Mountain Home maverick. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1906-1911, 1907-01-10

The passage by congress on June
7tt last OF what is commonly
known as the Denatured Alcohol
Act, has seemingly been the cause
of a great deal of more or less pop
ular literature upon the subject.
Indeed it is to be feared that the
popular side has been over exploited
and as result certain erroneous
Impressions have gotten establihsed
among people in general. Some
magazine and other writers in their
zeal for a popular cause have told in
glowing terms of the benefits to be
derived from the use of tsx-free
alcohol in the arts and industries,
too much has been written with all
TOO little attention being paid to the
rules and regulations which have
been formulated for carrying into
effect the provisions of the bill, l..
G., to the conditions under which
alcohol may be made and used with
out the payment of a tax. A great
many persons seemingly have the
impression that from now on al
most any one can quickly qualify
himself to be able to convert al
most any refuse you can name,
quickly and cheaply into a SUBJ
stance which, because of its cheap
ness, would compete with coal oil
an gasoline as to bring the latter
down to prices commensurate with
their utility. With the idea in
view of correcting any mistaken
idea upon the subject which may
exist, | have CLEANED from what
believe to be reliable and trust
worthy sources the more important
facts concerned in the making and
use of industrial alcohol.
The act in question simply pro-
vides that from and after January /,
1907, under such regulations as the
commissioner of internal revenue
may prescribe, domestic alcohol of
a certain degree of proof, if it is to
be used in the arts and industries
and for fuel and light and dcnatured
before such use, may be withdrawn
from bonded warehouse, without
the payment of the government tax.
Provisions are made for carrying
out the intent of the law as to the
privilege of withdrawal, denaturiz-
ing, ETC., and providing punish
nncnt for offenders against it.
Our government has been any
thing but liberal in its laws re-
lating to the subject. In this she
is far less progressive than European
nations. For years the people of
England, Belgium, France, Ger
many and other countries have prof.
tied enormously by the wise and
beneficial laws of their respective
governments relating to the manu-
facturc and use of alcohol in the
arts and industries. Our govern
mcnt put heavy tax upon alcohol
in 1864, and in spite of the hard
ships it has worked and hindrances
il has been to industries in general,
has steadily maintained that tax,
evidently believing that the reve-
nue. so derived was of more inn
portancc than the impetus which
would be given to certain lines of
industry by more liberal laws upon
the subject. 1t has taken years of
labor on the part of the friends of
tax free alcohol to get oven the pro-
visions contained in the present law
acted upon favorably by congress.
In it's zeal for revenue our govern
rncnt has worked great injustice
upon the idustrics of its people.
Let us hope that the present law
is only beginning in the right
AS is generally known, alcohol is
the Intoxicating principle found in
our common beverages. 1t is def
mite chemical compound, having
we'll defined characteristics, and
can readily be obtained in a high
degree of purity. 1t is formed from
many sources, SUCH as fruttSs roots, |
tubers, grains, etc. Since it is
made so commonly from the latter,
l. c. barley, corn, etc., 1t is gen.
orally called grain alcohol. 1t
should not be confused with ''wood
alcoholic which is obtained from
other sources and has just as defi-
mite chemical characteristics, al
though the latter is often made to
take the place of the former for GER
tain industrial uses. On account of
the great variety of sources from
which grain alcohol can be
made, it ought to be quite cheap.
AT present for most purposes it
costs about $3.50 per gallon, two
dollars of which represents the gov
eminent tax