The Whiskey Cask
My father-in-law told me a story about his father’s sailing days. Back then, there were many fleets of windjammers. These were square-rigged sailing ships with two to five masts. Windjammers ran from the late 19th century until the 1950s. They were used for large, low-cost cargoes such as lumber, grain, guano and ore. Because they did not use fuel or water for steam, they were economical. Also, many were faster than the steam ships prior to the 1940s.
One captain had a ritual when he did the run from Norway (to Australia or the west coast of South America). He would put a cask of fresh akvavit (Norse moonshine) in the hold of the ship. The captain claimed that by the time the ship ended its return voyage, the whiskey would have aged perfectly. He swore by this.
On one voyage, some of the sailors tapped the keg for a few drinks. They did this a few times, so that the cask was almost empty. Afraid they might get caught, the men refilled the cask with liquor they bought at one port or another.
When the voyage ended and the captain called for his cask, the men were sure they would be caught. The fresh liquor had no time to age. So it was that the captain had the cask brought to him. The men were concerned as he opened the keg and poured himself a drink. The old seaman took a whiff, smiled, and drank a shot.
The sailors were sure their pilfering would be exposed.
“Ah, yes,” said the captain, “Perfect as always.”
The sailors breathed a sigh of relief.
Alf had other adventures during his young sailing days. He had been aboard three ships that were torpedoed during World War I. Alf was also aboard a ship that was pursued by Chinese pirates in the years just prior to the War.
No comments:
Post a Comment