Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-06-15

Distillers and liquor dealers OF Philadel-
phia today announced that retail prices Of
liquors would increase should Congress pass
the new amendment increasing the tax Of
( $40 on each bushel Of grain weighing fifty
six pounds used in the manufacture Of dis
titled spirits to $50 per busheL
The advance in prices, however, It was
pointed out. would not come for at least
another two years should Congress pass the
amendment. This will be because. distiliers
say, the present supply in the bonded ware
houses will last that period,
Free lunches will also become a thing Of
the past This will be due to the proposed
tax on beer which amounts to S2.2O Il gallon.
The magnitude OF the coming Increases,
for example, in a particular favorite drink,
will be:
Regular bar whisky now selling for ten
to fifteen cents will be increased to as
high as thorty to fifty cents.
Another illustration Of what may hap
pen is "doped" out by liquor people as fol-
lows:
A glass Of beer now retailing across the
bar for five cents may soon be selling for
twenty cents.
This advance will be due to the new tax
Saloon men figure that in each pint Of
beer there are about two glasses or "A
few drops over The SEQ tax means that
there will be tax of 27R cents on
pint, and figuring two glasses to the pint,
q tax Of 1884 cents on each glass.
A case Of beer containing twcuty-four
pint bottles. or three gallons, now retail
ing at Sl.1O. will be selling at $40. which
will include the extra SO 60 tax on three
gallons.
John G. Groome, OF the firm Of Groome
Company, 1915 Walnut street. said:
81 don't care to make any comment on
the adoption of the new amendment or
predictions and then find out i'm the next
twenty-four hours that l was wrong in my
prediction"
PASSING OF THE FREE LUNCH
saloonkeeper at Eighth and South
street said
They sure are moving things swiftly In
Washington. ! suppose ] will have, TO be
satisfied If the amendment is adopted be-
cause | am not the only saloon man who
will feel the effect | haven't as yet in
creased my prices for whisky and beer
But II they go through with it in Washing
ton / am afraid the good free lunch with
that glass of beer that tastes 50 good TO
the. working man will be done away with.
'The tax of $2.2O on a gallon Of beer will
also increase the retail price Of beer But
member Of the brewery firm Of John f.
Betz q Sons said there was no need for
becoming excited over the probable increase
of prices Of beer and other liquors owing
10 the high war taxes on beverages. lie
said things should be permitted TO take
their natural course.
ToPE FOR ABSOLUTE PROHIBITION
The Rev. Homer w Tope, superintendent
OF the Philadelphia branch Of the Anti
Saloon League, said
we are opposed to any tax whatever on
liquors. We are fighting for wartime prohi-
bition and for nothing else. This taxing of
liquors will only serve to give the liquor
dealers a strangle hold on the Government
after the war.
High taxes will not prevent the slaves
OF the rum curse from getting their poison
Though the price of whisky may be raised
20 fifty cents per glass, the slave will give
his last fifty cents to get it, and viii beg,
borrow and steal to obtain his poison
During the civil War Lincoln was Op.
posed TO a tax on rum. He said he would
rather lose his right hand rather than
sign the bill providing for such taxation.
But he reluctantly signed the measure
when Stanton and others told him that the
nation needed the revenue to run the war,
Lincoln signed only after ne exacted the
promise that the bill he repealed after the
war The trail of the rum serpent was
seen after that. Lincoln was assassinated
by the rum-craZed Wilkes Booth, and Gar
field went to his death at the hand of
man whose brain was intiamed and dis
torted by liquor. During the war the liquor
dealers organized at Chicago and entered
politics. They have been in politics ever
since
THE liquor dealers are more than will
ing to be taxed, for such taxation gives
them an excellent after-the-war plea to con-
tinue the nefariOus traffic. They can shout
after the war that they were patriotic and
that their money was the price for victory
We know, however. that the revenue from
booze comes out Of the pockets of the con-
sumer
"Our object is to stop the use Of food
stuffs for the manufacture OF a poison
which will be used 20 undermine the health
and morals Of the great army which the
nation Is now engaged in raising We are
hrst fighting for a saving Of man-power, and
secondly for "A saving of foodstuffs The
grains used now for the manufacture Of
booze would furnish II 900 900 loaves Of
bread annually for our army"