difficult to find
an answer to the question but, if pressed for an answer, I would
say that, so far as one can see, taking things by and large,
taking one time with another and taking the average of
departments, it is possible that there would not be found very much in it
either way !
I was just about to reverse and you don't need a seat-belt !
I can't get it fixed - It's Sunday tomorrow !
OFFENCES AND FINES
Breaches of Certificate made licensees liable for fines of £5 on the first
conviction and of €10 and £20 on the second and third.
28
The certificate could be forfeited on the first or second conviction but a
third conviction automatically orought with it the loss of the Magistrate's
Certificate and consequently the authority to obtain an Excise
Certificate was therefore also lost.
There were, of course, rights of appeal during which period the premises
could continue trading until the appeals were heard.
The 'breach' offences were, namely -
the adulteration of alcohol or food sold on the premises,
the sale of groceries or uncooked provisions for consumption outside of
the premises,
permitting 'breaches of the peace',
drunkeness or disorderly conduct to knowingly take place or the failure
to maintain good order on the premises,
permitting men, women, boys or girls of 'bad fame' to meet on the
premises,
selling or supplying intoxicating liquor to anyone under the age of 14 for
consumption on the premises or knowingly supplying them with liquor in
unsealed or uncorked vessels or containers or in supplying such liquors
in quantities less than one-twelfth of a gallon i.e. less than a 'reputed'
pint,
selling or supplying drink on Sundays to other than bona fide travellers
and residents
and contravening special permissions or permitting the playing of games
which had been declared unlawful.
Under The Tippling Acts of 1751 and 1862 it was an offence to take
wearing apparel, goods or chattels in return for drink.
The licensee could be liable to the same penalties as laid down for
'Breaches of Certificate' but if charged only under The Tippling Acts the
licensee would only be fined £2.
Statutory Offences, being more serious than 'Breaches', were liable in
many cases, to involve imprisonment.
These statutory offences, with their corresponding penalties, were listed
as selling to the prejudice of the customer liquor not of the nature
demanded unless a label indicating the contents was fixed on the
container, £20 for a first, £50 or £100 for a second and either £50 or
£100 for a third offenoe with the discretionary possiblity of 3 months
imprisonment) and also liable to similar penalties was the obstruction or
bribing of officials under The Adulteration Acts as was the diluting or the
mixing of beers.
Failure to use standard measures (£10 for a first, £20 for subsequent
offences and forfeiture of measures) - use of unstamped measures
where used as imperial measures (£5 for a first, £10 for a second
offence and forfeiture of measures) - contravention of The Betting House
Act by allowing betting on the premises (£100 plus costs or six months
imprisonment) - refusing to admit the police (£10) - harbouring, giving
liquor to, allowing to remain or bribing police (£10 for a first and £20 for
subsequent offences) - permitting payment of wages on premises
unless to own staff (£10, although only £2 fine in the case of miners
being paid their wages) - trade descriptions by false labels etc. (£20 or 4
months imprisonment for a first offence and £50 or 6 months for
subsequent offences) - sale of spirits for consumption by those under 16
years of age (£1 for first and £2 for subsequent offences) and it should
be remembered that it was quite legal for 14-year olds to buy beer, ale
and porter.
Failure to comply with van sales and delivery regulations (penalties as
for Breach of Certificate) - knowingly supplying liquor to anyone declared
'a habitual drunkard' within three years of their last conviction (£10 for a
first and £20 for subsequent convictions). A licensee being intoxicated
during permitted hours was a 'Breach of Certificate' and so too was the
failure to close on 'special' holidays or to supply fresh water and
eatables.
29
Failure to comply with alterations demanded by licensing courts would be
fined £1 per day till orders were complied with.
Under the rules regarding the running of elections it was an offence to
hire out a room for committee use (£100) and anyone found supplying
drink to bribe the electorate had to go to trial before the Lord Advocate.
Failure to accept billeting of soldiers and horses, as was any attempt to
bribe anyone to billet them elsewhere, would result in a fine of between
£2 and £5.
Failure to notify infectious diseases of travellers or residents (£20) -
failure to provide and keep clean toilets (£2) and failure to
provide seats for female employees (£3 for a first and £5 for
subsequent offences) made up the list of Statutory Offences.
In a list of penalties for offenders other than licensees selling liquor with
a licence (£50 for a first and £100 for subsequent convictions
and a third conviction automatically debarred the offender from
ever holding a licence).
Being a 'mala-fide', as opposed to a 'bona-fide', traveller (£5),
knowingly sending anyone under 14 years of age to purchase
less than a 'reputed' pint (£2 for a first and £5 for subsequent
offences), premises found, where a search warrant has been
used, containing more than 1 gallon of liquor and considered
therefore to be a 'shebeen' (£5 for a first and thereafter £10 and
forfeiture for subsequent offences) and anyone found drinking in a
'shebeen' (10 shillings or 10 days imprisonment) - failure to admit police
to such premises (£10).
Disorderly conduct in licensed premises or refusing to leave at closing
time (£2) - found drunk in a public place and not in the care of
another person, using objectionable language, in possession of firearms
whilst drunk or drunk in charge of a horse or a child (£2 with 30 days
imprisonment if unable to pay or 50 days without option).
'Habitual drunkards' who were convicted of being cruel to
children could be fined up to £50 or given one month's
Imprisonment, A witness neglecting or refusing to appear or refusing
to give any evidence (£5) and a witness prevaricating (£5 or 60 days
imprisonment).
The Inebriates Act of 1898 allowed convictions of 50 days or a caution
of £20 for six months.
Also listed as an offence was the collection of public rates or
taxes in licensed premises !
EXCISE OFFENCES
Excise - the name given to the duties or taxes laid on certain items
amongst which spirits have always been the most important. In
Scotland duties were applied to whisky first in 1579. Excise duties
were introduced in England by The Long Parliament in I645 being then
laid on the makers and sellers of ale, beer, cider and perry.
The management of The Excise was for a long time entrusted to special
commissioners but in 1849 was transferred to The Board of The Inland
Revenue.
Excisable liquor was defined in the Licensing Act of 1828 "deemed to
include any ale, beer or other fermented malt liquor, sweets
(including British wines), cider, perry, wine or other spirituous
liquor". It was to be expected that offences under the Excise
provisions would be treated with severity !
Selling without a licence beer(£20), or spirits or cider, perry, wine or
sweets (£50) or for continuing to sell without a licence after conviction
(£50) as was the fine for not supplying bona fide travellers.
Persons found removing spirits exceeding one gallon and failing to
produce a permit or certificate could be fined £100 or imprisoned with or
without hard labour. The same penalty applied for hawking, selling or
'exposing' spirits outwith licensed premises and in both cases the the
spirits would be seized.
30
Receiving, buying and selling without the appropriate authority
led to fines of £100 and possession of spirits on which no duty
had been paid led to a fine of treble the duty value of the spirits and to
their forfeiture.
Persons removing spirits exceeding one gallon who had no permit or
who fraudulently used or produced a permit would be fined £500,
forfeit the licence they held and The Excise would seize both the
spirit and the vehicle used for the conveyance of the spirit at the
time of the incident - The same principles hold to this day.
Assaulting or obstructing revenue officers demanded fines of
between £100 and £500, attempts to bribe officers (£200) and
this in the case of Customs, Excise and Inland Revenue officers.
Any individual policeman refusing to help Customs and Excise
officers in the course of executing their duties could himself be
personally fined £50 - It should be remembered that the times and the
duties were often violent and dangerous.
Licensees were required to display their name on premises and failure to
do so, as equally, falsely displaying their name, led to a £20 fine. Any
licensee who failed to produce his licence on demand was also to be
fined £20.
All casks in possession of a licensee had to be marked with the
proper quantity of strength of their contents (£50) and if illegal spirits
were found (£50) and the spirits forfeited.
For every gallon of spirits over the figure in the licensee's stock book
(£l) and for the practice of illegally 'Grogging' spirit casks there
would be a fine of £50.
Dealers could not sell, as they were wholesalers, less than two gallons or
one dozen 'reputed' quart bottles - equal to three gallons - (£50) nor
could a retailer buy from or sell to another retailer without a
dealer's licence (£50).
Anyone found receiving such spirits could be fined £100 or fined
treble the value of the spirits and their calculated duty.

