Always interested in motivations and philosophy, it occurred to me that Jane Austen was a keen observer of the prevailing social, economic, and moral philosophies and practices of her era. It follows that the early builders, managers and lockmasters in the 1820s-30s would have been molded by such philosophies.
The link will take you to a brief article that imagines how such philosophies might have been spread among the young lock men. The article even has pictures of Jane Austen and of the Reverend William Paley, D. D., one of the leading moral philosophers of the time.
I like the ‘malt’ part, but three weeks old ?
Patrick
The boys didn’t have time to wait, and besides, they were never likely to encounter any 12 year old whiskey.
In fact, I’ve looked into the illicit still trade of the period. The good stuff was “relatively” unadulterated. A common “additive” to give “bite” to the local whiskies was to add lye. I believe that the derogatory term “rotgut” was based on fact
This stuff was brewed by the washtub full and was pretty cheap. A “horn” of whiskey was no more than 10 cents for the good stuff. If you were a beer-drinker, you could spend a riotous evening in a grog shop and drink yourself blind for 10 cents. This was in the 1860s-80s, and is well documented, including at parliamentary committee hearings.
Ah, the good old days, eh?
Ed