THE DRINK BILL FOR 1914

Evening Post, Volume LXXXIX, Issue 150, 26 June 1915, Page 6

THE DRINK BILL FOR 1914

— » The drink bill for New Zealand for tho year 1914, based upon the Customs returns of liquor cleared for consumption, and beer manufactured in the Dominion, as prepared by Mr. A, S. Adams, barrister, Dunedin, is given below. The basis ot calculation adopted is the same as used in previous years, and, as pointed out in the statement for 1913, it is probable that the cost to the actual consumer is more than the figures show. There is an increase m the actual quantity of intoxicating liquor consumed, but the population has also increased, and the consumption per head of population shows a fractional decrease of 1.2 d (one penny and one-fifth of a penny). The particulars are as follow :— '£ Spirits: 887.116 gallon* at £2 por gallon 1,774,232 , Increase, 10.347 gallons Wines. 156,511 gallons at £2 per gallon 313,032 Increase, 9.455 gallons Lmported Beer: 292.850 ga110ns at 6s per gallon .... ... 87,855 Decrcaeo, 6,360 gallons Beer Brewed in New Zealand ; 10.356,240 gallons at 4s pcl 1 gallon 2.071.248 Increase, 355.040 gallons Total 4^246.357 Total for year 1913, £4137.653; increase, £103, <04. Kstimated mean population for 1914. t.090,329; members of Expeditionary Forces who left Dominion during latter half of 1914, 11.998; add three-fourths of those. 8998 . Maoris, Census 1911, 49.844 ; ' total, 1,149.171. Estimated increase. 30.682. Cost of liquor per head, 1914, £3 13s 10.8 d; cost of liquor per head, 1913, £3 14s; decrease, 1.2 d. The quantities of different liquors conburned per bead of population work out as under : — Spirits .77 gallon, .wines