New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1900-12-16
HEAVY .TEmPERANCEY DRINKING.
GRE. T BRITAIN CONSUMES MORE TEA THAN
UNITED STATES MORE COFFEE

From The London News.
The relation between national character and
the faVorte national drinks would form in
terestins subject of speculation 1t might, for
instance, lie discovered that a people whose
staple drink is tea would be of more domestic
and reflective and stOlid temperament than one
devoted equally to the consumption of coffee.
Some interesting statistics published by the
Board of Trade throw good deal of light upon
important of the non-al eOhOlic beverages With
regard TO cocoa, in spite of the advertising bat
tie waged over the supply of that innocent bev-
erage, reliable statistics to be wanting, and
tea and coffee far surpaSs cocoa in Importance
as article of commerce and in popularity as
drink The consumption of tea in this country.
we find exceeds that of all the other European
countries. and OF the United States together
Between 1884 and 1899 the total amount of tea
imported into this country for home consumption
| rose from 115.OO0.GO0 pounds to 242.O0OOOO. an
increase of 81 per cent. In 1884 the tea con-
| sumption per head in this country was five
pounds. Last year this rose to nearly six
pounds.
We confess we are rather surprised it was not
higher than this The old ladies who "wisiblS
swelled" before the eyes of Samuel Weller,
| Senior at the meeting of the Brick Lane Branch
of the United Grand junction Ebenezer Tempert
ance Society, are not entirely an obsolete type
The afternoon party is still fiOurishing in
stitutiOn, and tea still plays important part
In our religious life in It's social aspect SIX
pounds per head seems therefore an unexpect-
eddy low figure. But compared with our con-
sumption other nations are nowhere Even in
Russia and the United States. the next largest
tea drinkers. the consumption does not reach one
| pound per head while the Frenchman cannot
| manage more than One-twentieth of pound per
annum Our colonies however, reproduce the
prOpensities of the mother country. Australia
| averages seven and One-half pounds per head.
and Canada about four and three-quarters. IL
| is interesting to note that in tea the British
Empire tends more and more to be self-sutfic-
ing. In 1884 90 per cent of the tea of for
eign origin, whereas in 1899 So per cent came
from British possessions, namely, of course,
4 India and Ceylon-
Turning to coffee. we find very different tale.
anO no
drinkers in the world. We get through less than
3DOOO.OOO pounds a year, whereas the United
States the largest consumer of all. manages
some SOO.OOOOOO pounds Seyen-t enths of a
pound of coffee per annum Suttices for John Bull,
while Jonathan requires ten and 0ne-half pounds
per annum. The next largest consumers are the
German Empire with over six pounds a head,
and France with over four and One-half- 1t APP
pears from the statistics that the average price
per pound of tea at the landing point has sunk
between 1884 and 1899 from HAD to ID. Coffee.
/ on the contrary, tends on the whole, To grow
dearer. We get most of coffee. we'll as
our tea, from British India and CeylOn. though
a certain quantity comes from the United States.
Brazil and other parts of South America