Rectifiers, dealers and retailers could forfeit their licences if they
were fraudulently used and fined £500 and their failure to
maintain stock books could lead to fines of £100.
Manufacture or sale of methylated spirits required a licence
(£50) and these spirits could not be sold on Sundays (£100) or
as a beverage (£100).
THE REVENUE and SMUGGLING
Adam Smith identified that revenue from labour be wages and that from
stock be profit.
The ancient public revenue of the country accrued from Crown Lands
which later became recognised as Ordinary Revenue and long
diminished so that additional monies were required and this levy
became known as Extraordinary Revenue.
For long, taxes had been levied by monarchs much as they
pleased but an Act of Edward I (l272 - 1307) declared 'that no
tallage or aid shall be taken or levied without the goodwill of the
archbishops, bishops, earls, barons, knights, burgesses and
other freemen of the land' thus first admitting the voice of the people
in the imposition of taxes.
Henceforth, taxes have been levied by the vote of the people's
representatives in assembly. The evolution of the assembly
culminating in the present Houses of Parliament and the
ultimate assent of The Lords and The Sovereign is needed before the
rates decided by The Lower House can be levied on the people.
The larger portion of revenue is procured through the offices of The
Customs and Excise.
Customs duties, levied on commodities exported and imported,
were initially introduced by Edward I - chiefly on wool, sheepskins and on
leather.
31
The earliest commonly named officer of customs was Geoffrey
Chaucer - perhaps best known as a poet - and he was appointed
comptroller of of wool customs in London in 1374. In 1582 he
was promoted as the Comptroller of Petty Customs where he
remained till 1386 when, due to the downfall of his patron John
Gaunt, he was dismissed.
In 1394 Chaucer was made Clerk of the King's Works at a salary
of £20 a year and was then entitled to a pension of £27 a year !
In 1788 Robert Burns salary was £50 a year and the maximum
possible rate Burns might have attained was £70 a year.
In time the customs became tonnage - levied on wine - and poundage
levied on all other goods. The word tonnage still survives in the
measurement of ships.
Despite all the levying system remained one of great uncertainty
and inconvenience until The Customs Consolidation Act of 1787
fixed a single duty rate for each and every commodity.
The taxes levied upon certain articles of consumption were first
resorted to as a temporary measure by The Long Parliament but
form to this very day a most importantant source of revenue.
In a Bill to extend the operation of excise Sir Robert Walpole, in
1733, suggested, though it would not become law until 1802,
the system of the Bonded Warehouse.
The immediate payment, on landing, of duty on imported
articles was found to press heavily on the merchants and, as the
merchant got no return until his goods reached the retail dealer,
the purchasing power of the merchant was severely crippled -
the bonded warehouse solves part of the merchants' problems
as no duty is payable until the goods are removed for delivery to the
retailers.
The collection and management of excise had been under the
control of special commissioners until I849 when control passed
to The Board of Inland Revenue.
Legislation regarding customs has various and formidable
difficulties to contend. On the one hand the requirements of
public revenue make it impossible to dispense with customs
while, on the other, the principles of free trade require that in the
imposition of such charges they must be as little contravened as
must be consistent with the interests of collection.
Duties must not be raised to such a height that they may
discourage lawful importation and in doing so make smuggling
remunerative and to do this creates a
double evil - the loss of revenue and the demoralisation of the people.
The Customs Consolidation Act of 1876, consolidating all previous aots,
defines smuggling as "the importing or exporting of prohibited
goods, or goods without the payment of the customs or excise duties to
which they are liable".
Under The 1876 Act customs officers were permitted to search anyone
for possession of such goods described but, before that individual could
be searched, the individual could require the customs officer to take him
before a justice or a superior officer who had to determine that there
were reasonable grounds for that search.
Any officer misconducting himself in search of an individual
could be personally fined £10 for misconduct but, equally, any
individual obstructing officers in execution of their duty could be fined
£100.
Commentators of the period noted that a peculiar feature of taxation in
the U.K. at the time was that while revenue showed a steady
annual increase the rate of taxation per head of population was almost
static notwithstanding the fact that without interruption there is a
reduction in taxation in some form or other i.e. that the difference
between taxes repeated and those imposed in their place always tends
to favour a reduction of taxes as far as the individual is concerned. The
32
actual revenue drawn by a country is no criterion of its wealth or of the
tax-bearing strain it is able to bear.
Commentators of the period also believed that the revenue of
the U.K. was capable of greater expansion than that of any other
country in The World !
Direct taxation - income tax - was as high as 1 shilling and four
pence (7 p) in the £ in 1855 but as low as two-pence (1 p) in the years
1874 - 1875.
In 1895 tax was levied on incomes of £160 upwards with a personal
allowance of £160 on incomes up to £400 per year.
The 'Cost of Living* index was first calculated in July 1914 and was
superseded in 1947 by the 'Retail Price' index.
It is probably more positive to reflect on the fact that in 1896 The
Caledonian Steam Packet Company could have supplied a half pint of
beer and a whisky for 6d (2½ p) and in 1996 the price is £1.85 p,
the whisky by then in 1/5 of a gill, rather than 1/4 gill measure.
ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES
There is scarcely a juicy fruit or vegetable from which alcoholic drink can
not be prepared. All alcoholic drinks fall into one of three categories -
Fermented Liquors, Distilled Spirits and Liqueurs,
FERMENTED LIQUORS are prepared by the fermentation of infusions
of starchy or saccharine substances - amongst such liquors are beers.
Beer is manufactured from the fermental infusion of malted grain or of
any substance containing sugar or starch. There are two main stages in
the preparation - malting and brewing.
Malting is carried out by steeping the grain - covering it with several
inches of water - and leaving it for between forty and sixty days before
couching.
This next stage requires the swollen grain to be thrown in heaps -
couches - on to a floor for a period of twenty-four hours during which
time the grain's temperature rises thus absorbing oxygen and giving off
carbonic acids.
During this sweating moisture is released from the swollen grain and it
begins to germinate - the evidence is shown by the appearance of small
rootlets on the grains.
The grain is now 'floored' as it is spread out twelve to sixteen inches
deep and, over a period of two to three weeks, is turned with shovels to
prevent unequal heating and over-rapid growth of the
germination process.
As the grain is turned it is spread over an increasingly larger area of the
floor till the depth of the heaps is reduced to about four inches.
Finally, the grain is spread on a floor perforated with holes to allow the
passage of hot air through the grain which is now rapidly turned until
dry. At all stages of the process temperatures are regularly observed.
This final stage of malting - known as 'kiln-drying' - should produce a
malt lighter than water, full, plump and unshrivelled, crisp and easily
broken between the teeth to disclose a soft, floury kernel with a sweet
and agreeable flavour.
It is the temperature used in the final 'kiln-drying' which brings about
the colouring necessary for the various types of beer - pale and
amber at 99° - 100° F for light beers; brown at between 150° and 170° F
for sweet ales and, by further roasting, black is produced at
between 360° and 400° F for stouts and porters.
Brewing begins with the crushing of the malted grains and it is
most important that the grains be only crushed - not pulverised.
During the malting process a peculiar introgenous substance - diastase -
is produced which reacts on the starch of the grain converting it
into soluble dextrin and grape sugar.
33
By treating the malted grain with hot water the starch remaining
is, with the help of the already present diastase, converted into
grape sugar and the resulting mixture becomes a sweet wort.
The wort is produced by placing the grain into a 'mashing tun' -
a vessel which has a false floor perforated to separate the grain
from the wort - and scalding the grain with hot water.
As the best worts are obtained from heating the mash to
between 158° and 167° F it is common to draw three worts from the
same mash.
The first wort is drawn when the mash reaches 158° F and
dissolves the more soluble ingredients bringing the dissolved
starch into intimate contact with the diastase and the natural
free sugar.
The wort is allowed to stand for two hours, allowing it to settle,
before it is drawn off and the mashing tun refilled with hot water.
The wort is now heated to 167° F and again allowed to stand for
two hours before being drawn.
The mashing tun is again filled with hot water and heated to
between 158° and 167° F and, similarly allowed to stand for two
hours before being drawn off, this wort, the third which merely
extracts any still remaining starch products, is more often used
as 'a starter' for the next mashing sequence than mixed with that
drawn earlier.
Each mash is carefully regulated for its ingredients and the temperatures
and ingredients for each mash are carefully noted.
The strengths of each wort will differ and these are ascertained
by the use of a saccharometer - a type of hydrometer.
The range of specific gravity will range from about 970 to 1150
and by mixing the worts the required gravity will be obtained.
An export beer - for warm climates - would have between 14 and
20 lbs of hops added for every 28 lbs of malt that had been
mashed whereas ordinary beer would have only 4½ lbs of hops
or a superior beer 8 lbs of hops added at this stage.
It should be remembered that many homes brewed their own beer and
a simple recipe for 'hop beer', without using a mashed wort, was
to take 5 ozs of hops, added to 8 gallons of water, which was
then boiled for 45 minutes and to this then would be added 2½
lbs of brown sugar - an ingredient not allowed in commercial
brewing !
Commercial brewers could only use burnt sugar for colouring purposes.
When the brown sugar had dissolved the liquid was strained off and 3 or
4 tablespoons of yeast were added.
The mixture was then allowed to ferment for 48 hours or so before being
bottled. (The number of yeast bubbles "can be reduced if a teaspoon of
margerine is added) !
After a few days standing in the bottles for a few days this
home-made hop beer is ready for drinking.
The object of boiling the wort with the hops is to coagulate the
remaining albuminous material which is apt to cause putrid ferment-
ation, to concentrate the wort and to convert any residuary
starch into sugar or dextrin but, most importantly, to extract from the
hops certain constituents namely - a bitter resinous principle called
lupulin and tannin which not only preserve the beer but import to it an
agreeable flavour.
The boiling time is between one and three hours during which the wort
clears by the coagulation and subsidence of the nitrogenous
matter.
Construction of the copper used for boiling the wort with the hops is
such that at the bottom a set of rotating arms prevent the hops from
sticking to the bottom and charring - these called 'the rouser'.
34
Above the copper is a cistern of cold water and a pipe from the
copper top, through the cold water cistern, collects the vapour
from the hops producing the volatile oil which is collected for later
introduction in a later batch being brewed.
Once boiling is complete the liquid is drawn off into a 'hopback'
where a perforated bottom again allows the hops and matter in
suspension to settle before the liquor is strained off into shallow coolers
2 or 3 inches deep.
Frequently the liquor is run through pipes which are themselves
immersed in cold
flowing water so that the presence of acidity - foxing - is reduced.
Fermenting this hopped wort is now the most critical aspect of the brew.
It is desirable to introduce this wort to the fermenting tun at between
54° and 64° F and, once there, 1% to 1½ % yeast is added.
Much heat is developed in the fermentation which converts the grape
sugar into alcohol - an action known as "vinous fermentation'.
In order to prevent overheating a metal coil carrying cold water is run
through the fermenting tun.
Temperatures of 95° are undesirable as that level favours acetic
fermentation but, with the cooling action of the water coil, the
production of the finer pale ale takes place at 72° F.
The appearance of small bubbles of gas at the sides of the tun is the first
indication that fermentation has began.
Gradually, as other bubbles appear, they are driven to the centre of the
tun.
The action becomes more energetic as the quantity of carbonic acid
being liberated from the wort increases and the froth, which collects on
top of the surface, swells and breaks up into rocks.
The mass of froth, initially colourless, gradually becomes yellow
indicating superior beer or brownish-yellow indicating an inferior quality.
Once the action slows up the head is skimmed off.
The action of the yeast has been to split each molecule of grape sugar
into 2 parts of alcohol and 2 parts of carbonic dioxide - this action is
referred to as 'the working of the mixture'.
Once again the degree of attentuation - the reduction of the density of
the beer - is ascertained using the saccharometer and when the desired
strength is reached the yeast is separated and the liquor is drawn off
into casks.
As the beer will still retain a few particles of yeast a small, almost
infinitesimal, amount of fermentation may continue and for this reason
the cask bungs are not immediately tightened into the casks thus the
excess liquid has a chance to run off.
The beer should now be allowed to 'clarify' - a process helped by the
natural saline elements of the
water used in its brewing with lime being one of the most important of
these.
'Finings' of gelatine or isinglass, dissolved in sour beer, were sometimes
added to precipitate suspended matter.
Only once clarified can the beer be barreled and stored - at around 50°
F - before being delivered to customers.
In transit beer is subject to much disturbance and does not like any
travelling over long distances and beer casks must be racked for
three or four days in the customer's cellar to allow the beer to be
settled before customers will find it acceptable.
Only the skill and experience of the cellarman and his discipline in
keeping his cellar and equipment in good and clean order can control the
condition of beer supplied in wooden casks.
35
The amount of alcohol in beers varies according to its strength.
Sweet and mild beers possess more body or are richer in malt extract
and consequently lower in alcohol than bitter or export beers.
Percentages of alcohol in beers might be suggested as - strong ales (6
% or 7 %), brown stout and porter (6 % or 7 %), London porter (4 %),
Burton Ale (8 % or 9 %), Edinburgh Ale (6 % or 7 %) and
Dorchester Ale (5 % or 6 %).
The word 'ale' is understood to have Anglo-Saxon origins in 'eale'
and, previously, in the Danish 'ol'.
PERRY - from pears - and Apple Wine or Cider - are also Fermented
Liquors and the fruit, when thoroughly ripened and matured, is then
reduced to a pulp in a grinding machine under edge rollers.
The pulp is spread into a large bale, often locked in straw, placed in a
large screw press and the pressed juice placed into barrels.
The pressed juice begins to ferment rapidly and, according to the
strength desired, is taken off after between two and ten days to be
stored, preferably, in stone jars.
Cider and perry generally contain malic acid, alcohol and sugar in
addition to water and the alcoholic strength varies between 5 % and
10%.
WINE also is a Fermented Liquor and much is often made of its
ageing and improvement.
Homer spoke of wine in its eleventh year, Horace, of wine equal to
his own age and Pliny (AD23 - 79) of wine that was some two hundred
years old !
The process of fermentation begins as soon as the grapes are crushed.
Sparkling wines, such as champagne, are bottled before fermentation is
completed so that the remaining carbonic acid is forcibly
retained and dissolved in the wine.
The somewhat obscure process of fermentation is eminently
identified by Pasteur in his "Etudes sur le Vin".
The change is induced by a minute fungoid organism -
mycoderma vini -and chemically consists in transforming 105.4 parts
of grape sugar into 51.1 parts of alcohol, 49.4 parts of carbonic
acid, 0.7 parts of succinic acid, 3.2 parts of glycerine and 1 part
of yeast matter.
With these are also developed minute portions of fusel oil and ether to
which are due the aroma or bouquet of the wine. These ethers
develop and interact while the wine matures and, as the wine's value
is due entirely to its richness in respect of these, the proper
maturing and preservation of the- wine is of the utmost importance.
Other changes also occur during this period when the acid
tartrate of potash, contained in the juice, separates and forms a crust
of argol and frequently acid fermentation, caused by a fungus -
mycoderma aceti - follows causing the wine to sour.
A further danger lies in faulty corking of the bottles or barrels which
allows exposure to occur and oxidization to happen. The majority
of wines contain between 7 % and 13 % alcohol and where the
percentage is higher than 13 % - as in the case of sherries and ports
which may have 16 % to 25 % alcohol - it must be assumed that
the wine is fortified with brandy or other spirit.
The best known PORT is Bucellas which is said to have been
made from transplanted Rhenish vines.
For many years port, shipped to England, was 'adulterated' with
a purple compound called 'jeropiga' which contained
elderberries, syrup and brandy.
Now 'adventitious' spirit of between 3 and 17 gallons is added to each
115 gallon port pipe before shipping which hastens its marketable
condition by checking its fermentation and promoting the port's
keeping qualities.
36
With SHERRY the greater part is retained in Spain to maintain the
'Solera' or 'old mother-wine' which is topped from each new crop
and it is generally this 'Solera' which is exported and not the individual
new wines from each year's crop. A final point on the heavier
wines such as Madeira, Sherry and Port has long been the
experience that, in the heat of ships' stowage, transporting these
wines, with the constant movement of the ships at sea, leads to a
considerable improvement of the wines and it was long considered a
prize to take of an 'East India' wine which might have been transported
to India and back one or more times !
During The Second World War a shipowner who lived beside Toward on
The Firth of Clyde in Scotland regularly entertained officers from the
near-by anti-aircraft battery to dinner and to the concern of his guest(s)
would not infrequently tell the butler to 'take that back' and had
him clear away a whole sideboard top of seemingly barely touched
bottles.
It was the middle of the war years when one-night the shipowner said to
one of his more regular guests 'that's much better - isn't it ?' and of
course his guest was none the wiser until his host told him that all the
wines he had his butler take away on a previous evening had been
'carefully convoyed1, several times, back to the Mediterranean
before, that night, they were again being sampled !
DISTILLED SPIRITS - the second category of Fermented Liquors - are
from fermented infusions or saps.
In the seventy years between 1801 and 1871 the population of
the U.K. doubled but, during the same time, the ostensible consumtion
of spirits rose from 8.8 million gallons to 29.1 million gallons - a very
serious increase in consumption - more than trebling.
These figures are purely 'extensive' because they failed to identify the
great influence of smuggling in the early part of that century !
A fairer basis for interpretation in the forty-year period for 1830 to 1870
showed a decline in consumption from 1.16 to 0.95 gallons of spirits per
head of population !
This, roughly, meant that every adult enjoyed 'a dram every other
day'.
In the case of Scotland during this same latter period the decline
was very marked - a drop of nearly 30 % in consumption - indicating a
very great change in the national habit !
By 1890, however, the general consumption, everywhere in the
U.K., was again on the increase.
The process of distillation separates the alcohol from the fermented
liquor and is effected by the simple process of heating the desired liquid
to boiling point and condensing the vapour which is alcohol.
ALCOHOL IS NOT FOUND IN NATURE and is a liquid containing
carbon, hydrogen and oxygen and may be obtained from bodies
of vegetable origin as they contain different kinds of sugars and
starch.
A characteristic physiological property of alcohol is the
intoxicating effect it has on the body when swallowed !
Fermented Liquors contain alcohol in varying degrees from 7 % to 50 %
and owe their stimulating properties to the presence of the
alcohol.
Small doses of alcohol stimulate, medium doses pervert and
large doses destroy functions.
ALCOHOL HAS A STRONG ATTRACTION TO WATER AND THE
TWO MAY NEVER BE COMPLETELY SEPARATED.
Rain water is distilled by the sun's rays and is both insipid and
odourless while, on the other hand, spring water contains
various impurities among which are salts of ammonia, lime and
37
magnesium but, when distilled, these impurities are left behind
and pure water passes over.
As is found in Scotland in the production of whisky, the springs
from which the water is taken leave an imprint on the water despite the
distillation process which adds identifiable character to the end
product(s).
When any substance containing sugar or starch is mixed with a large
proportion of water and allowed to ferment with the addition of
yeast it is converted into grape sugar and as the substance
decomposes alcohol and carbonic acide are produced.
A dilute solution of alcohol is thus obtained and from it the alcohol is
partially separated by distillation as alcohol, boiling: at a lower
temperature, distils over the water which biols at a higher temperature.
The vapour being condensed and collected forms the first
'fraction' and continued heating brings the second liquid to boiling point
when it too would vaporise and distil over - the total mixture is then
described as 'fractioned'.
The strongest distillation - known as 'rectified spirits of wine'
-contains about 9 % water.
Pure alcohol is obtained by leaving this distillation in contact with
quicklime for some time. The quicklime combines with the water in the
spirit to form slaked lime and through further distillation the
alcohol is distilled off and is referred to as 'absolute alcohol' even
though it still contains 1 % or 2 % water.
Complete separation is only possible when the boiling point of the two
liquids is widely removed and is only then possible if the liquids are not
chemically aligned.
The simplest still is a retort which has a corked top through which a
thermometer is inserted to measure the temperature of the rising vapour.
A pipe, running from the top of the retort below the cork, catches the
rising vapours and this pipe is immersed in cold running water so that
the vapour passing through the pipe condenses into a collecting vessel.
In production distilling the pipe carrying the vapour is spiralled in shape -
coiled - which gives an increased area of cooling surface within its overall
length and is known as a 'worm'.
The first portion of the liquid distilled always contains the largest
proportion of the most volatile liquid and the latter produces the least.
This first distillation is carried out by heating the liquids to as near 100° C
as possible.
As alcohol boils at 78° C and water at 100° C, any mixture of the two
will boil at less than 100° C.
It is of importance to note the temperature at which the liquid starts
boiling and begins to produce vapour and the temperature nust be
continually monitored to detect the rise in temperature which will
indicate the second liquid beginning to boil.
At this point the vapourising liquid is diverted to a different vessel. The
residue in the heating vessel is then water - pure water.
The liquid from the second part of the first distillation is now again
distilled in the same manner and a further collection is made from
anything boiling between 10°and 78° C.
A very strong alcohol may be obtained in this manner but it will still
contain around 13 % water.
Obviously the nearer it is possible to keep boiling the liquids at 78° C the
greater the content of alcohol but, as it has already been, acknowledged,
there is a great attraction between water and alcohol and it is impossible
to obtain 'absolute alcohol' without there still being some infinitesimal
percentage of water in its volume.
38
While most distillers use double distillation some like, Springbank in
Campbeltown, Argyll, favour triple distillation.
The task of the blender of spirits is to mix the various distillations till a
uniform product is achieved.
The product may be the product of one distillery - as in a malt
whisky - or the product may be a mix of products from various
distilleries - as in blended whisky.
Regardless of the composition of the product(s) it will be
necessary to reduce the strength to an acceptable level for
consumption.
The strength of spirits is reduced by adding cold - usually - previously
distilled water for that purpose.
Though distilled water is preferable it should be clearly
understood that it must be used as soon after distillation as
possible and this is for the simple reason that contact with its
surrounding atmosphere will encourage absorption of impurities
and defeat the reason of its use.
Boiling water was considered by many to be not inferior for
reducing purposes.
To bring it to a proper condition prolonged boiling was necessary
to ensure precipitation of any lime and other organic salts and
thus to improve the brightness of the water.
Taps on the boiling vessel, placed well above the level of
deposits falling to the bottom, allowed this clear water to be
drawn off and cooled before adding to the spirits to be reduced.
The third and final category of alcoholic beverages concerns
LIQUEURS which are sweetened and aromatized spirits and spirits
which are simply aromatized.
They are prepared in a variety of ways and into some numerous varieties
and both aromatic and fruity constituents are employed.
Liqueurs vary widely inalcoholic strength and may also be
regarded as including gin and other unsweetened spirits,
cordials and various beverages pass into use under the name of
British wines.
Bitters and unsweetened aromatized spirits such as absinthe do
not belong to the class of liqueurs.
THE ILLICIT STILL
The still is best situated away from general view,
necessarily close to spring water !
The smoke from its fire must be dispersed with care, perhaps
even using the camoflage of spray from a water-fall or even
dispersing the smoke by piping it through a peat bank.
The fire is enclosed in a stone hearth, large stones being used
to support the heating vessel which itself may also double as the
still.
The heating vessel is most likely around 40 gallons in size and
capable of being fitted with a head for distilling.
Three or four casks will be required for production purposes,
plus casks for or other containers for storage purposes.
The barley is left in a sack which must soak, prefarably in bog-
water, for up to two days.
Over the next seven to ten days, the grain is laid out to
germinate and should be turned at least once every twenty-four
hours before being transferred to a heated floor or a kiln over a
peat fire to dry out, a difficult task for the open-air distiller.
The dried malt is tipped into the heating vessel where the water
is already boiling and the mix is then boiled for up to two hours
before being strained through a heather, layered as a filter.
The contents of the filter, the malt mash or draff, may now be
put back into the heating vessel which contains more fresh and
boiling water and again, after the mix being boiled for another
couple of hours, the mix is strained through another fresh
heather filter.
The heather filters are discarded and the two 'worts', the liquids
from the first and second boilings, are mixed together in a cask
and, with plenty of yeast added to assist the fermentation, are
left for a couple of days to let the process work.
though
This now fermented liquid is poured back into the heating vessel
to which the head - a large pot with a tube is sufficient - which
is sealed to the body of the heating vessel using an oatmeal and
water paste, a small piece of soap, perhaps around two ounces,
too on occasion added to the fermented liquid before sealing,
the soap helping prevent the first distillation fouling.
39
 Commonly, the open air distillers would hide their still-heads
The condenser tube, a 1½" copper tube, coiled in a spiral barrel and spiral copper condensers in deep water pools or lochs, an
shape, is attached to the tube now protruding from the head on otherwise inconspicuous 'fishing float' marking their position for
top of the heating vessel and the joint sealed with oatmeal and their return.
water paste.
o0o
The spiral copper tube is placed in another cask containing cold
water and the tube MOONSHINE ( 1895 )
led out through the side, near the base of the cask, the outlet
plugged with tow and thus the vapour running through the spiral (On the moon) life may be possible - the animals hibernating through
is cooled as it flows down to the outlet. fourteen days of darkness, enclosed in a shell of ice !

The wash, the fermented liquid, in the heating vessel should o0o
now boil fairly quickly and, as soon as the upper part of the
copper tube becomes warm, the fire below the heating vessel
should be killed off with water. SPIRIT REDUCTIONS etc.

The resulting 'distilled' liquid coming from the copper tube
should be re-boiled and re-distilled perhaps some four times.
The problem of this type of still lies in its head which needs as
much height as possible to improve the quality of the products.
If it is impossible to increase the still head to a reasonable
height, it will be even less possible, without a lot of practical
experience, to separate the oily foreshots and tailings, termed
feints, from the distilled alcohol.
The authorities, namely The Customs and Excise, take an immediate
interest in all matters of manufacturing alcoholic beverages and with
unbending tolerance every stage is monitored in record and in practice
with the ultimate aim of adding to The Revenue coffers. Some tolerance
is allowed for 'natural' reasons of absorption and evaporations in sound
casks and barrels and under ordinary warehouse conditions the scales of
1 gallon per 20 gallon cask and a ½ gallon for smaller casks being
allowed for each year or part of a year during which wine was stored.
In the case of stored spirits a different set of allowances was used -

Only the middle run of the second distillation is likely to Casks Casks
be sufficiently pure for actual use in two or even more Not Upwards Under
further re-distillations for consumption in a system such Exceedi of 80 gallons
as has been described here. ng 80 gallons
Ordinary Special Ordinary Special
Without constant observation of temperature changes in a short- Loss Loss Loss Loss
headed still, the practioner had only his experience to enable 1 month 1% ½% 1% 1%
him to gauge the strength and clarity of his products - No 2 2% 1% 2% 2%
contemporary distiller can afford to be without hydrometer or months
thermometer. 6 3% 2% 4% 3%
months
40
 It is therefore recommended that unless for immediate sale at
1 year 4% 3 % 5% 3 % the prevailing recommended strength the reduction be carried out to 1°
2 years 6% 4 % 7% 5 % less than required in order to take account of the further fall of strength
3 years 8% 5 % 9% 6 % through evaporation that may occur between the time of the
4 years 10 % 6 % 11 % 7 % reduction and the moment of sale e.g. do not reduce to under 25° proof
5 years 12 % 7 % 13 % 8 % but reduce instead to only 24° under proof.

