RUM. 



Rum is very hot and inflammable, and is in the fame ufe 

 among the natives of the fugar-countries, as brandy among 

 the French. 



Rum differs from what we fimply call fugar-fpirit, in 

 that it contains more of the natural flavour or eftential oil of 

 the fugar-cane ; a great deal of raw juice, and parts of the 

 cane itfelf, being often fermented in the liquor, or folution 

 of which the rum is prepared. 



The undtuous or oily flavour of rum is often fuppofed to 

 proceed from the large quantity of fat ufed in boiling the 

 fugar ; which fat, indeed, of courfe, will ufually give a 

 flunking flavour to the fpirit in our diilillation of the fugar 

 liquor, or wafh, from our refining fugar-noufes ; but this 

 is nothing like the flavour of the rum, which is really the 

 effeft of the natural flavour of the cane. The method of 

 making rum is this : 



When a fufficient flock of the materials is got together, 

 they add water to them, and ferment them in the common 

 method, though the fermentation is always carried on very 

 (lowly at firft ; becaufe at the beginning of the feafon for 

 making rum in the iflands, they want yeaft, or fome other 

 ferment, to make it work ; but by degrees, after this, they 

 procure a fufficient quantity of the ferment, which rifes up 

 as a head to the liquor in the operation, and thus they are 

 able afterwards to ferment and make their rum with a great 

 deal of expedition, and in large quantities. 



When the wafh is fully fermented, or to a due degree of 

 acidity, the diilillation is carried on in the common way, 

 and the fpirit is made up proof ; though fometimes it is re- 

 duced to a much greater ftrength, nearly approaching to that 

 of alcohol or fpirit of wine, and is then called double- 

 diftilled rum. It might be eafy to redtify the fpirit, and 

 bring it to much greater purity than we ufually find it to be 

 of; for it brings over in the diilillation a very large quantity 

 of the oil ; and this is often fo difagreeable, that the rum 

 mull be fuffered to lie by a long time to mellow before it can 

 be ufed ; whereas, if well rectified, it would grow mellow 

 much fooner, and would have a much lefs potent flavour. 



The bed date to keep rum in, both for exportation and 

 other ufes, is doubtlefs that of alcohol, or rectified fpirit. 

 In this manner it would be tranfparent in one-half the bulk 

 it ufually is, and might be let down to the common proof 

 flrength with water when neceflary. For the common ufe 

 of making punch, it would likewife ferve much better in 

 the (late of alcohol ; as the tafle would be cleaner, and the 

 ftrength might always be regulated to a much greater exaft- 

 nef3 than in the ordinary way. 



The only ufe to which it would not ferve fo well in this 

 (late, would be the common practice of adulteration among 

 our diflillers ; for when they want to mix a large portion of 

 cheaper fpirit with the rum, their bufinefs is to have it of 

 the proof ftrength, and as full of the flavouring-oil as they 

 can, that it may drown the flavour of the fpirits they mix 

 with it, and extend its own. If the bufinefs of redtifving 

 rum was_ more nicely managed, it feems a very practicable 

 fcheme to throw out fo much of the oil, as to have it in the 

 fine light Hate of a clear tpirit, but lightly impregnated with 

 it ; in this cafe it would very nearly refemble arrac, as is 

 proved bv the mixing a very fmall quantity of it with the 

 taftelefs lpirit, in which cafe the whole bears a very near re- 

 femblance to arrac in flavour. 



Rum is ufually very much adulterated in England ; fome 

 are fo barefaced as to do it with malt-fpirit ; but w!«.en it is 

 done with melafles-fpirit, the taftes of both are fo nearly 

 allied, that it is not eafily difcovered. The belt method of 

 judging of it is by fetting fire to a little of it ; and, when it 

 hns burnt away all the inflammable part, examining the 



phlegm both by the tafle and fmcll. Shaw's Effay on Dif- 

 tillery. 



