Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-08-02
DRINKING AND sMoKiNG's COST
Information Cleaned from the Fig
urcs of the Internal HeVenuc.

ufcS OF the Internal hcVcnuc.
WASHINGTON, July 30.-It will be in
teresting to all readers to know that,
while demagogues continue to complain
about the sutferlugs OF labor, the cOnsump-
ton Of luXurles in almost every paTticd-
lar IS greater tnan il was one or two years
ago, and in most classes Of expenditure
greater than it ever was in the times
called most prosperous. The dry figures
Of the internal revenue report, when eX-
amined, yield this and much other intor-
nation. IL appears that the consumption
OF beer increased l,524,9S0 barrels. The
consumption in 1880 was greater than
ever before, ana, adding the officially re-
ported increase, it appears that no less
| han 6l2 000, 600 gallons of beer were
! consumed last wear. The population
! is over 60,0OO,000, but the consumption
! for the year ending June 30 must be
| reckOned upon the mean population for
that year, which was about 59,25100
On that basis the consumption OF beer
appears to nave been 10 IS gallons tor
every inhabitaut, babies included. Con-
sdering that large part OF the popula-
! ton does not consume beer at all, this
| seems to imply an enormous consumption
10 those who do, and yet, since those W no
use beer at all certainly consume as M Ich
as half pint daily, they would at that
/ Idt6 SGb Ilu VI 20 EAIlOU5 edCns ADIa-
| renty the consumption is about equlVa-
lent to pint day for half the adult pop
| ulntion.
The increase in the consumption of
whisky was l,60G, 1903 gallons, which
makes the consumption for the year 70,
! 1853, 0l0 gallons, or 1.19 gallons per capita.
| That is much more than was consumed
! in the years OF depression, the fiscal years
| 1873 aud 1879, when the tax was the same
] rot h,tt Ill,
consumption Of 1888 or 1884, when the
! quantity WAS l.4l and 1.42 gallons per
| capita. The increase iii the consumption
| of beer, which mas risen from seven gal
| Ions to nearly eleven gallons since 1878 Q,
| accounts for some diminutIon IN the use
OF spirits, aud probably the rapid spread
Of prohibition at the south has affected
the consumption still more. Fifteen years
| ago, when Inc tax was only SOC. per gal
Ion, the consumption ranged between y
and gallons per capita.
The Increase in consumption Of tobacco
| in various forms has been remarkable, but
| especially in the lea7t healthy OF all forms.
| Snuh-using, il may be remarked, is on the
decline; l95, 147 pounds less were Ii sed last
year than tue year before. But the con-
sumption OF manufactured tobacco, for
smoking and chewing, increased 1I,0l0,-
5I4 pounds, reaching 1911 ,023, 1868 pounds,
or 1922 pounds per capita, which is con
siderably IN excess Of the consumption
in any previous year. Prior to 1870 the
quantity consumed was from | to ,
pounds; in 1870 it rose to 2.3S, and until
1879 averaged about > 30; then it rose IN
1880 to 80, III 1882 TO 500, and has been
above 3 pounds ever since. But the in
crease in this form OF tobacco would
have been greater but for the increase in
the consumption Of cigars and cigarettes.
Tue number of cigars consumed il
creased last year l5l,925 $40, making n
total consumption OF 3,5l0,312 $50, or 59.2
per capita. just twenty wears ago the con-
sumption was 1912 yearly; in 1870 IL rose
to 3O in 1870 to 43.9, and then declined a
little with the hard times to 400 in 1873,
but in 1881 it rose to 52.6, reaching Clio in
1884, and declined TO 5S.2 in 1885, but has
now risen again to 692. Thus the con-
sumption is a shade lower than the great
est yetrecorded, and there is some reasOntO
doubt whether this small decrease betok-
ems the pressure Of hard times, because
the consumption OF cigarettes has greatly
increased. Last year alone the increase
was 2j2,2l21l2, or about IS per cent,
making 1.3i0,556, 5l2 in all, or
consumption, but practically none Off
c'ally recorded in the years lSG6-lS69. In
1870 II rose TO A per capita, IN 1919 to q
per capita, and in 1876, just ten years ago,
rose to Ii per capita. But that was only
the beginning; in 1880 it had risen to 50
per capita, in 1884 10 1871, in 1885 to 1873,
and now averages OIL per capita. Ofthe
influence OF this change upon health
doubtless physicians may have something
70 say but a considerable increase in the
use Of tobacco in other forms is evidently
prevented by the manufacture and use Of
cigarettes, whether that change be beue-
dClal to health or not.
1t remains to add that, supposiug ci yars
to average only cents each, and cira-
rettes 20 cents package, tobacco 81 per
pound IN retail forms, beer 8 cents glas ",
aud spirits cents for half a gu, prcet
which are certainly not as high as those
paid by most consumers, the cost Of these
articles ~ the people OF this country is
over 81, lS0. 100000, or $40 80 for every in
haOitant. This burden is borne by about
2O,0O0.0O0 wage-earners, however, and for
them 1t averages $50 40 yearly. All the
| money that trade unions have added or
ever will add 10 the wages OF labor Will
not equal half the sum spent last year,
mainly by working people, in the con.
! sumption OF liquor alone, which cost them
! much over SSQ0,VQQ,Qg0.