Drinks of the world / by James Mew and John Ashton.

  • Mew, James.
Date:
1892
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Drinks of the world / by James Mew and John Ashton. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    to inform a few of the mob that gin would be sold by the cat at my window next day, provided they put the money in his mouth, from whence there was a hole which conveyed it to me.” This, by the way, is a rare anticipation of our automatic sweetstuff, scent, and other machines. To continue : “At night I took possession of my den, and got up early next morning to be ready lor custom. It was over three hours before anybody called, which made me almost despair of the project; at last I heard the chink of money and a comfortable voice say, ‘ Puss, give me two pennyworth of gin ! ’ I instantly put my mouth to the tube and bid them receive it from the pipe under her paw ” — the cat seems to have changed its sex in this short interval of time—“ and then measured and poured it into the fun- nel, from whence they soon received it. Before night I took six shillings, the next day about thirty shillings, and afterwards three or four pounds a day. From all parts of London people used to resort to me in such numbers that my neighbours could scarcely get in and out of their houses. After this manner I went on for a month, in which time I cleared upwards of two-and- twenty pounds. So far Captain Bradstreet, “ but,” says the Editor of Notes & Queries, “the ghost of ‘old Tom Hodges ’ will probably enter a protest against Captain Brad- street’s cat.” Another popular name for gin was used when Cor- inthian Tom and Jerry Hawthorn visited Bob Logic in the Fleet. Bob says, “ Let us spend the day comfor- tably, and in the evening I will introduce you both to