Part 6

To _Ice Wine_ is another very unprofitable and inconvenient custom--and not only deteriorates its flavour, but by rendering it dull in the mouth--people are induced to drink too much, as they are deprived of the advantage of knowing when they have got enough--for as soon as the Wine becomes warm in their Stomachs,--the dose they have taken merely to exhilarate them--makes them drunk.

_The true Economy of Drinking_,--is to excite as much Exhilaration as may be,--with as little Wine.

We deprecate the custom of _sitting for Hours after Dinner, and keeping the Stomach in an incessant state of irritation by sipping Wine,--nothing can be more prejudicial to Digestion_[62]--it is much better to mix Food and Drink--and to take them by alternate mouthsful.--See page 11.

Our "VINUM BRITANNICUM"--good Home-brewed Beer--which has been very deservedly called "_Liquid Bread_," is preferable to any other Beverage during Dinner or Supper--or _Port_ or _Sherry_ diluted with about three or four times their quantity of Toast and Water--(No. 463*): undiluted, these Wines are too strong to be drank during Dinner,--they act so powerfully on the feelings of the Stomach, that they dull the desire for solid Food, by producing the sensation of Restoration,--and the System, instead of receiving material to repair and strengthen it,--is merely stimulated during the action of the Vinous spirit.

However, the dull stimulus of Distention, is insufficient for some delicate Stomachs, which do absolutely require to be screwed up with a certain quantity of diffusible Stimulus[63],--without which, they cannot proceed effectively to the business of Digestion,--or indeed any other business--we do not recommend such, especially if they have passed the Meridian of Life, to attempt to entirely wean themselves of it--but advise them, _immediately after Dinner_, to drink as much as is necessary to excite that degree of action in their System, without which they are uncomfortable, and then to stop.--See Observations on _Siesta_.

Now-a-days, _Babies_ are brought to table after Dinner by Children of larger growth--to drink Wine,--which has as bad an effect on their tender susceptible stomachs, as the like quantity of ALCOHOL would produce upon an Adult.

Wine has been called "the Milk of Old Age," so "Milk is the Wine of Youth." As Dr. Johnson observed, it is much easier to be abstinent than to be temperate--and no man should habitually take Wine as Food till he is past 30 years of age[64] at least;--happy is He who preserves this best of Cordials in reserve, and only takes it to support his Mind and Heart when distressed by anxiety and fatigue. That which may be a needful stimulus at 40 or 50, will inflame the Passions into madness at 20 or 30--and at an earlier period is absolute Poison.

Among other _innumerable Advantages which the Water-drinker enjoys_, remember he saves at least FIFTY GUINEAS per annum--which the Beer and Wine drinker wastes--as much to the detriment of his health, as the diminution of his Finances: moreover, nothing deteriorates the sense of Taste so soon as strong liquors--the _Water-drinker_ enjoys an exquisite sensibility of Palate, and relish for plain food, that a Wine-drinker has no idea of.

Some people make it a rule to drink a certain number of Glasses of Wine during and after dinner, whether they are dry, or languid, or not--this is as ridiculous as it would be to eat a certain number of Mutton Chops whether you are hungry or not. The effect produced by Wine is seldom the same, even in the same person--and depends on the state of the animal spirits at the time--whether the stomach be full or empty, &c.

The more simply Life is supported, and the less Stimulus we use, the better--and Happy are the Young and Healthy who are wise enough to be convinced that Water is the best drink, and Salt the best sauce.

But in Invalids past the Meridian of Life, we believe as much mischief is going on when our Pulse hobbles along as if the Heart was too tired to carry on the Circulation, as can possibly be done to the constitution by taking such a portion of Wine as will remove the collapse--and excite the mainspring of Life to vibrate with healthful vigour.

The following is the Editor's plan of taking liquid food at Dinner,--when he cannot get Good Beer:--he has two wine glasses of Sherry, or one of Whiskey[65], or Brandy, (No. 471), and three-fourths of a pint of good Toast and Water, (No. 463), (which when Dyspeptic he has warmed to about Summer Heat, _i. e._ 75 of Fahrenheit,) and puts a wine-glass of Sherry, or half a glass of Whiskey, &c. into half a pint of the water, and the other glass of Sherry, or half glass of Whiskey, &c. into the remaining quarter pint--thus increasing the strength of the liquid towards the conclusion of Dinner, after which he drinks from two to four glasses of Port or Sherry--as Instinct suggests the state of the circulation requires--if it be very languid, a _Liqueur_ glass of JOHNSON'S[66] _Witte Curaçoa_[67] is occasionally recommended as a renovating _Bonne Bouche_--about a quarter of an hour after dinner, he lies down on a Sofa, and sleeps for about half an hour--this has been his custom for the last twenty years--half an hour's horizontal posture is more restorative to him--than if he had sat up and drank three or four more glasses of wine.

