At the turn of the 19th century, Southern Oregon newspapers covered a lot of mayhem caused by a character called John Barleycorn. The mythical deviant first appeared in a gruesome Old English ballad describing barley's painful conversion to whiskey, and was popularized by Jack London's 1913 alcoholic memoir titled “John Barleycorn.” Described as an "arrogant, dictatorial, uncompromising advance agent of evil," John Barleycorn was the personification of liquor and substituted in polite company for the word “booze.”
One newspaper headline about a liquor confiscation read, "John Barleycorn To Be On Trial." In an article announcing the 1916 prohibition in Oregon, the Grants Pass Daily Courier said "John Barleycorn, with the dawn of the new year, is reaping the reward of his own follies." A bootlegger was referred to as “John Barleycorn's ghost,” and a sheriff dumped a keg of confiscated whiskey, noting "fumes from Old John Barleycorn …wafted upon the afternoon breeze."
During Prohibition, the Klamath Falls Evening Herald declared John Barleycorn dead. Others knew that he’d just slipped into California, where he lured his followers with promises of cheap and ready booze.
Sources: Dawlish, Jenna. "British Folk Music-John Barlycorn." English Historical Fiction Authors. Ed. Debra Brown. 12 Oct. 2012. Web. 19 Oct. 2015. http://englishhistoryauthors.blogspot.fr/2012/10/british-folk-music-john-barleycorn.html; "John Barleycorn: Alcoholic Memoirs." The World of Jack London. Ed. David A. Hartzel. Web. 19 Oct. 2015. http://www.jacklondons.net/barley.html; "Two More Disciples of Barleycorn Dig Up." Rogue River Courier 25 Apr. 1913 [Grants Pass Oregon] : 1. Historic Oregon Newspapers. Web. 19 Oct. 2015; "John Barleycorn to be on Trial." The Evening Herald 28 Sept. 1916 [Klamath Falls Oregon] : 4. Ibid. Web. 19 Oct. 2015; "Knell Sounds for Old John Barleycorn." The Grants Pass Daily Courier 30 Jan. 1919: 1. Ibid. Web. 19 Oct. 2015; "The End of John Barleycorn." The Daily Rogue River Courier 11 Feb. 1917 [Grants Pass Oregon] : 4. Ibid. Web. 19 Oct. 2015; "Two Initiated Measures." Ibid. 14 July 1916 [Grants Pass Oregon] : 2. Ibid. Web. 19 Oct. 2015. "John Barleycorn's Fate." Ibid. 31 Dec. 1915: 4. Ibid. Web. 19 Oct. 2015.
