During the War of 1812, Portland became a favored port of privateers who raided British ships. One privateer, the Dart, captured some 200 casks of rum in a raid - which made the ship too heavy to outrun a pursuing British warship. To lighten the Dart, the crew jettisoned the only weight possible: her guns. The rum became famous around Portland as "Dart spirit." (Source: Old Portland Town, by Herbert G. Jones. Portland: The Machigonne Press, 1938)