As to _the Wholesomeness of various Wines_[68],--that depends on the integrity and skill of the Wine-maker,--and upon the peculiar state of the stomach of the Wine-drinker:--when my Stomach is not in Good Temper,--it generally desires to have _Red Wine_,--but when in best Health,--nothing affronts it more than to put _Port_ into it--and one of the first symptoms of its coming into adjustment, is a wish for _White Wine_.

One of the chief causes of that derangement of the Stomach, which delicate and aged persons so constantly complain of after _Dining out_--is the drinking of Wines, &c. which they are unused to.

_White_, deserve to be preferred to _Red Wines_,--because the latter being harder pressed, and subjected to a stronger fermentation to extract the colouring matter from the husks of the Grape, are more loaded with feculence.

Of RED WINES, _Claret_ is the best; and it is to be lamented, that the Duty imposed upon it is so great, that to moderate fortunes it amounts to a prohibition--when we make this observation, we do not mean to impeach the prudence which has induced those who no doubt best understand the subject,--to determine that political necessity imperatively decrees that the delightful and salubrious wines of France--must be taxed twice as high as the coarse unwholesome wines of Portugal.

Of the _White_ Wines, we believe that _Sherry_ is the most easy--and _Madeira_ the most difficult to obtain genuine--most of the SWEET Wines are as artificially compounded, as the Beers of this country; the addition of Capillaire to Port wine, makes what is commonly called _Tent_. _Mountain, Calcavella, &c._ are made up in the same manner.

For further Illustrations of this subject, see ACCUM _on Adulterations_, 2d Edition, 12mo. 1820.

_An Inquiry into the Effects of Fermented Liquors, by a Water-drinker_, 2d Edit. 1818.

SANDFORD'S _Remarks on Wine_. Worcester, 1799.

LETTSOM, _on the Effects of Hard Drinking_.

TROTTER, _on Drunkenness_, 1804.

ACCUM'S _Art of making English Wine_, 1820.

CARNELL, _on Family Wine Making_, 1814.

ACCUM, _on Brewing_, 1820.

RAWLINSON, _on Brewing in Small Quantities_,--printed for Johnson, 1807, price 1s.; _and Home Brewed Ale_, printed for Robinson, 1804, price 2s.

_Facts Proving Water the best Beverage._ Printed by Smeeton, in St. Martin's Lane.

_Manuel de Sommelier, par_ A. JULLIEN, Paris, 1817.

PEPTIC PRECEPTS.

"Suaviter in modo, sed fortiter in re."

Not one Constitution in a thousand, is so happily constructed or is constantly in such perfect adjustment, that the operations of the Abdominal Viscera (on which every other movement of the system depends) proceed with healthful regularity.

The following hints will point out to the Reader, how to employ Art to afford that assistance to Nature, which in Indisposition and Age, is so often required, and will teach him to counteract in the most prompt and agreeable manner--the effects of those accidental deviations from strict Temperance,--which sometimes overcome the most abstemious philosopher--when the seducing charms of Conviviality tempt him to forego the prudent maxims of his cooler moments.

They will help those who have delicate Constitutions, to obtain their fair share of Health and Strength,--and instruct the Weak, so to economize the powers they have, that they may enjoy Life as well as the Strong.

To humour that desire for the marvellous, which is so universal in medical (as well as in other) matters,--the makers of _Aperient Pills_ generally select the most DRASTIC PURGATIVES, which operating considerably in a dose of a few grains, excite admiration in the Patient, and faith in their powers, in proportion as a small dose produces a great effect,--who seldom considers how irritating such materials must be,--and consequently how injurious to a Stomach in a state of Debility, and perhaps deranged by indulging Appetite beyond the bounds of moderation.

INDIGESTION will sometimes overtake the most experienced Epicure;--when the gustatory nerves are in good humour, Hunger and Savoury Viands will sometimes seduce the Tongue of a "_Grand Gourmand_" to betray the interest of his Stomach[69] in spite of his Brains.

