The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1889-03-20
FACTS AND ESTIMATES.
Does Prohibition Prohibit ... Answer
the Question Yourself.

It having been said q Thousand times that
prohibition does not prohibit, and We having
heard that as much whiskey was now being
at Ibs depos 20 few days ago 10 the e
It Is estimated by the agent that kegs OF
whiskey now come by express In about the
same number that barrels we're heretofore re.
keg holds about flve gallons, making the re-.
duction In the shipments OF whiskey to this
AS to beer crates: Before prohibition went
into effect, the agent at the depot estimates
that the dealers received about fifteen crates Z
weekly; weekly This shipment has been entirely
In this calculation no estimate is made a.
to the amount OF beer which was and ts ship
crate still do so. but no additional individual
purchs sers Of crates are noted.
A crate Of beer contains forty-eight bottles,
which are retailed at ten cents-making the
cost to the consumer $3.50. Fifteen crates AZ
$3.50 q crate would amount TO S72 week,
which amount, in beer alone, is now saved TO !;
II the whiskey. before prohibition went in
to effect, cost the dealer, as is estimated 81 600
a month, the same article must have cost the
month. 5000 month for year would be
$4,000, which the people have been paying for
Now, II the above estimates are correct, and
II seven-eighths Of the sum originally paid for
the liquor lssaved by prohibition, the amount
expended in original purchases would be re-
duced from 81 coca month to sl25 month. or s
10 81 500 q year.
From the Information, which we have, we
believe the cost to the consumer Of whiskey
In Abbeville has been, and Is, about as follows:
BEFORE PROHIBITION.
Beer. by the mon nth.....: 2S8 90
Whiskey, by the month. .....-........"... 5000 90
Total for month th,.-..........-......-.$ 1888 90
Total for year sse. .45s 90
SINCE PROHIBITION.
Beer, by the month, hing.-.........--s
Whiskey, by the month ,."..... .:.....-".8 19o 90
Total for year, 500 90
RECAPITULATION.
Before Prohibition, ,. ..-.......... 1850 466 90
Since Prohibition................ ...-. beo W
Saved to the people......-... .$a 958 90
But supposing that the actual figures and ee-
Inmates as 10 cost, are all wrong. Put the esti-
the i fact that the shipments Of Whisky to this
place, have been reduced to about one.eighth
OF the former shipments, and we still have
the additional fact, that the shipment Of beer
crates for sale has been entirely stopped.
| If one.eighth OF the whiskey which was for
merly shipped TO Abbeville makes as much
drunkenness, as we formerly got out Of the
retail, RETAIL before @ prohib,ion Went into eject, We We
cannot account for the fact, except It be In the
superiority Of the lightning which whiskey
contains under prohibltory laws.
| In addition to the actual cost Of whfskey,
temperance lecturers and political economists
are foolish enough to include something for
the consequential cost Of drinking, and never
fail to charge something to drunkenness. lE
is claimed by some people that drinking and
drunkenness has been known TO impair tho
usefulness of the citizen, in whatever station
| In life he may be. It Ia further claimed by ex.
treme, or ultra temperance people, that o so
ber mana man who spends nothing for drink
and drunkenness-is often better able to sup
port his family than he who spends much
time and money in buying and drinking
| whiskey. These same temperance people, In
their craze against other peoples Vices, even
20 80 far as to say that men have sQuandered
good estates and ruined good names, by the
use OF whiskey, while temperance men, who
are totally crazy in their opposition to the IL.
censed sale Of whiskey, have even gone so FAR
as 10 express the belief that drunkenness is
promotive OF crlme-that men sometimes &C.
| tually kill others while inf1amed with whiR-
key. All such people, therefore, as are luna
tics on the subject Of prohibition, 1t seems to
| US, must be more than pleased at the reduc-
| ton in the shipments OF whiskey TO Abbe.
| VILE, no matter what the estimated compara-
tive cost may be in dollars and cents.
With these facts-and these estimates OF
COST which may be wide Of the mark-sensi.
BILE people may be able 10 draw their own con.
clusions as TO the effectiveness Of prohibition,
while we leave crazy temperance people to 60
on repeating that old story to the effect that
| prohibition prohibits.