After the fifth year no further special allowances were made and the
allowance was simplified to just 2 % per year or part year thereof for
each succeeding year.
Whereas the ordinary allowance covered natural evaporation and
absorption the special allowance met further waste due to causes such
as porous timber, slack hoops, defective staves, worm holes, or, the
generally bad conditions of storage.
A further aspect has to be taken into account before any reduction of
the strength of the spirits is undertaken - namely, obscuration.
Obscuration is a term used to express the amount of proof spirit hidden
or camoflaged - obscured - by matter such as sweetening or colour or
other solid matter that may be mixed in with the liquid spirits to be
reduced in strength.

The loss in volume and strength by natural causes is, in terms of
evaporation, proportionate to the strength of the spirit and the condition
of the cellar. Further, if spirits are drawn off from the bulk in the cask the
surface areas remaining is enlarged or renewed and further natural
evaporation takes place. The more frequently this takes place the
greater the natural loss.
It is therefore desirable to break down or reduce the spirits as soon as the
cask is opened.
The weaker the strength of spirit the less liable it is to lose strength and
the natural evaporation is consequently less. Even if the casks into which
the reduced spirits are stored are not sufficient to take the whole bulk of
the reduced spirits it is important to reduce the remainder in the
supply cask to minimise the loss by evaporation.
Any such matter will, as a hydrometer only gives a correct
reading of absolutely pure unsweetened spirits or mixtures of spirits
and water, affect the action of the hydrometer and this corresponds with
the obscuration which is expressed as a percentage of proof strength.
Obscuration is, as a percentage of proof strength, in no way
connected with the spirit's weight or volume.
Whisky is free from obscuration as regulations prevent the
addition in bond of any sweetening or colouring ingredient except fluid-
colouring known as "pax red', a sherry, to be added no more than 1 pint
to every 80 gallons of whisky.
Whisky being stored in former sherry casks there is a reaction of
liquid already absorbed in the wood of the cask.

The water to be used in the reduction has already been
described and caution is advised in reducing the strength of
spirits to the exact amount of strength permitted under the
regulations of sale in so far as the length of time anticipated
before the moment of sale.
The spirits ordinarily containing obscuration are brandy (1 % to 3½ %),
rum ( ½ % to 3 %) and gin (between nil and a half percent).
All measurements are based on the proof gallon a standard
which was originally measured by pouring some of the spirits to be
measured over some gunpowder !

41
If the spirits, when fired with a match, were over proof they
ignited but, if under, would fail to ignite. The scale is indicated above and below the mark 'P' which stands for
'proof.
The proof gallon is measured both by weight and by volume. When allowed to rise and settle the indication should be read with an
allowance for the convexity of the spirit round the hydrometer's stem i.e.
The readings on a hydrometer use as a base point 60° F as the mean the division on the stem below the surface of the liquid should be read
temperature for calculation and at that temperature 1 Imperial gallon of whilst on the other hand in the taking of temperature the degree
160 fluid ounces contains 49.28 % alcohol by weight but 57.1 % above the mercury should be taken.
alcohol by volume. The proof gallon is taken then as being 100
degrees proof. The spirit should be stirred with the thermometer for a short
time before the temperature is read.
A rough 'rule of thumb' for finding the percentage of alcohol by
volume is to multiply the proof degrees by 4 and divide by 7. It must always be borne in mind that if the thermometer reads over
60°F then the hydrometer will float lower in the liquid making
In the French Gay-Lussac system proof degrees are equal to the the spirits appear of greater strength but should the thermometer read
alcohol percentage by volume. below 60° F then the hydrometer will float higher making the spirits
appear of less strength.
The U.S. gallon is smaller than the Imperial gallon and for that
reason e.g. an 80° proof bourbon is 40 % alcohol by volume. A set of compensating tables provides that a percentage be subtracted
if the temperature is over 60° F but added if under.
Should the spirits to be reduced contain obscuration e.g. rum with 3 %
obscuration this has to be added thus the calculation for water to be Three ranges have different strengths - All Temperatures are Fahrenheit
added in the reduction will be based on not on 100° but on 103° which is
3° over proof and would not be reflected in the hydrometer reading Thus 30° and upwards 'over proof' -
which would only show 100° proof.
Temperatu 35½ ° 39° 42½ ° 46° 49½ ° 53° 56½ ° 60°
A spirit that is 1° over proof will need 1 gallon of water to bring it to proof re
% ADDED 7% 6% 5% 4% 3% 2% 1% +/-
strength and, conversely, spirit e.g. that is 5° under proof will contain 5 0%
gallons of water and 95 gallons of proof spirit.
Temperatu 63½ ° 67 ° 70½ ° 74 ° 77½ ° 81 ° 84½ °
The percentage of alcohol is found by subtracting the number of re
degrees under proof from 100 and dividing them by 100 before % 1% 2% 3% 4% 5% 6% 7%
subtracted
multiplying by 57.1 e.g. 70 divided by 100 multiplied by 57.1
equals 39.97 %.
30° 'over proof' to 10° 'under proof' -
In testing a sample of spirits care should be taken to ensure that all air
Temperat 36 ° 39° 42° 45° 48° 51 54° 57° 60°
bubbles have dispelled and the hydrometer should be immersed until ure
the surface of the liquid reaches the division 'o' on the hydrometer's % ADDED 8% 7% 6% 5% 4% 3% 2% 1% +/-
stem. 0%

42
 Temperat 63° 66 ° 69° 72° 75° 78° 81° 81° On deck in bad weather Vernon always wore a cloak known as a
ure
'grogram' and was given the nickname 'Old Grog' and! from then
% 1% 2% 3% 4% 5% 6% 7% 8%
subtracte on 'grog' has been the accepted name for the practice of rinsing out
d the remains in casks.

Duty was payable only on the quantity of liquid that could be poured out
of the cask once the end had been knocked out and the oask turned
upside down. However, there is a not inconsiderable quantity of spirit
absorbed by the wood of the cask which could not accurately be
estimated.

Some traders availed themselves of this spirit by the practice of

10° to 40° 'under proof' - 'grogging'.

Temperat 35 ° 37½ 40° 42½ 45° 47½ Having emptied the cask in the normal manner they would add
ure ° ° °
% ADDED 10 % 9% 8% 7% 6% 5% from one to two gallons of water to the cask, replace the bung
and, after 24 hours they would turn the cask over.
Temperat 50° 52½ 55° 57½ 60° This process would be repeated until all the wood of the cadk had
ure ° °
% ADDED 4% 3% 2% 1% +/-
come into contact with the water and over the course of a
0% fortnight this mixture - grog - comprising water and spirits was
gathered and although too weak to sell as spirits the mixture
Temperat 62½ 65° 67½ 70° 72½ 75° could be advantageously be used for reducing full strength
ure ° ° °
% 1% 2% 3% 4% 5% 6% spirits.
subtracte
d Anyone found using this practice could be fined £50 per cask plus
Temperat 77½ 80° 82½ 85° suffer its forfeit.
ure ° °
% 7% 8% 9% 10 % Rinsing of casks was only allowed at the time when their original
subtracte
d
contents were emptied.

It was permissible to rinse round with a small quantity of water for

Thus having defined the true strength it is necessary to allow, as may be
required, the addition of allowance for obscuration, if applicable.
Admiral Edward Vernon is credited with serving his men regularly with a
mixture of rum and water - the practice is dated about 1740.
43
the express purpose of drawing off the whole of the liquid
contents at the time the original contents were drawn with the
express purpose of adding this liquid to the bulk of the original
only.
Casks which perhaps had been used for rum and were required or 50 x 10 divided by 15 - 33.33 gallons of 85° spirit to be
for, say, the storage of gin - a clear liquid - could only be rinsed in added.
the presence of sustoms formally notified about the activity. The
ordinary rules for reducing spirits make no allowance for the To Raise Weaker Spirits by The Addition of Stronger
Spirits
contraction in bulk which takes place when spirit and water are
mixed. 1) Multiply the number of gallons to be increased in strength
by the difference in
This contraction varies with the strengths of the spirits to be strength between the weaker spirit and the required strength
reduced and in strong spirits the error through ordinary rules may and
under-estimate the quantity of water to be added by some 3 %
or 4 %. 2) Divide the product of 1) by the difference between the strength
of the stronger spirit to be added and the required
Thus - strength.

To Reduce Spirits with Water : e.g. Raise 33½ gallons of 85° to 'proof' using spirits of
110°
1) Multiply the difference between the present strength and the is 33 ½ x (100 - 85} or 33½ x 15 divided by 10 = 50..25 gallons
required strength by the of the stronger spirit
number of gallons to be reduced and to be added.

2) Divide the product of 1) by the required strength e.g. 60 gallons To Make Up from Spirits of Different Strengths - Spirit of
at 105° to 85° Given Volume and Given Strength
is 60 x (105 - 85) or 60 x 20 = 1200 divided by 85 = 14.1 gallons
to be added. 1) Multiply the required volume of spirits by the difference
between the strength
To Reduce Spirits Using Spirits of A Weaker Strength of the weaker spirit and the strength of the required spirit and

1) Multiply the number of gallons to be reduced by the difference 2) Divide the product of 1) by the difference between the strengths
between the present of the two spirits to
strength and the required strength and be mixed.

The result is the volume of the sf the stronger spirits to be used

Divide the product of 1) by the difference between the weaker whilst the difference is the
strength spirit to be volume of the weaker spirit.
used and the strength of the spirit required.
e.g. To make up 30 gallons at 106° from strengths of 102° and
e.g. 50 gallons at 110° to 100° by adding spirit of 85° is 112°
50 x (110 - 100) is 30 x (106 - 102) or 30 x 4 divided by (112 - 102) or 10
44
 which equals 12 gallons of 112°and (the difference) 18
gallons of 102°.
FORTIFYING WINE - such as sherry - also required the use of
similar calculations as spirits were added.
Thus in fortifying a wine which will increase its strength it will be
necessary to calculate how much spirit of given strength is required.
1) Multiply the volume of the wine by the difference between its
exact present
strength and the required strength and
2) Divide the product of 1) by the difference between the strength
of spirit to be used and
the strength to which the wine is to be raised.
This will give the number of gallons needed but in turn will be
converted to proof
Gallons
e.g. To fortify 108 gallons of sherry from 29° to 34° with a
spirit of 168°
is 108 x (34 - 29) or 108 x 5 divided by (168 - 34) or 134 equals
4.03 gallons
which is reduced to 'proof' gallons thus
4.03 x (168 - 100) or 4.03 x 68 divided by 100 to require 2.74
gallons of water
to be added to the already calculated 4.03 gallons of 168°
spirit
and thus a total of 6.77 gallons is added to the 108 gallons
of sherry.
The basis of these calculations is volume and no account is taken of
weight and because of this there is an under-calculation of the
liquid of some 3 % or 4 % or simply the resulting liquid is still
above the strengths calculated.
45
When spirit is distilled with water a contraction of bulk, varying with the
proportion of each, takes place. The mixture measures less than the
spirit and the water separately.
Proof quantities are calculated on bulk and the expression of
'over' or 'under' proof implies that if the spirit was made exactly proof
its bulk would be 'so many hundred more or less' than its present
quantity.
Thus 100 gallons at 66.4° 'over proof' or 166.4 gallons at proof or 208
gallons at 20° 'under proof' all equal the same amount of proof spirit
but, their bulks are different - the bulks, respectively being, 100, 166.4
and 208 gallons.
When estimation of mixtures of spirits and water is made by
weight the the particulars do not change e.g. 100 lbs of spirits at any
strength and 100 lbs of water make exactly 200 lbs of the mixture
though, on the other hand. the volume has contracted by the
action of mixing the two commodities together.
A table of specific gravities of spirits represents the weights of
equal bulks of spirits at each indication of the hydrometer
referred to the same bulk of water considered as a unit and, by
simply moving the decimal point one place to the right, their
proportion refers to water as 10.
But a gallon of water weighs 10 lbs and the gravities in this case
therefore represents the weights in lbs and decimal parts of the
various strengths of the spirits.
If now a quantity of spirit is reduced to a weaker strength per
cent the only change made is in the proportion of water the proof
quantity being unaltered so that by finding the difference of
weight between the two bulks one shall have the weight of the
water added, as this will be the cause of the difference and, as the
weight of each gallon added is 10 lbs, the bulk will be estimated from the
weight.
Using the following spirits -
 100 gallons of 60° 'over proof' to 'proof'
66.5° 'over proof' = 166.5 and weighs 8.154 lbs
160 gallons x 9.189 lbs = 1470.24 lbs
60.0° 'over proof' = 160.0 and weighs 8.282 100 gallons at 60° 'over proof' x 8.282 lbs = 828.20 lbs
lbs The Difference = 642.04 lbs water at 10 lbs per gallon = 64.204
gallons
Proof = 100.0 and weighs 9.189 lbs Thus increase is 64.204 - 60 = 4.204 gallons

30° 'under proof' = 70.0 and weighs 9.512 lbs 100 gallons of 66.5° 'over proof' to 30° 'under proof'

Under the ordinary rules the following amounts of water are added to
reduce 100 gallons of
66.5° 'over proof' to 'proof'
is 100 x 166.5 divided by 100 = 166.5 - 100 = 66.5 gallons.
257.86 gallons x 9.512 lbs = 2262.52 lbs
100 gallons at 66.5° 'over proof' x 8.154 lbs = 815.40 lbs
The Difference = 1447.12 lbs water at 10 lbs per gallon =
144.712 gallons
Thus increase is 144.712 - 157.86 = 6.852 gallons

66.5° 'over proof' to 30° 'under proof'
is 100 x I66.5 divided by 70 = 257.86 - 100 = 157.86 gallons.
60° 'over proof' to 'proof'
is 100 x 160 divided by 100 - 160 - 100 = 60 gallons
60° 'over proof' to 30° 'under proof'
is 100 x 160 divided by 70 = 228.57 - 100 = 118.57 gallons.
and 'Proof' to 30° 'under proof'
is 100 x 100 divided by 70 = 142.86 - 100 = 42.86 gallons.
However, under the Special Rules of Weight, as opposed to
Volume, the following is true -
100 gallons of 60° 'over proof' to 30° 'under proof'
228.57 gallons x 9.512 lbs - 2174.16 lbs
100 gallons at 60° 'over proof' x 8.282 lbs = 828.20 lbs
The Difference = 1545.96 lbs water at 10 lbs per gallon - 134.60
gallons.
Thus increase is 154.60 - 118.57 = 16.05 gallons.
The rule by weight is to multiply the quantity to be reduced by its proof
strength and divide the product by the required strength but instead of
subtracting the original volume to determine the volume of water
to be added, the weight in lbs of the original strength should be
subtracted from the weight, by strength, of the identified volume, which
divided by 10, is the required gallonage.

100 gallons of 66.3° 'over proof' to 'proof' A full set of gravity tables will be needed.

166.5 gallons x 9.189 lbs = 1530 lbs HANDLING WINES

100 gallons at 66.5° over proof x 8.154 lbs = 815.4 lbs
The Difference = 714.6 lbs water at 10 lbs per gallon = 71.46 In racking wines, avoid, as much as possible, contact with air
gallons and this is especially important in the case of Claret, Hock and
Thus increase over ordinary rules is 71.46 - 66.5 = 4.96 gallons Burgundy.

