The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1917-09-22
JOHN BULLS THIRST
IS FALLING STEADILY
Pre-War Figures VIII be Source OF
Amusement to More Sober Nation
After the War.
GREATEST BEER DRINKERS.
In Britain In Late Years Exceeds
Even Germany's Celebrated Thirst.
{I.ondon Answers. }


In these days of restr. cted drinks,
when John Bull can pat himself on the
back as model Of sobriety. however
enforced, he VIII probably be aston
ished to learn what thirsty soul he
really was in the piping times Of
peace"
If you tell him that in normal times
he spends over $4,000 a day on in
toxicants more than a fve-pound
note every time the clock -ticks3-he
will probably open his eyes wide with
incredulity. Tell him, further. that he
pours down his capacious throat in
year as much spirituous liquid as
would supply five tumhlerfuls to every
man. woman. and child living on the
earth today, and he will probably ex-
claim, "Preposterous! Absurd"
And yet these are statements of SO
Der fact. Even as recently as the year
1914 John spent nearly 1874 IL mil
lions on beverages that tnebriate, IL
you take too much of them.
To pay his drink bill for 1914 would
call for more than 1922 tons of SOW
ereigns. a heavy burden for 10000
strong men to carry any distance. OF
this enormous sum approximately
II Is. 200. 00--l4 shiilings out of every
working classes. The average expendt,
ture for each inhabitant OF the United
Kingdom, including babies in arms,
was f3 los. 10d.: or fl las. I'd for
each family of five members.
To this annual bill of over Ga mil
Hon pounds, beer alone contributed
roundiy lo3 millions; spirits. 80 mill
lions and wines. II millions, the
Briton's favorite beverage, the nut
y IL Ia.
than / 2 shillings In every pound,
But IL is when We consider the guam
titles consumed that we set tile most
impressive conception Of Johns thirst.
Thus. of beer alone he drained more
than 2o,64o 600. Q0o glasses in IL
months, an allowance OF eight and a
half tumblers every week for every in
hahitant of Great Britain and ireland.
II 1t were possible 10 collect the IS, =
g6i goo barrels Of beer consumed in
the frst year Of war and TO pour their
contents into a reservoir a mile long
and a thousand feet wide. we should
All our reservoir. To a depth of 40 feet /;
and our miniature ocean 0f beer would
he large and deep enough to float our
entire navy.
Spirits take the second place on the
Rriton's bin OF quantities, with the re-
spectacle total OF 31694660 gallons
ANA wines make n ereditable thir-4 NJ a
26 $50 600 gallons. Thus. a little cal
culation reveals the astonishing fact
that for every tumbierful OF wine. and
fer every tumbler md quarter Of
spirits, no fewer than 80 glasses of
beer are drunk
Impressive as such fgures are. John
may at least ~le-im that II normally he
in not a pattern of temperance, he has
been Improving steadily Thus he can
point trium phantly to the fact that fer
every three glasses of spirits he drank
IN years ago. he was content with two
IN iat+ one glass OF wine took the
place of two then: while. as ii beer
Arinker, he had knocked Ave gallons
"a year off
Now let US see how John Bull com
pares with his neighbors. As a beer
drinker he is hopelessly beaten bv the
Belgian. whose thirst (hefore the war;
called for three glasses TO his two.
And. although he has q slight lead
over Germany as n whole. the DaYar-
Ian drinks over so gallons to John .
annual 2T6.
AS n consumer of spirits John also
compares favorably even with some OF
his children. Thus. for every glass he
drains. the South Austraffan( North
the West Australian from two TO
FIVE. according to his prosperity: and
the West Australian from two 10
three. The Canadian drinks 20 per
cent more spirits: the Dane 1.-THE heav-
lest spirit -drinker In the world), near
" five times as much, and the Ger
man and Frenchman roughly twice as
much
But II Ia as wine bihber that the
Briton can assume the most virtuous
airs, for. while in peace-time he is
content with less than a modest quar-
ter OF gallon yearly, there is scarcely
a country on the continent which can
do with less than four times as much 4;
while most of them range from Aus
trials three gallons to Frances 24-or
as glasses for each one John Bull
drinks.