Signs of the Times in the United States.
only from $10,534,201 to $15,147,784, it will be seen that the extra money goes almost wholly into the pockets of the whisky-makers. According to figures furnished by the government Bureau of Statistics, there are consumed in the United States in one year about forty million barrels of beer, ninety-eight million gallons of proof spirits, and thirty million and five hundred thousand gallons of wine. These drinkables, sold at retail, take out of the pockets of consumers in a single twelvemonth the sum of $1,454,119,858. It is a good deal of money, and one is tempted to consider what it could accomplish if it were put to really useful purposes, instead of being practically thrown away. It would provide 500,000 families, or 2,500,000 people—more than the entire population of the States of New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont, Maine, North Dakota, and Montana—with comfortable homes, clothing, and provisions for twelve whole months. To each family it would give $350 for provisions, $80 for clothing, $30 for shoes, $20 for newspapers, magazines, and books, $50 for church and charitable purposes, and would build for each family a house costing $1500, with $350 to furnish it—thus bestowing upon each one of the half million families $2,380, and leaving a balance of $264,119,000 to erect 52,818 churches, each costing $5,000. The figures arrange themselves in tabulated form as follows: 500,000 families, $350 each for provisions . . . $175,000,000
500,000 families, $80 each for clothing . . . 40,000,000
500,000 families, $30 each for shoes . . . 15,000,000
500,000 families, $20 each for books etc. . . . 10,000,000
500,000 families, $50 each for charity, etc. . . . 25,000,000
500,000 houses, $1,500 each . . . 750,000,000
500,000 families, $350 each for furniture . . . 175,000,000
52,818 churches, $5,000 each . . . 264,119,000
Total . . . $1,454,119,000 It is practically impossible for the human mind to grasp so enormous a sum of money, but recognition of its magnitude may be rendered more easy by comparing with it certain other expenditures which are made for the every-day necessaries of life. For instance, the people of the United States in a year, spend $660,000,000 for meats and $600,000,000 for breadstuffs. They pay out $630,000,000 for cotton and worsted goods, for wearing apparel and household use. Boots and shoes cost them $261,000,000 in the same length of time. For iron and steel they spend $580,000,000, for sugar and molasses $225,000,000, and for tea, coffee, and chocolate $169,000,000. It will be noticed that no two of these items, which represent the chief expenses of the nation, equal in sum the total expenditure for liquors; the meats and breadstuffs together amount to only $1,260,000,000. One is not so much surprised to learn that during the last twelve months alcohol sent sixty thousand persons in this country to drunkard's graves, or seven for every hour of day or night throughout the year.