46
Ports and Sherries should be racked into clean casks on delivery and
the empty wine casks rinsed immediately.
In order to 'fine' red wine the beaten whites of 5 or 6 eggs should be
beaten and mixed with a little of the wine,' a pinch of salt added
and the mixture poured back into the hogshead.
In the case of white wines, some isinglass is mixed with some 1½ or 2
pints of warm water and added to the hogshead.
The brightness of the wine should be checked about 14 days later and if
the 'fining' has not taken effect within four weeks the wine should be
racked into another clean cask with the addition of 1 gallon of proof
spirit, perhaps even with the addition of ½ ounce of tannic acid
dissolved in the spirit and added back into the hogshead.
To fine Sherry, Marsala or Madeira the use of Spanish Earth is
advised.
It is unwise to fine light or thin wines such as clarets either unnecessarily
or too heavily and a period of some 2 to 4 weeks should be allowed
before bottling a fined wine.
Only bottle port in January, July, August or December and never in the
Spring - Other wines may be bottled at anytime.
A settled spell of weather should be chosen for the operation and the
bottle taps should be put into the cask(s) the previous night to avoid
cloudiness in the wine which will be slightly disturbed by the
tapping.
Make certain all the bottles are clean and dry and the wine to be bottled
should be sampled and taken to a dark corner of the cellar so that it can
be viewed by a bright light for clarity.
Bottling should be carried out as rapidly as possible it being best to
bottle a complete cask with as little interruption as possible thus
avoiding unnecessary exposure of the wine's surfaces to the
cellar air.
47
Claret should be filled close to the cork but other wines should only be
filled to within about ¾ of an inch of the cork to allow room for
expansion.
Sound faultless corks should first be rinsed in cold then scalded in hot,
though not boiling, water which both sterilises and increases elasticity
and corks should be briefly soaked in some of the wine that is being
bottled.
Cover both corks and about ½ an inch of the bottleneck with melted
wax - stand upright for 24 hours before binning remembering also to
bin Sherry and Madeira above Port and Claret.
NON ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES
Mineral Waters are spring waters which contain an excess of
mineral ingredients above what is usually found in ordinary drinking
waters.
The waters can be divided into different classes by their content
and some become available for retail and supply in bottles sized 10 oz
or in 5 oz to 6 oz 'split' sizes.
Simple Alkaline Aciduous Waters whose chief ingredients are
carbonic acid and bicarbonate of soda from Vichy, Fashingen,
Geilnau and Bilin.
Muriated Alkaline Aciduous Waters containing a considerable
Quantity of chloride of sodium from Ems and Selters, Luhatschovitz and
Salzbrunn.
Alkaline Saline Waters containing sulphate and bicarbonate of soda
from Marienbad and Karlsbad.
Bitter Waters with sulphates of magnesia and soda from Püllna,
Saidschutz, Sedlitz, Friedrichshall and Kissingen and, in the U.K.
from springs of Cherry Rock in Gloucester and Purton Spa in Wiltshire.
Simple Muriated Waters containing a small quantity of chloride of
sodium or common salt found in the springs of Weisbaden and
Baden-Baden, Soden in Nassau, Mondorf in Luxemburg, Kanstatt near
Stuttgart and in the cold springs of Kissingen, Hamburg and
Cheltenham.
Muriated Lithic Waters containing chlorides of sodium and
lithia from Baden-Baden, Karlsbad, Pranzenbad, Kissingen and
Weilbach. Brines contain a large amount of sodium - useful only for
bathing -from Rehme and Mannheim.
Iodo-Bromated Muriated Waters containing chloride of sodium and
iodides and bromides of sodium and magnesium of which the most well
known and celebrated is Kreuznach.
Earthy Waters contain sulphate and carbonate of lime and the most
important of these come from Wilungen (widely exported), Leuk, Lucca,
Pisa and Bath.
Indifferent Thermal Waters contain small amounts of saline
constituents and come from Gastein, Töplitz, Willbad, Plombières,
Warmbrunn, Clifton and Buxton.
Chalybeate Waters, divided into 1) Simple Acidulous
Waters containing carbonic acide and bicarbonate of protoxide
of iron and 2) Saline Acidulous Waters with sulphate of soda and
bicarbonate protoxide of iron are both fairly numerous and
amongst sources are Alexandersbad, Auteuil, Booklet, Kössen,
Kronthal, Lippspringe and Soden.
Finally, Sulphurous Waters containing sulphuretted hydrogen, or
metal, sulphides, or both and sources include Aix-la-Chapelle,
Borcette, Baden, Baréges, Eaux-Chaudes, Bagnères de Luchon,
Labassêre, Nenndorf and Eilsen.
48
Hydropathy - the water cure - taken internally as well as externally was
one of the growth industries in the nineteenth century due not only to
the improvements in transport but also due to the father of the system
of hydropathy Vincent Priessnitz, a Silesian farmer, who strangely
enough is quoted as not being an educated physician and as a
result failed to understand the real philosophy of his own practice.
The range of mineral waters available was wide ranging though
but few were casked for retail to bottlers.
The point made in listing the variety is simply to highlight the growth of
hotels and residences in the villages and towns which then
further developed into holiday and tourist resorts.
AERATED WATERS are effervescent beverages prepared by the
solution of carbonic acid gas in water to which small quantities
of saline substances or fruit syrups are added.
The simplest form is seen in the preparation of 'seidlitz powders'
which are made by dissolving separate portions of tartaric acid and
bicarbonate of soda in water. The tartaric acid combines with the soda
to form tartarate of soda thus liberating the carbonic acid which
bubbles through the water.
The so-called effervescent citrate of magnesia is essentially the
same as seidlitz powder.
The free use of water so aerated introduces within the system
tartrate of soda, or other alkaline salts, in proportions which have a
deleterious or noxious influence.
Such an objection is obviated by the ordinary methods of manufacturing
aerated water which depend for their operation on the fact that water
absorbs its own volume of carbonic acid at ordinary
temperature.
Increase of pressure consequently increases the absorption of
the gas, but, on removing the pressure, as in the case of
uncorking a soda water bottle, all the gas beyond: what is retained by
ordinary atmospheric pressure escapes.
PLAIN AERATED WATER, which is the basis of all the numerous
effervescent
waters, is prepared by two principal methods.
In the first, carbonic acid is evolved from chalk or 'whiting' by the action of
either sulphuric or hyrdochloric acid in a generator and washed by
passing through water.
It then enters a receiver or strong vessel. The vessel is then
filled with the water intended to be aerated and by its own
accumulated pressure the gas sufficiently saturates the water.
An example of this process on a small scale is seen in the
'gazogene' or soda siphon.
In the second system, which is adopted for commercial
manufacturing, the system is the same as the first but, after washing,
the gas is stored in a holder from which it is drawn, as required,
into the receiver by an air pump, where it then meets and
saturates the water.
The admission of both gas and water is controlled by cocks so that any
desired pressure can be maintained.
The bottling and corking apparatus has to be well guarded against the
possibility of exploding bottles.
Soda, potash, lithia and other waters are prepared by placing the
measured quantities of solutions of these salts in the bottles before
filling them with the aerated water.
Similarly, lemonade and fruit flavours are placed in the bottles and the
plain aerated water then added.
Nothing but aerated water passes through the machines and the
pressure of gas is varied according to the different beverages.
49
As usual, it is important to use only pure water - usually boiled -
in the process of manufacture.
It is also very, very important to ensure that there is no contact with lead
in the process as water charged with carbonic acid acts powerfully on
lead and cases of lead poisoning were not unknown.
o0o
Typical Flavours in a supplier's range might be listed as Cider Flavour,
Dry or Sweet Ginger Ale, Ginger Beer, Hot Tom, Kola, Kola Champagne,
Lemonade, Lemon Squash and Lime.
Other waters being usually Lithia, Potass, Seltzer and Soda. Both
Soda Water and Ginger Beer were available in siphons.
o0o
SCOTCH WHISKY DISTILLERIES - 1905
Highland Malts - 52 Distilleries
Auchinblae - Aultmore - Balblair - Balmenach - Balvenie -
Banff - Ben Nevis - Ben Rinnes - Blair Atholl - Brackla -
Cardow - Clyneish - Convalmore - Cragganmore -
Craigellachie - Dailuaine - Dalmore - Dufftown - Edradour -
Ferintosh - Fettercairn - Glen Albyn - Glendronach -
Glenfarclas - Glenfiddich - Glen Grant - Glenlivet - Glenlochy
- Glenlossie - Glenmorangie - Glenmoray - Glen Rothes -
Glenskiach - Glenugie - Highland Park - Inchgower - Jura -
Knockdhu - Lochnagar - Macallan - Millburn - Milton Duff -
Mortlach - Oban - Ord - Parkmore - Pollo - Pulteney -
Talisker - Teaninich - Toberymory - Towiemore
Lowland Malts - 24 Distilleries
Annandale - Auchtermurchty - Auchtertool - Bladnoch -
Bankier - Clydesdale - Dean - Drumcaldie - Dundashill -
Edinburgh - Glenfoyle - Glenmavis - Grange - Greenock -
Kirkliston - Langholm - Linlithgow - Littlemill - Loch Katrine -
Provanmill - Rosebank - Saucel - Tambowie - Yoker

Islay - 9 Distilleries

Ardbeg - Bowmore - Bruichladdich - Bunnahabhain - Caol Ila

- Lagavulin - Laphroaig - Lochindaal - Port Ellen
CAMPBELTOWN DISTILLERIES
Campbeltown - 19 Distilleries
From 1817 onwards
Albyn - Ardlussa - Argyll - Benmore - Burnside -
IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER OF THEIR ESTABLISHMENT
Campbeltown - Dalaruan - Dalintober - Glengyle - Glen
Nevis - Glenside - Hazelburn - Kinloch - Kintyre - Lochhead
ALBYN (28) - established in 1837 - Situated next to Gasworks
- Lochruan - Scotia - Springbank - Springside
- Original firm : William McKersie & Co. - Original partner :
William McKersie, formerly of Lochside Distillery - Partner later
Scottish Grain Distilleries - 12 Distilleries
Alex. McKersie and, more recently, John and William McKersie of
Lochruan Distillery.
Ardgowan - Bo'ness - Caledonian - Cambus - Cameron
bridge - Carsebridge - Gartloch - Glenochil - Loch Katrine -
ARDLUSSA (33) - established in 1879 - Situatad next to Glen
North British - Port Dundas - Yoker
Nevis Distillery in Glebe Street - Original firm : The Ardlussa
Distillery Co. - Original proprietors : James Ferguson & Son,
IRISH WHISKY DISTILLERIES IN 1905
Glasgow.
POT STILL - 18 DISTILLERIES
ARGYLL or MACKINNON'S (13) - establed in 1828 - Situated
at The Big Kiln in Lorne Street, the malt barn located in Longrow
Bandon - Bow Street (Dublin) - Coleraine - Connswater -
- Built not later than 1828 - Original partners : Duncan
Cork Distileeries' Co. - Cromac - Dublin City - Dublin Distillers
Mackinnon, formerly of The Excise and Daniel Graham, distiller
Co. - Dundalk - Glen - Irish Distillery Ltd. - John's Lane
- Duncan Mackinnon died prior to 1839, while in the Town
Distillery - Limavady - Nun's Island - Old Bushmills - Phoenix
Council Minutes of October 28, 1853, there is a reference to a
- Thomas St. (Dublin) - Waterside
well at "Mackinnon's old distillery at Big Kiln" - It would appear,
therefore, that this business was defunct in 1844 when the new
IRISH GRAIN DISTILLERIES - 6
"Argyll" distillery, by then in operation, was built.
Abbey Street (Londonderry) - Connswater - Dublin Distillers'
ARGYLL (29) - established in 1844 - Situated next to
Co. - Dundalk - Irish Distillery Co. - Phoenix
Hazelburn Distillery - Original firm : Colvill, Greenlees & Co. -

50
Original partners : Robert Colvill, late of Bellgrove, Drumore-
na-Bodach and Muasdale - Hugh Greenlees, malster and
Robert Greenleee, Junr.. - Note Mackinnon's and 'Argyll' of
1828 - 13
BENMORE (30) - established in 1868 - Situated in Saddell
Street. Original firm : Bulloch, Lade & Co. - Original partners :
Archibald Bulloch, London and William Canswell Lade; Mathew
Bulloch and Robert Sutherland, all of Glasgow.
BROOMBRAE (15) - established in 1828 - Situated opposite
Woodland Place, High Street, Dalintober - The site was feued
in 1826 and 1827 to three individuals, namely, John Campbell,
John Macfarlane, Lieutenant in Royal Marines and William
Harver, feuar - In 1829 the subjects were sold to Edward
Ralston of E. Ralston & Co. but it is not clear who erected the
distillery - It would appear to have been a small place,
however, as in 1838, Edward Ralston disponed the malt barn
and distillery to Daniel Greenlees for a total price of £378 14 6d.
BURNSIDE ( 8) - established in 1825 - Situated off Witchbum
Road - Original firm : McMurchy, Ralston & Co. - Original
partners : Alex and Hugh Greenlees, malsters; James Ryburn,
baker; John Colvill, saddler and Robert McMurchy - The latter
ceased to be a partner in 1828 - There does not seem to have
been any Ralston in the original firm although the name forms
part of the firm's name from the beginning - In 1840 the
partners were Alexander, Hugh and Robert Greenlees - Later
proprietors were Colvill, Greenlees & Co. of the Argyll Distillery.
CALEDONIAN (21) - established in 1832 - Situated at foot of
Glebe Street, opposite the 'Big Kiln' corner, through entry
known as the "Warm Water Close" - Original firm : Peter
Stewart & Co. - Original partners : Peter, Edward and William
Stewart - In 1840 Hugh Boyle was also a partner - Co-partnery
was dissolved in 1851 when it was stated that the distillery had
"not for some time been wrought".
51
CAMPBELTOWN ( 1) - established in 1817 - Situated at the
head of Longrow - Original firm : John Beith & Co. - Original
partners - John Maotaggart, Malster and John Beith, Banker -
In 1835, Dr Charles Rowatt was proprietor of the adjoining
"Campbeltown" and "Union" Distilleries and his only tenant for
both works was Hector Henderson. The firm's name at this time
was H. & F. Henderson and at a later period it became The
Campbeltown Distillery Company.
DALARUAN ( 6) - established in 1825 - Situated in Broad
Street - Original firm : David Colville & Co. (also of Dalintober
Distillery) - Original partners : David Colville, writer and
banker, John Colville, malster, father of the latter; Ralph
Langlands, merchant; Charles Colvill, cartwright and Daniel
Greenlees of Hazelburn Distillery - In 1838, John McMurchy
purchased the share held by the late Ralph Langlands.
Regarding the origin of the firm, the following amusing
paragraph appeared in "The Wine and Spirit Trade Record" of
May 8, 1905 - "One of the original partners was Mr Charles
Colvill, a local cartwright who used to travel the countryside and
often had his show of implements announced from the pulpit
before his arrival. While stopping at the hotel in Islay one night,
he had to share his bed with an Excise supervisor and spent the
whole night in gleaning information about the Islay distilleries.
As a result, he determined on starting one for himself on his
return to Campbeltown and so originated Dalaruan Distillery.
DALINTOBER (20) - established in 1832 - Situated originally
in Queen Street - Original firm : Reid & Colville - Original
partners : Peter Reid, son of Hugh Reid, cooper; David
Colville, writer and Archibald McCorkindale, son of Bailie
Duncan McCorkindale - New malt barns were erected on the
present site in Princes Street in 1835 and the present distillery
was completed in 1868 by Duncan and David Colvill, sons of the
said David Colville, the new firm's name being Reid and
Colvilles.
DRUMORE (24) - established in 1834 - Situated where
Drumore Farm steading now stands on 'The West Road', part of
the distillery buildings alongside the public road having been
utilised as steading - At the time this distillery was built the
West Drumore farm steading was situated some distance down
the road leading to Backs Cottage at a spot where two large
trees still remain - Original firm : Templeton, Fulton & Co. -
Original partners : Robert Templeton, farmer, West Drumore;
William Templeton, distiller, his brother; John McMillan, saddler
in Campbeltown; Mrs Mary Mitchell or Fulton, merchant in
Campbeltown - The firm was sequestrated and the distillery
sold in 1847.
GLEN NEVIS (32) - established in 1877 - Situated at head of
Glebe Street - Original proprietors : Peter MacCallum & Co..
GLENGYLE (31) - established in 1872 - Situated at The
Roading - Original firm : William Mitchell & Co. - Original
proprietor : William Mitchell.
GLENRAMSKILL (12) - established in 1828 - Situated at
Glenramskill, the distillery actually probably built some years
earlier as the business was sold in 1828, a Contract of Co-
Partnery being arranged in names of McMurchy and the Ralstons
in 1829 - In 1835 the business and distillery were advertised for
sale in "Kay's Argyllshire Magazine" - References, up to 1840,
note the partnership of David, Alexander and Robert Ralston,
Robert and William McMurchy.
GLENSIDE (26) - established in 1835 - Situated in Dalaruan -
Original firm : David Anderson & Co. - Original partners :
David Anderson, merchant; James Armour, malster and
manager of The Campbeltown Gas Company and Miss Jessie
Miller, who later married John Stewart, Excise Officer - In
1836, Joseph Hancock, formerly of Chelsea, London, became a
partner - About 1860 a new firm, The Glenside Distillery Co.,
took over the business, the partners in which were James
Armour, malster; Hugh Ferguson, baker and John Kerr Orr,
commission agent in Glasgow.
52
HAZELBURN ( 7) - established in 1825 - Situated originally
where the offices of Messrs. Weir's, builders, stood and, in
Longrow, while the malt barns stood at the west end of what is
now known as Longrow South, increasing business necessitated
the erection of new works in 1845 on the present site - Original
firm : Greenlees & Colvill - Original partners : Mathew
Greenlees; his brother, Daniel Greenleea and Archibald Colvill,
son of Charles Colvill of Dalaruan Distillery - About 1846,
Archibald Colvill appears to have retired from the business and
Samuel Greenlees then became a partner - The distillery was
purchased by Mackie & Co.(Distillers) Ltd. in 1919.
HIGHLAND (11) - established in 1827 - Situated in Broad
Street, Dalaruan - Original firm : Daniel Mactaggart & Co. -
Original proprietor : Daniel Mactaggart, writer - In 1833, John
Grant was proprietor and, shortly after, the firm became
McLennan & Grant, the new partner being George McLennan -
Duncan McCulloch was manager of this business at the time of
The Court of Session Case, in 1840 - 1844, when it was
eventually decided that Harbour Dues were payable in respect of
goods shipped or unshipped at Dalintober Quay.
KINLOCH ( 2) - established in 1823 - Situated at the junction
of Longrow and Saddell Street. Original firm : Lamb, Colvill &
Co. - Original partners : James Dunlop; Robert Lamb; Writer
and John Colville Jr., Banker, Clydesdale Bank - After the death
of Robert Lamb in 1826, Robert Ralston joined the firm.
KINTYRE (19) - established in 1825 - Situated in Broad Street
- The original firm's proprietor being John Beith, banker - There
is no record of the erection of this distillery but, gas pipes were
laid to it in 1831 from the new gasworks built at that time - On
the death of John Beith in 1840, a new co-partnery was
commenced in the hame of Beith, Ross and Co., the partners
being John Beith, Jr., merchant; John Colville, Jun., Clydesdale
Bank and John Ross, distiller - The firm's name later became
John Ross & Co.
LOCHEND - The name of any such distillery of that name
operating in Campbeltown is unrecorded.
LOCHHEAD ( 5) - established in 1824 - Situated at Lochend -
Original firm : A. & R. McMurchy & Co., who sold the distillery
about 1833 to Wm. Taylor & Co. (Partners : William Taylor,
Distiller and his father, James Taylor, mason of Meadowburn
Distillery) - Original partners : Archibald McMurchy, writer and
R. McMurchy - Firm's name later became J. B. Sherriff & Co..
LOCHRUAN (23) - established in 1833 - Situated in Princes
Street, Dalintober Original firm : Johnstons & Co. - Original
partners : Robert Johnston and Charles Rowatt Johnston - The
firm later became The Lochruan Distillery Co.. of whom the
proprietors were John and William McKersie, this firm taking
over the business about 1867.
LOCHSIDE (18) - established in 1830 - William McKersie
retired from the business when he built the Albyn Distillery in
1837 and the firm then became Gilkison & Hunter, Peter Hunter,
son of the said William Hunter, becoming a partner.
LONGROW ( 4) - established in 1824 - Situated half way up
Longrow - Original firms : Colville, Beith & Co. - Original
partners : John Colville, Jr., Banker, Clydesdale Bank; John
Beith, Banker and John Ross, Distiller - The firm's name later
became John Ross & Co..
MACKINNON'S or ARGYLL (13) - establed in 1828 - Situated
at The Big Kiln in Lorne Street, the malt barn located in Longrow
- Built not later than 1828 - Original partners : Duncan
Mackinnon, formerly of The Excise and Daniel Graham, distiller
- Duncan Mackinnon died prior to 1839, while in the Town
Council Minutes of October 28, 1853, there is a reference to a
well at "Mackinnon's old distillery at Big Kiln" - It would appear,
therefore, that this business was defunct in 1844 when the new
"Argyll" distillery, by then in operation, was built.
53
MEADOWBURN ( 3) - established in 1824 - Situated off
Witchburn Road - Original firm : Kirkwood, Taylor & Co. -
Original partners : Alex. Kirkwood, merchant; James Taylor,
mason; Mathew Greenlees, malster, of Hazelbum Distillery and
William Armour - Partners of 1840 - James Taylor, Mathew
Greenlees, James Paterson and William Greenlees - This
distillery was purchased in 1854 by Robert Colvill, late of
Bellgrove, Drumore-na-Bodach and Muasdale.
MOSSFIELD (27) - established in 1835 - Situated through
Kirk Close, Longrow - The only single reference to this
distillery, namely in The Register of Voters' Claims, as follows,
"William Hunter, joint tenant of Massfield Distillery in Longrow
Street, being part of the premises held in lease by the heirs of
Mathew Fleming".
It was seemingly from this distillery that the Longrow Church
was preached vacant by The Rev. Dr. Harvey when The Rev.
James Smith was deposed in 1835.
MOUNTAIN DEW (34) - established earlier than 1842 -
Situated alongside Springside Distillery at Burnside Street -
Original partners : Peter and William Stewart - Acquired by
Mathew Harvie or Harvey of The Mull of Kintyre Lighthouse in
1842.
RIECLACHAN ( 9) - established in 1825 - Situated at head of
Longrow - Original firm : Wylie Mitchell & Co. - Original
partners : Archibald Mitchell, distiller; James Ferguson, cooper
and malster, Alex. Wylie of Toberanrigh Distillery and John
Harvey.
SCOTIA (22) - established in 1832 - Situated in High Street,
Dalintober - Original firm : Stewart, Galbraith & Co. - Original
partners : James Stewart; John and William Galbraith - In 1840
James Napier was also a partner.
SPRINGBANK (14) - established in 1828 Situated off Longrow
- Original firm : William Reid, Junr. & Co. - Original partners :
William Reid, Senr., malster; William Reid, Junr., grocer and
John Reid, distiller - In 1837 it was sold by the creditors of that
firm to J. & W. Mitchell of whom the partners were John Mitchell
and William Mitchell and, at a later date, the firm's name
became J. & A. Mitchell.