On such an unfortunate occasion,--whether the intestinal commotion be excited by having eaten too much, or too strong food--lie down--have your Tea early after Dinner--and drink it warm.

This is a hint to help the Invalid, whose digestion is so delicate, that it is sometimes disordered by a Meal of the strictest Temperance. If the anxiety, &c. about the Stomach does not speedily abate, apply the "_Stomach Warmer_." This valuable companion to Aged and Gouty Subjects, may be procured at No. 58, Haymarket.

A certain degree of Heat is absolutely necessary to excite and support a regular process of Digestion;--when the Circulation is languid, and the food difficult of solution, in Aged persons and Invalids,--_External Heat_ will considerably assist Concoction, and the application of this califacient concave will enable the Digestive organs to overcome refractory materials,--and convert them into laudable Chyle.

Unless the Constitution is so confoundedly debilitated, that the Circulation cannot run alone--_Abstinence_[70] is the easiest--cheapest--and best cure for the disorders which arise from _Indigestion_ or _Intemperance_. I do not mean what Celsus calls the first degree of it, "when the sick man takes nothing," but the second, "when he takes nothing but what he ought."

The Chylopoietic organs are uncomfortable when entirely unoccupied,--when the Stomach is too tired to work, and too weak to be employed on actual service,--it desires something to be introduced to it, that will entertain it till it recovers its energy.

After INTEMPERATE FEASTING one day, let the food of the following day be Liquid, or of such materials as are easy of solution.

Various expedients have been recommended for preventing and relieving the disorders arising from too copious libations of "the Regal purple Stream."

When a good fellow has been sacrificing rather too liberally at the shrine of the Jolly God, the best remedy to help the Stomach to get rid of its burthen, is to take for Supper some GRUEL, (No. 572, _see Index_,) with half an ounce of Butter, and a teaspoonful of _Epsom Salt_ in it; or two or three _Peristaltic Persuaders_,--which some Gastropholists take as a provocative to appetite, about an hour before Dinner.

Some persons take as a "_sequitur_" a drachm of _Carbonate of Soda_.

Others a teaspoonful of _Calcined Magnesia_:--when immediate relief is required, never administer this uncertain medicine, which, if the Stomach has no Acid ready to dissolve it,--will remain inert; it must be taken, only when _Heart-burn_ and symptoms of Acidity are manifest.

As a _Finale_ to the day of the Feast, or the _Overture_ of the day after, take (No. 481*,) or two drachms of _Epsom Salt_ in half a pint of _Beef Tea_,--or some _Tincture of Rhubarb_ in hot water,--the first thing to be done, is to endeavour to get rid of the offending material.

A Breakfast of _Beef Tea_[71] (No. 563,) is an excellent Restorative;--when _the Languor following Hard Drinking_ is very distressing, indulge in the horizontal posture; (see _Siesta_, p. 94;) nothing relieves it so effectually, or so soon cheers the Circulation, and sets all right;--get an early Luncheon of restorative Broth or Soup.

HARD DRINKING _is doubly debilitating, when pursued beyond the usual hour of retiring to Rest._

Those devotees to the Bottle, who never suffer the orgies of Bacchus to encroach on the time which Nature demands for Sleep,--escape with impunity, many of the evils which soon--and irreparably--impair the Health of the Midnight reveller.

A facetious observer of the inordinate degree in which some people will indulge their Palate, to the gratification of which they sacrifice all their other senses,--recommends such to have their Soup seasoned with a tasteless purgative, as the Food of insane persons sometimes is, and so prepare their bowels for the hard work they are going to give them!!

To let the Stomach have a holiday occasionally--_i. e._ a Liquid diet, of Broth and Vegetable Soup, is one of the most agreeable and most wholesome ways of restoring its Tone.

_If your Appetite[72] be languid_, take additional Exercise in a pure open Air,--or Dine half an hour later than usual, and so give time for the Gastric Juices to assemble in full force;--or dine upon Fish--or _Chinese Soup_, _i. e._ Tea.

If these simple means are ineffectual,--the next step, is to produce energetic vibration in the Alimentary tube, without exciting inordinate action, or debilitating depletion; and to empty the Bowels, without irritating them.

