Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. a rum seller; a bootlegger.

1843		Gleaner (Manchester, NH) 18 Nov. n.p.: A dialogue between a lot of Rumies [sic] in this village — Scene, in a grogshop on B—p street.
1851		Life in Boston & N.Y. (Boston, MA) 28 June n.p.: [P]retending that the rummies have been trying to poison his family, because he took up the temperance cause.
c.1858		J.H. Green Reformed Gambler 57: Notwithstanding the noble and superhuman efforts of the rummies’ counsel, and all their own hard swearing, Ransom and Upson were convicted.
1895		Pacific Commercial Advertiser (Honolulu, HI) 4 Oct. 6/1: The Rummies Give UP [...] What has been done to make liquor dealers obey the law in New york can be done in every city.
1927		‘Jargon of the Und.’ in DN V 461: Rummy, A small-scale respectable bootlegger.

2. a drunkard.

1851		J.H. Green Twelve Days in the Tomb 55: The rummies repaired to another bar to congratulate each other upon the success of the morning, and to imbibe more spirit .
1860		N.E. Police Gaz. (Boston, MA) 18 Aug. n.p.: All the rummies in town went i.e. [to the temperance picnic] and were circulating the bottle before they had fairly got out of town.
1884		(con. c.1840) ‘Mark Twain’ Huckleberry Finn 161: I was makin’ it mighty warm for the rummies, I tell you.
1896		H. Blossom Checkers 231: There’s a lot of ‘rummies’ I used to know hanging aound here, ‘broke.’.
1909		C.B. Chrysler White Slavery 70: Now wouldn’t a ‘guy’ be a ‘simp’ to go out and stick some ‘rummy’ and get two dollars and ten years.
1912		C. McKay ‘Bumming’ Constab Ballads 35: I proud ’nuff o me uniform / Not ever to be a rummy.
1920		A. Baer Two & Three 24 Jan. [synd. col.] Rummies are asking congress to set aside July 1 [i.e. the launch of Prohibition] as another Memorial day.
1934		E. Hemingway letter 28 May in Baker Sel. Letters (1981) 408: You’re no more of a rummy than Joyce is and most good writers are.
1941		J.M. Cain Mildred Pierce (1985) 373: First he poured two stiff drinks for the children, cluck-clucking loudly at what rummies they were getting to be.
1955		B. Schulberg On the Waterfront (1964) 32: These rummies [...] they could sure get on your nerves.
1969		R. Jessup Sailor 299: You ain’t no rummy.
1975		J. Wambaugh Choirboys (1976) 262: These other two twenty-six year old rummies get swacked sucking up bourbon.
1987		‘Joe Bob Briggs’ Joe Bob Goes to the Drive-In 190: This old rummy gets a throwing star in the eyball.
1998		D. Hecht Skull Session 87: We had one detective, one old rummy.
2007		C. Goffard Snitch Jacket 12: A few old rummies push around pieces on a checkerboard.
2014		(con. 1926) T. McCauley ‘For Whom No Bells Toll’ in ThugLit Mar. [ebook] ‘This poor rummy’s too drunk to know a real man’.

3. attrib., i.e. dealing with drunkards.

1953

F. Paley Rumble on the Docks (1955) 41: These rummy cops are all crazy.