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Hokitika Guardian, 29 December 1923, Page 2

I'I.UFKSSOH St.iim.ino assisted bv some others has jireo• nl l rl the leading woild with a ton k cut it I d ‘Jlie Action of Alcohol on Man." From a levicw ol : I-,. piilJjc t ion ii would appear it has merits v.kii h will appeal to t.lie general reader tortile .sensible view taken ia tlie handling of the g-neial qi.cvtinn. Advocates of “I'ussyfootism will iiml ill tho work little to please them. In Ins preface. Profe-emr Starling sfatet hnt the evidence prcseiiic-d in this voi* mre which lias been v.iufen from the purely scientific .standpoint has >'onviiced him ibat in a. civilised seemly -nep a< oil's the abolition ol all idro--110 1 i,■ Leverages from our midst, even .' carried mil by universal consent, wo ml be a mistake, and contrary to the pcimancut interest ol the race. Il it were enforced by legislation against the wishes and in ions <d' a luge proportion of the members of the community, be believes it would he little short of a. calamity, Aiidle it would mi result in the long run in the im- ] iovenient of national health and efficiency, it would diminish that respect fe t the law and that identification of self with the law which tiro essential foi tho stability and wellarc of a democracy. ’J lie Professor lias divided Ids matter into influence of alcohol on human behaviour, on fatigue, on digestion. on the circulation of the blood, in, respiration, on the regulation < ' hdlv tempo,: attire, and on the community im a whole. A chapter is aho devoted to the effects of the immoderate us( of alcohol. An appendices, there a•■(■ included the following three essays: -- Alcohol as a Medicine, hv I)r. Hubert Hutchison ; Alcohol and its Relations to Problems in Mental Disorders, by Sir Frederick AY. Mott; and Alcohol and Mortality, by Doctor Raymond Pearl. Tlie text, is supported by numerous statistics and diagrams.

! \ 'rrfoi’GHTi'l'i. article appears in a late j "Review” of the AAVstniiiistor Bank, | Ltd., entitled “Production, Population ami Income. ’ U is based on the des: iambic oi connecting up our net post-war production with the general level in pre-war years. As, however, there i- no census of production, estimates regarding the prevent position must lie in the nature of an extremoiv hnznrdous conjecture, especially as change- have taken place in the characters of industries, conditions of employment have been modified, costs have increased and values have changed, while the seal" of taxation and. Customs and Excise duties have been greatly altered since, the Census of Production of 1907 was taken. One .salient fait, however, is that more persons are being maintained in Great Britain now than in any pre-war year, namely .12.71)7.330. according to the 1921 Cen,us, and 10.831.390 in 1911. A further fact is that these persons are drawing support from an output which from all indications is considerably •below that of an average pre-war year. With probably over 1.300.000 unemployed or on short time to-day, it is reasonable to assume that tlie number of wage earners now at work is rough!v 300.000 below* the 1911 average, although the number available for work ,s about 1.000.000 more. It is also clear that with this extra million the production of 1914. if achieved to-day. would, measured by post-war standards. he sub-normal. In this article statistics are given of the not national production ot 1913 and of 1922. the latter being based on exports and net imports at current values and also at IPI3 values. From these statistics the deduction is drawn that the value of our net production for 1922 was £2.300.090.000, and is approximately ■s-> to-unv. This, however, is equivalent U> £1,300.900.000 in 1913. purchasing power, as aconiparcd with our net production in that year of £1,(380.009,000. Our net national output is accordingly about 22 per cent, below the pre-war average. Our exports in 1922 were so low when measured in 1913 values, and our imports so high iq cortiPtivioou, that w updouMadly

made good some of the deficiency in our own output by import?, and to this extent, it may lie argued, wo were liv-

ing on capital