Mr. B. Edwards, in his " Hiflory of the Weft Indies," 

 vol. ii. has given the following account of the procefs for ex- 

 tracting rum from the fugar-cane, or from the very dregs 

 and feculencies of the plant, by fermentation and diilillation. 

 He commences his account with oblerving, that the ftill- 

 houfes on the fugar-plantations in the B.itiih Weft Indies, 

 vary greatly in point of fize and expewce, according to the 

 fancy of the proprietor, or the magnitude of the property. 

 In general, however, they are built in a fubflantial manner of 

 (lone, and are commonly equal to the boiling and curing- 

 houfes together. ( See Sugar. ) For a plantation making, 

 communibus annis, ZOO hogfheads of fugar of 1 600 weight, 

 our author conceives, that two copper (tills, the one of 

 1200, and the other of 600 gallons, wine meafure, with 

 proportionate pewter worms, are fufficient. The fize of the 

 tanks (or tubs) for containing the cold water in which the 

 worms are immerfed, mull depend upon circumftances ; if 

 the advantage can be obtained of a running dream, the 

 water may be kept abundantly cool in a veflel barely large 

 enough to contain the worm. If the plantation has no 

 other dependance than pond-water, a (lone tank is much fu - 

 perior to a tub, as being longer in heating, and if it can be 

 made to contain from twenty to thirty-thoufand gallons, the 

 worms of both the dills may be placed in the lame body of 

 water, and kept cool enough for condenfing the fpirit, by 

 oecaiional fupplies of frefh water. 



For working thefe dills and worms, it> is neceflary to pro- 

 vide, firft, a dunder-cidern, of at lead three thoufand gal- 

 lons ; fecondly, a ciilern for the fcummings ; and laltly, 

 twelve fermenting vats, or ciderns, er.ch of them of the con- 

 tents of the larged dill, viz. 1200 gallons. In Jamaica, 

 ciderns are made of plank, fixed in clay ; and arc univer- 

 fally preferred to vats or moveable veffels, for the purpofe of 

 fermenting. They are not fo eafily affefted by the changes 

 of the weather, nor fo liable to leak as vats, and they latl 

 much longer. But in the Britifh diitilleries, fermenting 

 ciderns, it is faid, are unknown. To complete the appa- 

 ratus, it is neceflary to add two or more copper pumps for 

 conveying the liquor from the ciderns, and pumping up the 

 dunder, and alfo butts or other veflels for fecuring the fpirit 

 when obtained ; and it is ufual to build a rum-itore adjoining 

 the dill-houfe. 



The ingredients or materials for the procefs confid of me- 

 lafles, or treacle drained from the fugar ; fcummings of the 

 hot cane-juice, from the boiling-houfe, or fometimes raw- 

 cane liquor, from canes exprefled for the purpofe : lees, or, 

 as it is called in Jamaica, " dunder," from the Spamfh rt- 

 dunder, the fame as redundant in Latin ; and water. Dunder, 

 in the making of rum, ferves the purpofe of yead in 

 the fermentation of flour. It is the lees or feculencies of 

 former didillations ; and fome planters preferve it for ufe 

 from one crop to another ; but this is faid to be a bad prac- 

 tice. Some fermented liquor, compofed of lweets and 

 water alone, ought to be diddled in the fird lnltance, that 

 frefh dunder may be obtained. This is a didolvent men- 

 druum, and occafions the lweets with which it is combined, 

 whether melaffes or fcummings, to yield a far greater pro- 

 portion of fpirit than can be obtained without its affidance. 

 The water which is added afts in fome degree in the fame 

 manner by dilution. 



In the Windward iflands, the procefs, we are told, is 

 conducted as follows : the ingredients, viz. fcummings, one- 

 third ; lees or dunder, one-third, a'.d one-third of water, 

 are well mixed in the fermenting ciderns, and when they are 

 pretty cool, the fermentation will rife, in twenty-four hours, 



to 



