A DWINDLING DRINK BILL.

Te Aroha News, 20 November 1906, Page 4

A DWINDLING DRINK BILL.

The crusade against strong drink that has been, going on in the United Kingdom during the past seventy years seems at last to be bearing some fruitThe last report of the Commissioners of Inland Revenue shows a very considerable decretftse in the consumption of alcohol, and many authorities contend that this is not due to bad trade, which always has a sobering effect upon the community, but to a change in the habits of the people- Whatever the cause may be, the figures indicate flint the decline has been a substantial one. In the ease of beer, notwithstanding tlje rise in population, there has been a continuous decrease since 18991900 in the total quantity consumed in the United Kingdom, and a substantial decline in the quantity drunk per head. There also lias been a marked decrease in the consumption of spirits since 1902-3. In that year 34,765,135 gallons, representing -83 of a gallon per head of home-made spirits, were retained for home consumption, while in 1905-6 the total was 32,486,958 gallons, or -75 per head- The total of foreign spirits fell in the same time from 8,550,613 to 6,734,991 gallons, and the consumption per head from -20 to .15. Talcing all descriptions of spirits, the consumption per head has fallen from 1.03 gallons in 1902-3 to -90 gallons in 1905-6- The prohibitionists will be reminded, of course, that this decline has taken place without any attempt to enforce their doctrines or to make (the- people-sober-by Act of- Parliament-'