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"APPLE SASS"
I7S
drinks too much of either invariably falls on the
back of his head, which sounds rather dangerous.
Whether the drinking of cider in moderation
conduces to long life deponent sayeth not; but
no less an authority than Lord Bacon evidently
thought so; and in his History of Life and
Death he tells of eight men dancing a Morris-
dance, whose ages, added together, were 800
years, "tennants of one Mannour" belonging to
the Earl of Essex, and habitual cider-drinkers.
But the lengthening of the days of the imbiber
depends, in all probability, upon the brand of
cider.
I have tasted some varieties which were
capable, apparently, of shortening life, rather than
of prolonging it j and in parts of Somersetshire,
even at the present day, the locals—case-hardened
and poison-proof to a man—swill a horrible
decoction, which would probably kill offan alien,
at long range, most speedily and effectively.
Cider was called "cidre" and "sithere" by
fourteenth century writers; and the word is said
to be a corruption of the Greek sikera^ used in
the Septuagint to translate the Hebrew shekar
usually rendered "strong drink" in the Old
Testament.
" The name of Ciderf says one of these old
writers, " if from Sikera^ is but a general name
for an inebriating or an intoxicating drink, and
may argue their ignorance in those times of any
other name than IVine for that liquor or juice in
the Saxon or Norman language, either of those
nations being unwilling (it's probable) to use a
British name for so pleasing a drink, they not
affecting the Britains, made use of few of their