Omaha daily bee., 1889-08-11
'Tls BEER. MY CoUNTRYnIEN.
The True Explanation Of EngIands
Royal Grant ImbrogliO.

HtOyal IUuFORtIO.
(C0m1l,niodted.)
No one need assume to understand the
English constitution or give an opinion ON
the royal grants, to pay which Johnnie Bull
has annually put his hand into his breeches
pocket, until he has mastered the subject Of
beer Beer is at the root of the question.
In tracing the course of the political stream
in that country, the explorer will cross the
the verdant fields of commerce. the rocky
wastes of party interest, the lofty peaks of
imperial ambition, the muddy flats of per-
sonal vindictiveness, but when he reaches
the source and fountain of this broad sheet
of a nations destiny, he will find it in the
plain round, well coopered barrel of malt
liquor, on which the inland revenue officer,
with much Difference and con side ration, puts
his stamp.
Why is it that Victoria can present petit
tion 10 parliament for money to support her
children and grandchildren, and why is j
that in spite of the remonstrances of the
radicals and Of those affected, contempt is
form Of envy and iaundiced regret that they,
too, are not counted worthy of public recOg-
milton; why is it that the house always comes
forward aud acceeds to the request! Beer,
why it's beer don't you knoW
We must go back to the time when the par
Lament had King Charles III. by the neck, so
to speak, and that gullant gentleman was
bargaining away many OF the prerogatiyes OF
the crown; and principally among them his
rights accruing under the feudal system of
land tenure; for, up to that time, the king
was but only the nominal lord OF nearly
every square inch of real estate in the king
dom, but he was the practical recipien mt of q
large fee, eXacted from any one who was for
tunate enough to come into property by de-
| scent, or whenever an army had to be raised.
But what had all this to do with Deert you
will He natient. tn understand The
question we must start at original rerum Tor
beerum in this case). The parliament, hard
as il was on the unfortunate monarch, gave
him something in return for these conoes-
sons, (Which he could not help to his be-
loved people. 1t did not rob the poor king of
his beer. The parliament undertook to pro-
vide a purse sufficient for maintaining the
honor and dignity of the crown, and amongst
| other things secured to him and his heirs
| forever the hereditary duties on malt liquors,
amounting to 15 pence per barrel on beer
This was what Victoria inherited when she
ascended the English throne. But by act Of
| parliament, section of and Wet C. 2, sho
| surrendered this endowment during her own
| life, the condition of which WAS that, "Her
| majesty felt confident that her faithful COM
| mons would gladly make adequate provision
| for the support of the honor and dignity OF
| the crown"
This act was passed in order TINT by the
| reduction of the imposition of 10 pence per
| barrel tho honest workingman would be re-
| portion to the public revenues, ana be able
| to secure his one luxury, or, as some eminent
| statesmen have claimed, ono OF his neces-
| sites, at a reduced price and OF better
| quality.
| Johnnie Bull knows when he has good
thing, as a rule and he has availed himself
| of this concession to such on extent that the
| last census shows in that year there was
| consumed two gallons of beer to every man,
| woman and child in the three kingdoms, and
| by the annual budget it appears that the
| excise ON Johnnies 'alf and 'alf, such as 1t is,
| for it would amount to good deal less than
| the excise taken by the average Omaha
saloonkeeper froth, yields larger amount
| than any other single item In the schedule.
| The country has really made money by this
| deal, and even at the present figure OF the
| yearly grants TO the royal family, II Vic had
| kept her beer. the balance would have been
| in hcr favor.
The end of IL all Is that parliament, having
| ordered and got its beer feels IT has TO pay
| for 1t like gentleman.