NO BEER IN ICELAND

Dominion, Volume 28, Issue 168, 12 April 1935, Page 7

NO BEER IN ICELAND

The trade in spirits again became legal in Iceland on February 1, after more than 23 years of prohibition. Whisky, cognac, and the schnapps beloved of all Scandinavian peoples can now again be freely bought, without any of the subterfuges which resulted from a law that was not respected. Prohibition has been repealed, after a referendum, because it was steadily undermining the national morale. Not only were smugglers active, so that it was always possible to obtain spirits at a price, but the farmers were also doing a profitable trade in immature spirits made from private stills. Iceland, says the Copenhagen correspondent of “The Times,” was the first country to introduce prohibition. In consequence of a referendum in 1911, in which 60 per cent, of the votes favoured prohibition, a law prohibiting the importation of all beer, wines, and spirits came into effect on January 1, 1912, though the stocks already in the country could be legally bought and sold up to January 1, 1915. In 1922 the Icelanders were compelled to modify their prohibition law. The decline in the consumption of wine had disturbed Spain, one of the best customers for Icelandic klipfish, and under the threat of reprisals Iceland had to open her doors to wines with an alcoholic content of 21 per cent. The prohibition on spirits, and on beers with an alcoholic content of more than 2-i per cent., was, however, retained. Even to-day, when both wines and spirits have been legalised, beer is still prohibited.