Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-05-14
the "HoRR,BLE EXAMPLE,"

The American Grocer's annual report
| of our national drink bin is appalling
| These figures are made up from the
government excise statistics translated
| into current retail prices. According
| to the summary Americas total drink
bill for all kinds of stimulating bever-
ages, including tea and coffee, is one
fourth the total estimated production
of the cotton, wheat, corn. hay, and to-
bacco crops, and every other product of
farms. 1t amounts to one eighth of the
nations total expenditure for food.
Estimates of the cost of stimulating
beverages show that since 1901 the cost
has risen from S1,27S,212,3S6 to $1,54S,-
70S, 307 in 1905, gain of 275.495,921. or
81 3-5 per cent The population for the
same period advanced from 1854, 600
to SO, 900, an addition of 5,496,Ooo, or
61a per cent.
These statements show an increase
in the use of malt liquor and such mil
der stimulants as tea and coffee and a
slight decrease in the use of sprituous
liquors as compared with 1904, the use
of the former during the last three
years showing a gain of 2h per cent;
that of beer per cent. The per capita
expenditure for all kinds of stimulate
ing beverages for the year ending June
80, 1905, was S1S.63, or $93.15 for each
family of five persons. The per capita
cost of tea, coffee and cocoa was $2.6S,
against 1855 for alcoholic stmulants.
In 1904 the cost was $40 for non-al-
coholic drinks, against $1S.63 for alco-
holic beverages.
The New York Post compares the
present with 1910, and says:
In sixty-five years the average
American has increased his allowance
of beer fourteen times, and learned to
drink half as much again of wine, but
at the same time cut off three sevenths
of his consumption of whisky. Only
one of these changes, however, has bee
one of these changes however. has
been at all steady. The consumption of
wine, as shown by the official statis-
tics, has been wholly erratic. The in
dividual consumption of whisky and
other spirits showed an irregular de-
cline, but the increase Of beer drinking
has been as steady and seemingly in
evitable as that Of population.
Tea, coffee and cocoa, which figure
in the American Grocer's drink bill
computation as relatively small items
in money-s22s,269,233 or not one
sixth Of the liquor bill-are so much
cheaper as beverages that in COM
parison by gallons they would UNI
doubtedly be shown to surpass all the
alcoholic beverages. AS regards the
alcoholic part Of the drink bill, how
ever. the cause for concern is not so
much the staggering totals themselves
as the fact that the traffic has not yet
reached a state of equilibrium. 1t is
bad enough to have ito note an annual
expenditure on liquors of $93.15 for
each family Of five, when the bureau of
labor gives $749 as the average FAM
ily's annual income. But the question
is now whether the present changes are
70 go on until we are to settle down be-
side Germany as enthusiastically a
drinking nation
From statistics supplied to the Lon
don Times in letter by DR.. Dawson
Burns, it appears that England's drink
bill is markedly decreasing in size. says
the British Weekly:
The decrease in six years is cpl
1926 During these years the popu-
lation has increased about 6k per cent,
and If the expenditure has proportion
ately increased, 1t would have amount
ed in 1905 to e19S,012,495. But it not
only failed ito rise to that amount, but
fell to 6 164,1s7.941, thus giving an ac-
tual and proportionate decrease Of
ss3,344,551. The consumption. how
ever, is still So 111sd per head. Con-
the children and the millions
who drink no alcoholic liquor, this is
still a large figure.