Sometimes _when the languor occasioned by Dyspepsia, &c. is extreme_, the Torpor of the System becomes so tremendous--that no Stimulus will help it, and the Heart feels as if it was tired of beating--a moderate dose of a quickly operating Aperient, _i. e._ half an ounce of Tincture of Rhubarb, and two drachms of Epsom Salts in a tumbler of hot water--will speedily restore its wonted energy.

THE STOMACH is the centre of Sympathy;--if the most minute fibre of the human frame be hurt, intelligence of the injury instantaneously arrives;--and the Stomach is disturbed, in proportion to the importance of the Member, and the degree in which it is offended.

If either the Body or the Mind be fatigued,--the Stomach invariably sympathizes;--if the most robust do any thing too much, the Stomach is soon affronted,--and does too little:--unless this mainspring of Health be in perfect adjustment, the machinery of life will vibrate with languor;--especially those parts which are naturally weak, or have been injured by Accidents, &c. Constipation is increased in costive habits--and Diarrhœa in such as are subject thereto--and all Chronic complaints are exasperated, especially in persons past the age of 35 years.

Of the various helps to Science, none perhaps more rapidly facilitate the acquirement of knowledge, than analogical reasoning; or illustrating an Art we are ignorant of, by one we are acquainted with.

THE HUMAN FRAME may be compared to a Watch, of which the Heart is the Mainspring--the Stomach the regulator,--and what we put into it, the Key by which the machine is wound up;--_according to the quantity,--quality,--and proper digestion of what we Eat[73] and Drink, will be the pace of_ _the Pulse, and the action of the System in general_:--when we observe a due proportion between the quantum of Exercise and that of Excitement, all goes well.--If the machine be disordered, the same expedients are employed for its re-adjustment, as are used by the Watch-maker; it must be carefully cleaned, and judiciously oiled.

Eating _Salads_ after Dinner,--and chilling the Stomach, and checking the process of digestion by swilling cold _Soda Water_--we hold to be other Vulgar Errors.

It is your superfluous SECOND COURSES,--and ridiculous variety of Wines,--Liqueurs,--Ices, Desserts, &c.--which (are served up more to gratify the pride of the Host, than the appetite of the Guests that) _overcome the Stomach, and paralyze Digestion_, and seduce "Children of larger Growth" to sacrifice the health and comfort of several days--for the Baby-pleasure of tickling their tongue for a few minutes, with Trifles and Custards!!

Most of those who have written on what--by a strange perversion of language--are most non-naturally termed the non-naturals,--have merely laid before the Public a nonsensical register of the peculiarities of their own Palate, and the idiosyncracies of their own Constitution[74].

Some omnivorous Cormorants have such an ever-craving Appetite, that they are raging with hunger as soon as they open their Eyes,--and bolt half a dozen hard Eggs before they are well awake;--Others are so perfectly restored by that "chief nourisher in Life's feast," Balmy Sleep, that they do not think about Eating,--till they have been up and actively employed for several hours.

The strong Food, which the strong action of strong bodies requires--would soon destroy weak ones,--if the latter attempt to follow the example of the former,--instead of feeling invigorated, their Stomachs will be as oppressed, as a Porter is with a load that is too heavy for him,--and, under the idea of swallowing what are called strengthening nourishing things,--will very soon make themselves ready for the Undertaker.

Some people seem to think, that the more plentifully they stuff themselves, the better they must thrive, and the stronger they must grow.

It is not the quantity that we swallow,--but that which is properly digested, which nourishes us.

A Moderate Meal well digested, renders the body vigorous,--glutting it with superfluity, (which is only turned into excrement instead of aliment, and if not speedily evacuated,) not only oppresses the System, but produces all sorts of Disorders.

Some are continually inviting _Indigestion_,--by eating _Water-cresses_, or other undressed Vegetables[75], "to sweeten their Blood,"--or _Oysters_ "to enrich it."--Others fancy their Dinner cannot digest till they have closed the orifice of their Stomachs with a certain portion of _Cheese_,--if the preceding Dinner has been a light one, a little bit of Cheese after it may not do much harm, but its character for encouraging concoction is undeserved,--there is not a more absurd Vulgar Error, than the often quoted proverb, that

"Cheese is a surly Elf, Digesting all things, but itself."

A Third never eats Goose, &c. without remembering that _Brandy_ or _Cayenne_ is the Latin for it.

A much less portion of Stimulus is necessary after a hearty meal of califactive materials, such as good Beef or Mutton--than after a _maigre_ Dinner of Fish, &c.

