THE LIQUOR BAROMETER.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11826, 2 December 1901, Page 7

THE LIQUOR BAROMETER.

TO THE EDITOR. Sir,—ln your loading article on the increased consumption of alcoholic liquors, as shown by the statistics compiled by the Rev. E. Walker, you correctly state that the true objection to the Liquor Bill depends altogether upon the amount of suffering, of wretchedness, and of physical, social, and moral degradation which it entails." I would like to see how the -prohibitionists account for the fact that an increased consumption of liquor inevitably means a corresponding increase of crime, misery, and wretchedness, while concurrently the decreased consumption of intoxicants means the increase of domestic comfort and national prosperity. This has been testified to recently in the columns of your Saturday supplements by the personal testimony of Mr. Harrison, of Whangarei, and Mr. T. Allen, of this city, who quite recently have visited the prohibition districts of America. But perhaps the evidence of our own statistics will to sprue minds be more convincing. Since 1896 there has been a steady rise both in the consumption of liquor and charges, of drunkenness, as per Government Year Book, page 160. Beer Wine. Spirits Arrests consumed. for Orals. Gals. Gals. Drunkenness. 1896 ... 5,565, 09,473 451.679 4,915 1897 ... 5,931,550 105.060 478,136 5,156 1898 ... 6,204,700 107,595 491,846 5,559 1899 ... 6,137,140 111,049 515.334 6,279 In the same time the admissions to the lunatic asyhfms have been respectively, 2193, 2430, 2480, 2553, and 2672. Unfortunately the increase of population does not lessen the percentage. In 1896 the returns showed one insane person to every 308 of tho population, in 1900 one to every 288. The authority quoted gives the proportion duo to drink as 16.38 per cent., but that is much below the percentage given by authorities oil tho question. A writer in one of our leading magazines gives the percentage as 31.6, another at 35 per cent., while one of our local visiting officials, after some years of observation, stated publicly that directly and indirectly drink was responsible for 75 per cent, of admissions. Dr. Edwards, of England, said that alcoholism is responsible for 60 per cent, of cases sent to the asylums.

The prohibition State of Kansas, .with a larger population than New Zealand, recently returned 941 persons in her asylums, 30 due to drink, a percentage of 3.1. A big contrast to on; colony. For the year ending 1900, Dr. MaoGregor informs us that 407 persons were admitted to on' asylums, which exceeds one per day. Commissioner Tunbridge stales that the arrests for drunkenness were 7299, something like 20 v : .r day When we read these figures it fails to convey to the mind a tithe of the heart-breaking anguish the community suffers through this blighting traffic, which the people could end, and would, could they be freed from the hypnotising influences of mammon and appetite. In the presence of an evil so terrible in its tangible results, to read the Aunt Sally line of argument that " one working man spend.-i three pence in . beer and another three pence in 'bus fare," and it. is inferentially stated that the temperance people hold up the former as a shocking example, and thus estrange sympathy as the veto of the liquor traffic by the votes of the people, weakens the moral suasion aspect ot the reform, as though a free people could lie influenced to vote the traffic out except by moral suasion.

While under present conditions true, that the consumption of liquor rises and falls with the prosperity or depression of tho people generally, as does the expenditure on the necessaries and luxuries of life, vet the permanent results of the expenditure are as wide apart as the poles, as shown in the earlier part of this letter. I fear that the evident is undeniable that the drink habit is on the increase, and thoroughly agree with you that this question is " one of the most serious of our many great social problems." Would that the community would so consider it. —I am, etc., Uncle John. November 26, 1901.