SPRINGSIDE (16) - established in 1830 - Situated off

Burnside street - Original firm : John Colvill & Co. - Original
proprietors : John Colvill of Machrihanish and Muasdale.

TOBERANRIGH (25) - established in 1834 - Situated at No 48

Longrow - Original proprietor : Alex. Wylie - Later JohnWylie
also a partner - In 1851 the distillery lease was purchased by
John Mitchell, distiller; Hugh Ferguson, baker and Daniel
McMurchy, cooper, from whom Alex. Wylie got a sub-tack
thereafter.

UNION (10) - established in 1826 - Situated adjoining PETER M'DONALD'S PRICE LIST FOR 1906
Campbeltown Distillery - Original firm : Mactaggart and
Henderson (ln 1834) - Original partners : Charles Rowatt PRICES ARE per dozen 26-oz bottles
Mactaggart and Hector Henderson - Though the actual year of
the distillery's erection is seemingly unrecorded, there is PETER M'DONALD'S OWN SCOTCH WHISKY BRANDS
correspondence containing a proposal to erect a distillery at this
spot in 1826 by John Mactaggart of the Campbeltown distillery - Blended "Yellow Label" per dozen 26-oz
In 1835 the Union Distillery was sold to John Grant & Co., the bottles
new partners being Charles Kelly and John Grant, who died in
1857 and 1849 respectively. "Yellow Label" - 3-year old 1 Crown
Scotch 27/6
WEST HIGHLAND (17) - established in 1830 - Situated in "Yellow Label" - 4-year old 2 Crown
Argyll Street, where Ramsay's garage is now located - Malt kiln Scotch 28/-
was on opposite side of the same street, behind the present "Yellow Label" - 5-year old 3 Crown
Barochan Place, entry through "Dr. Rowatt's Close", i.e. in Scotch 29/-
Castlehill where "Fleming's Land" is now inscribed above the "Yellow Label" - 6-year old 4 Crown
present close - Original firm : Andrew and Montgomery - Scotch 33/-
Original partners : Andrew Montgomery and Archibald Andrew,
Town Treasurer.

54
BRAND BLENDED SCOTCH WHISKY per dozen 26-oz Faugh-a-Ballagh - Extra Special - 8-year old
bottles 36/-
Faugh-a-Ballagh - Liqueur - 12-year old
Alpine McAlpine - 3-year old Scotch 27/6 42/-
Donald Balloch - 4-year old Scotch Faugh-a-Ballagh - Extra Special Liqueur
28/- - 15-year old 52/-
Auld Hawkie - 5-year old Scotch 29/6
Royal Prince Charlie - 5-year old Scotch BRANDY per dozen 26-oz
30/- bottles
Dew of The Highland Hills - 5-year old Scotch 31/-
Clan Donald - 5-year old Scotch 32/- Jules Arnault & Co. - Ordinary 20/-
Finlaggan (Islay) - 6-year old Scotch Jules Arnault & Co. - * 22/-
34/- Jules Arnault & Co. - ** 24/-
Lord of The Isles - Ordinary - 5-year old Scotch Jules Arnault & Co. - *** 26/-
33/- Jules Arnault & Co. - **** 30/-
Lord of The Isles - Special - 6-year old Scotch Jules Arnault & Co. - Liqueur
34/- 36/-
Lord of The Isles - Extra Special 8-year old Scotch Jules Arnault & Co. - V. O. Liqueur 44/-
36/- Renault & Co. - *
Lord of The Isles - Liqueur - 12-year old Scotch 28/-
42/- Renault & Co. - **
Lord of The Isles - Extra Special Liqueur 33/-
- 15-year old Scotch 52/- Renault & Co. - ***
40/-
IRISH WHISKY per dozen 26-oz Renault & Co. - ****
bottles 50/-
Martell & Co. - * 35/-
Irish Whisky - 3-year old 27/6 Martell & Co. - ** 40/-
Glenluce - 4-year old 28/- Martell & Co. - *** 45/-
Glenluce - 1 Crown - 5-year old Denis Mounie & Co. - Ordinary 24/-
29/- Jules Robin & Co. - Ordinary 30/-
Glenluce - 2 Crown - 5-year old Hennessy & Co. - V.O. 15-year old
30/- 52/-
Glenluce - 3 Crown - 5-year old Hennessy & Co. - S.O. 25-year old
31/- 67/-
Faugh-a-Ballagh - Ordinary - 5-year old Hennessy & Co. - X.O. 40-year old
33/- 108/-
Faugh-a-Ballagh - Special - 6-year old
34/- BRANDY VINTAGES IDENTIFIED
55
 Jamaica - 2 Crown
19 Good and 18 Good quality 34/-
05 abundant 89 Jamaica - 3 Crown
19 Abundant, fine 18 Fine quality 35/-
04 quality 87 Jamaica - Special
19 Small quantity, 18 Very fine, not 36/-
03 fair 84 much left
19 Small quantity, 18 Limited output, Dominica - Ordinary 30/-
02 half-strength 81 good quality Dominica - 1 Crown 30/6
19 Abundant, fine 18 Limited output, Dominica - 2 Crown 31/-
00 quality 80 good quality Dominica - 3 Crown 32/-
18 Very delicate, fine 18 Total failure
99 quality 79 GIN per dozen 26-oz
18 Good quality 18 Very fine quality, bottles
98 78 best since 1875
18 Fine and useful 18 Small yield, fairly Old Tom - Standard
96 quality 77 good quality 8/-
18 Small output, but 18 Record vintage Old Tom - 1 Crown
95 stylish 75 8/6
18 One of largest 18 Good quality Old Tom - Superior
93 recent vintages 74 30/-
18 Limited output, 18 Fat and Mellow
English Standard - 8/-
92 very fat 72
18 Fine and delicate 18 Small quanity, but
Holland Distillery Co. - Standard
90 71 fair quality
8/6
Holland Distillery Co. - 1 Crown 9/6
NOTE - Start of works at Charentes began in 1887
Holland Distillery Co. - 2 Crown 10/6
Holland Distillery Co. - 3 Crown 12/-

English - 1 Crown
RUMS per dozen 26-oz
8/6
bottles
Weiland & Co's 'Eagle' Brand -
8/6
Jamaica - Ordinary
Rademakers - 8/6
32/-
Nolet's 'Anchor' Brand -
Jamaica - 1 Crown
8/6
33/-
Bols - 8/6
De Kupyer's 'Heart' Label - 8/6
56
 Yellow Chartreuse - - 93/- N/Q
Loopuyt's 'Hour Glass' Brand - Green Chartreuse - - 119/- N/Q
8/6 Cherry Brandy - - 45/-
Loopuyt's Special Liqueur Gin - (30/-)
12/6 Cherry Brandy - Special Dry -
53/- (36/-)
Sloe Gin - 34/- Cherry Whisky - - 51/-
(36/-)
THE CRĚME - Cacas - N/Q
(42/-)
VODKA per dozen 26-oz Cassis - - 54/- N/Q
bottles Cerises - - N/Q
(42/-)
A Foreign Liqueur by description Menthe - - 53/-
46/- N/Q
Menthe - Extra Superfine - 45/-
VERMOUTH per dozen 26-oz N/Q
bottles Mocca - - N/Q (42/-)
Oranges - - 54/-
Italian - 24/- (42/-)
French - Roses - - N/Q (42/-)
32/- Vanilla - - N/Q
(42/-)
LIQUEURS per dozen 26-oz Curaçoa - - 48/-
bottles N/Q
Curaçoa - Orange, White or Green
NOTE - Where there is an alternative British product (the price 62/6 (42/-)
is in brackets) Curaçoa - Dry Orange
93/- N/Q
Abricotine - Pernod - 68/- (42/-) Curaçoa - Stone Crouchons 93/-
Absinthe - Pernod - 66/- N/Q N/Q
Anisette - - N/Q Ginger Brandy - - N/Q
(42/-) (32/-)
Dutch Advocaat - - 50/- N/Q Ginger Brandy - with Superior Brandy -
Akara - Green or White - 73/4 N/Q 50/- (42/-)
Apricot Brandy - - N/Q Kirschenwasser - - 69/6
48/- N/Q
Benedictine - - 81/6 N/Q Kummel - Allasch - 41/- N/Q
Blackberry Brandy - - N/Q 38/- Kummel's - 'Crème d'Allasch' - 50/6 38/-
57
Kummel's - Crystalised Eckaw o.o. - 48/-
N/Q Johannis - - splits 3/9
Kummel's - Imperial - 60/- (46/-) - 10-oz 4/9
Marachino - - 59/- (42/-)
Noyeau - Rose or White - Apenta - - splits
53/- (42/-) 5/-
Orange Brandy - - 63/- - 10-oz 10/-
(42/-)
Orange Whisky - - N/Q
(42/-)
Peach Brandy - - N/Q
(48/-)
AERATED WATERS
BITTERS per dozen 26-oz
bottles Peter McDonald's Own Label per dozen

Imported Angostura 55/- Lemonade - Kola - Kola Champagne - Ginger Ale - Lime -
N/A Aromatic Bitters - British - Lemon Squash - Cider Flavour - Hot Tom - Soda Water -
N/A 26/- Potass Water - Seltzer Water
Dutch Bitters - - 26/-
N/A - - splits 1/-
Dutch Bitters - No 1 Quality - - 10-oz
22/- N/A 1/-
Dutch Bitters - No 2 Quality - - syphons
18/- N/A 4/-
Khoosh - Only Available in ½ bottles - per
doz 66/8 N/A Ginger Beer - splits -/9d
Kola - - 32/- N/A - 10-oz
Kola - No 1 Quality - 22/- -/9d -
N/A syphons 4/-
Kola - No 2 Quality - 18/-
N/A Schweppes per dozen
Peach Bitters - - 34/-
N/A Soda - Potass - Seltzer Waters - splits
1/6
MINERAL or "APOLLINARIS" Type WATERS per dozen - 10-oz
2/6
Apollinaris - - splits 3/9 - syphons
- 10-oz 4/9 4/-
58
 Ginger Wine - Brown No 1 11/-
Ginger Ale - Sweet or Dry - splits 8/-
1/6 Ginger Wine - Brown No 2 10/-
- 10-oz 7/-
2/6 Ginger Wine - Green No 1 11/-
8/-
Lithia Water - - splits 2/- Ginger Wine - Green No 2 10/-
- 10-oz 7/-
3/9 Ginger Wine - Rich 15/-
- syphons N/A
5/6 Lime Juice Cordial - No 1 11/-
7/-
Lemonade - - splits 1/9 Lime Juice Cordial - No 2 10/-
- 10-oz N/A
3/- Lime Juice Cordial - No 3 9/-
N/A
Ginger Beer - - 10-oz Milk Punch - 20/- N/A
1/8 Noyeau - 20/-
N/A
Corry's per dozen Orange Wine - 11/- 7/-
Peppermint - 17/- N/A
As Schweppes' product range and generally - splits Quinine Wine - Orange 17/-
1/6 N/A
- 10-oz - Sherry 20/- N/A
2/- Raspberry Wine - 10/-
7/-
Rum Shrub - 20/- N/A
British Port - No 1 12/-
BRITISH CORDIAL WINES per dozen 26-oz 12/-
bottles British Port - No 2 10/6
N/A
Aniseed - Fermented 17/- Unfermented British Sherry - No 1 12/-
N/A 12/-
Blackcurrant - 14/- 7/- British Sherry - No 2 10/6
Redcurrant - 14/- 7/- N/A
Cloves - 17/- British Claret - 10/- 10/-
7/- Lemon Squash - N/A
Cherry Wine - N/A 7/- 7/-

59
BEERS and STOUTS Prices Equivalent to - Crown Stout
11-gallon keg 10/7
- XXX 9/2
Fine Sweet Ale - 7 Guinea - XX 8/2
29/11 - X 7/2
Fine Sweet Ale - 6 Guinea
25/8 Barclay, Perkins, Heave & Co. and Reid & Co. of London
Fine Sweet Ale - 5 Guinea
21/5 Common Porter - P
Fine Sweet Ale - 4 Guinea 11/4
17/2 Brown Stout - BS 14/5
Fine Sweet Ale - 3 Guinea Double Stout - BBS 17/5
12/10 Imperial Stout - XX
20/6
Prize Medal Ale - 1st Quality Special Draughting Porter - SDP 12/10
18/4 Invalid Stout - IVS 15/11
Prize Medal Ale - 2nd Quality
16/6 Cider - Devonshire or American 13/9 to
Prize Medal Ale - 3rd Quality 22/-
14/8
Prize Medal Ale - 4th Quality BOTTLED BEERS, STOUTS, LAGER and CIDER
12/10 per 2 dozen case 10-oz
bottles
Sweet and Bitter - Table Beer
11/- Bass, Allsopp's and Salts Pale Ale
Sweet and Bitter - 2nd Quality 3/-
8/7 Findlater's Crown or XXX Stout
3/-
Imperial Double Brown Stout XXX Guinness' Stout
19/3 3/-
Double Brown Stout - DBS or BBS Barclay, Perkins or Reid's London Stout
16/6 3/-
Brown Stout - BS 13/2 Hoare's London Stout
Stout - S 10/1 3/-
Porter - P 9/2 Edinburgh and Alloa's 60/- Ale
Draughting Porter - DP 14/8 2/8
Scotch Stout 2/8
Findlater's Mountjoy Dublin Table Beer or Table Porter 1/11
German Lager Beer 3/-
60
Allsopp's Lager Beer Wee Scotchman
3/- 7/2
Devonshire or American Cider Turkish 7/10
3/- to 15/11
Egyptian 7/10 to
CIGARETTES priced on basis 15/11
of 200's packs
CHEROOTS
Bright Sky 3/8
High Class 7/10 Packs of 100, sold according to trade sizes of cigars
National Leaf, paper wrapped 3/6 to 8/6
6/-
New Orleans 5/- CIGARS sold in 100's
Night Blossom, paper
4/- Havanas 24/- to 28/-
Night Blossom, leaf-wrapped Manilla 17/6
5/- to 26/-
Old Scotch 3/9 Borneo 15/- to
Sky Flower 3/2 15/6

