"THERE'S NOTHING LIKE LEATHER"

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1671, 24 September 1887, Page 2

"THERE'S NOTHING LIKE LEATHER"

Does any one still stumble at the faofc of the beer money remaining, ciroulatin? m the country, employing labor, etc 1 Let him look at thia faot. In all the antecedent transactions with the beer previous to the drinking of it, there were what Adam Smith called "two values." The farmer having had capital and labor t the Boil possessed reproductive power,' These two values produced the barley, which now represents one value m the hands of the farmer. The maltster brought with him more than equivalent value — for the farmer moat have a profit, — and exchanged it for the barley. Then comes the brewer with an equivalent for the increased value of the malt and the profit of^the^malater. Still there are the the two values, and bo on through th« transaction till it cornea to the counter of the publican, The two values are there : one m the pint of beer, the other m the sirpen ca of his caßtomer. But the exchange is made — the publican gets the sixpence, the customer swallows the beer. The value remalnß m the pocket of the publican, bat the other is — where ? It ia. lost as absolutely as if, instead of drinking the beer, the purchaser had thrown it Into the gutter. To make thin still more clear, let us use one more Illustration. Let as suppose two men, each having £1' m his pocket ; eaoh of them has very bad shoes on his feet, and they propose going to the shoemaker, each for a pair of new shoes, One is a sober man ; a teetotaler. He goes direct to the shoemaker and gets his Bhoes : with these on his feet he is able with comtort and safety to his health to go out to his labor, and, because of the protection obtained from his new shoes, earn more than another £1 wherewith to replace the one spent, and furnisirhimself again with new Bhoes when required. The second man likes a pint of beer. In* stead of going to the shoemaker with his mate, he looks into the "Red Jblon " or the " Black Swan," gads genial companions and surroundings there, — forgets be intended to buy much needed shoes, and Bpends his £ m liquor, which we will assume be oould drink without suffering any injury. Bat what is the eoonomio result 1 The £1 of each man has changed hands. They each remain. One m the haude of the shoemaker, and Its equivalent is m the shoes on the feet of his customer. The £1 of the other man is m the hands of the publioan, bat whore is the equivalent m the hands of his customer 1 What has he got to stand for the shoes of his. mate ? At best, nothing but a memory not very marketable. He has to return to hit labor, to battle with his surroundings at .he best may, with hia toea still looking out ou the gravel. Mr Hoyle, we find, uses jasb this illustration m "Our National Resources.'* Having supposed the transaction, as we have desorlbed it, to have he^n completed he continues — . . . To put the oontrast plainly it is:— Publioan, ten or fifteen shillings. Customer nothing (exoept headaohe). Shoemaker, ten or fifteen shillings, Customer, pair of good shoes. In the words of Adam Smith, — " m the latter case there are two values instead of one. ■ " I might have supposed that, instead of purchasing a pair of shoes, the man had spent his ten or fifteen shillings m the purchase of food. In that case, what would have been the result ? The food purohased would, of oourae, have been oonsumed, as m the oasa of the beer ; but during its consumption it would have supplied the man with nourishment for a oouple of weeka, during whioh time he would reproduce by his labor an equivalent, or more than an equivalent, for that whioh he consumed. If he were engaged m oaliooweaving, he would, during the fortnight, produoe 1000 yards of callico ; there would then have been fifteen shillings' worth of food consumed, but 1000 yards of calico produoed. The world would have been poorer by the food used but richer by the calico produced." We think this must make dear to all who are willing to see, that the economic results of the brewing industry are a loss instead of a gain ; and bo far from brewing being " an induotry it would not answer the purpose of tha State to cripple," it is one which should be prohibited as being, opposed to the beat economio interests ot the colony. — " Eoouomica of Drink,"