As we take leave, for Labor Day Weekend, let us take it with Sam Watkins – and learn by it. While on an injured list, Watkin’s, of the 1st Tennessee Infantry, was in Montgomery, Alabama. He first had eggs, fish and toast. Then he decided to stop for a drink.
“How do you sell it?” says I.
“A dollar a drink,” says he.
“Pour me out a drink.”
“….That is raw whiskey.”
“Yes,” said he, “all my cooked whiskey is out.”
“If this is not quite cooked, it is as hot as fire anyhow, and burns like red-hot lava, and the whole dose seems to have got lodged in my windpipe.”
Watkins goes on to describe his drink of raw whiskey:
I might have tasted it, but I don’t think I did. All I can remember now, is a dim recollection of a nasty, greasy, burning something going down my throat and chest, and smelling as I remember at this day, like a decoction of red-pepper tea, flavored with coal oil, and tobacco juice.”(i)
The moral of this story is to make sure your bourbon is well distilled and colored before drinking it over the Labor Day Weekend! Be safe, enjoy your family and may God Bless the U.S.A.
(i) Watkins, Sam, Company Aythch or, A Side Show of the Big Show, published by New American Library in November 1999, Pgs. 157-158.
About Michael Noirot
I grew up in the Central Illinois farming community, of Dunlap. Growing up, I played sports, tinkered with cars and enjoyed photography. While I did well in school, I did not become passionate about history until my early 30's.
I have built a large library, of books on early America, politics and the Civil War. I am an avid reader. Fortunately, I have had plenty of opportunities to travel, over the years, and have been to most of the Civil War battlefields. I work while I travel, so more often than not, I am up, in the middle of the night, to get sunrise pictures, or I will be out until well after dark, exploring Civil War battlefields.
I have other hobbies, and passions, that I really enjoy. Number one on the list would be guitar. I play my guitars on a regular basis, and enjoy the Bluegrass, and Contemporary Christian (CCM) genres. I play a style of guitar, called FLATPICKING, where using a flat pick, you play lead solos, similar to the way a fiddle would have been played during the 19th and early 20th Centuries.
Laura, my wife, and I also enjoy scuba diving, travel and spending time at our property, in the country. Lastly, we spend as much time with our families, as possible. Thanks for stopping by.
