Gin, or any other common dram: these liquors seldom failing to reduce those that drink them to rags.
Definition taken from The 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, originally by Francis Grose.
See also the definition in Nathan Bailey's 1736 dictionary of canting and thieving slang.
Rag Fair * RagamuffinNathan Bailey's 1736 Dictionary of canting and thieving slang
John S. Farmer's collection of canting songs and slang rhymes