, 1888-03-01
The Tax ou Beer.

: /. CEroa.cie.
During The year 1856 there we're
produced in the United States 20
7l0,933 barrels of fcrmcnted liquors
of thirty-one gallons each, and in the
same year the United States govern
ment collected as tax on such fer
mented liquors $i9,676, al. \ ques
ton having arisen as to the best and
most feasible way of reducing tEe
revenus of the United States, an is
sue has been made between the re
publican and democratic parties. the
former wishing to abolish internal
reuenue taxation and the latter in
sisting upon retaining such taxation
and reducing import duties on for
eign products. This difference of
opinion must evidently be submitted
to the American people for decision
and it Is fully time that they began
to study and look into such questions
in order to decide intelligenfly when
the time comes.
1t may be said in general terms
that the internal revenue tax OF
nearly S20,O0O,0OO collected from
fermented liquors in 1856 was n tax
on beer, as the beverage forms much
the greatest part OF the product of
the fermentation OF the United
States, and the question which arises
IS, What necessity, If any, exists for
the retention of this tax of 81 BAR
rel on beer? This question addresses
itself particularly to the brewing
interest in the United States, who are,
on the whole, the largest consumers
of fermented liquors
1t should be said in the first place
that the tax on beer has no possible
connection with prohibition, except
as the ultra -prohibitionists, who
seem to oppose everything but cold
water. drag 1t in and mix it up with
the use and abuse of splrituous
liquors. As fact, malt liquors are
an important adjunct to the cause of
temperance, 1t being abundantly
proved, by Instances without num-
ber, that beer drinking nations are
temperate nations. Germany is the
great illustration of this principle,
and it is known that England, before
the days of rum shops and gin pal
aces, when beer and ale were the
usual beverages of the people, was
temperate country. Nor do we need
to 60 abroad for examples of the
effect of beer. It Is asserted on good
authority that after the introduction
of beer in the state of Iowa, or rather
after it came into general use there,
the manufacture and sale of spiritu-
Gus liquors fell off almost two-thirds;
anA ek o41..TInr -hDxx, {hn 4ofo e
facts wherever beer is commonly
used
Not even the tariff thinkers will
seek to claim that the S20,000,000 de-
rived from the manufacture of beer
is necessary to the support of the
Government. With a surplus in the
treasury, and no present opportunity
of paying off the rest of the national
debt, the problem is to stop accumu-
latlon, not to increase ii, and in this
aspect of the case the tax on beer is
not public necessity. Our German
citizens have always been willing to
allow their beer to be taxed so long
as the Government needed the mon
ey; but now that it does not need it,
it will be only natural that they shall
ask repeal of the tax, and that they
may be able to make and drink beer
without having to pay 81 a barrel
for it.
1t is for them to consider this mat
ter, and decide whether they will in
dorse the Republican party for the
repeal of the internal revenue taxa
ton laws, on whether they will ca It
in their fortunes with the party
which proposes to tax the poor mans
glass Of home made beer, at the same
time throwing down the barriers
against foreign products of various
kinds and admitting the fruits of
labor to compete directly
with our own manufactures. The
Germans in America have way of
for themselves, and It is
only necessary to point them to few
simple facts, and then they can safe~
y be trusted . draw their own con-
clusi0ns.
Go to Bartlett's for all kinds cfsewing
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