Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-09-27
Cost of the Cup That Cheers.

t.Since the time when Columbus
bfaved the unknown seas in search or
the treasure of the Indies, man has
dug out of the earth fifteen thousand
million dollars of gold. Since the
panic of 1907 the American people have
spent for alcohol and tobacco fifteen
thousand million dollars. Or, to put
these statements in the form of ma
thematicai equation: the product OF
four hundred and twenty years of hu-
man toll sacrifice and bloodshed, OF
daring discovery and exploration of
continental wildernesses, of cruel wars
of aggression and conquest, of Won
derful engineering triumphs, in the
never-ending search for the precious
metal equals six wears easy going ex-
penditure of the American people for
the weed that soothes and the cup that
cheers
The above is from an article by
Frank Fayant in October Munsey's.
Some of our readers will see 1t and we
hope they will read it and pass it
along. 1t is chapter of an awful
truth. 1t is laying bare of the skel-
eton of our national woe; an owning
up to the magnitude of our indulgence
Fearing that comparatively few Ken
nebec Journal readers will have the
magazine we are giving the substance:
How much is twentyseven hundred
million dollars? If. thousand years
before the time of Moses the Lawgiv-
er. the ancient Egyptians had begun
boarding a treasure of gold at the rate
of a dollar a minute, and if ever since
then-every minute, day and night,
these thousands of years--the accum-
uIation of this treasure had continued,
the golden hoard would to-day be fve
hundred years short of the twenty
seven hundred million dollars We Spend
in one year for alcohol and tobacco
ga stack of 200, 100000 dollar bill:
would tower a hundred and forty mile:
in the sky, far beyond the earth's at
,nospbere. In thousand dollar gold GER
tificates the stack would be higher
than the Woolwerth Building IN ne"
3 York. II twenty-seyen hundred mil
lion dollar bills were strung end to enc
they would cover every mile OF ran
road track in the country. This sam
green ribbon would reach from tn
earth to the moon and a hundre'
thousand miles beyond"
Mr.. Fayant SAYS that the bulk OF nj
money is spent by wage-earners IL
equal to the earnings of more thai
four million workers. 1t is two ana
half times the wages of all the men oil
the railroads 1t is fourteen times tn
great payroll of the Steel Corporation
Sir George Pafsh, the English eco
pomist. estimates at--the- Amerien
people are saving the-great sum
five billion dollars a year-that is, tina
we are putting this money into new
railroads. factories, farms, homes an
other productive investments, ana thu
adding to the national wealth. But W
are spending this sum every twenty
two months for tobacco and alcoho
Our enormous savings bank hoard /
the wonder and envy of Europe, blu
we spend in twenty months as muc
money for tobacco and alcohol as w
have laid by in the savings banks !
all these years Of prosperity and thrif'
Every month we spend more than W
add to our bank savings in Who'll
year. :,
gsMors s$aH flaA they total wealth
the sIiudttdf Ayfes is INCORPORATED
Aaa6uE chiAnH and Industrial conlpar
les. banks and other financial inst
buttons, railroads, telesraphs, tel
phones and other public service co
porations The combined profits of
these businesses are less than the e.
penditure for smoking and drinkin
The twenty seven hundred million dc
lar annual outlay is greater than Il
total cost of all our government, fro
the Presidents salary down to Il
cross roads schoolhouse. 1t is thr
times the national debt. 1t is mo
than all Europe is spending for WI
and preparation for war.
IF our habits do not change, sa,
the writer, I'VE shall consume mo
alcohol and tobacco in the next thirt
i've years than could be purchased +
the entire wealth of the United Stat
\ foday--the total vaiae of eyerythir
possessed by everybody from the A
lanfic to the Pacific.
II A quarter of the twenty-seven hui
dred million dollars fs spent for I
bacco. and three-Guarters for alcoh