Another _Vulgar Error_ in the school of Good Living, is, that "_Good eating_ requires _Good drinking_."--_Good_ eating generally implies _high_ seasoned Viands,--the savoury Herbs, and stimulating Spices with which these _Haut-Gouts_ are sprinkled and stuffed, &c. are sufficient to encourage the digestive faculties to work "_con amore_" without any "_douceur_" of Vinous irrigation,--but many persons make it a rule, after eating Pig, &c. to take a glass of _Liqueur_, or _Eau de Vie_, &c.--or, as when used in this manner, it would be as properly called, "_eau de mort_."

INDIGESTION, or, to use the term of the day, A BILIOUS ATTACK,--_as often arises from over-exertion, or_ ANXIETY OF MIND,--as from refractory Food; it frequently produces FLATULENCE[76], and flatulence produces _Palpitation of the Heart_; which is most difficult to stop, when it comes on about an hour or two after a Meal;--the Stomach seems incapable of proceeding in its business, from being over-distended with wind, which pressing on the Heart and larger vessels, obstructs the Circulation:--as soon as this flatulence is dispelled, all goes well again:--inflating the Lungs to the utmost, _i. e._ taking in as much breath as you can, and holding it as long as you can, will sometimes act as a counterbalance, and produce relief.

This is the first thing to do when this distressing Spasm attacks you,--if it is not immediately checked; take a strong _Peppermint_, or _Ginger Lozenge_, (see page 99,) sit,--or if possible lie down and loosen all ligatures; the horizontal posture and perfect quiet are grand Panaceas in this disorder;--if these do not soon settle it, drink some stimulus: sometimes a teacupful of _Hot water_, with a teaspoonful of common salt in it, will suffice,--or a couple of glasses of _Wine_,--or one of _Brandy_ in one of hot water: either of these will generally soon restore sufficient energy to the Stomach, to enable it to expel the enemy that offends it, and set the circulation to work freely again.--If these means are not immediately efficacious, take half an ounce of _Tincture of Rhubarb_ in a quarter pint of hot water,--or three or four _Peristaltic Persuaders_, with half a pint of hot water.

If this complaint comes on when the Bowels are costive,--they must be put into motion as speedily as possible, by some of the means recommended in the following pages.

It will sometimes come on during the collapsed state of the system, from FASTING TOO LONG.

_Those who take no Food between an early_ BREAKFAST--_and a late_ DINNER,--for fear, as they term it, of spoiling the latter meal,--generally complain of _Flatulence_,--_Languor_, _Lowness of Spirits_, &c. (and those who are troubled by a _Cough_, have often a paroxysm of it,) for the hour or more before Dinner;--and _Heartburn_, &c. after it:--the former arising from fasting too long, the latter from indulging an Appetite so over excited, that a Baron of Beef, a Pail of Port Wine, and a Tubful of Tea, will hardly satisfy it.

The languor of _Inanition_, and the fever of _Repletion_, may be easily avoided by eating a LUNCHEON,--solid and nutritive, in proportion as the DINNER is protracted, and the activity of the Exercise to be taken in the mean-time.

The oftener you eat, the less ought to be eaten at a time; and the less you eat at a time, the oftener you ought to eat:--_a weak_ _Stomach_ has a much better chance of digesting two light meals, than one heavy one.

The Stomach should be allowed time to empty itself, before we fill it again.

There is not only a considerable difference in the digestibility of various Foods,--but also of the time required by different Stomachs to digest them--the sign of which, is the return of Appetite.

The digestion of Aliment is perfect, and quickly performed, in proportion to the keenness of our Appetite at the time of taking it--more or less perfect Mastication--and the vigorous state of the organs of Digestion,--as a general rule, _the interval of Fasting_ should seldom be less than three, nor more than five hours[77],--Digestion being generally completed within that time.

The Fashion of A.D. 1820 has introduced a much longer fast ("a windy recreation," as father Paul assures the lay brother) than even the elasticity of robust Health can endure, without distressing the adjustment of the System,--and creating such an over-excited appetite, that the Stomach does not feel it has had enough,--till it finds that it has been crammed too much[78].

"When Hunger[79] calls, obey, nor often wait Till hunger sharpen to corrosive pain; For the keen appetite will feast beyond What nature well can bear."

This important truth--we would most strongly press on the consideration of Those who attend our COURTS OF LAW, and PARLIAMENT.