d, in 1677,
to supply the Justices meeting at the leased home of his deceased
brother, a gallon of brandy at each session of the Court. One of the
duties of the Auditor General of Virginia was to arrange for the supply
of wines and liquors, which the august body of the Governor's Council of
State expected to be on hand, while they were in session. While William
Byrd I held that office, in the latter part of the seventeenth century,
he ordered for their use, twenty dozen bottles of claret, six dozen of
canary, sherry, and Rhenish wines, and a quarter of a cask of brandy.

Excessive use of liquors became the concern of the first Assembly
sitting in 1619, who ordered that persons guilty of a first offense be
privately reproved by the minister. In 1624, the churchwardens of every
parish were ordered to report to the Commander of the plantations, in
which the Parish lay, all persons who had imbibed too freely. By 1632, a
fine of five shillings was set to discourage intoxication, and by the
middle of the century, heavier fines were imposed.

The colonists were aware of the excessive use of liquor, particularly in
gatherings. The will, of Edmund Watts of York County, dated 20 February
1675, forbade the serving of drinks at his funeral, the testator
reciting that, inasmuch as he had observed "the debauched drinking used
at burials, tending to the dishonor of God and religion, my will is that
no strong drink be provided or spent at my burial."

In 1676, while Nathaniel Bacon held sway in the colony, efforts were
made to suppress many long-standing abuses, among them, excessive
drinking encouraged by the many taverns and ordinaries in existence.
Laws were enacted, at that time, revoking the licenses of all inns,
alehouses and drinking establishments, except those at James City, and
two at the ferries on the York River, where only beer and cider could be
sold. This was the first recorded attempt at prohibition in Virginia.
After the Rebellion was over, the enactment was modified, permitting the
operation of two ordinaries in each county. Jamestown, the seat of
government, was excepted from the limitation.

THE MINT JULEP

Just when the famous drink of the Virginia gentleman, the mint julep,
was first mixed is not known, but the Colony possessed all the
requisites during the seventeenth century. As heretofore mentioned,
there was an ice house at Jamestown about the middle of the century. The
fragrant mint grown in the plante