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New Zealand Mail, Issue 777, 21 January 1887, Page 23

Whatever theories may he set up to account for the large falling off in the Customs revenue generally, there is one item as to which the case seems tolerably clear. By far the largest single item in the return of Customs duties is spirits. If to that be added the receipts from wine and beer (import) duties —excluding, of course, the excise duty on beer—we find that alcoholic liquors yield half as much again as any other class of dutiable goods. Consequently the wine and spirit duties are the mainstay of a Colonial Treasurer’s finance. Yet these items have long exhibited a large, steady, and persistent diminution of profitableness. They have gone down month by month, quarter by quarter, and year by year. Let the weather be as cold as it likes, it no longer inspires the great majority of the public with the fallacious desire to “ put some warmth inside them ’’bydrinkingfreely of spirits. Let the weather be as warm as —say the present season —it does not make people try to “ cool their coppers” by imbibing an increased allowance of wine and beer. Holidays no longer constitute the signal for a wholesale “ drunk,” and the number of victims to “ the sun,” or to “ lobster salad,” or to “ just a a drop too much, your Worship,” grows small by degrees, and beautifully less. The irresistible logic of hard facts and statistics proves unanswerably that the consumption of alcohol is persistently diminishing, and hence the reduced quantities on which the import duty is paid. This is due doubtless in a large measure to the laudable and very successful exertions of the temperance bodies who carry on their propagandism with “ zeal that cannot be too highly praised.” It is also attributable to the conviction which has been steadily growing upon the minds of people generally that they can hardly put their money to a worse or less satisfactory use than to dissolve it in liquor. Further, the fact must not be ignored that the spending power of the public has decreased during the last few years, and that therefore they have been unable to spend so much as formerly on drink, whatever their inclination might be. The effect of all these causes is, however, the same—that the chief item of revenue is failing more and more. It has always been a favourite theory among the teetotallers, that if the consumption of liquor were checked, the consumption of other dutiable articles would increase, because the money saved on the grog bills would be available for expenditure in less harmful directions, so that the revenue would not really suffer from the public’s improved habits oftemperanee. Unfortunately, experience does not bear out this theory. The wine and spirit duties go down “ hand over fist,” but the others do not go up. The resuitis a very serious hole in the public purse, and it becomes a formidable question how the yawning cavity is to be filled. An increased duty on spirits might not materially accelerate the decrease in their consumption, but it would assuredly offer a very high premium to illicit distillation. It is open to question whether the present high duties have not had that effect. Shrewd suspicions are entertained by those competent to judge that there is evea now a very appreciable loss to the revenue through

illicit distillation, but hitherto it has proved impossible to test the truth of the suspicion. The facilities offered by such a country as New Zealand for this unlawful trade are of course very great, and the profits are so enormous that the temptation must be exceedingly keen. Excessive duties would, therefore bo likely to defeat their own end, and it is improbable that the remedy can be found in this direction for the financial difficulty caused by the decreased consumption. Nor is it easy to see what new impost can well be. put on to supply the deficiency. It would in one way be appropriate to increase the duties on another “ drinkable” tea, but it is doubtful whether this would stand such a chance of a favourable reception as to induce the Government to risk proposing it. Look at the position from whatever point we may, it is difficult to discern any safe mode of dealing with the pending deficit save (1) a slight increase in the Property Tax; (2) the adoption of a more remunerative railway tariff; (3) the enforcement of sweeping retrenchment and strict economy in expenditure. We are glad to see ( that Ministers appear at length to be awaking to the need of adopting at any rate the last of these measures.