_No English gentleman now gets drunk_; that is not saying much, perhaps; and however it may hurt the susceptibilities of some of our readers in the middle and upper classes, we feel bound to add, that the term “gentleman” is, in this respect, equally applicable to every rank of society, to the humblest artisan as well as to the peer of the realm. There is one regrettable distinction, however, and it is this: In the middle and upper classes there are naturally not so many drunkards, nor are they so obtrusive, as those in the lower classes. In the former, therefore, sober people do not feel themselves identified with the sots who disgrace their order, whilst among the poor, many who are really better deserving of the title of “gentleman” than some of those who are constantly lecturing them upon sobriety, have to support a large share of the obloquy which attaches to the drunken and disorderly members of their class. In common with every other rank of society except the “residuum,” the English aristocracy have very much improved in their drinking habits, especially during the last few years. The exercise of field-sports, and the opportunities they offered for indulgence, were formerly the occasions of great intemperance in the higher walks of life; and to be “as drunk as a lord” is an epithet which is not yet forgotten. Their comparatively small numbers, the position of responsibility which they occupy, and above all, the example of a virtuous court, or perhaps it would be more strictly accurate to say, of a punctilious sovereign, these circumstances have completely changed the habits of the aristocracy. No doubt there are still many men amongst them who are a disgrace to their rank and station, but on the whole they compare favourably with any class below them. Making all due allowance for the courtesy necessitated by the position in which he was placed, we should say that Sir William Gull was not far wrong when he stated to the Lords’ Committee on Intemperance: “I think it is quite a mistake if the public, or any class of the public, should suppose that where people have the means they are intemperate. It is quite the contrary. I think, if I had to look for a temperate person, I should look in the upper classes.”[295] It would indeed be a sad disgrace to the “upper classes” if it were otherwise. As in the upper middle classes, there is now very little after-dinner drinking amongst the aristocracy; the younger members are not given to excess to any greater extent than those of the class below them, although the practice, prejudicial alike to health and morals, of “nipping” at clubs is said to be on the increase; and finally, the cases of ladies (if the term can be so applied) who drink inordinately are exceptions to the general rule. And yet it is the opinion of those who are best able to judge, that for health there is still far too much alcohol drunk even by the aristocracy;