When beer or any other alcoholic liquor is to be distilled, it is poured into a large copper boiler, called a still, and boiled.  A tube carries the vapor from the boiler into a cask filled with cold water.  This tube is coiled like a spiral line or worm through the cask; it is called the worm of the still, and the cask is the worm-tub.  As the vapor passes through the tube, it cools and drops out at the end into the worm-tub, changed into a liquid stronger in alcohol than that from which it was drawn or distilled.

In this way gin is made from beer, brandy from wine, and rum from fermented molasses.  These are very strong drinks, and only hard drinkers like them.  But very few people begin by taking these; they first learn to like alcohol by drinking cider, beer, or wine, and end with gin, whiskey, or rum when they have become drunkards.

DEFINITIONS.

DISTILLATION. Drawing the vapor from a boiling liquid and cooling it.

STILL. Machinery for distilling; the boiler which holds the liquid.

THE WORM OF THE STILL. The tube which passes from the still to a cask, in which it coils like a worm.

WORM-TUB. The cask which holds the tube or worm, and receives the distilled liquid.

DISTILLED LIQUID. A liquid formed by cooled steam.

DISTILLED LIQUORS. Liquors made by distilling alcoholic liquors.

FERMENTED. Changed by decay.

FERMENTED LIQUORS. Liquors which have been fermented or changed by decay, and contain alcohol.

UNFERMENTED. Not decayed.

UNFERMENTED LIQUORS. Liquors which contain no alcohol.

                         KINDS OF LIQUORS
[5]UNFERMENTED. FERMENTED. DISTILLED.
Grape juice, Hard cider, Gin,
Sweet cider, (Malt liquors) Brandy,
Root beer, Beer, Whiskey,
Ginger beer.  Lager beer, Rum. 
Perry.  Ale,
                        Porter,

Wine.

[5] These soon become fermented; they then contain alcohol.

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HARM DONE BY ALCOHOL IN VARIOUS PARTS OF THE BODY.

Raw alcohol does not do much harm to people because it is too strong for them to drink much of it; but the alcohol hidden in cider, ale, wine, whiskey, and other alcoholic drinks kills not less than sixty thousand persons in this country every year, besides those who die from its use in other parts of the world.

There is great excitement when there is a mad dog around; and, if any one is bitten and dies from the dreadful hydrophobia, people are ready to destroy all the dogs of the neighborhood; but when a drunkard dies from delirium tremens or alcohol craziness, how few take any notice of the cause of his death, or do all they can to wage war against the use of alcoholic liquors.