"WEIGHTS" sold usually in 8-oz BRITISH CIGARS

packs
Golden Belle 4/6
Bright Virginia, cork tipped Love and Beauty
8/4 11/-
Natural Leaf, leaf-wrapped My Pearl 12/-
11/5 La Marsoviana
Navy Cut 7/10 12/6
Special Straight-Cut Virginia Crespo and La Parella
12/3 13/-
Special Virginia Importa, Romano, Paul Pry, El Permiso, El Senor and Lady Gay
13/- Spanker 14/-
Special Virginia, gold-tipped Lake Pride 14/6
15/11 Cuban Brand 16/-
Virginia Straight-Cut San Martino 17/-
7/4 Flor de Roseberry or Suto 18/-
Virginia Gold, tipped Fleur de Silam
8/10 18/6
Mi Carilla 50/-
61
Rayon d'Or 64/-
CLAN DONALD OWN BRAND
Exceptionals 15/-
Rothschilds 16/6
Specials
50/-
WINES - Racking, Fining and Bottling
RACKING - Avoid, as much as possible, contact with air in
racking wines, especially Clarets, Hocks and Burgundy.
Ports and Sherries should be racked into clean casks on delivery
and all empty wine casks should be rinsed immediately.
FINING - Red Wine with the beaten egg whites of 5 or 6 eggs
mixed with some wine and a pinch of salt then added to the
hogshead or, for White Wines, some isinglass dissolved in some
warm water and a quantity of 1½ to 2 pints added to the
hogshead.
Brightness of wine should be checked about 14 days later. If the
fining does not take effect within four weeks then the wine
should be racked into a new cask with the addition of one gallon
of proof spirit per hogshead and perhaps the addition of ½ oz of
tannic acid dissolved in it.
With Sherry, Marsala and Madeira the use of 'Spanish earth' is
advised. It is unwise to fine light or thin wines e.g. Clarets both
unnecessarily or too heavily. A period of two to four weeks
should be allowed before bottling a fined wine.
BOTTLING - Only bottle Port in January, July, August or
December - never in Spring. Other wines may be bottled at
anytime.
62
A settled spell of weather should be chosen for the operation.
Bottling taps should be put in the previous night to avoid
cloudiness caused by tapping.
Make certain all bottles are clean and dry.
The wine to be bottled should be sampled and take to a dark
corner of the cellar where the wine can be viewed by a bright
light for clarity.
Bottling should then be carried out as rapidly as possible, it
being preferable to to bottle a complete cask with as little
interruption as possible thus avoiding unnecessary exposure to
of the wine's surfaces to the air.
Claret should be filled close to the cork, others should have
about ¾" for expansion.
Sound and faultless corks should be first rinsed in cold water,
then scalded in hot, though not boiling, water, which sterilises
and increases their elasticity.
Place the corks into some of the same wine which is being
bottled prior to their use.
Cover the corks and about ½" of the bottle-neck with melted
wax immediately after bottling.
Stand bottles upright for about 24 hours before binning.
Sherry and Madeira should always be binned ABOVE Port and
Claret.
SHERRY Very Delicate Sherry - Fine Dry
32/-
All Sherry is pale in colour when first made. The 'mother' or
'Solera' wine, which is imported, is drawn from stock of earlier Amontillado - 34/-
years which is topped with each new season's harvest i.e. Sherry Old Solera - 39/-
is blended for export from a number of different years and colour Old Style - Nutty, very fine
is added by the use of a highly concentrated, though 42/-
unfermented, juice. Finest Old East India Sherry
45/-
SHERRY per dozen 26-oz
bottles

Cadiz - 1 Diamond Mark 12/-

Cadiz - 2 Diamond Marks 14/- SHERRY VINTAGES IDENTIFIED
Cadiz - 3 Diamond Marks 16/-
Cadiz - 4 Diamond Marks 18/- 18 Good, little left 18 Good
Cadiz - 5 Diamond Marks 20/- 74 90
18 Satisfactory 18 Good
Jerez - 1 Diamond Mark 24/- 75 91
Jerez - 2 Diamond Marks 27/- 18 Small crop, poor 18 Good
Jerez - 3 Diamond Marks 30/- 76 quality 92
18 Excellent 18 Fair
Jerez - 1 Crown Mark 77 93
32/- 18 Under average, 18 Better than 1893
Jerez - 2 Crown Marks 78 but fair 94
34/- 18 Good 18 Good
Jerez - 3 Crown Marks 79 95
38/- 18 Good 18 Good
Jerez - 4 Crown Marks 80 96
42/- 18 Crop failure owing 18 Good
Jerez - 5 Crown Marks 81 to great heat 97
48/- 18 Excellent 18 Good
82 98
Pale Sherry - 18/- 18 Not as good as 18 Too much heat
Pale Sherry - Medium Dry 20/- 83 1882 99
Pale Sherry - Golden or Brown 22/- 18 Fair 19 Good
Dry Sherry - Very Pale 30/- 84 00
Soft Sherry - Old Golden 30/-
18 Good 19 Satisfactory

63
 85 01 Oporto - 1 Diamond Mark
18 Moderate 19 Medium 24/-
86 02 Oporto - 2 Diamond Marks
18 Better than 1886 19 Fine quality 27/-
87 03 Oporto - 3 Diamond Marks
18 Poor 19 Fine quality 30/-
88 04
18 Moderate 19 Good Oporto - 1 Crown Mark
89 05 32/-
Oporto - 2 Crown Marks
34/-
Oporto - 3 Crown Marks
38/-
Oporto - 4 Crown Marks
42/-
Oporto - 5 Crown Marks
48/-

All above are shipped by Castro, Mello; Clode and Baker;

Cockburn, Smithes; Croft; S. S. Hutcheson; C. M. Köpke;
Niepoort; Offley; Sandemann; Warre etc..

CRUSTED PORT per dozen 26-oz

bottles

2-year old - Good, firm 24/-

4-year old - Soft, medium
27/-
4-year old - Light, medium
30/-
PORT per dozen 26-oz 6-year old - Old, light, dry
bottles 42/-
10-year old - Delicate, dry 48/-
Tarragona - 1 Diamond Mark 12/- 10-year old - Soft, medium, rich 54/-
Tarragona - 2 Diamond Marks 14/- 12-year old - Fine character
Tarragona - 3 Diamond Marks 16/- 60/-
Tarragona - 4 Diamond Marks 18/- 14-year old - Very fine, fruity
75/-
17-year old - Full body 82/-
64
 91 60
18 Good * 18 Rather poor
90 59
18 Fair 18 Good *
89 58
18 Inferior 18 Inferior
88 57
18 Fine * 18 Inferior
87 56
PORT VINTAGES IDENTIFIED in BOLD TYPE * 18 Inferior 18 Inferior
86 55
19 Variable 18 Very fine * 18 Excellent 18 Excellent
05 73 85 54
19 Light 18 Very fair * 18 Very good 18 Very good *
04 72 84 53
19 Mediocre 18 Poor 18 Bad 18 Good
03 71 83 52
19 Fair 18 Very good * 18 Inferior 18 Fine vintage *
02 70 82 51
19 Good body 18 Inferior 18 Good * 18 Good *
01 69 81 50
19 Excellent * 18 Very good * 18 Inferior 18 Average
00 68 80 49
18 Poor 18 Good average 18 Failure 18 Good, delicate
99 67 79 48
18 Moderate 18 Poor 18 Excellent * 18 Very fine *
98 66 78 47
18 Disappointing 18 Developed fairly 18 Inferior 18 Good *
97 65 * 77 46
18 Fine * 18 Inferior 18 Inferior 18 Good *
96 64 76 44
18 Inferior 18 Fine, generous * 18 Excellent 18 Good *
95 63 75 42
18 Medium 18 Very good, dry 18 Disappointing 18 Good *
94 62 74 40
18 Very inferior 18 Fair *
93 61
18 Average 18 Average

65
 18 Clean and healthy 18 Good quality
99 77
18 Turning out well 18 Not very good
CLARET per dozen 26-oz 98 76
bottles 18 Unsatisfactory 18 One of finest on
97 75 record
A word of caution - The quality of Claret depends on the 18 Fair 18 Good
vintage AND NOT on the name of the wine, however 'high 96 74
sounding' that name may seem. 18 Fair 18 Moderate
95 73
Claret 12/- 18 Not good 18 Thin and
Bages 13/- 94 72 disappointing
Blaye 15/- 18 Finest since 1878 18 Turned out fine
Medoc 93 71 wines
18/- 18 Medium 18 A great vintage
St Julien 92 70
20/- 18 Ordinary to good 18 Good
St Emilion 22/- 91 69
St Gervais 24/- 18 A good vintage 18 Rather hard
Chateau Rosenthal 28/- 90 68
Medoc Pauillac 18 Generally good, 18 Comparative
32/- 89 light 67 failures
Chateau Margaux 40/-
18 Full bodied 18 Comparative
Chateau Lafite
87 66 failures
45/-
18 Inferior 18 Failed to develop
86 65
CLARET VINTAGES IDENTIFIED
18 Poor and faulty 18 A very fine
19 Fine, scarcer than 18 Many failures
85 64 vintage
05 1904 83
18 Very inferior, 18 Good
19 Promises full body 18 Poor and faulty
84 mildewed 58
04 82
BURGUNDY per dozen 26-oz
19 Better than 18 Coarse, a rough
bottles
03 expected 81 vintage
19 Fair 18 Thin, but some
RED
02 80 useful
19 Mediocre 18 Coarse Macon
01 79 17/-
19 Excellent 18 Good Beaujolais 18/-
00 78
66
Beaune
20/-
Superior Beaune BURGUNDY VINTAGES IDENTIFIED
24/-
Old Superior Beaune 19 Above average 18 Good
30/- 05 85
Pommard 32/- 19 Full and rich 18 Fair
Volnay 04 84
38/- 19 Fair 18 Good
Nuits 38/- 03 83
Chambertin 60/- 19 Moderate 18 Failure
02 82
WHITE 19 Lacks body 18 Fair
01 81
Macon 19 Soft and elegant 18 Fair
18/- 00 Red 80
Chablis 18 Satisfactory 18 Very poor
25/- 99 79
Superior Chablis 18 Very clear, very 18 Good
30/- 98 good 78
18 Rainy August and 18 Good
Sparkling - 1st Quality 50/- 97 Sept. 77
Sparkling - 2nd Quality 40/- 18 Developed well 18 Medium
96 76
NOTE ESPECIALLY that Clos-Vougeot is the most costly Red and 18 Very good 18 Average
that Montrachet is first for White. 95 75
18 Neat and firm 18 Excellent
94 74
18 Elegance 18 Average
93 73
18 Highly valued 18 Poor
92 72
18 Fair 18 Poor
91 71
18 Fair 18 Excellent
90 70
18 Excellent 18 Good
89 69

67
 18 Fair 18 Good Sparkling Moselle - 3rd Quality 40/-
88 68
18 Good 18 Medium MARSALA - The Sherry of Sicily per dozen 26-oz
87 67 bottles
18 Good 18 Good
86 65 Marsala - 1 Crown Mark
15/-
HOCKS per dozen 26-oz Marsala - 2 Crown Marks
bottles 18/-
Marsala - 3 Crown Marks
Neirstein 18/6 24/-
Deidesheim 24/-
Erbach
32/- MADEIRA per dozen 26-oz
Hockheim 40/- bottles
Macrobunn 50/-
Madeira - 1 Crown Mark
Sparkling Hocks - 1st Quality 24/-
50/- Madeira - 2 Crown Marks
Sparkling Hocks - 2nd Quality 30/-
45/- Madeira - 3 Crown Marks
Sparkling Hocks - 3rd Quality 36/-
40/- Madeira - Superior
42/-
Madeira - Choice Old Madeira
48/-

SAUTERNES per dozen 26-oz

MOSELLE per dozen 26-oz bottles
bottles
Sauternes - 1 Crown Mark
Zeltingen 20/- 20/-
Brauneberg 25/- Sauternes - 2 Crown Marks
Berncastler - Doctor Gold Label 36/- 24/-
Berncastler - White Label 42/- Sauternes - 3 Crown Marks
Berncastler - Green Label 50/- 30/-

Sparkling Moselle - 1st Quality 50/- GRAVES per dozen 26-oz

Sparkling Moselle - 2nd Quality 45/- bottles
68
 Old Fine Claret
Graves - Ordinary 21/-
20/- Burgundy 16/6
Graves - Superior Fine Old Burgundy 21/-
24/-
Graves - Extra CALIFORNIAN WHITE per dozen 26-oz
30/- bottles

Chablis
AUSTRALIAN RED per dozen 26-oz 18/-
bottles Sauterne 21/-
Hock 16/6 or 24/-
Burgundy 16/6
Old Burgundy CALIFORNIAN DESSERT WINES per dozen
19/6 26-oz bottles
Port 18/-
Old Tawny Port (over 12-years old) Sherry
30/- 21/-
Carbinet 19/6 Port, Tokay or Muscat
25/6
AUSTRALIAN WHITE per dozen 26-oz
bottles

Burgundy 16/6
Chablis
19/6 COMMUNION WINES per dozen 26-oz
Tokay 22/- bottles

Brown Muscatel Carlton

52/6 18/-
Malaga
CALIFORNIAN RED per dozen 26-oz 20/-
bottles Spanish
21/-
Zinfandel (Claret Type) Italian 22/-
15/- Premonstratensian 25/-
Claret No 1 16/6
Claret No 2 16/6 CHAMPAGNES per dozen 26-oz
bottles
69
 Favre and Co. - 3rd Quality
Ayala's 36/-
80/- Favre and Co. - 4th Quality
Ackerman - Laurance's Dry or Brut Royal 30/-
42/-
Veuve Cliquot - Dry or Rich
88/-
Deutz and Geldermann's 'Gold Lock' 76/- CHAMPAGNE VINTAGES IDENTIFIED
and 80/-
19 Very poor 18 Ordinary
Giesler's - 1st Quality 65/- 05 85
Giesler's - 2nd Quality 54/- 19 Very fine 18 Greatly
Giesler's - Extra Superior 04 84 appreciated
79/- 19 Mediocre 18 Medium
03 83
Goulet's G. - 1st Quality 65/- 19 Very poor 18 Below average
Goulet's G. - Extra Dry 78/- 02 82
19 Unfavourable 18 Average
Heidsieck's Dry Monopole 88/- 01 81
Irroy's Carte d'Or 80/- 19 Fine 18 Very good
Moet andChandon - White Dry Sillery 65/- 00 80
Moet andChandon - Extra Superior 18 Good promise 18 A failure
83/- 99 79
18 Fine 18 Fine. Light
G. H. Mumm's 98 78
83/- 18 Disappointing 18 Inferior
Jules Mumm's 97 77
64/- 18 Very ordinary 18 Ordinary
Pommery's Extra Sec 96 76
88/- 18 Very fair 18 Average
Loius Roederer's Extra Dry 95 75
80/-
18 Mediocre 18 Fine vintage
94 74
Favre and Co. - Imperial
18 Fine 18 Inferior
60/-
93 73
Favre and Co. - 1st Quality
18 Fine 18 Good average
50/-
92 72
Favre and Co. - 2nd Quality
40/- 18 Fair 18 Medium

70
 91 71 of some commodities and the farthing, ¼ of one penny, was
18 Average 18 Generally good still worth something in these days and £1 = 20 shillings = 240
90 70 pennies
18 Excellent 18 Average
89 69 WHISKY 3-year old 1½ d
18 Average 18 Good vintage 5-year old 1¾ d
88 68 8-year old 2d
18 Fair 18 Very ordinary 12-year old 2¼ d
87 67 15-year old 2½ d
18 Ordinary
86 GIN Ordinary ½d
3 Crown 1d
CHAMPAGNE was discovered by Father Perignon of The Royal
Monastery of St Pierre at Hautvilliers, he died in 1715. The VODKA 2½ d
process used to rid the bottles of any sediment was however
invented by Madame Clicquot. RUM 1½ d to 2d

BRANDY 1½ d to 2d

SHERRY / PORT 1d to 1½ d

VERMOUTH 1½ d to 2 d

LIQUEURS (per ¼ gill) 3d to 6d

MINERALS (Splits) 3d

BOTTLED BEERS 3d

BAR PRICES

From entries in specimen pages of stock and cash books, it DRAUGHT BEERS (per pint)
seems that there was 50% profit on sales of Beers and Minerals
and between 25% and 30% profit on sales of Spirits. 3 Guinea 3½ d
4 Guinea 4d
Spirits were then generally measured in ¼ gills and there are of 5 Guinea 6d
course 20 oz to a pint. 6 Guinea 7d
7 Guinea 8d
Also prevailing was the persuasion of asking for 'x-pence worth'
71
STOUTS (per pint) Spirits - per glass :

Irish X 2d Brandy 8d; Whisky, Rum, Gin, Port, Sherry, Cordial (a range
Irish Cream 3d of these were available) and Lime Juice were all 4d; Special
Imperial Double Brown 5½ d Whisky at 3d per ‘nip’.

ORDINARY TABLE STOUTS and COMMON PORTER Bottled Beers were all priced at 4d each as were aerated
‘waters’.
Prices varied between 2½ d and 3d
Liqueurs were 6d per ‘nip’, the most popular of the period
CIDER being Marachino, Benedictine and Green Chartreuse.

Prices varied between 3½ d and 6d
Despite the formality of these prices, one could generally buy a
LARGE Gin and a half-pint glass of Stout for just 2 pennies !
A small selection of wines, reflecting the better sellers of the
time, was also carried on board and sold by the bottle - and by
the pint ! .
Champagnes all at 10/6d per bottle, 5/6d per pint : Dry
Monopole Heidsieck, G. H. Mumm’s, Perinet and Fils and
Pommery.

Port and Sherry being 5/- per bottle and 2/6d per pint.

Wines :

Hocks : Sparkling Moselle at 6/- per bottle, 3/6d per pint;

Hockheimer at 5/- per bottle and 2/6d per pint.

Clarets : Medoc at 2/6d per bottle, 1/6d per pint; St. Julien at
3/- per bottle and 1/9d per pint.

