The Brotherhood of the Pipe

Auckland Star, Volume XVII, Issue 298, 18 December 1886, Page 5

The Brotherhood of the Pipe

TEA, coffee, and cue a are articles of common consumption, but tho use of tobacco i.~, with some immaterial exceptions; limited to one sex. For thi-» reason vre find the consumption per head of the population published in the -annual reports of her Majesty's Oommis*i ners of Inland Revenue interesting enough in relation to fireside beverages, but, mt quite so vuluablo when applied as a gauge to the consump!ion ot the weed -fragrant or otherwise. Ie is of little consequence to loam that 23 o/. por head represents the consumption of tobacco in the United Kingdom when we recollect that " tho heads " belong to tho housewives who drive thoir spouses into the back garden to amoko their post-prandial pipe, and to ciphers of humanity* more familiar with the tubs of a feeding-bottle than that of v hookah. Yet by maaus of the figures at our disposal we have ample data enabling us to arrive at a near approximate number of the inhabitants of those islands belonging to tho brotherhood of tho pipe. The male population of the Unitod Kingdom, exceeding fifteen years of age, was, in round numbers, ton millions and a quarter on- the dato of the latest enumeration. From information received for the purpose of the present article we feel justified in stating that one half the indoor commercial clauses, clerks, shopmen, &c, may be described as regular smokers. Among the artisan clasfes, fa.m labourers, and all those who are at liberty to smoke during working hours, the proportion of smokers must be considerably larger, so that it may be assumed that bO per cent, of tbe male popu lation exceeding fifteen years of age have acquired the habit, On this basis we find tho number of smokers tobaabout 6,150,000, and the average capitation consumption of tobacco about 8 lb. 3 ox. This ia hardly an extravagant figure, as it i 9 only equivalent to 2J oz p"rr week per smoker. In money valuo it represents an individual expenddituro of, say, two guineas per annum, or a gross sum of £12,915,000. Oddly enough, this amount is just one half of that recei/ed by tho railway companies for the conveyance of all cliß-'e■> of passengers during the yenr ISS4. Two other peculiarities may bo hero mentioned in connection with the consumption oi tobacco—namely, that half a gallon of spirits and something more than half a barrel of beer was consumed for eanh pound of tobacco cleared by'tha excise authorities.

While the yearly consumption of tobacco has increased from 23 to 53 millions of pounds cinoe 1841, the United Kingdom ia pf.il! a long way behind other countries, except, Italy, in the u»e of it. In Belgium and Holland the average per head of tha total population is a3 high as 84oz. ; in S» itzorland, 82 ; Austria, SO; Germany, 72 ; United States, 59; and so on, Russia approximating most nearly with 240z., while Italy consumes 220z. We can hardly expect any material abatement in our tobacco duties, but there is every reason to relieve that a larga reduction therein _ would be followed by a vary con-iderablo increase m the demand for tobacco, and a larger field would be opened up for tobacco manufacturers and retnil dealers. For the financial ve.ir ending 31st March la°t, there were 561 manufacturers and 290.032 retail dealers who took ont licenses from the Excise authorities. As a largo number of dealers in tobacco hoH beer and spirit license?, it, is to bs presumed that this peculiarity of the trade explains the discrepancy between tho Excise and Censu3 returns In tbo latter the number of perjone working and dealing in pipes and tobacco (Fngland arid Wales)' is fot down at 22,175, including 14-2 Germans, 7S Poles, 45 Ruesiane, and lesser numbers of Dane?, Norwegians, Swedes, Austrian, Hungarians, and Swiss.