The evening herald. [volume] (Albuquerque, New Mexico) 1914-1922, 1915-07-21
ALCOHOL SAID TO
CAUSE DECREASE
IN POPULATION
French Peasantry Losing In
Numbers Because Of Use Of
Cider Brandy Which Costs
Them Nothing.

ASSOCIATED Press Correspondence.)
Paris. July Sin an invcstisation
of the causes OF the d~epopulation OF
France. Monsieur Charles BcnOist
took the canton of Creuliy. In the arr
reimbursement OF Caen, both Of which
are gradually losing their population,
0nd mad. q house to house inquiry
In search u data as to- whether the
decreased birtnrate should be attrib-
uted to physiological. psychological,
moral. economic, fiscal judicial. poll
itic or social causes. In several cases
he said the reply TO his questions was
alcoholic" In several cases the
exhaustion OF the race" was given
without precision "a to the causes OF
the exhaustion.
Or. Levassort, head Of the Bon
sauyeur insane asylum at Caen, Is
more c%atcgoric than the inhabitants
interviewed by Monsieur Benoist.
what alcohol has done to this pop
ulation, formerly 20 healthy ana ro-.
bust" he SAYS. zone cannot realize
without living In the region. Peasants
m tho valley Of the huge who produce.
"a great Teal Of cider and diHtill u at
viii. drink at least n pint OF brandy
per day. some. women as well as men,
drink double that.
1T r. with the CO fec that the wn-
mon acquire the habit Whenever a
neighDor pays "A visit, the hostess OF
fcrs "a drop OF coffee: the cider
brandy goes with ii and after u untii
the quantity surpasses by far the
quantity OF coffee. No one thinks Of
stinting the cider brandy since IL
costs them nothing. Drinking at
home leads TO drinking In public. and
this perhaps accounts for the fact
that the communes Of less than 900
population are 50 per cen of the total.
Whether drink may be considered
the Causo Of The decrease In the birth
rate os not. the PROGRESSION Of dcpop.
ulution seems 20 hove kept pace Aith
the progression Of alcoholism. Where
the consumption OF spirits was for
merry a gallon n a hail O year per
capita. u is now more han three gal
Iong while To-. decreased birth-rato
tr,ccd baci: through many generations
in the same families by Monsieur
Be,.oist shows n decrease from an
acreage Of seven children In a family
n the nineteenth century TO three in
AlNf ANfilNA'AAf
The department Of Calvados. which
has given it's name to n 81 the
iqucurs that inevitably accompany
the after lunch or after dinner coffee
In France. Is one Of the departments
where fruit growers profit most from
the privilege the law accords them ~
mailing brandy OF their crop without
pas ng a government tax. OF the
81. 900. 900 gallons Of cider produced
in France IN 1912. Calyados produced
$4,000 poo How much of this was re-
duccd 10 cider brandy statistics do
not tell since private distillotion Is
subjected 20 no control.
Statistics show. however, that while
Calyados has only one per cent OF tho
population Of France. u has four per
cent OF the number of controlled dis
tlleries. and that In 1919 they pro-
duccd 100000 gallons Of pure alco-
hol. equivalent to ass, 600 gallons Of
hraudy-morc than q gallon a head
Tor each of the Inhabitants, including
f, children. Add To- this the unknown
y quantities of private distilled and II
rs possible To- credit the statement that
Boo some the annual con
sumption Of brandy approaches ten
salons per capita per annum.