Politics and Politicians 1820-2000

One of the most interesting books I’ve read in a long time is a cookbook I found at a garage sale. This book has a nice general selection of recipes, plus the origin and dates of the origins of the recipes as shown in the very comprehensive research done by the author of this book.

This year 2000 is the year of a presidential election as well as many lesser offices and in reading this book of recipes and the historical information as well, I am astonished at the lack of changes made in my lifetime as well as the changes in the habits of the present day election time. Some of these recipes date back to 1640 and one dish especially was created by a North Carolina State legislature candidate in 1828. I ate this dish about 1931 at the Murph Gideon home about eight miles north of Montgomery up FM 149. The historical note accompanying the recipe states that several states lay claim to the "building" of this dish, but the article gives credit to the state of Virginia. The article states that the candidate wanted "something special for a political rally" and he thought of a squirrel stew he had eaten which was so good that he couldn’t forget it. He went to the place where he had feasted on stewed squirrel and asked the cook to add to and include many homegrown vegetables to feed any number of people who might attend the rally. The squirrel stew cook- author, came up with the dish that began by all accounts in 1828 and which I ate an almost exact replica in 1931 at the Murph Gideon home on a weekend before an election day rally. The name of the dish created in 1828 was Brunswick Stew. In all probability the original recipe consisted of squirrel, cleaned cut up and boiled or fried, as in my Uncle George family. My uncle was a greatly skilled squirrel hunter (only the greatly skilled hunters kill squirrels) and he loved the squirrel and dumplings my Aunt Mary cooked for him. My favorite squirrel dish when I was invited to eat with them was fried squirrel and gravy and the fabulous biscuits that only Aunt Mary knew how to make. The cookbook article goes on to say that gradually the squirrel part of the meats used in Brunswick Stew disappeared but not so at the feast I helped eat at Murph Gideon’s. Skilled hunters in the Weatherhead community where the Gideon’s lived had hunted the Friday and Saturday morning of the rally feast and all the rest of the ingredients had been cooked outdoors in huge iron washpots. I don’t remember what politician this cook-out was for or if the wonderful food got him elected, but seventy years later I remember the food and the host.

Another recipe in my book was for the "Hartford Election Cake" and this desert was of the first foods included in American politics, without doubt served at political rallies by candidates hoping to gain votes. Along with the food offered at the political rally feasts was a great number of drinks made of liquor or a combination of spirits. The earliest version of the cocktail, I found in this cookbook was dated 1806 and it was described as a stimulant called a "Bitter sling" and is supposed to be an excellent electioneering potion. This last sentence is one of the greatest understatements of all time in my opinion. A recipe for Hot Buttered Rum also gives the history of the drink and the major part of it played in the political game as far back as George Washington’s time in the history of America. Rum was made for the most part of molasses in turn made from sugar cane. This drink, to quote from the American Heritage Cookbook, found its way into domestic politics, used by politicians to influence voters. The honored tradition of feasting voters on food and drink originated quite early in American history. When George Washington was in a race for the legislature in 1758 (though a Virginia Statewide expressly forbade the treating of voters and declared all elections won by such means as illegal). "Washington’s agents supplied the Frederick County voters with 160 gallons of rum, beer, wine, and ciders. This added up to about 1 ½ quarts per vote." After the election Washington said he was afraid his agents didn’t have enough drinks, but the article does not say if that means Washington lost the election. I believe it does.

Electioneering beginning even before George Washington, was always held outdoors. In the 1840 period there were cannons fired, great banners hung to fly and even bands to play. There was a platform for the speaker. A New England magazine editor wrote of Southern politics about 1844, "I witnessed a strange thing, a Kentucky election. Whiskey and Apple Toddy and drunkenness was everywhere. Runners were employed, each with a long-necked whiskey bottle to toll the drinker to the polls." This period was to record one of the first political barbecues. The meat was taken when ready to long plank tables and covered with mutton, beef and pork. Thee would perhaps also be Burgoo (squirrel stew) cornbread, apple pie or Kentucky Bourbon Cake.

These accounts of our beginning political and electioneering origins as given in the American Heritage Cookbook printed by the Magazine of History. I say there is nothing new under the sun. I know there are still many of us who remember hard fought political battles in Montgomery. I remember bitter, hard fought, hard won contests during the Depression years, 1930 through the ten years up to World War II. Our election community was sharply divided over the races for Road Commissioner and School Board Trustees, although the popular drinks of today’s "vote getters" is probably only whiskey, beer and wine, the following drinks were popular in the beginning of American politics.

Part II will continue next week.

Westmont Ranch, Montgomery, Texas. Home of Smart Highbrow Doc, son of Color Me Smart

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