It Was One Of Their Best Antiscorbutics, And Was Of Course
A Prime Factor In Their Use Of "Sour Krout," Pickling, Etc.
The fruits,
natural, dried, and preserved, were probably, in that day, in rather
small supply.
Apples, limes, lemons, prunes, olives, rice, etc., were
among the luxuries of a voyage, while dried or preserved fruits and small
fruits were not yet in common use. Winslow, in the letter cited, urges
that "your casks for beer . . . be iron bound, at least for the first
[end] tyre" [hoop]. Cushman states that they had ample supplies of beer
offered them both in Kent and Amsterdam. The planters' supply seems to
have failed, however, soon after the company landed, and they were
obliged to rely upon the whim of the Captain of the MAY-FLOWER for their
needs, the ship's supply being apparently separate from that of the
planters, and lasting longer. Winthrop's supply seems to have been large
("42 tons" - probably tuns intended). It was evidently a stipulation of
the charter-party that the ship should, in part at least, provision her
crew for the voyage, - certainly furnish their beer. This is rendered
certain by Bradford's difficulty (as stated by himself) with Captain
Jones, previously referred to, showing that the ship had her own supply
of beer, separate from that of the colonists, and that it was intended
for the seamen as well as the officers.
Bradford mentions "aqua vitae" as a constituent of their lunch on the
exploring party of November 15.
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