The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1917-09-08
DISTILLERIES
CLOSE TONIGHT
Millions of Bushels of Grain
Will Be Released for
Food
MANUFACTURE OF
WHISKEY WILL CEASE
Stopping Whiskey Manufac-
ture Will Increase the Govt.
Revenue in Coming 2 Years

Washington, Sept. Manufacture OF
whiskey will cease throughout the nation
at ii o'clock tonight. when the prohibi.
tive clause of the food control act be.
comes effective.
Millions Of bushels of grain which
would otherwise be ground up for wits.
key will thus be released for food. How
many millions no one knows, for the
manufacture of alcohol for beverage pur-
poses is so closely blended with the pro.
duction of alcohol for industrial and me.
dicinal purposes that there is no way of
determining the exact amount
OF the l00,000,000 busheis of grain. or
thereabouts, which goes into the distil-
leries each year, about 40 per cent, ex-
perts estimate, comes out in the form of
whiskey and other distilled beverage
drinks. The remainder made into alco.
hol of exactly the same characteristics as
that used for whiskey eventually finds
its way into perfumes, toilet waters, bay
rum, medicines and to industries, where
denatured alcohol is used in ever increas.
ing quantities.
approximately ll6000000 gallons of
whiskey is produced each year by Amer
lean distilleries. Production of alcohol
by the same distlIeries for commercial
and medicinal uses other than beverages
approximates l46000005 gallons The
manufacture of alcohol for the latter
purposes will continue as usual, probably
in greater volume, and few of the larger
distilleries, if any, will have to shut
down.
The class of distilleries which will be
- k,,rt = al,
wholly of small plants operated by frem
one man to half dozen men, located in
California, Ohio and New Jersey and pro-
ducing brandy from grapes, apples and |
peaches These produce approximately |
100000 gallons a year. Those in New
Jersey and Ohio, officials believe, viii |
suspend operations entirely The Cali
fornia plants, it is thought, will con
tinue to operate in part for the manu-.
faeture OF spirits for fortifying sweet
wine.
So far as officials here can learn. there
are few distilleries in the United States,
with the exception of the fruit brandy
plants, producing whiskey at the present
time. Summer is the off season for whis
KEY production. which is confined almost
wholly to the winter months, the early
spring and the late fall The cessation
Of active whiskey production, therefore,
at this season of the year, il largely
theoretical. but the operation Of the law
will prevent the manufacture OF whiskey
1T the time it usually starts on large
scale, the latter part of September. T.
Stopping whiskey manufacture, in
stead of curtailing the governments rev
snues. will increase them for the next
wo years, officials believe. Coupled with
he operation of the pending revenue bill,
he withdrawal OF whiskey from the
took already accumulated will probably
reble the revenues within the next II
months, as the present law imposes tax
Il $l.l0 and the revenue bill contem-
'lates tax of $500 gallon. A stock
4 approximately 2300000o0 gallons has
in the bonded warehouses :,
nd on the shelves OF wholesale and re-
all liquor dealers. Approximately 1907 :
10000 gallons are in warehouses and =
pom that quantity the government will y
ollect taxes as it Ia withdrawn. y
Few men will be thrown out of work =,
v the operation of the law. Dlstilleries
ow running will continue to produce al !,
biol for commercial purposes with lit Il
e change in their forces. Upon this n
ass of alcohol with the exception of al f.
biol for denaturization, the revenue bill K,
ould impose tax of $500, doubling the &C
resent income from this source. al
There are approximately 700 distiller- D
s in the country, of which more than hi
,lf are small fruit brandy plants. The W
mount of capital invested in the latter W
ass is not great in the aggregate. The fic
.pital invested in the big producing
ants mounts high into the millions. ia
ficials here believe that losses viii be he
ore than wiped out by the greatly to
CHER prices distillers will obtain for ly
cir product, already manufactured. In ra
e opinion of some officials whiskey will &c
selling at SIS gallon within IL re,
onths, affording distillers enormous in
offs which will more than compensate fai
r the loss of capital invested in plants RI
AT the same time the plants will con- do
Tue to operate on an approximate 60 chi
r cent production basis, making com 30
,rcial alcohol A tremendous growth gre
the use of commercial alcohol is antici- po
ted, which in time may result in the hui
mand for quantity of alcohol at least a
large as the present output for all eat
rposes.