“Good Spirits”
The typical 1890’s and early 1900's steamer bar prices were
slightly more expensive than ‘shore prices’, not surprising in
view of the fact that they had a ‘captive’ clientele !
Breakfast, Luncheon, Dinner & Tea
72

A typical selection of fare offered in the dining saloon of the
1890’s and early 1900's -
Breakfast 2/- (reduced to 1/6d if only a single main dish
selected) :
Ham and Egg, Salmon Steak, Chops, White Fish, Herring,
Sausages, Cold Meats, Rolls, Toast, Preserves, Tea and Coffee.
Luncheon - served from 10.30 a.m. till 2 p.m. - 2/- :
Soup or Salmon, Roast Lamb, Roast Beef, Corned Beef, Boiled
Ox-Tongue, Boiled Ham, Potatoes and Vegetables, Assorted
Sweets, Salads and Cheeses.
Dinner Table d’Hôte - served from 2.30 p.m. till 4 p.m. -
2/6d :
Soup, Poached Salmon, Roast Lamb with Mint Sauce, Roast
Beef, Corned Beef and Vegetables, Pickled Ox-Tongue, Boiled
Ham, Potatoes and Vegetables, Assorted Sweets, Salads and
Cheeses.
Tea - served from 4.15 p.m. onwards - 2/- (reduced to
1/6d if only a single main dish selected) :
White Fish, Cold Salmon, Cold Meats, Boiled Eggs, Toast,
Preserves, Tea.
Plain Tea - served from 4.15 p.m. onwards - 9d :
Toast, Biscuits, Preserves, Tea.
For those simply ‘peckish’ :
A plate of soup with bread 6d; a plate of meat and potatoes, or
salmon 1/- ; tea, or coffee, with bread and butter, or a pastry
6d; pudding, or tart, or a compôte of fruit 6d; jellies, or
73
creams 6d; biscuits and cheese 6d; sandwiches 4d; pastries,
or biscuits 1d each.
BIG HOUSES - THE STAFF
It is appropriate to consider the world of 'the Big House' in
Victorian and Edwardianian times and to consider the roles and
duties of the mistress and the servants.
The Edwardian period too was one of evolution of new and old
protocols and - the motor car.
The Mistress - the most successful of whom made herself felt
rather than be be seen or heard. On the day, it could be
observed, when mistresses and servants realise their common
humanity, mutual interest and mutual dependence, the
difficulty of staffing would disappear.
It was useless to employ servants, as did many, out outling
their duties and responsibilities resulting inevitably in
misunderstanding and bad housekeeping.
If the servants saw that the mistress' conduct was well regulated
they would not fail to give respect and that not unmingled with
affection. It was to be recommended that there should be a set
hour, usually about 10 p.m., by which time all servants should
be in. Bearing in mind the moral responsibility of the employer,
suggestion was made that the servants should be given
opportunity to welcome respectable friends at their employer's
home and not, as many, be forced to spend their time out of
doors, often in bad company or at questionable pastimes and
entertainments.
Good servants were worth far more than wages and keep but,
bad servants were poor bargain if they gave their services for
next-to-nothing.

The Mistress' Routine - Having seen that the children were
looked after and clean and comfortable, the first meal of the
day was taken. Though 'there were crumbs in the bed', it was
often less troublesome to take breakfast there and in doing so
guests would not unduly delay the clearance of the table below.
The breakfast, in full flight, was a prodigious meal in itself and
irregular in its hour as people might be departing at various
times, thus adding to the problems of the morning.
After breakfast a round of the kitchens and other departments
was called for with orders being given and articles required for
being unlocked from the stores. These duties would in practice
be undertaken usually by, or with, the housekeeper.
Luncheon would be taken at 1 p.m. with the children who were
able to fend for themselves. This encouraged children to avoid
shyness at an early age and discouraged them feeling awkward
with visitors. Further, this released the children's nurse to have
lunch with fellow servants as housemaids were often inclined to
resent 'waiting on nurse' who, after all, was but a 'servant' too.
After lunch it was customary to make and receive calls. Such
visits, described as 'morning calls', fell into three categories -
ceremony, friendship and condolence. No call, unless of
friendship, would last more than 15 or 20 minutes. The arrival
of other callers would, after the introductions were over, imply
that the original caller take leave of their hostess.
Frequently, 'At Home' days, held once a week or fortnight or
month, were set aside for times when casual and non-intimate
friends made it a rule to call. Should the mistress be away on
such occasion, she should endeavour to inform potential visitors
of such a fact in advance to avoid them making fruitless
journeys.
In making a first call upon a house, the visitor would leave one
of her own visiting cards and two of her husband's cards upon
74
the hall table as she left the house, the second of her husband's
cards left for the benefit of the husband of the house.
Visiting cards would be left with the servants if nobody was at
home but, the cards would be given to the servants too if the
mistress of the house was in, the cards too being left again as
described above. Accounts of visitors' comings and goings were
kept in order to determine the necessity and frequency of
returning house calls.
Following calls there might be a 'bridge tea' at around 3.30 p.m.
or, in summer, 'tennis teas' to be attended to.
The best informal dinner parties consisted of a gathering of 10 or
12 people, the rule being 'not less than the number of Graces or
more than the number of the Muses', the tact and
discrimination of the mistress in her placing of the guests at
table contributing greatly to the success of the evening.
Dinner having been announced, the host offered his arm to -
and placed on his right hand at the dinner table - the lady to
whom he most desired to pay respect, either that lady be
chosen on account of her social position or because of age or
being the greatest stranger in the party. Should that lady be
married and her husband present then the latter took the
hostess who, always last to enter the dining-room, then took her
place at the table, sitting at the left hand of the chosen lady.
When dinner was over, dessert was placed on the table,
accompanied by finger bowls and small lace doillies. The time
then comes when the hostess catches the eue of the first lady in
precedence, rises and gives the signal for the ladies' retiral to
the drawing-room. The men, at the same time rise and the man
nearest to the door opens and closes it for the ladies to leave.
After a brief interval, though not too brief, the men would join
the ladies for coffee.
After-dinner invitations might also be given and generally these
guests would arrive when it suited themselves, usually between
9 and 10 p.m., unless the hour was specified earlier. By this
arrangement, it was possible to attend two or three
engagements in an evening.
When the time for departure came, guests were encouraged to
bid farewell to their hostess without attracting the attention of
other guests to their going.
The Housekeeper - was second-in-command of a house,
except where there was a house steward. Being the
immediate representative of her mistress, the housekeeper
became head of and controlled as such her own family - the
servants.
The housekeeper's chief qualities had to be honesty and
sobriety. Physically she had to be healthy, strong and clean -
though her hands might, understandably, show a little
roughness - but, she should be of 'nice appearance'. Her
demeanour and conduct should never diminish her authority or
influence. An intelligent housekeeper was needed as she would
control many of the household accounts and would be required
to order and also settle many of the orders in cash.
Supervising the kitchen was a duty which required knowledge of
cookery but, the housekeeper should not interfere much with
the actual work of the cook. Without a knowledge of cookery, a
housekeeper and her mistress were powerless against the reign
of tyranny which a cook could easily establish.
Normally the day began with the housekeeper's supervision of
the preparation of breakfast. After its service, the housekeeper
took her own breakfast in the 'housekeeper's room' with the
lady's maid, butler and valet, all served by one of the
under-maids.
Having submitted the day's menus to her mistress, the
housekeeper would embark on her rounds - checking linen, on
days set aside for that purpose, ensuring that polishing and
cleaning was kept up and attending to the ordering and buying
of goods and supplies.
75
After lunch she ensured that staff had returned to their duties
whilst she, herself, would check the still-room, perhaps putting
finishing touches to the desserts for dinner and making ice
creams.
In the evenings, she would plan the following day's activities,
look after the household accounts and stock-keeping.
Every three months, she would take a full inventory of
everything under her care and, comparing that with the
previous inventory, would furnish a statement to her mistress of
all the items requiring replacement by reason of wear, tear,
breakage and loss.
In spring, she would clean the house from top to bottom and
replace the house's heavy winter curtains. She was responsible
for all the storage of the winter clothes and furs, the furs sent to
the cold stores of one of the big city shops or stores. Chimneys
would be swept, kitchens and offices painted and the rooms of
the house redecorated for the summer season.
Summer brought the repair and airing of all the house linen, the
making of jams, jellies and preserves from all the garden's fruits
as they came into season. Eggs, being then cheaper too, were
preserved for winter and pickles made as
the summer wore on.
As autumn approached, fruit would be stored in a dry place and
then regularly checked for decay. Winter clothes would be
brought out, furs retrieved and the summer curtains taken down
before October. Fireplaces, grates, chimneys and fuel all seen
to and, with the building in good state, the housekeeper could
settle down with happy fmind and - a full larder.
The number of men-servants in a house varied from ducal
mansion, at the head of which were a chamberlain and a
house steward, to the smallest of houses where there was
only a single footman.
To a certain extent, the number of male servants regulated the
number of female staff, though this did not include the
chauffeur or coachman, groom or gardener.
Sometimes a parlour-maid carried out the work of a second-
footman whilst a kitchen-maid carried out the work of a third-
footman or a page's boot-cleaning duties.
The Butler - was head of the male staff and was required, of
necessity, to have excellent character and considerable tact.
He had charge of the cellar and all the most valuable articles of
daily use. By day he wore a black tail-coat and tie and at night
wore a regulation dress suit and white tie.
Assisted by a footman at breakfast, he was responsible for
bringing in all the eatables. At luncheon and afternoon tea he
worked alone.
At dinner, he placed all silver and plated articles on the table. It
was the butler's duty to announce the service of dinner in the
drawing room and then stood by the dining room door until the
company had seated themselves whereupon he moved to his
place behind the master's chair, standing slightly to its left.
When the company is ready, the butler removes the covers from
the dishes, handing them to the other servants to carry out.
The butler then moves to the sideboard from where he will serve
the wines, but only when requested.
Note - When handing wine, a guest should be asked, in the
first instance, whether he or she will take wine or not but, when
later handing wine, the guest's glass should be refilled without
question.
He will ring the cook's bell when the first course is finished, then
removing the plates from the table and handing them to the
other servants.
76
The second course is now served, the proceedure being the
same as for the first course, the butler then returning to the
sideboard.
After serving the soups, the butler pours out the wine to be
taken after the soup course.
Carving too is the butler's responsibility and is done at a side
table, the butler then again returning to the wines on his
sideboard.
After dinner, the butler arranges dessert on the dining table and
returns to his place, slightly to the left of his master's chair, the
footman similarly positioned beside that of the mistress of the
house.
Having served the dessert, the butler puts the fires in order and,
having seen that the room's lights are all properly lit, the butler
and the footman, on their master's signal, will proceed to the
drawing room to see that all is in order for the serving of coffee.
Now the butler retires to his pantry to answer the bell (and
telephone) whilst the footman is clearing away the dining room
and cleaning the plate and glasses after dinner.
At bedtime the butler will appear, with candles if necessary,
before ensuring that the plate is locked up, doors and windows
secured, fires settled and ensures that all the other servants are
in bed.
The butler will also be responsible for paying bills and, with the
assistance of the under-butler, be responsible for the entries
in the cellar-book, recording everything used.
Both the butler and under-butler were in control of brewing,
racking and bottling beers as well as laying-in, fining, bottling,
corking, sealing and binning all the wines.
A FOOTNOTE ON WINE SERVICE

