Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1883-01-04
From N. Y. Tribune

the agitation in regard to the liquor
traffic. The subject is too important t.
be laughed down. 1t may be tina
/ prohibition is not the right way t.
settle it, or that license is not. or tha
taxation is not; these are fair question.
upon which a difference of opinion
between sincere and candid men i.
possible. But the subject has become
altogether too important to be ignored
or passed over without any seriou:
attempt to settle it. Aside from the
law-defying spirit which it has ELECTED
aside from all its moral and religious
aspects. the question considered purely
as one of dollars and cents, in its effect
upon the national prosperity and
wealth, is one of the most important
that can be named.
Directly and indirectly. this country
spends in the liquor traffic every year
sum exceeding half the national
debt. The cost Of that traffic to the
country, direct and indirect, is greater
than the profits of all its capital not
invested in real estate. 1t costs every
year more than our whole civil service,
our army, our navy, our congress,
including the river and harbor and the
pension bills, our wasteful local gov
eminent, and all national, state,
county and local debt, besides all the
schools in the country. In fact, this
nation pays more for liquor than for
for every function of every
kind of government. How is ques-
tion of that size to be put aside with a
sneer!
AS these statements may seem sur
prising to those who have not looked
into the matter, a few figures may be
of service. A glass of beer costs the
consumer cents, and there are at
least twenty IN the gallon. and $40 in
the barrel, so that beer retails at about
$50 barrel, while ale costs still more
The consumption of beer and ale last
year was about 100000 barrels !;
cost to consumers about $3.50, 900. 000
The cheapest kind of liquor used,
ordinary whisky, is rarely sold at S
cents and averages at least 7 cents a
drink; at half a gill to the "horn"
this makes $4.4S per gallon. The
consumption last year was about TO-
600, 900 gallons; cost to consumers
about $313.0O0,0OO. Adding wines,
there is certainly spent for drink more
than $8O0,OO0,0OO, and the entire
sum raised by taxes of all kinds,
national, state, county, city, town,
and school district, is stated on
authority Of the census bureau to be
not more than about 100000, 900.
But the cost of the liquor drank is
not by any means the whole cost OF
the liquor traffic. An official report.
prepared with much labor by the
bureau of statistics of Massachusetts,
under authority from the Legislature,
states that S4 per cent Of all the
crime and criminal expenses in that
state comes directly from the abuse OF
liquor. There are at least one in
twenty of the able-bodied men in this
country who are rendered idle by their
habits or incapacitated for work, and
these persons, at the ordinary wage.
of workingmen, would earn. if in.
dustrious and fairly employed, owe,
5000, 100000 yearly. The proper.
ton of persons in hospitals who reach
them because of excess in drink is very
large, but cannot be definitely ascer.
tanned.
A traffic that costs in actual payment
and III loss of productive labor more
than half the national debt every year
is not to be ignored by the economist, il
nsy be assumed that the entire wealth
of the country has risen from $50,
100000 in 1870 to $4,000, 100000
in 1880, about one-half being in rea
estate. Probably it does not average
profits exceeding 4 per cent. yearly,
taking bad investments with good, bu
at that rate the yearly interest on all
personal property of all kinds is only
81, 900, 900, 900. and the direct or in
direct cost of the liquor traffic must be
be greater.
These comparisons do not constitute
reasons for doing any unjust or unwis'
things. What ought to be done abou
the liquor traffic is not to be dscides
hastily or without due regard for tn,
rights of all classes of citizens. Blu
the time has gone by in this countr,
uban a .or;ous discussion of f, ouo.t;o,