Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1893-09-22

!
1892 ss sa,Sos i.5 81 S ss,9esc5s "a
These are big figures. Taking the av-
crages of these five yerrs, we find that
we have consumed each year total of
S3,OOO,OOO pounds of tea and of 5ls.OOO-
600 pounds of coffee as nation. But
coming down to our individual selves we
find that each one of us consumes one
and one-third pounds of tea and eight and
one.quarter pounds of coffee annually, or
total of more than nine and one-half
pounds of beverages in its solid form. If
we were to add the weight of the water
that transforms this nine and one-half
pounds of solids into its liquid form, the
aggregate would he appalling. just think
of the number of cups of tea that can be
made from a few pnches of the leaves,
increase this in your Imagination to
pound of tea and then try to apply it to
So, 10000 of pounds of tea. But perhaps
it is best not. Our asylums are already
crowded.
While it takes long stretch of mag
ination TO realize our individual cOnsump-
ton of one and one-third pounds of tea,
we shall almost consider ourselves Mum
chausens if we begin to apply the same
methods to a consumption of St pounds
of coffee each during the course of year.
This amounts to more than D ounces of
coffee for every man. woman and child in
the country during each and every week,
and if we omit the infants and young
children and those who do not drink
much coffee either from choice or from
lack of means, then we must acknowledge
that we are doing our share toward sup
plying a market for the products of our
more southern neighbors as well as main
tanning good reputation for temperance.
What does it all cost us? Here again
the statistics are useful. The aggregate
value of our last years imports of 81
6l0,14 pounds of tea was Sl4, l67 Ill, an
average import price of 16 cents per
pound. The aggregate value of last year 5
imports of G23, GG9,05G pounds of coffee
was 1925, 3S7, 720, an average import price
of 20 cents per pound for coffee. We each
spend nearly 81 year for coffee, but on
ly 81 cents per annum for our tea. Evil
IDENTIFY coffee is the favorite American
drink. 1t is statistcally proven.
There is another point that is of direct
interest to us as individuals. This is the
import price of tea and coffee as compared
with the retail price. The latter touches
! our pockets, hence its appeal. The price
that we have to pay for pound of tea
averages much higher than the retail
cost of coffee, yet the value of tea laid
down in New York averages only l6 cents
as compared with 20 cents for coffee. We
= know that there is very little tea for sale
in any retail store for 80 cents per pound
and that is of very poor quality, COM
posed mostly of stalks and being of a
strong and bitter flavor. Good tea sells
at 10 cents, dollar and more per pound
prices that the masses cannot afford
which leave profit of several hundred
per cent to be divided between the i'm.
pOrters and the Wholesale and retail trade
There is evidently good money 10 be made
! in the tea business, and it is not so sur.
prising that retail tea dealers can give
away cheap cups and saucers, bars OF
soap and chromos to tea bibbers.
In the case of coffee. however, there i
a much smaller margin of profit to the
trade. If we put the average retail price
of coffee at 30 cents per pound, then there
is only margin of 80 per cent profit tC
be divided among those who handle it
Perhaps there is monopoly in the tea
trade which believes in large profits with
out much trouble rather than big sale;
and smaller profits. Perhaps the inertia
of the Eastern bungalow comes with the
tea and permeates our local tea princes
But the coffee dealers make the mos
money in the end, because their aggre
gate of sales is so very much larger tina
the smaller per pound profits grow be
yond the fewer princely profits of Oolong
This tea and coffee trade becomes tn,
q more interesting the deeper me delve int
e 1t. Each sip gives increasing and bette
II flavor. We have already shown that thu
q value of our imported tea and coffee wa
t, large. $4,000, 600 last year, but there il
e no duty collected on either unless, per
y haps. on a little of the coffee. This
II however, will not be the case for long
/, The national treasury is confronted wltl
q increasing expenditures and decreasing
revenues, and something has to be dom
Il TO make both ends meet. That is easil,
settled. The present congress is in Dem
neral cnntrnl and the DemncratIc Mat