The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1900-10-11
SPIRITUOUS BEVERAGES.
THE KINDS And QUANTITIES.
WHICH ARE DRUNK.
Different Tastes and Different Places
but n Home Product Preferred.

but Home PrOuuCt HreleFTeUb
In his paper read before the Statisti-
cal society, Fl. Bence-Jones points out
that although almost all people indulge
in some form of lntoxicant, the majori-
ty drink the liquor that their own
country produces. The nations OF
southern Europe drink wine; even the
peasant has his flash of thin and rather
Sour ordinaire. Those of the north
drink beer almost as universally,
though in the blealIest regions the pref
erence is for more ardent forms of al
cohol. But everywhere it is the drink
4 that can be produced at home that is
the favorite drink of the people.
The amount of wine that is drunk a
head in wine consuming countries Is
amazing. In France the consumption
per capita is twenty-four GALLONS q
year, while the average Italian drinks
twenty gallons annually and the aver
age Spaniard eighteen. But In mere
quantity the beer drinkers far exceed
the wine drinkers. Thus, the annual
consumption of the United Kingdom Is
nearly thirty-two gallons q head; that
of Germany is twenty seven gallons;
that of the United States, where the
Saxon element predominates, Is thir-
teen gallons. The general impression is
that Germany Is the country par excel
lence Of beer drinkers, but this Is true
only OF parts of the empire Bavaria
leads the world in the consumption OF
beer, it's inhabitants drinking at the
rate Of fifty-six gallons a head year.
Wurtemburg makes a good second with
forty-tflree gallons a head, while each
inhabitant of the Grand Duchy of Ba-
den may be reckoned as drinking thir-
ty-six gallons in a year But this In
diligence Is balanced by a very mode
rate rate of indulgence in other parts.
Taken as a whole, Belgium leads the
world in the matter of beer drinking,
Its rate per inhabitant being forty-five
gallons In fact, Belgium seems to be
self-indulgent little country, for, in
addition to this large amount Of beer
Its inhabitants drink, per capita, twice
as much wine and spirits as the Eng
lieh do. Belgium drinks more of alco-
1iol III every form than any other ma
ton of Europe (of which statistics are
to be had) with the possible exception
OF Denmark. Denmark is not go much
OF d beer drinking country, though it's
twenty gallons a head annually is
pretty large average but it has the
re-eminence-affixt to it what adjective
you like-of drinking more spirits than
any other nation-no less than three
gallons a head. No other nation con-
Bumes more than two gallons a head.
The countries which take even so much
are Frence, Germany, Austria, Holland,
Belgium and Sweden In the United
Kingdom, the Russian empire, the Uni
ted States and Switzerland the average
consumption Is about a gallon per in
.habitant OF course the spirit thus con-
Asumed is for the most part manufac-
Tired in the country where it is drunk.
How little liquor is imported may be
understood from the fact that only |
little more than 4 per cent. of the sum
which the national revenue of Great |
Britain derives from the taxation of al
coholic beverages comes from imported |
spirits.
a very interesting part of MIR. Bence- /
Jones' payer deals with the consump-
ton of intoxcants In our colonies. It |
may be said in general terms that our
children among the nations are much .
more temperate than we are ourselves.
"A
and there the people drink approx
mately one gallon Of kline, ten gallons
of beer and quarters Of a gallon
of cpirits head annually. The wine Is
home grown, which may account for
the consumption of it being twice as
great as that of Britain, for everywhere
imported articles are the Injuries of
richer classes. Australia is unique
among the nations, however, for the
large proportion of spirits which she
imports, no less than 80 per cent. Of her
consumption of this form of alcohol
coming from abroad, chiefly from our
own country. There is, indeed, very
little manufacture of spirits in Austria
LA, nor does it seem to be increasing.
1t is very difficult to get reliable sta
tistics of the consumption of the var-
GUS intoxicants at Cape Colony the Of
fetal information obtalnable being
scanty. From four to sig gallons of
wine is produced annually, but as a
great part of this Ut Is believed about
two-fifths) Is made into brandy, 1t Is
impossible to estimate with any exact
ness the amount that is drunk There
used to be considerable export of
Cape wine to Europe, and about seven
ty thousand gallons are still sent
abroad, but the greater part of the
wine made In the colony Is now sent UP
to the Transvaal and other inland
parts. The consumption of beer Is very
small, something under two gallons
year a head nor is it increasing Spir-
its are consumed at the rate Of about
one gallon head, but 1t is not known
how much Of this is genuine brandy, !
and how much is the mysterious and
compound called Cape
smoke
OF all our colonies Canada has the
of being the most sober;
indeed, it may be doubted If a more
abstemious nation exists than the Ca
madam. Moreover, the consumption Of
alcohol is steadily decreasing. Spirits
are falling into diffavor. In i
1890 the Canadians consumed spirits at !
The rate of nearly a gallon a head; in !
1898 the consumption per capita had
nallen to little over half a gallon. Of
vine not more than tenth of a gallon
/ head is drunk. OF beer the consump- S
ion is only three and a half gallons {
head annually. The satisfaction 18th |
which temperance enthusiasts will re- ]
gard this state of affairs may be tenn S
oered by the way in which they regard S
he Increasing consumption Of coffee G