DRINK IN NEW SOUTH WALES.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1694, 24 October 1887, Page 4

DRINK IN NEW SOUTH WALES.

The Sydney correspondent cf the Melbourne " Argus" writes : —

The report of the Drink Commission has at length made ita appearance. This Commission was originally appointed by Sir John Robertson, and there was a good deal of quarrelling at first as to the respective representation on it of the publican and the abolitionist, aud what with resignations and now appointments, the teetotallers ultimately got lha beet of it. The Government ha? several timsß been preßeed to force the production of the report, because till it appeard, legislation waa m abeyancfi, but Mr Alexander Oliver, the Chairman, has managed to vet the time he wanted, and baa produced a very valuable report, basked by a body of evidence. >he inquiry has been limited to the metropolitan district, and assuming tha'. the evidence has been fairly tested and checked, the information brought oat is valuable as well a? interest' ing. It appears tha* iv New South Wales we drink more rp rits than you do m Victoria, bat has «-er and leßa wine We also drink more spirits than the people m the United Kingdon?, but v.ry much less beer and a little more nine. At the same tlme,the Commission are of opinion that the statistics clearly prove that our drinking dees not keep pace with the increase of popalaikn, except as respects j imported tparkling wine, bottled beer, ' and colonial bear. Daring the past five years our greater temperance may have been due to our greater poverty, beoauße the way m which bad times tell on the consumption of l'quor has always been well marked . The drink bill of the color y for last year Is estimated at £4,634,000. or £4 143 6|i per head of the population. Of the total value about £2,000 000 ■ U represented by spirits, £1 500,000 by colonlsl beer, and nearly £600,000 by Imported bottled beer. The value of the colonial wine consumed exceeds £250,000 A» to the quality of our driuks, the commission Is not very comforting. It is true that the analysts can discover no deleterious foreign ingredienti, but the base of most of the public-house grog is silent spirit, flavoured with imitation brandy, whisky or gin, according to the taste of the drinker The colonial beer as well as the spirits also indicates the presence of fusel oil, and this is attributed to the warm temperature at which colonial beer is brewed. The quantity m beer is only a fifth or sixth of that m the ordlnaiy spirit, yet, as a man who drinks beer takes five or six limea as muoh as a man who drinks spirits, he imb.bes as moch fusel oil m the one way as be would the other. The Commission, however, ate of opinion that the brewers might im-

prove their process and make beer at auocesa fully as is done m other countries. A further redaction m the number of public-houses is recommended, one liquor licence to eveiy eighty electors being considered sufficient, and that would bring down our present number of licensed houses from 500 to 400. For the country one house for every ICO eleotors is considered soffiient, and the question of compensation, it Is thought, ! would be sufficiently met by allowing Tested interests to lie fcr five years. The Oommiwion supports the Sanday prohibition, and also the early dosing with some slight relaxation In favor cf matket gardeners aud others, whose business brings them into Sydney at an early hour m the morning. Private bars are con demned, except m special cases, and there has been % good deal of evidence tendered of late to chow that a great rnaoy of theie bars, which have been sublet to

women at four tinea the rental which a legitimate trade would bear, are nothing bitter than brothels m disguise.