T 1/433/165-169 Brewing and Smuggling

Sir
We have received your Letter of the 28th Septemr desiring we would inform ourselves, and transmit to you the best account we can obtain, as to the state of the Brewing of Beer, & Smuggling in the Isle of Man; and after using our best endeavours for that purpose, the following information, which includes some other Matters, has been given to us, which We believe to be genuine and may be relied upon vizt

That at Douglass, in that Island, there are four Brewhouses, the largest of which belongs to Messrs Ross, Black, and Christian, carried on in Partnership by them, where they keep a Clerk to manage the Business, and are supposed to be the greatest Merchants in the Island. The Second Brewhouse belongs to Messrs Braun, and Company, the 3d to Mr Muir and Company and is about a Mile out of the Town of Douglass and the 4th belongs to Mr Mullan an Irish Man, and in the Town of Douglass, and these are supposed to be all that are in the Island. These are very new, convenient, and well adapted for the purpose, and have Malthouses belonging to each, and in the Cisterns belonging to those Malthouses, they can steep from 96 to 120 Bushels or 2500 Quarters in a year, and this Corn, or Barley, they buy where they can get it best, and cheapest as Liverpool, Lancaster, Ireland, Gallowy in Scotland &c, for all which Corn the Exporters from England & Scotland must necessarily obtain the Bounty which on Barley is 2s 6d the Quarter the Malthouses have proper floors for making and Granaries for keeping the Malt and they have all necessaries as Coppers Table? [] for brewing this Malt into Beer and we have also a Computation of the size of Malthouses and the Brewing Utensils, but this is not necessary to trouble you with. They brew entirely on the English Manner having obtained proper Workmen from thence for that purpose; They sell their Strong Ale at a Guinea the Barrel English Measure, and prety much of the same Quality of English, which is far below what it can be afforded for in England; & a Good deal of this is exported by the Guinea and Virginia Ships, which sail from Whitehaven, Liverpool and Glasgow (which we suppose call there to take it in, and what other Sea Stores they want) as thay sail from those respective Places on those Voyages, for we are informed they likewise take in great Quantities of Brandy, & Geneva, sometimes not less than 4000 Gallons in a Ship.

There is likewise a considerable Trade of Tanning of Leather carried on there, getting their Raw hides from Ireland, but whether this Island produces their Bark sufficient, or from whence they get it, we are not informed.

Brandy, Rum and Geneva were never before known to be so plentiful there as they have been this year and the Price of Brandy 2 shillgs to 2s 6d a Gallon, Rum from 1s 10d to 2s 2d a Gallon; and Gin from 1s 6d to 1s 10d the Gallon.

Tea has not at any time been known to be so scarce and it is supposed there are not above 4000 pounds weight of it in the Island, but they expect those ships laden with Tea from Gallenbourgh?. Raw Coffee sell at 10 pence the Pound, and there were 10 large Vessels arrived last Spring from Celle and Rotterdam laden with Brandy, and Rum, and about three Months ago a Ship arrived in the Island with 50,000 pounds of Raw Coffee; and there is a Ship belonging to three Persons there constantly employed in bringing Spirits from Rotterdam and other Places, and is very soon expected there, She has some Wine on Board & about 400 pieces of Brandy.

There is seldom a day passes but large Quantities of Spirits are sent to England, Ireland or Scotland, which, tho' it be imported thither in large Casks, is drawn off before exported into Anchors [sic Ankers], and for the purpose of making these Casks, it is said, that there are about 5,000[sic] Coopers employed; which Anchors are exported in Vessels called Rush Wherries, which will carry 700 or 800 Anchors each. And We are further informed, than in October last there were Spirits and other Goods sent away exported from that Island, as was computed to the Value of £50,000 there being then none of the King's Cutters known to be off the Island.

There is also a large Tobacco Mill at Peele in that Island, and it is said they get their Tobacco from Glasgow and evade the Oath of not landing it in the Isle of Man, by the following Artifice, which is that when the Vessel comes near to that Island, the Master goes on shore, does not come on Board again until his Mate or some person in trust for him, has landed all the Tobacco, and this Practice is said to be of long standing, and, after the Tobacco is manufactured, it is run again upon the Coasts of Great Britain, or Ireland. This is our Information, but as We do not know the Laws respecting Tobacco stand in Ireland, we are not able to say where it is most for their Interest to run it into, but presume into Great Britain.

We are further informed there are about 1000 Public Houses in that Island; each of which pay half a Guinea for a Licence to retail Liquor.
We hope We have been so particular in Our Enquiry into the Affairs of this Island, that it will fully Answer yor Expectation from us Who are Sir
your most obedt humble Servants

J. Drummond, R. Dauber, G Burges, J Lockart, A Udney
Excise Office Edinburgh 7th Novr 1764

Notes

An Anker is a small cask containing approximately 10gallons (~45litres) weighing about 100lb and thus handlable by a single man. There were at this period many coopers employed but nowhere near the 5000 mentioned.

By 1766 it would seem that only one Brewery was in operation.




Any comments, errors or omissions gratefully received The Editor HTML Transcription © F.Coakley , 2021