When handing wine, a guest should be asked, in the first
instance, whether he or she will take wine, or not; the guest
accepting, their glass should be refilled without further
question.
The Footman - In large houses, the head footman usually
stays at home to answer the door to visitors, the second-
footman going out with the carriage - or, motor car.
In the morning, before the family and guests are stirring, the
footman cleans the boots, shoes, knives and forks, fills the
coal scuttles and trims the lamps. He takes hot water up to the
rooms and also prepares the baths, the footman then taking his
own breakfast and laying the family breakfast table.
At breakfast, he assists the butler, carrying the chief dishes for
the butler and carrying the tea and coffee. If the footman is
required to do any table-waiting himself, he is assisted by a
parlour-maid or house-maid.
During the course of the morning, having cleared the breakfast
table, the footman will be occupied cleaning the plate and the
room windows and looking after the sitting-room fires until such
time as he has to lay up the luncheon table in the dining room.
The footman's duties include the delivery of letters for his
employers, to their friends, to the post and tradespeople. It is
also his duty, if going out with the carriage or motor car, to
ensure that the insides are free from dust and to open and close
the vehicle doors. Also, when the destination is reached, the
footman will leave the vehicle and knock at the house (or open
the shop) doors before returning to the vehicle for further orders.
As it is unlikely that the carriage or motor car would be out
before lunch, the footman too would be required to assist the
butler before then.
77
The footman was required to answer the main house door
promptly, he answering to visitors as to whether the family was
'engaged' or 'not-at-home' and he was required to intimate the
visitors' presence, take them to the drawing room and to see to
their leaving.
Holding himself in readiness for anything that might be required,
the footman might next serve afternoon tea before laying-up the
table for dinner.
About half-an-hour before dinner, the footman would ring the
dinner gong, allowing guests to change for dinner and then the
footman would begin carrying up everything needed for the
dinner's service in the dining room.
Having communicated with the cook, the footman then rings
the dinner bell and proceeds to take the dinner up from the
kitchen with whatever other assistance is available.
If any guest has brought his own servant then that servant
stands behind his master or mistress's chair and gives what
assistance he can to the other servants.
The Chauffeur -was required to be not only a good driver but
was responsible for the maintenance of the vehicle. Careful
attention was paid to the care of the bodywork. On a long
journey, the chauffeur had to 'remember to fill the vehicle's
lamps (if non-electric)'.
Vehicle registration numbers were issued at an early stage and
they identified the area or district to which each vehicle
belonged - The letters 'G', 'S' and 'V', or these, combined with
other letters, were exclusively Scottish, the letters, or
combination of letters 'I' and 'Z' exclusively Irish.
The Valet and The Lady's Maid - received orders only from
the master and the mistress, dressing them and accompanying
them on all their journeys. They were the confidants and agents
of their employers most unguarded moments and of their most
scret habits. Their chief qualities had to include polite manners,
modest demeanour and respectful reserve.
Their day began by checking that the dressing rooms were
clean, the fires tended and the windows were opened or closed
as necessary. Next they had to lay out their employer's under-
clothing, before the fire in winter and ensure that all the clothes
suitable for the days engagements were cleaned, brushed and
pressed and that they themselves were also suitably dressed to
accompany their employer on the day's travels.
A knowledge of all travel proceedures was also necessary as
they had not only to pack and look after baggage but also to
procure tickets, berths and accommodation for their employers
and themselves.
The valet and lady's maid's meals were served in the
housekeeper or house steward's room after they taking
precedence.
The Parlour Maid - was kept, in some households, in place of
a single footman, the maid's duties then being practically
identical to the footman's, the maid attending to the needs of
her mistress, in place of those of a footman to his master.
Opening the door to visitors, announcing their presence,
showing them to the drawing room, bring up and clearing up
afternoon tea, laying the table for luncheon and dinner and
waiting on the table at dinner with, or without, the assistance
of a housemaid.
The parlour maid kept linen in repair, waiting on and dressing
her mistress and similarly attending to any lady guests. Often
she had to help in bed-making and dusted the drawing room,
arranged flowers for the rooms and looked after the answering of
the door and house bells.
She washed up the breakfast, tea and coffee things as well as
helping to wash the glass and plate after luncheon and dinner.
78
She in fact did all the lighter and less manual work of a
housemaid, her duties of assisting the housemaid with the
housework being combined with assisting her mistress, who
might only keep two servants.
In the the morning, the parlour-maid would dress in a print
dress, with a simple white cap and apron and then, in the
afternoon, would change into a simple black dress, relieved by
white collar, cuffs and wear a cap and pretty, lace-trimmed,
apron.
The Housemaid - was the general 'dogsbody' of the house
and had to be soundly versed in all aspects of the house where,
one day, she would work herself and might, with luck, rise to
the position of housekeeper. A more detailed description of her
duties activities is thus easily justified.
Having drawn up the blinds and opened the windows of the
lower rooms, she would take up the rugs in the rooms she was
"doing" before breakfast. Covering the carpet in front of the
fires with a coarse wrapping, she cleaned out the fires,
blackened the grates and puleed out and cleaned the surrounds
before laying the day's new fires.
The fires lit, she swept and dusted the rooms towards the
fireplace where, with the fenders removed, it was easy to lift
the dust and debris on to the fires. All floor surfaces had to be
done and the exposed floor surfaces then mopped.
Every glass pane and every ledge of cabinets wiped, rims and
legs of tables, backs and legs of chairs and sofas vigorously
rubbed before calling the mistress and placing hot water in the
mistress' dressing room.
Before breakfast, the hall and stairways would similarly be
cleaned and too the paintwork washed and stair bannisters and
handrails polished.
After this, the drawing room would be swept and cleaned, all
the furniture previously covered with dust sheets.
By this time breakfast would be served to the family in the
breakfast room and, if assistance there were not required, work
would proceed in the drawing room.
Breakfast served, the housemaid proceeded to the bedrooms
where a similar proceedure was carried out and the beds
completely stripped, with the bedclothes hung over horses and
the backs of chairs to air, the housemaid then emptied the
chamber pots and slops' basins.
Everything was emptied into a slops' pail and the vessels being
emptied were scalded with hot water - those still stained had a
drop of turpentine added to the water for a minute or two before
being rinsed and wiped dry.
Finally, the water jugs were emptied, washed, scalded and
wiped dry before being filled with fresh, often filtered, water
and the glass drinking tumblers then similarly handled.
Next the slop pails themselves were scalded, again using
turpentine, the housemaids then beginning the task of making
up the beds.
Beginning by turning the mattress, an underblanket and sheet
were laid on the bed and tucked underneath the mattress. The
'bolster' pillow was then beaten and shaken before being put on
the bed, the top of the lower bedsheet then rolled round it and
the bedsheet itself tucked in all round and underneath the
bolster.
The pillows, upper bedsheet, blankets and bedspread then
followed, an eiderdown quilt on top.
Finally, the room floor and furniture were again cleaned over
and the hallways and staircases checked for any dust that might
have come from the cleaning of the bedrooms.
79
A systemmatic cleaning routine then followed, according to the
housekeeper's instructions on a daily, weekly, monthly and
seasonal basis.
In the evening, if in summer and the bedrooms shut all day to
keep out the heat, the housemaid would now open these after
dinner to allow cool air into the bedrooms.
In winter, the windows would have been closed and, an hour or
so before the usual time to retire, the housemaids would light
the bedroom fires, turn down the beds and layout the night-
clothes.
There was no rest for the housemaid either as any spare time
she had would be devoted to the repair of linen.
The Kitchen - where the cook, in over all charge, was
assisted by a kitchen-maid and a scullery-maid. The scullery
maid ended up with all the coarse work of the kitchen. In the
morning, she had first to light the kitchen stove before cleaning
and sweeping the kitchen and all its various offices, then too
the cleaning of the entrance steps of the house, the front
doorstep and the passages and stairs leading to the kitchen.
The cook's day began about 6 a.m. in the summer and about 7
a.m. in the winter. Breakfast was served about 8 o'clock and,
having ordered from the tradesmen and accepted their
deliveries, the luncheon was prepared, luncheon generally
being cold meat or a light entrée, vegetables, sweets and
cheese.
Two lists would be hung up for dinner - the first displaying the
menu and the second the order in which things would have to be
cooked.
With the kitchen maid assisting the cook in the preparation of
the main dishes, the main responsibility for the soups, fish,
poultry and meats was taken by the cook whilst the kitchen maid
superintended the cooking of the vegetables, sauces and West Ham,
AN BS Orkney
gravies, the housekeeper looking after the sweets, desserts London
and ice creams. AO Cumberland BT East Yorkshire
AP East Sussex BU Oldham
The first dishes to be served up from the kitchen were those that B
could best stand on the hot plate or in the hot cupboard, the AR Hertford Oxford
W
rest of the dishes then being dished up as near to the time they AS Nairn BX Carmarthen
were due to be served at the table. Kingston-upon-
AT BY Croydon
Hull
MOTOR VEHICLE REGISTRATION MARKS OF AU Nottingham C West Yorkshire
1906 A
Salop CA Denbigh
W
This 'Edwardian Age' brought with it the motor car and Peter AX Monmouth CB Blackburn
McDonald's Licensed Trade Lists also included the motor vehicle AY Leicester CC Carnarvon
registration plate identities for Scotland, England and Wales and B Lancaster CD Brighton
the whole of Ireland. BA Salford CE Cambridge
BB Newcastle CF West Suffolk
The letters G, S and V, either alone, or combined with other BC Leicester CH Derby
letters, were exclusively Scottish - The letters I and Z CI Queen's County DP Reading
exclusively Irish. CJ Hereford DR Devonport
CK Preston DS Peebles
CL Norwich DU Coventry
A London BD Northampton C D Newport
Lindsey, Birkenhead
AA Southampton BE M W (Monmouth)
Lincolnshire CN Gateshead DX Ipswich
AB Worcester BF Dorset CO Plymouth DY Hastings
AC Warwick BH Buckinghamshire CP Halifax E Stafford
AD Gloucester BI Monaghan CR Southampton EA West Bromwich
AE Bristol BJ East Suffolk Kesteven,
AF Cornwall BK Portsmouth CT EB Isle of Ely
Lincolnshire
AH Norfolk BL Berkshire CU South Shields EC Westmoreland
B C
AI County Meath Bedford Burnley ED Warrington
M W
AJ North Yorkshire BN Bolton CX Huddersfield EE Grimsby
AK Bradford BO Cardiff CY Swansea EF Hartlepool
AL Nottingham BP West Sussex D Kent EH Hanley
A DA Wolverhampton EI Sligo
Wiltshire BR Sunderland
M DB Stockport EJ Cardigan
80
DC Middlesbrough EK Wigan HI South Tipperaray KS Roxburgh
DE Pembroke EL Bournemouth HS Renfrew L Glamorgan
DH Walsall EM Bootle IA Antrim LC London
DI Roscommon EN Bury S
LI West Meath Dumfries
DJ St. Helens EO Barrow-in-Furness M
DK Rochdale EP Montgomery LS Selkirk SN Dumbarton
DL Isle of Wight ES Perth M Chester SO Elgin
D MI Wexford SR Forfar
Flint ET Rotherham
M M
Stirling SS Haddington
DN York EU Brecknock S
Holland, E N Manchester ST Inverness
DO Huntingdon
Lincolnshire W NH Northampton SU Kincardine
EX Great Yarmouth IB Armagh NI Wicklow SV Kinross
EY Anglesey IC Carlow S
NS Sutherland Kirkcudbright
F Essex ID Cavan W
FA Burton-on-Trent IE Clare O Birmingham SX Linlithgow
FB Bath IF Cork OI Belfast SY Midlothian
FC Oxford IH Donegal OS Wigtonshire T Devon
FD Dudley IJ County Down P Surrey TI Limerick
FE Lincoln IK Dublin PI Cork TS Dundee
FF Merioneth IL Fermanagh PS Shetland U Leeds
FH Gloucester IM Galway R Derby UI Londonderry
FI North Tipperaray IN Kerry RI Dublin US Govan
FJ Exeter IO Kildare RS Aberdeen V Lanark
FK Worcester IP Kilkenny S Edinburgh VS Greenock
FL Peterborough IR King's County SA Aberdeen W Sheffield
FM Chester IT Leitrim SB Argyll and Fife WI Waterford
FN Canterbury IU Limerick W
SD Ayr Leith
FO Radnor IW Londonderry S
FP Rutland IY Louth SE Banff X Northumberland
FR Blackpool IZ Mayo SH Berwick XS Paisley
FT Tynemouth J Durham SJ Bute Y Somerset
FX Dorset JI Tyrone SK Caithness YS Partick
Ross and SL Clackmannan
FY Southport JS
Cromarty
G Glasgow K Liverpool The first motor car appeared in Campbeltown in 1898 and, by
H Middlesex KI Waterford 1906, when the Campbeltown to Machrihanish Railway opened,
there were 75 motor-cars registered in the county of Argyll -
81
The Campbeltown to Tarbert mail-coach, said to ‘circumnavigate
The World’ once- a- year, gave way to the age of the motor-bus
in 1913 when it made its last run on Saturday, August 30,
1913.
ARGYLL and THE ISLES - SOME 1895 NOTES
Peter McDonald, whose trade price list prompted these pages,
was a descendant of The Lord of The Isles, using the title to
name products - Peter McDonald operated his business from 4
Carlton Place, Glasgow and too used "ISLES" as his telegraphic
address.
The notes here have been assembled from a number of 1895-
published references and give some insights into 'The Victorian
World' of Argyll and The Isles.
THE HISTORY
The title of 'The Lord of The Isles' was borne by descendants of
Somerled (or Samuel), Thane of Argyll, who in 1135, on the
expulsion of the Norwegians from Arran and Bute by David I,
was granted these territories.
On Sommerled's assassination in 1164, his dominions were
divided between his three sons, Dugal, Angus and Reginald -
Mull, Coll, Tiree and Jura to the eldest; Islay, Kintyre and half
of Arran to the second; Bute and the remaining half of Arran to
the third, the last son subsequently adding Dugal's inheritance
to his own and in his line was vested 'The Lordship of The Isles'.
Reginald's great-grandson, Angus Oig, fought under Bruce at
the 1314 Battle of Bannockburn and was the hero of Sir Walter
82
Scott's novel 'Lord of The Isles' and Angus' grandson was
defeated in the 1411 Battle of Harrow.
Donald, who was by now 'Lord of The Isles', was in dispute with
The Regent of Scotland, The Duke of Albany, over The Earldom
of Ross, the result being that Donald was forced to surrender
the earldom, which he in any case had seized in his wife's right.
With the death of Donald's son John, in 1498, the direct line of
descent terminated and, though various bastard members of
the house assumed the title, their claims were never recognised
and 'The Lordship' was annexed to The Scottish Crown in 1540.
Before Somerled, in the third century, had come Cairbre
Ruighfhdhu, 'Cairbre of The Long Arm', a prince of Munster,
removed to Ulster where his posterity attained considerable
power - The historian Bede called him Reuda, others calling
him Riada.
In 506 a band of his descendants, numbering around 150, led
by Loarn, Angus and Fergus, three sons of Erc, took possession
of Kintyre and Knapdale to found the small kingdom of Dalriada
and, in the course of time, they conquered the mainland as far
as Tyndrum but, by the eighth century, the Picts and the
Caledonians had burned the Dalriadic capital of Dun-Add to the
ground.
By the following century their leader was Kenneth MacAlpine
who, through inheritance from his mother, was made King of
Dalriada and northern Pictland.
Kenneth MacAlpine was an individual of great ability and, having
subdued the Strathclyde Britons and southern Picts, reducing
Albainn, as it was known, to be ruled under one sceptre, he
imposed on his territories the name Scotia, Scotland.
Kintyre, known to disciple's of Columba as 'Head's Land',
occupied a more important place in the sixth century than ever
since and it was only in the ninth century, when the seat of the
Scottish monarchy was moved to Forteviot, that Kintyre's
importance diminished and its place relegated to the dim, semi-
historic, records of early Christianity in Scotland.
CLAN MACALISTER - This clan was the first that branched off
from the main Clan Donald stem, in the 13th century, its
founder, in 1284, Alister Mor, Lord of The Isles - He opposed
Bruce, who shut him up in Dundonald Castle in Ayrshire, where
he was to remain till his death, his estates were given to his
brother, Angus Mor, one of Bruce's supporters.
As Lords of The Isles, the dynasty was overthrown by James IV
and the MacAlisters became a distinct clan at Ardpatrick, in
South Knapdale and mention is made of Vic-Ian-Dhu MacAlister
of Loup in 1515.
The MacAlisters fought on the side of Montrose at the 1645
Battle of Inverlochy - Argyll dissuaded their chief, Hector, from
being present at the battle itself.
Hector's son, Godfrey, married a daughter of Sir Robert
Montgomerie of Skelmorlie and their son, Alexander MacAlister
of Loup, fought for Dundee at the 1689 Battle of Killiecrankie.
His brother, Charles, married a daughter of Lamond of That Ilk
and, in turn, his son, also Charles, added, by marriage, the
Somerville Arms to his own - Charles, dying in 1847, was
succeeded by his son, Charles Sommerville MacAlister, who
died in 1891, his son, Lt. Col. Charles Somerville MacAlister
succeeding and then, also Lt. Col. MacAlister, continuing the
succession in 1903.
CLAN MACNEILL OF GIGHA - The MacNeills of Barra and
the MacNeills of Gigha are Celtic and trace their common origin
to Neil Og, the founder of the clan, who lived around 1300.
In 1472, the MacNeills of Gigha were keepers of the Castle of
Sweyn in North Knapdale, The Lord of The Isles their overlord.
83
Neil MacNeill was chief of the clan in the first half of the 16th
century and from his son, also Neil, are descended the
MacNeills of Taynish, another son, John Og, the ancestor of the
MacNeills of Gallochoille and of Crerar, afterwards of Colonsay.
James MacDonald of Islay purchased Gigha in 1554, it later
acquired by John Campbell of Calder, he selling it in 1590 to
Hector MacNeill of Taynish, both Gigha and Taynish remaining
with his descendants till 1780 when Gigha was again sold and
this time purchased by Alexander MacNeill of Colonsay.
In addition to the Taynish MacNeills were those of Gallachoille,
Caraskey and Tir-fergus.
In the 17th century, Torquil, of the house of Tir-Fergus, married
theheiress of the Mackays and acquired the lands of Ugadale in
Kintyre, its owners later known as MacNeal.
Sir John MacNeill K.C.B., L.L.D., owner of Ugadale and Envoy at
The Court of Persia in 1831, belonged to the Colonsay MacNeills
- Hector MacNeill of Ugadale, who died in 1818, wrote "Come
Under My Plaidie".
An 1895 Gazeteer Guide to AIRER GAEDHIL
The Land of The Gael
COLL - population 522, a decrease of 121 since 1881 - The
inhabitants neglect the valuable ling fishing which is now
prosecuted by fishers from a distance.
COLONSAY and ORONSAY - respective populations of 358
and 23 - Separated by a 100-yard wide channel, which dries at
low water - Black cattle and sheep of a superior breed -
Oronsay contains the ruin of a fine priory which was founded by
The Lords of The Isles.
IONA - in Latin, Ioua insula, otherwise Chalum Cille, 'The
Island of Calum of The Church' - Of its cemeteries, Iomaire nan
Righrean is said to contain the dust of several kings of Scotland,
Ireland, France, Denmark and Northern England.
ISLAY - population 7,375, with Port Ellen having a population
of 893 - There is a fishing station at Askaig - Whisky distilleries
yield 400,000 gallons annually.
JURA - 'Deor-oe', 'Deer Island', from the Scandanavian -
Population 619 - Considerable export trade of black cattle -
Some flax is grown at a time when there are but 9 acres of flax
growing in the whole of Scotland.
LISMORE - 'Great Fort', or 'enclosure' - Population 561 - The
former residence of The Bishops of Argyll (Episopi Lismorienses)
- James Macgregor, a dean of the Pre-Reformation period, was
author of 'The Dean of Lismore's Book'.
MULL - 'Maol', 'a headland' - Population 4,691 representing
1,156 separate families living in 1,036 houses - Tobermory,
'The Well of St Mary', is the only village of any size - Crops
sufficient for the wants of the islanders but fishing is prolific.
RUM - Population 53.
TIREE - or 'Tyreé' or 'Tir-ith', 'The Landof Corn' - Population
2,449.
ARGYLL has three principal towns and these unite, with the
towns of Ayr and Irvine, for a Member of Parliament.
INVERARAY - Though the town has a population of 743, the
Parliamentary Burgh's population is but 723 - The chief town of
The Western Highlands of Scotland - It consists of one street
running east to west - Near the centre stands an old square
church and an obelisk in memory of the seventeenth century
Campbells who were executed, without trial, in 1685 - A ferry
service to St Catherines, on the opposite shore of Loch Fyne -
There is a regular steamboat service to Glasgow - Inveraray
was made a burgh in 1472 and a Royal Burgh in 1648 - The old
town, to the north, was deserted for the present in 1742.
84
CAMPBELTOWN - anciently named Dalruadhain, was renamed
at the beginning of the eighteenth century, when it was raised
to the rank of a Royal Burgh and took its name to compliment
The Duke of Argyll - It imports barley and exports coal, sheep,
cattle and herring - There are numerous whisky distilleries - Its
population as a town is 8,291 and its Parliamentary Burgh has a
population of 8,235.
OBAN - 'The Little Bay', sometimes called 'The Queen of The
Highlands' and, though of but recent origin, a great
rendezvous for tourists - The town belongs to the Ayr group of
Parliamentary burghs and has a population of 4,875, the
Parliamentary burgh of 4,377.
ARGYLL LIVESTOCK TOTALS IN 1894
CATTLE - 61,341, mainly black or Highland (The other British
Breeds of the 1800's were British Shorthorns, derived from
Chillingham cattle, usually crossed with Ayrshires; Longhorns;
Hereford; North Devon; Suffolk Dun; Alderney; Shetland;
Galloway, which like the Suffolk Dun, are described as 'polled'
breeds; also West Highland cattle sometimes known as Kyloes).
HORSES - 6,986 used in agriculture, mainly Clydesdales.
PIGS - 4,331 POULTRY (not counted but commonly found
breeds were Cochin-China, Malay and Dorking). SHEEP -
1,023,351 - mainly Black-face (The other British Breeds of the
1800's were Welsh; Shetland; Forest; Dorset; Cheviot;
Leicester; Gloucester; Southdown and some Icelandic).
CATTLE VALUES AVERAGE PER HEAD
OXEN COWS CALVES MEAT
And PRICES
BULLS per Stone
of 8 lbs
 1861 - £ 17. 5. £ 15. 16. £ 4. 11. 5
1865 0 2 BRITAIN and HER COLONIES
1866 - £ 18. 13. £ 16. 17. £ 4. 13. 9
1870 9 10
and DEPENDENCIES IN 1894
1871 - £ 19. 15. £ 17. 3. £ 4. 5. 3
The U.K. population, including that of then the whole of Ireland,
1875 5 7
totalled 37.8 million, Britain's colonies and dependencies
1873 4/5 to 6/2
embracing nearly one-seventh of The World's land surfaces and
1876 - £ 21. 17. £ 17. 12. £ 4. 15. 6 nearly one-seventh of the planet's populations and these can be
1880 6 10 listed as Australia and Tasmania; Bermudas; British
1881 - £ 21. 10. £ 19. 10. £ 4. 13. 2 Bechuanaland; British East and Central Africa; British Guiana;
1885 10 8 British Honduras; British India (including Aden, Perim and The
1883 4/- to 5/9 Indian Isles); British South Africa; British West Indies; Canada
1886 - £ 17. 18. £ 12. 11. £ 3. 17. 1 and Newfoundland; Cape Colony (including Pondoland); Cyprus;
1890 10 8 Fiji and Pacific Isles; Gambia; Gibralter; Gold Coast; Hong
1891 - £ 18. 8. £ 15. 0. £ 3. 19. 2 Kong; Lagos; Malta and Gozo; Mauritius; Natal and
1893 7 4 Protectorate; New Guinea; New Zealand; Niger Coast
1893 2/5 to 4/6 Protectorate; North Borneo; Royal Niger Company; Sierra
U.K. FISH LANDINGS IN 1894 Leone; Somali Protectorate; South Atlantic Isles; Straits
Settlements; Zanzibar and Pemba.
Note that though, during the period between 1889 and 1893,
there had been a decrease of 647 registered Scottish fishing
boats, the numbers of Scottish fishermen had increased by 442.

QUANTITIE TYPE VALUES Average

S Per Cwt

5,869,312 Herring £ 4/2

cwts 1,224,762
3,014,026 Haddock £ 10/-
cwts 1,503,978
104,737 Soles £ £ 5. 11. 2
cwts 582,369
86,515 cwts Turbot £ £ 3. 12. 4
313,080

29½ million Oysters N/Q

7¼ million Crabs N/Q
1½ + million Lobsters N/Q
85