Adam's ale to late 20th century, usage of the phrase has declined. The earliest known printed occurrence of "Adam's ale" is attributed to William Prynne's "The Soveraigne Power of Parliaments and Kingdomes", which was first printed in 1643.<ref name="Merriam-Webster/PoP"> Single occurrence dictionary definition sources for "Adam's ale": The term "Adam's Ale" gained popularity during the emergence of the temperance movement in the 1830s.<ref name="Epochs/JoATU1"> Single occurrence sources for "Adam's Ale" in relation to the temperance movement: [W]hat hurt will it do me to drink of this water?' Our father Adam had nothing better for his wedding-day, and before the earth was cursed,
Cock ale a decay'd Nature." A contemporary biographer claimed that King William III preferred Cock ale over wine. The drink's entry in Robert Nares's "Glossary" describes it as "a sort of ale which was very celebrated in the seventeenth century for its superior quality". Also included in that entry is a quote from Ned Ward's "The London Spy", which calls Cock ale "a mixture of small-beer and treacle", although the author continues: "if this be "cock-ale", said I, e'en let "cocks-combs" drink it." Nathan Bailey's "Dictionarium britannicum" (1736) describes it as a "pleasant drink, said to be provocative", a sentiment mirrored by