The alcohol in beer, wine or liquor kept bacteria or other microorganisms from growing there, so it was safer than the water.


What is the name of the sailing vessel that the the Coast Guard uses for training its recruits? There was an article in Smithsonian awhile back about it but I forget the name. It was pretty cool -- the recruits learned basic seamanship and at the same time soaked up some nautical heritage. I've often wondered if the other branches of the service have similar techniques of steeping their recruits in the history of their particular branch.