Weekly Trinity journal., 1868-11-07
AMOUNT OF SALES OF RETAIL LIQUOR DEALERS.
..S1.4S3.19I,S65

Thus it will be seen that during the year 1867,
the people of the United States paid for streng
drinks over the counter to retail dealers, the
sum of fourteen hundred and eighty-three mil
lions four hundred and nnety-one thousand
eight hundred and sixty-ive dollars. That sum
is more than equal to one-half the principal and
the annual interest Of the public debt. That sum,
if applied to the payment of the debt, would re-
deem it all in gold, in two years. The amount
of money paid by actual consumers for this
strong drink, in three years, would equal the en-
tire debt of the Union and of all the States, and
of all the cities and towns of the United States.
The people of the single State of Illinois expend
for liquor a sum almost equal to the annual in
terest of the national debt
Included in receipt Of sales from liquor dealers
are such sums as may have been received for
cigars at their bars which probably do not ex-
ceed the value of the liquors imported pur-
chased wholesale by consumers, and the sum of
sales by establishments which make no returns,
or fraudulent ones. But the cigars and tobacco
sold at the bars of saloons are but part of that
same reckless extravaganza which wastes upon
the useless luxury Of strong drink nearly fifteen
hundred millions Of dollars year.
During the last year o. the war, when the
United States had one million of men on its pay
rolls, when it was paying two prices in depre-
ciated currency for food and clothing, and for
labor and for materials of war, the total expend-
itures of the Government. including the hun
dreds of thousands of dollars actually stolen,
and as much wasted, did not equal the amount
of money paid last year to saloon-keepers and
other retail liquor dealers by their customers.
A people who can spend 81 500, 900, 900 annu-
ally to retail dealers of liquors and tobacco who
spend, perhaps, $50, 600, 900 more for liquor i'm
ported or purchased wholesale by consumers
who shend $loO, ,OOO,O 900 annually for cigars and
tobacco in other forms, can hardly be said to be
"oppressed by debt, the interest on which is
only one-sixteenh of the amount of these reckless
expenditures for the luxuries of liquor and to-
bacco. man cannot be said to be very Sc
yerely crushed by the weight of his debts wno
spends in the course Of year for liquor ana 'oe
bacco a sum equal to two-thirds OF his snare %
the national Indebtedness. 1t is hardiy WI ~
while to talk ofcheating the public credi.oIs o
of the interest On their bonds, when tna' NEE ,hs
only amounts to one-sirteenM part as much a' u If
money souandered on liquor and topac.o
the neople of the United States wouia ener
tbe;r drinks and smokes by one-tentni tne moaJ ~
thereby saved will pay the annual 'nteiest oI '"'
49,. ia 6ftv millions a year OF the Princ'pai.
oeU1 M Anu nat that people cannot be truthfuiiy
Ia - he taxed to the I" starvation point anu
ss",abad sa.u to powder' who can AFFORD TO spend
crusneo the amount Of their total taxation,
S,.,a nd NATIONAL for whisky and tobacco, and
49, rarous ofice-seekng demagogues OF Cop
'ne olaadism will fail to make them believe It.
THERE is no fear of knowing too much, though
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