Evening star., 1933-03-12

bushels Of malt on his back to the third-no0
grinding room every morning, and In the fourth
year, IN charge of the brewing. he married the
brewers daughter, Elizabeth NJ Morris, thRB
falling heir to the business.
Perot ordered one Of the first stationary
steam engines erected IN his place; 1t operated
for more than 50 years and now. the oldest one
in the country, Is On display at the Buffalo
plant. Francis Perot was succeeded by his son.
T. Morris Perot and today the eighth genera
ton Of the Perot Morris families holds sway.
Though their factories are slowed down.
making only near beer. they will start In fun
magic wand.
But to return to prohibition days. BAnk
in 1909, IS 900 barrels Of beer were being pro-
duced tn an the States, excluding Pennsyfvania
and New York, which made $4,000 Tho
Philadelphia breveries were 50 up and coming
that they began producing more than all The
other seaports put together. Quaker beer be-
came as famous as Quaker industry and So
briefly.
Cheap rum from the West Indies captured
the popular fancy and proved a steep COM
= petitof for beer. Strong agitation followed.
Ale and porter alone were known as beers.
but in 1850 Wagner g. Lauer. in Philadelphia.
perfected lager and stimulated the industry.
-Four hundred and thirty-one breweries were
900 barrels of beer-18 900 900 of them brewed
in Pennsylvania and New York
CTRANGELY enough, the very first white
- male born in New Netherlands, Jean
Vigne, opened a brewery near what is now Wall
Street. The trade was highly aristocratic in
the middle Of the last century. The early beer
barons of New York were the cream Of the
city's elite-the Rutgers, the Kips, the Van
Cortlandts, the Beeknaans and the Van Rens-
salaers. b.. .-.-
Later came the big "guns"-Adolphus Busch,
lord Of American brewers; George Ehret,
premier, and Jacob Rupert. secretary Of state.
These ardent beermakers began rather mod
as the German immigrants began coming the
German national beverage increased in pop0-
larity beyond any ones expectations.
Saloons spread; free-lunch counters sprang
up; the handsome, strong horses Of the brewers
trucks We'd in shining beauty. In the 8os besg
threatened to drive out hard liquors
In 1914 beer was on the crest Of the wave.
The American public drank more Of It tha$
year than ever before Or since Annhes1seT.
Busch reached . capacity Of 1,65o,o00 barrels
Col. Jake Rappert brought up . close second
and KhFet made 1880 900 barrels.
Two billion gallons Of beer were drunk
throughosst the Nation, more than q glass .
800 brewe1ies raised hosannahs to the quail
tiles Of beer.
Came the war-and q new kind Of propa-
ganda. Take away the 1000, ,000,o00 that ID
invested In the liquor industry and put it to
work to win the war. Use the 100000 900
bushels Of grain for Q better purpose.
And horror Of horrors! Who are the big
brewers? All Of them Germans, if not by birth,
then by descent.
On January 49, 1920, the jig was up. Along
with Scotch, rye and wine, beer went into OBJ
Ivion
But in the very first six months Of enferce-
ment every one Of the problems Of today came
to the fore. Illegal purveyors sprang up IN
hordes and it was apparent that something was
wrong
Experts estimate that without prohibition
America would be drinking three and q half
times as much beer as it does today. Even
the Anti-Saloon League admits that speak
easies have increased under prohibition so per
cent more than the population. There ere
$4,000 Of them in the land, it is said.
What viii happen with the return Of King
Ga,nbrnus? His supporters say that divorces
will decline, women will drink less, money VIII
come out Of old socks, crime will fall OF and
breweries will turn HIS enemies say this =
lot Of foolishness.