The morning star and Catholic messenger., 1878-05-05
NATIONAL DRUNKENNESS.
London Tablet

London Tablet.
Once fx, by habitual repetition, stig-
ma, whether on q nation OF an individu-
al, and, however unmerited, it may take
ages to remove the calumny, Numerous
are the criminal and had habits imputed
to the Irish, and confidently believed by
those ignorant of their true character or
rejudiced against them. Amongst their
other failings, the irish are reputed to be
stepped lower in the degrading vice of
drunkenness than their fellow subjects in
England and Scotland, which is frequently
set forth as one of the causes of the greater
poverty, discomfort and crime of that
country, and of it's relative ioferiority in
industrial and material progress. A Par
liameutary Return just issued affords the
lateet refotation to this calumny.
There are but two main modes by which
@ fair opinion can be formed as to the
relative use or abuse of Intoxicating drinks
by two or more countries-namely, by the
amount of those drinks entered tor home
consumption, and by the number of con-
victioDs for drunkenness. But, even with
reliable returns, under both heads, there
are important modifying circumstances
that must accompany them; in order to
draw Just conclusions. Convictions for
drunkenness would appear to be conclusive
as q means of determining relative guilt {;
vet, nothing could be more misleading, as
may be readily shown. In the first place
there is Police Force of IL 0Sl men scat
tered in fixed barracks over Ireland, and
who attend all fairs, markets, and popular
gatherings; while in Scotland the force
amounts to only 3, ,356 men, mainly sta
toned in cities and towns; and only
2o. $50 policemen in England aud Walea.
The Police Force in proportion to popula-
ton, is far larger and much more efficient
in Ireland than in England or Scotland,
hence the higher probability of the detec-
tion of drunkards. But another element
powerfully stimulates the vigilance of the
police, with whom for some time past, the
fines inflict ted for drunkenness are divided,
and who thus enjoy the premium set ON
detection. Nor is national character a fac
tor that can be omitted in the comparison.
More social and gregarious, more volatile
and less taciturn, not quite as we'll fed as q Q
Scotchman or the tEnglishman, the Irish
man, whose national beverage is whiskey,
slight indulgence in which stimulates him
to noise and rowdyism, exposes himself
and tempts his capture by the police, while
the prudent Scot and the taciturn Saxon
manage to reach home without their ine-
briefly being detected by the police. Thus,
upon all these grounds, the number of ar
rests or convictions for drunkenness, in the
three Kingdoms, fails to indicate the rela-
tive intemperance of the countries illustra-
ted by the corrected adage :-"There are
not more notes in the sun beam than in the
shade but the light reveals their presence"
And 30 as regards the amount of intoxi
eating drink consumed. The ardent spir-
its must be supplemented by ale and por-
ter, which are English beverages, or by
their equivalent alcoholic element, in order
to have q fair return of the consumption
for each county. While another and an
important consideration is the different
distribution of population, civic and rural,
in the three Kingdoms, with its conse-
quences. Save in the larger cities and
towns, which are few and sparse, restau-
rants, comfortable eating houses, and coffee
shops are very rare in the generality Of
market towns in Ireland, and almost un-
known at rural fairs, 80 that the agricultu-
rsl classes, who often travel long distances
in broken weather, are driven into the
public houee; whereas such accommodation
is familiar, attractive and cheap in all
towns of any importance throughout Eng
land and Scotland.
With these explanations we may now
summarize the Return (No. 437-le79),
moved for by Mr.. Henley last Session, of
the number of persons taken into custody
for drunkenness and disorderly conduct,
in each city and town in the United King:
dom, for each of the years 1851, 1861, and
1876. Several difficulties crop up in the
returns, but we shall notice one only,
namely, that the official departments were
not able to estimate the population of the
cities and towns in England and Wales in
suming that the increase in population in
the cities and towns in question between
1871 and 1876, in England, was about
equal to that in the general population of
the whole country. Supplying this omis-
sien the return stands thus:
Estimated Committed in 1876 for
Cities and Population, Drunkenness snd One to
Towns in 1876. Disorderly Conduct Persons
England - .l0, 100000 lO4,lT %
Scotland ,26< 402 $3.50 2I.6
Ireland..... 79s,43I s,Tsl 9oi
Total. 10 O62, ,s39 III ,5s5 7o.3
These figures show, no doubt, the con-
| trast of the distribution of population,
civic and rural, in the three Kingdoms, the
above referring to little short of half the
inhabitants of England, more than one
third of the population of Scotland, and
only one eighth of those of Ireland; hence
deductions drawn from the table must be
affected with the weakness of such Unequal