268 Next to the Ground 



scrub racers, known otherwise as quarter 

 horses, have earned the cant name of " cock- 

 tails." 



It is a far cry from quarter-racing to the 

 mixed drink accepted the world over as Amer- 

 ica's glorious contribution to the things that 

 slake a thirst. Notwithstartding they hang 

 together. Quarter-racing was the favorite 

 sport of tavern gentry in days before the Revo- 

 lution. Almost any horse with four legs and 

 a tail, could be patched and pampered to show 

 a decent quarter of a mile, though he might 

 not be able to go a yard beyond. Thus " cock- 

 tails " abounded ; thus also mine hostess at 

 any fair inn knew all about them. It was 

 one of these hostesses who mixed for Wash- 

 ington and his staff, drinks of excellent Hol- 

 lands savored and flavored with various 

 home-brewed cordials. " Drink ! " she said, 

 nodding her head, and setting her arms akimbo, 

 over flowered short-gown and decent stuff 

 petticoat : " Drink lads ! Lord 't will make ye 

 all feel as sassy as a cock-tail." At least, thus 

 saith tradition. The indisputable fact is : the 

 name, however given, has stuck. 



Cock-tails and their like have given further 

 to common speech the picturesquely express- 

 ive phrase " a wild goose chase." It is in all 

 mouths, yet not one in a million knows that 

 the original wild-goose chase was a scrub-race 



