WHAT WE SPEND ON DRINK.

Globe, Volume XXIV, Issue 2562, 24 June 1882, Page 3

WHAT WE SPEND ON DRINK.

To the Editor of the Olobe, Sik, —The Customs and Excise returns, giving an abstract of all duties and revenue collected by the Customs Department during the year 1881, have just been laid before both Houses of the General Assembly at present in session ; and now that the interest occasioned by the election of licensing committees, and the taking of the local option votes, has completely subsided, and the publicans and brewers are bestirring themselves to obtain numerous amendments to the Licensing Act of last session, it may not be unacceptable to your readers to have placed before them a statement showing the amount of money expended in New Zealand upon intoxicating liquors during the financial year of 1881. Before doing so, however, I should like, with a view to a comparison of drink bills of 1880 and 1881, to make an explanation as to tho quantity of colonial beer included in the Bill of 1880, and published in your issue of the 23rd July, 1881. Writing to you under that date, I took occasion to inform your readers that the Hon. T. Dick, in moving the second reading of the Licensing Bill, bad stated that the quantity on which the beer tax was paid (including the average for the first two months of the year, during which period the tax was not in force) was 4,857,850 gallons. I find, as a matter of fact, that Mr Dick, in making that statement, quoted th«K wrong figures. The actual amount reoeived'for ten months on account of the beer tax was £30,475. Add to this the average for the first two months of the year, and the total would be £36,569, representing 2,925,520, a difference of uo less than 1,932.330 gallons. Tho following table gives particulars of the various kinds of alcoholic drinks consumed, together with the amount of money expended thereon. It also gives the consumption for 1880 : 1881. Gallons. £ Spirits 673,267 at 40a 1,146,534 Wines ... 165 460 at 40a 330,920 English Beer ... 437,970 at 6s 131,391 Colonial Beer... 2,312,080 at 6s 693,624 Colonial Beer... 2,312.080 at 2a 131,208 Total £2,533,677 1880. Spirits 557,051 at 40s 1,114,102 Wines 152,002 at 40s 301,004 English Beer ... 450,990 at 6a 135,297 Colonial Beer... 1,432,760 at 6a 433,828 Colonial Beer... 1,462,760 at 2a 146,276 Total £2,138.507 Showing an increase in the consumption during the year 1881 of £395,170, With a view of elucidating the method by which the above totals are arrived at, it may be necessary to offer a few explanations. I have put down the cost to the consumer of the imported wines and spirits at 40s per gallon, in order to be under rather than over the mark. Were I to adopt the “ sixpenny glass” as a bag's, and proceed on the assumption that all imported spirituous liquors were retailed at that price, it would be found that the expenditure of money would be far greater than I have debited them with. English beer is dispensed at 6d per glass ; a gallon give sixteen half pint glasses ; tha cost to tho consumer is consequently 8j per gallon. Seeing, however, that it is occasionally sold by the gallon, or by tho doz=tn bottles, and not always retailed at per glass, I have estimated the whole amount at the very moderate figure of 6s per gallon. With regard to the expenditure on colonial beer, it will be necessary, perhaps, to repeat my explanation of the method I have adopted of arriving at an approximation of the sum spent in its purchase by the consumer. Taking the different qualities of beer sold by the brewers, the average cost to the publican (previous to the tax of 31 per gallon being levied) was a fraction under Is 6d per gallon. About equal quantities of this is retailed at 3d and 6d per glass; the average retail price is therefore 4Jd per glass. Allowing two glasses to the pint, tho number contained in a gallon will be sixteen ; these sold at the average price of 3d per glass brings the publican in 6s per gallon—an exceedingly modest profit of 300 per cent! Assuming that my calculation is a correct one, and that the quantity of beer thus disposed of is equal to one-half the total amount made, there yet remains the other half to be accounted for. It will be observed, on referring to the figures representing the drink bill, that an equal quantity of colonial beer is estimated at 2s and 6j per gallon respectively. Tho explanation of this is to ba found in the fact that there exists iu tho colony a largo number of people who obtain their beer in a semi-wholesale manner, either from tho pub lioau or the brewer, and who pay on an average eomething like 2s per gallon. In estimating tho consumption of beer by tho semi-wholesale purchasers at one-half the whole amount, I am considerably within the exact figure, tho proportion being one-third at 2s to two-thirds at 6s.

With the exception of English beer, there has been an all-round increase in the quantity of intoxicating liquors consumed during the past twelve mouths. Spirits show an increase of 16,216 gallons ; wines, an increase of 13,458 gallons j whilst colonial beer, in spite of the tax of 3d per gallon, has increased by 1,698,640 gallons. Comparing the aggregates for tho two years, it will be seen that the amount of the drink bi'l ha* risen from £2,138,507 in 1880 to £2,533,677 in 1881, an increase of £395,170. This is a result that is anything but creditable to the colony. The population has increased but very little; there have been but few public works in course of progress ; whilst commerce gonerally has not displayed any very substantial expansion daring the financial year at present under consideration. Notwithstanding which, we have an enlargement of tho New Zealand drink bill by nearly £400,000. In connection with the colonial expenditure on drink, it may bo interesting to indicate, as near "as possible, the number of licenses at present in force in Now Zealand. On the 16th July, 1880, there were in existence 1542 publicans’ licenses, I6L night licenses, 248 wholesale, 72 accommodation, 53 bush, 53 packet, 213 to sell by the bottle, 15 wine and beer, 14 brewers’, 3 colonial wine, and 1 railway license. Under the Distillation Act there were 137 brewers’ and 402 wine and spirit licenses issued, making a grand total of 2919 licenses. The fees received represented a no lose sum than £49,344 19s 4d. In conclusion, the London '‘Times,” in dis cussing tho national drink bill a year ago, expressed the fear that “the ups and downc of our drinking expenditure simply ro,-;re sentod the ups and downs of our prosperity, employment, and wages but here in New Zealand it has not been wholly so, for we have a considerable increase in our colonial drinking without a corresponding increase in our colonial prosperity. Bat this is hardly a matter for surprise when wo rememner the fact that wo have planted throughout the land nearly 3000 houses licensed to push a traffic which can only prosper in proportion as it involves the degradation, impoverishment, and ruin of our fellow men; for, to quote tho eloquent language of one of the loader* from the newspaper just referred to, “Drinking baffle* us, confound* us, shames us, and mocks us at every point. It outwits alike the teacher, the man of busines", the patriot, and the legislator. Every other institution may flounder in hopeless difficulties; tho public house holds its triumphant course.” Yours, ko. r O. M. Ghat, Christchurch, June 20th, 1862.