OF THE VALUE IS ALCOHOL TO A NATION?

White Ribbon, Volume 33, Issue 382, 18 May 1927, Page 5

OF THE VALUE IS ALCOHOL TO A NATION?

In 1925, according to the Yeai Book of the United Kingdom Alliance the people of the United Kingdom spent 1315,000,000 on alcoholic drinke. It •vas a year of trade depression, nevertheless this vast sum was paid for a useless and even harmful self-indul-gence; and there was consequently so much less purchasing power left available for things conducive to a filLr life. I hiring the same year of radr depression the brewery profits were as high as ever, and in some cases higher than ever. The l»ad effect of alcohol upon workers’ steadiness of timekeeping is well brought out by the prolonged recorded experience of Messrs Creed and Co., electrical engin••ers at Croydon, which was quoted b> Mr W. Hamilton Whyte, Director of the School of Economics, Bristol University, in a recent speech reported in the “Alliance News'’ of 1926; “Some years before the war that fain decided to empty only total abstainers, and their managing director, Mr F. (i. Creed, had published interesting figures with reference to the influence of alcohol on lost time, accidents and output. He said that the average lost tune was probably about 10 per cent, in the ordinary engineering trades: at their works it was only a half of 1 per cent At the outbreak of war. under normal conditions, they were oblige! to engage a number of rnen who were not total abstainers; the average then rose to 5 per cent. But during the period the general average in the trade rose to 15 i*er cent. Since 1920 pie-war conditions had Imm*ii re-established in the works, and from 1921 to 192 4 the pereentage of lost time from all causes had been under 1.75 per cent. They jg»id to insurance companies 4s till in premiums, whereas other firms doing similar work paid 8s 6d." Mr Whyte also quoted an important tutement made by Sir Thomas Oliver in a lecture oil “Alcohol in Relation to Industrial Hygiene.and Efficiency,’ deli vered to the Royal Society of Arts. The conclusion the lecturer had come to after an impartial survey of the whole question, was as follows: — “Alcohol does not Increase the resistance of the body to disease: too often it paves the way to such diseases, for example, as tuberculosis. When taken

to the point of interfering with the ope ration of co-ordinating nerve tissues in the brain, alcohol tends to impair efficiency, intellectual and physical, so that no man who has Important work to do is acting in the l**st interests of his work or is doing the best for himself by undertaking it upon alcohol.” Mr Whyte appealed for the setting up of a Royal Commission, whose business would be to investigate results, not to discuss remedies, and who would have l>c..er ?.» cover the whole field. Infor-* mat ion could la* collected and coordinated. Many sources could be tapped which at present were inaccessible, anil data would be provided as a guide for future action. Some people would say, "Things cannot wait.” But he was convinced that such an enquiry instead of postponing action, would itself Ih* a very powerful means of educating the public ami awakening public opinion. There was a feeling abroad that on l>oth sides in this controversy the facts were somewhat coloured, and politicians were only too glad to keep clear of a very tangled, difficult problem. Meanwhile the danger was continuing. This was an age of ' social enquiry’, and the causes of poverty and unemployed were being repeatedly explored. Why hesitate to investigate one of the biggest contributing factors? There was re:»dy all the equipment in machinery and personnel. Let the (Government take the initiative. Tt may In- objected that a considerable proportion of the price paid for alcoholic drinks is absorbed by the Government for public purposes, through the heavy taxation it Imposes upon the Trade. But a financial gain to the Government is no adequate compensation to the nation tor the damage done to the health, efficiency, and industrial prosperity of the people.—From “Brotherhood,’ February. 1927.